CAS 1 - Topic 5: Water Management

Professor in Hydrogeological Processes, University of Neuchâtel

Scientific background and interests: Hydrogeology, numerical modelling, water resources management, sustainability I have been Professor of Hydrogeology at CHYN (Centre for Hydrogeology and Geothermics) at the University of Neuchâtel (UniNE) since 2012. The overarching theme of my research is to develop quantitative tools for sustainable water management. So far I have been involved in projects in Botswana, Kenya, Australia, China and Switzerland. During my PhD at ETH in Zurich, I combined remote sensing technologies with geophysics and geochemistry in order to quantify the spatial distribution of groundwater recharge and soil salinization, two important hydrological variables strongly influenced by irrigation. During my Postdoc in Australia (2007-2010), I published numerous papers in the area of surface water groundwater interaction. By using the latest generation of numerical models, I investigated the fundamental physics and developed a conceptual model of disconnection between surface water and groundwater. In 2009, I was granted a Swiss National Foundation Grant (AMBIZIONE) at UniNE-CHYN to investigate the effects of geologic heterogeneity on surface water groundwater interaction processes. In addition to my research on surface water groundwater interactions, I am involved in a project funded by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, UNHCR and UNOSAT. The goal is to model the aquifer of the world’s largest Refugee camp (in Dadaab, Kenya).

webpage: University of Neuchâtel webpage ; Google Scholar page