Professor Lahcen Kabiri, University of Meknès-Errachidia: “Revitalizing the past: ecological knowledge and khettarat hydraulic systems in Morocco”.
Prof. Lahcen Kabiri works on groundwater and traditional management of water resources in arid lands, and on Indigenous Peoples’ and Community Conserved Territories and Areas (ICCAs) in Morocco. He has done research on climate/ecological and social changes in the Oases of the Tafilalet region, documented in several published articles, and carries out consultancy work for various international organizations, including FAO, UNDP, UNESCO/MAB and the EU. He is also the president of a local association based in Ferkla oasis (Association Oasis Ferkla pour l´environnement et le patrimoine), engaged in various types of community development project and in direct assistance to marginalized groups (including pastoralists). His current research-action project aims to restore and revitalize antique structures of groundwater irrigation (khettarat), which were abandoned during the last mechanization decades that have caused groundwater depletion and socio-ecological degradation. A few are still in function, such as the khattarats of the ICCA of Tighfert oasis. The problem goes beyond the technical operation, as it involves societal and ecological organizations mediating traditional structures with multiple changes.
Welcome on Friday 20 April at 12:30-13:00 at HELSUS Hub at Porthania (2nd floor), Yliopistonkatu 3.