Solving the freshwater crisis requires significantly more investment and spending in the water sector. But getting more money requires broader agreement among stakeholders than exists at present. A powerful way of obtaining broader agreement is to clarify through dialogues our values, value differences, and common ground. Dialogue about values also strengthens the legitimacy and sustainability of formal political decisions; many of which have been reversed or deferred at great cost because underlying value issues were ignored. Dialogue about values is essential to create a "virtuous cycle" of progress in the water sector. This paper develops an initial intellectual framework for such dialogue.