Georgia DestouniProfessor of Hydrology

About me

Georgia (Gia) Destouni
Professor, Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University

Guest Professor, Department of Sustainable Development, Environmental Science and Engineering (SEED), KTH Royal Institute of Technology

My research regards the conditions, variations and change trends of the flows, storages, availability and quality of water, and their linkages and interactions within the integrated freshwater system on land. Further, it regards the interactions of the freshwater system with the atmosphere, ocean, climate, ecosystems and other environmental and societal aspects and factors. Geographically, my research is both global and regional around the world, including for example Baltic, Arctic, Central and East Asian, Balkan, Mediterranean, and African regions.

I lead the interdisciplinary SATORI Research Lab for coupled natural-human systems, launched in 2024 and hosted by the Stockholm Trio University Alliance (Karolinska Institutet, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm University) as part of the initiative Stockholm Trio for Sustainable Action. Further, I am currently the Editor-in-Chief of Water Resources Research, the flagship water science journal of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) since 2021, member of the Baltic Earth Science Steering Group since 2022, and member of the Council of Trustees of WWF Sweden since 2019. I was earlier Head of the Department of Physical Geography at Stockholm University 2016-2022, Secretary General of The Swedish Research Council Formas 2013-2016, Vice President of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS) 2015-2019, member of the scientific advisory committee of Science Europe 2016-2018, and member of Scientific Council for Sustainable Development commissioned by the Swedish Government 2015-2016.

I am elected member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences since 2003, the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences also since 2003, international member of the National Academy of Engineering in the US since 2024, corresponding member of the Academy of Athens in Greece since 2024, Fellow of AGU since 2015, and Fellow of the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study in South Africa since 2023 (in residence 2024). I am further deeply honored by recognitions of my research contributions expressed in being awarded the 2024 Baltic Sea Award, the 2013 Henry Darcy Medal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), the 2013 Research and Development Award of Oskarshamn Nova Centre for University Studies, the 2020 Sigge Thernwall Grand Prize for Research on Sustainable Infrastructure and Built Environment, and H.M. The King's medal in Sweden for my water and climate research in 2022 - and by warming words from colleagues about this. 

CV September 2024 (264 Kb)   Full publication list - Sep 2024 (863 Kb)

Teaching

As professor of Engineering Hydrology at KTH Royal Institute of Technology during 1999-2005, I developed and taught courses in this and related subjects within the Civil Engineering programme and the international Master's Programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure at KTH. As a new professor at Stockholm University in 2005, in a new subject area Hydrology, Hydrogeology and Water Resources for this university, I have with colleagues in our expanding research and educational group built up and taught in a related Master's Programme at the Department of Physical Geography. The subject name signified our aim and efforts to link different water-science fields and components in this programme, in close connection with our research that also targets these linkages. The programme thus included and coupled hydrology with primary focus on surface waters (streams, rivers, lakes), hydrogeology with focus on groundwater, the soil water-groundwater-surface water interactions, and the water resource and management aspects addressed in the water resources field. This Master's Programme in Hydrology, Hydrogeology and Water Resources developed into one of the most popular and largest advanced-level programmes given at the Department of Physical Geography at Stockholm University. After more than a decade of giving this programme in the same form, it was paused for some time for updating and further development.

My further educational development efforts have focused on strategic projects with university and EU support. These have, for example, included a project for developing Online-based sustainability-focused education on environmental system dynamics, and a European project for Training new generations on geomorphology, geohazards and geoheritage through Virtual Reality Technologies.

In PhD level education and supervision of early career scientists, I have so far been main adviser of 24 PhD-students and 18 post-doctoral fellows. Of these, 22 PhD students (16 at SU, 6 at KTH) and 16 postdocs have by now completed their dissertations, degrees and projects with me. I also am or have been co-adviser of several more PhD students and postdocs. Many of the early career scientists I have advised and mentored have gained top positions as full, associate or tenure-track professors at universities, or as research leaders, senior or junior researchers or analysts at research institutes and other knowledge-based organizations and private companies in Sweden and other parts of the world.

Research

 

                                                                                              

Through my research I want to understand how Earth’s water system works and what drives it variations and change trends around the world and at different scales, up to global.

My research regards the processes, variability and changes that determine and characterize the fluxes, storages, availability and quality of water, and how they interact with society, climate, and ecosystems across various Earth System interfaces. It also regards how improved scientific understanding can guide society’s management of critical water resources and water-related risks, e.g., due to extremes like droughts and floods, water pollution, and disease spreading. I use theoretical, data-driven, and model-based approaches to study, decipher and quantify these water aspects and interconnections.

See further our research projects at our SATORI Research Lab for coupled natural-human systems.

 

Research projects

Ongoing

Completed

NG| AI-powered knowledge integration to Carbon-neutral Cities

Transition of cities towards carbon neutrality requires an improved understanding of the interlinkages between land-use and energy planning, and of the complexity of coupled socio-ecological processes, and feedbacks in urban-regional systems.

NG| The missing link: how does the climate affect human conflicts and collaborations through water?

Knowledge about how changes in water flows affect conflicts is largely lacking. The goal of this project is to increase understanding of how people and the climate affect water flows and how, in turn, these changes affect cooperation and conflicts over water.

NG| Collaborative land-sea integration platform (COASTAL)

COASTAL is a unique collaboration between 29 partners from 8 EU Member States, representing entrepreneurs, administrations and scientific experts in coastal and rural enterprises who engage actors and stakeholders at all levels by combining local knowledge and scientific expertise in a co-creation process.

NG| Innovation and partnerships for effective programs of measures for good water quality

Innovation and partnerships for effective programs of measures for good water quality and good ecological status – with pilot study for Askrikefjärden

NG| Putting locals first: mapping cultural values across rivers of the world

The project will evaluate proxies of socio-cultural services provided by the river, such as mapping locals´ favorite places on the river.

NG| NATURANCE: Insurance for nature – nature for insurance

The European Green Deal (GD) is a transformative action plan to a healthy, sustainable, prosperous, climate resilient and net-zero emission society

NG| Optimization of Agricultural Management for Soil Carbon Sequestration

Global climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Utilizing the carbon-lowering capacity of global soils has great potential to mitigate such changes.

NG| Science for a secure society:

Hydro-climatic hazard, risk, and crisis management in Sweden (CrisAct)