Managing riverscapes and flow regimes for biocultural diversity

January 20, 2021 - January 21, 2021

Conference

VIRTUAL MEETING
The registration is free but mandatory
France

Presentation

For millennia, people have been part of nature in riverscapes, coevolving with the living river systems that are the hearts of these environments. As well as being biologically diverse and resilient ecosystems, the world’s rivers have been paths for the evolution and adaptation of the cultural identity, material and spiritual wellbeing, and security of human civilizations. River flows continue to connect people, places, and wildlife today, inspiring and sustaining a myriad beliefs, values, services, and lifeways.

The conference will convene thought leaders, researchers, and practitioners working on different aspects of the conservation and management of biological and cultural diversity in river basins. They will explore the interlinkages between nature and culture in the context of the parallel global biological and cultural diversity crises, in particular focusing on river flow regulation and fragmentation with water infrastructure development.

Participants will share case studies, experiences, and insights with one another in a virtual informal setting, continuing to expand the global knowledge base. They will use this exchange to help lay out some of the elements of a high potential, policy relevant research agenda with global reach, to more effectively manage riverscapes and flow regimes for biocultural diversity. They will also identify promising opportunities to put key elements of this agenda into practice during the 2021-2030 UN decade on ecosystem restoration, including the partnerships, projects, and mechanisms needed.

Convenors

Dr Rebecca Tharme, LE STUDIUM / Marie Skłodowska-Curie Research Fellow
FROM: Riverfutures Limited - UK
IN RESIDENCE AT: CItés, TERritoires, Environnement et Sociétés (CITERES) / CNRS, University of Tours - FR
Prof. Karl Matthias Wantzen,
CItés, TERritoires, Environnement et Sociétés (CITERES) / CNRS, University of Tours - FR

Documents

lestudiumconference_booklet_of_abstracts.pdf2.66 MB

Confirmed speakers

Prof. Angela Arthington, Australian Rivers Institute, Griffith University - AU
Dr Tim Badman, Nature Culture Initiative, International U. for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) - CH
Dr Fengzhi He, Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) - DE
Dr Avril Horne, University of Melbourne - AU
Prof. Sonja Jähnig, Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) - CA
Dr Tim Jardine, University of Saskatchewan, Canadian Rivers Institute - CA
Dr Simone Langhans, Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) and University of the Basque Country - SP
Dr Wendy Monk, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Rivers Institute, University of New Brunswick - CA
Dr Erin O'Donnell, University of Melbourne - AU
Dave Pritchard, Ramsar Culture Network, Institute for Land, Water & Society, Charles Sturt University - UK
Nupur Prothi Khanna, International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), Beyond Built Pvt Ltd - SE
Dr Nathalie Richards, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Zusammenarbeit - TZ
Prof. André St-Hilaire, Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), Centre Eau Terre Environnement, University of Quebec, Canadian Rivers Institute - CA

Programme

Wednesday 20th JANUARY 2021 - 11:00 - 17:30 (GMT+1:00 - PARIS)

11:00 Official Opening - Dr Aurélien Montagu (Le Studium Loire Valley Institute for Advanced Studies - France)
11:15 Dr Rebecca Tharme & Prof. Karl Matthias Wantzen - Conference format, context, aims and objectives
11:30 Round of participant introductions
12:00 Prof. Angela Arthington - Progress with environmental flows to maintain healthy rivers and healthy societies
12:30 Prof. Karl Wantzen - Development(s) of the River Culture Concept
13:00 Q&A session and open chat
13:30 Lunch
14:00 Dr Simone Langhans - Weaving together plural values in freshwater management: a case study of the Upper Clutha catchment in Aotearoa New Zealand
14:30 Dr Fengzhi He & Dr Rebecca Tharme - Freshwater megafauna: diversity, status, and cultural importance
15:00 Dr Wendy Monk & Prof. André St-Hilaire - Adapting social-cultural-environmental flows for cold regions.
15:30 Prof. Sonja Jähnig - Living Water: A Research Agenda on Freshwater Biodiversity
16:00 Dr Nathalie Richards - From the Mau Forest to Lake Victoria: The Journey of the Mara River in East Africa
16:30 Dialogue session on opportunities (1). Roundtable on key research strategies, projects, and partnership
17:30 End of the 1st conference day

Thursday 21st JANUARY 2021 - 13:00 - 18:15 (GMT+1:00 - PARIS)

13:00 Dr Erin O'Donnell - Reshaping the human relationship with water: what happens when a river becomes a person?
13:30 Dr Avril Horne - Participatory environmental flows assessments
14:00 Prof. Karl M. Wantzen - Recap of Session 1 and objectives
14:15 Introductions and open discussion
14:30 Dave Pritchard - Action for culture and the water environment through the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
15:00 Nupur Prothi Khanna - Cultural landscapes of Water systems in Asia
15:30 Discussion (2) to map future policy and research directions
16:00 Dr Tim Jardine - Canada’s freshwater deltas as complex and vulnerable social-ecological systems.
16:30 Dr Tim Badman - Natureculture approaches in the World Heritage Convention, and beyond.
17:00 Discussion (3) on key initiatives and partnerships, and next steps
18:00 Dr Rebecca Tharme & Prof. Karl Matthias Wantzen - Final remarks, thanks, and workshop close.
18:15 End of the conference