Water is the source of life. Leonardo da Vinci, constructor of the drainage system of a swamp area north of Rome, said that “water is the blood of the soil”. Without water there is not fertile soil and without any of them there is no harvest. Sustainable Agriculture Management is all about how to develop and improve the use of different resources to make agriculture more sustainable. This study is about how to apply this concept into the study area. The Balkhash Lake is among the biggest lakes on earth, but due to unreasonable water utilization, the lake is facing the same fate as the Aral Sea. The lake belongs to the Ili Balkhash Basin IBB that is shared by two countries; Kazakhstan and China. Most of the water (around 80%), that feed the lake, come with the Ili River that is born on the Chinese side. Most of the water is used for agriculture purposes. Now the Chinese Government want to increase the irrigated area and develop more projects that require more water. If this is done without any improvement in the agriculture management, the IBB is under threat. The irrigation systems in the study area are very precarious. The farmers are isolated with almost no possibility to participate in the development process. The government is not interested in any research in water issues and the information that can be found about water consumption and cultivated area are proven to be far from reality. A difficult situation facing the above mention problematic. The agriculture area can grow but the water management in the Upper Ili Basin needs to be reviewed and improved. Just by doing small changes like changing rice cultivation for a crop with a higher water productivity the amount of water that can be saved is considerable. Or by importing virtual water from a region with a higher water productivity. But first a general recognition from the Chinese side about water shortage is necessary. The Ili Balkhash Basin can be sustainable if it is treated as a whole. The boundaries of the system need to be set around the whole basin. A partial view of the basin can be dangerous and jeopardize the subsistence of the natural environment of the area. When the carrying capacity of the basin is measured, the only way to grow is under this threshold. In this case, by improving water productivity with better agriculture management.

This dissertation sets its goal in application of the water footprint indicator, which is a practical and multi-layered indicator of water sources consumption. Of human activities, agriculture presents the most significant demands on water sources consumption. Therefore I have turned my focus to the widely-discussed issue of biofuels production, because the input materials for production of this kind of energy are agricultural crops (in the Czech republic those are: oilseed rape, sugar beet, Indian corn and winter wheat). The calculated results of water footprints of the selected industrial crops (m3 /t) and of water footprints of the heating value units of that crops (m3 /GJ) offer us a concrete notion of energy requirements of water of that chosen industrial crops in the conditions of the Czech republic. Keywords: water footprint indicator, biofuels, oilseed rape, water consumption, biodiesel, bioethanol, evapotranspiration.

I Halmstad kommun har kunskapsnivån kring virtuellt vatten hos privatpersoner och/eller yrkesverksamma undersökts. En enkätundersökning har genomförts där 85 stycken respondenter har medverkat. Respondenterna har fått ange kön, ålder och utbildningsnivå för att kunna identifiera möjliga skillnader i förmågan att skatta virtuellt vatten. Enkäten innehöll även frågor om kommunikation som var ämnade att fastställa hur respondenterna föredrog att få ämnet virtuellt vatten kommunicerat till sig. Studien har visat att i Halmstad kommun finns där en tendens att underskatta mängden virtuellt vatten i produkter. Även den dagliga vattenförbrukningen nationellt och internationellt underskattas. Genom de utförda Chi2-testerna i kategorierna kön, ålder och utbildningsnivå har det visats att en fråga hade korrelation mellan kön och skattningsförmåga, medan resterande frågor inte visade på något samband. Det här skiljer sig gentemot tidigare forskning som gjorts kring privatpersoners förmåga att skatta sin vattenanvändning, där kategorierna högre ålder, att vara man och högre utbildning tydligt har varit korrelerat till en bättre skattningsförmåga. Vidare har produktmärkning, TV och sociala medier varit de föredragna kommunikationsmedierna i den här undersökningen, sett till respondenternas svar. För att öka kännedomen om virtuellt vatten har även förslag på en kommunikationsinsats kring virtuellt vatten utformats där sex kommunikationsmål och två slutmål har tagits fram för kommunikation om ämnet. Den här studien ger också en inblick i varför virtuellt vatten är en viktig aspekt för att uppnå Agenda 2030 samt hur en kommunikationsinsats kring virtuellt vatten kan vara en del av att uppnå en mer hållbar vattenhantering. / The knowledge about virtual water among private individuals and/or professionals have been researched in Halmstad municipality. A questionnaire survey has been conducted where 85 respondents participated. The respondents were asked to state their gender, age, and educational level so that differences concerning the perception of virtual water could be identified. The questionnaire also contained questions regarding how the respondent’s wanted information about their water usage communicated. This survey concluded that there is a tendency to underestimate the volume of virtual water in products in Halmstad municipality, as well as the daily virtual water usage both on a national and international scale. Through the performed Chi2-tests it has been shown that one question had a correlation between gender and the perception of virtual water, whilst the remaining questions related to their respective categories, gender, age, and education level, did not. This contrasts with previously conducted research about perception of water usage, where the categories higher age, being a male and higher educational level were related to a more correct water perception. Preferred ways to receive information about water usage have been shown to be through product labeling, TV, and social media. Efforts to communicate virtual water have been designed in this study in the form of six communication goals and two end goals to increase knowledge regarding the topic. It has been identified that virtual water is an important aspect to achieve Agenda 2030 as well as how communicational efforts regarding virtual water can be a part of achieving a more sustainable water management.

