Water Wisdom
336 pages, 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Paperback
Release Date:10 Jun 2010
ISBN:9780813547718
Water Wisdom
Preparing the Groundwork for Cooperative and Sustainable Water Management in the Middle East
Edited by Alon Tal and Alfred Abed Rabbo
Rutgers University Press
Israel and Palestine are, by international criteria, water scarce. As the peace process continues amidst ongoing violence, water remains a political and environmental issue. Thirty leading Palestinian and Israeli activists, water scientists, politicians, and others met and worked together to develop a future vision for the sustainable shared management of water resources that is presented in Water Wisdom. Their essays explore the full range of scientific, political, social, and economic issues related to water use in the region; acknowledge areas of continuing controversy, from access rights to the Mountain Aquifer to utilization of waters from the Jordan River; and identify areas of agreement, disagreement, and options for resolution. Water Wisdom is a model for those who believe that water conflict can be an opportunity for cooperation rather than violence.
There is a vast literature on water in the Middle East, but few studies that take on such a balanced approach as Water Wisdom. The book makes a great addition to academic libraries around the world and for scholars involved in water policy studies.
This comprehensive, informed, and balanced volume provides invaluable insights into the roots of the water management challenges in the Middle East and charts a course for resolving this pressing issue.
Water Wisdom holds considerable comparative interest for agricultural historials of arid lands and regions with histories of military conflict and occupation.
ALON TAL is on the faculty of Ben Gurion University of the Negev where he conducts interdisciplinary research on water management, biodiversity, desertification, and development policy. Previously he was the founding director of Adam Teva Vadin (The Israel Union for Environmental Defense), Israel's leading environmental advocacy organization, and chairman of Life Environment, Israel's Green NGO Umbrella Group. ALFRED ABED RABBO is on the faculty of Bethlehem University, specializing in environmental chemistry with a particular interest in water science, and the founder and director of the university's Water and Soil Environmental Research Unit. He is author and coauthor of many books and publications.
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