University of Technology Sydney. Institute of Sustainable Futures. / Sanitation in rapidly growing cities of developing Asian countries is a complex problem that often appears intractable and unyielding to standard problem-solving approaches. In this thesis, I provide a conceptual foundation aligned with sustainability to provide fresh guidance towards resolving this problem. I frame urban sanitation in developing Asian countries as a ‘messy’ planning-related problem, characterised by associations with multiple perspectives, key uncertainties and conflicting interests. In recognition that ‘messy’ problems cannot be confined within traditional disciplinary boundaries, the research uses transdisciplinarity as a guiding principle and methodology. It explores how new processes and complex systems ideas relevant for ‘messy’ problems can be applied to resolving urban sanitation. To ground the work in a real context, much of this work is explicated with reference to Colombo, Sri Lanka. My research highlights the role of dominant perspectives and worldviews in the organisation of sanitation practice. A review of sanitation history exposes changing paradigms, and the potential for developing Asian countries to move to radically different practices aligned with sustainability. I demonstrate that conceptions of costs and cost recovery for sanitation depend on perspective, by comparing how neoclassical economics’, ecological economics’ and Buddhist economics’ perspectives indicate different approaches to these, with different alignments with sustainability. By arguing that these perspectives are complementary rather than mutually exclusive, I integrate them to propose necessary principles for sustainable sanitation, namely, that: arrangements for sanitation should emphasise cooperation between stakeholders; efficiency goals should include entropy considerations; society as a whole should live within its means; and ethics and ‘goodness’ should underpin decision processes and choices. The thesis proposes a framework for participation to support decision-makers in resolving problematic sanitation. This supports the principle of cooperation between stakeholders, and the sustainability discourse’s emphasis of democracy and participation in decisions that affect them. It is a learning process based on soft systems methodology, bringing participants with specialist knowledge, stakeholder interests and broader societal values into dialogue that is explicitly designed to be deliberative, that can lead to a path to resolving the problem. Finally, I explore how ethics and ‘goodness’ can be woven into the provision of sanitation services, particularly with private sector actors who can potentially play a key role. I propose that their representation as metaphorical persons within current legal structures be extended so their behaviour is guided by a moral framework like real people in society. I propose that Buddhist economics can provide such a framework, raising expectations of behaviour grounded in ethics and goodness.

Premature failure or abandonment of water or sanitation interventions in developing communities is a common phenomenon and one which is preventing potential benefits from being fully realised. While the causes of project failure are complex and varied, the literature addressing project failure implicates poor planning in many unsustained small-scale projects. In particular, a number of authors criticise planning that fails to include consideration of key sustainability areas. This thesis explores the relationship between planning for rural water and sanitation development projects and their sustainability using both ??depth?? of information gathered through a case study in rural Philippines and ??breadth?? of information gathered from key informants representing a range of regions and organisational types. Key informant interviews show the case study findings to be generally transferable between regions. Both methods illustrate the need for interpersonal relationships of trust and unity, commitment and integrity in project personnel, significant time spent in data-gathering and consensus development, creative modes of communication, ongoing contact and detailed long-term financial planning. A critical evaluation of 17 prominent, existing planning frameworks for rural water supply and sanitation projects is presented with respect to key attributes of good planning practice as identified during the case study and interviews. The evaluation reveals both strengths and inadequacies in current planning frameworks, illuminating possible causes of persistent poor planning. Finally, methods are identified by which planning processes can be improved so as to reduce the incidence of early water and sanitation project failure. An existing decision framework, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) Sustainability Framework, was trialled during the Philippines Case Study. The new Planning Framework for Rural Water and Sanitation was developed as a result of the trial, the case study and the interviews. The new framework employs the primary sustainability criteria in the decision process in the form of constraints developed using participatory processes, thereby defining a safe space within which the beneficiaries may have freedom and confidence to select their desired technical solutions. Other key elements of good planning practice are incorporated, including those typically omitted by existing frameworks in the rural water and sanitation development sector.

Premature failure or abandonment of water or sanitation interventions in developing communities is a common phenomenon and one which is preventing potential benefits from being fully realised. While the causes of project failure are complex and varied, the literature addressing project failure implicates poor planning in many unsustained small-scale projects. In particular, a number of authors criticise planning that fails to include consideration of key sustainability areas. This thesis explores the relationship between planning for rural water and sanitation development projects and their sustainability using both ??depth?? of information gathered through a case study in rural Philippines and ??breadth?? of information gathered from key informants representing a range of regions and organisational types. Key informant interviews show the case study findings to be generally transferable between regions. Both methods illustrate the need for interpersonal relationships of trust and unity, commitment and integrity in project personnel, significant time spent in data-gathering and consensus development, creative modes of communication, ongoing contact and detailed long-term financial planning. A critical evaluation of 17 prominent, existing planning frameworks for rural water supply and sanitation projects is presented with respect to key attributes of good planning practice as identified during the case study and interviews. The evaluation reveals both strengths and inadequacies in current planning frameworks, illuminating possible causes of persistent poor planning. Finally, methods are identified by which planning processes can be improved so as to reduce the incidence of early water and sanitation project failure. An existing decision framework, the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) Sustainability Framework, was trialled during the Philippines Case Study. The new Planning Framework for Rural Water and Sanitation was developed as a result of the trial, the case study and the interviews. The new framework employs the primary sustainability criteria in the decision process in the form of constraints developed using participatory processes, thereby defining a safe space within which the beneficiaries may have freedom and confidence to select their desired technical solutions. Other key elements of good planning practice are incorporated, including those typically omitted by existing frameworks in the rural water and sanitation development sector.

Thesis (M.A.)--Kutztown University, 1989. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2923. Abstract precedes title page. Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 140).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2005. / Chair: Lisa Lynch. Submitted to the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Includes bibliographical references. Access restricted to members of the Tufts University community. Also available via the World Wide Web;

Thesis (LL. M.)--University of Toronto, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 149-151).

Thesis (D Phil (Information Science))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A. in Security Studies (Far East, Southeast Asia, Pacific))--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2009. / Thesis Advisor(s): Miller, Alice ; Amara, Jomana. "March 2009." Description based on title screen as viewed on April 22, 2009. Author(s) subject terms: China, People's Republic of China, PRC, World Trade Organization, WTO, Agriculture, Negotiations, Doha, Doha Development Agenda, Trade, Market, G-20, G-33, Developing Countries, Market Liberalization, Market Access, Trade Agreements, Tariffs, TRQ, Safeguard Mechanisms, Alliance. Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-94). Also available in print.

Originally presented as the author's thesis, Strasbourg, 1959. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [301-309]).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Syracuse University, 2008. / "Publication number: AAT 3326429."