Jamie Pittock is Director of International Programs for the UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Water Governance. His current work includes developing research programs that link Australian and southern African expertise to improve management of river basins, green water and agriculture. He is also Program Leader for the Australia and United States - Climate, Energy and Water project of the US Studies Centre and ANU Water Initiative.

Jamie's PhD examined integration between management of freshwater ecosystems and responses to climate change. Most assessments of climate change and water have focused on direct impacts such as changes in volume and increased variability of run off. Many governments, however, are advocating climate change mitigation and adaptation policies, such as increasing irrigation for biofuel production, increasing hydroelectricity production, carbon sequestration through afforestation, and interbasin water transfers, that may greatly increase impacts on water resources and freshwater ecosystems. His research examined how institutions at the international, national and river basin scales managed freshwater ecosystems and climate change. This research focussed on the interplay between the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. National and basin scale research involved case studies from Australia, Brazil, China, the European Union, India, Mexico, South Africa, Tanzania and the United Kingdom.

Prior to joining ANU, Jamie worked for WWF international as director of their global freshwater program on conservation of wetlands, water use in agriculture, and river basin management. Previously Jamie worked for WWF Australia on: national environmental laws; conservation of freshwater ecosystems, threatened species and communities, and native vegetation; management of invasive species; and measures to support Indigenous and private conservation land managers. He has also worked on environment and natural resource management issues in the Northern Territory and in Victoria.

Research interests/expertise

• Climate change adaptation
• Conservation of freshwater ecosystems
• Hydropower and other water infrastructure
• Intersection of biodiversity, climate change, energy and water policies
• Multi-lateral environment agreements
• Non-government organizations and natural resources management
• River basin and landscape management
• Water management (including in southern Africa and China)

Current projects

UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Water Governance

Australia and United States - Climate, Energy and Water

These include work on:

• Water and agriculture in southern Africa
• Management of the Murray-Darling basin
• Coorong and Lower Lakes: limits to climate change adaptation
• The energy-water nexus
• Mekong River: hydropower, protein and greenhouse gas emissions
• Pumped-storage hydropower in Australia
• Governance of biodiversity, climate change, and water

Selected, peer-reviewed publications

• Pittock, J. 1992. “The involvement of the non-government conservation groups in the management of the Australian Alps.” Chapter 18, pp 511-530. In: The Australian Alps. Revue de Geographie Alpine, Tome LXXX 1992 Numereo 2-3. Institut de Geographie Alpine, Grenoble, France.
• Pittock, J & Walsh, P. 1992. “Is science demonstrating leadership for conservation?” pp 48-53. In:Lunney, D., Dickman, C. & Burgin, S. 2002. A clash of paradigms. Community and research-based conservation. Royal Zoological Society of NSW, Sydney.
• Kennedy, M., Beynon, N., Graham, A. and Pittock, J. 2001. “Development and implementation of conservation law in Australia”. In: RECIEL, 10(3):96-308.
• Cowx, I.G., Almeida, O., Bene, C., Brummett, R., Bush, S., Darwell, W., Pittock, J. & van Brakel, M. 2004. “Value of river fisheries.” pp1-20.  In: Proceedings of the second international symposium on the management of large rivers for fisheries, Volume 1. Welcomme, R. & Petr, T. (eds.). FAO Regional Office for Asia & the Pacific, Bangkok.
• Pittock, J., Lehner, B and Lifeng, L. 2006. “River basin management to conserve wetlands and water resources.” Chapter 8, pp169-196. In: Bobbink, R., Beltman, B., Verhoeven, J.T.A. and Whigham, D.F. (Eds). Wetlands: functioning, biodiversity conservation and restoration. Springer-Verlag, Berlin & Heidelberg.
• Pittock, J. (in press 2007). Mainstreaming experiences in WWF programmes. Mainstreaming wetlands biodiversity conservation. Experience and lessons learned in practical applications of mainstreaming. Yueyang City, Hunan, People’s Republic of China, State Forestry Administration, Global Environment Facility, and UN Development Program.
• Pittock, J., Hansen, L.J. & Abell, R. 2008. Running dry: freshwater biodiversity, protected areas and climate change. Biodiversity 9(3 & 4):30-38
• Pittock, J., Tornqvist, R., and Teutschbein, C. (2008). Theme Report Water and Climate. 2008 Synthesis Report. Progress and Prospects on Water: For a Clean and Healthy World with Special Focus on Sanitation. World Water Week in Stockholm, August 17-23, 2008. Anon. Stockholm, Stockholm International Water Institute: 16-19. Available at: http://www.worldwaterweek.org/Downloads/Synthesis_full_version_08.pdf
• Pittock, J. (2008). Freshwater biodiversity conservation through protected areas: international obligations and lessons for Australia. Australian Protected Areas Congress 2008, Twin Waters, Queensland.
• Pittock, J. and S. Dovers (2009). "Why a special issue on adaptation and water management?" Climate and Development 1(3):191-193.
• Pittock, J. (2009). "Lessons for climate change adaptation from better management of rivers." Climate and Development 1(3): 194-211.
• Yu, X., L. Jiang, J. Wang, L. Wang, G. Lei and J. Pittock (2009). "Freshwater management and climate change adaptation: experiences from the central Yangtze in China." Climate and Development 1(3):241-248.
• Pereira, L. F. M., S. Barreto and J. Pittock (2009). "Participatory river basin management in the Sao Joao River, Brazil: A basis for climate change adaptation?" Climate and Development 1(3):261-268.
• Pittock, J. and Lankford, B. A., 2010. Environmental water requirements: demand management in an era of water scarcity, Journal of Integrative Environmental Sciences, 7(1): 75 - 93.
• Pittock, J., 2010. Better management of hydropower in an era of climate change, Water Alternatives, 3(2): 444-452.
• Pittock, J., 2010. A pale reflection of political reality: Integration of global climate, wetland, and biodiversity agreements, Climate Law, 1(3): 343-373.
• Pittock, J. and Connell, D., 2010. Australia demonstrates the planet’s future: water and climate in the Murray-Darling Basin, International Journal of Water Resources Development, 26(4): 561 — 578.
• Pittock, J., Finlayson, C. M., Gardner, A. and McKay, C., 2010. Changing character: the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands and climate change in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia, Environmental and Planning Law Journal, 27(6): 401-425.
• Pittock, J. and Xu, M., 2011. World Resources Report Case Study. Controlling Yangtze River floods: A new approach, In World Resources Report 2010: Decision making in a changing climate. World Resources Institute, Washington DC.
• Kerkhoff, L. v., Ahmad, I. H., Pittock, J. and Steffen, W., 2011. Designing the Green Climate Fund: How to spend $100 billion sensibly, Environment, 2011(May-June).
• Pittock, J. and J. Hartmann (2011). "Taking a second look: climate change, periodic re-licensing and better management of old dams." Marine and Freshwater Research 62: 312-320.
• Pittock, J. and C. M. Finlayson (2011). "Australia's Murray-Darling Basin: freshwater ecosystem conservation options in an era of climate change." Marine and Freshwater Research 62: 232–243.
• Pittock, J. and C. M. Finlayson (2011). Freshwater ecosystem conservation in the Basin: principles versus policy. Basin futures: Water reform in the Murray-Darling Basin. Q. Grafton and D. Connell. Canberra, ANU E-press (pp. 39-58).
• Pittock, J. (2011) National climate change policies and sustainable water management: Conflicts and synergies. Ecology and Society, 16, 25.
  

[back]