How Multiple Streams Influence Agenda‐Setting for Water Reuse in Swiss Substates

ABSTRACT

As climate change creates significant challenges for both the environment and society, potential mitigation and adaptation solutions are widely discussed. Yet, neither challenges nor their potential solutions automatically reach the political agenda or lead to a policy decision. The Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) examines dynamics at the level of problems, solutions, and political context to understand why a given issue reaches the political agenda. This article applies the MSF to the issue of water reuse—a promising solution to addressing increasing water scarcity and droughts—which has not been taken up by the political agenda systematically. The analysis compares Swiss substates and examines how configurations of four key conditions—drought experiences, agenda influence from neighboring countries, technical capacities, and political strategies—affect the emergence of water reuse on the political agenda. Results of the Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) suggest that configurations of these conditions indeed matter more than any single condition. While political context shows little influence, problem and (potential) solution dynamics are crucial for understanding the prominence of water reuse on the political agenda. The article emphasizes the importance of a holistic and non‐linear understanding of agenda‐setting dynamics as a configuration of several conditions, especially given that agenda‐setting precedes policy action on pressing climate change‐related challenges.