![]() ![]() These new policies and regulation place the value of water at their centre, and address the roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders. The growing demand for innovative public water policies and regulations makes clear the need for a new water culture. We can easily adopt the term ‘used water’, indicating that the water is used but also that it continues to have value and can be the source of further resources for future use. It sends the wrong message and forms part of a past paradigm and culture. For example, lets stop using the word ‘wastewater’. This strongly depends upon water availability and the environmental situation. We have to negotiate in society what the most beneficial way for water use is. The right to use water is limited by the “need for water”. Ultimately, this leads to a continuously increasing conflict between population growth and water management (including virtual water for our nutrition).Įqually important, we must recognize that water is not only a consumable product that can be “bought” according to the financial capacity of the consumer, water is also a good we have to share with all stakeholders: humans, industry, agriculture and natural environment. Throughout history urban development was strongly related to local water availability today with enough energy we are able to supply water in regions where the natural water resources do not exist in sufficient quantity to support human activities and ecosystems. The main problem linked to water management practice developed in moderate climatic conditions is applying it to regions with completely different environmental conditions. Having sufficient information available for all stakeholders is a critical element of building the new water culture. Such an approach, however, requires water management to be based on comprehensive data covering long periods of time and on continuous quality assessment. The European Water Framework Directive is a good example of a multi-country effort to find “consent” for both national and transnational water management. Establishing a common language connects across sectors and across disciplines. A common language whether at local, national or transboundary level, is also crucial to learn from one another, to share best practice, to overcome obstacles. It is only on the basis of a common language that we can hope to start to address and overcome some of the most critical water issues. It is only then that our policies and legislation can further drive the establishment of new patterns of behavior that exemplify our new relationship to water.Ī new water culture supports common approaches and a common language that connects diverse stakeholders. Whether it is the basic right of every individual (person or corporate) to have access to water in sufficient quantity and quality, or the basic principles of protection and replenishment of ecosystems and the natural environment, as corners stones of our water values, they have to be built up by the broad consent of all stakeholders. As culture is an inter-subjective phenomenon, it has to be developed by engaging all relevant stakeholders to get to a basis of “consent” and establish the related new patterns of behavior. A culture that clearly defines the ethics that underpin the responsibilities that come from a fundamentally different attitude to water. ![]() How we define, perceive and use the value of water defines how we develop innovative water solutions and create transformational water policies.įor a sustainable water world to become reality, we need to create a new water culture. Going forward we have to be more explicit and outspoken about the value of water, as the basis for the implementation of sustainable water management. For too long, we ignored this while defining new frameworks of national water legislation and international obligations. The way we perceive and talk about the value of water is at the heart of the relationship between water and culture – culture and water. To paraphrase Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu: The way we manage (or mismanage) water defines the future of mankind. Water is such a basic requirement for survival, for humans and our natural environment. ![]()
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