An intellectual history of America's water management philosophy Humans take more than their geological share of water, but they do not benefit from it equally. This imbalance has created an era of intense water scarcity that affects the security of individuals, states, and the global economy. For many, this brazen water grab and the social inequalities it produces reflect the lack of a coherent philosophy connecting people to the planet. Challenging this view, Jeremy Schmidt shows how water was made a “resource” that linked geology, politics, and culture to American institutions. Understanding the global spread and evolution of this philosophy is now key to addressing inequalities that exist on a geological scale. Water: Abundance, Scarcity, and Security in the Age of Humanity details the remarkable intellectual history of America’s water management philosophy. It shows how this philosophy shaped early twentieth-century conservation in the United States, influenced American international development programs, and ultimately shaped programs of global governance that today connect water resources to the Earth system. Schmidt demonstrates how the ways we think about water reflect specific public and societal values, and illuminates the process by which the American approach to water management came to dominate the global conversation about water. Debates over how human impacts on the planet are connected to a new geological epoch―the Anthropocene―tend to focus on either the social causes of environmental crises or scientific assessments of the Earth system. Schmidt shows how, when it comes to water, the two are one and the same. The very way we think about managing water resources validates putting ever more water to use for some human purposes at the expense of others. "A bold and remarkable book, it offers a profound reassessment of central tenets within the anthropology of water." ( PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review ) "I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is interested in thenexus between ideas and water, writ large. It is an impressive andincisive look into the minds of those who control a substance that isessential to all forms of life." ~ American Historical Review "In showing how water resources are far from a neutral category, this wellresearched and enlightening book is an important read for understandinghow we perceive water today." ~ LSE Review of Books "[An]ambitious, deeply researched, and thoughtful work of interdisciplinaryscholarship. . . establishes fascinating connections between seemingdead ends in American intellectual history and today's globalsocioenvironmental concerns." ~ Journal of American History " Water makes a strong and compelling case that we have accepted for far too long the perspective that water can be constructed only, or primarily, as aresource." ~ Environmental History Water is a philosophy of water thatintellectually challenges thereader on many levels. Its core chapterspresent a fresh history ofideas in the disciplines of geology,anthropology, and others that haveshaped modern water thought in theU.S. and beyond, from the late-19thcentury culture of Washington DCcivic scholars WJ McGee and J.W. Powellto the pragmatism of 20thcentury water management and 21st centuryglobal water agendas for theAnthropocene. It frames and criticallychallenges that account withperspectives from Wittgenstein and others as a liberal philosophy ofwater that has become so widespread as to become what Schmidt calls"normal water." His searching critique is not justabout the philosophy of water, it contributes to that philosophy in itsideas and methods.--James L. Wescoat, Jr. , Aga Khan Professor, MIT "This sweeping, inter-disciplinary book isbrilliant, refreshing and bold. Itasks two fundamental questions inwhich we should all be interested:where have the ideas of water as a`resource' to be `managed' for thegood of society or the nation comefrom? And how have they drivenworld-wide economic development that hasnot infrequently done more harmthan good? The answers might surpriseyou (spoiler alert: anthropologyand philosophy had a lot to do with the formation of this paradigm).This book is perhaps most imaginative inthe ways it aims to disrupt away of thinking that has dominated theanthropocene for far toolong."--Steven C. Caton, Professor of Anthropology, Harvard University "Wide-ranging and incisive . . . Drawing on diverse conceptual traditions, includinganthropology, geography, geology, environmental history and politicalphilosophy, Schmidt traces the co-evolution of water management andAmerican liberalism. . . . I found Schmidt's book to be challenging,stimulating and instructive, and I am sure it will quickly become corereading for anyone interested in water and society." ~ Water Alternatives "This is an important book on an important subject." ~ Catholic Library World "Using history and the connection between humanity and geology, thistitleoffers readers