It takes a community to raise a hydrologist: the Modular Curriculum for Hydrologic Advancement (MOCHA)

Abstract

Abstract. Protection from hydrological extremes and the sustainable supply of hydrological services in the presence of climate change and increasing population pressure are the defining societal challenges for hydrology in the 21st century. A review of the existing literature shows that these challenges and their educational consequences for hydrology were foreseeable and were predicted by some. Surveys of the current educational basis, however, also clearly demonstrate that hydrology education is not yet prepared to deal with this challenge. We present our own vision of the necessary future evolution of hydrology education, which we implemented in the Modular Curriculum for Hydrologic Advancement (MOCHA). The MOCHA project is directly aimed at developing a community-driven basis for hydrology education. In this paper we combine literature review, surveys, discussion and assessment to provide a holistic baseline for future hydrology education.