Water Sustainability and High-Quality Economic Development

Water resources are a fundamental pillar of both socioeconomic development and environmental sustainability. However, due to their limited availability and uneven distribution, coupled with the continuous expansion of the intensity and scope of human activities and the impacts of climate change, approximately 1.5 billion people worldwide are facing severe water scarcity. Since the beginning of the Anthropocene, human activities have disrupted the dynamic balance of the natural water cycle, restricting its normal functioning. Balancing water sustainability and high-quality economic development within the carrying capacity of the water environment to achieve mutually reinforcing and synergistic development has become a top priority. This requires a global, systematic, and interdisciplinary vision to address the many challenges facing water resources, to ensure the continuous prosperity of the social economy, and to safeguard the sound development of the environment. This Special Issue of Water presents submission of innovative scientific contributions that address water sustainability at the local, regional, or global level and integrate the socio-economic dimensions of this management. Particular focus is be given to works addressing the link between water, the environment, and the social economy.