About the NDMC

Dr. Wilhite's International Activities

Editorial Board Memberships:
Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal
Natural Hazards (journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards)
Advances in Natural and Technological Hazards Research, book series, Kluwer Academic Publishers

Drought Management and Preparedness Training Seminars:
Training seminars on drought management and preparedness have been organized and conducted for eastern and southern Africa (Botswana, September 1989), the Asian and Pacific region (Thailand, March 1991), South and Central America and the Caribbean region (Uruguay, March 1993), and the West African region (The Gambia, September 1995). The first three meetings were co-sponsored by the International Drought Information Center, NOAA, UNEP, and WMO. In addition to these organizations, the Organization of American States co-sponsored the seminar in Uruguay in March 1993. A fourth seminar was sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Sudano–Sahelian Office. A fifth seminar on the topic of drought management and desertification was sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization and held in Bet Dagan, Israel, in May 1997. Since 1997, the National Drought Mitigation Center has conducted workshops in Brazil, South Africa, and eastern Europe.

The National Drought Mitigation Center has also organized and conducted six training workshops on drought planning for various regions and states in the United States, including a joint workshop with Mexico co-sponsored by the International Boundary and Water Commission and the National Water Commission.

Global Drought Preparedness Network
Because of increasing concern over the escalating impacts of drought and society’s inability to effectively respond to these events in the past, developing and developed countries are now placing greater emphasis on the development of national policies and plans that emphasize the principles of risk management. In addition, global initiatives, such as the U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), are emphasizing the importance of improving drought early warning systems and seasonal climate forecasts and developing drought preparedness plans. A "Global Drought Preparedness Network" (GDPN) can provide the opportunity for nations and regions to share experiences and lessons learned (successes and failures) through a virtual network of regional networks; for example, information on drought policies, emergency response measures, mitigation actions, planning methodologies, stakeholder involvement, early warning systems, automated meteorological networks, the use of climate indices for assessment and triggers for mitigation and response, impact assessment methodologies, demand reduction/water supply augmentation programs and technologies, and procedures for addressing environmental conflicts. The IDIC and NDMC are well positioned to provide the leadership for this initiative, which has the full support of the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska. This network will build on the existing network of scientists, policy makers, and others who receive the IDIC/NDMC’s newsletter, Drought Network News, that has been published since 1989 with support from the International Affairs Office/NOAA and the World Meteorological Organization.

The IDIC/NDMC will work in partnership with key U.N. agencies, U.S. federal agencies, NGOs, and appropriate regional and national institutions to build a Global Drought Preparedness Network that will promote the concepts of drought preparedness and mitigation with the goal of building greater institutional capacity to cope with future episodes of drought. In essence, this global drought partnership will enhance current national and regional institutional capacities through expansion of the NDMC’s drought information clearinghouse on the World Wide Web and by building regional drought networks. Working individually, many nations and regions will be unable to improve drought coping capacity. Collectively, working through global and regional partnerships, we can achieve the goal of reducing the magnitude of economic, environmental, and social impacts associated with drought in the 21st century.

Increasing society’s capacity to cope more effectively with the extremes of climate and water resources variability, i.e., floods and droughts, is a critical element of integrated water resources management. Historically, more emphasis has been given to flood management than drought management. With increasing pressure on water and other natural resources because of increasing and shifting populations, it is imperative for all nations to improve their capacity to manage water supplies more efficiently during normal and water short years. A network of regional drought preparedness networks, with coordinating and technical support from the University of Nebraska’s IDIC and NDMC can help to accomplish this goal.

Progress to Date

The concept of a regional network on drought preparedness has been discussed with regions in the Mediterranean, South America, North America, Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Eastern and Central Europe. It is anticipated that the regions identified above will be redefined as the networks evolve. It is also anticipated that countries may elect to become members of more than one network.

