Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 1685–1696, 2012 www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/16/1685/2012/ Hydrology and doi:10.5194/hess-16-1685-2012 Earth System © Author(s) 2012. CC Attribution 3.0 License. Sciences Training hydrologists to be ecohydrologists and play a leading role in environmental problem solving M. E. McClain1,2, L. Ch´ıcharo3, N. Fohrer4, M. Gavino˜ Novillo5, W. Windhorst6, and M. Zalewski7,8 1Department of Water Science and Engineering, UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, P.O. Box 3015, 2601 DA Delft, The Netherlands 2Department of Earth and Environment, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami Florida 33199, USA 3Universidade de Algarve, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal 4Department of Hydrology and Water Resource Management, Institute for the Conservation of Natural Resources, Kiel University, Kiel 24118, Germany 5Facultad de Ingenier´ıa, Universidad Nacional de la Plata, La Plata – Buenos Aires, Argentina 6Department of Ecosystem Management, Institute for the Conservation of Natural Resources, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany 7International Institute of Polish Academy of Sciences, European Regional Centre for Ecohydrology under the Auspices of UNESCO, 3 Tylna Str., 90-364 Łod´ z,´ Poland 8Department of Applied Ecology University of Lodz, 12/16 Banacha Str., 90-237 Łod´ z,´ Poland Correspondence to: M. E. McClain ([email protected]) Received: 19 January 2012 – Published in Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss.: 1 February 2012 Revised: 29 May 2012 – Accepted: 29 May 2012 – Published: 22 June 2012 Abstract. Ecohydrology is a relatively new and rapidly in hydrology, ecology, and biogeochemistry is emphasized, growing subject area in the hydrology curriculum. It is a as well as technical skills in data collection, modeling, and trans-disciplinary science derived from the larger earth sys- statistical analysis. Cross-cutting knowledge is framed in the tems science movement and examining mutual interactions context of integrated water resources management. Personal of the hydrological cycle and ecosystems. It is also an applied competencies to be fostered in educational programs include science focused on problem solving and providing sound creative thinking, cooperation, communication, and leader- guidance to catchment-scale integrated land and water re- ship. We consider a life-long learning context but highlight sources management. The principle spheres of ecohydrol- the importance of master’s level training in the professional ogy include (i) climate-soil-vegetation-groundwater interac- formation of ecohydrologists. tions at the land surface with special implications for land use, food production and climate change; (ii) riparian runoff, flooding, and flow regime dynamics in river corridors with special implications for water supply, water quality, and in- 1 Introduction land fisheries; and (iii) fluvial and groundwater inputs to lakes/reservoirs, estuaries, and coastal zones with special im- The water cycle plays an influential role in many earth sys- plications for water quality and fisheries. We propose an ed- tem processes, and the study of hydrology is the means for ucational vision focused on the development of professional understanding these influences. Inquiries into the nature of and personal competencies to impart a depth of scientific the water cycle date back to ancient Greece and the begin- knowledge in the theory and practice of ecohydrology and ning of science itself (Nace, 1974), but the appearance of hy- a breadth of cross-cutting knowledge and skills to enable drology as a discipline was marked by the establishment, in ecohydrologists to effectively collaborate with associated 1922, of the Section of Scientific Hydrology in the Interna- scientists and communicate results to resource managers, tional Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (Volker and Colen- policy-makers, and other stakeholders. In-depth knowledge brander, 2009). From the start, hydrology was recognized as an applied science with direct ties to water management and Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union. 