WIT Concludes Summer Mentorship Program 2026

The Centre for Water Informatics and Technology (WIT) at LUMS successfully concluded its Summer Mentorship Program 2026 (SMP-26) with thought-provoking final presentations held at the Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering. The event marked the culmination of a month-long immersive research experience during which mentees, under the guidance of dedicated mentors, explored cutting-edge topics spanning hydrological modelling, artificial intelligence for disaster resilience, groundwater and climate data analytics, geospatial water resource mapping, agricultural trade and food systems, environmental sensing, and water governance.

Earlier, during the Midway Progress Presentations, participants from all seven projects shared their research methodologies, initial findings, challenges, and outlined the next steps in their work. Over the following weeks, the mentees refined their research by incorporating feedback received during the progress presentations, strengthening their analyses and advancing their respective projects. The final presentations reflected not only the technical depth of each project but also the commitment, creativity, and perseverance demonstrated by both mentees and mentors throughout the program.

Final presentations in progress during the WIT Summer Mentorship Program 2026.

The seven projects presented were:

1- Exploring Watershed Models for Simulating Streamflow Dynamics

2- Benchmarking and Intelligent Calibration of Soil Moisture Sensors Using Tensiometer and Gypsum Block Systems

3- Edge-AI for Disaster Resilience: Deploying Local IoT Infrastructure and Open-Source LLMs for Autonomous Flood Early Warning Triggers

4- Mapping Pakistan's Agricultural Trade: Building a Provincial Statistics and Global Commodities Database for FABLE

5- Spatio-Temporal Groundwater Mapping of the High Plains Aquifer

6- Bias Correction and Local Calibration of Remote Sensing–Based Gridded Precipitation and Runoff Datasets for Hydrological Applications

7- Community, Control and Conservation: A Comparative Study of Indigenous Water-Sharing Systems in Chitral and Colonial Irrigation Institutions in Punjab

The presentations showcased the breadth and interdisciplinary nature of the program. Mentees developed hydrological forecasting models, designed AI-enabled flood early warning systems, automated climate data calibration pipelines, and produced high-resolution geospatial analyses of groundwater systems. Other projects strengthened agricultural data infrastructure for sustainability modelling and examined the institutional dimensions of water governance through comparative policy research. Collectively, the projects demonstrated how data science, engineering, environmental science, and public policy can be integrated to develop innovative, evidence-based solutions for contemporary water, climate, and sustainability challenges.

SMP mentees receiving certificates upon the successful completion of their respective research projects.

The event concluded with the distribution of certificates of achievement, recognizing the dedication and valuable contributions of both mentees and mentors. Faculty, staff, and peers gathered to celebrate the collaborative spirit, interdisciplinary learning, and research excellence that define the Summer Mentorship Program.

SMP mentors receiving their Certificates of Appreciation.

The WIT Summer Mentorship Program continues to provide students with meaningful opportunities to engage in hands-on interdisciplinary research while advancing WIT's mission of addressing real-world water and environmental challenges through innovation, collaboration, and mentorship.