Abstract
Water policy is one of the central components of the European Union’s (EU) environmental acquis communautaire.Evolution of this policy sector, however, has been far from trouble free, with incrementalism characterizing policy expansion since the early 1970s. Academic attempts to interpret this evolution have proved similarly disjointed, with different theoretical perspectives mapping onto broader trends in the European integration, public policy and environmental governance literatures. As water policy continues evolving, it faces new challenges both within and outside the EU, primarily related to the globalization of environmental risks from climate change, biodiversity loss and unsustainable consumption. Consequently, water policy is entering a new evolutionary phase involving further institutional innovation alongside its internationalization through water diplomacy, norm diffusion and policy transfer. New opportunities are emerging for researchers to conceptualize, theorize and empirically analyze these evolutionary trends to inform future policy learning.