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This paper uses three case studies of urban water conflict in the United States in order to identify and compare solutions. Coupling qualitative data with a unique index of municipal water conservation policy, I examine the different approaches that these three cities adopted in the face of water stress and conflict, as well as the relative strength each approach brought to water conservation. Based on 31 qualitative interviews with water stakeholders in three selected cities (Phoenix, San Antonio, Tampa) and qualitative comparative case histories drawn from newspaper accounts and secondary sources, I find that entrenched conflict over local water resources usually requires action from a higher governing authority, in accordance with theories of multilevel governance. However, multilevel governance is not sufficient to produce strong urban water conservation policies. It is also critical that policy be targeted to meet specific minimum environmental indicators to prevent continued resource depletion. Moreover, a breach of that environmental indicator must trigger some penalty for noncompliance to sustain the resource into the future.

There is a connection between cotton production and the Aral Sea disaster in Uzbekistan. Large-scale cotton production utilizes the practices of conventional agriculture and has severe environmental consequences in arid regions. Some of these problems, such as salinization, currently exist in Uzbekistan as a result of cotton production and these conventional farming practices. This chapter is a review of cotton production, the environmental consequences of conventional agriculture, and its relationship to the Aral Sea Disaster. Storm water management with biofiltration, sustainable farming practices, efficient irrigation, ecological horticultural practices, and a water conservation program are remedies that can help to reduce the environmental degradation caused by cotton production and restore some of the water resources in Uzbekistan.

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to compare trends, drivers, and best sustainable development (SD) practices in the Nordic region and California, USA.Design/methodology/approach – Four research propositions are explored: (1) SD is driven by governmental, economic, and social/cultural influences. (2) Social democracy and mixed economies in the Nordic region influence SD differently than the free market system of the United States. (3) The profit-centered, short-term view in the United States impacts SD differently than the longer-term approach in the Nordic region. (4) The egalitarian culture in the Nordic region influences SD differently than the entrepreneurial culture in the United States. The study incorporates a comprehensive literature review, 34 field interviews and research observations in the United States and the Nordic region.Findings – California and the Nordics have similar market economies where SD is largely driven by private sector; however, the role of government more directly influences SD in the Nordic region. Also, the profit-centered, entrepreneurial view of the United States drives innovation in SD based on short-term profitability gains, which ultimately hinders long-term solutions. Alternatively, the egalitarian culture in the Nordic region manifests in more focused and quicker adoption of SD policies. Lastly, the Nordics have a broad range of SD goals and a competitive advantage in key SD technologies. Conversely, California pursues a large variety of technologies without clearly defined goals that tend to be less effective than the Nordic countries.Originality/value of chapter – The chapter identified similarities and differences in SD trends, best practices, policies, and attitudes: California compared to Nordic countries.

This project analyses water consumption data in residential college of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) by eliciting the main water metre reading from each residential college. The study found that the average water consumption per student in colleges ranged above 200 litres/day, much higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended level of 165 litres/day. The high water consumption could be related to irrational use of water among the students and staff as well as water loss due to leakage. To detect the water loss in a water network, the reading of water metre during minimum night flow (MNF) time was taken between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. From the study, it could be seen that most of the residential colleges recorded high MNF level (more than 0.97 litres/second), which indicates the presence of leakage within the water network in the college. The findings from this study indicated that the water consumption in UKM can be reduced by minimising the loss of non-revenue water and educating the people to use water moderately. Saving the water resources will help to reduce water utility bill and strengthen UKM against the threat of water crisis.

While rapid increase in demand for foods but limited availability of croplands has forced to adopt input-intensive farming practices to increase yield, there are serious long-term ecological implications including degradation of biodiversity. It is increasingly recognised that ensuring agricultural sustainability under the changing climatic conditions requires a change in the production system along with necessary policies and institutional arrangements. In this context, this chapter examines if climate-smart agriculture (CSA) can facilitate adaptation and mitigation practices by improving resource utilisation efficiency in India. Such an attempt has special significance as the existing studies have very limited discussions on three main aspects, viz., resource productivity, adaptation practices and mitigation strategies in a comprehensive manner. Based on insights from the existing studies, this chapter points out that CSA can potentially make significant contribution to enhancing resource productivity, adaptation practices, mitigation strategies and food security, especially among the land-constrained farmers who are highly prone to environmental shocks. In this connection, staggered trench irrigation structure has facilitated rainwater harvesting, local irrigation and livelihood generation in West Bengal. However, it is necessary to revisit the existing approaches to promotion of CSA and dissemination of information on the design of local adaptation strategies. This chapter also proposes a change in the food system from climate-sensitive to CSA through integration of technologies, institutions and policies.

