Water Commons, Water Citizenship and Water Security Case Studies

Water Solutions

• Case 1: The Push for a UN Covenant on the Right to Water
• Case 2: Legal Efforts to Guarantee the Right to Water in Latin America
• Case 3: The Constitutional Right to Water in South Africa
• Case 4: Free Water in South Africa
• Case 5: “Social Control” and Public-Collective Partnerships with Community-Run Systems in Cochabamba, Bolivia
• Case 6: Small Farmers and the Indigenous Concept of “Uses and Customs”
• Case 7: The Acequia System of Irrigation and Water Management
• Case 8: Indigenous Peoples’ Struggles for Water in Ecuador: The Case of Licto
• Case 9: First Nations’ Struggle for Water: The Cases of Black Mesa and St’át’imc Peoples
• Case 10: Public Management of Water in Porto Alegre, Brazil
• Case 11: Public-Public Partnerships in Water
• Case 12: Employee Cooperatives in Water: The Case of Dhaka WASA
• Case 13: Retaking Public Control of a Large Water Utility: Yorkshire Water and Welsh Water
• Case 14: Water Democracy in Action: Delegated (or shared) Water Governance Partnerships
• Case 15: Challenging the Myth of Public Penury: Alternative Financing Mechanisms
• Case 16: MAMA-86 and Water in Ukraine
• Case 17: Tarun Bharat Sangh and Common Water in Rajasthan
• Case 18: “Common Assets Trusts” as a Political and Economic Project
• Case 19: The Fight for Public Water in Felton, California
• Case 20: A Trust Fund to Keep Water Clean, Safe and Affordable
• Case 21: Establishing Limits on Groundwater Withdrawals for the Public Good
• Case 22: Latin-American Water Tribunal: Using National and International Law to Form a Basis of Water Ethics

Revolutionizing Water Management and Governance for Rio + 20 and Beyond

In Cebu City, the Philippines, public sector workers like Zosimo Salcedo at the Metro Cebu Water District (MCWD) opposed Asian Development Bank financing that would purportedly increase the burgeoning city’s water supply. The financing sounded like a water workers dream – more infrastructure funds spells more jobs. So why was Zosimo Salcedo opposing the funds?

We offer these case studies to dash pessimism that we can’t successfully govern and manage our water commons; that privatization is inevitable; and that humans can’t ensure ecosystems have their necessary share of water.

 

Introduction: Water Commons, Water Citizenship and Water Security Water Commons, Water Citizenship and Water Security This essay introduces the 10 case studies, providing examples from the field about innovation in water management and governance.	Brazil: Water Ethics in Minas Gerais Brazil: Water Ethics in Minas Gerais How a government development plan for eucalyptus plantations wrecked the ecosystem and what strategies the villagers with diminishing water are using to restore their springs.	Australia: Stopping the Traveston Crossing Dam Australia: Stopping the Traveston Crossing Dam How the Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee worked with citizen groups to stop a dam under construction through alliance-building, including with federal agencies, and by using good, grassroots science.
Bolivia: Competitive Funds Strengthen Community Water Committees Bolivia: Competitive Funds Strengthen Community Water Committees In Cochabamba, Bolivia, the public water system does not cover all neighborhoods. This case tells the story of an innovative financing tool to strengthen local water committees.	Colombia: Rural Aqueducts and a Grassroots Referendum Colombia: Rural Aqueducts and a Grassroots Referendum A national movement fights for water as a human right and a commons and at the same time fortifies a decentralized network of community water providers that has grown with and without public support.	India: Evolution of a Water Governance Framework India: Evolution of a Water Governance Framework How a visionary group of very ordinary villagers in a remote village of Tamil Nadu overcame the social divisions of caste to create a governance framework for managing their irrigation water
New York: Preserving the Pristine Quality of Its Drinking Water New York: Preserving the Pristine Quality of Its Drinking Water NYC partnered with upstream farmers who designed a farming program compatible with watershed stewardship. Find out how.	Philippines: Water Project Undermined When Bank Cuts Corners Philippines: Water Project Undermined When Asian Development Bank Cuts Corners The Alliance of Government Workers in the Water Sector found many deficiencies with a project sponsored by the Asian Development Bank. They suggest steps for a more inclusive and productive process.