RSVP for the International Water Symposium, Sep 4, 2024

 

Water is the essential ingredient for life on earth. From Arizona to Bangladesh to Tanzania, people are challenged to find and secure safe and ample water supplies for the needs of their communities. Thankfully, both researchers and practitioners across the globe are daily dedicating their lives to helping others secure this safe water supplies.

Children and their water supply in a South African village.

The OU WaTER Center is committed to recognizing and honoring those individuals, acting alone or as leader of an organization, who have made significant contributions in the field of water resources (quantity) or sanitation and other health aspects (quality) of water, particularly for the benefit of disadvantaged communities in rural or remote regions. The International Water Prize is a biennial award sponsored by the WaTER Center at OU and made possible by generous gifts from alumni, friends, and the OU administration. The Prize consists of a $25,000 cash award and a glass trophy developed by a local artist. The Prize is believed to be the first and largest prize dedicated to water supply, water resources, and/or sanitation in emerging regions.

A panel of experts discusses critical water issues
at the 2019 OU International Water Conference.

A panel of 5 water experts will convene in Norman to select the seventh OU Water Prize winner. Their selection will be announced at a formal Symposium on the evening of September 4 at the Atrium of the National Weather Center in Norman, OK. This event will include a banquet, brief talks by each of the jurors on their water expertise, a panel discussion, and the announcement of the new Prize winner. The winner will then give the keynote address at the following year's International Water Conference in Norman, OK.

This year's Symposium will be held at the beautiful Atrium
of the National Weather Center (NWC) in Norman, OK.

The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Please register here.

The newest OU International Water Prize winner will be selected at the next Symposium on September 4, 2024

 

The actual Water Prize is a blown glass of the world
in the shape of a water droplet.

The purpose of the OU International Water Prize (“the Prize”) is to recognize and honor an individual, acting alone or as leader of an organization, who has made significant contributions in the field of water resources, sanitation, or other aspects of water security, particularly for the benefit of disadvantaged communities in rural or remote regions. The Prize is a biennial award sponsored by the WaTER Center and is made possible by generous gifts from alumni, friends, and the OU administration. It consists of a $25,000 cash award and a glass trophy developed by a local artist. Past winners and Prize details can be found on the website. 

The Prize is believed to be the first and largest prize dedicated to water supply, water resources, and/or sanitation in emerging regions. The Directors of the WaTER Center, with input from the WaSH and water resources community, select a panel of jurors, comprised of 5-6 qualified specialists who work in the area of the field of WaSH and water security as it relates to water supply and resource planning, particularly for emerging regions. These jurors come to the OU campus in the Fall to select a new awardee. Each juror is responsible for nominating one person for the Prize. After a full day and a half of deliberations, the jurors select their top candidate. The new Prize winner is announced at an evening Symposium, an elegant affair which includes a delicious banquet and short presentations from each of the jurors.

The Symposium banquet provides a beautiful context
for the announcement of the newest Water Prize winner.

Dawn Martin-Hill is awarded the 2022 OU International Water Prize!

 

Dawn Martin-Hill gives the Keynote Address
at the 2022 International Water Conference banquet in Oklahoma City, OK

Dawn Martin-Hill is a storyteller, because it is in stories where the truth lies. She tells one story of leading a water ceremony out on the west coast of the U.S. One participant brought a pottery bowl that was engraved with “Water is Life” in many different languages. That bowl is a symbol of Dawn’s lifework – to honor and celebrate the sacramental gift that water is to all peoples using the stories and myths of her culture, the Haudenosaunee peoples of Canada’s Six Nations of the Grand River. The two-row wampum belt is another symbol that expresses a journey of two cultures who travel down the river together, side by side, without trying to steer one another. Surrounded by the Great Lakes, Dawn’s tribal culture is defined and nourished by freshwater. She says that “our entire way of life is governed by water. It is spiritual, it is cultural, it is our identity. When you take that away from us, you are literally taking away our culture.”  

Dr. Martin-Hill receives her award surrounded by the WaTER Center Directors
along with Tana Fitzpatrick, Director of the Native Nations Center at OU.

Traditional indigenous knowledge is relayed through oral tradition, primarily from stories, arts, crafts, and ceremonies, all done in the indigenous language.  Under colonization, the residential schools outlawed the indigenous language, and yet indigenous knowledge about water and ecology is embedded in the native language. When the language is lost, so is the indigenous knowledge.  Thus, Dawn’s integrated teams of elders, youth, biologists, scientists, and engineers present their work in bilingual format. 

Call for Abstracts - NEW Deadline June 1, 2022

 Call for Abstracts Deadline June 1, 2022

The OU Water Technologies for Emerging Regions (WaTER) Center is soliciting abstracts for poster and oral presentations for the OU International WaTER Conference to be held virtually on September 26-27, 2022.

 

Abstracts for oral or poster presentations dealing with issues in the topical areas listed below are invited.  Subject matter areas include engineering, hydrology, water quality, meteorology, anthropology, sociology, social entrepreneurship, legal issues and related areas. Interested participants should submit an abstract of no more than 500 words to the conference Selection Committee by April 30, 2022. 

