Life Quality Assessment using the Capability Approach - unipub

Master’s Thesis

Master of Science Degree in Sustainable Development

Life Quality Assessment using the Capability Approach

Based on a Case Study Assessing Life Quality Improvements through

Ecological Sanitation in the Philippines

Supervisor: Alfred Posch, Ao.Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr.rer.soc.oec

Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz

Institut für Systemwissenschaften, Innovations- und

Nachhaltigkeitsforschung

Co-Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Paul Burger

Universität Basel

Program Sustainability Research

Author: Elisabeth Zech, 0522916

Date of Submission: August 2013

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The front picture shows an ecological sanitation toilet in Libertad, Misamis Oriental, Mindanao Island, Philippines (ZECH 2011).

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Abstract

The Capability Approach (CA) is a normative framework and approach to human well-being and

life quality, declaring the best indicator for people’s quality of life is their freedom to choose the

life they want to live. Its philosophical basis has had a considerable impact on developmental

theory and thinking but coherence on its practical usage for life quality assessment is still

missing. Four master’s theses have used the CA for assessing individual life quality enhancement

in the case of Ecological Sanitation (ecosan) projects in different countries.

These studies, however, do not specifically reflect on the method of operationalizing the CA.

The overall aims of this study are to provide new insights, critical reflection and progress in

regards to the functionality of the CA as an assessment tool for life quality and its method of

operationalization. To pursue this, a fifth ecosan case study is conducted, examining capability

enhancement through ecosan and introducing participation newly into the context, which is

considered a precondition for developing individual capabilities.

During the field-work phase in the Philippines, private households are investigated to reveal

enhancement of individual capabilities, while research in school ecosan projects serve to explore

the participation aspect. For both purposes, semi-standardized questionnaires are developed.

Furthermore, life quality theory is introduced and used to adapt the operationalization method.

The outcome shows that ecosan touches all life-domains and, in most cases, provides a life-

improving impact on individuals. Enhancement of peace of mind, security, comfort and affiliation

are valued strongest. Moreover, leadership is identified as a considerable precondition for the

success of school ecosan projects.

Findings of this work demonstrate that preconditions have to be met for capability development

and that valued enhanced freedoms are strongly linked to the society’s values. The thesis

provides a further development of the CA’s operationalization in giving a new and clearer

explanation of how the capability indicator can be assessed. This is done by putting capabilities

as the main life quality indicator into perspective, showing that preconditions (here specifically

participation) strongly influence outcomes and identifying the interconnectedness amongst

different life quality indicators.

It is concluded that capabilities are essential but cannot be the only indicator in assessing life

quality. Eventually, more studies are needed for clearer positioning of capabilities within life

quality research and for better insights on preconditions for gaining individual capabilities.

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Eigenständigkeitserklärung

Hiermit bestätige ich, dass ich die vorliegende Arbeit selbständig verfasst und keine anderen als

die angegebenen Hilfsmittel benutzt habe. Die Stellen der Arbeit, die dem Wortlaut oder dem

Sinn nach anderen Werken entnommen sind, wurden unter Angabe der Quelle kenntlich

gemacht.

Elisabeth Zech

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Acknowledgements

I gratefully acknowledge the huge support I was given for writing this master’s thesis.

Therefore I deeply and honestly want to thank

my parents for having supported me throughout all my studies and especially in the time of

composing this thesis.

Robert Gensch, Analiza Miso and the whole Sustainable Sanitation Center of Xavier University,

for your warm welcome in the Philippines, the strong support of my research as well as the

perfect organization of all the field visits. I hope the results will be valuable for your work.

Elmer Sayre and the WAND foundation, for welcoming me on your farm and in your home.

Thank you also, for the interesting field visit and the organization of the interview trips in

Libertad and Initao.

Ian Bollos and Marchita Tuale, for sacrificing their scarce time to accompany me and to organize

all field visits in Bayawan City.

Prof. Dr. Paul Burger, for introducing me to the capability approach and for co-supervising this

thesis. I also thank you, for your patience and your valuable as well as interesting inputs

throughout the development of this thesis.

Prof. Dr. Alfred Posch, for supervising this thesis, your exact proof reading and the valuable

comments on the whole study.

Michael Kropac and Martin Wafler, for introducing me to the Philippine context and the

Sustainable Sanitation Center of Xavier University.

Johnabel Fernandez and Iris Plarisan, for your translation and your company during the field

visits – it was a pleasure to meet you both.

all interviewed ecosan users. Your hospitality, openness and patience to answer all my questions

have made this study possible. I further want to mention the tragedy by which Mindanao was hit

through the typhoon Sendong in December 2011 as well as the recent flooding incidents in the

same region. I hereby want to express my honest sentiments to all, who were and are suffering

from these events.

Burpie, Ian and the whole Sarraga family. Thanks, for making me feel at home on the other side

of the world, your friendship and the great times I spent with you in CDO and at Magic Farm.

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Emily. Thanks, for supporting me in finishing this thesis, your great and critical scientific inputs,

your encouragement and the continuous proof-reading.

Leo. Thank you so much, for supporting and encouraging me when I needed it.

all my friends, who have supported me morally through this time. I worship all the great

conversations we have.

Markus. I thank you, for your strong support, your patience and your loving care during all this

time. I further thank you so much for bringing me through this with a smile on your face and for

the very valuable and critical continuous proof-reading.

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Table of Contents

1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 1

Stating the Problem .......................................................................................................... 1 1.1

Background, Aim and Research Questions ....................................................................... 1 1.2

Previous Studies ........................................................................................................ 2 1.2.1

Academic Void and Objectives of this Thesis ............................................................ 3 1.2.2

Main Research Interest and Research Questions ..................................................... 5 1.2.3

Procedure .......................................................................................................................... 6 1.3

Structure............................................................................................................................ 7 1.4

2 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................................. 8

Life Quality Theory ............................................................................................................ 8 2.1

Objective Indicators ................................................................................................... 8 2.1.1

Economic Indicators .................................................................................................. 9 2.1.2

Subjective Indicators ................................................................................................. 9 2.1.3

Objective and Subjective Well-Being combined with Peoples Values .................... 10 2.1.4

The Capability Approach ................................................................................................. 12 2.2

Sen’s Capability Approach ....................................................................................... 12 2.2.1

Nussbaum ................................................................................................................ 17 2.2.2

Criticism and Amplifications for Practical Use......................................................... 19 2.2.3

Sen’s Freedoms as the New Indicator for Well-Being ............................................. 21 2.2.4

Participation Theory ........................................................................................................ 24 2.3

Participation, Acceptance and Sustainability .......................................................... 24 2.3.1

Endogenous Development ...................................................................................... 26 2.3.2

School Sanitation ..................................................................................................... 28 2.3.3

3 Case Study Background: The Philippines and Ecological Sanitation....................................... 30

Philippine Context ................................................................................................... 30 3.1.1

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Ecological Sanitation ................................................................................................ 35 3.1.2

4 Research Design ...................................................................................................................... 41

Introduction to the Empirical Analysis ............................................................................ 41 4.1

Research Method and Case Study Introduction – Research Question I ......................... 42 4.2

Explorative Research ............................................................................................... 42 4.2.1

Operationalization for Capability Research ............................................................. 42 4.2.2

Adaptation of the Operationalization ..................................................................... 43 4.2.3

Questionnaire and Evaluation Framework .............................................................. 46 4.2.4

Case Study Research Field ....................................................................................... 49 4.2.5

Research Method and Case Study Introduction - Research Question II ......................... 52 4.3

Participation – Indicator Framework ....................................................................... 52 4.3.1

Case Study Research Field ....................................................................................... 53 4.3.2

5 Results ..................................................................................................................................... 55

Capability enhancement through Ecosan ....................................................................... 55 5.1

Basic Information and Status Quo ........................................................................... 55 5.1.1

Gained Functionings and enhanced Capability Domains ........................................ 57 5.1.2

Cross-Country Comparison of enhanced Freedoms through Ecosan ..................... 62 5.1.3

Limitations of Findings............................................................................................. 64 5.1.4

School Ecosan and Participation Factors ........................................................................ 64 5.2

Ecosan Schools Status.............................................................................................. 65 5.2.1

Participation Indicators ........................................................................................... 68 5.2.2

Limitations of Findings............................................................................................. 71 5.2.3

6 Conclusion............................................................................................................................... 72

How Ecosan improves People’s Lives .............................................................................. 72 6.1

Social Values determine Gained Capabilities .......................................................... 72 6.1.1

Ecosan makes People feel freer ............................................................................... 74 6.1.2

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Participation in School Ecosan Projects .......................................................................... 75 6.2

How Participation Factors influence Project Success .............................................. 75 6.2.1

Leadership as Success Factor .................................................................................. 76 6.2.2

Critical Reflection on the Study Results .......................................................................... 77 6.3

Implications of Findings .................................................................................................. 78 6.4

Implications on Capability Research........................................................................ 78 6.4.1

Conclusion on Life Quality Assessment through the CA ......................................... 80 6.4.2

Recommendations and Further Research ............................................................... 81 6.4.3

Contribution to the Scientific Dialogue ........................................................................... 81 6.5

Bibliography .................................................................................................................................... 82

Expert Interviews ............................................................................................................................ 87

Picture Sources ............................................................................................................................... 87

Appendix ......................................................................................................................................... 88

Appendix I – drives lists: Enssle 2010, Lienert 2011, Peters 2012 .............................................. 88

Appendix II – questionnaire expert interviews .......................................................................... 90

Appendix III – topics-to-cover-list............................................................................................... 91

Appendix IV – questionnaire explanation households ............................................................... 92

Appendix V – questionnaire answers households...................................................................... 96

Appendix VI – questionnaire explanation principals and teachers .......................................... 104

Appendix VII – questionnaire explanation students ................................................................ 108

Appendix VIII – evaluation school questionnaires / participation indicators .......................... 110

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List of Figures

Figure 1: Procedure of the presented thesis. ................................................................................... 6

Figure 2: Own adaptation of interrelatedness of life quality indicator types by DINER and SUH

1997. ............................................................................................................................................... 10

Figure 3: A model of quality of life, adapted from FELCE and PERRY 1995: 62). ........................... 11

Figure 4: Own visualization of Sen’s idea of well-being freedom. ................................................. 17

Figure 5: Sen’s addition of attention to potential outcomes (GASPER 2007: 338)......................... 22

Figure 6: Prism of Sustainability, adapted from VALENTIN/SPANGENBERG 2000 in KOPFMÜLLER

2006: 87. ......................................................................................................................................... 25

Figure 7: Toilets used before and usage of the UDDT within the family. ...................................... 56

Figure 8: Found OWB factors and SWB factors in the ecosan Philippine study filtered through

Philippine values, resulting in indicated freedom enhanced life / capability domains. ................ 73

List of Tables

Table 1: Own adaption of Nussbaum’s list of Central Human Functional Capabilities (NUSSBAUM

2000: 78 et sqq.). ............................................................................................................................ 18

Table 2: How researchers select dimensions, adapted from ALKIRE 2002b: 186........................... 20

Table 3: Sanitation Coverage 1990 and 2008 in the Philippines, adapted from DOH 2010: 26 .... 32

Table 4: Example of ecosan valuable functionings and implied capabilities, adapted from LIENERT

2011: 62. ......................................................................................................................................... 45

Table 5: Implied capabilities already tested in previous studies. .................................................. 47

Table 6: Assumed usefulness of inquiry-questions within life quality measurement. .................. 48

Table 7: Particpation indicators for evaluating school ecosan projects. ....................................... 53

Table 8: Implied life domains, in which freedoms were enhanced through ecosan in the

Philippines, with the corresponding gained functionings through ecosan. ................................... 60

Table 9: Comparing gained ecosan functionings from previous studies with capability dimensions

where freedoms were enhanced in the Philippine study. ............................................................. 63

Table 10: Evaluation of school ecosan projects concerning success and participation factors. .... 76

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Abbreviations

app. approximately

CA Capability Approach

CDO Cagayan de Oro City

cf. compare (Latin: confer)

DILG Department of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines)

ED Endogenous Development

e.g. for example (Latin: exempli gratia)

et al. and others (Latin: et alii)

et sqq. and the following (Latin: et sequens)

etc. and the rest (Latin: et cetera)

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GTZ Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit, since 2011 GIZ – Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit

LGU Local Government Unit (Philippines)

MDG Millennium Development Goal

NGO Non-governmental Organisation

o.d. open defecation

OWB objective well-being

PUVeP Periurban Vegetable Project

SD Sustainable Development

SWB social well-being

UDDT Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilet WAND Water, Agro-forestry, Nutrition and Development (foundation)

1 Introduction

Page 1

1 Introduction

You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view -

until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.

