浪花直播

With almost  currently lacking access to clean water and two-thirds of the world鈥檚 population projected to face conditions of  by 2025, disputes over water are a growing global concern. But while  sharpen focus on conflict, long-term peacebuilding opportunities are often overlooked. 

鈥淲ater can be a powerful connector, encouraging cooperation and negotiation in lieu of competition or violence,鈥� said Melissa Brown, director of the U.S. Agency for International Development鈥檚 .

Brown opened an expert panel at the 浪花直播 Center on February 24 for the release of USAID鈥檚 , a document developed in collaboration with the 浪花直播 Center鈥檚 Environmental Change and Security Program that investigates the links between water management, conflict and fragility, and peacebuilding.

鈥淚n almost all of the countries where we work on water, we have to address conflict issues,鈥� said Chris Kosnik, acting director of the USAID , which last year released the agency鈥檚 first ever . The strategy aims to provide an additional ten million people with access to improved water supply services, six million people with access to improved sanitation services, and two to three million people with access to improved agricultural water productivity by 2018.

However, 90 percent of the strategy鈥檚 30 priority countries 鈥渆xhibit a significant level of fragility鈥� and almost 70 percent are considered 鈥渃onflict-affected,鈥� said Kosnik. 鈥淵ou can see that there鈥檚 no way we could extract water and conflict.鈥�

Reaching New Audiences

鈥淎 lot of times we believe that scarcity drives conflict,鈥� said Aaron Wolf, professor and department chair of geosciences at Oregon State University, when in fact, 鈥渟carcity is not the sole driver of conflict; it鈥檚 not even the primary driver of conflict.鈥�

Wolf directs the school鈥檚  and has been at the forefront of major efforts to understand and address international water conflict. 鈥淲hat we found in the  was that if you have a rapid change that exceeds the institutional capacity to absorb the change, that鈥檚 where you find conflict,鈥� he said. In practice, this means the management of shared water resources is as much about governance mechanisms as it is about geography.

The trouble is, few people are experts in both fields. While water specialists focus on the hydrologic features that unite river basins, political scientists tend to focus on the human features that divide them, like state borders, Wolf said. 鈥淥ur challenge now is to manage them both, to recognize that they鈥檙e both legitimate, and to manage the water as if there were no political boundaries while recognizing and taking into account all of the legitimate needs, concerns, and aspirations that those boundaries represent.鈥�

The toolkit addresses this challenge by promoting cross-sectoral collaboration among development practitioners 鈥� a  given the scope and complexity of the issues at stake, said Geoff Dabelko, senior advisor to ECSP and director of Environmental Studies in the Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs at Ohio University. Through an index of lessons learned, intervention examples, and guidance on assessing conflict risk and peacebuilding potential, the toolkit encourages development practitioners to think as broadly as possible about how their efforts interact with water and conflict.

Interdependence An Incentive for Peace

Addressing conflict effectively in development not only requires attention to prevention and mitigation but also seizing peacebuilding opportunities when they arise.

, Israeli director of , regrets that past development efforts in the Middle East neglected water鈥檚 peacebuilding potential. 鈥淲e saw lots of laying of pipes鈥ut there was no recognition that the laying of a pipeline can be far more meaningful and far more impactful if relationships are developed between the communities that those pipelines serve.鈥�

When opposing communities do come together around shared water resources, said Bromberg, 鈥測ou literally see the penny drop, because there鈥檚 suddenly an understanding of interdependence.鈥� This can build trust that leads to cooperation, creating a 鈥減eace dividend鈥� that extends beyond the water sector. 鈥淲hatever you do of course impacts your community, but whatever your neighbor does also impacts you, and vice versa.鈥�

Interventions should still appeal to people鈥檚 self-interest, however. Even when conflicting groups recognize the benefits of cooperation, 鈥渢he individuals who make the decisions have an individual disincentive to cooperate,鈥� said Wolf. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 risk being seen as generous to the other side,鈥� agreed Bromberg, 鈥測ou must always identify your own self-interest and stand up to those who condemn you for working with the other side by speaking to your self-interest.鈥� But it is possible to design programming that speaks to self-interest while also ensuring mutual gain, he said 鈥� 鈥渢hen you鈥檙e really changing mindsets on the ground.鈥�

Bromberg noted that self-interest is what brought Israeli and Palestinian politicians together to  of the plight of the lower Jordan River in 2010, for example. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e jumping into the river together not because they鈥檙e best friends. They鈥檙e not. We鈥檙e in the midst of conflict; there鈥檚 heightened animosity鈥hey鈥檙e jumping into the river together despite the conflict.鈥� Acts like these send a powerful message and are essential for the creation of , he said.

In Wolf鈥檚 view, what is needed are 鈥渃hampions that can stand up 鈥� despite their constituents, despite their political parties, sometimes despite their country鈥檚 wishes 鈥� and say 鈥榶es we are going to cooperate, simply because it makes sense.鈥欌��

Determining Success

Still, simply bringing opposing parties together is not always enough. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just a matter of coming together for one discussion; it鈥檚 about how that relationship develops over time,鈥� said Sandra Ruckstuhl, a co-author of the toolkit and senior social scientist at consulting firm . In other words, the success of peacebuilding efforts should be measured according to the quality of engagement rather than just the quantity.

鈥淵ou used to think if there was a deal, it was a good deal,鈥� said Wolf. But , much of which comes from the Israeli-Palestinian context, shows that 鈥渁 lot of times a deal just basically cements inequities or power imbalances.鈥�

Because 鈥渃onflict can hide inequality,鈥� Bromberg said, joint fact-finding efforts are crucial to establishing a basis for mutual understanding. He noted collaborative research conducted by Jordanian, Palestinian, and Israeli scientists was instrumental in convincing all sides to accept mutual responsibility for the .

Water-related conflict remains a key development challenge, particularly in the face of growing water scarcity. But disentangling the complex relationship between water, conflict, and peace, as the toolkit helps to do, offers reason for optimism. 鈥淥nce you build trust over one issue 鈥� and water is a wonderful issue to build trust over 鈥� there鈥檚 no end to where that trust can lead,鈥� said Bromberg.

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鈥�Drafted by Moses Jackson, edited by Schuyler Null and Lauren Herzer.