This course explores key challenges and debates in contemporary water management and governance and how these relate to water (in)justice. This transdisciplinary course draws on geography, economics, social and environmental sciences and policy to cover the following topics:

·        What is water justice?: key frameworks and links to water rights, equity and fairness; justice theory;

·        Competing uses as drivers of water (in)justice: Interconnections between water, social justice and socio-technical systems such as energy and food;

·        Justice dimensions of climate change and water infrastructure: environmental; distribution of costs and benefits; water pollution

·        Human right to water and sanitation: SDG 6 and interconnection with other SDGs, gaps in drinking water access in the Global North

·        Barriers to water justice: water and conflict

·        Water management & governance approaches: Indigenous and decolonial critiques;

·        Water justice counter- discourses: review and critique of exiting governance models; co-governance and legal pluralism

 

The course combines research-based teaching by the conveners and guest lecturers with interactive learning activities. Over two weeks, participants will be encouraged to use their knowledge and experiences as a foundation for exploring diverse perspectives of ‘water justice’ in order to develop their capability to work in transdisciplinary fields. Students are invited to construct their own understanding of ‘water justice’ by interpreting the literature and, where relevant, contextualising it within their own experience of water injustice. Students will have the opportunity to gain insights into First Nations’ perspectives through the course readings and, when available, guest lectures. At the end of the course, students will be able to apply critical thinking skills to critique water management frameworks and policies.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Identify and explain key water justice, management and governance concepts.
2. Examine and critique water management and governance approaches using one or multiple water justice framework(s).
3. Construct well-informed arguments to support/critique controversial water justice and management questions. 
4. Develop and defend original arguments and own viewpoints about contemporary water justice issues.
5. Reflect on how water justice learnings can be implemented into students' own future professional/academic endeavours.  

Research-Led Teaching

The course's pre-recorded lectures provide an overview of fundamental concepts and link to key academic research. Readings will provide students with an opportunity to critically engage with foundational and current research across the topics. In addition to live lectures with the course conveners, students will attend live guest lectures with leading water researchers and practitioners.

Field Trips

TBA

Additional Course Costs

None

Examination Material or equipment

N/A

Required Resources

Readings will be provided on Wattle

Recommended Resources

Readings will be provided on the course site on Wattle

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Other Information

CRAWFORD ACADEMIC SKILLS

The Crawford School of Public Policy has its own Academic Skills team dedicated to helping students to understand the academic expectations of studying at Crawford and succeed in their chosen program of study. Through individual appointments, course-embedded workshops and online resources, Crawford Academic Skills provides tailored advice to students keen to develop their academic reading, thinking, planning, writing, and presentation skills.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Tuesday 3rd JuneIntroduction: Welcome and course overviewTopic 1: Introduction: What is water justice?
2	Wednesday 4th JuneTopic 2: Competing uses as drivers of water inequity and injustice
3	Thursday 5th JuneTopic 3: Justice dimensions of climate change and water infrastructure
4	Friday 6th JuneTopic 4: Domestic water: The human right to water and sanitation
5	Tuesday 10th JuneTopic 5: What is getting in the way of water justice?
6	Wednesday 11th JuneTopic 6: Water management & governance approaches
7	Thursday 12th JuneTopic 7: Counter- discourses & water justice framework review
8	Friday 13th JunePolicy brief assessment presentations and wrap-up

Tutorial Registration

n/a

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Design of a mini-quiz (600 words)	10 %	03/06/2025	05/06/2025	1
Opinion piece: water justice issues (1200 words)	20 %	09/06/2025	16/06/2025	2,3,4
Reflection on opinion piece group discussion (300 words)	5 %	09/06/2025	16/06/2025	2,3,4
Debate Preparation (3 written points)	5 %	06/06/2025	20/06/2025	1,2,3,4,5
Debate (oral defence)	15 %	11/06/2025	20/06/2025	1,2,3,4,5
Debate Written Reflection	5 %	16/06/2025	20/06/2025	1,2,3,4,5
Policy Brief Presentation (15 minutes)	15 %	13/06/2025	21/07/2025	1,2,3,4,5
Final Policy Brief (written)	25 %	30/06/2025	21/07/2025	1,2,3,4,5

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

This is an intensive course. Content will be delivered through pre-recoded and live lectures. Live lectures will be delivered four days a week. Classes are scheduled for the afternoons – with some variability for guest lectures, field visits (if available), etc.