The new campus of Tianjin University was designed, built and now operates following a green and sustainable concept. The campus’ eco-friendly water environment was formed by establishing a water recycling system. The campus is divided into three drainage sections based on the masterplan. Each drainage section adopts different methods of collecting, utilizing and discharging water according to specific conditions, aimed at achieving both high drainage capability and the efficient utilisation of rainwater. The campus was designed so runoff pollution is reduced through the utilisation of low-impact development methods, ensuring the quality of the recharge water. Through studying the fundamentals of treatment measures and models for simulating water quality, water circulation, constructed wetlands and pollution control of rain runoff, parameters for efficient water recycling could be mathematically forecast, ensuring that stakeholders can be continuously engaged in improving and preserving the water quality of landscaped water on campus. The overall system integrates a variety of measures being implemented into one cohesive entity, which contributes to establishing the sustainable and healthy water cycling system of the green campus.

Provision of ecological goods and services at the local level is often related to benefits at higher governmental levels. On the one hand, sustainable watershed management and biodiversity conservation are strongly connected to local land-use decisions. On the other hand, related conservation activities and protected areas are frequently associated with regional, national or even global public goods. Therefore, spatial externalities or spillover effects exist that – if not adequately compensated – lead to an under-provision of the public goods and services concerned. This chapter investigates fiscal transfers as an innovative instrument for compensating local jurisdictions for the ecological goods and services they provide across local boundaries. From a public finance perspective, fiscal transfers are a suitable instrument for internalising spatial externalities. A case study is presented that investigates the present and potential use of fiscal transfers for ecological public functions in the German federal systems. Analysis of the German system of fiscal equalisation at the local level shows that, so far, mostly end-of-the-pipe activities are currently considered with resource protection and nature conservation being widely underrepresented.

It is widely recognised that hotels, as important members of the global tourism value chain, have negative impacts on the environment. Many hoteliers feel the adoption of environmental measures is expensive, with little commercial benefit. A further obstacle to improving hotels' green credentials is the perception that adapting staff attitudes and management operations to become more environmentally friendly is too complicated and produces only negligible results. The present study aims to create a snapshot of best practices in sustainability in the hospitality industry adopted by eleven hotels in Germany and Estonia. It also aims to contrast the development of sustainable management systems in these two European countries with different economies and cultures.

This chapter explores the potential roles and contributions of “marginal stakeholders” in sustainability collaborations. A group of smaller and less powerful NGOs engaged in a three-year collaboration to build capacity and drive action to address the severe water situation in Beijing, China. That the NGOs were the primary driver of the collaboration provides a unique opportunity to explore and understand whether and how the less powerful constituents of a network can organize to influence such broad, complex, and challenging issues.

The case study is the result of a participant action research effort. The author served as researcher, observer, participant, and consultant during different phases of the collaboration.

Individual members and the network as a whole demonstrated increased capacity and capability, but mostly failed to drive action. By themselves, small and marginal stakeholders have limited capacity or capability to effect large-scale sustainability efforts. With coaching, development, and a shared agenda, they may emerge as a force for change, but there are significant hurdles to overcome.

The successes and failures of a steering committee formed early in the collaboration provide concrete guidelines for anyone who wants to help marginal stakeholders play change agent roles in complex networks.

Very little is known about the role of “marginal” or “fringe” stakeholders in network collaborations. This case demonstrates the potential contribution of these stakeholders but also identifies the hazards associated with their participation.

In 2010, as a response to global mega trends, the Best Western International central office requested all of its offices worldwide to implement environmental programs. The Mexico, Central America, and Ecuador offices consulted with Universidad del Caribe about the best way to fulfill this request and as a result a collaborative project began. A few months later, a Best Environmental Practices Manual (according to the Best Western operational practices and international environmental standards) was developed, together with the Best Green (BG) award and the implementation and external evaluation process. The corporate office evaluated the award and selected it together with the eight recognized international ecolabels, including it as part of its operation. They also promoted and sold awarded hotels as green products. After more than three years of working with the program in the regopm, 49 hotels have obtained the award and 13 have revalidated this certification. Unfortunately, for many external reasons, the program was suspended in 2014. However, this experience offers many valuable lessons in the collaboration among sectors and helps close the gap between theory and praxis and to make more effective collaboration process to increase tourism competitiveness.