The Role of Value Deliberation to Improve Stakeholder Participation in Issues of Water Governance

Journal Article (2019)
Author(s)

K.A.M. Pigmans (TU Delft - Information and Communication Technology)

Huib Aldewereld (Universiteit Utrecht)

M.V. Dignum (TU Delft - Information and Communication Technology)

N Doorn (TU Delft - Ethics & Philosophy of Technology)

Research Group
Information and Communication Technology
Copyright
© 2019 K.A.M. Pigmans, Huib Aldewereld, M.V. Dignum, N. Doorn
DOI related publication
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-019-02316-6
More Info
expand_more
Publication Year
2019
Language
English
Copyright
© 2019 K.A.M. Pigmans, Huib Aldewereld, M.V. Dignum, N. Doorn
Research Group
Information and Communication Technology
Issue number
12
Volume number
33
Pages (from-to)
4067-4085
Reuse Rights

Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.

Abstract

Stakeholder participation is a requirement for environmental decision-making in the European Union. Despite this, numerous instances can be seen in water governance in which stakeholders feel undervalued and unheard, thereby creating unfavourable procedural outcomes, resistance and conflict. In this article, we propose that a process of early-stage deliberation constructed around the values of the stakeholders involved can reduce, and even prevent such conflicts. We suggest that if values that stakeholders perceive as relevant can be identified and discussed as part of the deliberation process then (1) stakeholder preferences can change, and (2) participants can develop a mutual understanding of each other’s values and perspectives. To explore these propositions, facilitated workshops were conducted at two Dutch water institutes, based around the topics of land subsidence and the pharmaceutical contamination of water systems. Participants deliberated on values that they considered relevant. The results suggest that mutual understanding of stakeholders’ perspectives increases as a result of value-based deliberation.