Towards hydrocitizenship. Connecting communities with and through responses to interdependent, multiple water issues

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We aim to investigate and develop what we are calling hydrocitizenship:- the extent to which hydrocitizenship is emerging in local areas and how it can be enhanced by arts and humanities centred interdisciplinary research (AHIR) conducted with community groups. Hydrocitizenship implies an awareness of, and responsibility for, water as a vital social and environmental resource at both the individual (citizen) and community level. Being a 'hydrocitizen' means recognizing the complex and interconnected nature of water issues in modern society; that choices and conflicts arise from the differing demands we put on water resources; and that climate change presents added sets of challenges to future water resilience. We seek to move beyond single issue foci of water (e.g. flooding, drought, water supply security, waste disposal security, water related biodiversity, water as amenity and cultural asset) to a more holistic approach which sees these issues as interdependent and operating in catchment and engineered systems which connect communities in numerous way (upstream, downstream, across the rural urban divide, across local and even national legislative boundaries). At the same time as addressing these water-community issues we will ask a series of questions about what (local) communities are (networks/place based); how they are formed/practiced 'internally'; how they are connected to other communities around them, and if, through thinking about environmental (water) based resources communities inevitably share (and are sometimes in conflict over), we can contribute to community and environmental resilience in interconnected ways. The detailed aims are toidentify and study how local communities (and other agencies) are re-assessing their relationships with water assets and issueshelp enhance (or establish) local community connections to local water assets and issuesconsider water in a holistic, joined up way, rather than in a series of single issues (such as flooding, supply security, pollution)use water as a means of rethinking how local communities are formed and practicedconsider how thinking about various water networks and issues, connect differing communities; for example up and down stream, conflicting uses of water courseseek win-win synergies through addressing community/social challenges and environmental challenges in tandem place the above in national and local water focused policy initiativesreflect upon and share how arts based interdisciplinary participatory research with communities can make a significant impact in key social-environmental challenges A matrix of activities will take place across four study areas in England and wales. The overall academic team of 15 researchers from 9 universities will work with selected arts practitioners and community groups to conduct a series of participatory research project elements which will include performance, film, historical narratives. The exact form and direction of the activities will be the outcome of the preparatory co-working conducted with arts consultant and community partners. The interdisciplinary academic research linked to these elements will not only bring approaches and methods from related social science disciplines but aloes allow the research to be relevant in a range of disciplines and policy arenas.