Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution, and Profit

by Vandana Shiva

While draught and desertification are intensifying around the world, corporations are aggressively converting free-flowing water into bottled profits. The water wars of the twenty-first century may match—or even surpass—the oil wars of the twentieth. In Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution and Profit, Vandana Shiva, "the world's most prominent radical scientist" (the Guardian), shines a light on activists who are fighting corporate maneuvers to convert this life-sustaining resource into more gold for the elites. In Water Wars, Shiva uses her remarkable knowledge of science and society to outline the emergence of corporate culture and the historical erosion of communal water rights. Using the international water trade and industrial activities such as damming, mining, and aquafarming as her lens, Shiva exposes the destruction of the earth and the disenfranchisement of the world's poor as they are stripped of rights to a precious common good. In her passionate, feminist style, Shiva celebrates the spiritual and traditional role water has played in communities throughout history, and warns that water privatization threatens cultures and livelihoods worldwide. Shiva calls for a movement to preserve water access for all, and offers a blueprint for global resistance based on examples of successful campaigns. Vandana Shiva is a world-renowned environmental leader and recipient of the 1993 Alternative Nobel Peace Prize (the Right Livelihood Award). She is author of several books, including Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of the Global Food Supply (South End Press, 2000); Biopiracy: The Plunder of Nature and Knowledge (South End Press, 1997); and Staying Alive (St. Martin's Press, 1989). Shiva is a leader, along with Ralph Nader and Jeremy Rifkin, in the International Forum on Globalization. Before becoming an activist, Shiva was one of India's leading physicists.

Genres: Nonfiction, Environment, Politics, Ecology, Economics, Science, India

158 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

A major figurehead of the alter-globalization movement as well as a major role player in global Ecofeminism, Dr. Vandana Shiva is recipient to several awards for her services in human rights, ecology and conservation. Receiving her Ph.D in physics at the University of Western Ontario in 1978, Dr. Vandana Shivas attentions were quickly drawn towards ecological concerns.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dr. Vandana Shiva is an important voice in the struggle for sustainability and solutions to the most important crisis facing humanity in the early 21st century: that of the catastrophic damage we have wrought on our planet's ecology. She has contributed a great deal to this cause and I wish to make clear that I deeply respect her work and the woman herself.

That having been said, Water Wars is a startlingly luddite treatise, at times almost Pollyanna-ish in its perspective on democracy and the capacity of groups to manage resources and commons. While reading it, one frequently wishes to remind Dr. Shiva that the institutions and corporations she is implicating in this work are themselves comprised of human beings. Human beings generated the climatological disaster we are facing.

We should also be clear, the aforementioned implications pointed at corporations and international NGOs are frequently not persuasively argued or backed up by citation. There are virtually no primary sources to be found here.

Water privatisation is a dead-end and deadly non-solution to the issue of the management of water commons. There is simply no argument that can be made in favor of private, corporate control of water commons - anyone who suggests otherwise is misinformed or lying. But that does not mean that pre-modern water conservation techniques, in the hands of small rural communities, are an appropriate or even scalable solution to the water crises facing many communities the world over. There is little to no data to support the assertion that agrarian water solutions found in underdeveloped Indian communities could have staved off numerous water-related disasters catalogued in Water Wars. Yet Dr. Shiva persists in her assertions that these techniques, if used in lieu of major water control projects, would have in some ill-defined and ephemeral way resulted in more positive outcomes for the affected communities. Sadly, ecology does not work that way. While major water control projects no doubt were a source of the disasters in question, but there is little evidence that they were a singular source.

Finally, I must ask Dr. Shiva - what precisely do you propose as a solution to the grievous damage inflicted on the environment by the grotesque overpopulation occurring in India? This booming population is an environmental threat far greater than issues of water management. If we are going to address the issue of India's climate, it must be addressed holistically.

[Omly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to agree with Shiva in her argument that water management has not been well enough managed so that local communities are given their full right to a safe, undisturbed, water source. In her zeal to blame commercial and financial institutions though I fear that she blinds herself to any reasons by the "opposition".

