Understanding and anticipating climate change
Professor Seidou’s research focuses on modelling drainage basins and managing water resources. Since water is a key contributor to the impacts of climate change, his research covers areas ranging from climate science to agriculture to economics. For years, he studied extreme water-related weather events, such as floods and droughts, to produce more accurate assessments of their risk of occurring. In doing so, he also helped design infrastructure that can withstand these events and reduce their impacts on ecosystems and society. With global warning causing growing concern, Seidou is increasingly sought after to support work on adapting to climate change. Until recently, this area had taken a back seat to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, particularly when it came to funding. Today, Seidou is one of the 87 specialists whom the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has tasked with establishing indicators to support the Global Goal on Adaptation, part of the Paris Agreement. These indicators will track global progress on sustainability.
Co-ordinated efforts on adapting to climate change worldwide are crucial. “We know that, whatever happens, the impacts are already being felt. We have to learn to live with more precipitation, more flooding, more forest fires,” says Seidou. His work includes establishing indicators to measure how societies are adapting to their new climate realities.
Lack of visibility for scientific research in French
Besides his work on adapting to climate change, Seidou is engaged in tackling another issue: the visibility of research published in French. His work with institutions across the Francophonie (mainly in West and Central Africa) takes place in French, naturally. However, English remains the dominant language for scientific publication.
“A publication in English is read 10 times more than one in French,” he notes. But generating knowledge in the language that’s spoken locally is vital to shape public policy and develop solutions that fit the realities on the ground. Not having research available in French limits the degree to which many French-speaking countries can engage in the fight against climate change.
“Generating knowledge in the language that’s spoken locally is vital to shape public policy and develop solutions that fit the realities on the ground.”
Ousmane Seidou
— Professor at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Engineering
Seidou speaks from experience on that. As well as providing access to his research by publishing several reports in French, he developed guidelines on sustainable investments for the Niger Basin Authority’s Council of Ministers. This workhad to be conducted in French since eight of the nine countries in the basin are French-speaking. This case was a prime example of how research in French can influence strategic decision-making and create policies that reflect local realities.
Funding is often an underlying factor in the publication language gap. Although Canadian institutions fund research, Francophone researchers — especially in sub-Saharan Africa — often lack the resources to conduct and disseminate their work, and to see it put into practice in their own countries. Governments there also tend to consult international firms over local researchers, hampering the countries’ ability to foster their own pool of scientific expertise.
Seidou is thrilled by uOttawa’s support for research in French: it helps him contribute to the global production of scientific knowledge in French.
A call to action for science and decision-makers
For Seidou, the solution lies in governments increasing their recognition of scholarship published in French and in Francophone researchers stepping up their commitment on major international issues. “Publishing is great, but you also have to get involved in decision-making,” he says. Perceptions of knowledge and universities as drivers of economic development are stronger in the Anglophone world than they are in the Francophonie.
He calls for French-language research to have a more significant role in international organizations, and for more to be done on funding for science in French-speaking countries. The problem is clear: without diverse, accessible scientific output, the solutions we come up with to address climate change are unlikely to reflect reality for millions of people.
Through his research and his commitment, Seidou is showing just how important it is for science to be both rigorous and accessible, to avoid staying on the pages of scholarly publications and to make a direct impact on public policy and citizens’ lives.