(LEE 1989: 33)

Social science is a particularly sensitive field of research, as it tries to understand human

actions and development. Acknowledging that, the author of this thesis makes an effort to

actuate new insights and better understanding in social sciences, while critically reflecting on

methods and outcomes of the study results.

Thereby the present master’s thesis is a contribution to the social sciences in the field of

Sustainable Development (SD), by researching on life quality assessment. This first chapter

provides an introduction to the topic, presenting the background, the aim as well as the

structure of the here presented study.

Stating the Problem 1.1

In the context of SD, research on life quality improvement through development

interventions is a crucial topic. Thereby, the Capability Approach (CA), developed by Amartya

Sen (e.g. 1980) and Martha Nussbaum (e.g. 1992), is a normative theory on the assessment of

quality of life, which has had a significant impact on development research and practice in the

last decades. Nevertheless, the approach until now has failed to be translated into consistent

a methodology and remains a contradictorily discussed theory, used in many different ways

(MASSON and LESSMANN 2012). Consequently, the operationalization of the approach for

practical usage is lacking further research. For this reason this thesis is based on the idea of

improving the assessment of life quality development using the CA.

Background, Aim and Research Questions 1.2

The Capability Approach claims to be an approach for welfare assessment, which can be

adapted to different cultural contexts, measuring life quality adequately to these contexts. Its

main indicator in life quality research is people’s individual freedom (capability) to choose the

life they want to live (STEWART and DENEULIN 2002). This master’s thesis is part of a cross-

national study, which pursues research on capabilities in the context of ecological sanitation

(ecosan). Therefore its research aim as well as its research questions are derived partially

from the outcomes of previous master’s theses.

1 Introduction

Page 2

Previous Studies 1.2.1

Within the last five years, the CA has been used in sustainability research, following different

research questions, by being tested on ecosan development interventions in India, Bhutan

and Mongolia. These studies are presented shortly in the following.

1.2.1.1 Ecosan and Sustainability (India)

The first master’s thesis in this context did not deal with the CA directly, but rather provided

the reason for its usage in the following studies. Based on literature, Carole Küng concludes

that the idea of ecosan – in the technological sense – can be claimed to be a technology with

the potential to contribute to SD. However, she adds that in order to successfully enhance

sustainability, sanitation interventions rely on many other aspects as well. She therefore tests

the implementation of ecosan in Paliyad based on normative sustainability criteria with the

hypothesis: An ecosan approach contributes towards sustainability of rural sanitation in

Paliyad. Küng concludes that ecosan shows high potential in promoting SD in the context of

Paliyad. Nevertheless, she claims that awareness, appropriateness and engagement are still

lacking in ecosan projects and that a demand development cannot be seen (Küng 2008).

1.2.1.2 Promoting Ecosan Using the CA (India)

Consequently, the master’s thesis of Stefanie Enssle picks up where Küng leaves off and

applies her research to the problem of social marketing and demand development.

Moreover, Enssle integrates another subject using the measurement of capabilities as an

assessment tool for quality of life. Therefore, she operationalizes Amartya Sen’s CA, in order

to find out which capabilities could be generated through the implementation of ecosan in an

Indian village and which capabilities, within the context of sanitation specifically, are valued

most by users. Her outcome is an ecosan drives and capabilities list for the ecosan project in

Tamil Nadu (India) as well as the contribution to capability research in operationalizing the

CA. Enssle concludes that through assessing capabilities by questioning users, the target

group sets their own values and the list can be used as a bench-mark for assessment

purposes. Moreover, the method can be used to evaluate valuable capabilities concerning

ecosan in other societal contexts (Enssle 2010).

1 Introduction

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1.2.1.3 Assessing Ecosan Sustainability Using the CA (Bhutan)

Juri Lienert adds onto Enssles list, by demonstrating individual drives and barriers in the

implementation of ecosan in Bhutan. Additionally he reveals his outcome of a list of structural

criteria, meant to enhance the sustainability potential of ecosan interventions, thereby

including not only individual but also – as he calls it – structural capabilities1 in his research

(Lienert 2011).

1.2.1.4 Assessing Ecosan Sustainability Using the CA (Mongolia)

Finally, Dörthe Peters takes over the research on individual drives and barriers for ecosan in

Ulaanbataar, as explored by Enssle (2010) and Lienert (2011) in different settings.

Furthermore, she adds the question, which socio-cultural factors support the endogenisation

of ecosan interventions. It is assumed in her research that endogenisation is an overall factor

for sustainability of development interventions and therefore a precondition for capability

development. Peters’ outcome results in several socio-cultural factors that have an influence

on self-organisation in development interventions as well as another capabilities drives and

constraints list for Ulaanbataar (Peters 2012).

Academic Void and Objectives of this Thesis 1.2.2

Even though these previous studies are concerned with the operationalization of the CA, they

ultimately do not reflect on the abstract issue of theory operationalization, but assign their

conclusions to the ecosan topic. In this respect the researcher sees three aspects, which have

not been researched sufficiently or not, been taking into account at all so far. It is therefore

the goal of this study to tackle this academic void, in order to contribute to welfare

measurement as well as to capability research through the following three objectives.

Comparability of CA studies for further insights on its operationalization: Sen states that

research should be acknowledged as an on-going process and case-studies have the claim

to be comparable and feasible in order to contribute to theory and method development,

rather than to reveal the one and only truth within one single study (SEN in FUKUDA-

PARR et al. 2003: 45 et sqq.). Whilst the CA is seen to pay all its dues to its philosophical

argumentation, operationalization and comparable research in applying the approach in

practice lacks (MASSON and LESSMANN 2012). The present study thus contributes to

1 Structural capabilities: Lienert uses the term to indicate structural drives and barriers (concerning governance) for developing individual capabilities (LIENERT 2011: 34 et sqq.).

1 Introduction

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filling this research gap by providing the here-defended thesis, using the same (but

further developed and adapted) method as previous studies in a new cultural setting.

Subsequently, it takes one further step in the operationalization of the CA.

Introducing life quality theory into the context: Secondly, the thus far conducted

theses have disregarded general theoretical input about life quality measurement. By

evaluating Sen’s idea of measuring freedoms as a parameter for life quality on the

basis of welfare assessment theory, a new aspect is introduced to the topic.

Therefore, it is one purpose of this study to evaluate where freedoms are situated

between other welfare parameters, realizing how they are interconnected and

thereby developing a deeper insight into the possibility of measuring freedoms.

Although Sen’s approach is accepted as reasonable, measuring freedoms is still based

on hypothetical questioning and parameters, that are actually observable, must be

used in the right way. In Equality of What? Sen does not deny the significance of other

parameters in the context of life quality measurement, yet he gives priority to the

measurement of freedoms (GASPER 2007: 337, SEN 1979)

Insights on the role of participation in this context: Finally, when measuring

enhanced freedoms, implying that these result in enhanced quality of life, the

question remains: Are there preconditions that need to be met in order to enable

people to gain more freedom? In other words, when a development intervention has

been found not to have enhanced freedoms for beneficiaries, it might not necessarily

be that the intervention has no potential to do so. Sen, for example, identifies

concerns about agency-freedom2: How do we know that people know what they want

or what is best for them? Education thereby is a capability that Sen sees as a

precondition for people to be able to choose freely. Since the aim in welfare

measurement is to enable better lives, this is a crucial point. Therefore, participation

has been identified as a possible precondition for enabling development interventions

to enhance people’s freedoms. Alongside the agency aspect, the idea of regarding

preconditions is based on the endogenisation aspect in the study of Peters (2012), as

well as on input on structural capabilities by Lienert (2011) and finally on increased

development of participatory approaches for implementing ecosan (cf. KAR and

CHAMBERS 2008, LUETHI et al. 2011).

2 Agency freedom: Sen uses the term to describe informational constraints to be an agent for oneself, meaning that one has to have a specific informational basis for deciding what’s best for one (cf. SEN 1985).

1 Introduction

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Main Research Interest and Research Questions 1.2.3

Whilst this thesis, in line with the previous studies, provides a case study on life quality

enhancement through ecological sanitation using the CA, in another country (Philippines),

this study finally offers an argument on the CA’s capacity for life quality assessment. Ecosan

will thereby be used as an example. Consequently, the thesis brings in new theoretical

aspects about the CA itself as well as about life quality measurement in general. The research

questions, which concern the case study thus, are used to conclude on the overall research

interest, namely the functionality of the CA as theoretical basis for life quality assessment.

Hence, the greater research interest of this study is:

Using ecosan as a case study, there are two research questions on this matter.

The first research question is based on the research questions of the previous ecosan-

capability master’s theses and concerns the change in life quality through the implementation

of ecosan toilets in private households:

The second research question contributes to the overall research interest on capabilities

within life quality assessment in a different way. It assumes participation from the collective

of a society to be a precondition for an intervention to be life quality enhancing on the

individual level.

For this matter ecosan projects in schools were investigated, to evaluate the role of

participation and bottom-up project-development in enabling the sustainability potential of

ecosan:

1. Can

What can the CA contribute to the assessment of life quality enhancement?

1. Which individual capabilities are generated by ecosan in the Philippine context?

2. Can participation and endogenous power in the implementation of ecosan be

considered to be basic requirements regarding individual capabilities enhancement

through ecosan toilets in Philippine schools?

1 Introduction

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Procedure 1.3

The following figure visualizes the procedure of this study in its attempt to gain information

and new inputs on life quality assessment using the CA.

Research Questions

What can the CA contribute to the

assessment of life quality enhancement?

Life quality enhancement through ecosan

EXPLORATIVE Open questioning on which capabilities were generated through a development

intervention.

DESCRIPTIVE Using the theory of endogenous

development to define participation as a basic requirement to make development

interventions capabilities enhancing

Which individual capabilities were generated through ecosan?

Can participation and endogenous development be seen as basic

requirements for ecosan interventions to generate capabilities?

Contribution to the operationalization of the CA for life quality assessment.

Overall Research Interest

Methods

Case Study

Conclusion

Capabilities generated through ecosan. The role of participation in ecosan interventions.

Research Results

LIFE QUALITY DEFINITION and ASSESSMENT CAPABILITY APPROACH ENDOGENOUS DEVELOPMENT

Theoretical Background

Figure 1: Procedure of the presented thesis.

1 Introduction

Page 7

Whilst the connected boxes in the centre of the figure show the content of the study in its

logical order, the red description on the left-hand-side gives a theoretical explanation for

different parts of the thesis. As this thesis aims to contribute on an abstract and theoretical

level to life quality assessment theory and methodology (indicated in the blue boxes), the

case study including the practical research questions (indicated in the green boxes) are only

used as a tool for reflecting on life quality assessment. Hence, the figure shows the

embedment of the case study (green) into the abstract context of research on the optimal

usage of the CA in life quality and therefore sustainability research (blue).

