How to deal with climate change? Institutional adaptive capacity as a means to promote sustainable water governance in Italy and the Kyrgyz Republic

My PhD thesis aims at assessing the conditions that enhance the capacity to adapt to prospected climatic changes of institutions in the water sector. To this end, we will construct an index of institutional adaptive capacity, and measure the level of flexibility and adaptability of the water governance system in the two case areas of the Po river basin (Italy) and the Syr Darya river basin (Kyrgyz Republic). Data will be collected by means of a survey, the results of which will be examined quantitatively recurring to statistical tools. An additional layer of qualitative information deriving from a number of expert interviews will be used to further make sense of the results of the survey. It is expected that participation in decision-making processes, availability of and access to information and scientific data, and financial, technical and human resources will be critical factors to enhance the capability of water institutions to deal with future climatic changes.