Abstract

Socio-hydrological vulnerability is a new area of research that integrates people and their activities into water science. This type of research is important in water scare areas such as arid and semi-arid areas on the globe. The main objective of this type of research is to develop a sociohydrological vulnerability index in semi-arid region by combining remote sensing, bio-geophysical and social data. In general, vulnerability is expressed as a function of the exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity of a region to natural disasters and climate change effects. The heart of water security is the ability of water systems to meet changing human and environmental needs. Socio-hydrological vulnerability research ensures that decisions made about our water resources incorporate a range of values and perspectives about the meaning, value and use of water. Presently scientists bring an interest in human values, markets, social organizations and political institutions to the traditional focus of water science on climate, social and hydrology. It is a reality that natural disasters (such as drought and floods) results in sets of socio-hydrological impacts starting with cropyield failure, unemployment, erosion of assets, income decrease, poor nutrition and decreasing risk absorptive capacity, thereby increasing the vulnerability of the community. In addition, it is demonstrated that the severity of these social impacts is experienced differently and depends one hand on socio-hydrological characteristics and on other hand on people#x2019;s exposure and characteristics, which are respectively named bio-geophysical, hydrology and social vulnerability. Mapping socio-hydrological vulnerability patterns across space and time helps to identify socially and bio-geophysical vulnerable areas and assists with climate change adaptation strategies in areas to projected socio-hydrological vulnerability.