Hydrosociality and Eco-Socialist Thought: Bibliometric Mapping of Research on Water Governance and Social Justice

This study investigates the intersection between socialist ecology and water governance through a bibliometric analysis of 184 open-access publications indexed in Scopus from 2016 to 2025. Using the Bibliometrix R-package and Biblioshiny, the research identifies major thematic patterns, collaboration networks, and conceptual developments in eco-socialist thought related to hydrosociality and water justice. The results reveal a notable rise in publications after 2019, with key contributions from Europe and Latin America, reflecting a growing global concern for social equity and environmental sustainability. Prominent journals in this field include Capitalism Nature Socialism, Water Alternatives, and Ecological Economics. The analysis highlights three dominant clusters: (1) theoretical foundations of socialist ecology and the metabolic rift; (2) practical studies on water justice, hydrosocial territories, and political ecology; and (3) emerging discussions on climate politics and degrowth. These findings demonstrate that socialist ecology offers not only a critique of capitalist environmental degradation but also a transformative framework for equitable water governance. By integrating ecological sustainability with social justice, eco-socialist approaches provide a meaningful pathway toward more democratic and inclusive resource management.