water cultural diversity 08
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International Hydrolgic Programm
Division of Water Scien
International Hydrological Program
Division of Water Scien
WATERANDCULTURAL DIVERSITY
TOWARDS SUSTAINABIL I T Y
OF WATER RESOURCES AND CULTURE
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This brochure proides an oeriew o the project on Water and Cultural Diersity o the International Hydrological
Programme (IHP) o UNESCO. It includes the background, uture steps and the main objectie o the project
mainstreaming cultural diersity in water resources management. It initiates a dialogue to encourage a shared
understanding o water, one that respects cultural diersity, as a rst step towards building trust between caretakers
o water: all o us.
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WATERANDCULTURAL DIVERSITY
WaterAND
Cultural Diversity
Water is the essential lieblood o our planet,
with the power to generate, sustain, receive
and ultimately to uniy lie.
essentialto sustain
biodiversity innature
Water is
constructed,understood,
appropriated, managedand controlled in
diverse ways
a basichuman need
and a undamentalhuman right
whatconnects all
lie
intrinsicor cultural and
biologicaldiversitythe generator,sustainer and
unifer o all lieorms
the lie-bloodo Earth
the sourceo all lie on
Earth what givesrhythm andpulse to liean idea
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WaterThe French call it eau, but in Greek it is hydros, in
Latin, aqua, in Spanish, agua, while the Japanesecall it mizuand the Nepalese reer to it as the
nectar of life. Indigenous peoples such as the
Gitxsan say aks, while the Yorta Yorta say walla,
and the Guarani use yto say water. Peoples
around the world hae a rich diersity o terms
and concepts related to water; howeer, they all
share a common understanding about the urgency
o thirst. The moement and ubiquity o water
create a common connection, a shared reliance on
this unique basic element o existence. Water is a
primal human need and desire that fows through all
boundaries, denitions and belies.
Culture
Because water touches us all, it is part o eery culture. The term
culture applies not only to the culture o indigenous people, but
also: ethnic, Western, urban, suburban, rural, academic, local
and proessional cultures. Three denitions o culture presented
below exempliy the diersity o thought on the notion:
A complex whole which includes knowledge, belie, art,morals, laws, custom, and any other capabilities and habits
acquired by man as a member o society (Tylor 1958)
A system o inherited conceptions expressed in symbolicorms by means o which people communicate, perpetuate,
and deelop their knowledge about and attitudes toward lie
(Geertz 1973)
The alues, belies and knowledge people use to generateand interpret social behaiour (Webster 2006).
The International Hydrological
Programme (IHP)
The IHP is UNESCOs international scientic cooperatie
programme in water research, water resources management,
education and capacity building. Among the 24 UN agencies
that deal with reshwater issues, IHP is the only broadly based
science programme that ocuses on water. Implemented by
the IHP, this project on water and cultural diersity will ocus on
resh water. Fresh water is not only important or biodiersity,but also or cultural diersity: in addition to supporting human
lie, health and well-being, resh water has been a catalyst or
ciilization, and as such, it is inested with many layers o cultural
meanings. As resh water moes through and infuences human
lie in many orms, this project will also include the arious orms
water takes, rom coastal areas to the atmosphere.
Cultural Diversity
The ocus o the project is not simply to look at the relationship
between water and culture but rather, to comprehend the
relationship between water and cultural diersity. Cultural
diersity may be understood as, but not limited to, diersity
in: (1) practices (rituals, production systems, and knowledge
transmission systems); (2) ways o liing together (social
systems including institutions, legal systems, leadership and
tenure systems); (3) alue systems (religion, ethics, spirituality,
belies and worldiews); (4) knowledge (know-how and skills);
(5) languages; and (6) artistic expressions (art, architecture,
literature and music).
WhAtis...?
Geertz, C. (1973) The Interpretation o Cultures: Selected Essays. New York, Basic Books.
Tylor, Edward B (1958) The Origins o Culture. New York: Harper. [Reprint o part o Tylers
Primitive Culture (1871)].
