The History of Water

The EU aims to provide materials to help establish a historical framework and analyze archives on water management.

It explores the history of water management models, the history of hydraulic engineers and hydraulics, and the social and political history of water management in a Latin American country, Ecuador.

It also introduces the departmental archives system.

• Understand the history of hydrology and hydraulics,
• Gain an understanding of historical theories about water,
• Learn the basics of working with archives,
• Create a historical narrative.

Oral presentation of the tutorial and PowerPoint presentation.

The week begins with three presentations on the history of water management models (T. Ruf), the history of hydraulic engineers and hydraulics (S. Lanau), and the social and political history of water management in Ecuador, a Latin American country.

There will be a presentation on the departmental archives system, and then, after the formation of seminar groups, students will spend two and a half days reading and analyzing documents and constructing a historical narrative. A midpoint review will be conducted with the instructors. On Friday morning, each group will present the narrative they have developed to the entire class, and a final discussion will conclude the week. The format of the presentation may vary by group, but the principle is to have all group members participate in the oral presentation, supported by a PowerPoint presentation. Role-playing is often appropriate, but other options are possible.

Examples of 2020 tutorial groups:

• Group A: In France, in the Ardèche region, the Bourges Valley is at the center of a conflict over urban planning along the river. Reconstruct the history of the floods, their impacts, and the reactions of residents and government agencies.
• Group B: In Morocco, the people of Fez rose up in 1930 when the Protectorate’s water authority decided to overhaul the city’s entire drinking water system, including the Medina.
• Group C: The law establishing trade unions was enacted in 1865 by Napoleon III. It was intended to apply in Algeria, but the colonial administration questioned its relevance.