One example suggested at was of how the World Bank had sponsored loans for well development in India at the expense of the local people so that they would then be more dependent upon outside commercial agencies. Having met one of the engineers who is working with the World Health Organization on that same project, I feel like Shiva is strongly biasing the presentation of this material by leaving out a lot of material. In the case of the drilled water pumps versus the original surface pumps, one of the major reasons for installing the deeper wells was not to cheat the locals as suggested. By getting at the subsurface water they were able to virtually eliminate exposure to many of the water born illness that are present in surface water such as dysentery and cholera. Also extensive elemental testing revealed that the deeper wells had significantly lower amounts of arsenic in many areas of the country.

Despite my misgivings as to what other material was omitted by this text, I did enjoy this book. In particular I learned a lot about traditional Indian farming.

[brinley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book to be a good start for someone interested in water issues. It's a quick read & very informative as far as what water practices are currently like in India in comparison to how they have been, and how those issues run parallel to methods and practices throughout the world and on an international level. My only complaint is that she seems often to start to go off on an explanation of something and either ends her idea abruptly, moving on to her next point, or doesn't show how the thoughts connect. I'd be interested to see how some of the projects she talked about evolved, and how the statistics she lays out have changed over the years (if at all). Her arguments against privatization of water and in favor of a democracy based on community management and ecology are relevant as water continues to be used with unsustainable methods.

[Gaetano · Rating 3 out of 5]

Per quanto questo libro parta con le migliori intenzioni, in molti tratti si fa prendere dall'ecologismo estremista, cioè forza il fatti per arrivare ad a quello che serve per verificare le proprie teorie. E non dico questo da profano, ma da ecologo, cioè da profondo conoscitore dei meccanismi descritti molte volte in modo semplicistico senza studiarne il valore profondo.
Sapevo le idee estremiste dell'autrice sugli ogm, ma leggere le sue affermazioni senza prove lascia basiti.
Il fine ultimo di questo libro è nobile, ma per raggiungerlo si fa ricorso molto spesso a semplice supposizioni. Quindi se il lettore giunge alla fine al valore della salvaguardia delle acque, tanto di guadagnato, ma esistono testi che descrivono meglio le conseguenze mostrando prove effettive.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a lot of trouble with this book. On one hand, the topics discussed are incredibly important, and will become even more important as climate change progresses and commodification of natural resources continues. However, Vandana Shiva, while obviously extremely knowledgeable and passionate about this topic, does a poor job of presenting these arguments in a clear, fair, or analytical matter. The book reads as a barrage of case studies, linked to the topics of the chapter, but left almost completely without context of analysis for the reader. Additionally, the impassioned tone of the book obscures much of the logic behind the arguments. Without offering a fair survey of the evidence, relevant comparisons, and reasoning behind arguments, none of the ideas in this book will hold weight with anyone who has not already been convinced of them. As a scientist and such a prominent activist on this topic, I was disappointed by the lack of level-headed analysis by Shiva. This was most glaring to me in the near-zero discussion of counter-arguments, especially related to economic welfare - the driving mentality by the paradigms she vilifies. Shiva also often falls prey to the localization fallacy, wherein she seemingly blindly advocates for community management of water systems and decentralized water governance, without addressing critical caveats such as the scaling of these systems and their compatibility with any type of industry. While the case studies were great, and some very persuasive, as it stands this book feels like only half a completed work.

However, I should mention that one thing I very much liked about the book was discussion of the spiritual and community nature of water in traditional regions. To me this was the only slightly redeeming factor of the book. Despite not explaining or justifying why many of these practices were so inherently good, they were very interesting. The last chapter of the book in particular, though short, was very though provoking as to what it might look like if nature was treated as sacred and above commodification. If the whole book was like this, I would have been more likely to give it additional stars.

This is my first book by Vandana Shiva, and almost certainly will not be my last. I am very interested in many of the topics she writes about, and her knowledge in the field is undeniably great. However, I hope that her other works are somewhat more fleshed out.

[Gia Ruiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just couldn't finish it. It was just very in your face fact after fact with cultural history thrown in. I just couldn't really grasp anything other than corporation + water = bad. Which is probably true. I just couldn't read it repeated 200 different ways.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't rate it higher than three stars because as important as the topic is, and as well-researched and documented as this book is, it was not written for someone like me with little knowledge of water problems going into it. But reading it was enough to scare the heck out of me about the biggest crisis we will face with increasing climate change--water scarcity. If the ever-increasing climate "events" don't get us, lack of water will.

