Joint Danube Survey 3: getting information on the world’s biggest river expedition

The international crew of scientists working aboard the three JDS ships will assess water quality according to chemical and ecological criteria.
© ICPDR/Liska

The Joint Danube Survey 3 (JDS3) will be launched on August 14, 2013, in Regensburg, Germany. Overall, nearly 100 sites on the Danube River will be sampled by the three JDS3 boats which will travel through ten countries before reaching the Danube Delta in late September - JDS3 will be among the world’s biggest river research expedition to date! However, JDS3 is not only a scientific effort – it is also a means to promote the work of the ICP DR through a special website, public events in nine countries and widespread communication.

The main goals of JDS3 are to produce highly comparable and reliable information on water quality and pollution from a single source and on parameters not covered by regular monitoring – but also to link the people of the Danube countries with the work of the JDS3 scientists and the ICPDR. The latter will be achieved through active communication work and a series of public events.

Getting the public involved. Currently, a series of nine public events are foreseen to be held in an effort to satisfy the curiosity of the general public. The crew of scientists will join policy makers and water managers in press conferences and public talks. Journalists will be provided with indepth information through press releases and detailed fact sheets, which will also be posted on the JDS3 website www.danubesurvey.org – which contains a special section for media.

The ICPDR will publish a flyer with key information on JDS3, which will be disseminated in English and selected national languages at the pubic events. At the heart of the communication efforts, the website will link photographs, data and reports almost ‘live’ from the ships with readers from all over the Danube Basin and beyond.

Highlighting a wide range of supporters.
Several of the ICPDR’s observer organisations such as the DANUBEPARKS network of protected areas plan their own events linked to JDS3 and more activities are likely to come up in the weeks before the launch of the survey. Corporate partners such as the Coca-Cola System or Donauchemie will also be present at some events and present their work related to water management.

Those who are interested in the final results of JDS3 will have to be a bit more patient: the final reports will be developed over the months until autumn 2014. Until then, many findings will be announced ‘live’ on the website, at press conferences and through press releases.

Benedikt Mandl is the Technical Expert for Public Participation and Communication in the ICPDR Secretariat, and the Executive Editor of Danube Watch.