Research talk on near-shore tsunami heights across the Maldives: hazard evidence for resilient island settlements.
On 30 September 2025, the Research Development Office (RDO) hosted a Lunchtime Talk by Dr Shuaib Rasheed titled “Nearshore tsunami amplitudes across the Maldives archipelago due to worst-case seismic scenarios in the Indian Ocean”. The talk presented modelling of how high tsunami waves could become near the shores of Maldivian islands if the worst-case earthquakes occurred in the Indian Ocean. Fifteen researchers and staff attended, and participants described the session as a valuable learning experience that prompted discussion of tsunami probabilities in the local context. For SDG 11, the work gives island councils, planners and disaster-management agencies hazard evidence they can use to make low-lying island settlements safer, for example when siting critical infrastructure or planning evacuation. The talk is listed on MNU’s Lunchtime Talk page, which records its title, presenter and date.
Lunchtime Talk Series 2025 – Promoting Research Knowledge Exchange at MNU
University Research Grant: island-scale wave forecasting at Dhaalu Atoll (coastal hazard for settlements).
In December 2025, MNU awarded a University Research Grant to a two-member staff team for the project “Estimating Ocean Wave Heights Using Atmospheric Model Forcing and Buoy Observations at Dhaalu Atoll, Maldives – Towards an island scale wave forecasting model”. The study combines outputs from atmospheric models with measurements from wave buoys to estimate wave heights around Dhaalu Atoll. Its aim is to develop and test a forecasting approach that works at the scale of individual islands, which regional forecasts do not resolve well. According to the grant record, more accurate local wave forecasts could support maritime safety, coastal planning, disaster preparedness and climate resilience. For SDG 11, the grant builds the evidence base for protecting inhabited islands from swell and coastal flooding. RDO reports the award on MNU’s news page for the 2025 University Research Grants and Book Writing Grants (Calls 1 and 2).
MNU Research Grants and Knowledge Creation in 2025
Book Writing Grant: “Pathways to Emission-Free Mobility: Designing Sustainable Urban Transport for Resilient Cities”.
In December 2025, MNU awarded a University Book Writing Grant to two staff members for the book “Pathways to Emission-Free Mobility: Designing Sustainable Urban Transport for Resilient Cities”. The book will examine how cities can move towards transport systems that produce no direct emissions, taking account of sustainability, accessibility, urban resilience and environmental impact. According to the grant record, the work is expected to inform transport planning and offer design approaches for cleaner, more sustainable urban environments. The topic is directly relevant to the Maldives, where the Greater Malé region has dense traffic and limited road space. For SDG 11, the book adds MNU research on sustainable transport and resilient cities, and it can also inform MNU’s own commuting targets and measures (indicators 11.4.1 and 11.4.2). RDO reports the award on MNU’s news page for the 2025 University Research Grants and Book Writing Grants.
MNU Research and Knowledge Creation in 2025: Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals through Health, Education, Innovation, Climate Action and Sustainable Development
Theveli 2025 track on smart and sustainable innovations in the built environment (4 presentations).
The Theveli International Conference 2025, MNU’s annual research conference, was held on 18-20 August 2025 under the theme “Evolving Paradigms: Merging Research, Evidence, and Practice”. Its Sub-theme 10, “Bridging Smart and Sustainable Innovations in the Built Environment with Practical Engineering Challenges”, brought together four presentations by MNU staff, students and other researchers. The sessions looked at how smart and sustainable approaches can be applied to buildings and infrastructure, linking research findings to practical engineering problems faced in the Maldives. The abstracts for this sub-theme appear in the Theveli 2025 Abstract Booklet from page 171, and the conference page publishes the booklet and programme. For SDG 11, the track shows MNU providing a public platform for research on sustainable buildings and infrastructure, and it adds to the SDG 11 research output counted under indicator 11.1.3.
Theveli_2025_AbstractBooklet
Theveli 2025 International Conference Strengthens Research, Collaboration and Sustainable Development
MNJR paper on island water-demand patterns across scales: settlement infrastructure research.
MNU’s peer-reviewed journal, The Maldives National Journal of Research (MNJR), published “Unveiling Island Water Demand Patterns: A Multi-Scale Comparative Study in the Maldives” by Ibrahim Miflal Fayaz and Suma Khalid Mohamed in Volume 13, Issue 1 (pages 57-66) on 31 July 2025. The article compares patterns of water demand across different scales in the Maldives. Knowing how much water island communities use, and how use differs between islands, is essential for planning water supply that stays reliable as populations grow and climate pressures increase. For SDG 11, the paper provides evidence for planning a basic service in island settlements. Both authors are from the Fenaka Institute for Training and Research, so the article shows MNU publishing and sharing SDG 11 research through its journal. It may not count as MNU’s own research output in THE’s publication metrics. The article is openly available on the MNJR website.
