This is Mia Holmbo Lind, our YWPDK profile for March 2015. Mia is a newly graduated geographer from the University of Copenhagen working with climate change adaption at Grontmij.
What is your current work title and what is your background/degree?
I work on climate change adaptation as a physical geographer at Grontmij A/S. I graduated from University of Copenhagen in October 2014 with a master’s degree in geography and geoinformatics and have worked full time at Grontmij since then. I have worked on climate change adaptation since 2011; first as a student assistant at the Danish Ministry of Environment’s Task Force for Climate Change Adaptation and later at Grontmij up until my graduation.
What is your motivation for working with water, and what are your main interests within this field?
What fascinates me the most about water is the strong influences it has on its surroundings, not only geologically, but also on the livelihood of people and as a threat to human lives. My main interests are climate change adaptation and risk management. I find that my background in physical geography is highly relevant to these relatively new fields.
What was your motivation for becoming a member of YWPDK and how did you hear about the network?
Water has a key role in most areas of environmental science. New and better ways to manage water may emerge in fields adjacent to my own. As YWPDK connects people from different fields, I am motivated by the interaction and sharing of knowledge between the members.
What are your thoughts on the challenges that we, as young water professionals, face in the coming years?
Climate change will have (and already has) huge impact on the hydrological cycle and weather patterns across the globe. This poses not only physical challenges, but also raises important geopolitical questions in relation to freshwater management, risk and disaster management as well as adaptation and mitigation measures. I believe that we, as young water professionals, have an important role in exploring new approaches and come up solutions to answer these questions in a holistic and sustainable way.
