Contents: Introduction: Riding the water cycle: water cycle dynamics and freshwater ecosystems -- Spiralling towards a crisis: water use and growing shortages -- To feed the world: food supply and water cycle -- A thirsty planet: water supply and sanitation in a water-short world -- When it rains, it pours: water management for flood damage reduction -- Arteries of commerce: inland waterways and the water cycle -- A warmer world: the interrelationships between global warming and the water cycle -- When the water cycle breaks down: the potential for restoration -- Avenues of governance: institutional options for protecting the water cycle.