Introduction

With this end-of-the-year Newsletter we like to inform you about the recent developments and activities of the Delta Alliance organisation and network. The year 2013 has been an exciting year. We have welcomed a new Director, Mrs Renske Peters. The founding father and main funding partner, the Dutch Knowledge for Climate program, organised an external review on the basis of which the strategy of the Delta Alliance has been redefined. The relation between the International Secretariat and Wings will be strengthened.
 

In this newsletter you will find also more information on the most recent activities such as the progress made with the development of the Enabling Delta Life Initiative, a joint Global Program of Action on Deltas of the Global Water Partnership and the Delta Alliance. At the end of the year we also like to thank all of you who have supported the Delta Alliance network. We wish you all a good holidays and a Happy New Year with a lot of new inspiring challenges and activities.

On behalf of the International Governing Board and International Secretariat,

Mrs Tineke Huizinga – Heringa (Chair)

New Director of Delta Alliance

We are pleased to inform you that Mrs Renske Peters has accepted her nomination by the International Governing Board as new Director of the Delta Alliance.

International Governing Board meeting

The International Governing Board has met on June 27, 2013. The Board was pleased with the progress since the 1st meeting and the international positioning of the Delta Alliance. The Board is also aware of the challenges that Delta Alliance has to face for the future.

Progress Review of the Delta Alliance

After four years of support the Knowledge for Climate program has organized in 2013 an external Progress Review of the Delta Alliance. Apart from assessing the progress till date the objective of the review was also to provide a ‘preview of the Delta Alliance beyond Knowledge for Climate program support’. The review itself should also focus on the optimization of the organizational and substantive objectives and the assessment of the societal impact.

Strengthening the relations with the Wings

In both the review process and the International Governing Board meeting it was concluded that the relation with the Wings should be strengthened and formalised through a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between each of the Wings and the International Foundation and Secretariat.

Enabling Delta Life Initiative: joint Delta Alliance – GWP Global Program of Action on Deltas

This joint initiative was launched in 2012 during the Stockholm World Water Week and continued in 2013 with the organisation of stakeholder consultation workshops in several important deltas (in Benin, Egypt). The formulation of the Enabling Delta Life Initiative will be finalised early 2014.

Delta Planning Training Workshop - Myanmar 21-25 October 2013

The aim of the training workshop was to bring together professionals from river deltas like the Mekong Delta, Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta, Ayeyarwady Delta, Nile Delta and Ciliwung Delta who play / or will play key roles in delta planning and make them aware of different types of planning approaches, identify feasible approaches and methods given the local contexts and share experiences including those from the Netherlands.

TWAP - delta assessments

Delta Alliance was asked by the GEF (Global Environmental Facility) funded Transboundary Water Assessment Programme (TWAP) to join the programme and to elaborate a global assessment of a number of deltas of transboundary river basins.

Scoping Mission: Vulnerability and Resilience Assessment Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar

The final mission report of the scoping mission is now available. The report describes a number of important findings, such as that the Ayeyarwady plays an important role Myanmar's economic development and emergences as a major regional trade route.

Delta Alliance Young Professional Award: follow up

The three teams that received the Delta Alliance Young Professional Award during a special event during the Rio+ conference in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro have since then been working on the further development of their winning innovative solution for specific delta issues.

Delta Alliance Bangladesh Wing

Delta Alliance Bangladesh Wing organized on 30th of November 2013 a well-attended workshop on ‘Knowledge Sharing for Delta Management in a Changing Climate'. About 70 people attended the workshop, while another 170 people followed the live streamed meeting through internet.

World Water Day 2013: Water cooperation helps preserve water resources and protect the environment’

Delta Alliance together with Deltares and UNEP convened a session on the subject ‘Water cooperation helps preserve water resources and protect the environment’ during the World Water Day on 22 March 2013 in The Hague, the Netherlands.

Conference

Date : 24-26 September 2014

Venue: Rotterdam, the Netherlands

The International conference 'Deltas in Times of Climate Change II' will be held in Rotterdam the Netherlands from 24-26 September 2014. The accent of the conference is on planning and investment in times of climate change. Themes to be discussed are: flood risk management, salt intrusion and fresh water supply, adaptation in rural areas, climate proofing of cities, infrastructure and networks, climate projections, governance, decision support tools and cooperation.

Action Platform for Source to Sea Management – Delta Alliance one of the founding fathers

During 2013, the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) has engaged a range of actors working with freshwater, coastal and marine issues to explore the potential of establishing a more long-term collaboration platform and seek solutions to the challenges surrounding the governance and management of natural resources in the source to sea continuum. Delta Alliance is one of the founding fathers of the Action Platform for Source to Sea Management and is in good company of several international and UN organisations dealing with the issue.

Two new Delta Alliance publications

Delta Alliance has issued in 2013 two more key publications. Enabling Delta life, Delta Alliance Report number 4 and Assessments for investments, Results from the session at the Amsterdam IWW/Aquaterra conference, Delta Alliance Report number 5.