Water is essential to life, but it is becoming inadequate, even in Europe. In central, western, and a few parts of northern and northeastern Europe, water availability is facing challenges due to the impacts of climate change. These impacts further cause strains on water abstractions needed for agriculture, industries, energy, and public water supply, as well as causing extreme weather conditions like droughts during the summer. One possibility is to reduce these issues by raising awareness among individuals of their direct and indirect water consumption. However, this study implies that people cannot visualize their water consumption due to not possessing or conveniently accessing their water meter. Thus, this thesis explores the implementation of gamification and its features using a prototype to observe if this can create motivation to educate individuals in reducing their water consumption. This study uses research through design approach centered around the mid-fidelity mobile application prototype, named SAVR, developed in the iterative design process. The iterative process consists of three phases where the participants are involved in evaluating the prototype containing gamification features. The results suggest that specific game features such as points, progress and feedback successfully engaged participants in using the prototype, consequently changing their attitude, and stimulating some awareness raised on their water consumption. Overall, this opens a scope for municipalities to adopt a gamified mobile application to communicate the importance of sustainable water use as well as educating the citizens of the awareness in a playful way.

The Virtual Water Trade (VWT) thesis has in recent years taken centre stage in the global water security and political economy discourse for its ability to mitigate water scarcity issues through global trade. However, it has been criticised for neglecting the externalities and the full social-environmental costs, which in this research is highlighted through the case of Brazil. This multivariate research critically assesses the dangers of seeing VWT as a ‘pure’ economic model by investigating the intervening variable of the structural conditions of the Brazilian government and their close intertwinement with agricultural corporations. By qualitative content analysis and empirical data supporting the arguments, the research found that agrarian corporations’ participation in an extractivist system can only thrive where the state actively guarantees the structural condition. This includes financial incentives which provide them with the hegemonic power to influence policies and amendments favouring agrarian business expansion with detrimental socio-environmental consequences for the vulnerable communities within Brazil. The research concludes that it is important to acknowledge this macro-micro linkage when formulating international agreements regarding agricultural trade, otherwise, the purpose of the Virtual Water Trade to mitigate water stress and prevent violent conflicts is instead undermined.

