Call for Papers - “Institutional Challenges and Water Security in Irrigation Systems: Consideration from Climate Change and Population Dynamics

Title: Call for Papers - “Institutional Challenges and Water Security in Irrigation Systems: Consideration from Climate Change and Population Dynamics

Deadline: 20^th March 2019

The thrust of the theme is to look into the Irrigation Institutions for sustainability of irrigation systems ensuring its usual agricultural productivity. The challenges in irrigation institutions also include the question of irrigation system sustainability, performance assessment, institutional and policy landscape of irrigation systems, role of water users associations in the context of climate change, population increase, out-migration and urbanization affecting the farm lands. Competitive use of water is increasing whereby irrigation systems have to compete for water with hydropower, drinking water and industrial use of water.

The adaptation process and resilience, policy, institutions, technology and interaction with the environment and resources at the local level do affect livelihood of a larger number of agriculture based population. Urbanization, migration pattern, food-water security nexus and political agricultural economy as a whole have influence on irrigation adaptation and resilient response. Irrigation is found in all eco-geographic terrains where human civilization has flourished in general. Without irrigation, enrichment of civilization from agriculture is not possible. Without adaptation and resilience of the irrigation in the local context more so in the scenario of changing climate, a social and economic order cannot be thought of.

Objective of the Seminar:

The objectives of the seminar are to

• provide a knowledge platform to learn, share and disseminate experience and information on local adaptation and resilience of the irrigation systems
• understand the social, economic, financial and technical innovations in irrigation institutions.
• deliberate on the adaptation of appropriate institutions which can meet the challenges brought by climate change and population increase. to assess the climate change impact for right innovative adaptation ,
• make the policy makers, practitioners, researchers and observers of irrigation systems to be adequately informed about the process of institutional adaptation and associated resilience of irrigation community and pursue and push for a learned framework that better serves farmers' irrigation interest and capacity enhancement in the changing climate context.

Contexts and Issues relevant to the Seminar:

Farmers have been adapting, and building resilience to climate change impacts. Recent studies helped understand the climate change variability though a natural process and unavoidable phenomenon are found addressed by indigenous knowledge of the farmers in that area. The traditional and indigenous knowledge could be modified as per the need and help cope with the climatic extremes. In this context, the irrigation institutions play an important role. Unlike organized FMIS, poor and marginalized people are especially vulnerable to climate variability and change. They generally are the least able to cope with disaster, live in the most atrisk areas and have limited information, knowledge and resources to help reduce their level of risk. The predicted impacts of climate change will intensify existing vulnerabilities, inequalities and exposure to hazards. In the agricultural sector, smallholder farmers if not organized well would face the greatest risk. They tend to own few livelihood assets such as land and livestock, receive a low income, and have a low level of education and limited access to community and government services.

The sub-thematic issues of the seminar may include:

• National policy, institutions and intervention strategy on farmer managed irrigation systems modernization
• Design issues, technologies and quality features of irrigation infrastructures in improving local adaptability and resilience of irrigation
• Irrigation governance and negotiation on water right and mechanisms of resource management among different water users like drinking water, hydropower and industrial use and conflict resolution in the changing competitive water use context
• Effects of urbanization, out-migration, labor and social mobility and local gender balance on irrigation adaptation and resilience
• Information collection methodology and information sharing for improving adaptation to meet the new challenges of irrigation systems.

Four types of paper presentation are expected:

• Keynote speeches
• Research Papers
• Invited Papers
• Individual Country Papers

Submission:

The paper contributors are requested to send their abstracts on the seminar theme and relevant sub-themes at the address given below. The last date of submission of abstract is March 20, 2019. The authors will be informed about the paper selection by March 28, 2019. The full paper should be sent by April 20, 2019. 

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