Transition to sustainable systems is also about social acceptance and behaviour

The WiCE Acceptance Workshop focused on the technical, social and communications aspects of the transition to more sustainable water systems. The session covered insights relating to legitimation processes, citizen and operator perspectives, behavioural change and creative interventions.

The meeting was opened by Sandra Sikkema (KWR), who welcomed the participants and explained the day’s objectives: a joint exploration of how acceptance, engagement and trust can be strengthened in the transition to circular water, energy and food systems.

This was followed by a substantive opening talk from Joep van den Broeke (WiCE), who positioned the workshop in the context of the broader knowledge agenda of the Water in the Circular Economy programme. WiCE is working on the integration of transition knowledge, systems knowledge and normative knowledge with the aim of safeguarding water availability in the future.

“Tasting” water

As they arrived, participants had the opportunity to ‘taste’ water in the form of edible water sweets. Each sweet had an individual flavour profile linked to a specific water source such as rainwater, seawater or recycled water. This sensory experience established a bridge between cognitive and affective knowledge.

The interest from the participants was striking: the ‘wastewater sweet’ was selected most often. This intervention, which was designed by artist in residence Mariko Hori (KWR), allowed the participants to experience the theme of acceptance in a tangible way. The experience then fuelled the discussions about trust and perceptions in the presentation that followed.

Water reuse ambassadors

Katja Barendse (KWR) then presented research looking at water reuse ambassadors at Vitens. The study focused on whether employees inside the organisation are willing to communicate positively about water reuse. An experimental installation was used for this purpose where employees could taste recycled water.

The results show that internal attitudes and examples set by employees play an important role in the acceptance of new innovations in organisations.

The WiCE Acceptance Workshop was opened by Sandra Sikkema (KWR).

Artist in Residence Mariko Hori presents ‘waste water sweets’ to the participants.

Working in small groups, participants developed prototypes of acceptance and legitimisation strategies relating to the acceptance of circular water solutions.

The workshop made it clear: validating innovations is a process.

The visual record of the workshop was produced by Thea Schukken of De Betekenaar.

The artist Mariko Hori created sweets, claiming they were made from rainwater, river water, seawater, canal water and waste water. The waste water sweets were particularly popular. Of course, the real story was that they were all made from drinking water, with edible additives.

Round tables – Research insights

After a short break, participants collected research insights at four thematic research tables staffed by researchers from different organisations:

• Nicolien van Aalderen (KWR) and Hester Huisman (TNO) presented results from WarmingUP and WarmingUPGoo. They showed that the acceptance of innovations can be broken down into three levels: socio-political acceptance, process acceptance and product acceptance, with citizens playing different roles in each case.
• Stefanie Salmon (KWR) and Machiel Reinders (WUR) shared insights from Easier Being Green. This study focused on behavioural interventions for saving water and food. Citizens made ‘what-if’ plans for saving water and worked with reward mechanisms designed to reduce food waste.
• Femke de Boer (KWR) and Jan Starke (KWR) gave a presentation on the project ANCHOR, which focuses on the perceptions of operators of local water systems. Experience from several pilot plants shows that operator experience is very important for the sustainable embedding of new water systems. Innovations must be supported by both operators and residents.
• Jos Frijns (KWR) and Ruud Steenbeen (Dunea) presented insights from research into the social acceptance of recycled water, focusing on how citizens think about treated wastewater as a source of drinking water.

Legitimacy of technologies

Sandra Sikkema then introduced a framework with four dimensions of legitimacy, as applied to the development of new technologies:

• Pragmatic – provides benefits for a wide range of stakeholders.
• Normative – aligns with societal values, customs and practices.
• Cognitive – is understandable and is not questioned.
• Regulatory – complies with relevant laws and regulations.

This introduction was the prelude to the interactive part of the day. Working in groups, participants developed prototypes of acceptance and legitimation strategies, each based on one of the legitimacy dimensions. The insights from the morning came together here with creative thinking.

The workshop made it clear that the legitimisation of innovations is a multi-layered process: the four dimensions work simultaneously and reinforce each other.

Conclusion

The WiCE Acceptance Workshop showed that the transition to more sustainable water and energy systems is not only about technological innovation but mainly about legitimisation, social acceptance and behavioural change. Combining regulatory, normative, pragmatic and cognitive strategies allows new technologies to put down firm roots in society as a whole.

Clear communications, citizen involvement and the practical experience of operators are key components in this process. Creative interventions also proved valuable in terms of widening how trust and acceptance are established.

The visual report on the workshop was provided by Thea Schukken of De Betekenaar.