This complex and recent research makes the structure of this thesis slightly different from

conventional research structures, since the operationalization of the theory (CA) becomes the

object that is researched, whilst the empirical study is used as a tool to do so. Based on inputs

on theory development by Alvesson and Kärman (2011: 40 et sqq.), it is argued that

explorative research (with the attempt of theory development and rethinking in social

science) can explore new approaches in order to reveal new thoughts and insights. This

argument is accepted for the differing structure since the previous studies (1.2.1) have

already shown the phenomenon of identifying new ideas for further theory development.

Structure 1.4

The present thesis is divided into six main chapters.

As the research goal has been declared in the introduction, chapter 2 engages in presenting

the theories which are at the foundation of this study, followed by background information

about the Philippines and the ecosan technology (as an introduction to the case study) in

chapter 3.

Chapter 4 presents the research design resulting from theory and used for the field research

of the ecosan case-study. Chapter 5 then shows all results and findings gathered in the

empirical study.

Finally, in chapter 6, the results are interpreted and used to reflect on the main research aim:

contributing to optimizing the usage of the CA within life quality assessment. Suggestions for

further research work are then given and the contribution of this study to the scientific field is

solidified.

2 Theoretical Framework

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How is life quality defined? Why are capabilities assumed to be useful for assessing life

quality? And why is participation seen as a precondition for gaining life quality through

development interventions?

These questions are answered in the following chapter, by introducing the three theoretical

backgrounds for this study: Life quality theories, CA theory and theoretical insights on

endogenous development, which as a part of development theories gives basic insights to

participation theory. Each one of the three subchapters ends with a summary and conclusion

of the given theoretical inputs.

Life Quality Theory 2.1

There are as many quality of life definitions as there are people.

(LIU 1976)

[…] there are at least as many quality of life definitions as there are people studying the

phenomenon […]

(BAKER and INTAGLIATA 1982)

Life quality measurement for the sake of development and policy making has been a

philosophical topic for decades and as these statements show, agreement on how to define it

has not been reached yet. However, there exists mutual consent in regards to its

multidimensionality. In providing an overview of the thus far developed theoretical basis of

life quality science, this subchapter shall answer the question: How is quality of life defined in

theory and what are the known and used types of indicators?

Objective Indicators 2.1.1

Social indicators measuring, for example, education levels, health figures or crime rates are

defined as objective indicators for life quality assessment. The significance of these factors for

a persons’ life quality is presumed and information on the individual’s subjective estimation

of what is valuable in his/her life or whether he/she experiences life as good, are not taken

into consideration. In this way objective indicators are philosophically bound to normative

characteristics of what is good and what is bad. It is their strength that the agreement on


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these indicators and their value is usually wide spread, making assessment and comparison of

life quality in this sphere less complicated.

The drawbacks of using social indicators might be that people’s personal feelings towards

their life-conditions are completely left out and that high levels of well-being, indicated by

social indicators not necessarily correlate with the individual’s satisfaction in life (DIENER and

SUH 1997: 190 et sqq.).

Economic Indicators 2.1.2

Economic indicators are also objective in the way that better economic situations are in

general presumed to designate better life quality. It is assumed that considering the range of

resources people have, they will select what has highest potential to increase their quality of

life. On the other hand they can be seen as more subjective in the way that people can (in a

material way) better chose their own preferences, meaning they define for themselves what

makes a good life for them (in comparison to the normative valuable perspective of social

indicators) (DIENER and SUH 1997: 190 et sqq.). This leads to the subjective indicators for

quality of life.

Subjective Indicators 2.1.3

The basic idea of subjective indicators is the importance of direct measurement of the

individual’s affective and cognitive reactions to his/her life and domains of life. This idea of

defining good life quality is rooted in the utilitarian philosophy, referring to the sentiments of

pleasure and pain and arguing that enhancing good life quality means striving for the greatest

happiness of the greatest numbers (DIENER and SUH 1997: 200). It is based on the

assessment of peoples’ judgement on their life conditions in terms of satisfaction and

pleasant or unpleasant moods. Further developed methods of subjective well-being

measurements are not limited to assessing satisfaction of life in general but encompass the

definition of different life domains, to evaluate fulfilment within those independently, which

allows for a clearer picture on a persons’ life and his/her satisfaction with it.

As the term subjective designates, this kind of measuring quality of life relies rather on the

internal judgement of someone than on normative ideals of policy makers. Whilst it seems to

be adequate to measure how someone perceives his/her life, the downside of using this

indicator exclusively is that objective and subjective indicators often do not correlate.

Therefore, people living in worse conditions than others might gain a better result in terms of


Page 10

happiness even though their health-problems, crime rates and poverty levels are much

higher. The reason for this can be found partially in the fact that people rapidly adapt to their

live situations and only compare their lives and situations to their surroundings (NUSSBAUM

2000: 315 et sqq.). This exposes a possible bias to happiness-studies, when considering that

without the knowledge of certain possibilities (like lack of education), their expectations to

life might be much lower and therefore faster satisfied. The other way around it has been

detected in different studies that a sudden increase of wealth makes expectations rise and

the happiness-level might stay the same even though life conditions in the objective sense

have improved (DIENER and SUH 1997: 206).

The following graph shows the interrelatedness between the three types of indicators for life

quality presented as well as the questions that arise when trying to choose most reliable

factors.

Objective and Subjective Well-Being combined with Peoples Values 2.1.4

Diener and Suh (1997) conclude in their article that it is not a choice of objective or subjective

indicators, but that the two are complementary to each other and both are to be considered

in the matter of evaluating well-being. Felce and Perry (1995) agree on this matter

introducing an additional factor.

It is argued in their article that external conditions as much as internal dispositions have their

justifications to be part of well-being measurement. Even though personal judgement on

satisfaction with life is certainly considered a more than considerable aspect of well-being, it

Do objectively

good life

conditions make

me happy? Does what I want

to get make me

happy?

Do I know what

makes my life

good?

11. Social indicators Do I live in objectively good

conditions?

2. Economic indicators

Can I get what I want?

3. Subjective indicators

Am I happy with my life? Am I satisfied with my life

conditions?

Figure 2: Own adaptation of interrelatedness of life quality indicator types by DINER and SUH 1997.


Page 11

cannot be separated from its context and that external conditions always play an important

role in what people expect and what satisfies them. When people remain positive and

satisfied in objectively poor life conditions, ignoring those conditions within life quality

measurement might not provide an adequate safeguard for the best interest of vulnerable

and disadvantaged people. Consequently, both factors are important however, not sufficient.

Even though objective conditions and subjective sentiments are both to be valued the

question remains which of those factors ranks higher. Therefore, Felce and Perry introduce a

model of life quality that observes objective and subjective wellbeing through the filter of

personal values and aspirations (FELCE and PERRY 1995: 57 et sqq.).

The three-element model of quality of life, shown above, shows Felce and Perrys quality of life

definition as a combination of objective descriptors and subjective evaluations weighed over a

personal value set. The blue arrows indicate influences, thereby all indicators influence each

Objective Life Conditions Physical Wellbeing Material Wellbeing Social Wellbeing Development and Activity Emotional Wellbeing

Personal Values and Aspirations Importance of: Physical Wellbeing Material Wellbeing Social Wellbeing Development and Activity Emotional Wellbeing

Subjective Wellbeing Satisfaction with: Physical Wellbeing Material Wellbeing Social Wellbeing Development and Activity Emotional Wellbeing

Overall Assessment of wellbeing

(Quality of Life)

Exte

rnal

Influ

ence

s

Figure 3: A model of quality of life, adapted from FELCE and PERRY 1995: 62).


Page 12

other, while each of them is influenced externally. Moreover, the red arrows show that

subjective and objective well-being indicators are finally filtered through personal values,

resulting in different weightings for the different dimensions of well-being. Thus, a change in

one of the elements causes an overall change and since all of them are influenced by external

factors, the assessment of each one is necessary to capture the level of ones’ life quality

(FELCE and PERRY 1995: 57 et sqq.).

Conclusion and Further Usage of Subchapter 2.1

These definitions of quality of life and wellbeing assessment are used by the researcher to

demonstrate the complexity of life quality and the indicators and aspects that are seen to

influence one’s quality of life. This information is further used to set the CA into perspective

with life quality assessment theory in general.

The Capability Approach 2.2

The CA, mainly developed by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum in the 1970s, is meant to be

an alternative to traditional welfare-economics in evaluating quality of life, being mainly used

within development studies.

As Ingrid Robeyns put it, the CA is generally understood as a conceptual framework for a

range of normative exercises, including most prominent the following: (1) the assessment of

individual well-being; (2) the evaluation and assessment of social arrangements; and (3) the

design of policies and proposals about social change in society (ROBEYNS 2011: 2).

Sen’s Capability Approach 2.2.1

Sen states three arguments for why the old welfare-paradigm3 is not adequate for measuring

life quality.

Firstly, the idea of focusing on capabilities opposes the exclusive measurement of

commodities, resources or income (economic concentration), such as GDP, since those,

according to Sen, are only means for a certain quality of life and not the ends of a human life.4

Secondly, he does not agree with the libertarian preoccupation of measuring only liberties

3 Since the old welfare-paradigm has already been discussed in the master’s thesis of Enssle and this issue has been part of many other welfare and development studies it will not be discussed in detail here. Nevertheless, basic ideas of former welfare-measurement compared to Sen’s idea of a capability approach shall be presented shortly. 4 In Development as Capability Expansion Sen also states that economic prosperity does not indicate a better life quality, as health and education figures compared to GDP figures show (SEN in FUKUDA-PARR 2003: 4 et seqq).


Page 13

either, which in his opinion do not consider their consequences. And thirdly, Sen also rejects

mental states, like happiness (the utilitarian focus) as a reliable indicator to give information

about life quality, arguing with adapted preferences (SEN 1980). Concerning the latter Sen

accords with the already mentioned critique that people, in order to survive, adapt to their

circumstances (discussed in chapter 2.1.3.).

Yet, Sen does not deny the importance of information on resource-availability, mental states

and especially not the significance of liberties, as his emphasis on freedom indicates. He

rather suggests that those are part of investing life quality, but cannot alone indicate a

person’s quality of life (SEN in FUKUDA-PARR et al. 2003: 4 et seqq., SEN 1999: 18 et seqq.).

So what exactly are capabilities and why does Sen consider them the most adequate indicator

for life quality?

2.2.1.1 Capability Definition

Amartya Sen takes up the Aristotelian view that wealth is evidently not the good we are

seeking; for it is merely useful and for the sake of something else. His main criticism of former

welfare-theories lies in the argument, that wealth and resources are not what we value, but

what we can use them for, is what we value. Additionally utilities do not show what a person

is free to do but only one’s mental reaction to it. He assumes that what all people would

value or aim for, would be the freedom to live a life they assume good and valuable as well

as living a long life, without being cut off in one’s prime (SEN 1999: 14). People should thus be

equal concerning their effective freedom. This freedom he sees in their capabilities. Thereby,

capabilities are defined as people’s opportunity to freely pursue well-being in one’s own way,

relying on the freedom to choose a life one has reason to value. Sen concludes that these

capabilities are what welfare-economics should measure t gain insight on life quality. Sen also

calls this well-being freedom (cf. SEN 1980: 217, SEN 1992 in ROBEYNS 2011: 6, SEN 1999).

Sen establishes this theory with the aim of enforcing human development and life quality.