We understand the need to juggle work and personal commitments, and it is for this reason that live lectures will be recorded and posted on Wattle for students to catch up, if they have missed a session. However, it is expected that, for most of the time, students will be present during live lectures and in-class activities, over the two weeks of the course. Students who cannot attend any sessions (i.e., you plan to be mostly asynchronous), are kindly asked to please contact the course convenors in advance before enrolling. This will help plan the delivery schedule for best learning outcomes.

Although attendance in daily classes is not marked per se, please note that the Opinion Piece reflection activity, Structured Academic Debate and Policy Brief assessments take place during class time.

Examination(s)

No examinations

Assessment Task 1

Design of a mini-quiz (600 words)

Write a water justice mini-quiz consisting of three questions. The quiz should be based on topics 1 and 2 of this course (topics are ‘What is water (in)justice?’ and ‘Competing uses as drivers of water inequity and injustice’). In this assessment, instead of students answering questions, students will have to create such questions. Try to think of it in this way: after reviewing Topics 1 and 2, how would you test other students' knowledge on the topics?

To complete this assessment:

a) Write three quiz questions using the following format:

·       One true/false question;

·       One multiple choice question (include the multiple-choice answers); and

·       One question requiring a short-written answer.

b) For each quiz question, provide a brief (3-4 sentences) written explanation of the:

·       Answer to the question;

·       Why you chose this question;

·       Where in the course reading(s) and/or other materials (e.g. pre-recorded lectures) can the answers to each quiz question be found.

Combining the questions and explanations, the assignment should consist of 600 words. The ANU College of Asia & the Pacific's Word Limit and Penalty Guidelines applies to this assessment item. 

The purpose of this assessment is to encourage students to review the required materials prior to the start of the course and become familiar with key concepts of water justice. Thus, the assessment will need to demonstrate engagement with readings and pre-recorded lectures. Further, the quiz questions will need to demonstrate critical thinking and originality. The answers to the questions should not be obvious, but they should be based upon the knowledge gained upon review of Topics 1 and 2.

Students are required to use an appropriate academic citation style. See ANU's referencing guide. We ask students to use the Crawford style and include hyperlinks to the source of each reference, using DOI where available. If you would like to use a different style, please let us know which and why.

Learning Outcomes: 1

Value: 10%

Rubric TBA in Wattle

Assessment Task 2

Opinion piece: water justice issues (1200 words)

Write an opinion/ commentary piece on water justice as if you were writing for an online media outlet*, such as Global Water Forum (GWF), Policy Forum or The Conversation. (If you wish to do so, upon completion of the course, you may consider submitting the piece for publication in a media outlet. A good quality commentary piece is often highly regarded in a professional and academic CV).

The intent is to write about water justice for a generalist audience using simple, engaging, language and minimising jargon.

To complete the assessment, identify two key topics, concepts or ideas from the course readings or lectures that have stood out to you. These may include relevance to the place that you are from, your core discipline and/or your current or future work. Based on the two selected topics, the commentary piece should contain:

• a summary of the topics and how they relate to each other;
• an analysis of the water justice implications for the topics in question;
• your view on the way forward or solution or a fresh critique; and
• a conclusion about the significance of these issues, putting them into the global context (e.g. why should the readers care about this case study? Can the insights be applied to other regions?)
• a list of the course readings and other relevant sources you drew on to write your commentary piece.

The ANU College of Asia & the Pacific's Word Limit and Penalty Guidelines applies to this assessment item. 

*Although the examples provided above have no in-text citations (just links), in the assessment students are required to use an appropriate academic citation style. See ANU's referencing guide. We ask students to use the Crawford style and include hyperlinks to the source of each reference, using DOI where available. If you would like to use a different style, please let us know which and why.

Learning Outcomes: 2,3, 4

Value: 20%

Rubric TBA in Wattle

Assessment Task 3

Reflection on opinion piece group discussion (300 words)

You will work in groups during class time (date TBA) to discuss and refine your opinion piece ideas.

