About
Science, data and international cooperation
Water systems are changing faster than our ability to manage them. I work to close that gap, with rigorous hydrology, open data and clear advice for the people who have to decide.
Professional biography
Biography
Dr. Tunde Olarinoye is a water resources scientist and hydrologist with a PhD from the University of Freiburg, specialising in groundwater and karst hydrology, soil moisture observation and large-sample hydrological data. As Scientific Officer at the International Centre for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC), a UNESCO Category 2 Centre at the German Federal Institute of Hydrology, Dr. Olarinoye works on the International Soil Moisture Network, a global open data service. Earlier work led the development of WoKaS, the first global open database of karst spring discharge, published in Scientific Data. Educated in Nigeria, the Netherlands, Portugal and Germany, Dr. Olarinoye convenes international conference sessions and workshops, contributes to IAHS and European research networks, and is open to advisory, consulting and research collaboration on water resources and environmental data.
For conference organisers, introductions and institutional websites.
Dr. Tunde Olarinoye is a water resources scientist and international advisor whose work connects hydrological research, environmental data and water management practice. A hydrologist with a PhD from the University of Freiburg, Dr. Olarinoye specialises in groundwater and karst hydrology, soil moisture observation, large-sample hydrology and the data systems that make water information open, trustworthy and usable.
The academic path spans four countries. A BSc in Agricultural and Environmental Engineering at Olabisi Onabanjo University in Nigeria, completed with First Class Honours and the award for best graduating student, was followed by the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master's programme on Groundwater and Global Change, taught across IHE Delft in the Netherlands, Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon and TU Dresden, on a full European Union scholarship. At the Chair of Hydrological Modelling and Water Resources in Freiburg, doctoral research used comparative, large-sample hydrology to understand how karst aquifers store and release water. That work led to WoKaS, the first global open database of karst spring discharge, published in Scientific Data in 2020, and to automated methods for recession analysis published in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences in 2022.
Since December 2021, Dr. Olarinoye has been Scientific Officer at the International Centre for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC), a UNESCO Category 2 Centre hosted by the German Federal Institute of Hydrology in Koblenz. The work centres on the International Soil Moisture Network (ISMN): acquiring in-situ observations from an international portfolio of data providers, developing data products, and leading strategic outreach, communication and community building for the network and the Centre. Initiatives proposed and led include a data-services session at the EGU General Assembly (2023), an annual ISMN splinter meeting, a virtual data-provider workshop series running since 2022, and a joint ISMN and IAHS HELPING workshop at the IAHS Scientific Assembly in Roorkee, India (2025).
Earlier experience includes groundwater and hydrological database management for projects in Nigeria, research at Deltares and IHE Delft, and field campaigns in Tanzania, France, Spain, the United Kingdom and Germany. Dr. Olarinoye has co-supervised Bachelor's and Master's theses, guest-lectured at IHE Delft, co-convened the Large Sample Hydrology session at the EGU General Assembly, and reviews for Water Resources Research, the Journal of Hydrology and Earth System Science Data.
A strong advocate of open, transboundary data sharing as a foundation for resilient water governance, Dr. Olarinoye is interested in research partnerships, technical advisory work, expert panels and programmes that move water science into practice. Based in Germany, Dr. Olarinoye is available for international collaboration.
For potential employers, partners and consulting clients.
Academic qualifications
Education
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2018 – 2022
Ph.D. in Hydrology
University of Freiburg · Freiburg, Germany
Thesis Unravelling the hydrodynamic behavior of karst aquifer systems through comparative hydrology
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2015 – 2017
Erasmus Mundus Joint M.Sc. in Groundwater and Global Change (GroundwatCh)
IHE Delft · Instituto Superior Técnico Lisbon · TU Dresden · the Netherlands · Portugal · Germany
Award European Union full scholarship
Thesis Assessing impacts of urbanisation and climate change on present and future water availability in Arusha, Tanzania
- M.Sc. Water Science and Engineering, IHE Delft Institute for Water Education
- M.Sc. Environmental Engineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon
- M.Sc. Hydro-Science and Engineering, Technische Universität Dresden
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2006 – 2011
B.Sc. Agricultural and Environmental Engineering (First Class Honours)
Olabisi Onabanjo University · Nigeria
Award Best graduating student, Department of Agricultural Engineering
Thesis Impact of wastewater on crop and soil biodiversity
Awards & scholarships
- 2021 DAAD research-exchange scholarship, University of Victoria, Canada, German Academic Exchange Service
- 2015–2017 Full scholarship, Erasmus Mundus Joint Master's, Groundwater and Global Change, European Union
- 2011 Best graduating student, Department of Agricultural Engineering, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria
Professional experience
Career
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Dec 2021 – Present
Research Scientist
International Centre for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC), UNESCO · Koblenz, Germany
UNESCO Category 2 Centre hosted by the Federal Institute of Hydrology (BfG)
- Acquire in-situ soil moisture data from an international portfolio of data providers and develop ISMN data products, reporting and quality-controlled services.
- Lead strategic outreach, public relations and communication for ISMN and the Centre, including contributions to the Centre's PR strategy and front-end web development.
- Initiated and lead-convened a data-services session at the EGU General Assembly (2023) with ISMN, GRDC, GWDC, IGRAC and GTN-H as co-conveners.
- Proposed and have since organised the annual ISMN splinter meeting at EGU (since 2023), bringing soil moisture data providers, users and product developers into one community.
- Run the virtual ISMN data-provider workshop series (since February 2022).
- Led the joint ISMN / IAHS HELPING side event and workshop at the IAHS Scientific Assembly, Roorkee, India (2025).
- Co-convened the Large Sample Hydrology session at EGU, the largest hydrological sciences session at the assembly.