Discussion to date includes the following regions:

•Mediterranean Region. An advanced course, Management Strategies to Mitigate Drought in the Mediterranean: Monitoring, Risk Management, and Contingency Planning, was held in Rabat, Morocco, in late May 2001 with sponsorship of the Centro Internacional De Altos Estudios Agronomicos Mediterraneos’ Instituto Agronomico Mediterraneo (CIHEAM) De Zaragoza, the European Commission, and the Kingdom of Morocco’s Ministry of Agriculture. This course was used as a forum to discuss the establishment of a regional network for the Mediterranean region, institutional leadership and coordination, and financial requirements. The Rabat Declaration on Opportunities for Sustainable Investment in Rainfed Areas of West Asia and North Africa (Ministerial meeting held June 25-26, 2001) has endorsed the development and implementation of a regional approach to drought preparedness through the development of appropriate policies and integrated drought management strategies. A proposal was submitted through CIHEAM to the European Commission in June 2002 to support the development of drought preparedness guidelines for countries in the region and a regional network. This proposal was funded in June 2003 and the 4-year project was launched at a meeting in Zaragoza, Spain. The IDIC/NDMC is serving as an external advisor to this project. An important component of this project is regional networking. This activity will be accomplished in conjunction with the NEMEDCA network for the Near East, Mediterranean, and Central Asian regions under the leadership of FAO, ICARDA, and CIHEAM.

•Asia and Pacific. The concept of the GDPN and regional networks on drought preparedness was presented by Dr. Wilhite at the DESA/ESCAP/NOAA Interregional Symposium on Water-Related Disaster Reduction and Response in Bangkok, Thailand, in August 2001. Since that time, Dr. Wilhite has been in contact with ESCAP, UNDP, WMO, and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) on the development of a regional network. Proposals are being submitted to GEF for funding 3 regional networks for the Asian region (i.e., Asia, Southwest Asia, and the Pacific). An organizational meeting is being planned for Bangkok to organize the objectives of these networks.

•North America. The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration/Agriculture Canada has agreed to work with the IDIC and NDMC to organize a North American regional network. Potential areas of collaboration are currently being identified. The IDIC will work with the Institute of Ecology in Xalapa, Mexico, and the Mexican National Water Commission (CNA) to determine their interest in participating in this network. Based on the success of the U.S. Drought Monitor, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico are already cooperating on the preparation of a web-based North American Drought Monitor map to display drought conditions throughout the continent.

•Sub-Saharan Africa. The UNDP’s Drylands Development Center and the ISDR African Office have agreed to work with the regional drought monitoring centers in the development of a network for Sub-Saharan Africa. This activity has not yet been launched but will occur in cooperation with the IDIC/NDMC and the ISDR.

International Program Activities:

