Professor John Anthony Allan

John Anthony Allan, a professor at King's College London and the School of Oriental and African Studies is the 2008 winner of the Stockholm Water Prize. As a scientist, educator, and advisor, Professor Allan pioneered the development of key concepts in the understanding and communication of water issues and how they are linked to agriculture, climate change, economics, and politics.

In 1993, Professor Allan introduced the concept of “virtual water” which measures how water is embedded in the production and trade of food and consumer products. This concept has major impacts on global trade policy and research, especially in waterscarce regions, and has redefined discourse in water policy and management.

By explaining how and why nations such as the United States, Argentina, and Brazil “export” billions of litres of water each year, while others like Japan, Egypt and Italy “import” billions, the virtual water concept has opened the door to more productive water use. National, regional, and global water and food security, for example, can be enhanced when water intensive commodities are traded from places where they are economically viable to produce to places where they are not. While studying water scarcity in the Middle East, Professor Allan developed the theory of using virtual water import, via food, as an alternative water “source” to reduce pressure on the scarcely available domestic water resources.

Over the course of his career, Professor Allan has built essential knowledge and communication tools for sustainable and efficient water resource management and policy. His research deploys a wide range of environmental, economic, social and political theory to give insights on global water resources and the extent to which they can be made sufficient to meet the needs of future populations. Because of his work, policy makers, scientists, water professionals, and the general public have greater awareness of the role of water in the production of different types of products and its impact on global trade and economy. Virtual water remains a central and active component of scientific research and policy formulation, and has empowered individual consumers to affect water management on a global scale.

Professor Allan also developed the idea and terminology of “hydro-hegemony” and the “problemshed.” This work has led to better understanding of potential and real conflicts in transboundary regions such as the Nile Basin, where water resources are shared between countries, while providing perspective on economic and political processes that can make food and water security possible for all nations in such water basins. He remains a leading voice for sustainable water development and expert advisor on balancing population growth and increasing food demand in developing countries, institutional reform, valuing water, conflict resolution, and on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Professor Allan has authored or edited seven books and has published over 100 papers in political science, natural resource management, and interdisciplinary water journals. He has also educated more than 1100 current or future water professionals. He has worked for over 35 years with the MENA region and has advised on joint management of shared water resources on every basin in the Middle East. He also served as editor for the scientific journal Water Policy and as a consultant for numerous governments, the World Bank and the European Union. His keen perceptions and scientific analysis have inspired new thinking on the spectrum of water challenges, and is described by many as one of the most influential thinkers in the global water sector today.