The Social Life of Water

<p> Everywhere in the world communities and nations organize themselves in relation to water. We divert water from rivers lakes and aquifers to our homes workplaces irrigation canals and hydro-generating stations. We use it for bathing swimming recreation and it functions as a symbol of purity in ritual performances. In order to facilitate and manage our relationship with water we develop institutions technologies and cultural practices entirely devoted to its appropriation and distribution and through these institutions we construct relations of class gender ethnicity and nationality. Relying on first-hand ethnographic research the contributors to this volume examine the social life of water in diverse settings and explore the impacts of commodification urbanization and technology on the availability and quality of water supplies. Each case study speaks to a local set of issues but the overall perspective is global with representation from all continents.</p>