Water

Our water work focuses on sanitation in urban areas, and tools and tactics for ensuring that water is equitably allocated and governed

Also related to

Large-scale dams

Global Water Initiative (GWI)

Protecting and restoring critical water related ecosystems in mountains: the role of Indigenous Peoples and biocultural territories in mountain ecosystems

Event on 24 March 2023

Man and woman fill up jerry cans with water from a fountain

Blog

Water access in the drylands – what’s not working?

Claire Bedelian
11 November 2022

Woman crouching grabbing wet clothes from a basket.

Blog

An unexpected cooperative project to lighten women's pandemic clothes-washing burden

Guntoro Muhammad and Dian Irawaty
01 August 2022

A field of bare earth covered with rows of dried stalks.

Case study

Climate, health and urban informal economies – stories of need and change

07 June 2022

Cranes tower over the construction of a dam, with a body of water in the foreground

News

Chinese hydropower starting to adopt social and environmental safeguarding norms, but with limitations

17 March 2022

News

New archive restores knowledge produced by the World Commission on Dams

21 December 2021

Sewage and water runs down the centre of a makeshift 'drain' surrounded by sandbags and wood

Blog

Do urban populations benefit from urban bias?

David Satterthwaite
01 September 2021

Project

Rethinking humanitarian aid for refugees as investment in urban water and sanitation

April 2021 - April 2023

Related collections

Learn more about focused areas of IIED's water work

Global Water Initiative – West Africa

The Global Water Initiative sought to improve global food security by enabling farmers to better access, manage and use water resources for sustainable agricultural production

Collection

Inclusive blue economy

A programme of work supporting resilient marine and coastal ecosystems and the millions of people who depend on them to thrive by aligning incentives with investments

Collection

Urban crises and forced displacement

A programme of work bringing together diverse perspectives on humanitarian emergencies and forced displacement, to inform new directions in urban crisis response

Collection

Publications

View more Water publications

Water sector reform, climate change and climate-resilient planning in central Tanzania

Sharing the benefits of hydropower to improve displaced people’s livelihoods

Challenges to establishing markets for watershed services: Learning from country diagnostics

Assessing policy influences on people’s relationship to water ecosystem services: The South African experience

The business case for bilateral support to improve sustainability of private sector hydropower

Sharing the Benefits of Large Dams in West Africa

Women and Water Resources: Continued marginalisation and new policies

Cost pricing for water production and water protection services in Saint Lucia

Building Links for Improved Sanitation in Poor Urban Settlements: recommendations from Southern Africa

Hydropower sustainability assessments can unlock carbon financing

Protecting and restoring critical water related ecosystems in mountains: the role of Indigenous Peoples and biocultural territories in mountain ecosystems

Event on 24 March 2023

Water access in the drylands – what’s not working?

Blog, 11 November 2022

An unexpected cooperative project to lighten women's pandemic clothes-washing burden

Blog, 01 August 2022

Climate, health and urban informal economies – stories of need and change

Article, 07 June 2022

Chinese hydropower starting to adopt social and environmental safeguarding norms, but with limitations

News, 17 March 2022

New archive restores knowledge produced by the World Commission on Dams

News, 21 December 2021

Do urban populations benefit from urban bias?

Blog, 01 September 2021

Rethinking humanitarian aid for refugees as investment in urban water and sanitation

Active Project

Will green bonds boost finance flows to sustainable hydropower?

Blog, 05 April 2021

Working with nature to manage water resources in a changing climate

Blog, 22 March 2021