Mountain Research | Consultant
I am a research scientist and consultant with over 15 years of interdisciplinary experience working with research institutions, international organisations, government agencies and donor projects across high mountain Asia. Expert in high mountain surface processes, development of geoscience models and forecasting tools for application in WRM and DRR. Project manager, team lead field campaigns and WMO expert for programme Global Cryosphere Watch. I am currently working at the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research, based in Davos, Switzerland.
2009-13 University of Zurich PhD
Geoscience. Thesis: Subgrid Simulation of Land Surface Variables in
Heterogeneous and Remote Environments: Application to Mountain
Permafrost. Online
pdf.
2006-07 University of Edinburgh MSc
Environment & development. Thesis: Impact of climate change on
snow-based water resources in Afghanistan.
2001-04 University of Aberdeen BSc
Tropical Environmental Science. Thesis: Sustainability of subsistence
hunting on Neotropical mammal species in North-East Peruvian Amazon.
current current WSL Institute for
Snow and Avalanche Research SLF (since 2018) Research
scientist. Investigating snow processes in High Asia using models,
EO data and field measurements under SNF project “From Cloud to Ground:
Snow Accumulation in Extreme Environments”. SDC funded projects in
Central Asia
“Cryosphere
Observations and Modelling for Improved Adaptation in Central Asia”
(CROMO-ADAPT 2021-2025) and
“Water,
Weather and Climate Services” with CARITAS CH (WWCS 2021-2025). Both
projects focus on mountain related water and hazards nexus and
collaborate with an extensive network of regional partners. I am a
Member of the Swiss Polar Institute flagship project
“PAMIR” and contribute to data
sharing projects of the WMO such as
“Global
Cryosphere Watch”
2024-25UNESCO/Global Environment
Facility Consultant Development of high-resolution
climate change impact scenarios on Central Asian snow cover.
2022 World Meteorological Organization
Consultant Analysis and inventory of existing mountain
observation and data sources related to snow, glaciers, permafrost,
discharge, and ancillary data in Central Asia (Afghanistan, Tajikistan,
Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan)
2021-23 FutureWater Consultant
Developing a Glacio-Hydrological Model and IWRM Plan for a Selected
Sub-basin in the Central Himalayas, Uttarakhand, India financed by the
Swiss Agency Development Cooperation (www.futurewater.eu).
2021 World Bank Consultant
Assessment Of Contributing Factors Of The May 2021 Disasters In
Tajikistan. A forensic study under the Strengthening Critical
Infrastructure against Natural Hazards Project (SCINHP, P158298)
2020-21 Permian Global
Consultant. Supporting carbon prospecting projects through
remote sensing analysis, code routines for carbon models. Tools for
automated retrieval and analysis of remote sensing datsets to estimate
deforestation rates.
2018-20 Landell Mills Ltd
Consultant
Zarafshan River Basin
Programme, EU TA project with Ministry of Energy and Water
Resources, Tajikistan. Develop pilot routines for monitoring and
modelling snow based water resources.
2017-18 University of Oslo
Scientist Swiss National Science Foundation research scholar.
Developing data assimilation and uncertainty framework for large area
snowpack simulations in mountain regions.
2017-18 World Meteorological
Organization Consultant for the
WMO programme Global
Cryosphere Watch. Developing a global solution for interoperability
of CryoNet monitoring stations and GCW dataportal.
2014-17 WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche
Research SLF Data scientist. Developing and managing
data systems for the SwissEx/ OSPER project a large interdisciplinary
environmental data acquisition and management project with multiple ETH
domain partners. The WSL/ SLF is a leading federal institute in
Switzerland for both hydrology and natural hazard assessments.
2016 Himalaya Permafrost ETH SEED
Scientist Establishment of high altitude permafrost monitoring
sites Langtang, Nepal. Training young Nepalese scientists. International
permafrost and data tools workshop with participants from Afghanistan,
India and Nepal.
2014 University of Zurich
Scientist. Managing PERMOS network of ground and rock
temperature measurements at Jungfraujoch, Schilthorn, Piz Corvatsch.
Including extensive fieldwork and rope-access work. Processing GST,
meteorological station and borehole data (www.permos.ch).
2014 University of Zurich
Scientist. Swiss Development Cooperation/DEZA funded climate
change adaptation programme (www.ihcap.in). Developing baseline maps for
key land surface variables in the Indian Himalaya with direct
coordination with several Indian Government agencies (lead Department of
Science & Technology).
2012 _Afghanistan Research Evaluation Unit__
Consultant. Remote sensing analysis of water availability in
irrigated zones in Sar-i-Pul River Basin.
2011 GIZ/ Hydroc Consultant.
Disaster risk management project in Badahkshan, Afghanistan for GIZ.
Component avalanche hazard risk zones.
