This editorial note introduces the four major conference themes of the 5th International Water History Association (IWHA) Conference ‘Pasts and Futures of Water’ in June 2007: (i) water, health and sanitation; (ii) water, food and economy; (iii) water and the city; and (iv) water governance and policy.

Full article by Heather I. Sullivan.

This article discusses the need to broaden the debate about land rush by including a few key issues that have been neglected. Control over land is increasingly dictated by global actors and processes, leading to a patchwork of locally disembedded land holdings, not conducive for inclusive and sustainable development at the local level.

The author explores the governance challenges that practitioners face when restoring forest landscapes, and the points of intersection between forest landscape restoration and governance.