November 5, 2012 11:15 a.m.

Conference to explore groundwater, climate change in Middle East »

UCI's Olive Tree Initiative, Center for Unconventional Security Affairs, Center for Citizen Peacebuilding, and Environment Institute, along with the University of California Center for Hydrologic Modeling, are hosting a three-day conference on the impact of climate change on freshwater in the Middle East. Scheduled for Nov. 9 to 11, "Groundwater & Climate Change in the Middle East: Next Threat or Opportunity for Cooperation" will bring experts together to analyze the hydrologic challenges in the region; explore avenues for peace building; and tackle Israeli and Palestinian/Arab water issues. David Feldman (pictured), professor and chair of planning, policy & design at UCI, will moderate a public lecture Saturday, Nov. 10, from 7 to 10 p.m. on "Best Practices of Environmental Cooperation in the Middle East," with speakers from Israel's Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East and the Abraham Fund Initiatives. There will also be a free screening Saturday of "Last Call at the Oasis," which features activist Erin Brockovich and Jay Famiglietti, UCI professor of Earth system science and civil & environmental engineering. The film starts at 5 p.m. in the Arnold & Mabel Beckman Center of the National Academies of Sciences & Engineering, and a Q-and-A session with experts will follow.

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