History of GRAPHIC
The Groundwater Resources Assessment under the Pressures of Humanity and Climate Change (GRAPHIC) project was launched in 2004 by a small group of groundwater and climate scientists under the lead of UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme. The aim of the project is to develop methodologies for assessing effects of climate change and human activity on groundwater and apply them to case studies.
Since the Kickoff Meeting in 2004, the number of GRAPHIC members has increased significantly. The project has since then been engaged in the assessment of groundwater resources under the various pressures of humanity and climate change, based on several case studies. Now, experts throughout the world are representing regions of different climatic conditions and a wide range of groundwater and climate related scientific expertise (link to subjects and methods page) in the framework of the GRAPHIC Project.
A number of GRAPHIC meetings have taken place to date, fostering cross-linking between researchers, and enhancing the exchange of information, data and experiences on groundwater and climate-related topics.
- 1st GRAPHIC Expert Meeting at UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, March 1-3, 2004 (Kickoff Meeting for GRAPHIC);
- 2nd GRAPHIC Expert Meeting at University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK, April 3-5, 2005;
- 1st International Symposium on GRAPHIC (and 3rd GRAPHIC Expert Meeting), convened in Kyoto, Japan, April 4-6, 2006. A special section on GRAPHIC was published in the Vadose Zone Journal in August, 2007;
- 4th GRAPHIC Expert Meeting at Estes Park, Colorado, USA, September 17-20, 2007;
- Workshop on Coastal Aquifers and Climate Change and launch of the GRAPHIC Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) regional component, Belize, November 19-20, 2007;
- Case Study Launching Workshop – North Andros Aquifer in Bahamas, GRAPHIC-LAC, Nassau, The Bahamas, March 17-19, 2008;
- 5th GRAPHIC Expert Meeting and launch of the GRAPHIC Africa regional component at the International Conference on Groundwater and Climate Change in Africa, Kampala, Uganda, June 24-28, 2008;
- 6th GRAPHIC Expert Meeting, at XXXVI International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) Congress, Toyama, Japan, October 27-31, 2008.
The first GRAPHIC publication was launched in 2006. At the 4th Expert Meeting in Colorado GRAPHIC’s mission and vision were redefined and the scope, subjects and methods of the project were expanded. This redefinition is reflected in the new GRAPHIC Framework Document, which was recently published.
For downloading the working documents and presentations of the GRAPHIC Expert Meetings, please refer to: http://www.chikyu.ac.jp/USE/GRAPHIC/meeting.htm.
