Manitoba's Minister of Water Stewardship Christine Melnick announced the establishment of a grant fund and the awarding of a research grant for a joint Israel-Manitoba fund devoted to research in water resources management. The announcement was made at an event in Canada on Thursday, 4th June, 2009 attended by the president of KKL-JNF Canada, Mel Lazareck, the Israeli Ambassador to Canada, Miriam Ziv, and the KKL-JNF emissary to Canada Erez Rotem. "The establishment of this grant and research fund is the result of continued cooperation between KKL-JNF and Canada, following an international convention on issues of water that took place in the province of Manitoba, Canada last August," explained Melnick.
A grant of $100,000 will be given for research in water resources management within the framework of joint research between Israeli, Canadian, and Mexican researchers. The project will provide an Internet forum for research participants worldwide whose work focuses on water resources management in extensive agricultural areas and will enable the establishment of an international database that will make research information available to other policy-makers and researchers.
Furthermore, the government of Manitoba, Canada also awarded a grant fund of $50,000, with the grants intended for Canadian students who will come to Israel to study and conduct research about information that has accumulated in Israel in the field of water management. Brian Oberon, a PhD student from the Faculty of Environment & Geography of the University of Manitoba, will arrive in Israel in 2009. He will study at the Technion and work at the R&D station and laboratory for research of the Kinneret to become familiar with water resource management in Israel and to bring this knowledge back to Canada.
According to Efi Stenzler, KKL-JNF World Chairman, "the problems of water are global problems and common to all countries. The cooperation that has begun between Manitoba and KKL-JNF will help research and enable proper management of water resources."
During the event it was reported that KKL-JNF will conduct the Second Water Convention in Israel in January 2010 which will focus on limnology, wetlands, and water conservation with about 25 researchers, from Israel and Manitoba who specialize in water management, amongst the participants.
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