We propose a three-way partnership and program (a) to help create the infrastructure for more effective water policy in the Paso del Norte region (from Elephant Butte, New Mexico to Fort Quitman, Texas) and (b) to serve as a pilot project for inter-university sponsored region building initiatives. One partner, the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), with international experience and technical expertise, will join two local partners, the Center for Latin American Studies at New Mexico State University and the Center for Regional Studies at the Universidad Autonoma de Cd. Juárez, in creating a program designed (a) to increase our stock of policy-relevant knowledge about water issues in the Paso del Norte region while (b) simultaneously laying some of the groundwork for more effective water cooperation among relevant groups in the region, and (c) situating this program within a larger proposed project of region- building. Essentially, we are requesting funding for a process rather than an outcome, although we will specify outcomes (such as conferences, workshops, tem-building, reports,` and action plans) as benchmarks against which to evaluate the program.

The overall process we hope to enhance is region-building; that is, an increased willingness to entertain intractable policy problems in the area from a region (in our case transnational) perspective, rather than from narrower loci such as counties, municipalities or, on the other end of the spectrum, nation-states. We propose more specifically to regio90nalize the water policy agenda affecting Paso del Norte by using a unique "civic science" approach in which scientific assessment and civic consultation are combined in a parallel, interactive process designed to produce greater information about water policy issues, clarify similarities an differences in the interests of the various water stakeholders (interest groups) in the area, and facilitate the creation of a clearer, more unified regional water agenda. While these activities are being undertaken by teamwork involving HARC, NSMU, and UAJC, the Centers for Regional Policy Studies at UAJC and NSMU--on opposite sides of the border but within 35 miles of each other--will begin to structure programs designed to encourage the adoption of regional perspectives for analysis for this and other major policy issues.

Justification

Each of the three components of the program--gathering and sharing cross-border information about the regional water situation, facilitating the creation of a water agenda through interaction with relevant audiences, and articulating these activities within the framework of a region-building process--deserves attention, and could be implemented separately. That is part of the water problem in the region is the relative difficulty stakeholders have in accessing all relevant information; part is the lack of sustained dialogue among relevant groups; and part is the tendency for groups to conceive of policy issues from territorially narrow and jurisdictionally fragmented perspectives. Integration of a project tackling all three in a sustained process is more likely in the long run to create a culture of regional cooperation.

Over time, many issues may be selected for regional debate, study and policy development. The region's arid climate and rapid population growth dictate that water receive priority attention. The quality of regional water management will decide on the sustainability of the Paso del Norte in the 21^st century. The challenge is enormous: The region is depleting its ground water resources and must increasingly depend on upstream Rio Grande water from Colorado and New Mexico. Water must be shared between agriculture, industry and cities. Management is divided among two nations, three states (one in Mexico, two in the United States) and a large twin city. River and ground water are managed separately. River management involves a binational organization (International Boundary and Water Commission), as well as several state and federal agencies in both countries. Ground water management, to the extent it exists at all, is not coordinated among the various jurisdictions. For the last several years, New Mexico and Texas have set aside their court battles over water and have convened a joint water forum. Texas, under new water legislation passed last year, mandates regional water planning for the Paso del Norte. Voting membership of the regional planning committee is limited to citizens of Texas, but representatives from Mexico and New Mexico may participate in an advisory function. However, a truly comprehensive water forum for the region, giving equal standing to representatives of all political jurisdictions and interested parties, does not exist. Our project will move the region closer to this goal.

We believe that the universities in the transborder region need to cooperate with one another and facilitate projects that combine research, outreach and citizen consultation. The universities may be the only institutions with enough relative neutrality and legitimacy to affect this culture of cooperation. One outcome of this project is the creation of a cooperative relationship between two universities specifically designed to study ways to elicit regional cooperation toward resolving regional policy issues made more problematic because of the U.S.-Mexico border. Another outcome is the refinement of civic science methodology--the structured interaction between scientific experts and regional decision makers. HARC has developed this methodology in Northeast Brazil, the Lower Rio Grande and the Houston Metroplex. Its use in the Paso del Norte will give the region a new tool for addressing cross border issues.

Program Components

1, Technical Assessment: Team leader Jurgen Schmandt, HARC, with the assistance of UACJ and NMSU, will assemble a small team of natural and social scientists from Mexico and the United States. Two reports will be produced: (i) Compiling existing data from the United States and Mexico a highly readable report on water issues in the region will be prepared at the outset of the project. Estimated completion time is nine months. (ii) This will be followed by an in-depth analysis of facts and policy options of a specific regional water issue. Candidate topics include: groundwater management, changes in reservoir management to ensure year-round flow downstream of Elephant Butte, water partnerships between irrigation districts and cities, or water conservation. The topic will be selected after consultation with stakeholders. (HARC two-year budget request $75,000.)

2. Civic Consultation. Team leader Jurgen Schmandt, HARC, again with the assistance of UACJ and NMSU, will begin a four-phase civic consultation process. In phase one a round of initial stakeholder meetings will be convened. Input from these meetings will be used to gain an initial understanding of the similarities and differences among the sub-regions and to design the scientific assessment discussed above. In phase two stakeholders will participate in a process designed to identify, document, and rank policy issues regarding water and the environment. In phase three a workshop will be held with ample participation from technical experts, interest groups, and relevant water managers and civic leaders. The workshop will serve two goals: (i) Prepare policy recommendations in response to the scientific report on a major regional water issue, and (ii) develop plans for phase four, a joint HARC-NMSU-UACJ conference, Toward a Binational Water Agenda. (HARC two-year budget request $105,000.)

3. Program Coordination. A steering committee (Jose Z. Garcia--NMSU, Francisco Llera--UACJ, Jurgen Schmandt--HARC, Samuel Schmidt--UTEP, and one civic leader each from El Paso, Cd. Juárez, and Southern New Mexico) will coordinate the various activities. This team will work to ensure the appropriate integration of all phases of the program, including assisting in the selection of personnel for the technical assessment and civic consultation components, prepartion for the water workshop and conference, and coordination of region-building activities at UAJC and NMSU. (HARC and NSMU each request $20,000 over two years.)

4. Center for Regional Policy Studies. The Center for Regional Studies at UACJ and the Center for Latin American Studies at NMSU will each create and house Paso del Norte Centers for Regional Policy Studies. The first major priority of the centers will be to facilitate the goals of the Hewlett grant for water policy. Specifically, the centers will (a) prepare a bibliography and inventory of scholars on U.S.-Mexico water-related issues; (b) provide funding for small activities related to the water grant, such as printing expenses, research assistance, conference space, secretarial assistance, etc.; (c) create a region-building seminar composed of scholars, NGO's, and policymakers on both sides of the border, to meet ten times per year. For the first year the topic would be regionalizing water policy. Each seminar would have an agenda and guest speakers. The coordinator would be the steering committee, and each of the principals in this group (Schmidt, Schmandt, Garcia, Llera) would have a budget for $5,000 for graduate student assistance; (d) seed money for studies of regional water policy issues, either from a theoretical perspective on region-building or from an empirically based perspective. Highest priority for the first year would be studies of regional water policy issues. The Administrative Steering committee headed by Samuel Schmidt will hold a competition for these funds, which will not be restricted for use within UAJC and NMSU; (e) support for Frontera Norte/Sur, an existing monthly electronic news digiest produced at NMSU on the Paso del Norte region. Funds would be used to expand the digest with collaboration from UACJ and to produce a scholarly journal of Paso del Norte regional affairs to accompany it. (Tentative budget for first year: $60,000.)