Individual Paper

1. Uneven Geographies, Ecologies, Technologies and Human Futures

Session Name: Water, Coasts & Rivers: Governance, Policy and Climate Change II

Territorialization and Ephemeral Assemblages in Dynamic Watershed Governance: Insights from West Java, Indonesia

Monday, July 29, 2024

11:15 – 13:00 (GMT+7)

Paper Abstract: In the last twenty years, research on watershed governance has been carried out in various countries using Ostrom's polycentric approach. This study successfully explained the role and collaboration among actors in solving river utilization and watershed conservation problems. However, they failed to explain the dynamics because the studied data needed to cover a more extended period. Specifically, this study is very limited in explaining whether changes in watershed governance have increased the collective actions of all actors, including actors at the community level, in solving the problems. Apart from that, the success of the polycentric approach is limited only to a narrow area. In a relatively large area, such as Citarum in Indonesia, which covers an area of over 682,000 hectares, polycentric governance struggles to align the numerous actors and their interests. Another limitation is related to the method used, which frequently applies a structuralist view. As a result, the studies should illustrate broader actor relations beyond the government and possible transformations. To overcome these three weaknesses, this study longitudinally analyzes changes in watershed governance so that the dynamics of collaboration among actors can be better explained. Furthermore, the assemblage method will be applied in this study to map power relations among a broader range of actors. Based on these two approaches and using the Citarum watershed as a case study, this research will propose a new form of water governance, particularly at the micro-watershed scale, which enables better collective action among actors.

Presenter(s)

TS

Tubagus Furqon Sofhani
Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia

Co-Presenter(s)

MB

Muhamad Burhanudin
Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia

Co-Author(s)

AD

Angga Dwiartama
Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia