2003 has been designated the International Year of Freshwater by the United Nations. The widespread interest in managing water resources is shown by the number of recent and forthcoming international conferences, including the Bonn Freshwater Conference, the Johannesburg Summit and the 3rd World Water Forum in Kyoto, March 2003. Key themes of these conferences include; the need to proactively manage a complex resource, the empowering possibilities of a people-centred approach and the imperative to deal with scarcity and competition.
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Much work is going into the generation of a common ‘vision’ within the water community, and this is reflected in the common policy directions of national and international agencies. However, such apparent consensus can occlude alternative views and lead to the muting of dissident voices.
The purpose of this workshop as an ‘Alternative Water Forum’ is to question some of the taken-for-granted themes and assumptions of dominant policies, and to unpack other perspectives. Sessions in the workshop will draw on emerging research and recent field practice to extend and deepen our understanding of the complex dynamics of water management. Aimed at both academics and practitioners in the water sector this workshop will provide space for a positive dialogue between theory and practice. Contributions are welcomed from different disciplinary and regional perspectives, encompassing field and policy experience as well as scholarly research and reflection.