Water Sustainability: Managing Surface Water, Groundwater and Ecosystems for a Resilient Future
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Water Management".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 33
Special Issue Editor
Interests: water resources management; irrigation; environmental sustainability; water security; water reuse; urban water
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Water is central to sustainable development, yet growing pressures from population growth, climate variability, urbanisation, and agricultural intensification are placing unprecedented stress on both surface water and groundwater systems. Sustainable water management must therefore balance human needs with ecological integrity, while recognising the interconnectedness of rivers, aquifers, wetlands, and urban water systems.
This Special Issue seeks contributions that advance understanding and practice in water sustainability across diverse contexts and landscapes. It will focus on approaches that integrate hydrological, ecological, social, economic, and policy dimensions to ensure water availability and quality for future generations. Key themes of interest include river and catchment health, sustainable groundwater use, water in agriculture and food systems, urban water resilience, managed aquifer recharge, water governance, and participatory and technological innovations. Contributions may be conceptual, empirical, or methodological, and we particularly welcome interdisciplinary and comparative studies that provide actionable insights.
By bringing together global perspectives and case studies, this Special Issue will fill critical gaps in the literature and guide researchers, policymakers, and practitioners working towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities), and SDG 13 (Climate Action).
We invite you to contribute your original research articles, critical reviews, and perspectives to this timely discussion on water sustainability.
Prof. Dr. Basant Maheshwari
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- water sustainability
- groundwater management
- river health
- urban water resilience
- sustainable agriculture
- water governance
- managed aquifer recharge
- citizen science
- water–energy–food nexus
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