Then submit a 300-word reflection on the group exercise, outlining your contribution to the discussion and how the discussion helped you (or not) to develop your ideas.

The opinion piece reflection is due the same day as the opinion piece.

The ANU College of Asia & the Pacific's Word Limit and Penalty Guidelines applies to this assessment item. 

Students are required to use an appropriate academic citation style. See ANU's referencing guide. We ask students to use the Crawford style and include hyperlinks to the source of each reference, using DOI where available. If you would like to use a different style, please let us know which and why.

Learning Outcomes: 2,3, 4

Value: 5%

Rubric TBA in Wattle

Assessment Task 4

Debate Preparation (3 written points)

To start the assessment, students will be assigned a water justice topic and asked to find arguments to argue either in favour or against it. Based on the course materials and other high-quality sources, students will be asked to find, describe and defend three key points in favour/against the argument. These key points should be summarised in writing in 300 words (in total, for the three points).

The written points are due before the in-class live Structured Academic Debate.

See Assessment 5 for more details about the debate.

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Value: 5%

Rubric TBA in Wattle.

Assessment Task 5

Debate (oral defence)

A structured academic debate will be held in class, in groups, in week 2. The purpose of the assessment is to encourage students to think critically about water justice, whilst considering multiple viewpoints through an academic lens. To prepare for the debate, a practice run will be held in class towards the end of the first week. On the day of the debate, the groups (around five students each) will be given time to share their ideas, select the arguments to support their position, and decide who will present each point. Then, teams working on the same topic, but on opposite sides of the argument will be invited to the debate. In turns, each student in each group will have three minutes to defend their group’s position. Each student will present one major point during their three minutes.

The in-class debate (week 2) will be marked based on the depth and breadth of the individual student's oral defence, demonstrating a critical analysis that engages with the literature and demonstrates the learning outcomes; and the student's constructive contribution to their team's preparation (process).

Students are strongly encouraged to participate in the practice debate (week 1), which will not be assessed.

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Value: 15%

Rubric TBA in Wattle.

Assessment Task 6

Debate Written Reflection

Upon completion of the debates, students will be asked to:

• briefly summarise the contribution of team members (including themselves) to the team's preparation; and
• reflect on the learning from the counter-arguments.

The word count limit for the summary of learnings is 300 words. The ANU College of Asia & the Pacific's Word Limit and Penalty Guidelines applies to this assessment item. 

Students are required to use an appropriate academic citation style. See ANU's referencing guide. We ask students to use the Crawford style and include hyperlinks to the source of each reference, using DOI where available. If you would like to use a different style, please let us know which and why.

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Value: 5%

Rubric TBA in Wattle.

Assessment Task 7

Policy Brief Presentation (15 minutes)

You will present a policy briefing to 'government ministers' who will be roleplayed by the course convenors and your classmates. You will roleplay a ministerial advisor.

The 15-minute assessment consists of a 10-minute presentation, followed by 5 minutes of question and answers.

In your presentation, you will firstly update the 'government ministers' on a water justice issue (can be from any country/ region). You must then:

• explain the major barrier(s) for greater water justice in this area, providing justification or evidence where relevant;
• identify two possible policy solutions or pathways forward, explaining the advantages and disadvantages of each; and
• provide a recommendation (which solution is best and why?).

Final slide(s) must list the references used to develop the presentation.

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Value: 15%  

Rubric TBA in Wattle.

Assessment Task 8

Final Policy Brief (written)

This assessment consists of a written policy brief (1,500 words) for the 'government ministers'. This should be a more comprehensive written version of the same Policy Brief topic (assessment 7). You may wish to incorporate feedback or ideas from the presentation's Q&A.

The ANU College of Asia & the Pacific's Word Limit and Penalty Guidelines applies to this assessment item. The final written brief is due after the intensive (date TBC).

Students are required to use an appropriate academic citation style. See ANU's referencing guide. We ask students to use the Crawford style and include hyperlinks to the source of each reference, using DOI where available. If you would like to use a different style, please let us know which and why.

Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Value: 25%  

Rubric TBA in Wattle.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

No hard copy submissions will be part of this course.

Late Submission

Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Access and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents all ANU students