Thereby, he sees human life as a combination of several valuable beings and doings, that he

calls functionings5. What people actually do and are – like going on holidays, reading a book,

being well nourished or being educated – is their achieved well-being. However, measuring

functionings – which can actually be observed – does not give information about their

5 The life that a person leads can be seen as a combination of various doings and beings, which can be generically called functionings (NUSSBAUM and SEN 1995: 3).


Page 14

freedom to choose what to do or be which is why only people’s capabilities6 shed light on

their quality of life (NUSSBAUM and SEN 1995: 3 et sqq., SEN 1999).

In the present thesis the term capability domains/dimensions is used for describing valued

live domains in which freedoms can be enhanced through gaining functionings.

2.2.1.2 Capability-List and Weightings

Now that it is clear, what Sen means by capability, it is further important to know, which

exactly are those valuable capabilities? And which are more valuable than others?

Sen advances the view that people should be able to lead the kind of lives they value-and

have reason to value. Concerning evaluation of life quality and thus having to know what

people actually value, he criticizes other approaches to be implicit about choosing indicators.

Subsequently, Sen wants his capabilities to be found explicitly, fitting to the context and

societal background within which they are applied (SEN 1999: 18, 30 et seqq.). This results in

not giving a list of valuable capabilities or information on how to weigh them. The argument

behind this is that if people shall have the mentioned freedom over their life, then their life

quality can only be evaluated through the values they themselves attach to certain

capabilities. As a consequence a list of capabilities can only be elaborated through public

discussion within the societal and contextual framework it is used in, as this in itself is the

freedom to participate in public affairs (SEN 1999: 76 et seqq.).

Here it shall be emphasized that even though Sen’s approach is based on the individual,

individual freedoms can also correspond to a social freedom as he states7:

Individual freedom is quintessentially a social product, and there is a two-way relation

between (1) social arrangements to expand individual freedoms and (2) the use of individual

freedoms not only to improve the respective lives but also to make the social arrangements

more appropriate and effective (SEN 1999: 31).

Nevertheless, Sen sees the need of setting basic capabilities (SEN 1999: 38), in order to know

how to achieve justice and equality and provides support in the form of instrumental

6 The capability of a person refers to the various alternative combinations of functionings, any one of which (any combination, that is) the person can choose to have. In this sense, the capability of a person corresponds to the freedom that a person has to lead one kind of life or another (NUSSBAUM and SEN 1995: 3). 7 It is worthwhile to mention, that Sen specifically emphasizes this two-way relation, which he also sees in the freedom to participate – hence to choose valuable capabilities in open discussion – given that his approach is often criticized for only concentrating on the individual.


Page 15

freedoms (SEN 1999: 38). Whilst in general freedom to him has intrinsic value, he argues that

there is also an instrumental competence to be assigned to certain freedoms that can help to

gain overall freedom.

Five instrumental freedoms based on given opportunities:

Political freedoms are the opportunity to choose who should govern and how.

Economic facilities are the opportunity to use resources to consume, produce or

exchange.

Social opportunities are the opportunity for education, healthcare etc. to give freedom

for a better life and are also seen as requirement to enjoy the first two instrumental

freedoms.

Transparency guarantees is the openness for the opportunity to build up trust.

Protective security is the opportunity to have a social safety net in case of emergency,

illness, inability to work, etc. (SEN 1999: 38 et sqq.).

Therefore, Sen does assume some capabilities to be basic and valuable for everyone, as the

ability to lead a healthy life or the ability to receive education, which he even sees as a

requirement for the ability of choosing freely (SEN 1999: 33, SEN 1980, SEN 2004). Referring

to this, his criticism on implicit lists does withstand and gives reason to argue for establishing

more fixed frameworks in service of applicability.

2.2.1.3 Means, Ends and Diversion Factors

The core of Sen’s approach is concerning an analytical distinction in philosophy, namely the

means-ends distinction, as Robeyns (2011) stresses it. It relies on the principle that in valuing

something, it has to be clear whether it is valued as a means to reach an ends or as an ends in

itself. In the CA capabilities of people are seen as ends in themselves and since ends are what

ultimately matters when thinking about well-being and the quality of life, Sen points out the

importance of measuring ends rather than means (ROBEYNS 2011: 7).

Naturally, means – such as resources or instrumental freedoms – are important for reaching

ends but knowing about people’s possession of means does not necessarily indicate their

ability of reaching certain ends. Here Sen introduces the notion conversion factors (ROBEYNS

2011: 7). Since people are different, they vary in their ability to convert means into ends.

Whilst owning a bike can already be enough to gain mobility as a functioning, this depends

firstly on the requirement that a person is physically able to ride a bike and secondly on the

surrounding conditions, in this case if there are roads where it is possible to move around


Page 16

with a bike. Conversion factors show a person’s ability to convert a means into an end.

Consequently – as we do not know the conversion factors of every person towards every

good – Sen thinks it is more reliable to measure ends rather than means, when evaluating life

quality. Therefore, he assumes the CA to be more applicable to all people, taking their

diversity into account (ROBEYNS 2011: 7 et seqq.).

This argument is of special interest, in particular concerning the present study. Former

welfare-measurements have often been criticized to be conceptualized on western ideas and

culture and hence not adaptive to every cultural background. In relying on resources or

means when measuring life quality, certain physical, mental or environmental circumstances

are being required to make the overall assumption that a presumed minimum of resources

leads to achieving the ends. Therefore, it has been argued that e.g. people with disabilities

are not able to reach the same outcomes as people without disabilities, when both are

offered the same kinds and amounts of resources8 (SEN 1980: 219).

2.2.1.4 Summarizing Sen’s CA

The following graphic provides a visualization of Sen’s idea of the interrelations between

people’s diversity, the input of means, resulting freedoms (capability) and chosen outcomes

(functionings). Moreover, it illustrates that measuring capability gives more information

about the freedom a person possess than measuring functionings.

8 In the present study the availability of water can be used as such an example, therefore depending on whether water is a scarce or expensive resource, an ecosan toilet might provide better opportunities to reach several ends, than a flush toilet can.


Page 17

Figure 4: Own visualization of Sen’s idea of well-being freedom.

The realized functioning as such, gives no information about which opportunities were given

to choose from. This is how Sen argues for the importance of concentrating on people’s

capabilities and not functionings in evaluating life quality.

In general Sen’s idea of measuring the freedom to choose the life someone wants to live is

seen as an adequate indicator for life quality within the social sciences. Yet, the

multidimensionality of Sen’s theory and its openness to values, weights and kinds of

capabilities are difficult to translate into a practically usable method.

Nussbaum 2.2.2

Martha Nussbaum is the second main proponent of the CA. Her theory on how to use

capabilities as a measurement tool however, differs from Sen’s (NUSSBAUM 2000: XIII).

Individual Differencesphysical conditions, gender, age, interests,

location ...

+Resources, Liberties, Utilities

Freedoms /

Capabilities

Capability(well-being freedom)

Realized Functionings(well-being)

C O N V E R S I O N F A C T O R S


Page 18

Nussbaum develops her version of the capabilities approach – as she calls it – mostly in the

context of women’s rights. She thereby claims that the CAs understanding of human life is

twofold. There are certain capabilities (cf. table 1), which have to be possessed in order to live

a truly human life.

In doing so, she acts on the assumption that the core of rational and moral personhood is

something all human beings share, shaped though it may be in different ways by their

differing social circumstances (NUSSBAUM 1999 in GARRET 2008).

The main difference to Sen’s approach is Nussbaum’s attempt to give a list of capabilities. She

thereby opposes Sen’s method, by referring to a set of central capabilities that are cross-

culturally understood as essential to lead a truly humane and dignified life. However, she

emphasizes not giving a list of functionings, arguing that it would be paternalistic to do so,

while by giving a list of capabilities she can leave her approach more open for adaptation to

any cultural context. Nussbaum does not claim a completed theory of justice with her list, but

rather wants to provide a decent social minimum. Furthermore, the list elaborated is based

on long-time cross-cultural discussion, as Nussbaum states, and not on mere implicit

assumption (NUSSBAUM 2000: 74 et sqq.).

List of Central Human Functional Capabilities 1. Life Ability to live a human life of normal length. 2. Bodily Health Ability for good and reproductive health. 3. Bodily Integrity Ability to move around freely without being physically assaulted or

harassed. 4. Senses, Imagination,

and Thought Ability to use the senses, to imagine, think and reason.

5. Emotions Ability to feel attached to people or things, to grieve or love, to long or be angry.

6. Practical Reason Ability to form a conception of the good and critically reflect one’s life-planning.

7. Affiliation Ability to live socially, engage with others and care about them. Ability to to live in dignity with self-respect and not to be discriminated.

8. Other Species Ability to be concerned about the environment (animals, plants, nature). 9. Play Ability of laughing, playing and enjoyment of recreation.

10. Control over One’s Environment

A. Political: Ability to participate in political choice. B. Material: Ability to possess something.

Table 1: Own adaption of Nussbaum’s list of Central Human Functional Capabilities

(NUSSBAUM 2000: 78 et sqq.).

According to Nussbaum the list consists of separate components, meaning that the lack of

one capability cannot be adjusted through abundance of another. Even though she gives a

list, Nussbaum does not claim it to be complete and applicable to every situation, but it has to

be seen as proposal and to be tested against the background, before it is to be used.


Page 19

Moreover, the capabilities in her list are connected in a complex way. Thus, she names three

types of capabilities explaining the interrelatedness:

Basic capabilities are capabilities, which are prior to the possibility of gaining other

capabilities, e.g. being able to see, walk or speak.

Internal capabilities are capabilities that are gained with maturity, like sexual functioning,

the ability to love or to believe in a religious sort of way.

Combined capabilities are internal capabilities, which rely on external conditions

(political, social, etc.) to be able to exercise them, which is the type of capabilities her list

consists of (NUSSBAUM 2000: 80 et sqq.).

Nussbaum dedicates her list mainly to political purposes, in contrast to Sen’s version of the

CA. Moreover, according to Alkire, Nussbaum’s definition of capabilities differs from Sen’s,

since Nussbaum sees in them what people are actually able to do and be. Nussbaum argues

for the elaboration of a fixed list, stating that an approach like Sen’s is too open and might

lead to prioritizing wrong capabilities (ALKIRE 2005: 32, ALKIRE 2007).

Criticism and Amplifications for Practical Use 2.2.3

2.2.3.1 Alkire: How to select Capabilities that Matter

Sabina Alkire does not want to propose another version of the approach, but tries to gather

the existing theories to apply different ideas usefully to the context. Within the problematic

of choosing capabilities in practical research, she accords with Sen that it will not be possible

or even of interest to create one specific and universally-relevant set of domains. On the

contrary, she sees the CA as a coherent framework that can be applied in various ways,

depending on the context. Furthermore, Alkire points out Sen’s emphasis on giving priority to

those capabilities that people value and have reason to value, which is also a uniqueness of

the CA and does not chime with a fixed list (ALKIRE 2007: 10 et sqq.).

Besides Nussbaum’s list there have been elaborated several others, however, hers is most

prominent among all. Alkire does not in general neglect work with existing lists, although one

of her arguments shows the disadvantage and the inadequacy of a fixed list she relates to

small NGO projects – which is interesting in the ecosan context. The multidimensionality of

small NGOs, as she states, bares the particularity to be able to follow very individual requests.

Yet, small social projects, which thereby concentrate on building a sense of community or a

feeling of dignity, might not contribute to the elimination of poverty, health risks or many


Page 20

others on the basic capabilities lists. Nevertheless, they do contribute to better life quality

(ALKIRE 2005: 86)9.

