The UPWATER project is dedicated to addressing the complex challenges of groundwater contamination, combining expertise from various disciplines and stakeholders. Alicia Sanz Prat, Work Package (WP) leader for stakeholder engagement, policy assessment, and governance, brings her insights into the project’s collaborative approach and its impact on water governance.
A Leader in Stakeholder Engagement and Water Policy
Alicia is a pioneer in the UPWATER project; as a leader of one of the seven WPs, she has an extensive research background in water resource management and a passion for finding innovative technical and socioeconomic solutions to environmental issues.
“In UPWATER, I manage and coordinate interdisciplinary research teams while engaging with stakeholders at local, regional, and national levels,” she explains. “This engagement extends to international specialists, addressing water policy challenges from various perspectives. My role focuses on creating participatory processes that develop policy recommendations on local and European level, aimed at mitigating and preventing groundwater contamination.”
Opportunities in interdisciplinary collaboration
Alicia works within the New Water Culture Foundation (FNCA), a non-profit organization that promotes the change towards sustainable water management. FNCA’s research is deeply rooted in ecological, economic, cultural and social dimensions, all essential to improving water governance. By facilitating cross-collaboration between researchers, stakeholders, decision-makers, and the public, FNCA ensures that the solutions developed are relevant and widely supported.
As Alicia notes, “The UPWATER project offers a unique platform for inter- and trans-disciplinary approaches, such complexity and diversity must be reflected in the solutions as a positive contribution.
Challenges in stakeholder engagement
One of the key challenges in Alicia’s work has been continuously engaging a broad community of stakeholders throughout the project. “Building strong connections among participants and ensuring that all voices are heard is essential for effective water governance,” she explains. “This process fosters greater awareness and encourages diverse perspectives, ultimately leading to more comprehensive and inclusive water management strategies. I believe this collaborative approach should be valued and implemented in future water research and governance teams.”
Looking ahead
Looking forward, Alicia is focused on fostering the evaluation, selection, and prioritization of the most appropriate governance and policy options within the UPWATER project, together with other UPWATER team members. “The upcoming tasks involve applying participatory multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA*), to identify and implement preventive and mitigation measures for groundwater contamination. The MCDA will be an important step in providing water users and managers with practical, actionable information to help safeguard water resources.
A call to action
Alicia emphasizes the importance of community-led water management with a quote from Pedro Arrojo Agudo, UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation: “Water is a common good that must remain accessible to everyone and be managed by the concerned communities.”
In conclusion, Alicia’s work within UPWATER is not only shaping water policy but also aims to create lasting connections between stakeholders. Her interdisciplinary approach helps to establish a more inclusive and effective water governance, ensuring that groundwater contamination is addressed with sustainable, community-driven solutions.
*MCDA: a mathematical tool to make preference decisions on multiple alternatives over several criteria.