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Bridging Science and Sustainability: Zahraa Alobaidy Presents Nature-Based Solutions for Water Management

Baghdad, July 23, 2025 – As climate-related challenges continue to pressure water infrastructure across the globe, environmental engineer Zahraa Alobaidy, M.Sc., delivered a powerful international workshop titled “Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) for Sustainable Water Management.” The workshop, hosted virtually by the Institute of Technology – Baghdad, was organized in cooperation with the University of Cologne, Germany, as part of ongoing efforts to share interdisciplinary knowledge between the Middle East and Europe.

The workshop took place under the patronage of Prof. Dr. Waddah Aamer Hatim Al-Tamimi, President of the Middle Technical University, and was supervised by Prof. Dr. Salah Haji Abedoun, Dean of the Institute. The academic coordination was led by Assistant Professor Muntasir Abdulhameed Abid from the Department of Water Resources Engineering. The event was well-attended by faculty, engineers, and postgraduate students eager to explore innovative solutions for resilient water infrastructure.

Reimagining Water Management with Nature

Alobaidy’s presentation began with a fundamental question: How can we manage urban water in a way that works with nature rather than against it?

She provided a clear comparison between Low Impact Development (LID) and Nature-Based Solutions (NbS). While LID focuses primarily on stormwater management through design practices such as infiltration trenches and permeable surfaces, NbS extends this concept further. NbS refers to actions that protect, restore, or mimic ecosystems to provide sustainable benefits across multiple dimensions: water security, climate resilience, biodiversity, and social wellbeing.

Technical Deep Dive: Engineering with Nature

The core of the presentation focused on practical engineering applications for nature-based water management. Alobaidy introduced attendees to several design models for LID components, drawing from real-world standards and manuals including:

• The Canadian SWMP Manual
• The US EPA’s Stormwater LID Framework
• The LID Treatment Train Tool (LID TTT) developed by Canadian conservation authorities

Attendees gained insights into how infiltration trenches are sized and placed, the hydraulic properties of filter layers, and how percolation rates are calculated for stormwater drawdown. Beyond the numbers, the presentation emphasized minimizing surface disturbance and protecting natural flow paths in site development to enhance infiltration and water purification.

Real-World Examples from Europe

One of the workshop’s strengths was its integration of international case studies. Drawing from her academic and field experience in Germany, Alobaidy shared photo documentation and design observations from a variety of green infrastructure sites:

• Green Roofs at Ruhr Bochum University that reduce urban heat while storing rainwater
• Constructed Wetlands in Essen that biologically filter water while creating public green space
• Riparian Forest Buffers along rivers in Pennsylvania that enhance biodiversity and reduce erosion
• Vegetated Swales and Rain Gardens that intercept runoff and support pollinator habitats

These examples underscored the multi-functional nature of NbS—providing not only stormwater control but also improving air quality, increasing property values, and contributing to community aesthetics.

Governance, Policy, and Implementation

The second half of the workshop focused on the role of governments, municipalities, and research institutions in promoting NbS. Alobaidy discussed the policy layers needed to support LID adoption—from local zoning regulations to national water strategies.

She highlighted success stories from cities like Portland, Milwaukee, and Fort Collins, where nature-based solutions have been effectively integrated into land-use plans. She also pointed to organizations like ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, which help cities develop frameworks to embed nature into urban infrastructure.

Key governance challenges such as funding gaps, land-use competition, and policy inertia were openly addressed, along with recommendations for community engagement and stakeholder collaboration.

A Roadmap for Regional Progress

Closing the session, Alobaidy emphasized the importance of pilot projects at neighborhood and institutional levels. She encouraged:

• Stronger cross-disciplinary collaboration between engineers, ecologists, and city planners
• Inclusion of NbS in university curriculum and professional training
• Monitoring and evaluation systems to ensure project longevity and adaptation

The workshop concluded with a call for turning research into action—and using natural infrastructure to combat water scarcity, flood risks, and urban heat across both developed and developing regions.

About Zahraa Alobaidy

Zahraa Alobaidy is a specialist in environmental engineering and a postgraduate researcher in Integrated Water Resources Management at the University of Cologne, Germany. She has contributed to various research and field projects in Germany and is a member of the Iraqi Engineers Syndicate. Her academic focus lies in the intersection of urban sustainability, ecological design, and water resilience.