 

The abstract should include a succinct but descriptive title of the proposed presentation, and name, affiliation, and contact information (including email) of all authors.  The abstract should identify the topic of the proposed presentation and should include a brief description of the research, innovation, or project, and discuss the significant results of the efforts and conclusions or recommendations drawn from the study.

 

Drs. David Sabatini and Jim Chamberlain
give remarks at the 2015 Conference.

Critical Water Issues in Today’s World

 

Abstracts will be especially welcomed in the following targeted areas:

• WASH Interventions
  The WaSH (water, sanitation and hygiene) sector includes all research and activities relative to the improvement of health and well-being by the proper separation of sanitation and clean water access. Interventions that improve hand-washing and other hygienic behavior are relevant, as well as household and community-level implementations of safe water storage, water treatment, and improved sanitation technologies.
  
  
• Water Challenges for Underserved Populations
  Water availability, wastewater management, and water-related social justice issues for Native Americans, First Nations, or other underrepresented communities.
  
  
• Aging Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Systems
  Identification, removal, and replacement/restoration of water and wastewater infrastructure systems in both developing and developed regions.

• Wastewater-based Epidemiology
  Public health applications of using wastewater surveillance for monitoring pathogens and chemicals in a variety of locales. Examples include pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 and/or chemicals such as pharmaceuticals, illicit drugs, or human-health biomarkers.

• Ecological Engineering and Engineering with Nature
  Design and analyses of Natural Infrastructure (NI) for water quality improvement, water management, and other environmental benefits. Broad-scale Nature and Nature Based Solutions (NNBS) and site-specific treatment wetlands, passive treatment systems, and related sustainable ecosystem-based technologies.
  
  
• Advances in Drought Monitoring, Modeling, and Prediction
  New tools and approaches that address the complex factors associated with drought from local to global scales, including (1) observations strategies focused on drought, (2) the temporal evolution of drought from flash drought to decadal and beyond, (3) the drivers of drought onset, development, intensification, and decay, (4) drought impacts to agriculture, water resources, ecosystem function, and human systems, and (5) research to operational tools that enhance drought prediction.
  
  
• Climate Change and Hydrology Extremes
  Climate change impacts on water scarcity and potential flooding and the use of hydrologic and global climate models to predict areas of future water extremes in the US and abroad to provide a scientific basis for water resource planning.

• Natural Hazards
  State-of-the-art discussion of impacts of natural hazards on freshwater resources, such as a wildfire burn areas and hurricane flooding. Current challenges and the impacts of water quantity or water quality to fresh water sources in inland riverine environments, lakes and reservoirs, with a special interest in highlighting needs and opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration.
  
  
• Other
  Presentations addressing subject matter related to the conference theme are also invited.

 

Submit your abstract here

 

For more conference details, go to WaTER.ou.edu

Ada Oko-Williams is shown with travel scholarship recipients
from the 2013 International Water Conference.

 

Final RSVP and spotlight on three WaTER Prize jurors

 Water Security and Equity in a Changing Climate

The International WaTER Symposium is online this year - this Tuesday, Sep 21, 7:00 - 8:30pm

Please RSVP here, and you will be forwarded a Zoom link upon registration:

RSVP

INTERNATIONAL WATER SYMPOSIUM 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 (via ZOOM) 

7:00-7:15 PM    Welcome and opening remarks

7:15-7:55 PM    Short presentations by jurors on water projects and global water issues

7:55-8:20 PM    Question & Answer session with jurors on relevant challenges to water security

8:20-8:28 PM    Announcement of the 2022 International Water Prize winner! 

8:28-8:30 PM    Thank-you and save the date for the next WaTER Conference

SAVE THE DATE

OU International WaTER Conference

September 26-28, 2022 | Norman, OK 

Dr. Ana Barros is a South African-born American civil and environmental engineer currently serving as the Department Head of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois. She is an Elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and in 2019 she was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for "contributions to understanding and prediction of precipitation dynamics and flood hazards in mountainous terrains". Ana attended the Faculty of Engineering of the University of O’Porto where she obtained a summa cum laude Diploma in Civil Engineering and a M.Sc. degree in Ocean Engineering in 1988 with a thesis focusing on numerical modeling of sediment transport in estuaries and coastal regions. In 1990, Dr. Barros completed and M.Sc. degree in Environmental Science Engineering at the OHSU/OGI School of Science and Engineering. She earned a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Washington, Seattle in 1993. 

Dr. Aondover Tarhule is the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and for Illinois State University. Prior to this recent appointment, Dr. Tarhule served as Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School at Binghamton University, part of the state universities of New York. While at Binghamton, he has facilitated the creation of new degree programs, developed new international partnerships, and implemented several major innovations to data and workflow software. 