[Katherine Uriarte · Rating 2 out of 5]

Addresses important topics and ideas, but often presents vague or weak arguments and lacks sources to back up some very large claims.

[Türkay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yayınlandığı 2002 yılından bu yana artan sorunları öğrenmek isteyenlere…

[kvanwoert · Rating 4 out of 5]

book report ✔️

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE FAMED ACTIVIST LOOKS AT THIS ‘CLASH OF [WATER] CULTURES”

Vandana Shiva is an Indian scholar, environmental activist, food sovereignty advocate, and anti-globalization author and activist; she won the Alternative Nobel Peace Prize (the Right Livelihood Award) in 1993.

She wrote in the Preface to this 2002 book, “Recently, while I was … in western India, for a public hearing on drought and famine, I experienced the clash of these cultures of water… a culture that sees water as sacred and treats its provision as a duty for the preservation of life and another that sees water as a commodity, and its ownership and trade as fundamental corporate rights. The culture of commodification is at war with diverse cultures of sharing, of receiving and giving water as a free gift. The nonsustainable, nonrenewable, and polluting plastic culture is at war with civilizations based on soil and mud and the cultures of renewal and rejuvenation.” (Pg. x)

She continues, “I have witnessed conflicts over development and conflicts over natural resources mutate into communal conflicts, culminating in extremism and terrorism… The lessons I have drawn … are the following: 1. Nondemocratic economic systems that centralize control over decision making and resources and displace people from productive employment and livelihoods create a culture of insecurity. Every policy decision is translated into the politics of ‘we’ and ‘they’… 2. Destruction of resource rights and erosion of democratic control of natural resources, the economy, and means of production undermine cultural identity… one identity is in competition with the ‘other’ over scarce resources that define economic and political power. 3. Centralized economic systems also erode the democratic base of politics… Economic globalization is fueling economic insecurity, eroding cultural diversity and identity, and assaulting the political freedoms of citizens. It is providing fertile ground for the cultivation of fundamentalism and terrorism.” (Pg. xi-xii)

She states, “our economic victories of the 1980s were undone with the environmental deregulation accompanying globalization policies… This forced apportion of resources from people is a form or terrorism---corporate terrorism… Destruction of water resources and of forest catchments and aquifers is a form of terrorism. Denying poor people access to water by privatizing water distribution or polluting wells and rivers is also terrorism. In the ecological context of water wars, terrorists are not just those hiding in the caves of Afghanistan. Some are hiding in corporate boardrooms and behind the free trade rules of the WTO.” (Pg. xiii-xiv)

In the Introduction, she recounts, “I have witnessed the conversion of my land from a water-abundant country to a water-stressed country… I have witnessed state after state pushed into water famine as Green Revolution technologies guzzled water…. In case after case, the story of water scarcity has been a story of greed, of careless technologies, and of taking more than nature can replenish and clean up.” (Pg. 2)

She explains, “Everyone agrees that the world is facing a severe water crisis. Water-abundant regions have become water scarce, and water-scarce regions face water famines. There are, however, two conflicting paradigms for explaining the water crisis: the market paradigm and the ecological paradigm. The market paradigm sees water scarcity as a crisis resulting from the absence of water trade… Such abstract arguments miss the most crucial point---when water disappears, there is no alternative… The water crisis is an ecological crisis with commercial causes but no market solutions… The solution to an ecological crisis is ecological, and the solution for injustice is democracy. Ending the water crisis requires rejuvenating ecological democracy.” (Pg. 14-15)

She asserts, “It was in the mining camps or the American west that the cowboy notion of private property and the rule of appropriation …/ ‘He who is first in time is first in right’---first emerged… The cowboy sentiment ‘might is right’ meant that the economically powerful could invest in capital-intensive means to appropriate water regardless of the needs of others and the limits of water systems… The cowboy logic allowed the transfer and exchange of water rights among individuals, who often disregarded water’s ecological functions or its functions beyond mining… Disregard for the limits of nature’s hydrological cycle meant that rivers could be drained and polluted by mining waste. Disregard for the natural rights of others meant that people were denied access to water, and … water-wasteful agriculture began to spread across the American west.” (Pg. 22-23)

She outlines, “There are nine principles underpinning water democracy: 1. Water is nature’s gift… 2. Water is essential to life… 3. Life is interconnected through water… 4. Water must be free for sustenance needs… 5. Water is limited and can be exhausted… 6. Water must be conserved… 7. Water is a commons…. 8. No one holds a right to destroy… 9. Water cannot be substituted.” (Pg. 34-36)