For this matter Alkire presents five procedures (cf. table 2) to find adequate dimensions that

are used by researchers so far.10

How researchers select dimensions Existing Data or Convention To select dimensions (or capabilities) mostly because of convenience or

a convention that is taken to be authoritative, or because these are the only data available that have the required characteristics.

Assumptions To select dimensions based on implicit or explicit assumptions about what people do value or should value. These are commonly the informed guesses of the researcher; they may also draw on convention, social or psychological theory, philosophy, religion, and so on.

Public ‘Consensus’ To select dimensions that relate to a list that has achieved a degree of legitimacy due to public consensus. Examples of such lists at the international level are universal human rights, the MDGs, and the Sphere project; these will vary at the national and local levels.

On-going Deliberative Participatory Processes

To select dimensions on the basis of on-going purposive participatory exercises that periodically elicit the values and perspectives of stakeholders.

Empirical Evidence regarding people’s values

To select dimensions on the basis of expert analyses of people’s values based on empirical data on values, or data on consumer preferences and behaviours, or studies of which values are most conducive to mental health or social benefit.

Table 2: How researchers select dimensions, adapted from ALKIRE 2002b: 186.

2.2.3.2 Does the CA bare Utility for Practical Research?

Sen’s philosophical work has had undoubtedly a remarkable impact on welfare-economics

and policy-making in the development context. Nevertheless, the critique on its openness and

thereby inapplicability is manifold.

Des Gasper (2007) mentions that there does not exist one CA, but several, which makes the

usage and comparability of studies based on the CA difficult (GASPER 2007: 335 et sqq.).

Robeyns (2003) adds that this is also why it is called the capability approach and not a theory,

because so far there is no elaborated and complete normative framework (ROBEYNS 2003:

64).

As already pointed out by Enssle (2010) and Lienert (2011), Alkire asks for at least a specific

tool and procedure to define capabilities, whilst Qizilbash (Qizilbash 2009 in Lienert 2011) in

line with Nussbaum adds that the approach is not complete since it does not rule out ‘bad’

9 This should be kept in mind for the present study, even though an elaboration of suitable basic capabilities – in order to offer theoretical background to the evaluation-framework for the interviews – will still be necessary. 10 These have been taken over by Enssle (2010) as method for operationalization.


Page 21

functionings (LIENERT 2011: 29 et seqq.). Alkire along with Robeyns would make the CA even

more liberal by not concentrating on the reason to value aspect but merely on capabilities

that people value (ALKIRE 2002b: 11 et sqq.) or simply want (ROBEYNS 2011). On the other

hand Gasper (2007) gives cause to concern, pointing out that letting people choose the

capabilities they value (and have reason to value), their capability in the sense of agency –

meaning capacity and skills to think and act – is already implied (GASPER 2007: 337 et seqq.).

Eventually, Comim (2001) points out the argument of several critiques of Sen’s CA, that the

multidimensional-context-dependent-counterfactual-normative nature of this approach might

prevent it from having practical and operational significance (COMIM 2001: 2). In his attempt

to contribute to the usability of the CA he states that the operationalization of the CA faces a

variety of difficulties, based on its unproportional openness as well as its unspecific theory.

Nevertheless, he expects the CA to be able to provide fruitful philosophical incursion into

development ethics (COMIM 2001: 2) and claims that the main contribution of capabilities

within quality of life assessment consists in broadening the informational space (COMIM

2001: 4), rather than providing a substantial theory about it (COMIM 2001: 2 et sqq.).

Sen is aware that the application of his approach in practical research raises many difficulties

and that vagueness constitutes a problem to interpretation and policy making. Therefore, Sen

acknowledges that the approach must nevertheless be practical in the sense of being usable

for actual assessment of the living standard (SEN 1987: 29). Yet, he believes that, in social

investigation and measurement, it is undoubtedly more important to be vaguely right than to

be precisely wrong (SEN in FUKUDA-PARR et al. 2003: 45).

Sen’s Freedoms as the New Indicator for Well-Being 2.2.4

Gasper finally tries to embed Sen’s CA into a model of well-being. His contention with this

matter shall help to position the CA within quality of life science.

In his article What is the CA? Gasper (2007) tries to position the rationale of the CA between

the definitions of subjective and objective well-being. In general he questions the priority

given to the measurement of freedoms, compared to measuring inputs (economic or other),

outputs (material or social indicators) or satisfaction. In this manner Gasper refers to

Qizilbash (1997 in GASPER 2007: 337), who sees effective freedoms depending on personal

efforts and therefore cannot be claimed against others. This gives reason for an open debate

on whether capabilities are to be given normative priority or if they are only another category


Page 22

holding normative relevance. Practically however, Gasper (2007) states that capabilities are

given normative priority.

Figure 5: Sen’s addition of attention to potential outcomes (GASPER 2007: 338).

Input and output parameters without freedoms:

Objective Well-being (OWB) is shown through non-sensitive functionings and

achievements that are important and valued, e.g. health, security, education etc.

(outcome parameter).

Subjective Well-being (SWB) is indicated by feelings of satisfaction, happiness and

fulfilment (outcome parameter).

Economic Inputs to be-ing are seen to be income and possession (input parameter)

(GASPER 2007: 338).

The graph shows the relationship between objective, subjective and economic indicators

expanded through the freedoms indicator, which the CA gives priority to. How are these

parameters seen in the perspective of the CA?

Freedoms are considered a normative value and valuable indicator for well-being. Well-being

freedoms are dependent on economic and other inputs, which influence the objective and

subjective well-being of an individual. Therefore the inputs contribute to the potential of

achieving objective functionings. However, they neither guarantee the achievement of

functionings (OWB) nor the achievement of happiness or satisfaction (SWB). Consequently

freedoms are seen to be the indicator of prior interest.

Within the terminology of well-being, freedoms are no OWB indicators, but OWB influences

the potential of enhancing freedoms. Neither do freedoms belong to SWB indicators, since


Page 23

they do not rely solely on feelings of happiness and satisfaction (GASPER 2007: 335 et sqq.).

Subjective and objective well-being however, both have considerable relevance for the

concerns of a society and thereby also for their values (DIENER and SUH 1997: 191).

Moreover, when giving only priority to individually valued freedoms, one certain freedom,

namely agency freedom (having the capacity to act, think and decide for oneself in the best

way) is implied already, as it has already been mentioned (GASPER 1997, SEN 1999, SEN in

FUKUDA-PARR et al 2003: 16).

Conclusion and Gained Assumptions of Subchapter 2.2

Theoretical drawbacks and how to deal with them – The CA is not only lacking in its

operationalization to be used for empirical research but is also criticized for not providing a

complete theoretical normative framework. Considering the richness of theoretical

arguments in this debate, practical use faces difficulty and is so far not wide spread.

Acknowledging this state of research the conducted study is an explorative investigation,

entering the empirical research field in using the CA, in order to broaden the informational

space (cf. COMIM 2001) for reflecting on CA theory and operationalization methods.

Theoretical ambiguity might at this point give reason for further discussion on how

capabilities should be defined or used. This however, would exceed the frame of this study,

therefore the presentation of the CA and its critique is assumed to be sufficient theory input

for further research.

Operationalization of the CA in this study – A capability is measured as freedoms within

valued life domains within this study. This is considered to be an adequate approach for

gaining information on life quality development through an intervention. On the downside,

the used indicator is hypothetical, which cannot be observed directly and therefore faces high

challenges in its evaluation. Furthermore, freedoms are considered the prior but not the only

indicator (cf. GASPER 2001). These two points lead the researcher to consider a combination

of different indicators appropriate for gaining information on enhanced freedoms. The

chosen method to do so is presented in chapter 4.2.

Why take participation into consideration? – There exists no consensus on how far the

freedom to choose goes and whether there are preconditions for the ability to choose freely

(e.g. agency freedom). Moving forward in this question, participation within development

intervention has been chosen as the second research field in this thesis, also tested on ecosan

interventions. The theoretical basis for this second research question is given in chapter 2.3.


Page 24

Participation Theory 2.3

Participation is mentioned in sustainability theories in many ways and aspects and has been

acknowledged as considerable in practical ecosan implementation11 (cf. KAR and CHAMBERS

2008, LUETHI et al. 2011). In a first attempt to work out a framework for testing

implementation, sustainability criteria have been considered. However, it is acknowledged by

the researcher that there exists a theoretical gap in literature concerning the relevance of

participation and acceptance in creating SD. Even though participation has been addressed in

literature on the governance level, theory on characteristics of participation on an individual

level has been neglected so far. Therefore, underpinned by the Master’s thesis of Jeannine

Geiser (2012), who investigated participation supported through governance in combination

with SD, the theory of endogenous development (4.3.1) is used as input for framework-

development.

Participation, Acceptance and Sustainability 2.3.1

Even though SD theories do not engage theories on participation, they do mention the

importance of it within development. Thus, considerable reasons for choosing participation as

a substantial factor for SD can be found in sustainability theories.

2.3.1.1 Theoretical Appendage

For one, the Bellagio Principles12 hold the topic of engagement via suggesting effective

communication of SD, as the quoted principle 7 shows.

Principle 7: Effective Communication Assessment of progress toward sustainable development should:

- be designed to address the needs of the audience and set of users - draw from indicators and other tools that are stimulating and serve to engage

decision-makers - aim, from the outset, for simplicity of structure and use of clear and plain language

(HARDI and ZDAN 1997: 20)

11 Recently particpatory approaches for ecosan implementation have been developed repeatedly (cf. KAR and CHAMBERS 2008, LUETHI 2011). 12 Principles elaborated out of the call for sustainability assessment, in Bellagio (Italy) (cf. HARDI and ZDAN 1997: 20).


Page 25

Moreover, the prism of sustainability from Spangenberg (2002) demonstrates among the

three usual dimensions of SD a fourth one, namely the institutional dimension, including

participation as one connecting point to the other dimension.

Kopfmüller (2006) states that none of the presented dimensions should be neglected in any

way, since they are all tightly bound together and interrelated with each other in any context

(KOPFMÜLLER 2006). At the same time Spangenberg contends that specific criteria on the

institutional level, which has only been introduced to the concept by the CSD13 in 1995, are

still missing (SPANGENBERG 2002: 296 et seqq.).

This amplification of the conceptual design targets participation as democracy within

governance, the attempt of the second research question however, is to enter the

importance of an even more basic sort of participation. It is the idea that development must

evolve endogenously (at least partially) in order to have the ability to become sustainable.

Kopfmüller et al. (2001) mention participation in a broader sense14, relating to informal

engagement of citizens, active contribution and civil society. Additionally the integrative

approach to SD is committed to sustaining cultural diversity (KOPFMÜLLER et al. 2001: 251 et

sqq.). Furthermore, the authors cater to the steering-function as an aspect of sustainability

operationalization. It is argued that top down steering is not very effective, due to the

complexity of today’s society, where wished outcomes cannot be easily triggered by top 13 The UNDPCSD is the United Nations Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development. 14 Participation in the broader sense is one out of two forms of participation, the other being participation in the stricter sense, e.g. civil liberty or electoral law.

Economic dimension

Ecological dimension

Social dimension

Institutional dimension

PARTICIPATION

Figure 6: Prism of Sustainability, adapted from VALENTIN/SPANGENBERG 2000 in KOPFMÜLLER 2006: 87.


Page 26

down governing or at least only in a very limited way. This would not apply to a continuous

interactive SD. Hence, an enhancement of self-organization is suggested to be able to

combine parameters and build up an own interconnected system, whilst top-down

organization can only linearly arouse single actions (KOPFMÜLLER et al. 2001: 307 et seqq.).

This comes already close to the perception that population’s engagement into development

action, is a requirement for SD. Nevertheless, sustainability criteria are hardly found upon this

matter. Consequently, the elaboration of a framework has to be moved to the usage of

endogenous development theory.

Endogenous Development 2.3.2

Endogenous development is based on local peoples’ own criteria for change and their vision

for well-being based on the material, social and spiritual aspects of their livelihoods but in a

constant and dynamic interface with external actors and the world around them.

Endogenous Development means ‘growing from within’.

(COMPAS 2013)

Endogenous Development (ED) itself is not an approach for how to conduct development

interventions from outside the community, rather its main character is specifically that

development decisions and actions come from within. Nevertheless, external knowledge and

interventions can support the ED of a society, group or institution. It has been argued that

Endogenous Development is not the same as Participatory Development, since the former is

already existent in any kind of society, whilst the latter is defined to be an approach for

project implementation (COMPAS 2013).

This, however, can be considered insignificant for the conducted case study. ED in the present

context is of main interest in showing the aspects and indicators for a development that

arises from within. These indicators are assumed to also be useful for evaluating participation

and beneficiaries’ incorporation in external indicated development interventions. It is

supposed, that matching elements of ED indicate sustainability in the sense of ownership and

participation.

However, since ED is not an approach for development, an evaluation must rely on

descriptive aspects of ED.


Page 27

For this purpose Geiser (2012) uses in her thesis criteria describing ED, derived from various

theoretical contributions in this field:

Choice and Control: Choice and control remain in the power of locals, decision-making is

deeply rooted within the community and decisions are based on local needs.

Culture and Knowledge: Development strongly relies on local knowledge and practice,

intercultural dialog is needed to integrate external knowledge into the community in the

way that it is accepted and taken over.

Leadership: Development is triggered by local leaders, driving forces are coming from

within the community and external agencies are a supportive force.

Economy: The development strengthens local economy, supports economic development

adequate to the local context (GEISER 2012: 33 et sqq.).

These characteristics are taken over for the present study. Moreover, they have to be

translated for fitting the context of school sanitation and three further principles to support

ED – as declared by Compas (2007) – will be added to the framework, since those are

assumed by the author to fit especially the educational environment of schools.

Three additional aspects for Endogenous Development are derived from literature and case

studies:

Learning Dynamics & Use of External Resources (support principle): Local problem

solving opportunities shall be considered first and the process of learning and solution

finding should come out of the local community. External knowledge and process

handling is taken into account carefully and evaluated on the background of, what can be

learned by external experiences. External teachers are appointed if necessary, their

approaches however shall be combined with local teaching methods (COMPAS 2007: 15

et sqq.).

Informal education supporting local culture (recommended support): Pride in the culture

is enforced and traditional professions are promoted. Traditional practices, sciences and

methods are taught. Local experts are the source of information (COMPAS 2007: 10).

Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals (support principle and case study practice):

Cultural, local rituals or habits can be used to integrate new knowledge into the

community. Organising contests with schoolchildren is an example for internal awareness

raising (older children teach younger, children teach parents). New projects are

embedded into existing structures and activities (COMPAS 2007: 20 et sqq.).


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School Sanitation 2.3.3

Since the second research question concerns participation in school projects (cf. 4.3) and

participation in the school context is lacking theoretical attention in literature, the researcher

finds it adequate to include outcomes of case studies on this topic, in order to not ignore the

relevance of this aspect. Therefore, a last paragraph in this chapter gives insight to

considerable criteria concerning sanitation in the school environment, as to finally match the

chosen ED characteristics with the school context and define them as indicators (see chapter

4.3).

Scanning evaluation reports on school sanitation in developing countries, the following three

topics are repeatedly stressed as distinguished key elements for successful and sustainable

implementation of school sanitation:

Ownership & Responsibility: The current draw-backs of school sanitation are in many

cases found to be strongly linked to lack of ownership and supervision. Ownership in the

public context of schools is very different from ownership in households. New students

have to get familiarize themselves with the school ecosan. Therefore ownership needs to

be based on one person/teacher taking the main responsibility for everything concerning

ecosan and sanitation and hygiene education. Moreover ownership has to be approached

holistically in the school context, signifying the project becomes part of everyday life, so

that pupils, teachers and even parents feel ownership towards ecosan as they do towards

the school itself. This requires a personal interest, willingness to participate and

commitment from the outset (IRC 2004: 27 et sqq., WHO 2009: 13 et sqq.).

Education & Embedment: It is seen that most successful ecosan school projects make

ecosan not merely a project but integrate it into the whole education curriculum. Ecosan

topics can be touched on in several school subjects and interrelate to other school

projects. In order to implement ecosan toilets sustainably, teachers – who are important

role models – must also use it and believe in it. Ecosan should become a general topic in

every day school-life (IRC 2004: 27 et sqq., WHO 2009: 13 et sqq.).

Stressing the interconnectedness between sanitation & general well-being: Finally,

sanitation is often not given priority when schools are confronted with little financial

means and high poverty levels of their students or where other problems seem more

pressing. For this reason the strong interconnectedness between safe sanitation and the


Page 29

possibility of education, as well as health and food security, must be very clear and valued

by the school administration (IRC 2004: 19).

Conclusion and Gained Assumptions of Subchapter 2.3

Participation and bottom-up initiatives are undoubtedly seen as success factors in

sustainability as well as in development theories. Moreover, recent development of

implementation approaches for ecosan indicates an increasing attention to creating

ownership, after evaluations of ecosan projects have detected lack of participation as a main

reason for project failure.

Nevertheless, SD does not offer an indicator framework for individual participation. Thus, ED

is assumed to provide an adequate theory for the development of participation indicators in

this context. However, to integrate these aspects (known to indicate ED) into the school

context, evaluation outcomes of ecosan schools show the most pressing points concerning

ecosan implementation in schools. Using these inputs, an indicator framework for the

development and evaluation of interviews has been elaborated and is to be found in

subchapter 4.3.

3 Case Study Background: The Philippines and Ecological Sanitation

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The following chapter provides basic information on the Philippines and the countries

sanitation and water situation as well as an overview of the ecosan technology. This

background information provides an insight to the case study context and shows the

theoretical capacity of ecosan to enhance life quality in the Philippines.

Philippine Context 3.1.1

The Philippines are an archipelago, formed out of 7.107 islands – of which around 800 are

inhabited – in the western Pacific Ocean, belonging to South-East-Asia.

Even though the country is rich in human and natural resources and known as the eldest

democracy in Asia, it is facing several problems. Corruption, little state-security and an

underdeveloped domestic market, are leading to a high level of poverty and health as well as

to social hazards (REESE 2006: 17 et seqq.).

The following chapter concentrates mainly on the Philippines in consideration to water-

supply, water-quality and sanitation situations linked to poverty, social drawbacks and the

role of agriculture as source of income. This information shows the link between ecosan and a

life quality study under the aspect of the CA.

3.1.1.1 Growth and Distribution

The Philippines by now have an estimated population of 94 million inhabitants, which is

growing rapidly at a rate of 1,8% (CIA 2013) every year and the country ranks 114th in the

Human Development Index (UNDP 2013). In 2005 27.9% of the Philippine population were

living in absolute poverty and according to the Annual Poverty Indicators Survey 2004, 18.7%

of all families were dependent on the children’s income (REESE et al. 2004: 54 et sqq.).

The unemployment rate was 7.2% in 2012 (TRADING ECONOMICS 2013). More than one third

of all Filipinos are living on farming, yet the agricultural sector only accounts for 5% of the

GDP. Consequently most of the working-poor15 are located in rural areas. The feudalistic

structure of the Philippine agricultural sector, where 2% of the population own more than

36% of the land as well as the government’s interest in gaining from high export rates results

in a disadvantageous situation for small scale farmers (REESE et al. 2004: 97 et sqq.). Finally

15 Working poor = People unable to finance their living costs with their salary.


Page 31

the agricultural sector is on the one hand contributing to declining water availability and on

the other dependent on high water supply, since more than 80% of water usage is duet to

agricultural irrigation (CONCEPCION 2004).

3.1.1.2 Water Resources and Water Quality

A report on strengthening water support regulations in the Philippines calls the country’s

water resources a paradox of abundance and scarcity. The country holds 421 major river

basins, 61 major lakes, additionally many streams and 119 known watersheds. Its

groundwater reservoirs can supply 833 million cubic meters of water each day (PWRF-SP

2008: 6 et sqq.). The Philippine’s water demand is less than one third of its fresh water basins.

If all these sources would recover continuously, fresh water resources would be more than

abundant. However, environmental shortcomings determined a contamination of 58% of all

drinking water by coliform and only 36% of streaming waters can be assumed potable water

(REESE et al. 2004: 193). This can be related back to the untreated discharge of the bulk of

wastewater. The Pasig River, which passes through Metro Manila, is regarded as one of the

most polluted rivers worldwide (WB 2005). Furthermore, a big part of the population –

especially in rural areas – lacks access to sanitation facilities and potable water. Related to

enhanced urbanization, the largest cities are expected to face tremendous water scarcities by

2025, due to the Philippine’s fast population growth (PWRF-SP 2008: 6 et sqq.). Finally,

insufficient water supply and treatment results in a tremendous use of groundwater by

industries, leading to continued abatement of the groundwater level and thereby to

salinization of the same (REESE et al. 2004: 194).

3.1.1.3 Water and Sanitation Supply

The high level of water pollution is a result of untreated wastewater discharge and a cause of

lacking drinking water supply. Which progress did the country make in providing its

population with adequate water sources and sanitation facilities?

In terms of lacking access to improved sanitation facilities, Filipinos living in rural areas are

affected strongest. It is estimated that daily around ten million Filipinos have to practice open

defecation (DOH 2010: 26 et sqq.). However, considerable improvement in the sanitation

sector in the past decades has to be acknowledged. As the 2010 Update Report of the Joint

Monitoring Program of the World Health Organization states, the Philippines are considered

to be on track with meeting the MDGs in respect to water and sanitation supply. Yet, it has to


Page 32

be considered that in regard to the Philippines population growth the actual amount of

people not being able to have proper sanitation is still not decreasing (JEREMIAS 2011: 2).

The following table shows the coverage of access to improved sanitation in the Philippines for

the years 1990 and 2008.

Indicator Total Urban Rural 1990 2008 1990 2008 1990 2008

Population (thousands) 62,427 90,348 30,450 58,699 31,978 31,649 Proportion of population served with sanitary types of facilities (not shared) %

58 76 70 80 46 69

Proportion of population served with sanitary types of facilities (shared) %

11 15 14 16 9 14

population not served with sanitary types of facilities % a) Served with unsanitary facilities % b) Open defecation %

31

9 16 4 45 17

15 1 8 0 22 3

16 8 8 4 23 14

Table 3: Sanitation Coverage 1990 and 2008 in the Philippines, adapted from DOH 2010: 26

Even though that the supply of sanitation has increased, wastewater disposal is not shown in

the presented data. A study from WRPO and UNICEF estimated in 2006 that 98% of Filipinos

are not supplied with any treatment for their disposed wastewater (ACCAD 2008: 21).

This leads to a last indicator within unsatisfying water and sanitation management in the

Philippines.

3.1.1.4 Wastewater Discharge and Regulation of Water and Sanitation

The Philippine’s problems in water quality and potable fresh water accessibility are related to

its shortcomings within water and sanitation supply and discharge systems. The absence of a

clear national regulating framework in this sector, combined with high poverty levels –

especially in water scarce areas – have led to the current situation. Nowadays less than 10%

are connected to a sewage system and most flush toilets work with a septic tank (DOH 2010:

28). However, since most of the septic tanks are not desludged – or if they are, in an unsafe

way – most of the wastewater goes into open water bodies. Moreover, frequent flooding

tends to wash out the septic tanks, contaminating the living area as well as its water

resources (SAYRE 2011). Even though the percentage of the population with access to potable

water and improved sanitation facilities has increased in the last two decades, the absolute

number of people lacking these services is still growing (JEREMIAS 2011).

As it can be seen, the problematic of Philippine’s water and sanitation sector is quite complex

and many interrelating factors are responsible for insufficient coverage. After having

demonstrated some figures concerning water supply, improved sanitation and sewerage


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supply in relation to the country’s water resources, some information on the water-

management and people’s livelihood shall be given.

3.1.1.5 Management Drawbacks of the Philippines Water Sector

Inadequate performance in the water sector has been a debated topic in the Philippines for

20 years. The country’s trouble with handling it is often drawn back to the rapid population

growth and urbanization. Whilst cities do not have satisfying drainage systems, city planning

turns out to be difficult, due to rapid expanding and low investment (ADB 2008: 124 et sqq.).

The World Bank reported in 2003, that more than 30 agencies are involved in managing water

resources in the Philippines (WB 2003: 22 p). Institutional responsibility concerning water and

sanitation management is very fragmented and overlapping. This, however, has already been

recognized by the Philippine government in the 1990s, when two suggestions were made to

create one single economic body to regulate the water sector. The Water Regulatory

Commission (WRC from 1996) and the Water Resource Authority of the Philippines (WARP

from 1997) were meant to strengthen the regulatory framework. Yet, they have not yet

succeeded with diminishing the complexity of the regulatory framework, given that their

responsibilities are overlapping and not stated clearly (ACCAD et al. 2008: 22 et sqq.).

Nevertheless, the Clean Water Act of 2004 and the Philippine Water Supply Sector Roadmap,

which started to be elaborated by the Philippine Government in cooperation with the GTZ in

2007, as well as the Philippine Sustainable Sanitation Roadmap, prepared by the Philippines

Department of Health in 2010, indicate the Philippine’s intention to get the water and

sanitation sector under control (ACCAD et al. 2008, DOH 2010, REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

2004).

3.1.1.6 Related Health Risks

Discharge of untreated wastewater results in the spread of bacteria, causing waterborne

diseases, including hepatitis A, cholera, typhoid, dysentery, gastro-enteritis and mainly

diarrhoea. The latter is considered to be the second cause concerning infant mortality and the

fifth concerning adult mortality, while being a preventable disease. An estimated 20,000

deaths yearly in the Philippines are drawn back to poor sanitation (WSP-EAP 2008 in GENSCH

et al. 2010: 2). By affecting the environment and people’s health, the sanitation problem in

the Philippines also incurs considerable economic loss. Therefore, water is considered one of

the most pressing future problems in the Philippines, affection various domains of people’s

lives (FRÜH 2003).


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3.1.1.7 Filipino Value System

Since the present is a social-science study, based on life quality enhancement according to

what people value, a concluding paragraph in this chapter gives a short insight into the

Philippine’s cultural aspects. It should be kept in mind that the Philippines are known to

inherent a fairly strong social value system.

As Gorospe states in his chapter on Understanding the Filipino Value System, Filipino values

are not different from other peoples’ values, the ranking of the values, however, makes

understanding cultural differences clearer. According to Gorospe it has been only recently

that Filipino values have started to encompass awareness on overpopulation, environmental

pollution and human rights (GOROSPE in DY 1994: 55 et sqq.). The value system in the

Philippines is strongly influenced by religious faith and trust in god as well as respect for

authorities and family centeredness. Their values are mainly based on living in harmony and

being part of a group, thereby objective opinions and what other people might say or think

are very important.

Some important mentality aspects shall be introduced in the following:

Faith and Religion: Filipinos tend to have a deep every-day relation to religion and a very

basic trust in god. It is seen in their acceptance towards failure and tragedy and a

generally high optimism. This however can lead to a tendency of accepting situations in a

way that a lack of searching for possible solutions exists (LICUANAN in DY 1994: 33).

Amor propio means self-esteem or sensitivity to personal affront. It is strongly bound to

social acceptance and the wish of belonging to a group (VIRGLIO 1986: 8).

Utang na loob means indebtedness or gratitude. Following the principle of one hand

washes the other, when a Filipino has benefited from someone else, he/she feels in debt

to this person and will do anything to please the person. Therefore, favours have to be

repaid, but mutual services can be counted on (QUITO in DY 1994: 53).

Hiya means shame or sense of propriety, also shyness or being timid. There exists a

strong sense of feeling ashamed, which however only exists in direct interactions with

people. The shame can only be there, when someone can see and judge the actions that

one is ashamed of (BULATAO 1964).

This of course is just a very short introduction to the Filipino value system. It shows however,

the differences that can already be seen in contrast to European values. Especially the high

importance of social acceptance and the strong bond towards religious and family authorities


Page 35

gives the impression of the importance of society in the individual’s life and behaviour.

Nevertheless, as an overall evaluation of Filipino values would exceed the frame for this

thesis, this short insight on the value system is assumed to be sufficient. It points out main

cultural differences, especially concerning peoples’ values, allowing for critical reflection of

the study results.

Ecological Sanitation 3.1.2

Sanitation in general is understood as the means of collecting and disposing of excreta and

community liquid waste in a hygienic way so as not to endanger the health of individuals or

the community as a whole (COTTON and SAYWELL 1998 in IRC 2007: 6). Ecological Sanitation,

mainly known as ecosan, constitutes a paradigm-shift in sanitation, water services and

treatment. Ecosan systems make an effort to recycle valuable nutrients that are lost in the

conventional sanitation systems, thereby protecting water bodies from contamination and

facilitating food security (SCHÖPE et al. 2009). In many ways these systems can contribute to

improving life-conditions of families not being provided with proper sanitation, and safe

water access so far.

3.1.2.1 Ecosan Definition

Ecosan is a general term for various toilet systems finding adequate and financially viable

ways of disposing human waste in a safe and sustainable matter. It defines a new category of

sanitation systems between flush-and-discharge and drop-and-store (e.g. pit latrines) models

(SIDA 1998: 2 et sqq.).

Flush toilets produce between 10,000 and 20,000 litres of wastewater per person in a year,

being dependent on reliable water supply and wastewater treatment facilities. Moreover, the

nutrients contained in human waste are lost in the agricultural cycle – while having to be

replaced through synthetic fertilizer – and at the same time can cause damage to water

bodies through eutrophication16. Therefore the conventional sanitation approach is firstly

considered to be linear and not sustainable, secondly it requires much higher financial and

resource input.

In contrast ecosan are dry-toilet systems, which consider human excreta as a resource by

storing it safely and treating it properly in order to eliminate pathogens as well as to recycle

16 Eutrophication = An overflow of nutrients (mainly phosphates and nitrates) in a water body, leading to more algae growth and thereby to depletion of oxygen in the water (which is needed by the algae) (LAWRENCE 1998).


Page 36

the nutrients (PUVeP 2008: 86 et sqq.). Thus, ecosan is considered a closing-the-loop

technology compared to conventional flush toilets, as shown in picture 2.

Ecosan thereby enables decentralized sanitation, for people without sufficient water access

or wastewater treatment facilities as well as limited financial resources, who so far have not

been able to have sanitation at all or only in an unsafe way. The approach is also known as

sanitize-and-recycle and contributes to environmental as well as to health protection and

even allows for economic benefits by making human extra usable as fertilizer. It thereby

avoids unsafe sanitation like pits contaminating groundwater, open defecation or unsanitary

discharge of wastewater (SIDA 1998: 61).

The variety of toilet types belonging to ecosan is broad and beyond the goals of making

sanitation safer and more affordable for everyone, as well as enhancing sustainability in this

matter, their concepts and functionalities can be quite different. This, however, is neither the

topic of this thesis, nor is it of special interest in the conducted study. For this reason and

since all of the visited toilets within this research were Urine-Diverting Dehydration Toilets

(UDDTs), only the latter will be explained in more detail.

In the present thesis the term ecosan is used as an umbrella term for ecological sanitation

toilet, which in this study is always equal to Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilet.

Picture 1: Conventional sanitation approaches (CONRADIN 2010). Idealised water and nutrient loop (SEECON 2010).


Page 37

3.1.2.2 UDDTs

A Urine-Diverting Dehydration Toilet is a toilet where faecal matter and urine are diverted.

Urine goes into a container, while faeces are collected in a chamber, where they are dried

with supporting conditions of ventilation, heat and additional bulking material (GENSCH et al.

2010: 17 et sqq.).

Single vault UDDT – The UDD toilet is elevated to have space for urine and faeces storage in

the vault underneath the toilet. Faeces and urine have to be separated while defecating,

since they require different kinds of treatment and faecal matter has to be dehydrated for the

elimination of pathogens. Therefore, UDDTs require a special toilet bowl, that is departed

into two spaces in order to make separation while defecating possible. Whereas the urine

goes into a separate tank through a pipe, faeces drop into a sack, bucket or the vault, that is

emptied when full. The whole superstructure can be made out of different material

depending on availability and affordability (e.g. bamboo, nipa, concrete). Toilets out of

concrete can also contain a hand-washing as well as an anal-cleansing area within the toilet.

The toilet bowl itself is placed above a hole – leading to the vault – and can be made out of

ceramic or concrete (low-cost version). Some UDDTs also contain a separate men’s-urinal.

The following pictures show the toilets design and functioning.

After defecation, faeces have to be covered with ash from burned wood or carbonized rice-

hulls, so as to prevent bad odour and improve the treatment process. Single vault UDDTs

have to be emptied regularly and faeces storage and treatment has to be done in a separate

place.

Picture 2: Single vault UDDT from inside and diverting toilet bowl (ZECH 2011).

hole where faeces drop

hole for urine

ash to cover faeces

men’s urinal


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Double vault UDDT – The double vault UDDT has two holes in the floor, leading to two

different vaults. The toilet bowl is always situated on one of the holes, whilst the other is

covered with a lid. When the first vault fills up, toilet bowl and lid are exchanged and the

second vault can be filled. In the meantime excreta is stored and treated in the first vault until

it is safe to be used as fertilizer (GENSCH et al. 2010: 31).

Picture 4: Double vault UDDT (ZECH 2011).

Picture 3: Single vault UDDT from outside (WAFLER 2010). Urine tank from concrete built UDDT (ZECH 2011). Burned rice hulls for covering faeces (ZECH 2011).

bucket where faeces drop


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Storage, treatment and usage of urine – Urine is a liquid human product, consisting of 95%

water and is rich in the nutrients Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). Urine is

almost sterile and pathogen-free when diverged. Nevertheless, contamination with

pathogens is not excludable. Therefore, a storage time of two to three months is

recommended, in order to make it safe for fertilizer-usage. Storage increases the PH-level and

creates an environment in which pathogens cannot survive. After storage, the urine can be

used as fertilizer and delivers with N, P

and K some of the most essential

nutrients required by plants. Diluting

the urine with water reduces the odour

and helps to prevent over-application

(GENSCH et al. 2011).

Storage, treatment and usage of

faeces – Other than urine, faeces carry

a very high concentration of

pathogens. Therefore, the storage and

treatment of faeces is more critical and

has to be conducted carefully in order to assure safe reuse and avoid disease transmission.

Faeces have to be stored for at least twelve months, throughout which secondary treatments

like aerobic composting processes or vermicomposting processes take place. Afterwards it is

considered to be nutrient-rich compost, which is safe for use as fertilizer for agricultural

purposes. Nevertheless, it is recommended to use treated faeces not directly on vegetables

but rather to fertilize fruit-trees with it, for assuring an even more minimized health-risk as

well as to guarantee costumer acceptance (GENSCH et al. 2010).

