6
study allowed the IRG to assess and to evaluate the planning processes of transboundary
projects. It provided valuable information on the strengths and weaknesses of international water law as well as on the relations between different riparian states and
the prerequisites for successful cooperation.
The IRG was organised according to these case studies in two different subgroups or “clusters”. Overarching themes were discussed in the general assembly.
The research instruments of the IRG consisted of profound literature research, thematic workshops, study visits to the Fergana Valley and the Lower Jordan Basin,
public symposiums and thematic lectures. In addition, two expertise reports on
Water Ethics (Armin Grunwald) and on International Water Law (Ute Mager) were
conducted within the scope of the research group.
A workshop with an international line-up on The Red Sea – Dead Sea Water
Conveyance Project: An opportunity for regional cooperation and improved water
management in the Jordan River Basin was held in Potsdam, Germany, in December
2013 . Speakers included Stefan Geyer (Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
UFZ, Halle), Heinz Hötzl (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT, Karlsruhe), Harald
Kunstmann (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT, Garmisch- Partenkirchen), Muath
Abou Sadah (Palestine Hydrology Group, Ramallah, Palestinian Territories), Elias
Salameh (University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan), Uri Shani (Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Israel), Gerhard Smiatek (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT,
Garmisch-Partenkirchen), Katja Tielbörger (Tübingen University, GLOWA Jordan
River), Yacov Tsur (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) and Valerie Yorke (NCCR
Trade Regulation, World Trade Institute, University of Bern, Switzerland).
The “academy lectures”, a unique event format for disseminating research results to the
public in layman’s terms, have dealt with Water Ethics – Refl ections on Handling Resource
Confl icts (Armin Grunwald), Major Water Engineering Projects and their Impact on
Ecology and Water Cycles – Opportunities and Risks (Axel Meyer and Klement Tockner),
The Fergana Valley in Central Asia – Confl icts Regarding the Georesource Water (Hermann
Kreutzmann) and The Economic Value of Water Habitats – Approaches and Evaluating
Experiences in the Lower Jordan Basin (Nir Becker).
Several members of the research group have furthermore conducted a number of
research journeys to the case study areas in the Middle East and in Central Asia. As
part of these stays, numerous regional experts from science, administration and nongovernmental organisations were involved in discussions and fi eld trips, allowing
for in-depth insights into the specifi c regional contexts. Findings of these research
journeys formed an important basis for the further analyses and eventually paved
the way for this volume.
1.5 Acknowledgements
The editors of this book and the members of the research group would like to express
their gratitude to the following experts from the case study areas, who made a signifi cant contribution to the success of the project:
R.F. Hüttl et al.
study allowed the IRG to assess and to evaluate the planning processes of transboundary
projects. It provided valuable information on the strengths and weaknesses of international water law as well as on the relations between different riparian states and
the prerequisites for successful cooperation.
The IRG was organised according to these case studies in two different subgroups or “clusters”. Overarching themes were discussed in the general assembly.
The research instruments of the IRG consisted of profound literature research, thematic workshops, study visits to the Fergana Valley and the Lower Jordan Basin,
public symposiums and thematic lectures. In addition, two expertise reports on
Water Ethics (Armin Grunwald) and on International Water Law (Ute Mager) were
conducted within the scope of the research group.
A workshop with an international line-up on The Red Sea – Dead Sea Water
Conveyance Project: An opportunity for regional cooperation and improved water
management in the Jordan River Basin was held in Potsdam, Germany, in December
2013 . Speakers included Stefan Geyer (Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
UFZ, Halle), Heinz Hötzl (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT, Karlsruhe), Harald
Kunstmann (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT, Garmisch- Partenkirchen), Muath
Abou Sadah (Palestine Hydrology Group, Ramallah, Palestinian Territories), Elias
Salameh (University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan), Uri Shani (Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Israel), Gerhard Smiatek (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT,
Garmisch-Partenkirchen), Katja Tielbörger (Tübingen University, GLOWA Jordan
River), Yacov Tsur (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) and Valerie Yorke (NCCR
Trade Regulation, World Trade Institute, University of Bern, Switzerland).
The “academy lectures”, a unique event format for disseminating research results to the
public in layman’s terms, have dealt with Water Ethics – Refl ections on Handling Resource
Confl icts (Armin Grunwald), Major Water Engineering Projects and their Impact on
Ecology and Water Cycles – Opportunities and Risks (Axel Meyer and Klement Tockner),
The Fergana Valley in Central Asia – Confl icts Regarding the Georesource Water (Hermann
Kreutzmann) and The Economic Value of Water Habitats – Approaches and Evaluating
Experiences in the Lower Jordan Basin (Nir Becker).
Several members of the research group have furthermore conducted a number of
research journeys to the case study areas in the Middle East and in Central Asia. As
part of these stays, numerous regional experts from science, administration and nongovernmental organisations were involved in discussions and fi eld trips, allowing
for in-depth insights into the specifi c regional contexts. Findings of these research
journeys formed an important basis for the further analyses and eventually paved
the way for this volume.
1.5 Acknowledgements
The editors of this book and the members of the research group would like to express
their gratitude to the following experts from the case study areas, who made a signifi cant contribution to the success of the project:
R.F. Hüttl et al.