2005	South Korea. To participate in an international drought seminar in Seoul in association with the formation of a national drought management strategy program.
2005	China. To participate in a drought monitoring workshop in Beijing under the US/China Bilateral Science Agreement.
2005	Italy. To participate in a MEDROPLAN workshop on drought mitigation for the Mediterranean Region and meet with FAO officials in Rome to discuss drought programs.
2005	France. To give a keynote presentation at the annual meeting of the European Water Resources Association in Menton.
2005	China. To discuss the organization of a drought monitoring workshop with officials from the Chinese Meteorological Administration as a member of the U.S. delegation representing USDA, NOAA, and the NDMC.
2005	Spain. To meet with staff at the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute in Zaragoza and others from the Polytechnic University of Madrid to plan a short course on drought mitigation for February 2006.
2005	Egypt. To meet with FAO officials to discuss regional drought projects and an Egyptian National Drought Center.
2005	Japan. To participate in a drought session organized for the U.N.’s World Conference on Disaster Reduction, Kobe.
2005	Namibia. To participate in a UNESCO sponsored workshop on the feasibility of creating an integrated drought management center for Southern Africa.
2005	Morocco. To assess progress on the national drought observatory at IAVII and participate in a workshop on risk assessment in drought planning.
2004	Austria. Presented a paper to the International Workshop on Drought and Drought Monitoring, Vienna.
2004	Czech Republic. Participated in discussions related to the NATO Science Program project with colleagues from Mendel University and presented a paper to the National Meteorological Institute.
2004	Jordan. Conducted a one-day workshop and made a plenary presentation at the International Water Demand Management Conference, Dead Sea, Jordan.
2004	Spain. Served as principal lecturer at a CIHEAM Short Course on Drought Preparedness and Mitigation Strategies for the Mediterranean Region, Zaragoza.
2004	South Korea. Attended the International Conference on High-Impact Weather and Climate: Understanding, Prediction, and Socio-Economic Consequences, and helped organize drought sessions, Seoul.
2004	China. Attended an expert meeting of the World Meteorological Organization on Reducing the Impact of Natural Disasters and Mitigation of Extreme Events in Agriculture, Rangelands, Forestry, and Fisheries, Beijing.
2003	Spain. Met at CIHEAM/Zaragoza to plan a short course on Drought Mitigation and Preparedness scheduled for April 2004 and launch the 4-year MEDROPLAN project for Mediterranean countries funded by the European Commission.
2003	Malaysia. Conducted a workshop on drought management, preparedness, and mitigation for the National Hydraulic Research Institute of Malaysia (NAHRIM).
2003	Italy. Participated in a meeting of members of the NEMEDCA drought network and CIHEAM/Bari on linkages between this network and the MEDROPLAN project.
2003	Switzerland. Met with the Secretariat of the ISDR on future activities of the Drought Discussion Group and planned a drought session for the International Early Warning Conference.
2003	Czech Republic. Met with members of the Czech team to launch the NATO Science Program project on Drought and Crop Production in the Czech Republic.
2003	South Korea. Presented a keynote presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Korean Meteorological Society and gave lectures at a Korean university and at KICT.
2003	Switzerland. Chaired a meeting of the drought discussion group, International Strategy for Disaster Reduction Secretariat, Geneva.
2002	Switzerland. Participated in and served as the rapporteur for the U.N. Secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction’s Annual Meeting, Geneva.
2002	Morocco. Presented a keynote paper and participated in a regional drought preparedness workshop for the Mid-East and North African countries sponsored by FAO, Rabat.
2002	Australia. Participated in a drought policy workshop to review Australia’s national drought policy and prepared a book for publication through Melbourne University Press in 2003.
2002	Spain. Collaborated with the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies and other groups from the Mediterranean region on development of a proposal to establish a regional drought preparedness network.
2002	Slovenia. Presented a keynote address at the International Conference on Drought Mitigation and Prevention of Land Desertification and discussed development of a regional drought preparedness project for eastern and central European countries.
2002	Hungary. Met with the Ministries of Environment and Agriculture and the Hungarian Meteorological Service to develop a strategy for drought mitigation planning in Hungary.
2001	Morocco. Presented an invited paper at the International Conference on Drought in Morocco and met with members of the National Drought Observatory Project team from the Institute of Agronomy and Veterinary Science and the National School of Agriculture.
2001	Mexico. Advised the National Water Commission (CNA) on development of a drought management plan for the Rio Grande/Bravo River Basins.
2001	Thailand. Participated in the United Nations DESA/ESCAP/NOAA Interregional Symposium on Water-Related Disaster Reduction and Response in Bangkok.
2001	Switzerland. Discussed initiation of and partnerships for a global drought preparedness network with the World Meteorological Organization, International Secretariat for Disaster Reduction, and other U.N. agencies.
