Where did the idea of “water security” come from? How did countries around the world come to agree on shared goals for drinking water, sanitation, river basin management and sustainable development? And why does water still lack the kind of global institutional architecture that exists for climate change and biodiversity? In this episode, Dr Roberto Lenton, one of the world’s leading voices on water security and international development joins host Veena Srinivasan for a conversation on the e...
Jul 7
58 min
How can satellites measure crop water use from space? Can they help farmers irrigate more precisely, improve yields, and make water distribution fairer across canal systems? In this episode of the Water Data Podcast, Veena Srinivasan speaks with Professor Wim Bastiaanssen, a pioneer in satellite-based evapotranspiration mapping and the original developer of SEBAL — the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm. Professor Bastiaanssen explains how satellite imagery can estimate actual evapotranspiratio...
Jun 23
51 min
Why do canal irrigation systems repeatedly produce head-tail inequality? Why do some farmers receive reliable water while others are systematically deprived for decades? In this episode, Veena Srinivasan speaks with Professor Peter Mollinga, a leading scholar of irrigation and water governance, about the politics of canal irrigation systems in India. Drawing from nearly 40 years of research on the Tungabhadra Left Bank Canal in Karnataka, the conversation explores the origins of “protective i...
Jun 11
1 hr 6 min
California’s groundwater crisis did not emerge overnight. Decades of unrestricted pumping, falling groundwater levels, land subsidence, disappearing streamflows, and recurring droughts eventually pushed the state toward one of the world’s most ambitious groundwater governance reforms: the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). In this episode of the Water Data Podcast, Dr. Maurice Hall, Senior Advisor for Climate Resilient Water Systems at the Environmental Defense Fund, joins host Ve...
May 26
1 hr 17 min
Why is water never just a technical problem? Who gets water, who loses access, and who gets to decide? In this episode of the Water Data Podcast, Professor Margreet Zwarteveen, an internationally recognised scholar of water governance, irrigation, gender, and the politics of natural resources, joins host Veena Srinivasan, Executive Director at WELL Labs. Margreet Zwarteveen is Professor of Water Governance Education at IHE Delft and Professor of Governance and Inclusive Development at the Uni...
May 12
1 hr 13 min
How can a satellite measure water buried deep underground? What can space-based observations tell us about groundwater depletion across the world? And how is this data shaping the future of water policy and governance? Professor Jay Famiglietti, a leading hydrologist and former NASA scientist, joins host Veena Srinivasan on this episode of the Water Data Podcast to discuss the revolutionary GRACE satellite mission. Jay is a Global Futures Professor at Arizona State University and is widely kn...
Apr 28
56 min
Listen to host Veena Srinivasan as she continues to talk to researchers, innovators, government officials and business leaders working on the forefront of water systems. The show features rich conversations on the science, systems, and stories that shape our water future. Episodes drop every other Tuesday. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more updates. Watch episodes from season two here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrHB5gd1QIB8Tc2zlGRrz5QCxxP70FNBh&si=oQ-hH87g7...
Apr 27
1 min
What does water have to do with power, caste, labor, and economic policy? In this episode of the Water Data Podcast, Professor Trevor Birkenholtz (Penn State University) explains how political ecology helps us understand groundwater, irrigation, and large-scale water infrastructure in India. Trevor Birkenholtz is a political ecologist and development geographer with regional interests in South Asia and the United States. His empirical interests are in water-supply development, water infrastru...
Mar 3
1 hr 15 min
In this episode of The Water Data Podcast, host Veena Srinivasan speaks with Dr. Himanshu Kulkarni, hydrogeologist and co-founder of ACWADAM, about groundwater science in India – from basalt aquifers and rural irrigation to springshed revival in the Himalayas and participatory groundwater management. This episode was recorded in November 2025 on the sidelines of a two-day event celebrating the life and work of Dr. Himanshu Kulkarni, marking his recognition with the 2025 International Water Pr...
Feb 17
57 min
In this episode of The Water Data Podcast, host Veena Srinivasan speaks with Dr. Himanshu Kulkarni, hydrogeologist and co-founder of ACWADAM, about groundwater science in India – from basalt aquifers and rural irrigation to springshed revival in the Himalayas and participatory groundwater management. This episode was recorded in November 2025 on the sidelines of a two-day event celebrating the life and work of Dr. Himanshu Kulkarni, marking his recognition with the 2025 International Water Pr...
Feb 3
1 hr 15 min
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