Warid (وريد)
Shared thoughts from worlds apparently without water
Giulio Castelli. I am an environmental engineer, currently working on multiple research projects in the Mediterranean Area, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central and South America. I hold a PhD in Sustainable Management of Agricultural Forestry and Food Resources, from the University of Florence (2018). During my PhD, I focused on water harvesting, water resources management and participatory approaches in international development. Alongside my PhD, I worked for the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in Sudan and for the World Bank.
I am currently appointed as Research Fellow in Agricultural Hydraulics and Watershed Protection at the University of Florence Water Harvesting Lab. I am also appointed as Associate Researcher at the Environmental Governance and Territorial Development Hub (GEDT) of the University of Geneva.
- Agreement for research activities Watershed characterisation and identification of best siting for water harvesting (WH) structures to restore ecosystems funded by The International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance (IRHA). Feb – Sep 2021
- ERASMUS+ KA171 call 2022 – funding acquired for bilateral mobility between the University of Florence (Italy) and the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (Malawi).
- Agreement for research activities: Desk study on Best Siting of Water Harvesting Structures in Somalia with a focus on its arid parts funded by FAO Somalia. Apr – Nov 2024
- From 08.03.2024 – PhD Co-Supervisor, Ph.D. in Water Resources Development and Management, Mekelle University, Ethiopia
- From 12.01.2024 – Associate Editor, Frontiers in Water – Water and Human Systems
- From 01.01.2023 – Working group coordinator, IAHS Science for water solutions decade: HELPING – Hydrology Engaging Local People IN one Global world, working group on Co-Creating Water Knowledge
- From 04.08.2023 – Associate Editor, Frontiers in Environmental Science – Drylands
- From 23.04.2023 – Associate Researcher, Environmental Governance and Territorial Development Hub (GEDT) – UNESCO Chair in Hydropolitics, University of Geneva.
- From 01.01.2023 – PhD Co-supervisor, Phd in Sustainable Management of Agricultural, Forestry and Food Resources, University of Florence
- From 06.12.2021 – Editorial Board member, All Earth
- From 19.04.2021 – Committee Member, International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance
- From 01.09.2020 – Research Fellow in Agricultural Hydraulics and Watershed Protection, Department of Agriculture, Food, Environment and Forestry (DAGRI), University of Florence
- From 14.12.2020 – Editor, Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development (JAEID)
- From 14.04.2020 – PhD Co-supervisor, PhD in Engineering (Infrastructure Development), Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences
- From 01.09.2017 – Member and co-founder, Water Harvesting Lab
- 01.04.2024 – 15.05.2024 – Visiting Researcher, Institut National Agronomique de Tunisie (INAT)
- 25.09.2022 – 31.03.2023 – Invited Researcher, Environmental Governance and Territorial Development Hub (GEDT), Institute for Environmental Sciences (ISE) – UNESCO Chair in Hydropolitics, University of Geneva.
- 14.04.2020 – 31.12.2022 – PhD Co-supervisor, Phd in Engineering (Infrastructure Development), Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences
- 2018-2020 – PostDoc. Department of Agriculture, Food, Environment and Forestry (DAGRI), University of Florence
- 2019-2020 – Lecturer. Training course for the Department of Rural Development of Myanmar: Water Management in arid and semi-arid areas (60 h, first edition 2019, second edition 2020), in the framework of GREAT (Economic, Environmental and Territory Resources Management) Project (AID no. 10942) – Funding Agenzia Italiana per la Cooperazione allo Sviluppo (Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, AICS). Terres des Hommes Italia NGO, Myanmar. Teaching activity in English
- 2019 – Assistant Lecturer (Supporto alla Didattica). Course in Appropriate Environmental Technologies for Resources-limited Countries (3 ECTS, 33 h). University of Brescia, Italy. Teaching activity in English
- 2017-2019 – Consultant, ARS Progetti SPA. Master Planning Consultant Mezyad Desert, Al Ain – Jebel Hafit UNESCO Heritage Site, United Arab Emirates
- 2017-2019 – Consultant. The World Bank, Italy – Burundi and Rwanda
- 2015-2016 – Water Sector Coordinator. AICS – Italian Development Cooperation Agency, Office of Khartoum, Sudan
- 2018, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) with Honors. Sustainable Management of Agricultural Forestry and Food Resources, specialisation Agricultural and Forest Engineering. University of Florence, Italy.
- 2014, MSc in Environmental Engineering 110/110 cum laude. University of Florence, Italy
- 2024. Roland Schlich Travel Support award for EGU 2024. European Geosciences Union (EGU) – International, for the contribution “Modelling the effect of land use and crop changes on water harvesting agricultural reservoirs”
- 2022. Visiting Grant: Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Visiting Scientist grant at University of Geneva for the project “Beyond Water: the role of food security on hydropolitical disputes and water conflict and cooperation”. 12,500 CHF
- 2021. “Premio 2020 del Tavolo Nazionale dei Contratti di Fiume” – Award of the National Working Table for River Basin Contracts – National
- 2019. Roland Schlich Travel Support award for EGU 2019. European Geosciences Union (EGU) – International, for the contribution “Mesoclimate regulation induced by landscape restoration and water harvesting in agroecosystems of the horn of Africa”
- 2018. Honorary Mention – Prize Evaristo “Ivo” Ricchetti 2018 for young researchers – XIII Meeting of the Hydrogeology and IT-Geosciences sections of the Italian Society of Geosciences – National
- 2017. PhD student award “Adriano Guarnieri” XI International AIIA Conference “Biosystems Engineering addressing the human challenges of the 21st Century” – Italian Association of Agricultural Engineering – National
- 2014. Thesis Award “CeTAmb LAB” 2014, 1st Prize. Special Section “Water as Common Good: Appropriate Technologies for the province of Brescia and International Cooperation”. Università degli Studi di Brescia – National