Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Water commons grabbing and (in)justice

Water commons are water resources collectively managed and utilized by communities as common property to support their food security, traditions, and livelihoods. Water commons are under increasing pressure of acquisition, privatization, and grabbing. This Comment analytically defines the water commons, examines their vulnerability to grabbing, and discusses the associated water justice and environmental implications.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Typologies of water acquisition.

References

  1. Ostrom, E. Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action (Cambridge University Press, 1990).

  2. Troell, J. & Keene, S. Legal Recognition of Customary Water Tenure in Sub-Saharan Africa: Unpacking the Land–Water Nexus (International Water Management Institute, 2022); https://doi.org/10.5337/2022.215

  3. Dell’Angelo, J., D’Odorico, P., Rulli, M. C. & Marchand, P. World Dev. 92, 1–12 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Rulli, M. C., Saviori, A. & D’Odorico, P. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 110, 892–897 (2013).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Ribot, J. C. & Peluso, N. L. Rural Sociol. 68, 153–181 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Mehta, L., Veldwisch, G. J. & Franco, J. Water Altern. 5, 193–207 (2012).

    Google Scholar 

  7. Dell’Angelo, J., Rulli, M. C. & D’Odorico, P. Ecol. Econ. 143, 276–285 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. MacInnes, A., Colchester, M. & Whitmore, A. Perspect. Ecol. Conserv. 15, 152–160 (2017).

    Google Scholar 

  9. Vermeulen, S. & Cotula, L. J. Peasant Stud. 37, 899–916 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. De Maria, M., Robinson, E. J. & Zanello, G. World Dev. 170, 106338 (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. D'Odorico, P. & Rulli, M. C. Nat. Geosci. 7, 324–325 (2014).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (FAO, 2022); https://doi.org/10.4060/i2801e

  13. Jenkins, W. et al. BioScience 71, 1157–1170 (2021).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Herrmann-Pillath, C. Ecol. Econ. 208, 107822 (2023).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Turning the Tide: A Call to Collective Action (Global Commission on the Economics of Water, 2023); https://turningthetide.watercommission.org/

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jampel Dell’Angelo.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

D’Odorico, P., Dell’Angelo, J. & Rulli, M.C. Water commons grabbing and (in)justice. Nat Water 2, 300–302 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44221-024-00231-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44221-024-00231-8

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing