Duration: 2012 to 2014

The project analyzed and compared historical, recent, and projected conflicts and potential for conflict in the context of flooding. Using the Rhine, Elbe, and Danube as case studies, a methodological toolkit for analyzing solutions to global water conflicts was developed through transdisciplinary collaboration.

Flooding is increasingly understood as a process that is both physical and socially shaped, the course and influence of which cannot be fully predicted or controlled. Therefore, it is possible to develop a flood management strategy that no longer relies solely on controlling and containing floods. Instead, it promotes solutions for adapting to and reducing flooding that take into account the complexity of the interrelationships between nature, technology, and society. The factors constituting the spatial context and societal approach to flooding interact closely with one another in terms of

• the spatial and temporal integration of natural processes, construction measures, and conservation and land-use requirements,
• Risk awareness and perceptions of threat and security,
• coping and prevention as a long-term process of learning and negotiation,
• regulatory framework,
• Breakdown of planning, construction, and operation.

Conflicts of interest between involved groups and/or local residents often arise—or have arisen—over economic, ecological, or social factors. A comparative historical analysis is essential as a foundation for future conflict mediation. Methods of environmental system modeling can also make a decisive contribution to the successful prevention, resolution, or arbitration of disputes. The theoretical approach involves examining the transferability of a socio-ecological spatial concept to the specific issue at hand and, if successful, to water conflicts in general.

The three-year research project was funded by the Klaus Tschira Foundation(external link).

Chair of the Scientific Committee:

Prof. Dr.-Ing. (Hon.) Hermann H. Hahn, Ph.D.

Director of the Research Center:

• Prof. Dr. Dr. Franz-Josef Brüggemeier
• Prof. Rainer Helmig, Ph.D. (Eng.)

Employees:

• Dr. Thomas Haas
• Katharina Stork, B.A. in Geography

Contact:

University of Stuttgart
Institute for Water and Environmental Systems Modeling
Chair of Hydromechanics and Hydrosystems Modeling
Pfaffenwaldring 61, 70569 Stuttgart
Phone: 0711-685-64667 and -64511