Climate change is having a significant impact on water resources. Changes in temperature and precipitation patterns as well as climate extreme events are affecting the availability, quality, and distribution of water in various regions. The use of general circulation models (GCMs) and regional climate models (RCMs) is crucial for generating future climate projections based on different scenarios. The climate variables provided by these models can be used to drive basin-scale hydrological models or surrogates of such models, which are effective tools for assessing the potential impact of climate change on water resources. This research proposal aims to assess how climate change is affecting climate extremes and water resources focusing on Italian areas, particularly in the Po River basin. The proposal intends to analyse data at different timescales, including seasonal and decadal forecasts and long-term projections, to evaluate future climate and extreme occurrences. These analyses are fundamental to develop and implement adaptation plans from the short- to the long-term. Statistical methods will be used to adapt the climate model outputs to a local scale preserving local heterogeneities and to estimate climate characteristics on a sub-daily scale where necessary. Physically based hydrological models or surrogate models will be driven by the climate projections to provide quantitative information on water resources and the frequency and intensity of future dry and wet periods.

Master's degree in either Civil Engineering with a curriculum focused on hydraulics or Environmental Engineering.Proficient in basic software such as Office, intermediate in programming using Matlab and GIS. Possess extensive expertise in statistical hydrology.

The research will take place at the Department of Engineering and Architecture of the University of Parma.The research team involved includes:Marco D'Oria (applicant) – PhD. Associate Professor of Hydraulic and Maritime Constructions and Hydrology - SSD ICAR/02Maria Giovanna Tanda - Full Professor of Hydraulic and Maritime Constructions and Hydrology - SSD ICAR/02Valeria Todaro - PhD. Assistant professor (RTD/a) of Hydraulic and Maritime Constructions and Hydrology - SSD ICAR/02Daniele Secci - PhD student, PhD program in co-tutorship with Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain), prof. Jaime J. Gómez-Hernández.