Wageningen Delta Seminar:

Water, Climate, Food and Ecosystems in Deltas

GAIA 1 & 2, Wageningen, 22 May 2017

Deltas worldwide are attractive places for people to live. However, deltas worldwide are also
vulnerable places, due to high risks related to overpopulation combined with natural calamities like
floods and cyclones. The Delta Alliance, as knowledge oriented network, contributes actively to
enhance resilience of deltas worldwide1. Wageningen is co-founder of the Delta Alliance.

Characteristic of knowledge development in Wageningen is an integrated systems approach. Deltas

is one of the cross cutting themes in the Wageningen water expertise, which focuses primarily on:
1. the water-foodecosystem, or in other words on the blue-green infrastructure for a healthy
living environment
2. water in an urbanising world, amongst others in deltas
3. on the marine environment
Sustainable Water quality is an important cross-cutting issue in the above three water domains.

During the Wageningen Delta Seminar a brief overview is discussed of both the Delta Alliance and
Wageningens delta related knowledge development illustrated by some key research outcomes
and identified knowledge gaps.

Programme

15.00 Registration, coffee/tea

15.30 Opening
Bram de Vos, Director Wageningen Environmental Research

15.40 Deltas worldwide and the role of Bangladesh

Mr Sheikh Mohammed Belal, Ambassador of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh (tbc)

15.50 Delta Alliance current programme and outlook

Renske Peters, Director Delta Alliance

16.00 Knowledge for Water, Climate, Food and Ecosystems in Deltas

Ivo Demmers, Wageningen Environmental Research

16.10 Questions / discussion

16.20 Water, Climate, Food and Ecosystems in Deltas Six 5 minute pitches
1. Water and salinity in deltas
2. Water and ecosystems in deltas
3. Marine environment, aquaculture, building with Nature
4. Climate smart agriculture, water and food in deltas
5. Delta planning
6. Deltas in Wageningen education

16.50 Poster session and drinks

(1)
Delta Alliance is an international knowledge-driven network organisation with the mission of
improving the resilience of the worlds deltas. With increasing pressure from population growth,
industrialization and a changing climate, it is more important than ever that these valuable and
vulnerable locations increase their resilience to changing conditions. Delta Alliance brings people
together who live and work in deltas. They can benefit from each others experience and expertise
and as such contribute to an increased resilience of their delta region, with the help of network
wings. Currently there are 18 wings. The international secretariat, supported through RVO, is
operational with inputs from Wageningen, TU Delft, IHE and Deltares.

Contacts:
www.delta-alliance.org
info@delta-alliance.org

Contact in Wageningen: Catharien.Terwisscha@wur.nl