Programme de bourses "Echanges Universitaires"

Analyzing drivers and barriers to ecological sanitation by applying a sustainability framework including capabilities A case study in the rural area of Darechowk VDC, Nepal

The thesis aims at improving the knowledge basis for the further dissemination of Ecological Sanitation (Ecosan) in developing countries by conducting a case study in Nepal. Ecosan is an alternative sanitation solution, based on the closure of the nutrient cycle by reusing human excreta and wastewater in agriculture. It has the potential to contribute to sustainability and to solutions for some of Nepal’s problems.

Applying Amartya Sen’s concept of the Capability Approach and the concept of sustainability is a contribution to practice, as this allows for the identification of drivers and barriers for the use of Ecosan toilets, which can be then applied to improve Ecosan projects. At the same time, the combination of the two concepts contributes to theory as well, as this is the first time that these two concepts have been linked within one framework that can be applied empirically. The basic idea is to promote Ecosan by highlighting life quality aspects; this is an operationalization of the theoretical claim that life quality - in terms of capabilities - should be at the centre of a sustainability theory.

This thesis is based on two prior master theses of students from the University of Basel as it combines their proceedings in an empirical study in the rural and remote area of Darechowk VDC, Nepal, where wet Ecosan toilets have been implemented. The main research question is focused on the identification of individual drivers as well as individual and structural barriers for the use of Ecosan toilets in the research area. As the basis for the empirical study, a sustainability framework is derived that contains criteria for a sustainable sanitation intervention and an overall sustainability criterion of life quality in terms of capabilities. According to the sustainability criteria framework, a multi-method approach is selected that contains qualitative and semi-standardized interviews with Ecosan users, non-users and organizational stakeholders as well as observations. The explorative study comprises 42 user interviews and 23 non-user interviews conducted in two research areas in Darechowk VDC as well as six interviews with organizational stakeholders from several levels.

The results show that the main individual Ecosan drivers are related to food and money but also to convenience. These are the dimensions of life quality that people value and they can therefore be used for social marketing. The drivers are the reasons why people have built Ecosan toilets. This, however, does not necessarily mean that the people actually receive the expected benefits. For the benefits regarding food and money, urine collection and application is a precondition. Unfortunately, this is hampered by barriers. The barriers derived in this thesis are not only barriers that prevent people from building an Ecosan toilet, but also barriers that impede the users in profiting from Ecosan to the full extent. In other words, the generation of Ecosan capabilities is hampered by barriers. One of the main barriers is defective knowledge management. This means that there is missing or incorrect knowledge about urine application, and/or missing practical knowledge about proper construction of the Ecosan toilet, which in turn prevent urine collection. Another important barrier is the social relations and structures in Darechowk that hamper knowledge transfer among the villagers; this knowledge transfer is a prerequisite for successful sanitation and development projects. This shows that in addition to the individual and structural levels, there are barriers on the social level. However, as the barriers are interlinked, it is difficult to distinguish among the three levels.

From a Capability Approach perspective, conclusions can be drawn both for theory and for practice. A conclusion for the Capability Approach theory is that social structures should be given more recognition within the approach as they can hamper the generation of capabilities. One conclusion for the furthering of Ecosan dissemination in practice is that implementation proceeding should include participative approaches. The reason for this is that norms and traditions are difficult to change solely by talking to individuals in house visits. Moreover, it can be concluded for practice that the study’s basic idea of focussing on life quality for the promotion of Ecosan is effective in raising initial awareness. However, as the example of Darechowk shows, awareness raising alone and focussing only on life quality together are not sufficient. Following promotional activities, it is necessary that knowledge be provided; about environmental cycles, future economic perspectives and, importantly, about practical issues like the correct construction of the toilets and about urine reuse.

Motivated Ecosan users applying urine to their field

                                                
Ecosan toilet of a very poor farmer lacking financial means for a stable toilet building

Contact:

Ulrike Messmer, Student at the University of Basel, Master of Sustainable Development, ulrike.messmer@gmail.com

Supervisors:
Prof. Dr. Paul Burger University of Basel, Dept. of Philosophy, Program Sustainability Research, Klingelbergstr. 50, 4056 Basel Switzerland, paul.burger@unibasel.ch

Dr. Johannes Heeb seecon international GmbH, Bahnhofstrasse 2, 6110 Wolhusen, johannes.heeb@seecon.ch, www.seecon.ch

Research Partner:
ENPHO- Environment and Public Health Organization, www.enpho.org Mr. Kashi Kant Thakur, Project Officer ENPHO- Environment and Public Health Organization P.O. Box: 4102 New Baneshwor, Kathmandu, Nepal. kashikant.thakur@enpho.org