Andes Basin Focal Project

Dear all

In December 2009 we completed the BFPANDES final report.  The report has now been accepted for distribution by the CPWF and you can find a copy of it in the links below:
report and apendices.

The AguAAndes policy support system and associated datasets is also available at http://www.policysupport.org/links/aguaandes

We thank you for your participation in the project and we do hope that you find these reports and tools of interest and use.

We are about to begin a CPWF phase II project which focuses on supporting negotiations around benefit sharing mechanisms in specific basins in the Andes and will  be in contact with many of you who are involved in BSMs to see how our research and development can support these activities.  The website for this new project will be held at http://www.benefitsharing.org

Best wishes
Mark Mulligan and Jorge Rubiano
BFPAndes

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

REPORTE FINAL

Apreciados Colegas

En Diciembre de 2009 terminamos nuestro reporte final del proyecto ANDES Basin Focal Project BFP. Dicho reporte junto con sus apéndices ha sido finalmente aceptado para ser distribuido por el Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) el cual puede ser accesado en los siguientes enlaces: reporte y apéndices.

El sistema de apoyo a políticas “AguAAndes” y los datos asociados también están disponibles en http://www.policysupport.org/links/aguaandes

Les damos gracias por su participación en el proyecto y esperamos que encuentre estos informes y herramientas de interés y utilidad.

De otro lado, estamos a punto de iniciar acciones dentro del marco de la II fase del programa CPWF  que se centra en el apoyo a las negociaciones en torno a mecanismos de reparto de beneficios BSM (Benefit Sharing Mechanisms). Dicho proyecto se desarrollará en cuencas específicas de la región Andina y por medio de éste nos pondremos en contacto nuevamente con muchos de ustedes con el fin de compartir avances de la investigación y acciones de desarrollo llevadas a cabo en conjunto con socios locales. El sitio web para este nuevo proyecto se llevará a cabo en http://www.benefitsharing.org

Mark Mulligan y Jorge Rubiano
BFPAndes

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From March 22-25 in Aeschi, Switzerland, the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI) held a small workshop for researchers working on food security in mountain regions. The participants sought to understand the impact of recent food price increases on food security of mountain communities. CIAT DAPA researchers (Glenn Hyman, Chereen Ball, John Alexander Marin) presented the results of recent research conducted within the Water and Food Challenge Program’s (WFCP) Andes Basin Focal Project.

The impact of global price rises on rural Andean communities has been marginal. Producers have not been able to take advantage of higher prices. Consumers have had to pay slightly more of their household budget for food. Many Andean communities are isolated from national and international markets. This may have buffered them against price rises, a benefit in the short term. Over the long term, integration into markets could help their overall food security situation.

For more information on the workshop, go to the MRI workshop page. See our presentation in SlideShare.

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Part of the Andes BFP on behalf of the rest of the team and the CPWF attended several meeting in Washington DC as described below. This was the opportunity for us to present the linkages between water, agriculture and development together with the developed tools out of the 19 months work of the Andes BFP team. The attendance to the USA was motivated by a formal invitation from Sergio Ardila (IDB) who attended our final workshop in Cali, Colombia in November 2009. His name was suggested by Ruben Echeverria, CIAT Director and ex IDB staff. We thanks him for the contact and facilitation provided.

The most of visited people expressed interest in accessing the final report once available for the general public.

IDB

In total an audience of 8 locally and a further 10 by teleconference, including

Sergio Ardila, Principal Project Economist, Environment, Rural Development, and Disaster Risk Management Division (INE/RND)

Axelle Boulay, Forest Economist (INE/RND)

IDB staff connected via teleconference at IDB offices in Panama (Viviana Alva), Bolivia (Trond Norheim, Fernando Balcazar), Guatemala (Pedro Martel, Juan Mattos), Argentina (Ricardo Vargas) and Peru (Alfonso Tolmos).

An overview of the CPWF was given.  Summary presentations of each of the different work packages of the BFPAndes were made focusing on the links between  water, agriculture and development including poverty, institutions, availability,productivity and interventions. A demonstration of the AguaAndes PSS was also made and various possibilities for projects in which it could be used were discussed.  Questions and opportunities for collaboration in other areas were also addressed.

