Potential drawbacks of the approach:

1. Number of interviewees
Given the large membership of the project (over 70 national and international members) and their variety of perspectives, as well as the multi-locational character of The Water Dialogues, there are clear limits to this approach. Only a limited number of members were interviewed, many of whom represented both international and national levels of the project, and furthermore, although all members were invited to comment on the draft papers many did not have the time to do so. Ultimately, the authors have been afforded a certain degree of discretion and ‘license’ which the reader must factor. To ensure all perspectives are given the chance to be represented, we will establish a Message Board space on the website where members and external readers are invited to post their comments on the issues raised in these papers.

2. Timeframe
The thematic papers have been finalised prior to the completion of all national research. The authors thus faced issues around the availability of materials and the differing timeframes of national and international processes. Overall, the content of the papers is bound by their specific timing.

3. Scope
The issues explored in the papers do not cover the very broad plethora of debates and discussions currently ongoing both internationally and within The Water Dialogues’ member countries. The authors have been very targeted in their approach and concentrated only on issues and findings emerging from national research.

4. Authors’ Perspective
As noted Karen and Sophie were brought together to represent different perspectives and technical expertise. Thus:

a. The authors approached The Water Dialogues with an analytical perspective and sought, to the extent possible, to reflect the contribution of the Dialogues in an unbiased manner

b. The authors have not been involved in the process of the project, which can be seen both as an advantage in terms of bringing objective insights, but a disadvantage in terms of the extent to which they can fully engage with the history and mission of the project