Water has quickly moved from the realm of common and public control into private control as an economic good. Globalization and international investment trade laws, as well as overall trade laws, have helped encourage this shift. Water has strong ties to various sectors given its usefulness as well as the simple ability to sustain life. The UN, World Water Council, World Bank, WTO, IMF, GATT and GATS are all players in the world of water management. Much of the literature to date has been centered at the policy level and focused mainly on intercountry disputes. The paper argues that national interests are tied to water and can be supported by trade in water and water services. As we have seen, conflict and war can stem from water issues between countries, and where political laws have much variance in application as chosen by nations around the globe, trade and investment law appear to be more advanced in terms of enforcement. Here the argument is given that when water ownership is privatized, it can reduce the likelihood of water being withheld or destroyed in time of war due to global agreements governing trade and economies, thus, moving direct competition by nations through war into competition through trade and economic power. The paper posits that while both public and private ownership have both positive and negative elements, combining them can serve to promote interests of nations as well as the simple need for humans to have access to water as a basic human right. We conclude that where water supports necessary life functions for human beings, in a world of globalized trade and investment, it provides employment, tax revenue and opportunities for technological advancement, and serves the interests of nations, their private and multinational corporations and the people of those nations.

Exploring water ownership and international investment and trade requires exploration of some of those elements in contemporary globalized realities that are most important to us: water and money. No water, no population to drive investments and trade for money and power. No money, no ability to interact in the globalized marketplace to obtain money, power, and national interest fulfillment. Nations have forever competed over power and resources. As humans have evolved, and with it our societies and nation states, we have evolved together on levels of interdependence that we have not seen before in recorded history through globalization. We require laws and policies to promote growth and endure in competition with one another, and through the private entities who continue to push the evolution of globalization forward, we can improve law and trade for more cooperation in terms of water ownership platforms and solutions.

Some of the history of water and water rights, describing water rights, ownership and legal frameworks for ownership and trade that have evolved along side humanity and our civilizations is presented. Ownership platforms of common, public, private and a mixture of both private and public are explored for both their positives and negatives, with a presentation of the solution to negative elements of all ownership levels being private ownership with governance from democratic international bodies. National interests are discussed with regard to water, national defence and security strategy, highlighting that combining private ownership and encouragement of international investment can lead to increased cooperation between nations. While the legal frameworks between nations have made progress, investment and trade laws on the international stage through corporate involvement will more effectively ensure revenue growth (and taxable bases for national economies around the globe), help to minimize the possibility of war between nations over resources and power, and promote competitive strategies for each nation to undertake to obtain improved positions in relation to their national interests.

Business Strategy, Journal, Too Public Not To Be Private, Investigating, Water Ownership, Strategy, World of Economic Goods, International Trade, World Water Council, World Bank, WTO, IMF, GATT, GATS, Investment Laws.