United Nations Educational, Scientic and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) (2002) UNESCO
Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity. Cultural Diersity Series No.1, Paris: UNESCO.
Webster, J. (2006) Cultures Infuence: Towards Understanding Stakeholder Interactions in Rural
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion Projects. PhD dissertation. Institute o Water and
Enironment. Craneld, Silsoe College at Craneld, U.K.
UNESCOS DECLARATION ON CULTURAL DIvERSITY
The UNESCO Uniersal Declaration on Cultural Diersity, adoptedin 2001, is the rst international standard-setting instrument aimed
at presering and promoting cultural diersity and intercultural
dialogue. The Declaration raises cultural diersity to the leel o
the common heritage o humanity, as necessary or humankind
as biodiersity is or nature. The Declaration aims both to presere
cultural diersity as a liing, renewable treasure that must not
be perceied as being unchanging heritage but as a process
guaranteeing the surial o humanity. In the context o UNESCOs
work, cultural diersity is a goal, as something positie that should
be protected and promoted.
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The increasing demand or water and complexity
o issues surrounding water require an integrated,
transdisciplinary approach to water resource
management. In order to achieve the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) under the tremendous
pressures that the world is currently acing, the
integration o human dimensions into water resource
management and policy development is vital.
Towards culturally andenvironmentally sustainablesolutions
In order to fnd sustainable solutions to water problems, any
decisions made or research conducted should be based on a
deep understanding o how culture aects and is aected by
the myriad interactions between people and water. This goes
beyond measuring human uses o water such as drinking,
washing, and fshing. It also goes beyond examining water
people relations in the ramework o environmental services
provided by water, such as ood, recreation and aesthetic
values. By looking at the various ways that cultures aect
water problems and the sustainability o their solutions, this
project brings an additional point o view to the one that has
characterized water sciences and management in general
up to now, and ultimately, endeavours to mainstream cultural
diversity in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).
The way forward: mainstreaming
cultural diversityThis project attempts to respond to the urgent need in the
water feld to recognize cultural dimensions o water. Its
immediate objectives are to promote, to water scientists and
water managers, the importance o understanding the links
between water and cultural diversity; to provide inormation,
through case studies and other resources; and to acilitate
interactions and partnerships among institutions and experts
working on, or interested in, the topic.
In the longer term, the project aims to develop toolkits or
guidelines to help oster socio-cultural perspectives in watersciences, promote cultural pluralism in water management
strategies, and thereby contribute to the development o
culturally sensitive studies and policies on water. This project
thus fts into the larger context o international development
by contributing to the achievement o the MDG target o
reducing by hal the proportion o people without access to
sae drinking water and sae sanitation by 2015 and to stop
unsustainable exploitation o water resources. The need
or new approaches is urther amplifed by the act that it is
very likely that the MDGs will not be met, particularly in Sub-
Saharan Arica.
why is culturAl
Diversity
importANt For
wAter?
OUR GOAL
Contribute to the achievement o the MDG 7: Ensure environmental
sustainability, which includes target 10 Reduce by hal the
proportion o people without sustainable access to sae drinking
water by:
Recognizing and respecting cultural diversity and interweavingvarious perspectives towards collaborative and inclusiveactions or sustainability o water and cultures.
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The ollowing our ocal areas illustrate the diverse
ways that people and their cultures are associated
with water. They orm the basis o the conceptualramework or the project, which in turn acilitates a
systematic analysis o how cultural diversity aects
and is aected by water.
Focal Area IDiversity o cultural meanings,values and perceptions o water
Covering two-thirds o the planets surace and composing
two-thirds o our bodies, water is an important part o our lives
and so, imbued with cultural signifcances. This ocal area
will explore the diversity o meanings and values attributed to
water and diering perceptions o water. Such explorations
are important because meanings poured into water exert
a powerul inuence over every decision involved in water
use (Strang, 2004: 3). Cultural identities are oten rootedin reshwater ecosystems and these identities have been
well documented, in particular as they reer to claims to
land by indigenous people around the world. Water is oten
considered sacred, a purifer and a source o power. Diverse
expressions o the signifcance o water, maniested in the
symbolism, mythology and rituals o cultures around the world,
demonstrate the essential role water plays in belie systems.