She states, “struggles against dams in India … [are] a struggle between displaced citizens and the ruthless state machinery… A coherent framework for a just and sustainable water-use policy can evolve only when there is dialogue between the movement against dams, the movement against the ecological hazards of intensive irrigation, and the movement for water rights. The key to linking these movements is the ecological perspective… An ecological perspective allows for an ecological audit of water projects, exposes the hidden costs of such projects, and proposes an alternative for resource allocation.” (Pg. 81-82)

She says, “The United States if the most dramatic example of water waste in agriculture. In the western states, irrigation accounts for 90 percent of total water consumption.” (Pg. 113-114)

She suggests, “Spiritual worship of water was wiped out in Europe with the rise of Christianity… Despite the ban on water worship, people’s deep faith in the sacredness of water persisted. In order to protect holy rituals, people converted sacred places for Christian use, old customs were absorbed into Christian rituals and water worship hid behind a Christian façade. Water maintained its sacredness in rituals of baptism and hand washing.” (Pg. 136-137)

She concludes, “The water crisis results from an erroneous equation of value with monetary price. However, resources can often have very high value while having no price… Protection of vital resources cannot be ensured through market logic alone. It demands a recovery of the sacred and a recovery of the commons. And these recoveries are happening… Sacred waters carry us beyond the marketplace into a world charged with myths and stories, beliefs and devotion, culture and celebration… Each of us has a role in shaping the creation story of the future. Each of us is responsible for … the sacred water pot.” (Pg. 138-139)

Shiva’s books are of tremendous interest to those studying the economic, political, and spiritual ramifications of environmental issues.

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shiva's review of water conflicts provides an introductory framework for readers who have not previously considered water as a resource subject to dispute and violence. Michael Watts helped pilot conceptualizations of petroviolence in his work, Violent Environments. Similarly, Shiva tries to explain and set forward a framework for understanding water as a tool of control, as a resource subject to dispute, and as the underlying cause of numerous disputes for sovereignty and self-determination often obscured by coverage of "ethnic" or "identity-based" violence.

While Water Wars does not rise to the level of a formal academic source, it's an excellent inroad into the politics of water and the basic theoretical parameters governing those politics. Placing herself in conversation with the rise of globalization, Shiva suggests that an overly westernized, corporatized, and private property-based system of water allocation and distribution will deepen conflict and continue to reify water inequality.

[Julie Laporte · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is for the reader that isn't entirely new to water issues. If you are in fact a newbie, you certainly could grasp it all...it's not particularly advanced in that sense, but I doubt you would believe it all...seriously...it could knock your socks off. Vandana Shiva is one of my all-time favorite global workers. She's an Indian physicist turned enviromentalist. Her Indian background gives her intimate knowledge of human rights issues and spirituality as well. By the way, you'll probably never eat shrimp or drink Coke products again.

[Max Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Water wars by Vandana Shiva offers an insightful overview of the conflicts over water. That said it is extremely fact heavy and rather dry (no pun intended) in places. Although more often than not the facts end in insightful commentary. Also it's a bit dated in places, coming out in 2002, with then a second edition in 2016 which had a bit of an update but is still 6 years old in a rapidly changing context.
3.4

[Pete · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little leftist and some failures of economic principles. However, these kinds of books are few and far between. Any books on this topic have value and merit simply by existing and kick starting thinking and discourse. This is the most important issue the human race as a whole will probably face until we cease to exist as a species.

[Bart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Water Wars reinforced many ideas I had about the war between two-thirds world and capitalists exploiters. Vandana Shiva incorporates scientific evidence and analysis while writing accessible prose.

