SciDev.Net

The Cambridge Nanoscience Centre, home to Cambridge University's Nanoscience group, conducts research on nanowires and nanotubes, dielectrophoresis and nanometre-scale characterisation of electrical properties of conducting polymers.

Its website links to ongoing projects as well as upcoming and past seminars on topics including nanocrystals, self assembly of discrete structures and catalysis by nanogold. The website also hosts an image gallery of nanoscale pictures.

The CNS, based at Arizona State University in the United States, conducts research on the societal implications of nanotechnologies and engages policymakers and businesses in dialogue on these.

The centre publishes books, articles, presentations and reports on key topics and hosts a network of researchers developing and testing new processes of 'anticipatory governance' to understand and govern rapidly emerging areas of nanotechnology.

The CNS-UCSB serves as a network hub for researchers and educators working on the societal issues of nanotechnologies, including historical contexts, innovation processes and risk perception. It provides access to its research results, scientific papers, meeting reports, policy documents and presentations on a range of topics including water.

The centre publishes news on upcoming events and links to other US organisations working on nanotechnology.

The Dartmouth Flood Observatory, based in the United States, uses remote sensing data to detect, measure and map river discharge and flooding. It publishes rapid response inundation maps during a flood as well as an atlas of large floods from 1985 to present.

Data from the observatory are used by several disaster alert and relief agencies, including Sentinel Asia, Thomson Reuters AlertNet, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Europe's Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.

The Desert Research Institute is based in Nevada in the United States. Its principal research areas include atmosphere, water and land management – in the United States and in the developing world. The institute is engaged in a project to bring clean water and sanitation to communities in Ghana, Mali and Niger through the West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI). WAWI aims to do this before 2008.

EM-DAT, run by the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters at the Universite Catholique de Louvain in Belgium, provides statistics and data on disasters' impact on humans, such as the number of people killed, injured or affected as well as economic damage estimates and disaster-specific aid contributions.

Users can search the database or pull out summary information including graphs to show temporal trends as well as reference maps of disasters by type or date.

IBSA, a joint project of the departments of science and technology in Brazil, India and South Africa, promotes research collaborations between scientists working on applications of nanotechnology. Its priority fields of research include health, water treatment and agriculture. India leads its flagship project on water purification.

IBSA publishes information on participating scientists from all three countries, ongoing projects, key global events and activities, and fellowships and job openings.

MODIS is a key instrument aboard NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites that is often used in disaster management for mapping anything from vegetation to floods or fires. It collects data in 36 spectral bands, twice a day.

The MODIS website publishes technical specifications of the instrument, provides access to data, processed products andf maps. It also hosts a large collection of MODIS images from across the world.

This blog, run by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), highlights issues relevant to poor nations' efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. The blog includes a weekly roundup of news appearing across several websites as well as commentaries on key topics or short opinions on the implications of new reports and research.

The blog also includes a selection of images related to agriculture and climate change in developing countries and links to key CGIAR publications.

The Synthetic Biology Project, run by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in the United States, promotes informed public and policy debate on synthetic biology — the science of making or re-designing living organisms, such as bacteria, to carry out specific functions.

The project publishes news, research results and reports on policy issues, public perceptions and ethical issues surrounding synthetic biology. It also links to related publications and external resources.

AARSE is a nongovernmental network of African scientists and professionals working in remote sensing and geographic information systems. It holds a biannual conference and runs regional and local seminars and workshops on how to use remote sensing for environmental studies.

The AARSE website publishes contact details of council members, news about developments in remote sensing that are relevant to Africa and a list of events among other information.

UNEDRA promotes collaboration among African universities in disaster risk reduction using remote sensing and geoinformation.

It publishes online training courses, runs regional workshops and provides advice on curricula development, among other activities. Information on its activities and achievements is made available through the UNEDRA website together with a list of participating universities and contact information for organisations wishing to join the network.