THE RIGHT TO WATER IN POSTMODERNITY: BETWEEN PARADIGMS, BIODIVERSITY, AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Instituto Ora
- Oct 7
- 3 min read
By Patrícia Valdivieso Hessel, Ora Institute
Water, historically reduced to a mere accessory to land, has become consolidated in postmodernity as a fundamental human right, a common good of humanity, and a structural axis of biodiversity. Far from being limited to an economic function, it reveals itself as a plural category — social, cultural, ecological, and legal. Michel Prieur has already defined water as a “complex right, aimed at regulating access, use, and ensuring the preservation of water.” This definition gains greater depth in light of the concept of the hydronormative microsystem, which connects environmental, urban, sanitary, and territorial norms within a single legal framework, demanding an integrated and transdisciplinary interpretation.
Water, Biodiversity, and the Civilizational Crisis
The water crisis is inseparable from the environmental crisis. The UNESCO World Water Development Report (2024) indicates that 85% of wetlands have disappeared since the beginning of the 20th century, drastically impacting biodiversity. Every polluted river, every destroyed spring, and every suppressed riparian forest represents the loss of essential ecosystem services — such as climate regulation, aquifer recharge, and natural water filtration.
The loss of aquatic biodiversity undermines food chains, reduces climate resilience, and intensifies desertification processes. In this context, water is not merely a resource — it is an invisible ecological infrastructure, the vital support system for both human and non-human societies.
Socio-environmental Exclusion: Numbers That Speak for Themselves
The contemporary figures are striking. According to the United Nations, 2.2 billion people still lack safe access to drinking water; 3.5 billion lack adequate sanitation; and a recent Science study reveals that 4.4 billion people in low- and middle-income countries do not have safe drinking water in their homes. These data confirm that global water scarcity is not merely a physical phenomenon — it is the result of social inequality, environmental degradation, and governance failures.
The picture becomes even more severe when considering gender disparities: in many regions, women and girls remain primarily responsible for water collection, a situation that perpetuates gender inequality, limits educational opportunities, and compromises health.
The Brazilian Challenge: Hydrodemocracy and Sustainable Urbanism
Brazil, home to the largest reserve of surface freshwater on the planet, faces profound paradoxes: deforestation in critical basins, unplanned urbanization, river contamination, and conflicts among human, industrial, and agricultural uses. The so-called hydrodemocracy will only be achieved when traditional communities, civil society, and public authorities all have a genuine voice in decision-making processes. Without the democratization of water management, the prevailing technocratic model — often blind to social and ecological dimensions — will persist.
In this context, the integration of environmental law, urban law, and water law becomes essential to ensure socio-environmental justice. As Erick Jayme highlighted, “scientific information constitutes only one of the foundations of decisions; social and political considerations play a predominant role.”
The Role of Ora INSTITUTE
Ora Institute operates at the convergence of key principles: the recognition of water as a common heritage of humanity and a pillar of biodiversity; the promotion of social participation and sustainability; the defense of water as a fundamental right in dialogue with climate justice and ecosystem restoration; and the advancement of inclusive socio-environmental governance, ensuring that multiple voices are represented in the decisions shaping the future of water.
References
1. PRIEUR, Michel. Cours de D.E.A. en Droit de l’Environnement. Universidade de Limoges.
2. CAMARGO, Guilherme José Purvin de (Coord.). Direito Ambiental em Debate. São Paulo: APRODAB.
3. UNESCO. World Water Development Report, 2024.
4. UN-Water. Water Facts: Ecosystems and Biodiversity, 2023.
5. UN-Water. Human Rights to Water and Sanitation, 2024.
6. Science (2024). Estudo sobre acesso domiciliar à água potável segura.
7. UNICEF/ONU Mulheres. The gender dimension of water access, 2023.
8. JAYME, Erick. Diálogo entre o Código de Defesa do Consumidor e o novo Código Civil francês, 2003.
Patrícia Valdivieso Hessel – Lawyer, specialist in Environmental, Urban, and Real Estate Law. Director of Expansion at Ora Institute. https://www.linkedin.com/in/patriciavaldiviesohessel/
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