Gain practical skills in using decision support systems for water resource management. This category focuses on the Integrated Water Resources Decision Support System (INWARDS) and related tools that enable real-time monitoring, hydrological analysis, and evidence-based decision-making for river basin managers.

Target Audience: Catchment management agency staff, water resource planners, environmental consultants, researchers, and transboundary basin organisation representatives.

Key Learning Outcomes:

  • Navigate and interpret INWARDS dashboards and data visualisations
  • Analyse hydrological time series and flow statistics
  • Apply Indicators of Hydrological Alteration (IHA) for environmental flow assessment
  • Integrate real-time monitoring data into management decisions

Introduction to INWARDS

Discover the capabilities of INWARDS (Integrated Water Resources Decision Support System), AWARD's flagship platform for water resource management. This introductory course provides an overview of INWARDS architecture, data sources, and the range of analytical dashboards available for basin managers.

What You Will Learn:

  • INWARDS platform architecture and design philosophy
  • Overview of available dashboards: Real-time Flows, Water Quality, KNP, IHA, Compliance, and more
  • Data sources: DWS gauging stations, telemetry systems, and partner contributions
  • User registration and navigation fundamentals
  • Understanding data refresh cycles and real-time versus historical data
  • Case studies: How IUCMA and SANParks use INWARDS operationally

Duration: 4–5 hours
Prerequisites: None
Language: English (Portuguese translation available)
Access: https://inwards.award.org.za

Hydrological Data Interpretation

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Develop core competencies in analysing hydrological data for water resource management. This course covers fundamental concepts in streamflow analysis, rating curves, flow duration curves, and statistical methods commonly applied in Southern African catchments.

What You Will Learn:

  • Hydrological data types: discharge, water level, rainfall, evaporation
  • Rating curve development and stage-discharge relationships
  • Flow duration curves and exceedance probability analysis
  • Low flow and drought indices (e.g., Q95, 7Q10)
  • Flood frequency analysis and return periods
  • Data quality assessment: gap filling, outlier detection, and homogeneity testing
  • Applying hydrological statistics within INWARDS

Duration: 8–10 hours
Prerequisites: Introduction to INWARDS (recommended); basic statistics knowledge helpful
Language: English (Portuguese translation available)

Indicators of Hydrological Alteration (IHA)

Learn to apply the Indicators of Hydrological Alteration (IHA) methodology for assessing environmental flow requirements and detecting anthropogenic impacts on river flow regimes. This course covers the 33 IHA parameters and their ecological significance, with practical exercises using INWARDS IHA dashboards.

What You Will Learn:

  • The IHA framework: five groups of hydrological parameters
  • Ecological relevance of flow magnitude, timing, frequency, duration, and rate of change
  • Pre- and post-impact analysis for detecting flow regime alteration
  • Range of Variability Approach (RVA) for setting environmental flow targets
  • Using the INWARDS IHA + Fish and IHA + Invert dashboards
  • Interpreting IHA outputs for management recommendations
  • Linking flow alteration to biological response indicators

Duration: 6–8 hours
Prerequisites: Hydrological Data Interpretation
Language: English (Portuguese translation available)

Real-time Monitoring Systems

Explore the technologies and workflows behind real-time environmental monitoring in river systems. This course covers telemetry infrastructure, data transmission protocols, alert systems, and the integration of live data streams into INWARDS and related platforms.

What You Will Learn:

  • Telemetry system components: sensors, loggers, transmission hardware
  • Communication protocols: GSM, satellite, radio, and IoT networks
  • INWARDS Real-time Flows dashboard: interpreting live gauging data
  • Setting up automated alerts for threshold exceedances (SMS, WhatsApp, email)
  • Data latency, reliability, and troubleshooting common issues
  • Integration with FISHTRAC and water quality sensors
  • Maintenance requirements for remote monitoring stations

Duration: 6–8 hours
Prerequisites: Introduction to INWARDS
Language: English (Portuguese translation available)