[Paulina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pracuje w branzy wodnej, w firmie o dużym zaawansowaniu technologicznym i dbającej o przyrodę w kraju, który ogarnia. Książka traktuje głównie o północnych Indiach i może skrawku Pakistanu u podnóża Himalajów - po tym, co przeczytałam wnoszę ze autor nie do końca jest specjalista od przemysłu wodnego. Winą obarcza nie tych, co trzeba a sprawa jest bardziej złożona, bo ten miliardowy lud w ogromnych miastach ma większy priorytet niż plemiona w górskich lasach. Po drugie skorumpowany rząd, który bardzo szybko potrafiłby ogarnąć regulacje prawne na korzyść ludzi, kraju i środowiska przy jednoczesnemu działaniu prywatnych firm czy prywatnych wodociągów, ale tego nie robi i pozwala na samowolkę korporacji i przemysłu wydobywczego. Jak sobie pościelisz, tak się wyśpisz. to się da z korzyścią dla wszystkich stron- tak to działa w Uk, ale prawo, rząd i wodociągi musza się uzupełniać. kolejna rzecz- fuszerka projektów budowlanych - to oni powinni dbać o zapewnienie odpowiednich odpływów z tam. Śmiem twierdzić ze te projekty leżą i kwiczą i są robione byle tylko było ale cokolwiek ponadto, cokolwiek co ma byc dookoła jest po prostu olewane bo trzeba by więcej hajsu, więcej projektów i więcej czasu. Dla mnie sprawa prosta: własny rząd. Zreszta dodaje do tego brak regulacji i ogarniania ścieków i tego co wlewają do rzek (czyli wszystkiego). Jedno wielkie świństwo na własne życzenie. Byle tylko hajs był. Indie pretendują do miana jednego z mocarstw światowych ale niestety w wielu kwestiach to jest trzeci świat (nie mówię tutaj absolutnie o wierzeniach ludu czy jakichkolwiek sprawach spolecznych) samo zarządzanie, prawo i zaawansowanie podstawowych usług

[Zeece Alvarez]

30:41—“Pollution has appeared on land and at sea because of what man’s hands have accomplished, so He may let them taste something of what they have earned, in order that they will turn back in repentance.” I immediately demand that someone cleans the oceans and the lands in the real world, since they are killing innocent students because of the killings of pharaohs’ dogs and hired soldiers who are being posed as students in a game world. If every action of that world should come to reality, then I demand the complete cleaning of the oceans and lands since I’m doing so. Also, I’m cleaning up the liars’ and the false gods’ army whose job is to keep the witnesses, the truthers, and the speakers/artists/writers in chain. I demand that these creatures get cleaned even in the real world, not the other way around. Except whoever repents if they didn’t know what they were doing. I’m feeding and releasing the truthers from prisons. Is anyone feeding and releasing any truthers from jails in the real world? Just asking. Since there is needling to make both worlds converge, I wonder why the good stuff don’t happen. So you are not following all the rules I guess. Keep it in debt. Perhaps I want you to.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and it has many important and well told stories. However, the argumentation lines are somewhat one-sided, and technology and competition are demonized without much reflection. The book is exceptionally well-written, featuring numerous references and compelling narratives, though most only in support for her examples. Sometimes lacking evidence in crucial arguments. It surely serves as a powerful source of inspiration for sustainable water management but the book unnecessarily mystifies indigenous knowledge and glorifies primitive technology. It appears as if she assumes that labor work is readily available and hard labor is so superior to technologization because only then energy is "regenerative". It is also notable that the perspective is largely local activism and more descriptive. Thus, as a European reader, I remain rather puzzled as to how to address the rather devastating evolution of water privatization within my realm of action.

[Pablo Medina Escamilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reseña en español porque es un libro importante para latino américa.
Muchas veces los ambientalismos en los que basamos nuestro conocimiento son ambientalismos gringos o canadienses o escandinavos, regiones cuyas situaciones son completamente distintas a nuestra realidad. La mejor manera de estudiar ambientalismo es con literatura local, y la segunda mejor es leyendo a Vandana Shiva. Sus ejemplos y trayectoria nos marcan un camino a seguir en la manera de pensar nuestras situaciones actuales. Muchas veces menciona a México (no en la mejor situación) lo cual refleja la relevancia de este libro para nosotros. En ocasiones muy conflictiva, si, pero definitivamente necesario de leer!

[Sneha Divakaran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read my review here: https://wetellatale.wordpress.com/201... (shameless promotion of my blog, yes).

Fierce arguments to save the planet's water resources by not doing certain things (like privatisation and monetisation of water) are put forward.

But there are no sweeping solutions that are on offer. The author simply exhorts countries to look within at solutions offered by communities and at traditional methods as ways forward.

If only that worked all the time.

