Water Stories from EU Citizens

Abstract

We collected stories to explore how citizens and stakeholders across the EU experience water in their daily lives. Narratives allowed us to collect both personal and professional life stories where they shared their individual experiences about water, providing us with an overview of how EU citizens connect to water and build their water culture. Framed through a behavioural lens to identify patterns and attitudes, we collected 2,751 stories from EU citizens (2666) and stakeholders (85) from across all 27 Member States. Participants were presented with a prompting question to describe a moment or experience where they felt very aware of the importance of water and were then asked to fill in signifier questions to help them self-interpret their stories. We then analysed patterns, trends, and narratives behind the data. We also conducted a sense-making workshop with policymakers to delve deeper into specific sets of stories. Our main findings are as follows: 1) In EU stories, water is predominantly linked to health and wellbeing, highlighting its fundamental importance for survival and comfort. This theme appears in 37% of stories, with 70% expressing positive sentiment. People acknowledge water's critical role in hydration, cleansing, and stress relief, finding comfort in activities like swimming. The stories also underscore the importance of clean water access and infrastructure. There is a shift towards viewing water as a core part of personal and community identity.  2) Water-related concerns vary by region, emphasizing the role of context. In the Baltic Sea region, water quality and pollution are key concerns, while the Mediterranean region focuses more on environmental and climate change issues. This region also reports higher levels of worry and sadness linked to water scarcity and its effects on living conditions. 3) Personal beliefs and experiences shape perceptions of water issues, with both short-term disruptions and long-term scarcity evoking strong emotional responses. These experiences highlight water's integral role in daily life and prompt reflection on its importance when disrupted.  4) Half of the participants feel they can significantly impact the situation in their water story, often through educational efforts that encourage change in others. 5) There is little mention of economic issues in water stories, especially at sectoral levels. Only few people link their stories to industry, trade, economy, finance or mobility and transport. The link that is sometimes made is through water bills or cost saving measures. JRC.S.1 - EU Policy Lab: Foresight, Design & Behavioural Insight