Holland Water Challenge

The Singapore-Netherlands Water Challenge is a global competition for graduate students and young researchers who aspire to make a difference in the global delta and water community.

Themed “Sustainable Solutions for Coastal and Urban Living” this year, the challenge drives participants to examine the environmental implications of coastal and urban water works and look for original and innovative sustainable solutions that specifically address them.

The Challenge, which ran from August 2011 to January 2012, attracted 39 participants across 15 nationalities. Based on the theme, case studies that describe a specific "challenge" related to coastal and urban water management were formulated. Each case study was managed by a professional expert from the programme partners. Participants were required to submit proposals for one or more of the case studies. Seven proposals were shortlisted before the two winning entries were picked. One of the winners is Ms Anne Belski of Swinburne University of Technology, Australia. Ms Belski’s proposal focuses on making the development of new maritime infrastructure projects more environmentally sound. Specifically, she has proposed several novel solutions to reduce the environmental damage from backhoe-dredging, having done extensive field analysis at the Australian Maritime Complex in Perth.