Introduction -- Part I Water Management Models and Globalization: The "French Model" and Europe -- Patrimonial Economics and Water Management: A French Case -- The Water Framework Directive: A Challenge for French Territorial Management -- Water Globalization: The Strategies of the Two French "Majors" -- Technological Rent: the Key for Water Services Regulation -- Liberalization of Water Services in Europe: The End of the French Water Exception? -- Part II Water Management Models and Globalization: Privatizations and access to water -- From the French Model to a "Globalized Model" -- Privatization: Lessons from Argentina -- Urban Water in the Post-Network Era: Lebanon and the Former East Germany -- Part III Governance, Conflict, and Participation: Sharing the Resource -- France's Water Policy: The Interest and Limits of River Contracts -- Traditional Water Management in the Mediterranean: Authorized Union Associations in Languedoc-Roussillon -- Dam Projects and Protest: The Exception of Alqueva (Portugal) -- Interbasin Water Transfers in Spain: Inter-regional Conflicts and Governance Responses -- Part IV Governance, Conflict, and Participation: Mechanisms of Power -- Politics and Governance in the Water Sector: The Case of Mumbai -- Inequalities and Conflicts: Water in Latin American Cities -- From Private to Public: Challenges in La Paz and El Alto, Bolivia -- Water Governance Tools: The Role of Science and Decision Support Systems in Participatory Management -- Water Security: A Genealogy of Emerging Discourses -- Appendix: Water Urbanisms: A Visual Illustration -- Index. Globalized Water presents a compilation of voices that forms a unique scientific exploration of contemporary water management models and governance issues. The book describes the water paradox-how a local resource has become a global product-and the implications of this in how we identify challenges and make policy in the water sector. Over the last 20 years, the foundations of local and national water systems have been rocked by a wave of changes. The authors in this book, experts in a wide range of disciplines, address the resulting debates and issues: water as a commodity and patrimony, technological rent, liberalization and privatization, the continuing evolution of water management and policy at the European level, decision making and stakeholder participation, conflict and consensus, and the inevitable growth of counterpowers at the local and international levels, promoted by the advocates of sustainable development. The selected case studies are from Europe (primarily France but also Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Portugal), Latin America (Argentina, Bolivia), the United States, Lebanon, and India. From this diverse collection of comparative perspectives and research methods, Globalized Water seeks to advance interdisciplinary research, contributing to a new and dynamic role for social sciences and governance on water.