Co-Valuation of Water: An institutional perspective on valuation in spatial water management

This thesis presents an approach of co-valuation to combine participation and evaluation in decision-making. In co-valuation, stakeholders, experts and civil servants collaborate in the identification, construction, and adaptation of, and the learning about the values they perceive as relevant to decision-making. This has the potential to increase societal support and integral outcomes, which may improve current problems in Dutch spatial water management with participation and integral assessment. As interactive governance is increasingly applied in Dutch spatial water management and is expected to increase public support for decisions, an approach is needed to combine the values and information of experts and stakeholders in evaluation. Co-valuation provides a means to integrate economic valuation in the governance process. The approach was developed ‘in action’ during participatory action research of the author in the interactive decision-making project Around Arnemuiden, in 2006-2007. This project was executed in a collaboration of the municipality of Middelburg, the province of Zeeland, Rijkswaterstaat, DLG, and the water Board, with Erasmus University Rotterdam, TNO, and Tauw as external project organizers. It was co-financed by Leven met Water.

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