3 pillars and 1 beam: Quality of river basin governance processes

Abstract

This paper suggests a framework that may enhance quality assurance of evaluation of river basin planning and governance processes based on 3 pillars and 1 beam: inclusive governance, transparent assessment, socially robust knowledge and extended peer review. It was developed based on past evaluation experiences from 5 cases of European river basin governance processes, entailing analysis of emergent patterns and linkages among the 4 vertices of the ADVISOR tetrahedron (context, information, assessment and participation), looking into justifications of past practice according to 4 types of context: institutional, societal, knowledge and methodological. The paper also hints on quality requirements that could be recommended for future practice of river basin governance evaluation activities.Quality assurance Socially robust knowledge Extended peer review Inclusive governance