Amman, Aug. 22 (Petra)– Rasmi Khazaaleh — The Global Center for
Climate Change and Water-Energy-Food-Health Systems (GC3WEFH) has
concluded the first phase of its work in Jordan after achieving a
range of scientific and practical results aimed at addressing the
interconnected impacts of climate change, particularly water
scarcity, health, food security and energy.

The project is expected to be extended in Jordan, building on the
successes achieved during its first phase to develop new
interventions that can be scaled up and implemented in other areas
facing similar challenges.

Funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) through an
international research grant worth a total of $3.8 million, the
project brought together more than 30 scientists and researchers from
various disciplines and institutions. The international partnership
includes the University of California San Diego, which coordinates
the project, the University of California San Francisco and Texas A&M
University, in addition to the University of Jordan, The Hashemite
University, the Royal Scientific Society and Jordan University of
Science and Technology, as well as a number of national partners and
institutions.

The project seeks to translate scientific research into practical
solutions that strengthen local communities’ capacity to adapt to the
impacts of climate change.

Project Director and Professor of Public Health at the University of
California San Diego, Dr. Wael Al-Dulaimi, told the Jordan News
Agency (Petra) that the first phase represented a pioneering research
and applied experience aimed at moving beyond studying the impacts of
climate change to testing practical solutions capable of making a
direct difference in the lives of local communities, particularly in
areas facing growing challenges related to water, health, food
security and energy.

He said Jordan was selected as a key focus of the project because it
is among the countries most affected by water scarcity and climate
change, while at the same time possessing a strong scientific and
institutional base and a network of expertise capable of turning
research into practical interventions.

Al-Dulaimi stressed that the project’s philosophy is based on
addressing climate change as an interconnected challenge that cannot
be tackled through a single sector. Water is closely linked to
energy, food, health and the economy, he said, adding that any
successful intervention in one sector must take into account its
impacts on the others.

“What we wanted to demonstrate in the first phase is that scientific
research should not remain inside laboratories or in academic papers.
It can be transformed into practical solutions that benefit people,
while these solutions can also be scientifically measured to
determine their impact and their potential for replication and
expansion,” Al-Dulaimi said.

One of the project’s most notable tangible outcomes was the
establishment of a solar-powered water desalination plant in
Al-Khalidiya in Mafraq Governorate, providing a more sustainable
source of drinking water for local residents.

The plant uses reverse osmosis technology to treat saline groundwater
and is powered by solar energy, helping reduce operating costs and
reliance on conventional energy sources.

The University of Jordan inaugurated the Al-Khalidiya plant last June
as part of the project. The facility has a production capacity of at
least six cubic meters of treated water per hour and is equipped with
a 10-kilowatt solar power system, providing water to around 100 local
families at a nominal cost.

Al-Dulaimi said the importance of the Al-Khalidiya plant extends
beyond water provision, as it serves as a practical model for testing
the relationship between water, energy and health.

The project is studying water quality, costs and the sustainability
of operating the plant, while also monitoring health indicators among
residents. This, he said, will provide a database that can be used to
scientifically assess the impact of the intervention.

The project has also included a wide range of initiatives, research
activities and interventions designed to strengthen the capacity of
local communities, institutions and researchers to address the
impacts of climate change. These include drought-adaptive
agriculture, water security, climate-related health, energy
efficiency, community farming and greywater systems, as well as
training and capacity-building programs.

The project also succeeded in helping develop a new generation of
young people capable of working with scientific data related to
climate and health. Al-Dulaimi cited the “DataJam” program, which
involved 87 students from 21 Jordanian schools and resulted in 18
student projects in data science, climate and health over a two-year
period.

He added that the project funded several entrepreneurial initiatives
focused on smart agriculture and the development of new energy
systems. It also supported capacity-building for young media
professionals and activists in using journalism skills and creative
approaches to raise awareness about climate and environmental
changes, promote the rational use of water and energy, and highlight
the links between climate, health and the environment.

Al-Dulaimi stressed that one of the most important lessons learned
during the first phase was that local solutions are more sustainable
when communities participate in identifying problems, designing
interventions and evaluating their outcomes.

Local communities, he said, must be partners in research and
implementation rather than merely beneficiaries of project outcomes.

Regarding the next phase, Al-Dulaimi said the results achieved during
the first phase, particularly the transformation of research ideas
into actual interventions and the measurement of their outcomes, had
strengthened prospects for continuing the project in Jordan through
additional funding and an extension of the program.

He explained that the next phase would build on the achievements made
so far, gradually moving from pilot projects toward more scalable
models, while focusing on documenting results, identifying
interventions that have proven effective and assessing their
potential for application in other parts of Jordan facing similar
conditions.

For his part, the professor of mechanical engineering at the
University of Jordan and the project’s coordinator in Jordan said
anticipated additional funding would strengthen the project’s
practical component, expand its work with local communities, increase
the use of data in decision-making, support researchers, young people
and local institutions, and enhance their capacities in the fields of
climate, health and water.

He said the next phase would focus on positioning Jordan as a
regional platform for testing and developing solutions addressing the
interrelationship between climate change, water, energy, food and
health.

The aim, he added, is for the project’s outcomes not only to benefit
the communities hosting the interventions, but also to serve as
models that can be replicated in other countries and regions facing
similar challenges.

//Petra// MF