Análise de custo-benefício (CBA) é um instrumento de avaliação de políticas que auxilia na tomada de decisão, empregada principalmente por gestores públicos. A CBA foi utilizada com o intuito de alcançar o objetivo principal desse estudo: verificar se a exportação de água virtual - água incorporada em um produto durante seu processo produtivo - embutida em 10 produtos do setor agropecuário brasileiro, no período de 2002 a 2016, está sendo benéfica ao Brasil. Os produtos estudados foram agrupados em 5 grupos, Açúcar, Café, Milho, Soja e Boi que, somados, desde o ano de 2012 têm representado mais de 20% do total das exportações brasileiras, em termos monetários, US$. Para qualquer análise custo-benefício é necessário que todos os impactos (custos e benefícios) sejam monetizados para se apurar o benefício líquido (BL), que é alcançado diminuindo-se os custos (C) dos benefícios (B), (BL=B-C). O estudo admitiu como custo os custos de produção, dos produtos estudados; a tarifa de armazenagem portuária; e, o valor da água virtual exportada pelo Brasil. Como benefício está sendo considerado o valor recebido com a exportação desses produtos, convertido em moeda nacional. Dessa forma, para alcançar o objetivo principal do estudo, foi necessário precificar a água virtual, um dos objetivos específicos do estudo. Ademais, o estudo apresenta ainda os principais parceiros importadores do Brasil, com relação aos produtos estudados; a importância brasileira como país exportador para esses parceiros importadores; a diferença no volume de água utilizado para produção, tanto no Brasil quanto nesses importadores; e, o volume e o valor total da água virtual exportada no período analisado. A hipótese central que norteou esse trabalho é que o Brasil obteve mais benefícios do que custos ao exportar água virtual, embutida na cesta de produtos agropecuários escolhida. Inclusive, essa hipótese pôde ser confirmada, uma vez que se identificou, por meio da CBA, benefícios totais líquidos positivos, no período de 2002 a 2016, isto é, os benefícios (valor das exportações) superaram os custos (custo de produção, tarifa portuária e valor da água virtual). No que tange aos benefícios líquidos por grupo de produto estudado, os mesmos apresentaram resultado negativo em alguns anos do período analisado. Como exemplo, para o grupo Milho, nos anos de 2005, 2006 e 2009 os benefícios líquidos foram negativos. Quanto aos benefícios totais líquidos, os mesmos foram de R$ 216.342.482.411,98 no período de 2002 a 2016. Em relação ao volume total de água virtual exportada, incorporada nos produtos abordados pelo estudo, no período analisado, o mesmo foi de 2.514.850,651 milhões de m3 de água. Em termos de valor monetário, o total apurado para esse volume de água foi de R$ 27.166.366.824,47. / Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is a policy evaluation tool that assists in decision-making, used primarily by public managers. CBA was used in order to reach the main objective of this study: to verify if the export of virtual water - water contained in a product during its production process - embedded in 10 products of the Brazilian agricultural sector, from 2002 to 2016, is being beneficial to Brazil. The products studied were grouped into 5 groups: Sugar, Coffee, Corn, Soybean and Bovine, which, since the year of 2012, represented more than 20% of total Brazilian exports, in monetary terms, US$. For any cost-benefit analysis it is necessary that all impacts (costs and benefits) are monetized to determine the net benefit (NB), which is achieved by decreasing the costs (C) of the benefits (B), (NB = B-C). The study admitted as cost the costs of production, of the products studied; the port storage tariff; and, the value of virtual water exported by Brazil. As a benefit is being considered the value received with the export of these products, converted into national currency. Thus, to reach the main objective of the study, it was necessary to value the virtual water, one of the main objectives of the study. In addition, the study also analyses the main importing partners of Brazil, in relation to the products studied; the importance of Brazil as a leading agricultural exporting country for these importing partners; the difference in the volume of water used for production, both in Brazil and in the importing partners; and, the volume and total value of the virtual water exported in the analyzed period. The central hypothesis that guided this work is that Brazil obtained more benefits than costs when exporting virtual water embedded in the chosen basket of agricultural products. This hypothesis could even be confirmed, since the CBA identified positive total net benefits from 2002 to 2016, i.e., benefits (value of exports) exceeded costs (production cost, tariff port value and virtual water value). Regarding the net benefits per product group studied, they presented negative results in some years of the analyzed period, for example, for the Corn group, in the years 2005, 2006 and 2009 the net benefits were negative. As for the total net benefits, they were R$ 216,342,482,411.98 in the period from 2002 to 2016. In relation to the total volume of virtual exported water, incorporated in the products addressed by the study, during the analyzed period, it was 2,514,850,651 million m3 of water. In terms of monetary value, the total amount for this volume of water was R$ 27,166,366,824.47.

