Ask the Editor:
Professor Chris Perera, Editor-in-Chief for Journal of Water & Climate Change
Why is the Journal of Water & Climate Change (JWCC) important to the field?
Issues related to food, water and energy are the three most important challenges in the world in the 21st century due to exponential population growth, rapid urban development and climate change. There is a nexus between food, water and energy and they are intrinsically linked. Water and energy are essential for food production, processing and delivery. Energy is used for collection, storage, treatment and delivery of water and wastewater. The Journal of Water & Climate Change addresses these challenges publishing innovative research papers which are useful for both researchers and practitioners. Within this context, the scope of the journal covers all aspects of water science, technology, management and innovation in response to climate change, with emphasis on reduction of energy usage.
There are many journals on climate science. There are also journals on water, which includes climate impacts on water. There are one or two other journals dedicated climate change and the environment. To my knowledge, the JWCC is unique in being dedicated to address issues related to water and climate change.
What ongoing/upcoming trend or development do you think will be a game changer for the field?
I believe the nexus between energy, water and climate has not been explored fully yet. As mentioned earlier, they are intrinsically linked with effects on food production, urban development, in general on the economy and the environment.
There are social, economic and environmental costs associated with water and climate change. Some of them are direct costs, while the others are indirect. These social, economic and environmental costs would become more and more important with stress on food, energy, water and the environment.
Research on mathematics and statistics might lead to better techniques on predicting non-stationary future climate with uncertainties and its effects. Although there is debate about the stationary and non-stationary nature of climate, the journal should encourage these futuristic research, although they may not be relevant to the practitioners now.
As the first Editor-in-Chief of the journal, what are your hopes for the future of the journal itself?
I would like to see the quality of the journal recognised and its scope increased. Impact factor is one such measure, high impact factor indicating high quality of the journal and its papers and its usefulness to its readers. We welcome review articles by experts in the areas of research related to water and climate change and hope to broaden readership, which may improve the impact factors and celebrate the quality of the journal.
Currently many research articles focus on the science and engineering aspects of water and climate change. However the challenges of water and climate go beyond science and engineering elements, there are also social, economic and environmental aspects. It would be exciting to see more submissions on the social, economic and environmental impacts of climate change on water.
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