Focal Area IICultural practices and technologies thataect water
This ocal area will draw attention to the diverse range o
practices and technologies, traditional and otherwise, that
aect water and related resources, and are rooted in peoples
customs, belies, knowledge, worldviews and values. Traditional
knowledge in particular has played vital roles in conserving
springs, rivers, lakes, wetlands and orests that protectwatersheds. Such knowledge and practices oten include
sustainable ways o managing natural resources and alternative
ways to adapt to global changes such as population growth or
climate change. The worldviews that underpin such knowledge
are in many cases holistic and typically emphasizes the
symbiotic nature o the relationship between humans and the
natural world (ICSU and UNESCO, 2002: 9).
the coNceptuAl FrAmework
The ocal areas are not intended to be an exhaustive list o the actors to be covered under the
broad theme o water and cultural diversity.
Strang, Veronica (2004) The Meaning o Water, Oxord, New York: Berg.
International Council or Science and UNESCO (2002) ICSU Series on Science or Sustainable
Development No. 4: Science, Traditional Knowledge and Sustainable Development, Paris: ICSU.
TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE
Traditional knowledge is defned here as a cumulative body o
knowledge, know-how, practices and representations maintained and
developed by peoples with extended histories o interaction with thenatural environment. These sophisticated sets o understandings,
interpretations and meanings are part and parcel o a cultural
complex that encompasses language, naming and classifcation
systems, resource use practices, ritual, spirituality and worldview
(ICSU and UNESCO, 2002: 9).
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Focal Area IIISocial, cultural, political and institutionalaspects that govern water use
This ocal area will examine the diverse range o social,
cultural, political and institutional aspects that govern
water management and use. Analysing ormal and inormal
institutions* at dierent levels o governance includingnational and international regulations, shared practices in the
basin, and local norms o water use and conservation is
necessary to better understand the use, access, and control o
water across dierent scales. As Mosse notes in his study o
water control technology in South India: water resources are
never simply there; they are produced by social and political
systems water systems are not only shaped by, but also
shape social and political relations (2004: 272).
Focal Area IVCollaboration and conict related to useso, access to and control over water
This ocal area will look at power relations, conicts and legal
issues related to cultural diversity and water. Many case studies
describe situations where there is a major power imbalance
between dierent parties, including those identiying contextsin which the rights o certain peoples had been marginalized,
oten to acilitate greater extraction o water resources or
intensifcation o its use. New technologies are oten owned
by the state rather than local communities, creating urther
grounds or conicts over ownership. Groundwork and baseline
data collection rom areas where conict has occurred or may
occur is critical, as is the collection o best practices in conict
resolution.
*Institutions are ormal and inormal rules and procedures that structure the behaviouro social actors, and include rules, norms, laws, policies, regulations, organizations and
partnerships (Brechin et al, 2003).
Brechin, Steven R., Peter R. Wilshusen and Charles E. Benjamin (2003) Crating conservation
globally and locally: Complex organizations and governance regimes, in Brechin, Steven
R., Peter R. Wilshusen, Crystal L. Fortwangler and Patrick C. West (eds.) Contested Nature:
Promoting international biodiversity conservation with social justice in the twenty-frst century,
Albany: State University o New York Press.
Mosse, David (2004) The rule o water: Uncertainty and the cultural ecology o water in
South India, in UNESCO Proceedings o the theme Water and Cultural Diversity at the Third
World Water Forum, Paris: UNESCO.http://www.unesco.org/water/ihp/pd/ww3_cult.pd.
