West African Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL)
Partners in West Africa www.wascal.org/
University of Bonn
University of Augsburg
University of Würzburg
Deutsches Klimarechenzentrum (DKRZ), Hamburg
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) – Deutsches Fernerkundungsdatenzentrum (DFD), Oberpfaffenhofen
Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZI)
Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT) – IMK-IFU, Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Dr. Fabrice Renaud
This project is a large-scale research-focused programme funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and was initiated to develop effective adaptation and mitigation measures to climate change. The geographical focus of WASCAL is on West Africa with in-depth research in case study watersheds in Benin, Burkina Faso and Ghana.
WASCAL is based on three principle components: a Competence Center, a core Research Programme and a Graduate Research Programme.
The Competence Center will contribute to the development of local research capacity, and serve as a service center for the partner countries, building on the national research communities of the West African countries participating in WASCAL.
The Core Research Programme relates to the scientific activities of the Competence Center, and is implemented by a network of German and West African research institutes. Within the Core Research Programme, UNU-EHS will investigate the linkages between climate change and the state and security of rural livelihoods in West Africa.
The Graduate Research Programme involves the creation of seven graduate schools in West Africa, which contribute to the education of the next generation of African scientists and policymakers in the field of climate change and land management.