David J.H. Blake

David has a PhD in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia, UK, with a thesis examining the socio-political drivers of irrigation development in the Nam Songkhram Basin of Northeast Thailand, inducing a new term: “irrigationalism”. He had earlier worked for many years between 1990 and 2007 in Thailand and Laos, within various roles that had a common connecting thread, namely water resources. Critical questions surrounding water management and governance in the Mekong region has formed a central theme in his research since, contributing papers to various journals and book volumes, including co-editing a multi-authored book volume “Water Governance Dynamics in the Mekong Region” in 2016. David is an independent researcher and lives in Somerset, England.