Análise de custo-benefício (CBA) é um instrumento de avaliação de políticas que auxilia na tomada de decisão, empregada principalmente por gestores públicos. A CBA foi utilizada com o intuito de alcançar o objetivo principal desse estudo: verificar se a exportação de água virtual - água incorporada em um produto durante seu processo produtivo - embutida em 10 produtos do setor agropecuário brasileiro, no período de 2002 a 2016, está sendo benéfica ao Brasil. Os produtos estudados foram agrupados em 5 grupos, Açúcar, Café, Milho, Soja e Boi que, somados, desde o ano de 2012 têm representado mais de 20% do total das exportações brasileiras, em termos monetários, US$. Para qualquer análise custo-benefício é necessário que todos os impactos (custos e benefícios) sejam monetizados para se apurar o benefício líquido (BL), que é alcançado diminuindo-se os custos (C) dos benefícios (B), (BL=B-C). O estudo admitiu como custo os custos de produção, dos produtos estudados; a tarifa de armazenagem portuária; e, o valor da água virtual exportada pelo Brasil. Como benefício está sendo considerado o valor recebido com a exportação desses produtos, convertido em moeda nacional. Dessa forma, para alcançar o objetivo principal do estudo, foi necessário precificar a água virtual, um dos objetivos específicos do estudo. Ademais, o estudo apresenta ainda os principais parceiros importadores do Brasil, com relação aos produtos estudados; a importância brasileira como país exportador para esses parceiros importadores; a diferença no volume de água utilizado para produção, tanto no Brasil quanto nesses importadores; e, o volume e o valor total da água virtual exportada no período analisado. A hipótese central que norteou esse trabalho é que o Brasil obteve mais benefícios do que custos ao exportar água virtual, embutida na cesta de produtos agropecuários escolhida. Inclusive, essa hipótese pôde ser confirmada, uma vez que se identificou, por meio da CBA, benefícios totais líquidos positivos, no período de 2002 a 2016, isto é, os benefícios (valor das exportações) superaram os custos (custo de produção, tarifa portuária e valor da água virtual). No que tange aos benefícios líquidos por grupo de produto estudado, os mesmos apresentaram resultado negativo em alguns anos do período analisado. Como exemplo, para o grupo Milho, nos anos de 2005, 2006 e 2009 os benefícios líquidos foram negativos. Quanto aos benefícios totais líquidos, os mesmos foram de R$ 216.342.482.411,98 no período de 2002 a 2016. Em relação ao volume total de água virtual exportada, incorporada nos produtos abordados pelo estudo, no período analisado, o mesmo foi de 2.514.850,651 milhões de m3 de água. Em termos de valor monetário, o total apurado para esse volume de água foi de R$ 27.166.366.824,47. / Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is a policy evaluation tool that assists in decision-making, used primarily by public managers. CBA was used in order to reach the main objective of this study: to verify if the export of virtual water - water contained in a product during its production process - embedded in 10 products of the Brazilian agricultural sector, from 2002 to 2016, is being beneficial to Brazil. The products studied were grouped into 5 groups: Sugar, Coffee, Corn, Soybean and Bovine, which, since the year of 2012, represented more than 20% of total Brazilian exports, in monetary terms, US$. For any cost-benefit analysis it is necessary that all impacts (costs and benefits) are monetized to determine the net benefit (NB), which is achieved by decreasing the costs (C) of the benefits (B), (NB = B-C). The study admitted as cost the costs of production, of the products studied; the port storage tariff; and, the value of virtual water exported by Brazil. As a benefit is being considered the value received with the export of these products, converted into national currency. Thus, to reach the main objective of the study, it was necessary to value the virtual water, one of the main objectives of the study. In addition, the study also analyses the main importing partners of Brazil, in relation to the products studied; the importance of Brazil as a leading agricultural exporting country for these importing partners; the difference in the volume of water used for production, both in Brazil and in the importing partners; and, the volume and total value of the virtual water exported in the analyzed period. The central hypothesis that guided this work is that Brazil obtained more benefits than costs when exporting virtual water embedded in the chosen basket of agricultural products. This hypothesis could even be confirmed, since the CBA identified positive total net benefits from 2002 to 2016, i.e., benefits (value of exports) exceeded costs (production cost, tariff port value and virtual water value). Regarding the net benefits per product group studied, they presented negative results in some years of the analyzed period, for example, for the Corn group, in the years 2005, 2006 and 2009 the net benefits were negative. As for the total net benefits, they were R$ 216,342,482,411.98 in the period from 2002 to 2016. In relation to the total volume of virtual exported water, incorporated in the products addressed by the study, during the analyzed period, it was 2,514,850,651 million m3 of water. In terms of monetary value, the total amount for this volume of water was R$ 27,166,366,824.47.

International water law has been unable to translate its principles into effective institutions for the management of shared water resources. National interest has often override any real commitment to the principles of international water law as reflected by the draft Articles of the ILC. Based on the theory of sovereignty, it emphasises a discretionary power to co-operate. However, the community of interest's theory is rather recommended as basis for co-operation. The draft Articles does not take sufficient account of the role domestic water policies, international relations and economics play in the co-operation of states. An integrated approach that considers social and economic effects within an environmental context is proposetL The political economy of water includes the potential of 'virtual water' through the importation of staple grains. A holistic approach, taking global trade in agriculture into account, is recommended. The SADC countries should also consider the potential of regional trade in 'virtual water'. / Law / LL. M. (Law)

International water law has been unable to translate its principles into effective institutions for the management of shared water resources. National interest has often override any real commitment to the principles of international water law as reflected by the draft Articles of the ILC. Based on the theory of sovereignty, it emphasises a discretionary power to co-operate. However, the community of interest's theory is rather recommended as basis for co-operation. The draft Articles does not take sufficient account of the role domestic water policies, international relations and economics play in the co-operation of states. An integrated approach that considers social and economic effects within an environmental context is proposetL The political economy of water includes the potential of 'virtual water' through the importation of staple grains. A holistic approach, taking global trade in agriculture into account, is recommended. The SADC countries should also consider the potential of regional trade in 'virtual water'. / Law / LL. M. (Law)

Southern Africa generally has an arid climate and many hydrologists are predicting an increase in water scarcity over time. This research seeks to understand the implications of this in socio-political terms. The study is cross-disciplinary, examining how policy interventions can be used to solve the problem caused by the interaction between hydrology and demography. The conclusion is that water scarcity is not the actual problem, but is perceived as the problem by policy-makers. Instead, water scarcity is the manifestation of the problem, with root causes being a combination of climate change, population growth and misallocation of water within the economy due to a desire for national self-sufficiency in agriculture. The solution lies in the trade of products with a high water content, also known as 'virtual water'. Research on this specific issue is called for by the White Paper on Water Policy for South Africa. / Political Sciences / M.A. (International Politics)