An average read.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A clear argument for the inappropriateness of privatization of water as a commodity, but i felt the structure was challenging to follow and most of the secondary points felt half baked, like the book was edited down to 1/2 or 1/3 the size it should have been and so there are lots of assertions and ideas that aren't fully fleshed out. That said, I did appreciate reading about water from the perspective of someone outside the US, having read mostly about the Colorado River / western US water crisis in the past.

[F. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Onestamente ho finito di leggerlo solo perché avevo pagato 9 euro.
Apprezzo l'impegno dell'autrice nel raccogliere tanti dati, ma il libro, che risulta breve e potrebbe essere una lettura veloce, non scorre facilmente.
Non lo consiglierei anche perché risulta datato. Pensavo fosse una overview, invece sono vicende molto specifiche, relative a una zona geografica ben precisa distante da me. Durante la lettura sorvolavo su tutti gli elenchi di numeri e ho imparato pochissimo.
Decisamente sconsigliato.

[Karen Bahal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book on the importance of water and today's society. Ms. Shiva discussed the necessity of water in our daily lives, conservation of water past, present and future and the greedy corrupt corporations and their rule over water. Water is our life source which equals to our food source and nature has given us this right to acquire water freely and not abuse it.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Il libro è molto interessante, mi ha aperto la mente su molte tematiche. Tuttavia, non sono convita di una parte di argomentazioni portate dall'autrice che sembra essere troppo "di parte" anche a costo di perdere credibilità

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible stories of exploitations for the sake of profit. I would like to thank the author for her courage and knowledge!!!

[Joomi Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I once told someone, "privatization is bad". If I ever read this and other books like it, I could see that others feel the same way. I am not alone.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

this could have been more textbooky and less lecture like. I don't eve like textbooky books but I like them better than feeling like I'm lectured at

[Zach Penrice · Rating 5 out of 5]

What would your life be like without an important resource, a resource so crucially important to sustain life? What would your life be like if you had to walk for miles everyday to find clean, safe, usable water? If any of these questions have ever crossed your mind, or if you want to know just how important water is around the world, Water Wars is the book for you.

Water Wars by Vandana Shiva is a book about the struggle for water around the world. It includes situations where water is in short supply in countries such as Mexico and India. It gives you a perspective on how important water is, a resource many of us take for granted. It is eye opening and changed my view of the world.
This book does a great job at describing water issues around the world. It is written by a woman who grew up in India, and had trouble getting water. It raises important questions such as should water be a common good, or is it turning into private property? Should bodies of water be owned by a single nation or should it be shared with all who live by it? All of these questions are answered throughout the novel. Shiva does an amazing job with raising awareness about problems in poorer countries. The novel will make you thankful for what you have.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the environment, in social issues, or anyone interested in governments. People interested in the environment would like this book because it talks about solving important issues with water pollution. People interested in social issues would enjoy this book because there are many situations where social classes come up, such as the Caste System in India. Furthermore, those interested in governments and politics would enjoy this novel because it explains many conflicts between nations over water ownership and explains some wars fought over water.
In conclusion, this is great novel that everyone should read. It gives you a new appreciation for all the things you have, and makes you want to try be more conservative and help the environment. This book would help the world if everyone read it.

[Anton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vandhana Shiva membuka mata tentang bagaimana perebutan air terjadi di berbagai belahan dunia, terutama di Indonesia. Bagi masyarakat adat, air adalah milik bersama. Tidak ada kepemilikan karena digunakan untuk kepentingan pribadi tanpa harus menguasainya.

Namun, perusahaan-perusahaan global (MNC) menciptakan industri air. Dari semula milik bersama, air kemudian menjadi bagian dari komoditas untuk diperjual belikan. Seiring dengan itu, lahirlah konflik-konflik sumber daya air di berbagai tempat di dunia: Amerika Serikat, Kanada, Inggris, India, Peru, dan seterusnya.

Tak hanya tentang konflik, Vandhana Shiva, aktivis lingkungan perempuan terkemuka di dunia ini juga menyodorkan alternatif pengelolaan air. Komunitas adat yang harus mengelolanya. Secara turun temurun, masyarakat adat mengelola air untuk mencukupi kebutuhan tanpa harus mengeksploitasi berlebihan.

Buku ini bacaan penting memahami air tak hanya sebagai kebutuhan hidup sehari-hari tapi juga arena pertentangan kapitalisme dan tradisionalisme.