1686 M. E. McClain et al.: Training hydrologists to be ecohydrologists hydraulic engineering. Soon hydrological influences in other is also evident in the appearance of dedicated peer-reviewed sciences began to appear as discrete sub disciplines. Hydro- journals, an increasing number of dedicated institutes, and biology appeared in the 1940s, and the very first article pub- new university programs (Rickwood et al., 2010) (Table 1). lished in the journal Hydrobiologia addressed the problem Education in hydrology has struggled to keep pace with of harmful algal blooms associated with runoff from agricul- rapidly expanding and changing demands brought by re- tural and urban catchments (Prescott, 1948). Hydrochemistry search advancements and new world views. This special is- emerged as the study of the chemical characteristics of water sue on Hydrology Education in a Changing World therefore and was applied to phenomena ranging from rock weather- comes at an opportune time, when the hydrological commu- ing to all forms of contamination degrading water quality. nity is reconsidering the future of the science and needed Geologists had studied ground water and the relationship be- changes (Wagener et al., 2010). Twenty years ago a joint tween water supply and geologic strata for nearly 200 yr, and IAHS/UNESCO panel was convened to assess the status in 1956 leaders in that sub discipline formed their own In- of education in hydrology and, based on that assessment, ternational Association of Hydrogeologists. The emergence recommended fundamental changes in hydrological educa- of new sub disciplines thus reflects the growing body of sci- tion to elevate graduates from narrow technologists to well- entific knowledge in a discipline, with natural subdivisions rounded geoscientists (Nash et al., 1990; Daugharty, 1991; following new theoretical and conceptual threads, as well as Klemes, 1991). The panel called for educational programs a response of science to new societal needs and perceived that consolidated and developed hydrology as a coherent problems. geoscience, recognizing the water cycle as the integrating Over the past 30 yr, our perception of the planet and its process and considering the full spectrum of time and space problems has changed profoundly. We are moving away from scales. The disciplinary boundaries of hydrology were artic- sectoral thinking and ad hoc technical interventions to a more ulated and the broad subjects at undergraduate and graduate integrated and systems view of land and water resources levels defined. The value of modeling was noted, but empha- management (GWP, 2000). Among the most important shifts sis was placed on observation and experimentation and the in perception driving this change have been the determination need to increase field and laboratory experience in educa- of the full extent of human impacts on the world’s ecosys- tional programs. Two additional observations of the panel we tems (MEA, 2005; Falkenmark, 2003) and the confirma- would like to highlight are the need for depth in some system- tion that anthropogenic climate change is occurring (IPCC, atic specialization and recognition of the multidisciplinary 2007). In fact, the magnitude of human influences on ecosys- nature of hydrology and need for hydrologists to learn to tems and climate has prompted the definition of a new epoch, work in teams to address “major problems involving the in- the Anthropocene (Steffen et al., 2007). The response of the teraction of man with the hydrological environment on the scientific community to these changes has led to the growth global scale” (Nash et al., 1990). A number of potential spe- of a new earth systems science that blends multiple disci- cializations were suggested, among them a specialization in plines in pursuit of new and transformational understanding hydrology and biological processes. Education in hydrology about the changing planet (Leemans et al., 2009). Many syn- has advanced greatly over the past 20 yr, but certain of the ergistic sub disciplines have emerged from earth system sci- panel’s recommendations and certainly its spirit remain valid ence, including ecohydrology. (Wagener et al., 2012). Ecohydrology, as an applied science linked to environ- In this paper we consider the education of ecohydrologists mental change and integrated water resources management, and outline a curriculum, professional and personal compe- took shape in UNESCO’s International Hydrology Program tencies, and didactic approaches. As our title suggests, we and Man and the Biosphere Program (Zalewski, 2000; Za- advocate for an educational approach to equip newly trained lewski et al., 2008). Its theoretical foundations lie in the role ecohydrologists with the knowledge and skills to effectively of precipitation and groundwater in controlling climate-soil- engage in, and lead, coordinated efforts to address key en- vegetation dynamics, the role of runoff flow regimes in regu- vironmental problems. This approach is motivated by a rec- lating the ecological structure and function of aquatic ecosys- ognized need for innovation in solving major water-related tems, and the role of flow pathways in regulating key biogeo- problems and for more T-shaped young professionals who chemical processes and elemental cycles (Rodriguez-Iturbe, possess both depth of disciplinary knowledge (the vertical) as 2000; Falkenmark, 2003; Poff