ABSTRACT
Water connects Andean people, places, ecosystems, and economic activities in complex hydrosocial systems. These systems reflect water governance traditions dating to the prehispanic and colonial past as well as past and present power relationships among different groups of water users. Hydrosocial systems have changed markedly with the increasing involvement of the Peruvian state and international institutions in water politics, climate change, urbanization, and accelerated mining, agribusiness, and energy development. These changes have heightened water conflict, but they have also led to a new appreciation of Andean waterscapes and to the formation of new coalitions of water users, activists, and NGOs seeking to preserve Andean waterscapes and ensure their sustainable use.
