Exploratory research to unblock water policy discussions in the Murray Darling basin
Client
Watertrust Australia
Timeframe
May 2024 - July 2024
Role
Principal, Lead Researcher
Engagement
Remote interviews of 60+ stakeholders across the Murray Darling basin and in-person training of Aboriginal researchers
Objective
To map diverse perspectives in the Murray-Darling Basin water debate to break policy gridlock and provide actionable insights for more effective water policy discussions.
Methodology
Working with Watertrust Australia and the University of Canberra, we set out to explore the full spectrum of opinions on water policy using the Q Methodology—a unique approach to capturing and categorising perspectives.
Piloting the Approach: We started with a pilot phase to ensure the methodology suited our study's objectives. We tested and refined statements and fine-tuned our process. At the same time, we recruited participants from a broad range of backgrounds: farmers, irrigators, policy experts, environmentalists, and community members.
Engaging Participants: We conducted over 60 in-depth Q-sort interviews, using specialised software to guide the process. Participants ranked statements based on how much they resonated with their views while we unpacked the nuances of their reasoning. Overall, we uncover novel insights into dominant themes, such as climate change, water and land ownership, Aboriginal water rights, and irrigation access.
Amplifying First Nations Voices: Recognising the critical role of Aboriginal perspectives in water policy, we supported Indigenous researchers to work directly with First Nations groups. This ensured their voices were represented in culturally respectful ways. In parallel, we analysed the 10,000+ data points collected during interviews, identifying patterns and connections across perspectives.
“The individual states have never set out to make water policy inequitable. Federal oversight has just made it very complicated to do anything other than what is politically desired.”
— Research participant
Outcome
Our work provided Watertrust Australia with insight into the diversity of perspectives on water policy. We uncovered the factors that influence the debate by examining the language, emotion, and expression used by participants as they reflected on environmental, cultural, agricultural and economic themes.
With this new knowledge, Watertrust Australia is able to promote more human-centred and adequate water and catchment policy decisions.