Description
Book SynopsisAccess to water and sanitation service in industrialized countries is nearly taken for granted, but in many developing countries less than half of the population has access to such services. Decades of effort on a global scale have been invested to solve this problem. One such effortBrazil's participatory approach to water and sanitationis Nance's subject in Engineers and Communities. In the early 1980s, Brazilian engineers created participatory sanitation (known locally as condominial sewerage) to make basic sanitation service more inclusive. Fiercely contested at first, the technology's success hinged on the formation of strong and stable coalitions of diverse actors and on the promotion of both real participation and a participation narrative. The innovations described in the book contributed to the now indispensable concepts of community participation and locally appropriate technology. Today the technology has spread across Brazil- it has been legally incorporated into sewer desig
Trade ReviewEarthea Nance's innovative study of the emergence of 'participatory sanitation' artfully applies Bruno Latour’s edict to ‘follow the actors’ to show how, rather than from participation, project success follows from strong ‘project coalitions’. While the material content of these ‘coalitions’ is essential for success, the claim that they are participative is shown to be discursive rather than substantive in character. This timely illumination of the significance of not only the socio-material, but also narrative character of development, provides an important and insightful contribution to the literature. -- Stephen Healy, University of New South Wales
This book is among a small number of empirical social studies of utility infrastructure conducted within an urban political ecology framework. By viewing infrastructure development as a socio-technical process, Nance is able to concisely identify and unpack constructs contributing to the success and failure of participatory sanitation projects in Brazil. Engineers and Communities Transforming Sanitation in Contemporary Brazil provides both surprising and practical insights that can help guide and evaluate a broad range of utility infrastructure development programs. -- Scott Miles, associate professor, Western Washington University, and director, Resilience Institute
Table of ContentsChapter 1: The Promise and Failure of Development Chapter 2: Institutional Change, Social Movements, and Technological Innovation in Brazil Chapter 3: Situating Services in Two Brazilian Cities Chapter 4: Participation and Alignment in the City of Natal Chapter 5: Alignment and Influence in the City of Recife Chapter 6: An Actor-Oriented Account of Condominial Sewerage Chapter 7: Participatory Sanitation