Following the meeting two IDB employees created accounts on the AguAAndes system and have used it

IDB will identify a person to address each of the points below as a linkage with our team.

1. The potential role for the PSS for base line study needs as a prerequisite for project identification throughout Latin America.
2. Specific projects on impact evaluation and project assessment, e.g irrigation systems in Panama (effects on yields, economic returns), Rural potable water support systems (Other South American countries), Forest policies and deforestation on water resources (Nicaragua).

USAID

Carrie Stokes, Geospatial Information Technology Advisor, USAID

Oscar Carrasco, Humanitarians Affairs Geospatial Analyst, US Dept of State

Jim Bellis, USAID, Geospatial Program Officer, USAID

Nohora.. Climate Change

plus five others

We gave a presentation focused entirely on the PSS to this team of largely geospatial development scientists, including a demonstration of the PSS.  There was a great deal of interest, especially in the area of climate change impacts analysis and a couple of people have signed up and used the system since. There was general interest in exploring and using the system, accessing modeling tools as part of the Andes PSS.

WWF

• Bart Wickel,Senior Conservation Hydrologist, WWF
• Leo Bottrill, Programme Officer, Macroeconomics Programme
• Jeff Price, Managing Director, Climate Change Adaptation

We discussed various aspects of the BFPAndes project and WWFs use of the AguAAndes PSS for their programme in the Pantanal.  WWF have been using AguAAndes for some months and we were able to help them on to the next stage of their analysis with the tool.

Jeff Price also made the introduction to Rachel Warren at UEA/Tyndall Center for Climate Research in order to start the process of connecting simTerra (the framework upon which AguAAndes is build) with the latest climate models available

Conservation International

A presentation including aspects of the BFPAndes and AguaAndes PSS was given to a group of 35 scientists from CI.  There was a great deal of interest and much discussion.  The presentation was followed by a series of small group meetings to discuss applications of AguAAndes within areas of CI’s work.  These discussions were had with:

• Miroslav Honzak, Senior Advisor, Global Change and Ecosystem Services
• Andy Rosenberg Senior Vice President Science and Knowledge
• Tracy Farrell Senior Director of Strategic Projects, Programs and Sciences
• Nalini Rao, Senior Research Fellow, Human Dimensions Program
• Will Turner, Director, Global Priorities
• Miroslav Honzak will begin using the PSS in an Andean project examing PES schemes

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The final workshop of the Andes BFP was held last week in Cali, Colombia. Attendees included representatives from The Nature Consevancy, CEDEPAS, WWF and Conservation International.

Aside from presentations summarizing the results of each work package which can be found on the below links, various discussion groups were held around effective ways to share our results with stakeholders, particularly at an institutional level.

Some of the important points that emerged were that it is important to know who are the information user at the different levels of the policy making process, from the more political (large scale, decision making – political will) to the more local (implementation scale). Also that   information should be shared at the local level using the existing institutional channels for information management.

Going forward one of the main priorities will be ensuring a wide usership of our Policy Support System which integrates much of our analysis into an online modelling tool. As the projects research products are finalized we wil be publishing them on this site.

Presentations made at the event:

Estructura institucional para la gestión de los recursos hídricos en algunos países de la región Andina.
Water Availability and Productivity in the Andes Region

Pobreza y Agua en los Andes

(DOWNLOAD HERE)

HACIA UNA APROXIMACIÓN DE LA ESTIMACIÓN DE LA ESCASEZ Y COSTO DEL ACCESO AL AGUA A NIVEL REGIONAL DEL SISTEMA ANDINO DE CUENCAS.

El ambiente Institucional como un indicador para orientar intervenciones estratégicas en recursos hídricos

(DOWNLOAD HERE)

¿Esquemas PSA hidrológicos para ayudar a optimizar los beneficios a la sociedad de las grandes represas de la región?

