The Context and Design of Legal and Institutional Arrangements in Conflict and Cooperation over Transboundary Waters

Melissa McCracken, Tufts University (United States)

With the trend of interstate disputes rising due to increasing demands, climate change, and mismanagement. Legal and institutional arrangements that provide institutional capacity, such as treaties and joint basin institutions, can help states address disputes of shared freshwater resources; however, poor design, institutional contexts, and other factors can limit their effectiveness. This presentation is a part of the panel “Law, Power, and Decolonization in Transboundary Water Conflict and Cooperation,” and it will address the role of institutional design in conflict management and resolution in transboundary waters. Using the Indus River Basin as a case study, the presentation will examine the evolution of its institutions over time in an attempt to understand how the institutional context and design played a role in the treaty’s transition from a model example of successful cooperation to being held in abeyance.