2001	Morocco. Lectured at an advanced course, Management Strategies to Mitigate Drought in the Mediterranean: Monitoring, Risk Analysis, and Contingency Planning, sponsored by CIHEAM, IAVII, and the European Commission, and continued collaboration on the National Drought Observatory Project.
2001	Brazil and Argentina. Lectured at the Institute of Agronomy in Campinas, Brazil, and participated in World Meteorological Week, Institute of Meteorology, Brasilia. Participates in the Hemispheric Conference on Vulnerability to Socio-Natural Hazards, Mendoza, Argentina.
2001	Morocco. Helped initiate the 3-year project to establish a national drought observatory, policy, and plan.
2000	Morocco. Participated in discussions to finalize a work plan for a 3-year project funded by USAID and the USDA/FAS to develop a national drought observatory, including a national drought policy and plan.
2000	Spain. Participated in a planning meeting in Zaragoza, Spain, sponsored by the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies, to organize a short course, Management Strategies to Mitigate Drought Effects in the Mediterranean Region: Preventive Methods and Contingency Plans (planned for May 2001).
2000	Portugal. Co-organizer of experts meeting on drought early warning systems, sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization, UN Convention to Combat Desertification, and UNDP’s Office to Combat Desertification and Drought, Lisbon.
2000	Hungary. Co-organizer and presenter at the Eastern and Central Europe Drought Mitigation Workshop, Budapest.
2000	Australia. Organized focus session on drought mitigation for the World Water Congress, Melbourne.
1999	Brazil. Participated in a panel discussion at the Conference of the Parties, UN Convention on Desertification, with sponsorship by the UNDP and WMO, Recife.
1999	Morocco. Attended a workshop on strategic planning and adaptation to drought, organized by the Moroccan Ministry of Agriculture, Rabat.
1999	Brazil. Attended and presented a keynote presentation at a drought and integrated water resources conference, sponsored by the World Bank, Fortaleza.
1999	Switzerland. Attended the Climate Prediction and Agriculture Workshop at the World Meteorological Organization, Geneva.
1999	Zimbabwe. Conducted a workshop for UNDP/UNSO and WMO on the use of climate information in agricultural decision making.
1999	South Africa. Presented the keynote address at the International Conference on Integrated Drought Management: Lessons Learned for Sub-Saharan Africa, held in Pretoria, and conducted a pre-conference workshop on drought mitigation and planning.
1999	Switzerland. Worked with the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Development Program on a drought/climate forecasting project for southern Africa. Worked with the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Development Program on a drought/climate forecasting project for southern Africa.
1999	Italy. Participated in a European drought mitigation network workshop sponsored by the European Commission’s Space Applications Center and the U.K. Institute of Hydrology.
1998	Brazil. Conducted two drought planning workshops in the Nordeste region, one for the State of Ceará and one for the other states in the region, and met with officials of SUDENE and other state/regional agencies under sponsorship of IICA and the World Bank.
1998	Mexico. Conducted a workshop on drought mitigation planning under sponsorship of the International Boundary and Water Commission, National Water Commission, and the Bureau of Reclamation.
1998	Hungary. Participated in a workshop organized by the Ministry of Agriculture to initiate the development of a drought mitigation plan for Hungary.
1998	Mexico. Met with officials to discuss collaboration programs between the Institute of Ecology/National Drought Research Center and the National Drought Mitigation Center.
1997	Spain. Presented the keynote address at the 3rd International Conference on the Management of Droughts.
1997	Hungary. Conducted research on using agrometeorological information to mitigate the effects of drought.
1997	Brazil. Presented a special conference on drought management and preparedness at the 10th Brazilian Congress on Agrometeorology.
1997	Israel. Principal lecturer at the WMO-sponsored workshop on drought and desertification.
1996	Australia. Evaluated status and experiences of Australia’s national drought policy and presented lectures in Canberra, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
1996	Switzerland. Discussed future drought-related programming needs with the Director of the World Climate Program of the World Meteorological Organization and the Secretariat of the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.
1996	Hungary. Presented invited paper at a meteorological conference organized in celebration of the centennial edition of Idöjárás, the journal of the Hungarian Meteorological Service. Collaborated with members of the Meteorological Service in preparation of a joint research proposal.
1995	Costa Rica. Evaluated a pilot drought management project in northwest Costa Rica as part of a regional program.
1995	Alberta, Canada. Assisted Alberta Agriculture in conceptualizing a provincial drought preparedness plan.
1995	The Gambia. Assisted in the organization of and served as a resource person for a West African drought management and preparedness training seminar in Banjul, The Gambia, sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization, UN Sudano–Sahelian Office, and other organizations.
1995	Canada. Attended and presented a paper at the Sustainable Development on the Great Plains Conference 95, Winnipeg, Manitoba.
1995	Switzerland. Invited participant/lecturer at an expert meeting on drought monitoring organized by the World Climate Program of the World Meteorological Organization in association with the Commission on Sustainable Development.
