On philosophical foundations of ecohydrology: the challenge of bridging natural and social science

Abstract

The introduction of a sustainable management of freshwater resources to biological and hydrological processes of ecohydrology research by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's International Hydrologic Programme and the Man and Biosphere Programme calls for multiple and overarching philosophical explanations in ecohydrology. This paper reviews philosophical theories underpinning research in natural sciences (hydrology and biology) and social sciences, with special emphasis on studying causes and effects of ecohydrological extremes such as water stress and drought. The ontology, epistemology and methodology of theories such as Empiricism, Realism and Structurations have been considered. Specifically, the application of the hypothetico‐deductive method of Empiricism was first reviewed in guiding empirical modelling of a river basin. Then, the Retroduction method of transcendental realism was also reviewed for the guidance of distributed models. Critical realism was reviewed as a philosophy of local knowledge identification of causes and effects of ecohydrological extremes. Finally, an ambitious attempt was made in proposing Anthony Giddens' concepts of resources and human agency to bridge the gap between the natural and the social science philosophies. This suggests that there can be a common grand theory for both the natural and the social sciences, and the latter can be used to validate the theoretical foundations of the former and vice versa. The study will be useful for post graduates students, especially PhD candidates, who are normally required to review and justify the philosophical foundations of their studies. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Changing Ecological and Hydrological Conditions in the Himalayan Mountains and Measures of Future Adaptation

“…Being an inter-disciplinary component of hydrology and ecology, ecohydrology has been advanced as a fundamental process for understanding, rather than simply the establishment of functional linkages between ecology and hydrology. For example, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization-UNESCO's International Hydrological Program (IHP) and the Man and Biosphere (MAB) Program have employed ecohydrology as an integrated understanding of biological and hydrological processes at a catchment scale in order to create a scientific basis for a socially acceptable, cost-effective and systemic approach to the sustainable management of freshwater resources (Owusu 2016;Zalewski 2015). When hydrology is shaping biogeochemical processes in riverine and lacustrine catchments, the condition enhances ecosystem resilience through energy cycling and nutrient budgeting.…”