BALINESE WATER TEMPLES
Lansings seminal work in Bali demonstrated that water temples,
and not kings, controlled the ow o water or irrigation, as well
as the symbolic systems that defne social coordination. Thus,
water temples must be understood, not only as a system o
irrigation management but in terms o their role in the process o
sociogenesis (Lansing, 2007 [1991]: 129).
Lansing, J. Stephen (2007) [1991] Priests and Programmers: Technologies o power in the
engineered landscape o Bali, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
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HoW To bE InVoLVED?
CoNtributetotheDAtAbAse
We will concentrate on compiling inormation on the topic o water and cultural diersity through 2008 and 2009. We will be actielyseeking publications, organisations and people working on the topic. We welcome your input, so dont hesitate to contact us.
beComeAmemberoftheCoP
Once the CoP is launched on the website, you will be able to register as a member. This will allow you to actiely participate indiscussions and other actiities. You will also hae the option o subscribing to a newsletter that will inorm you about news andeents on a regular basis.
Or you can just simply spread the news among colleagues and riends who might be interested in the topic.
WATERANDCULTURAL DIVERSITY
WhAtComesNext?
Summer 2008 Launch o databaseThe database, which will include a bibliography o books, journal articles, conentions, case studies and eents on waterand cultural diersity, will be put online, along with a directory o organisations and experts working on the topic. Thedatabase will allow users to download and upload inormation.
July 2008 Expo Zaragoza 2008 (tbc)In addition to a permanent exhibition on water and cultural diersity, a liely public session will be held to demonstratecultural diersity in water. Experts o dierent backgrounds will raise awareness among the general public and willstimulate discussion among the specialists and practitioners. Inormation will be proided in the orm o case studies andother resources. Interactions and partnerships among institutions and experts working on, or interested in, the topic willbe acilitated.
16 22 March2009
World Water ForumThe water and cultural diersity project will actiely participate in the World Water Forum 2009 in Istanbul, in particular,to acilitate the topic 6.5: Water and Culture, which alls under theme 6: Education, Knowledge and Capacity Building. Formore inormation see www.worldwaterorum5.org
Spring 2009 Launch o CoPThe interactie part o the website will be brought into action with the launch o the Community o Practice around waterand cultural diersity. Opportunities or irtual interaction through web-conerences, a orum and a laboratory will be
created.
September 2009 International Symposium on Water and Cultural DiversityAn international symposium is under preparation. The eent will bring together experts and practitioners rom ariousdisciplines working on the topic o water and cultural diersity. The dates, location and preliminary programme will beannounced on our webpage at the beginning o 2009.
Autumn 2009 Launch o book on Water and Cultural DiversityA ariety o experts will work together to publish a book on water and cultural diersity, containing academic and non-academic articles on each o the ocal areas. The publication is expected to be made aailable online at the webpage.
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This project will develop an inormative and
interactive website on water and cultural diversity
on UNESCOs Water Portal, consisting o a
database and community o practice (CoP). Thewebsite will act as an inormation resource and
as a communication platorm or experts and
organisations. By disseminating inormation and
creating a network o people across disciplines
and interests, the website will serve as a tool
to meet the objectives o the project.
Database & LibraryThe aim o the database is to collect inormation relevant
to water and cultural diversity and make it accessible to a
wide group o users. The
database will consist o our
main sections news and
events, library, directory o
experts and organizations,
and a glossary. The library
will be a collection o case
studies and other research
categorized according tothe projects ocal areas,
conventions related to the topic, as well as existing examples
o methodologies, guidelines and policies. The directory will
consist o experts and institutions working on the topic o
water and cultural diversity. The news and events section will
contain a list o relevant conerences, meetings, workshops,
symposia and seminars related to water and cultural diversity.
All interested stakeholders and website visitors will be welcome
to access the inormation, use the database and contribute to
its urther development.
Community of Practice (CoP)An interactive space will be created on the website, consisting
o a community o practice (CoP), where inormation and
opinions are shared among members and users. The aim is to
create an environment that encourages virtual social interaction
and collaboration among users interested in the topic o
water and cultural diversity, and initiate and support cutting-
edge research on the topic. Members o this network will
play a central role in developing methodological guidelines to
acilitate the integration o social and cultural actors to water
sciences as well as culturally-sensitive policy recommendations.