(DOWNLOAD HERE))

Intervenciones en recursos hídricos
en la región andina

The human footprint on water : agricultural, industrial, and urban impacts on the quality of available water globally and in the Andean region

Posters on display at the event :

The importance of tropical mountains, dams and PWS Schemes

The Andes Basin Focal Project

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Members of the Andes BFP will be holding a workshop from the 10th-11th  November in Cali, Colombia to present the final results of the project. This event will be part of  Agua 2009  organized by the Universidad del Valle to be held in Cali, Colombia between 9-13 November 2009.

It is hoped that this event will be attended by key members from a number of multi-lateral organizations, NGOs, scientists and local government representatives who will provide their perspective on our research  and  our identified  strategic interventions to reduce poverty and increase the efficiency of water use in a socially and environmentally sustainable manner.

The team, split into work groups themed around Poverty, Availability and Productivity of water, Institutions, Interventions and Knowledge Management will present on topics including potential development of aquaculture systems in Andean watersheds focused on food security and institutional structures for managing water resources.

The Global Water and Food Crisis. S. Cook, CPWF Basin Focal Projects Coordinator.

Poverty and Water in Andean Basins. G. Hyman, CIAT

Water availability and Productivity in the Andes Region. M. Mulligan, KCL - University of London

Andean dams: A regional and national summary of statistics with a focus on Hydro Electric Power (HEP) provision. L.Saenz, KCL - University of London.

Hacia una estimación de la escasez y costo de acceso al agua a nivel regional. O. Pulido, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Palmira

Identificación de áreas potenciales para el desarrollo de sistemas acuícolas en las cuencas andinas enfocado a la  seguridad alimentaria. A. Ramirez y J. Selvaraj, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Palmira

Estructura institucional para la gestión de los recursos hídricos en algunos países de la región Andina. V. Vargas, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Palmira

El ambiente Institucional como un indicador para orientar intervenciones estratégicas en recursos hídricos. J. Rubiano, KCL, University of London

Intervenciones en recursos hídricos en la región Andina – Los proyectos más significativos en los últimos 10 años. M. Saravia, CONDESAN

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As part of the work that the Andes BFP is undertaking on Institutional Analysis we have compiled an online database of projects and organizations within the four Andean countries. These include various NGOs, research institutes and government development programmes that are linked to water resources within the agricultural sector.

The data base can be accessed at http://webpc.ciat.cgiar.org/impacto/Datos/Institucional.htm.

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The Andes BFP  is comitted to providing online documentation of water related variables within the Andean region.
On a larger scale the World Data Center for Biodiversity and Ecology (WDCBE) is developing an interactive system that will allow easy access to reports, maps and the data collected during the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment global evaluation of ecosystems.

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment information on this site will form the baseline for future assessments of the earth’s ecosystems by scientists, managers, policy-makers, educators, and the public.
http://wdc.nbii.gov/ma/datapage.htm

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Jorge Rubiano is the project coordinator of the Andes Basin Focal Project.  He has a high level of past and present involvement with all of the partner institutions involved in the project and the Andes BFP is one of a large number of initiatives that Jorge has collaborated on for the Challenge Programme on Water and Food.

In the past he has also worked on CPWF projects centred around People and Water Catchments, Benefit Sharing and Payment for Environmental Services as well as being the assistant co-ordinator for the Andean system of basins where he worked with CONDESAN to identify key regional stakeholders.

He completed an undergraduate degree in Agronomy at the National University of Colombia, before completing an MA in Monitoring and Modelling Environmental Change at Kings College London for whom he is currently acting as a consultant in the role of Andes BFP coordinator. He then went on to gain a PHD in geography from Nottingham University with the supervision of Roy Haines Jones.
Jorge also has an  involvement with CIAT that goes back to 1989 when he joined as research assistant and has worked for and been involved with many of their projects since.

