Water Governance as Connective Capacity. By Jurian Edelenbos, Nanny Bressers and Peter Scholten, Ashgate, 2013; 374 Pages. Price £58.50, ISBN 978-1-4094-4746-7

The following paragraphs are reproduced from the website of the publisher [1].

Water is becoming one of the world’s most crucial concerns. A third of the world’s population has severe water shortage, while three quarters of the global population lives in deltas which run the risk of severe flooding. In addition, many more face problems of poor water quality.

While it is apparent that drastic action should be taken, in reality, water problems are complex and not at all easy to resolve. There are many stakeholders involved—industries, local municipalities, farmers, the recreational sector, environmental organizations, and others—who all approach the problems and possible solutions differently. This requires delicate ways of governing multi-actor processes.

This book approaches the concept of “water management” from an interdisciplinary and non-technical, but governance orientation. It departs from the fragmented nature of water management, showing how these lack cooperation, joint responsibility and integration and instead argues that the capacity to connect to other domains, levels, scales, organizations and actors is of utmost importance. Connective capacity revolves around connecting arrangements (such as institutions), actors (for instance individuals) and approaches (such as instruments). These three carriers of connectedness can be applied to different focal points (the objects of fragmentation and integration in water management).

The book distinguishes five different focal points: (1) government layers and levels; (2) sectors and domains; (3) time orientation of the long and the short term; (4) perceptions and actor frames; (5) public and private spheres. Each contributor pays attention to a specific combination of one focal point and one connective carrier. Bringing together case studies from countries including The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Romania, Sweden, Finland, Italy, India, Canada and the United States, the book focuses on the question of how to deal with the various sources of fragmentation in water governance by organizing meaningful connections and developing “connective capacity”. In doing so, it provides useful scientific and practical insights into how “connective capacity” in water governance can be enhanced.

Table of Contents

Contents
List of Figures		vii
List of Tables		ix
List of Contributors		xi
Acknowledgements		xix
1	Introduction: Conceptualizing Connective Capacity in Water Governance	1
	Jurian Edelenbos, Nanny Bressers and Peter Scholten
2	The Role of Political-public Leadership for Connective Capacity in Water Governance	27
	Peter Scholten and Jurian Edelenbos
3	Connective Capacity in a Dynamic Context: Changing Water Governance Structures in Romania	49
	Joanne Vinke-de Kruijf, Stefan Kuks and Denie Augustijn
4	Connecting Multiple Levels of Governance for Adaptation to Climate Change in Advanced Industrial States	69
	Carina Keskitalo, Sirkku Juhola and Lisa Westerhoff
5	Framing and Linking Space for the Grensmaas: Opportunities and Limitations to Boundary Spanning in Dutch River Management	89
	Jeroen Warner
6	The Climate Game: Connecting Water Management and Spatial Planning through Simulation Gaming?	109
	Qiqi Zhou, Geertje Bekebrede, Igor Mayer, Jeroen Warmerdam and Maxim Knepflé
7	Connecting Levels and Disciplines: Connective Capacity of Institutions and Actors Explored	129
	Yvette Bettini, Jeroen Rijke, Megan Farrelly and Rebekah Brown
8	Short-term and Long-term Tensions in Water Programs: The Role of Leadership and Organization	151
	Nanny Bressers and Ytsen Deelstra
9	Connecting Long and Short-term via Envisioning in Transition Arenas	171
	Josee van Eijndhoven, Niki Frantzeskaki and Derk Loorbach
10	Connecting Time Spans in Regional Water Governance: Managing Projects as Stepping-stones to a Climate Proof Delta Region	191
	Corniel van Leeuwen and Arwin van Buuren
11	Framing Strategies and Connective Capacity in Water Governance Policy: The Case of the Second Delta Committee	211
	Simon Verduijn
12	Bridging Knowledge Frames and Networks in Climate and Water Governance	229
	Art Dewulf, Marcela Brugnach, Catrien Termeer and Helen Ingram
13	Values Connecting Societies and Water Systems	249
	Jacko van Ast, Jan Jaap Bouma and Mansee Bal
14	Creating Legitimacy in Water Governance Networks through Complexity Sensitive Management	267
	Jurian Edelenbos, Ingmar van Meerkerk and Erik Hans Klijn
15	The Influence of Connective Capacity on the Legitimacy of Flood Management	291
	Miriam Cuppen and Joanna Pardoe
16	Great Lakes Water Governance: A Transboundary Inter-Regime Analysis	315
	Cheryl de Boer and Gail Krantzberg
17	Conclusions: Towards a Synchronization Perspective of Connective Capacity in Water Governance	333
	Jurian Edelenbos, Nanny Bressers and Peter Scholten
Index		353