2011 Afghanistan Research Evaluation
Unit Consultant. Remote sensing analysis of water
availability in irrigated zones in Panj Amu River Basin.
2010-11 Landell Mills Ltd.
Consultant. As part of Panj-Amu River Basin Programme (P-ARBP)
in north-east Afghanistan developed a strategy together with a range of
tools to improve water resource management. Training the first
government team in snow sampling techniques (training course Wakhan
Corridor). Establishment of high altitude field sites.
2009 Agha Khan Foundation
Consultant. Project “PMIS”: Remote sensing analysis of
irrigated zones in Baghlan NE AFghanistan. GIS & Remote Sensing –
Applications in Social Water Management.
2009-13 University of Zurich
Scientific researcher/ PhD Candidate. National science
foundation funded research undertaken to develop and test tools that
enable efficient application of numerical models driven by climate
datasets in complex terrain. Work resulted in three first author
publications. Oral and poster presentations at several international
conferences. Supervision of MSc. and BSc. students. Fieldwork in high
mountain environments. Large-scale deployment of temperature
sensors.
2009 Agha Khan Foundation
Consultant. Training in GIS systems and geospatial survey for
AKF project engineers in Puli Khumri NE Afghanistan.
2007-17 Independent Consultant Projects
mainly in field of water resources include: Environmental change
analysis, capacity building, surveying / mapping, technical training.
Clients include: multinational/ national donors, development
consultancies, NGOs, e.g. European Commission, Landell Mills Ltd. Agha
Khan Foundation, GIZ, Concern Worldwide.
2008 Welt Hunger Hilfe
Consultant. Upper catchment protection project “PEEP”: training
in geospatial survey and GIS systems for PEEP project staff.
2008 Concern Worldwide/ Welt Hunger
Hilfe Consultant. Social water management and upper
catchment protection projects “SWIM/SMILE”: Established GIS systems and
conducted training in geospatial surveys for project staff. Surveying of
irrigation channels and infrastructure.
2008 Concern Worldwide
Consultant. Market analysis for natural resource based products
in Takhar NE Afghanistan.
2007 Landell Mills Ltd.
Consultant. Environmental screening report for irrigation
rehabilitation component of Kunduz River Basin Programme. Additionally
provided concept note on methods in snow and ice monitoring.
2007 Mercy Corps Researcher.
Author of a policy document for global humanitarian agency Mercy Corps.
Construction and analysis of a 30 year satellite data record to assess
possible changes in snowcover area (SCA) over this period and
implications for water resources of Northern Afghanistan. Collaboration
with the Landell Mills led European Commission Kunduz River Basin
Programme.
1999-04 Formative research expeditions
Gulf apex predator prey project (University Alaska Fairbanks,
Alaska, 2004). Subsistence hunting study (University of
Aberdeen/ Royal Geographical Society, Peruvian Amazon, 2003), Coral
reef biodiversity monitoring (Greenforce/ University of Malaysia,
Borneo, 2001), Tian Shan biodiversity study (BSES/CEH,
Kyrgyzstan, 1999).
Tech Geoscience model development with focus on mountain
environments.
Hydro-meteorological forecasting chains.
Climate impact assesment in mountain regions.
Data systems, exchange and management.
Remote sensing, analysis of environmental change, snow cover, drought conditions, cropping patterns etc.
Engage Strategic documents, proposal writing and project
management.
Stakeholder engagment.
Workshops and lectures.
Field Establishment of field monitoring tools,
deployment of sensors/ stations.
Scientific expedition planning and leadership.
Automatic weather station programming /maintainence.
Field training in glacio-hydrological methods.
2025 Pranisha Pokhrel, Jasper Griffioen, Thom A.
Bogaard, Joel Fiddes and Walter W. Immerzeel (2025)
Contemporary hydrology and drought resilience of the Karnali River basin
(Nepal) (in prep)
2024 González-Herrero, S., Sigmund, A., Haugeneder, M.,
Hames, O., Huwald, H., Fiddes, J., Lehning, M. (2024)
“Using the sensible heat flux eddy covariance-based exchange coefficient
to calculate latent heat from moisture mean gradients on snow.“ Boundary
Layer Meteorology.
2023 Filhol, Simon, Fiddes, J, and
Aalstad, K. 2023. “TopoPyScale: A Python Package for Hillslope Climate
Downscaling.” Journal of Open Source Software 8 (86): 5059.
Martin, L. C. P., Westermann, S., Magni, M., Brun, F., Fiddes, J., Lei, Y., Kraaijenbrink, P., Mathys, T., Langer, M., Allen, S., and Immerzeel, W. W.: Recent ground thermo-hydrological changes in a southern Tibetan endorheic catchment and implications for lake level changes, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 4409–4436, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-4409-2023, 2023.