https://mnjr.mnu.edu.mv/journal/article/view/181
MNJR paper on embedding sustainability in architectural design teaching at FEST
MNJR published “Embedding sustainability in architectural design: Insights from the Faculty of Engineering, Science and Technology (FEST)” by Mohamed Shareef of MNU in Volume 13, Issue 2 (pages 229-248) on 31 December 2025. The article examines how sustainability is built into architectural design education at MNU’s Faculty of Engineering, Science and Technology, drawing on the faculty’s own teaching. Architecture graduates go on to shape the buildings and settlements of the Maldives, so how they learn to design for climate, resources and communities affects future island development. For SDG 11, this is MNU-authored research on sustainable buildings and settlements. It also supports indicator 11.4.8 (new build standards) by showing how sustainable design principles are taught to the next generation of designers. The article is openly available on the MNJR website, and MNU’s news on the journal’s three 2025 issues announces it.
https://mnjr.mnu.edu.mv/journal/article/view/229
RECOVER project (CLARE-funded, led by University of Waterloo, USD 1.2m, Jun 2024-Jun 2026): water security and climate resilience of Male’ city.
MNU is a partner in RECOVER (Resilience to Climate Vulnerability and Environmental Risk: Focus on Small Islands), a two-year research project running from June 2024 to June 2026. The project is funded by the CLARE programme, led by the University of Waterloo in Canada, and supported by a grant of USD 1.2 million, with partner institutions in other small island states. The Maldives case study focuses on water metabolism and water security in Malé. The MNU team, supported by three student interns, combines scientific research, stakeholder co-creation and systems thinking to develop inclusive, evidence-based solutions for climate resilience and resource security. For SDG 11, the project directly addresses the resilience of the country’s largest urban settlement and its access to a basic service. MNU’s RECOVER project page confirms MNU’s role as a partner and the project’s aim of co-developing climate resilience approaches through pilot projects.
Recover project support island nations building resilience
Resilience to climate vulnerability and environmental risk – focus on small islands
TAP-EDM project with the Ministry of Environment (Canadian TAP, Alinea International): builds MNU’s climate and environment research capacity; SDG 11 listed.
On 29 May 2025, the Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Studies, with the Research Development Office, hosted the fifth seminar of Ilmee Foavahi 2025, MNU’s public academic forum. The seminar presented an exploratory study of how people in the Greater Malé area perceive the use of green vehicles for last-mile delivery, the final stage of moving goods to homes and businesses. About 150 people attended, including members of the public, students and staff, and the audience responded positively. Delivery traffic adds to congestion, noise and air pollution in the densely populated capital region. Understanding what encourages or discourages cleaner delivery vehicles can therefore inform transport policy and business practice. For SDG 11, the seminar shares research on sustainable urban transport directly with the public. It appears under its Dhivehi title on MNU’s Ilmee Foavahi page and was announced on MNU’s Facebook page.
Resilience By Design Lab assists research capacity in the Maldives
The Maldives National University Climate and Environment Research Framework 2025-2030
RECOVER Real-World Lab in Male’: stakeholder and vulnerable-group consultations on urban water security; policy brief finalised (also 11.4.7 evidence of planning dialogue).
In early 2025, the MNU RECOVER team ran a Real-World Labs process to understand water security risks in Malé from the perspective of the people most affected. The team interviewed participants in their homes and held a stakeholder forum with structured discussions, gallery walks and collaborative mapping. Thirty participants from nine groups took part, including women, senior citizens, people with disabilities, pregnant and lactating mothers, low-income households, migrant workers and climate-affected communities. Government officials and NGOs also contributed. The team turned the findings into a solutions framework and policy recommendations, and a policy brief has been finalised for publication. A related master’s thesis explores water security for vulnerable communities in the Malé region. For SDG 11, the activity shows inclusive, participatory planning for a basic urban service. It is described in a CLARE programme blog written by MNU researchers and on MNU’s RECOVER project page.
Beyond Consultation: How Real-World Labs Put Communities at the Centre of Water Policy in the Maldives
RECOVER outputs for Male’: household water survey (Oct-Dec 2025), storm-water model (SWMM), flooding-risk study, rainfall IDF analysis and groundwater study.
Under the RECOVER project, the MNU team produced a set of studies on Malé’s water system during 2025. A household water usage survey was designed and carried out from October to December 2025; the data have been analysed and a report is being written. Student research projects completed a storm-water management model (SWMM) for Malé and a study of flooding risks in Malé from past to present. The team has also submitted a paper assessing how climate-resilient Malé’s water system is, using a hydro-socio-metabolic risk analysis. Papers on rainfall trends and intensity-duration-frequency curves for Malé (1993-2024) and on the city’s groundwater quality are in draft. For SDG 11, these outputs build the technical evidence needed to manage flooding, drainage and water supply in the capital. MNU’s RECOVER page describes the project, but these outputs are not yet published online.
RECOVER Project
