Recognising water as a central relational location of the asymmetric Israel-
Palestinian conflict, this study critically analyses the peacebuilding significance
of Israeli, transboundary water and peace practitioner discourses. Anchored in
a theoretically-constructed framework of hydropolitical peacebuilding, it
discursively analyses the historical, officially-sanctioned, as well as academic
and civil society water and peace relations of Israelis and Palestinians. It
responds to the question: How are Israeli water and peace practitioners
discursively practicing hydropolitical peacebuilding in the Middle East? In doing
so, this study has drawn upon a methodology of interpretive practice, combining
ethnography, foucauldian discourse analysis and narrative inquiry.
This study discursively traces Israel¿s development into a hydrohegemonic state
in the Jordan River Basin, from the late-19th century to 2011. Recognising
conflict as a power-laden social system, it makes visible the construction,
production and circulation of Israel¿s power in the basin. It examines key
narrative elements invoked by Israel to justify its evolving asymmetric,
hydrohegemonic relations. Leveraging the hydropolitical peacebuilding
framework, itself constituted of equality, partnership, equity and shared
ii
sustainability, this study also examines the discursive practices of Israeli
transboundary water and peace practitioners in relationship with Palestinians.
In so doing, it makes visible their hydrohegemony, hydropolitical peacebuilding,
and hydrohegemonic residues.
This study¿s conclusions re-affirm earlier findings, notably that environmental
and hydropolitical cooperation neither inherently nor necessarily constitute
peacebuilding practice. This work also suggests that hydropolitical
peacebuilding may discursively be recognised in water and peace practices that
engage, critique, resist, desist from, and practice alternative relational
formations to hydrohegemony in asymmetric conflicts. / British Council/Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Fonds québecois de recherche sur la société et la culture (FQRSC).
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BRADFORD/oai:bradscholars.brad.ac.uk:10454/6255 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Abitbol, Eric |
| Contributors | Whitman, Jim R., Abi-Ezzi, Karen, Pugh, Michael C., Cleaver, Frances D., Kelly, Rhys H.S. |
| Publisher | University of Bradford, University of Bradford, Department of Peace Studies, School of Social and International Studies. |
| Source Sets | Bradford Scholars |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, doctoral, PhD |
| Rights | <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br />The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Licence</a>. |
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