Rewriting the rules: regenerative water cycles through public leadership

Mariana Mazzucato (Professor and Founding Director UCL IIPP (You are leaving this website)) and Frank Tibben (CIO World Waternet) at the concluding session of the Course rethinking capitalism, part of the Master of Public Administration (MPA) at University College London.

Rebalancing the hydrological cycle requires structural change

The hydrological cycle is broken. This urgent warning, issued in the Economics of Water report by the Global Commission on the Economics of Water (GCEW), outlines the scale of the crisis. While the consequences are profound, the solution lies within reach. Stronger collaboration between the public, private, and civil sectors is essential to restore balance and prevent escalating climate-related disasters.

World Waternet sees this challenge as an opportunity for transformational action. Our Impact Plan 2030 embraces water as a global common good and aims to double its impact worldwide through targeted partnerships, capacity building, and sustainable finance.

A call for public purpose-driven innovation

The absence of meaningful public-private alignment has created a vacuum in the global response to water insecurity. World Waternet’s approach draws on the mission-led approach by the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP). As a global knowledge partner, IIPP advocates for governments and institutions to become market shapers rather than passive responders.

Mariana Mazzucato, Director of the IIPP, emphasises: “We need bold, mission-oriented innovation.”.

This framework resonates with World Waternet’s mandate: transforming water governance by enabling public water utilities to act with greater confidence, creativity, and capacity.

Understanding capitalism to unlock Sustainable water solutions

Water challenges are often treated as technical or environmental issues. However, their root causes are embedded in broader economic and institutional structures explained Frank Tibben as CIO of World Waternet focussing on Collective Intelligence and Strategic Partnerships. World Waternet has engaged with international thought leaders to deepen understanding of these systems, drawing lessons from the IIPP’s “Rethinking Capitalism” course.

This interdisciplinary programme examined the flaws of today’s capitalist systems, including rising inequality, the influence of financial and consultancy sectors on public policy, and the underinvestment in public infrastructure. Key voices included: Honorary Professor Carlota Perez, whose influential work mapped how technological revolutions shape investment cycles and systemic change & Simon Johnson, 2024 Nobel Prize-winning economist, who explained how the finance industry gained influence over government decisions during and after the 2008 crisis, and how similar influence is now exercised by consultancies.

Such analysis provides clarity on how economic structures affect the governance of essential resources like water and offers a foundation for building alternative approaches grounded in long-term public value.

One of many inspiring guest lectures, in this one by Professor Carlota Perez gives deep insights into the historic and future patterns of technological revolutions and the movements of financial capital.

Expanding a global network for practical impact

Beyond the formal learning environment, a diverse cohort of policymakers including leaders from education, engineering, housing, finance and health has continued to collaborate after the programme. Spearheaded by architect Zoe Watson and social impact investor John McAnulty, the group is applying academic insights to real-world challenges. A key takeaway from this ongoing collaboration is the importance of diversifying both partnership models and funding strategies to effectively address the scale and complexity of today’s water and climate challenges.

One of the policy-makers sessions (Zoe Watson in photo) to keep collaborating beyond the programme.

Scaling collaborative capacity for regenerative water governance

At the core of World Waternet’s Impact Plan is the belief that no actor can solve today’s water challenges in isolation. Multi-stakeholder cooperation is critical. The organisation supports the vision outlined in the GCEW report: to treat the hydrological cycle as a shared resource that must be governed collectively, and to ensure its protection serves both current and future generations.

This commitment extends to strategic partnerships through the IIPP-led Mission-Oriented Innovation Network. The network connects public organisations that are rethinking their roles to address grand societal challenges such as climate adaptation, public health, and sustainable development.

Key questions now drive World Waternet’s engagement strategy:

• How can common resources, including water and soil, be governed for long-term public benefit?
• What models can unlock finance at the scale required to meet the Sustainable Development Goals?
• How can leadership in the public sector be enabled to act in synergy with private and civil society actors?

From insight to implementation: a platform for collective action

Insights from economic theory, policy innovation, and systems thinking are being translated into practice. World Waternet is expanding collaboration with peers across sectors, including social impact investors, engineers, educators, and local governments. We are working to design new tools, partnerships, and funding strategies capable of addressing the interlinked crises of water, climate, and inequality.

Another crucial agenda is advocating for a structural allocation of 1% of water revenues toward capacity development and operational investment. This targeted commitment helps strengthen public water operators, improve the absorption of international finance, and address the global water investment gap.

Join the conversation on the future of water

The urgency is real, and the systems are in motion. Building institutional capacity and collaborative momentum to co-develop next-generation water solutions. The challenge is complex, but the opportunity to transform outcomes is clear. World Waternet welcomes dialogue with funders, utilities, investors, knowledge institutions, and policy leaders committed to creating sustainable public value. The path forward is collective.

Find out how this approach shaped our discourse during the Aquatech Integrated Leader's Forum & the INSEAD Alumni Forum.

Please get in touch to deepen our understanding and possible cooperation, find our World Waternet booklet.

Find here some recent reflections on present modus operandi of some governments; Governments Are Not Startups by Mariana Mazzucato & Rainer Kattel - Project Syndicate (You are leaving this website).