Water is the source of all life, but it is also at the base of many social and ecological problems in cities worldwide. Megacities such as Tokyo face diverse challenges ranging from flooding and heat-island effect to pollution and biodiversity loss, all of which are being exacerbated by climate change.

As these crises erode away at modernist myths, new approaches rooted in post-anthropocentric and transdisciplinary epistemologies are urgently needed. This symposium explores Japan’s cities as sites for the global, transcultural circulation of water practices and imaginaries by prompting exchange between academics, across oceans and disciplines who are engaged in urban water sustainability issues.