A physical geographer, Tarhule’s work on climate impacts on water scarcity and security has been featured in National Geographic and Nature. His scholarly research has appeared in prestigious international journals and book chapters. His efforts as principal investigator (PI) or co-PI have resulted in more than $5 million in grants from such agencies as the National Science Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development, the National Institute of Health, and the United States Geological Survey.

Dr. Upmanu Lall is the Director of the Columbia Water Center and the Alan and Carol Silberstein Professor of Engineering, and the Chair of the Dept. of Earth & Environmental Engineering at Columbia University. He has broad interests in hydrology, climate dynamics, water resource systems analysis, risk management and sustainability. Upmanu’s current research covers 3 major initiatives that are developed through the Columbia Water Center. The Global Water Sustainability Initiative addresses global water scarcity and risk. The Global Flood Initiative is motivated by the need to predict, mitigate and manage floods at a global scale recognizing their climate drivers, and supply chain impacts. America's Water seeks to develop sustainable water management and infrastructure design paradigms for the 21st century recognizing the linkages between urban functioning, food, water, energy and climate. These programmatic initiatives are backed by research on systems level modeling of hydrology, climate, agronomy and economics.

These three jurors will be serving alongside the other two jurors, spotlighted in a previous blog - Merrell-Ann Phare and Callist Tindimugaya. The five panelists are eminently qualified to select the next recipient of the OU International WaTER Prize!

RSVP and schedule for the Water Symposium - September 21, 2021

Water Security and Equity in a Changing Climate

The International WaTER Symposium is online this year - one week away!

Please RSVP here, and you will be forwarded a Zoom link upon registration:

RSVP

Eric Stowe receives the 2017 International Water Prize
from the current OU President Joe Harroz.

A general outline schedule of the event follows:

INTERNATIONAL WATER SYMPOSIUM 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 (via ZOOM) 

7:00-7:15 PM    Welcome and opening remarks

7:15-7:55 PM    Short presentations by jurors on water projects and global water issues

7:55-8:20 PM    Question & Answer session with jurors on relevant challenges to water security

8:20-8:28 PM    Announcement of the 2022 International Water Prize winner! 

8:28-8:30 PM    Thank-you and save the date for the next WaTER Conference

SAVE THE DATE

OU International WaTER Conference

September 26-28, 2022 | Norman, OK 

RSVP and spotlight on two jurors for the Water Symposium - September 21, 2021

We are only six weeks away from our next Water Symposium in which a group of five distinguished jurors will select the next recipient of the International Water Prize! As part of our preparation, we want to share some information on each of our jurors. We begin with Merrell-Ann Phare and Callist Tindimugaya.

Merrell-Ann Phare is a leading proponent of water equity for indigenous Canadians.

Merrell-Ann is a Canadian lawyer with specialties in water rights and water law; serves on the International Joint Commission (U.S. and Canada – Boundary Waters agreement, 1909) lawyer, writer, strategist, negotiator, and relationship-builder who worked extensively in and with indigenous organizations on environmental, land, water, rights, and governance issues. 

She is the author of the book “Denying the Source: The Crisis of First Nations Water Rights” and co-author of “Ethical Water”. She is a member of Smart Prosperity, the Forum for Leadership on Water and is a recipient of the Clean 50 Award. She is legal counsel and advisor to several First Nation governments and regularly speaks on governance, water, and rights issues. Merrell-Ann is also the co-host of "Porcupine", a smart and entertaining podcast on reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Canadians.

Dr. Tindimugaya has helped manage and address the challenges of transboundary water resources.

Dr. Callist Tindimugaya is a Water Resources Specialist that has been working with the Ministry of Water and Environment in Uganda for over 30 years. Currently, he is the Head of the Department for Water Resources Planning and Regulation with overall responsibility for ensuring sustainable and equitable utilization and protection of water resources of Uganda.  Callist has represented Uganda for over 15 years in international and transboundary water resources programs and initiatives such as the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), Inter Government Authority on Development (IGAD), and UNESCO’s International Hydrological Program. He is also the Regional Coordinator of the Nile Basin Capacity Building network, established for building capacity in Integrated Water Resources Management.

Callist received his doctoral degree from University College London, where he studied the movement and storage of groundwater in Ugandan aquifers.  His research assessed two productive aquifers using environmental tracers and aquifer responses to hydraulic stress.  A better understanding of the relationship between the geomorphology and hydrogeology of deeply weathered environments can help set realistic targets for water security in groundwater-dependent communities

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The seventh OU International WaTER Symposium will be held on Tuesday evening, September 21, 2021, 6:30 - 9:00 pm in the Molly Shi Boren Ballroom of the University of Oklahoma. In the evening's program, which includes a banquet dinner, the five jurors will share some of their own research and experiences in the field through short presentations and a panel discussion on pertinent water issues of our day.

The event is free and open to the public. Please RSVP here.

Dr. Robert Nairn addresses the 2018 Water Symposium and Prize announcement.

International Water Prize Announcement and Symposium

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2021 | 6:30 - 9:00 PM

OKLAHOMA MEMORIAL UNION