Ribarova, Irina SAssimacopoulos, DionysisJeffrey, PaulDaniell, KatherineInman, DavidVamvakeridou-Lyroudia, Lydia S.Melin, ThomasKalinkov, PetarFerrand, NielsTarnaki, Katharina2015-12-100964-0568http://hdl.handle.net/1885/65958With multi-stakeholder issues such as climate change or population growth providing significant challenges for water managers, participatory approaches to planning and management are becoming increasingly popular. To aid water stress mitigation in Bulgaria's Iskar region, a participatory process with a broad range of stakeholders was designed and tested. Options adapted for the region such as risk management and industrial and domestic water conservation were studied. The results suggest that strong research support is needed to adapt participatory management theories into operational planning processes. Definition of appro- priate working groups with clear roles and responsibilities are also needed to ensure effective implementation.Keywords: drought; flood; mitigation; participatory approach; research work; resource management; risk assessment; stakeholder; water management; water stress; Bulgaria; Iskar River Drought; Flood; Participation; Stakeholders; Water stress201110.1080/09640568.2010.5060742016-02-24