The two chair groups “Multidisciplinary Water Management” and “Marine and Fluvial Systems” are part of the Twente Water Centre. Our mission is to do research and provide education in the areas of water systems and management. The aim is to increase our understanding of the natural processes in water systems and the socio-economic processes that affect these systems, and to develop tools that can effectively be used to support the management of rivers, river basins, seas and coastal zones.
In our view, water-related problems such as flooding, water scarcity, pollution and ecological deterioration can only be solved through a multi-disciplinary approach, which involves both knowledge of engineering and expertise from the natural, social and policy sciences.
Chair groups
- Marine and Fluvial Systems: prof.dr. Suzanne J.M.H. Hulscher, prof.dr. Kathelijne M. Wijnberg
Marine and fluvial systems are natural systems that are increasingly managed and engineered to support societal needs. With the changing climate and increasing population pressure, there is a pressing need to better understand the response of managed marine and fluvial systems to extreme conditions, as well as their natural recovery and adaptation potential. Equally pressing is the need to apply this new knowledge in the development of resilient solutions for flood safety in coastal areas and along rivers and in a sustainable management of our river systems, coastal zones and the sea floor.
The MFS chair group comprises the chairs of Physics of Water Systems and Coastal Systems and Nature-based Engineering. Together we work on both fundamental and applied problems in rivers, seas, and coastal systems. We study the fundamental interactions between fluid flow and the surface over which the fluid flows, including the interaction of fluid flow (water flow, air flow) with sediment and vegetation as well as with hard infrastructure. In our research we cover a broad range of scales, ranging from detailed hydrodynamics and sediment transport processes to the landscape scale. We apply the natural systems understanding in the development of nature-based engineering solutions, where the natural processes form an essential part of the solution, and we apply it in the assessment of marine and fluvial systems vulnerability to environmental change (extremes and trends) to support strategic decision making in river and coastal management.
The methods we use include computer modelling, laboratory experiments and field observations. Because many of our studies are done in the context of managed natural systems, the problems considered are often transdisciplinary in nature and therefore we often seek collaboration with experts from other disciplines, such as ecologists, social scientists, landscape architects and serious game designers. We engage water authorities and parties from industry in our research as we see the development of science-based solutions for the management of marine and fluvial systems as a co-creation process. - Multidisciplinary Water Management: prof.dr. Markus Berger
Freshwater is essential to sustain life, economic development and the environment but it is also a vulnerable resource whose availability and quality varies strongly around the globe. We need to understand the natural and socio-economic processes that affect water resources and develop solutions for water scarcity, flooding and pollution.
Our group develops and applies holistic approaches which promote sustainable and resilient management of water systems. Particularly we study the dynamics of supply and demand of water resources in interaction with climate, land use, energy transition and agricultural management as well as production, trade and consumption.
The methods we use include water footprint and life cycle assessment, hydrological modelling and integrated assessment.We understand water related grand challenges as a shared responsibility, so we engage different stakeholders and sectors to develop both science-based and actionable solutions. To support decision-making, we provide data, models and tools and share our knowledge in academic teaching and science dissemination.