Dr. Naresh Devineni Co-Leads S2S-AccelNet Technical Workshop on Climate-Informed Flood Prediction and Water Management in Nairobi
CREST faculty affiliate and Professor of Civil Engineering at The City College of New York (CCNY) and the Earth and Environmental Sciences Program at the CUNY Graduate Center, Dr. Naresh Devineni served as one of the four instructors at the three-day Sub-Seasonal to Seasonal (S2S)-Accelerating Research through International Network-to-Network (AccelNet) Technical Workshop, “Climate-Informed Flood Prediction and Water Management,” held in coordination with the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC) in Nairobi, Kenya, August 28-30, 2025.
Funded by the NSF AccelNet grant, Dr. Devineni and collaborators at North Carolina State University, City University of New York (CUNY), Columbia University, Texas A&M University (TAMU) and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) are building an international network-of-networks to advance S2S forecasting and its practical application. As part of this NSF funded project, Dr. Devineni works with teams in India, Brazil, and across Africa to convene workshops, share data, and translate forecasting methods into use.
The workshop brought together researchers and practitioners from the Greater Horn of Africa to strengthen S2S forecasting, the critical window between weather and seasonal outlooks. Sessions covered probabilistic forecasting and downscaling, streamflow prediction using statistical and physical models, climate-informed water/energy/agriculture management, and Artificial Intelligence/Machine learning methods, with hands-on training aimed at turning forecasts into decisions that protect communities and infrastructure. Dr. Devineni said, “It was a great experience sharing cutting-edge research with practitioners from GHA. These are the scientists who work on a regular basis to make on-the-ground impact, and discussing the latest science with them while also learning the challenges of implementation was very useful to tailor our models for better applicability.”
Dr. Devineni believes that such convenings close the gap between research and practice. He noted, “It gives us the chance to discuss real-world issues at a micro-level with folks directly working to make a change in peoples’ lives. Such deep ground-up knowledge is always beneficial while developing new methods of applications.”
This workshop fostered new ties and provided a great platform for networking. Dr. Devineni met with scientists from International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF), Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), IFPRI and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) at their UN campus in Nairobi, Kenya.
Building on partnerships and shared tools, Dr. Devineni and collaborators will carry forward pilots, training, and student engagement that improve flood readiness across regions through this project.