2022 Alonso-González, Esteban, Kristoffer Aalstad,
Mohamed Wassim Baba, Jesús Revuelto, Juan Ignacio López-Moreno, Joel
Fiddes, Richard Essery, and Simon Gascoin. 2022. “The
Multiple Snow Data Assimilation System (MuSA v1.0).” Geoscientific Model
Development 15 (24): 9127–55.
Fiddes, J., K. Aalstad, and M. Lehning, 2022: TopoCLIM: rapid topography-based downscaling of regional climate model output in complex terrain v1.1. Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 1753–1768.
Kronenberg, Marlene, Ward van Pelt, Horst Machguth, Joel Fiddes, Martin Hoelzle, and Felix Pertziger. 2022. “Long-Term Firn and Mass Balance Modelling for Abramov Glacier in the Data-Scarce Pamir Alay.” The Cryosphere 16 (12): 5001–22..
Kruyt, B., R. Mott, J. Fiddes, F. Gerber, V. Sharma, and D. Reynolds, 2022: A Downscaling Intercomparison Study: The Representation of Slope-and Ridge-Scale Processes in Models of Different Complexity. Front Earth Sci., 10, 789332.
2021 Shugar, D. H., et al. “A massive
rock and ice avalanche caused the 2021 disaster at Chamoli, Indian
Himalaya.” Science (New York, NY) 373.6552 (2021): 300-306.
2020 Barandun, Martina, Joel Fiddes,
Martin Scherler, Tamara Mathys, Tomas Saks, Dmitry Petrakov, and Martin
Hoelzle. 2020. “The State and Future of the Cryosphere in Central Asia.”
Water Security 11 (December): 100072.
Bavay, M., Fiddes, J. and Godøy, Ø., 2020. Automatic Data Standardization for the Global Cryosphere Watch Data Portal. Data Science Journal, 19(1), p.6. DOI: 10.5334/dsj-2020-006
Bender, Esther, Michael Lehning, and Joel Fiddes. 2020. “Changes in Climatology, Snow Cover, and Ground Temperatures at High Alpine Locations.” Frontiers in Earth Science 8: 100.
Philipson, Christopher D., Mark E. J. Cutler, Philip G. Brodrick, Gregory P. Asner, Doreen S. Boyd, Pedro Moura Costa, Joel Fiddes, et al. 2020. “Active Restoration Accelerates the Carbon Recovery of Human-Modified Tropical Forests.” Science 369 (6505): 838–41.
2019 Fiddes, J., Aalstad, K., and
Westermann, S.: Hyper-resolution ensemble-based snow reanalysis in
mountain regions using clustering, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23,
4717–4736, 2019._
10.5194/hess-23-4717-2019
2016 Allen, SK., Fiddes J., Linsbauer,
A., Randhawa, S.S., Salzmann, N. 2016: Indo-Swiss partnership initiates
first local permafrost studies in the Indian Himalaya. Current Science,
11, 3, 550-553,
Researchgate
2015 Fiddes, J., Endrizzi, S., and
Gruber, S.: Large-area land surface simulations in heterogeneous terrain
driven by global data sets: application to mountain permafrost, The
Cryosphere, 9, 411-426, doi:10.5194/tc-9-411-2015, 2015.
10.5194/tc-9-411-2015
2014 Fiddes, J. & Gruber, S. 2014:
TopoSCALE v.1.0: downscaling gridded climate data in complex terrain,
Geoscientific Model Development, 7, 387-405,
10.5194/gmd-7-387-2014
2013 Habib, H., Anceno, A. J., Fiddes,
J., Beekma, J., Ilyuschenko, M., Nitivattananon, V., &
Shipin, O. V. (2013). Jumpstarting post-conflict strategic water
resources protection from a changing global perspective: Gaps and
prospects in Afghanistan. Journal of environmental management, 129,
244-259.
Researchgate
2012 Fiddes, J. & Gruber, S. 2012:
TopoSUB: a tool for efficient large area numerical modelling in complex
topography at sub-grid scales, Geoscientific Model Development, 5,
1245–1257,10.5194/gmd-5-1245-2012
Schmid, M.-O., Gubler, S., Fiddes, J. & Gruber, S. 2012: Inferring snow pack ripening and melt out from distributed ground surface temperature measurements, The Cryosphere, 6, 1127–1139,10.5194/tc-6-1127-2012
2011 Gubler, S., Fiddes, J., Keller,
M., & Gruber, S. 2011. Scale-dependent measurement and analysis of
ground surface temperature variability in alpine terrain. The
Cryosphere, 5(2), 431-443,
10.5194/tc-5-431-2011
2010 Matthias Keller, Guido Hungerbuehler, Oliver
Knecht, Suhel Sheikh, Jan Beutel, Stefanie Gubler, Joel
Fiddes, and Stephan Gruber. 2010. iAssist: rapid deployment and
maintenance of tiny sensing systems. In Proceedings of the 8th ACM
Conference on Embedded Networked Sensor Systems (SenSys ’10). ACM, New
York, NY, USA, 401-402.
