Knowledge, uncertainty, and learning in freshwater governance: perspectives of environmental defenders at Lake Vättern

Journal article, 2026

Freshwater systems are increasingly threatened by climate change, pollution and competing societal demands, making their governance both complex and contested. This study examines how environmental defenders engaged in protecting Lake Vättern, Sweden’s second-largest lake and an important drinking water source, understand knowledge, uncertainty and learning in freshwater governance. Drawing on an inductive qualitative analysis of twelve semi-structured interviews, complemented by documentary material, the study explores how environmental defenders interpret governance challenges associated with slow-moving and often invisible environmental change. Three interconnected themes emerged: uncertainty rooted in the interpretation and use of knowledge rather than its absence; competing understandings of ecological risk; and governance responses characterised by incremental rather than transformative learning. The findings suggest that governance challenges are shaped not only by scientific uncertainty but also by contested epistemic authority, institutional fragmentation and limited capacity for integrative learning. By foregrounding the perspectives of environmental defenders, the study contributes to freshwater governance scholarship by demonstrating how knowledge, uncertainty and learning shape responses to slow-moving environmental change, highlighting the need for more adaptive, participatory and reflexive approaches to freshwater governance.