It
is our pleasure to offer you the Watersheds of the World, an accessible
river basin data and information system that allows stakeholders to
retrieve, consult and analyze information regarding water resources
and freshwater biodiversity.
Why
do we need data and information at the basin level?
Functioning freshwater ecosystems form the basis for the generation
of multiple goods and services that humans depend on, from clean water
to fisheries and flood protection. Historical and current approaches
to water management have been and still are, for the most part, fragmented
and sectoral. An appropriate freshwater management regime needs to integrate
the complex biophysical interactions between ecosystems, and species
with the political, economic and development objectives of each country
or region. This, “ecosystem approach” requires that ecological
units be managed in their entirety. Freshwater management thus imposes
a river basin delineation to water management, including the management
and consideration of the different habitat types and ecosystems in a
particular basin.
Reliable
data and information at the basin level are essential to manage water
for people while sustaining functioning ecosystems, especially when
dealing with international transboundary basins. Unfortunately most
data, information, and synthesized knowledge on water resources and
freshwater biodiversity are currently inaccessible to a broad group
of users. Although some sector-oriented data are available, they are
often not available at the basin level, are of variable quality, or
of inconsistent resolutions. Their limited access currently restricts
their use in an integrated way by a large group of stakeholders. This
contrasts sharply with the great demand for information from policy
makers, water managers, and NGOs to support their efforts and engage
in dialogues within basins in a gradual move toward more integrated
and sustainable water resources management.
The
Watersheds of the World CD provides easy access to essential data and
information at the basin level to support and promote the integrated
management of water resources, and to increase the participation of
stakeholders in the decision-making processes.
What
does the Watersheds of the World CD contain?
This combined CD-website gives you 20 global indicator maps at the basin
level that portray issues affecting water resources and freshwater biodiversity.
It also of contains basin profiles for 154 basins and subbasins around
the world. Each basin profile includes maps and data on land cover and
use, population density, biodiversity and much more. As such, it is
a crucial reference for anyone working on water management worldwide.
This
CD and website is only one contribution to an ongoing process to effectively
link, integrate and communicate information on water resources management.
Improved information is a prerequisite if all stakeholders are to take
their responsibility, negotiate their interests, and take action to
make water management sustainable. Only when information on economic,
social and environmental issues is gathered and shared as part of a
multistakeholder process can we arrive at integrated decisions and collaborative
action.
The
Water Resources eAtlas project aims to present
information about issues in water resources management in an easy and
comprehensible way. The Watersheds of the World is the first product
of this collaboration between IUCN, IWMI, WRI and the Ramsar Convention
on Wetlands.
The
Water Resources eAtlas cannot and will not gather information from all
over the world. It is aimed to be the global umbrella under which organisations
and initiatives can link and integrate their information at the basin
level. The partners are committed to further develop the eAtlas in partnerships
with research institutes, basin organisations, NGOs and governments
so it can support decision-making within basins.
The
Watersheds of the World is an impressive product and, in its making,
we have never lost sight of the ultimate goal: water resources management
that allows economic development promotes social equity, and sustains
healthy ecosystems and their dependent species.
We
hope this product will assist you in your contribution to that same
goal.
WRI, IUCN, IWMI, and the Ramsar Convention Bureau
