Training activities and PhD program of SMART Research Program as part of an integrated water resource management concept for the Jordan River Valley (JRV)

摘要

The main objective of the research program SMART, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Science and Research (BMBF), was to achieve an integrated water resource management concept for the Jordan River Valley (JRV). One of the main activities of W ork package 11 within SMAR T research program is the training and capacity building activities, which play a major role in the sustainable management of available water resources concepts. The training and capacity building program in Jordan and Palestine was based on demonstration, technology transfer in the field of Decentralized W astewater Systems Solutions (DWWSS) and was designed, developed and tested as a pilot teaching unit for primary schools in Ramallah, Palestine and Al-Salt, Jordan. The training enhances the reflection process about wastewater components and gives arguments to the participants to understand the possibilities of wastewater treatment and its reuse purposes in decentralized systems. Another training program dealing with protection zones for springs and wells was carried out in Ramallah, Palestine. This workshop for water experts stressed the vital need of protection zones regulations to protect extracting ground water wells and springs from pollution. To enhance intensive scientific and cultural exchange of the students from the participating countries, within the SMART project a PhD program was launched. The young scientists profited from this vital and important program. This program was in addition a very successful tool for technology transfer. For promoting and sharing the results with the associated project partners and informing not only internal users, but also the public (e.g. stakeholders), a project website was established. The website provides current information about research and implementation activities and results of the work packages, information concerning the project meetings and Project Status Reports.