I want to give special thanks to John Hailer for providing the heat transfer modules used in this work. Finally, I thank God for giving me the strength and health to accomplish this stage of my life.

This phrase perfectly summarises the message and the experience during this thesis. I would like to thank everyone who has been part of this journey. This is a shared achievement that could have not been possible without the support of many people. Special acknowledgement to my family, my supervisors, co-supervisor, friends, co-authors, colleagues, ECPR friends, NIG friends, university staff, reviewers, interviewees, policy experts, the person with whom I started this journey and my dogs. You all supported me and inspired me to be here! This research was funded by CONACYT. TABLE OF CONTENT Section I: Research Setting Research backgroundWater governance is the social function that regulates development and management of water resources and provisions of water services at different levels of society and guiding the resource towards a desirable state and away from an undesirable state. A water governance system is the interconnected ensemble of political, social, econom-CESAR AUGUSTO CASIANO FLORES ic and administrative elements that performs the function of water governance. These elements embrace institutions as well as actors and their interactions. A water governance regime is the interdependent set of institutions (formal laws, societal norms or professional practices) that is the main structural component feature of a governance system [29] (p. 25).It was Peter Rogers who developed one of the first and most influential studies for water governance in Mexico and international organizations. He stated principles of what water governance should be and this has had an important impact in following studies. For him water governance "refer [ed] to the range of political, social, economic, and administrative systems that are in place to allocate, develop and manage water resources and the delivery of water services for a society" [30] (p. 2).Rogers' principles for good water governance are as follows: Open. Institutions should work in an open manner. Together with the government agencies and private companies, they should actively communicate about what the institutions and the government do and the decisions they take. […].Transparent. In addition to being open, good governance requires that all policy decisions are transparent so that both insiders and outsiders can easily follow the steps taken in the policy formulation […]. Participative. The quality, relevance and effectiveness of government policies depend on ensuring wide participation throughout the policy chain, from conception to implementation. Improved participation is likely create more confidence in the end result and in the Institutions which deliver policies. […]. Accountable. Roles in the legislative and executive processes need to be clearer. Each of the institutions must explain and take responsibility for what it does. But there is also a need for greater clarity and responsibility from all those involved in developing and implementing policy at whatever level […]. Effective. Policies must be effective and timely, delivering what is needed on the...