Applying Place-Based Social-Ecological Research to Address Water Scarcity: Insights for Future Research

Globally, environmental and social change in water-scarce regions challenge the sustainability of social-ecologicalsystems. WaterSES, a sponsored working group within the Program for Ecosystem Change and Society, explores and compares the social-ecologicaldynamics related to water scarcityacross placed-based international research sites with contrasting local and regional water needs and governance, including research sites in Spain and Sweden in Europe, South Africa, China, and Alabama, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Texas in the USA. This paper aims to provide a commentary on insights into conducting future solutions-oriented research on water scarcitybased on the understanding of the social-ecologicaldynamics of water scarce regions.