10.1145/1869983.1870043
2021 Bellprat, O., Spirig, C., Flubacher, M., Grandjean,
J., Roulet, Y.-A., Moret, L., Bavay, M., Fiddes, J.,
Orlowsky, B., Kassam, S., Kalandarov, H., Yatimov, S., Akmal, A.,
Strohmeier, S. M., Sharma, R., Haddad, M., Govind, A., Fatih, K., and
Berod, D.: A low-cost approach to develop Weather, Water and Climate
Services (WWCS) in rural areas of Tajikistan, EMS Annual Meeting 2022,
Bonn, Germany, 5–9 Sep 2022, EMS2022-476,
https://doi.org/10.5194/ems2022-476, 2022.
Allen, S., H. Frey, and J. Fiddes, 2021: Assessment of Contributing Factors of the May 2021 Disasters in Tajikistan : A Forensic Study Under the Strengthening Critical Infrastructure Against Natural Hazards Project.
2019 Muccione, V, and Fiddes, J. “State
of the Knowledge on Water Resources and Natural Hazards under Climate
Change in Central Asia and South Caucasus.” Managing Disaster Risks and
Water under Climate Change. 2019.
reliefweb
The Status and Role of the alpine Cryosphere in Central Asia (Book Chapter). Martin Hoelzle, Martina Barandun, Tobias Bolch, Joel Fiddes, Abror Gafurov, Veruska Muccione, Tomas Saks and Maria Shaghedanova in The Aral Sea Basin: Water for Sustainable Development in Central Asia eds.Stefanos Xenarios, Dietrich Schmidt-Vogt, Manzoor Qadir, Barbara Janusz-Pawletta, Iskandar Abdullaev, 2019, Routledge ISBN 9781138348882. Chapter 8 open access
2018 Muccione, Veruska; Huggel, Christian; Salzmann,
Nadine; Fiddes, Joel; Nussbaumer, Samuel U; Novikov,
Viktor; Hughes, Geoff (2018). Climate-cryosphere-water nexus: Central
Asia outlook. Zoï Environment Network.
doi:
10.5167/uzh-161876.
Mathias Bavay, Joel Fiddes, Charles Fierz, Michael Lehning, Fabiano Monti, Thomas Egger. The MeteoIO pre-processing library for operational applications. Proceedings, International Snow Science Workshop, Innsbruck, Austria, 2018 Montana Library.
2014 Fiddes, J. T. (2014). Subgrid
Simulation of Land Surface Variables in Heterogeneous and Remote
Environments: Application to Mountain Permafrost (Doctoral
dissertation).
ETH
library.
2011 Beekma, J. and Fiddes, J. 2011.
Floods and droughts: The Afghan water paradox. Centre for Policy and
Human Development, Afghanistan Human Development Report 2011.
online
version
2010 Keller, M., Hungerbuehler, G., Knecht, O., Sheikh,
S., Beutel, J., Gubler, S., Fiddes, J. and Gruber, S.
(2010). iAssist: rapid deployment and maintenance of tiny sensing
systems. In Proceedings of the 8th ACM Conference on Embedded Networked
Sensor Systems (pp. 401-402). ACM.
Fiddes, J. (2010). Climbs and expeditions: Asia, Afghanistan, Hindu Kush, Koh-i-Beefy. American Alpine Journal. 52, 84, pp.255. online version BBC article
2007 Fiddes, J. (2007). Afghanistan:
Implications Of Climate Change For Water Resources In The Kunduz River
Basin in Climate Challenges: Bridging the Knowledge Gap.Mercy Corps
Climate change unit.
online
version
2022 Cryospheric Observation and Modelling for improved
Adaptation in Central Asia (CROMO-ADAPT) (Co-PI) (1.3Mio
CHF)
2021 Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
cryospheric Observation and Modelling for improved Adaptation in Central
Asia (CROMO-ADAPT) Opening phase CROMO-ADAPT (Co-PI) (120k
CHF)
2019 Expedition to install permafrost monitoring network
in Northern Alai Range Tajikistan, Mount Everest Foundation (4K
CHF)
2017 TopoSAT: High resolution surface modelling of the
Himalayan cryosphere with satellite data assimilation. Swiss National
Science Foundation Post-doc mobility (120K CHF)
2015 Data and monitoring tools for improved water
resource management in Afghanistan. SEED Grant (10K CHF)
2001 Prince of Wales Student Scholarship (Tuition
fees)
Available on request.