Community Engagement in Climate Adaptive Water Hubs (CAWH)

About: Research on the social dimensions of Climate Adaptive Water Hubs: a transnational strategy that examines the role of roads in capturing and reusing water.

Collaboration with: Rijkswaterstaat, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Coöperatie Kloostersland.

Commissioned by Rijkswaterstaat, this research explores how institutional analysis and participatory design can be combined to address water imbalances in the Netherlands. Centered on a 12 km highway in Oirschot, the project investigates how roads can function as water infrastructure, while mapping actors, dependencies, and future scenarios. In collaboration with the University of Groningen, Design Academy Eindhoven, and Coöperatie Kloostersland, designers are positioned as intermediaries between local communities and decision-makers, creating conditions for institutional change and sustainable water management.

The research is part of an international consortium with partners from five countries. The images show a workshop in Karlsruhe (Germany), where international partners tested SI-LAB’s participatory methods for their specific contexts. Additional images include a research report and a digital actor-networking tool developed by SI-LAB to support participatory departments within institutions such as Rijkswaterstaat.

Photos by Naomi Bueno de Mesquita and Toni Wagner.

Further Links

→ Link to the research report in English: https://issuu.com/designacademy/docs/gocawh_si-lab_report_

→ Link to the research report in Dutch: https://issuu.com/designacademy/docs/gocawh_si-lab_report_nl

→ Link to the digital tool: https://nieneb.github.io/participatory-tool/#/