Products to be developed through this network include: a
handbook or water managers and inrastructure developers;
educational and training programmes or water proessionals
to mainstream cultural diversity into IWRM; public awareness-
raising material, such as brochures, DVDs, and games. Some
eatures will be accessible to all, while others are reserved or
registered members. Activities in the CoP area will be undersupervision o a webmaster and moderator, yet members
will be encouraged to engage in active participation (e.g.,
taking on the role o a moderator or a web-conerence).
FAcilitAtiNg
commuNicAtioN
AND kNowleDge-
shAriNg
Home
WEBSITE
About News ResourcesSearch
Library
Glossary
Links
Events
Directory
Passive (providing information) STEP 2
to be l aunched mid-2008
Basic InformationSTEP 1
Launched August 2007
Community
Forum
WebConference
Newsletter
Active (networking andexchanging information)
STEP 3 to be launched early 2009
Laboratory
LoginPartners
Methodologies
Case studies
Guidelines
Conventions
http://typo38.unesco.org/en/themes/ihp-water-society/water-and-cultural-diversity.html
Wenger, Etienne, Richard McDermott, and William M. Snyder (2002). Seven Principles or
Cultivating Communities o Practice, Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE (CoP)
The concept o CoP reers to a group o people who have a
common interest and share inormation and ideas to fnd solutions
and recommendations or a certain topic or problem. The members
o the group interact regularly either directly (ace-to-ace) or on a
virtual platorm (Wenger, McDermott and Snyder, 2002). Within this
project, both orms o CoP interaction will be acilitated.
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PARTnERS To bE InVoLVED In THE
PRojECT
The network and a community o practice on water
and cultural diersity to be created through this
project will link a wide ariety o groups
decision makers, proessionals and water
users at all leels (local, national, regional,
supranational and global), as well as
inoling NGOs, industry and goernment
organizations, media and experts.
CURREnT PARTnERS
In addition to the institutional partners listed bellow, ourteen experts rom twele countries, who represent a ariety o
backgrounds and disciplines pertaining to water anthropology, geography, philosophy, ethno-botany, orestry, hydrology, and
indigenous knowledge are guiding the deelopment o this project.
PCCP (From Potential Confict to Co-operation Potential)
More inormation: www.unesco.org/water/wwap/pccp
Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS)
More inormation: www.unesco.org/links
Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB)
More inormation: www.unesco.org/mab
Research Institute or Humanity and Nature (RIHN)
More inormation: www.chikyu.ac.jp
UNU-IAS Research Traditional Knowledge Water Programme
More inormation: http://www.unutki.org
WATERANDCULTURAL DIVERSITY
GOVERNMENTAL
&
NON-GOVERNMENTAL
ORGANISATIONS
POLIC
YINITIATIVES
Local&International
KNOWLEDGE&
NETWORKSS
DECISIONMAKERS
WATER
USERS S
CIE
NTISTS
&
ACAD
EMICS
ActivistGroups
Indigeno
us
People
Elder
s/child
ren
/you
th
Wom
en
UserG
roups
/A
ssociati
ons C
ap
acity
Build
ing
Institu
tions
Universities
Lecturers
Students
Researchers
Politicia
ns
PolicyMa
kers
Private
IndustryEn
gineers&
Technicia
nsWaterManagers
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FRonT CoVER
A well used by monks or ablution, Kuramadera Templein Kyoto, Japan
Hidenobu Aoki
Woman etching water in rural Dodoma Region,Tanzania Nora Dietrich