- Contributed to a catalogue documenting six decades of German contributions to hydrology and the UNESCO International Hydrological Programme, produced for the programme's 50th anniversary.
- Engage with WMO, UNESCO and GCOS (TOPC) structures and events on behalf of ISMN and the Centre.
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2018 – 2021
Scientific Employee / Doctoral Researcher
Chair of Hydrological Modelling and Water Resources, University of Freiburg · Freiburg, Germany
- Led the development of WoKaS, the first global open karst-spring hydrograph database (400+ springs), published in Scientific Data.
- Developed automated recession-extraction and classification methods for karst springs (Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 2022).
- Contributed to the GloW project on global water stress in karst regions.
- Secured a DAAD research-exchange grant with a self-written proposal (University of Victoria, Canada, 2021).
- Co-supervised Bachelor's, Master's and intern projects; co-organised a PhD workshop on hydrological modelling across landscapes (2019).
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2017 – 2018
Graduate Researcher
IHE Delft Institute for Water Education (UNESCO-IHE), T-GroUP project · Delft, the Netherlands
- Assessed the impacts of land-use and land-cover change and climate change on present and future water availability in Arusha, Tanzania (Water International, 2020).
- Ground-truthed land-use maps classified from Landsat 5 and Sentinel-2 imagery and mapped water utilities during fieldwork in Arusha.
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Aug 2016 – Sep 2016
Research Intern
Deltares · Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Assisted in developing a global hydrological database for groundwater resource modelling in delta areas.
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2014 – 2015
Assistant Technical Supervisor
Slabmark Nigeria Limited · Nigeria
- Supervised the management of water utilities and drainage systems.
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2013 – 2014
Project Supervisor
Bukevic Hydrological Services · Nigeria
- Managed regional groundwater projects and maintained hydrological and meteorological databases.
Technical expertise
Skills and competences
Hydrology & water resources
- Hydrological and groundwater modelling
- Karst & groundwater hydrology
- Recession & hydrograph analysis
- Climate & land-use impact assessment
Data & digital
- Programming & large-data analysis
- Database management, SQL
- Machine learning
- GIS & remote sensing
Communication & engagement
- Science communication & public relations
- Stakeholder engagement
- Workshop & event convening
- Web development (Django, WordPress, HTML/CSS/JS)
Languages English (professional proficiency) · German (basic)
Relevant field experience
- 2018 Hydrogeological investigations and installation of 270 soil moisture probes at three sites in Spain, the UK and Germany (90 probes per site).
- 2017 Ground-truthing of land-use maps classified from Landsat 5 and Sentinel-2; hydrological investigation and water-utility mapping in Arusha, Tanzania.
- 2016 Hydrogeological field campaign in Digne-les-Bains, France: infiltration and tracer tests, discharge measurement, geophysical investigation.
International experience and collaborations
Networks and working groups
Active in international working groups and data communities, and engaged with UNESCO, WMO and GCOS structures through ISMN and ICWRGC.
IAHS HELPING working groups
Understanding Drivers and Feedbacks of Soil Moisture Variability · Co-Creating Water Knowledge · Measurements and Observations in the XXI Century (MOXXI)
EURO-FRIEND
Member
European Groundwater Drought Initiative (EGDI)
Participating member
Integrated Drought Monitoring Programme (IDMP)
Community member
Experience in Nigeria · Tanzania · Mozambique · Germany · the Netherlands · Portugal · France · Spain · United Kingdom · India
Convened and organised
- 2025 Joint ISMN / IAHS HELPING side event and workshop, IAHS Scientific Assembly, Roorkee, India · Lead
- 2023 Data services in hydrological research and management, EGU General Assembly, Vienna (with ISMN, GRDC, GWDC, IGRAC and GTN-H as co-conveners) · Initiator and lead convener
- Since 2023 Annual ISMN splinter meeting for soil moisture data providers, users and product developers, EGU General Assembly, Vienna · Organiser
- Since 2022 Virtual ISMN data-provider workshop series, Online (since February 2022) · Organiser
- 2022 Large-sample hydrology: characterizing and understanding hydrological diversity and catchment organization, EGU General Assembly, Vienna · Co-convener
- 2019 46th International Association of Hydrogeologists Congress, Málaga, Spain · Organising team
- 2019 PhD workshop on hydrological modelling across landscapes, University of Freiburg · Co-organiser
Professional affiliations and memberships
Affiliations & service
Memberships
- European Geosciences Union (EGU)
- American Geophysical Union (AGU)
- International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH)
Peer review
Reviewer for Water Resources Research, Journal of Hydrology, Earth System Science Data.
Teaching & mentoring
- 2021 Guest lecturer, MSc module "Groundwater adaptation to global change impacts", IHE Delft Institute for Water Education
- 2018–2021 Co-supervision and mentoring of Bachelor's and Master's students, Chair of Hydrological Modelling and Water Resources, University of Freiburg
Short courses and certificates
- 2019 Advanced Hydrogeological Studies, University of Málaga and Spanish Geological Survey
- 2017 Advanced class in Translating Science to Application, UNESCO-IHE, the Netherlands
- 2016 Project management in water management contexts, UNESCO-IHE, the Netherlands
- 2016 Scientific writing and communication, Technische Universität Dresden
- 2016 WASH in humanitarian and development projects, TU Dresden and Arche Nova
- 2016 Public participation theory and methodology for sustainable management of groundwater, Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal
- 2015 Remote sensing and GIS applications in hydrology, Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal
CV and résumé downloads
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Academic & scientific CV
Qualifications, research experience, publications, projects, technical skills, conference contributions and affiliations.
International professional résumé
A concise 2–3 page version: profile, key competencies, experience, achievements, education and selected publications.
One-page professional profile
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Interested in working together?
I welcome research collaboration, advisory work and speaking invitations.