AIDA World Water Law Congress 2026
Water Law and Governance in Times of Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss
24 - 26 June 2026 | University of Oslo, Norway
Conference Agenda
Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).
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Agenda Overview |
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Special Session 2: Indigenous Water Laws & Relationships Responding to Climate Change and Biodiversity Imperatives
Linda Te Aho, Tara Marsden, Tessa Terbasket, Aimée Craft and Sherry Copenance
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Many Indigenous legal orders (customary laws) acknowledge water as a relation and reflect a reciprocal relationship between all beings based on respect and reciprocity. In contrast to state water laws that treat water as a resource and often property, water relations in Indigenous legal orders set meaningful limits for human behaviour. Legal/policy instruments and processes emerging from Indigenous water laws are creating innovative forms of governance that often involve the entanglement of Indigenous and state water laws and new approaches to long term water sustainability and climate adaptation. The objectives for this special session are to highlight the role of Indigenous legal orders in new legal and governance forms for water sustainability using examples from Canada and Aotearoa New Zealand. Presenting with community partners operationalizing different Indigenous legal orders from around the world, outcomes include exploration of legal pluralism in water governance and management, insight through case studies, and revealing the importance of Indigenous laws to water sustainability. | ||
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Indigenous Water Laws & Relationships Responding to Climate Change and Biodiversity Imperatives Many Indigenous legal orders (customary laws) acknowledge water as a relation and reflect a reciprocal relationship between all beings based on respect and reciprocity. In contrast to state water laws that treat water as a resource and often property, water relations in Indigenous legal orders set meaningful limits for human behaviour. Legal/policy instruments and processes emerging from Indigenous water laws are creating innovative forms of governance that often involve the entanglement of Indigenous and state water laws and new approaches to long term water sustainability and climate adaptation. The objectives for this special session are to highlight the role of Indigenous legal orders in new legal and governance forms for water sustainability using examples from Canada and Aotearoa New Zealand. Presenting with community partners operationalizing different Indigenous legal orders from around the world, outcomes include exploration of legal pluralism in water governance and management, insight through case studies, and revealing the importance of Indigenous laws to water sustainability. This special session responds directly to Themes 1 and 2 of the Congress thematic framework, specifically legal and governance mechanisms for climate adaptation and mitigation in water management, nature-based solutions and ecosystem-based management (Theme 1), as well as rights-based approaches to river and wetlands management, access to justice in water-related disputes and Indigenous knowledge and community-based governance (Theme 2). Lead: Professor Deborah Curran - Faculties of Law and Social Sciences (School of Environmental Studies) and Executive Director, Environmental Law Centre, University of Victoria (Canada) Partner organizations include: Environmental Law Centre, University of Victoria - https://envirolawcentre.ca Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs – https://www.gitanyowchiefs.com Okanagan Nation Alliance – https://syilx.org/ Presentations of the Symposium Māori Perspectives on Water Laws and Relationships Māori laws centre responsibility as a key tenet for laws and governance for living well with the earth. Māori perspectives and laws interacting through the Treaty of Waitangi with state laws are creating unique arrangement for river governance and management that are influencing water law across the globe. This paper will explore the Māori roots of those arrangements and reflect on their lessons for water law. Indigenous Legal Orders Creating Limits within State Water Law The operation of Indigenous legal orders are creating new limits in state law that meaningfully advance water sustainability and the restoration of biodiversity to create more resilient hydro-ecological systems. This paper will use examples from Canada to demonstrate how state water law is adopting ecological limits in response to Indigenous laws. Gitanyow Aks Ayookxw (Water Policy) as a Climate Adaptation Response Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs adopted the Gitanyow Aks Ayookxw (Water Policy) in 2023 as a modern expression of Gitanyow legal responsibilities to water. The Policy applies to all water use in the territory and establishes water objectives, flows and quality standards intended to protect future salmon habitat emerging through climate change. Syilx Water Relationships The syilk Nation’s longstanding water restoration activities have returned flows for fish and now include working with municipal leaders and chiefs to create a 250 year water responsibility plan. In the only desert-like climate in Canada, the syilx Nation's legal responsibilities towards water as a relative is transforming water governance and sustainability in the Okanagan region. Nibi Declaration: An Anishinaabek water law and governance approach The Anishinaabek Nation of Treaty 3, led by their Women's Council and knowledge carriers (Elders) worked through their Indigenous law-making practices to create the Nibi Declaration. This Declaration was adopted by the Nation and represents a voluntary compliance framework rooted in Indigenous laws, responsibilities to water and other living beings, and aiming to implement the Manito Aki Inaakonigewin (Great Earth Law) of the Nation. | ||