Urban Water Governance in Europe and in China: Key Challenges, Benchmarks and Approaches

Abstract

Urban water systems will not be developed and managed in a sustainable way unless this is ensured through adequate regulation, organization, and finance, or in short “governance.” The following sections of this volume aim to explore the different government arrangements in China and in Germany with a view to identifying options for improvement and governance innovation in and beyond these countries. The present chapter is aimed at providing some groundwork for this comparative assessment including an overview of the major factual challenges and differences of urban water governance in China and Germany, a conceptual frame for comparative assessment, a synthesis of the key benchmarks of “good” and “sustainable” governance, and a brief outlook to the highlights presented in the following contributions.