As project coordinator, Jorge’s role includes supervising the work of Tatiana Guttirez from the UNAO as well as  UNAL students Olga Lucia Pulido, Alexa Ramirez and Jon Alexander Marin and coordinating with the lecturers from these universities. Within their work Jorge assists with developing water models and is then able to help extract relevant equations for the Andes BFP Policy Support System.  For the overall project Jorge  sets schedules for the work package deliverables and checks advances on these.   Jorge is also helping to co-ordinate the overall work of the Institutional Analysis work package.

The project is on schedule for fulfilling its objectives of providing analysis on poverty, water and agriculture within the Andean system of basins that will provide potential guidelines for regional investment and development strategies.

There are a number of general  regional issues and characteristics within the Andes basins that  are emerging from the projects preliminary analysis results such as an agricultural sector that is highly influenced by commercial interests as well as policy and trade, which is reflected in it’s  water use patterns which are often unconstrained and highly inefficient. Payments for Environmental Services schemes can often act as an incentive to increase efficiency of water resource management by the private sector. The agricultural sector is also affected by other sources of demand, that result in major pressures on national and local water reserves, for example the energy sector is also a major consumer of water resources as well as rapid urbanization processes that lead to high demand for potable water.

Jorge highlights the multi-disciplinary nature of the Andes BFP  as an example of what he enjoys most about working in the field of geography. “In contrast to research that is purely bio-physical, the Andes BFP combines contributions from a wide  range of disciplines to create a wider picture that is relevant to society and global problems”

In his spare time Jorge enjoys spending time with his children, dancing and watching music videos and walking in the mountains in Cali, Colombia where he is based.

Contact:  jerubiano@gmail.com

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Updates on the progress of the Andes BFP throughout April have recently been completed.

Primarily, there is now an increased level in communication with project end users and stakeholders.  Contact has been established with some of the Environmental Agencies in Colombia. CVC, UTP in Pereira, Fundetropicos, UNICAUCA and local municipalities (Valle del Cauca) to explore their interest in the projects results. There are also  plans to engage with the CPWF on guiding the Basin Development Challenges (BDC) second phase.

The poverty wok package have received new poverty data for Ecuador and have initiated the  first steps for  geographically weighted regression analysis in relation to Bolivia .The Bayesian analysis work being conducted has  also advanced very well, with a fairly good model for the Ambato basin in Ecuador.

The Water Availability and Productivity work packages are making significant progress with integrating their work into the Policy Support System (P.S.S)  and publishing their results online.  The model being developed for Water Availability within the Andean region has been run at a 1km scale for baseline and climate change scenarios, and a version that is catchment specific for the P.S.S is complete and being tested. They are now aiming to publish some of this analysis online as maps.

The Water Availability work package  has completed a crop per drop analysis based on remote sensing  for all CPWF catchments which are in the process of being put put online.  Additionally an analysis of crop per drop for different crops and in relation to poverty metrics has also been carried out.

The institutional analysis work package   have finalized the structure that their work will take for the CPWF final report. Prominent components include identifying the institutional frameworks at different spatial scales (municipal, department, national) and country. The report will also highlight analysis of organizational performance by peer assessment with methods, results and interpretation. The work is also being linked with the Interventions work package.

 Within the Interventions work package an  Environmental Engineer student from UNAL was hired to help in the completion of interventions list. She has increased the number of documented interventions in the Andes for analysis adding about 15 more examples. This information will be added to the CONDESAN list once reviewed and klm files will be generated for spatial location and representation.

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The Annual World Water Week hosted by the Stockholm International Water Institute will be held in August. The World Water Week  has been running  since 1991 and serves as a major forum for the presentation of ground-breaking research, best practices and innovative policy work by stakeholders and experts around the world and from multiple disciplines. The theme of this years World Water Week will be : Responding to Global Changes - Accessing Water for the Common Good.

We are pleased to announce Mark Mulligan,  the Andes Basin Focal Project leader will be attending this event with Leonardo Saenz to give a  presentation entitled “Water and poverty in the Andes : preliminary results from the CPWF Andes Basin Focal Project and their contribution to supporting water policy”   within the Water Storage Options for Secured Access section of the event.

More information about the event can be found by following this link.

http://www.worldwaterweek.org/

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