MAK’IT Seminar : Modelling for just water transformations

Four early career scholars (Rossella Alba, Bich Tran, Jonatan Godinez and Rozemarijn ter Horst) explore the multiple social and political factors influencing models and modelling waters. Their starting point is that models are far from neutral tools, their development and use are profoundly shaped by the geographical, institutional and historical context in which they are developed, by technologies and by the many choices made by those involved in the modelling process, e.g. modellers, commissioners and other stakeholders (ter Horst et al. 2024). To this end, they interrogate how models are developed by whom, for whom, and with which implications for the distributions and qualities of water. Building on this initial critical interrogation of modelling, they are now turning towards exploring how models and modelling can support just water transformations. Just transformation involves situated knowledge, ad hoc local commitments, and negotiations between different worldviews, knowledges, objectives and values. During this seminar hosted by G-EAU, they will introduce their CAT project and present the insights gained so far. In a facilitated discussion, they invite participants to share their feedback on their work and to share experiences, ideas, examples, and (novel) practices for modelling waters for just transformations.