Innovations in Water Education Programs: Enhancing Water Security and Socio-economic Development in the Eastern Mediterranean under Climate Change (WaSec)

Water is the most valuable and rare resource in the Middle East. The potential climate change impacts in the region require the new generation of water managers to learn and utilize new and innovative methods and techniques to achieve sustainability. In addition there is a significant gap between the learning skills of graduates from the HEIs and what the companies and enterprises want. To alleviate this gap, firstly a Network with water professionals (HEIs and enterprises) will be established for the Middle East. This network will provide feedback on the new state of the art courses that will be developed and taught in Partner Country HEIs to enhance the knowledge, tools and skills of the graduates and increase their attractiveness to enterprises. These courses will incorporate the latest and newest technologies on water management. Enterprises will be integrated in the courses by having students solve real-life water case studies provided by enterprises, with seminars by water professionals and practical placement to promote entrepreneurship. The courses will utilize new pedagogical approaches with interactive exercises, use of videos, social networks, flexible learning path, blended courses etc. to enhance learning capacities. The courses will be available on a virtual learning portal thus providing them also by distance learning and enhancing their accessibility. Establishing a distance-learning program is essential for this region because of the frequent instability that makes it impossible to always attend classes. The languages of the courses will be Arabic and English so they could be adopted by other Mediterranean countries. The project is very collaborative and international since it has 13 partners from 6 countries. The new teaching approaches and state of the art courses will train science-based water management graduates with the necessary tools to significantly increase their employability leading to more sustainable water management in the region.