IGD

Institute of Geography and Sustainability of the University of Lausanne
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Who governs water-related risks in large metropolis? Characterizing governance patterns of drought in Sao Paulo.

Research fields Political ecologies
Water management
Keywords Natural hazards
Urban Region Dynamics
Risk
Modeling
Water management
Governance
Funding FINV 2016
Duration January 2016 - December 2016
Website
Researchers Reynard Emmanuel (Principal Investigator)
Milano Marianne (Scientific collaborator)
Miranda Graziele Muniz (Scientific collaborator)
Guerrin Joana (Project coordinator)

Since the 1970s, Sao Paulo Metropolis experienced several water shortage episodes. Regional measures were taken regarding water withdrawal, supply and management. Yet, it did not prevent new water crisis in 2014 and 2015. The objective of this project is to initiate a research study on the current water crisis linked to the 2014-2015 drought in Sao Paulo in order to understand the characteristics and challenges of managing water scarcity at the scale of a Metropolis. This project represents an opportunity to develop collaboration between the Institut de Géographie et Durabilité (IGD) and Centro de Estudos da Metrópole (CEM) on water-related risks governance. Through a multi-level analysis, we will define the history of the current drought and water crisis (in hydrological, political, social and economical terms), its effects - such as the conflicts it raises between various actors and territories – and the strategies developed to prevent it. Governance patterns of water scarcity in Sao Paulo will hence be characterized. The analysis will combine hydro-climatic statistical methods (collection and analysis of the 2014-2015 climatic data and their impact on hydrology and water resource availability) and social science methods (documentation survey and interviews).