1995	Costa Rica. Advisor to CORECA (Central American Regional Research Organization) on regional drought mitigation/preparedness strategies under sponsorship of the Organization of American States.
1995	United Kingdom. Advisor to the U.K. Drought Mitigation Working Group and lecturer at Oxford University, Royal Geographical Society, and the University College, London.
1994	Brazil. Presented an invited paper, Drought and Desertification, at the Brazilian Meteorological Congress on Desertification, Belo Horizonte.
1993	Switzerland. Visited with representatives of the World Meteorological Organization concerning new program initiatives in drought monitoring as part of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development.
1993	Hungary. Participated in an NCAR-organized workshop on ENSO/Famine Early Warning Systems, sponsored by UNEP and USAID/OFDA.
1993	Uruguay. Organized and conducted a training seminar on drought management and preparedness for the Latin American and Caribbean regions, Montevideo.
1992	Switzerland. Chaired an informal expert meeting on desertification and drought, organized by the World Meteorological Organization and held in response to Agenda 21, Chapter 12, of the UN Conference on Environment and Development.
1992	Switzerland. Visited with representatives of the World Meteorological Organization concerning the forthcoming training seminar on drought management and preparedness for the Latin American and Caribbean regions, organized and conducted by the International Drought Information Center.
1992	Brazil. Participated in the International Conference on the Impacts of Climate Variations and Sustainable Development in Semi-arid Lands, Fortaleza, Brazil.
1991	China. Lectured at the National Drought Workshop to officials of the Institute of Water Conservancy and Hydrologic Resources Center, Ministry of Water Resources, and other agencies on drought mitigation and response planning.
1991	Brazil. Participated in a workshop on sustainable development in semiarid regions.
1991	Uruguay. Assessed government drought response efforts and assisted in the development of a national drought policy and plan.
1991	Philippines. Participated in a national drought policy workshop for the Philippines.
1991	Thailand. Conducted a regional training workshop on drought management and planning, under the sponsorship of NOAA/WMO and UNEP.
1990	Canada. Presented an invited paper at the Conference on the Impacts of Climate Change and Variability in the Great Plains.
1989	Brazil. Conducted a regional training workshop on drought management and planning, under sponsorship of the Banco do Nordeste and FUNCEME.
1989	South Africa. Consulted with scientists in the Department of Agriculture and Water Supply on Drought Policy.
1989	Botswana. Conducted a regional training workshop on drought management and planning for nations of eastern and southern Africa, with support from NOAA and WMO.
1989	Uruguay. Consulted with Uruguayan government officials to evaluate response activities to current drought conditions and make recommendations for future actions. Visit was at the request of President Julio Maria Sanguinetti through the American Embassy and the Department of State, sponsored by the UN Development Program.
1989	Brazil. Planned a regional training seminar on drought management and planning with Brazilian government officials. The seminar was sponsored by the Banco do Nordeste and FUNCEME (Meteorological Foundation of Ceará).
1989	South Africa and Botswana. Presented a keynote address on drought management to a regional drought workshop sponsored by SARCCUS and met with South African scientists. The purpose of the visit to Botswana was to meet with scientists in the Rural Development Program to make final arrangements for a regional drought workshop scheduled for late September in Gaborone.
1988	Switzerland and Hungary. Presented an invited seminar at the World Meteorological Organization (Geneva) on the 1988 U.S. drought and drought management concepts and discussed the formation of the International Drought Information Center and its activities. The purpose of the Hungarian visit was to continue discussions on the extreme meteorological event project initiated in 1987.
1988	Thailand. Participated in a meeting of the Working Group on Climate Anomalies Associated with El Niño/Southern Oscillation Events, under sponsorship of the UN Environment Program (Bangkok).
1987	Switzerland and Hungary. Visited the headquarters of the World Meteorological Organization (Geneva) and participated in a workshop on extreme meteorological events in the United States and Hungary (Budapest), under sponsorship of the National Science Foundation.
1987	Puerto Rico. Presented invited paper and participated in the Workshop on Natural Hazards Mitigation in the Americas, under sponsorship of the National Science Foundation. University of Puerto Rico–Mayaguez Campus.
1986	Canada. Presented invited paper and participated in the Canadian Hydrology Symposium, Drought: The Impending Crisis? Regina, Saskatchewan.
1986	Brazil. Consulted with Brazilian scientists on water management practices and attended a drought symposium under sponsorship of Partners of the Americas; Teresina, Piaui, and Fortaleza, Ceará.
1984	Australia. Research visit to collect data and information on Australian policy responses to 1982–83 drought, under sponsorship of the National Science Foundation. Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra.
1983	China. Participated in planning meeting for joint research program and visited potential research locations in the North China Plain; Beijing, Jinan, Zengchou, Handan.
1980	Portugal. Participated in NATO Advanced Study Institute on Drought Control Technology, Lisbon.