01. Water: During the past 30 years, IDRC’s research focus has shifted from technologies of supply to managing demand.

02. Despite advances, water scarcity is a growing problem.

03. Why is local-level water management so promising?

04. Local management approaches require thorough economic analyses.

05. Policymakers and researchers must now shift their focus from enlarging supplies of water to managing its demand.

06. Policy-making must always take social custom and cultural norms into account, but not be bound by them.

07. An important lesson: beware of generalizations, but be sure to share knowledge promptly.

08. Evaluate test cases in a transparent, participatory, and continuous manner. This is both good governance and good science.

09. Equitable water pricing is an important challenge for future policy and research initiatives.

10. Mismanagement is the greatest threat to the world’s supply of fresh water.