A common pool resource in transition

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This study contributes to the positive theory of common-pool resource management during transitional periods, focusing on institutional change in Bulgaria’s irrigation sector. It adopts a natural resource management perspective, utilizing Common-Pool Resource Theory to explore various property rights regimes and the organizational forms of rights and duties assigned to resource users. The aim is to identify the specific characteristics of the transition process and assess whether they facilitate or hinder collective action in irrigation. The analysis seeks to explain the failures of top-down collective action attempts in Bulgaria, while also expanding the theoretical framework of Common-Pool Resource Theory to account for the unique transitional context. It emphasizes the significance of social and power dynamics in accessing water resources, noting that reforms often exacerbate existing inequalities. Recognizing that local communities are not homogenous, the study views institutions as dynamic interplays of formal and informal networks shaped by social relations. Distributional conflicts over bargaining outcomes are highlighted as critical in transition countries, linking water management to social variables and power dynamics. The research also examines formal institutional changes at the national level, such as irrigation reforms and international donor activities, and their local impacts, determining whether these changes