ABSTRACT
This chapter negotiates between the polarized discourses surrounding water, peace and water conflict by exploring transboundary water management as a complex set of international interactions where co-operation and conflict coexist. It outlines the case for water conflict and water peace. The chapter examines the first international organizations established to manage contested transboundary water and stress that historical moments of co-operation should not be seen as linear and unidirectional progress from conflict to co-operation. Then the chapter highlights recent developments in transboundary water management with an emphasis on the complexity of water issues and the interconnectedness of water with many of today's salient global challenges. It also addresses continuing challenges surrounding cooperation over water from the local to the international level, and draws attention to the importance of power, discursive framing, and interconnectedness in understanding the complexity of global water challenges.