A emale IFAD project beneciary hand watering mangosaplings in Perialangiri IFAD/ Anwar Hossain
InSIDE FRonT CoVER
Langcang Mekong Rier in North-West Yunnan, China CBIK/ Xie Hongyan
Bunna o South-West Ethiopia etching contaminatedsurace water or drinking James Webster
Nu-Salween Rier in North-West Yunnan, China CBIK/ Yin Lun
PAgES 2 - 3
Small basin at Ryoanji Temple in Kyoto, Japan. Theour characters engraed connote a Zen philosphy,which can be translated roughly as I learn only to becontented Hidenobu Aoki
Female household members carrying water uphill incentral Tanzania Nora Dietrich
Children protesting or increased water quality at DoceRier in Brazil - Pollution is enough. We want to swim inour rier Claudio Guerra
PAgE 4
Fountain in a Shrine in Kyoto decorated with a fower Alexander Otte
Tank with Holy Water in the Cloister o San Xaier delBac Mission (18th century), Tohono OOdham Nation,San Xaier District, Arizona, U.S.A. Alexander Otte
First Nations sacred spring in the dry ponderosa
grasslands o central British Columbia, Canada Michael Blackstock
PAgES 5 - 7
CanadaCase study & Photo: Michael Blackstock
U.S.A. (Los Angeles)Case study & Photo: Irene Klaer
MexicoCase study & Photo: Ameyali Ramos CastilloReerence: Ramos Castillo, Ameyali (orthcoming).Breaking the Silence: Indigenous People and UrbanWater Governance
GuatemalaPhoto: Bert JanssensCase study: Barbara Rose Johnston
Sierra LeoneCase study & Photo: Fenda AkiwumiReerence: FAO/UNDP (1973) Sierra Leone. InWater law in selected Arican countries (Benin,Burundi, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Mauritius, Sierra
Leone, Swaziland, Upper Volta, Zambia), ed. Dante A.Caponera, 162-205, Legislative study no. 17. Rome,Italy: Food and Agricultural Organization o the UnitedNations.Fenton, J.S. 1948. Outline o native law in SierraLeone. Freetown, SL: Government Printer
ZimbabwePhoto: IFAD/ Horst WagnerCase study: Claudious Chikozho
EthiopiaPhoto & Case study: James Webster
ChinaPhoto & Case study: CBIK/ Qian Jie
JapanPhoto: Sango/ Morino-FukurouReerence: Anonymous (2001). Kibune Jinja Rainritual (accessed: March 2008 )http://www.kibune.or.jp/jinja/
IndiaPhoto: IFAD/ Anwar HossainMosse, David (2004) The rule o water: Uncertaintyand the cultural ecology o water in South India, inProceedings o the theme Water and Cultural Diversityat the Third World Water Forum, Paris: UNESCO.http://www.unesco.org/water/ihp/pd/ww3_cult.pd
AustraliaPhoto & Case study: Marcus Barber
PAgE 9
Sguia (traditional irrigation canal) o the oasisTaghoucht (Ferkla), Anti Atlas, Morocco
Alexander Otte
Mayan protestors displaced by the Chixoy Dam site(Baja verapaz, Guatemala) listen to the results onegotiation ater 29 hours o peaceul protest Bert Janssens
PAgES 10 - 11
Mayan residents working on a consequential damagesurey with men rom the Agua Blanca community, aillage located downstream rom the Chixoy Dam Bert Janssens
Kinuso Falls, one o the tallest wateralls in Canada,located near Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia
Michael Blackstock
bACk CoVER
Man shing algae in an urban eutrophic pond inShanghai, China Andras Szllsi-Nagy
PHoToS - ExPLAnATIonS AnD CREDITS
unesco-IHP April 2008
Dig: Mar Haa, L Pr st Grvai Fra
Pritd by seP nm Fra cyl oft 100% Ryld Papr
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FoR MoRE InFoRMATIon
www.unesco.org/water/ihphttp://typo38.unesco.org/en/themes/ihp-water-society/water-and-cultural-diversity.html
Contact:[email protected]@unesco.org
UNESCO-IHPDiision o Water Sciences,1, rue Miollis,75732 Paris Cedex 15
FranceTel: +33(0)1 45 68 40 01Fax: +33(0)1 45 68 58 11