3.1.2.3 Ecosan in the Philippines

Elmer V. Sayre – the in-house adviser of the WAND foundation17 – states, that more than 20

million Filipinos suffer from health problems and indignity caused by a lack of sanitation

facilities (SAYRE and SAYRE 2010). Implementing ecological sanitation to tackle these

challenges has been introduced into the Philippine context at the beginning of the new

millennium. Ever since, the construction of new toilets is evolving and new projects have

been started, all under the support of foreign donors (ECOSAN.PH 2010). 17 The Water Agro-Forestry Nutrition and Development Foundation (WAND), is one of the ecosan-projects visited in Mindanao.

Picture 5: Using dried faeces from a UDDT toilet (TILLEY et al. 2008).


Page 40

Ecosan was introduced to the Philippines by the Center for Advanced Philippine Studies (CAPS)

in 2004 within the implementation of the Integrated Support for Sustainable Urban

Environment (ISSUE) Programme. CAPS is an NGO working in the field of environmental

management research, mainly concerned with poverty related to waste and sanitation

management, which they identify as the most urgent problems in the Philippines. Since a first

ecosan project was launched in San Fernando City – which today includes more than 200

toilets – further projects have been initiated all over the Philippines. Most of them are NGO

initiatives (ECOSAN PHILIPPINES 2010).

Seeing that drainage and sewerage systems are not only rare in the Philippines but also not

always a feasible option in mountain or coastal areas, ecosan can provide a solution to

sanitation needs, human waste disposal and environmental contamination through excreta.

Additionally it is known as a low-cost sanitation solution (GENSCH 2010) and is therefore

much more economical than flush-toilet systems.

Ecosan projects in the Philippines are still small scale. However, progress and success-stories

are accreting in the last years. Research on ecosan in the Philippines, conducted by the

Philippines Xavier University shows that health risks were reduced and income was increased

for ecosan-owners, since they started growing vegetables and harvests were richer due to the

fertilizer (HOLMER et al. 2008, HOLMER 2009).

The case study in this thesis took three major project sites into consideration, namely

Bayawan City (Negros), Initao and Liberated in Misamis Oriental (Mindanao) and Cagayan de

Oro (Mindanao). These will be presented in more detail in subchapters 4.2.5 and 4.3.2.

4 Research Design

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4 Research Design

The following chapter presents the research methods used for the investigation of both

research questions and introduces the case study backgrounds. The operationalization

method of the CA for answering the first research question is taken over from the framework

elaborated by Enssle (2010) and amplified, whilst the development of participation indicators

is based on the theoretical background given in chapter 2.3.

Introduction to the Empirical Analysis 4.1

The first research question was carried out between 31st May and 26th June 2011.

Comparable to the studies of Enssle (2010), Lienert (2011) and Peters (2012), 38

questionnaires were filled out within a procedure of personal questioning. Thereby the

researcher and a Visayan18 translator acted as interviewers, in private households owning an

ecosan toilet (for minimum half a year). The ecosan beneficiaries interviewed, belonged

partly to an ecosan project on the island of Mindanao and partly to another project on the

island of Negros.

The second research question, concerning the role of participation in successful ecosan

implementation, was conducted in the context of school ecosan. This setting was chosen for

the purpose of evaluating a long-term completed project of ecosan implementations in

schools that are generally known for no longer being in use (through word of mouth). The

Sustainable Sanitation Centre of Xavier University, which had realized the project and handed

over the toilets in 2005, wanted to find out the reasons for ecosan school projects’ failure or

success (GENSCH 2011).

In the time between the 4th and 14th of July 2011, seven ecosan schools served as evaluation

examples, five of which belong to the Periurban Vegetable Project (PUVeP) of Xavier

University, and two belonging to the WAND foundation’s (cf. 4.2.5) ecosan implementations.

In each school, two teachers as well as three pupils were interviewed, based on two different

questionnaires (Appendix VI and VII). Subsequently, 34 questionnaires provide information on

the researched participation indicators presented in subchapter 4.3.1. Questionnaires were

slightly adapted after first trial interviews.

18 Visayan = The philippine language spoken on the islands of Mindanao and Negros.

4 Research Design

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Research Method and Case Study Introduction – Research Question I 4.2

The main difference of this study to other research using the CA methodologically consists

therein that the approach does not have to fulfil the requirements of measuring welfare as

such. Here it aims at finding what people value in the ecosan technology and whether and/or

how ecosan interventions enhanced their quality of life in terms of capabilities.

Explorative Research 4.2.1

Investigation of capabilities appreciated and valued by a society asks for exploratory research,

which is why Enssle chose a qualitative method over a quantitative. Furthermore, the

advantage of an explorative study is to reveal unexpected information rather than testing on

implied capabilities. Thereby the context relatedness is taken into account. Last but not least

the state of the art research in using CA as a methodological tool is still lacking and, as already

discussed, there is no existent universal list that is agreed upon. Therefore, in order to

conduct comparable research and further elaboration, explorative investigation is necessary

for contributing to the scientific problem of using capabilities in evaluation (ENSSLE 2010: 40).

Operationalization for Capability Research 4.2.2

The used methodology for answering the first research question will now be explained in

short. All referring tables and documents are found in the Appendix. Due to lack of

capabilities research in using this specific method, the knowledge-basis is the theory on

capabilities discussed in the previous chapter as well as the already conducted master’s

theses mentioned in the beginning. Therefore, the here developed method is a result of these

sources plus further assumptions made by the researcher. Enssle’s (2010) operationalization

method for defining valuable capabilities in the ecosan-context contains three steps.

4.2.2.1 The Three Steps

Three steps have been taken by Enssle, leading from finding suitable capability dimensions

that are valued in the investigated context through literature research, to further consolidate

these dimensions and to finally elaborate an adequate interview framework that will reveal

generated capabilities.

1st Step – topics-to-cover-list – The first step consists of the five methods to find dimensions

mentioned by Alkire (2002b; cf. table 2), that are used as a theoretical basis for constructing a

topics-to-cover-list: Concerning number I. Existing Data or Convention and number III. Public

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Consensus, Enssle relies on the capabilities lists given by Sen, Nussbaum, Narayan et al. and

the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Index, considering them to meet consensus on an

international level. Point II. Assumptions are made based on existing literature dealing with

ecosan research and evaluation. As far as point IV. Ongoing Deliberative Participatory

Processes is concerned, Enssle argues that there would be no information available, since

hers is a pilot-study using this method. The present study however, works with the outcome

of Enssle, Lienert and Peters in this field. Moreover, the finding of capabilities through

interviews is perceived as a participatory process. Finally, V. Empirical evidence regarding

people’s values is drawn from empirical sanitation research (ENSSLE 2010: 43 et seqq.).

2nd Step – questionnaire – In the following step a filtering of the topics-to-cover-list is

intended. This is achieved by explorative expert interviews, providing information on

contextual and regional features within the research. As a result, dimensions are defined

more concretely and a semi-standardized-questionnaire for ecosan-users is elaborated

(ENSSLE 2010: 43 et seqq.).

3rd Step – user interviews, finding generated capabilities – This final step represents the

heart of this study. Whilst the first two steps are necessary to construct a coherent interview-

guideline, based on a normative framework, ecosan-user-interviews are used to answer the

first research-question: Which individual capabilities are generated by ecosan in the Philippine

context? In respect to the methodological difficulties capability research represents,

functionings and capabilities are not separated but rather considered as one investigation-

object. Furthermore, the questionnaires intend to mainly concentrate on open questioning in

order to reveal the valuable functionings and capabilities that are considered in the research

areas by having ecosan (ENSSLE 2010: 43 et seqq.).

Adaptation of the Operationalization 4.2.3

Concerning the method used by Enssle the researcher holds that there are two aspects to be

rethought and adapted.

First, since the inquiry is mainly based on open questioning – in order to reveal new and

unexpected results – the topics to cover list in the present study is used for the evaluation of

the questionnaire, rather than its development. The questionnaire itself is developed based

on the previous questionnaires, including information from expert interviews and cultural

background.

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Second, as mentioned in the 3rd step, functionings and capabilities have not been separated

in the studies before, due to methodological difficulties. This however shall be changed in the

present study, since the evaluation of capabilities rather than functionings is precisely the

main aspect of the CA. Therefore, the topics-to-cover-list serves as a list of capability

dimensions/domains of life that are valued by the population in question and are known to

be connected to ecosan or sanitation in general. Subsequently, the evaluated functionings are

subordinated to certain domains, indicating the enhancement of freedoms within this

domain.

Consequently, the new steps for this research are:

(1) Review of drives lists and questions of the forgoing studies (Appendix I).

(2) Expert interviews, from experts of the investigated projects in the Philippines (Appendix

II).

(3) Construction of a topics-to-cover-list and the final questionnaire: Enssle’s initial topics-to-

cover-list I, which she developed through literature-research, was taken and combined with

the three ecosan-drives lists elaborated in the forgoing studies. In the following those topics

were filtered through information gained from the expert-interviews and literature research

on Philippine culture.

(4) Realisation of the inquiry (Appendix IV).

(5) Evaluation through the topics-to-cover-list and assignment of functionings to valuable life-

domains (Appendix III).

Since step (5) has been worked out differently compared to the previous studies, its new

methodology and argumentation will be explained in the following.

4.2.3.1 Valued Capabilities Dimensions / Domains of Life

In order to further evolve the practical use of the CA within assessing the development of life

quality, the final assignment of interviewees’ answers to assumed capabilities requires

advanced elaboration in this matter. So far most detected valued functionings of ecosan have

been translated into capabilities by simple paraphrasing (cf. table 4).

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ecosan valuable functioning implied capability Having fertilizer available Achieving status Being infrastructural independent to maintain the toilet by oneself

Being able to produce own fertilizer Being able to achieve status Being able to maintain and run the toilet by oneself

Table 4: Example of ecosan valuable functionings and implied capabilities, adapted from LIENERT 2011: 62.

Here a conflict arises, also stressed by Sen by making it the CA’s outstanding characteristic

that ends instead of means have to be of central interest when referring to peoples’

freedoms and life quality. Capabilities or valuable freedoms thereby usually encompass more

than one functioning and can also be reached through different functionings (SEN in FUKUDA-

PARR et al. 2003: 44). In this sense, it seems questionable whether the functionings in table 5

can simply be translated into capabilities or if it would be more suitable to define a list of

valuable capability domains of life initially in order to consequently subordinate the detected

functionings to these defined domains.

In this study the topics-to-cover-list acts as a defined list of capability domains being valued

and bearing the potential that ecosan can enhance their range of freedoms in the Philippines.

4.2.3.2 Subordinating Functionings to their Respective Domains

At this point the practical reason approach from Finnis (in ALKIRE 2002b: 48, ALKIRE 2002a:

185 et sqq.) is introduced to argue for the specific interpretation method here used.

In Natural Law and Natural Right Finnis presents his theory of the basic human values,

declaring them to not engage any moral judgments. Thereby he states his idea of human life

as having a principle of objectives and that each being possesses several potential capacities

to follow the objectives. The person’s practical reason then proceeds in considering one or

more of these objectives (FINNIS in ALKIRE 2002b: 48).

What does Finnis theory of practical reason show?

Finnis suggests that each person uses practical reason all the time, which is simply the

personal reason for a person’s doings. People might do the exact same things out of very

different motivations. Hence, someone, who values knowing how to fix the toilet on my own,

can do this in the sense of valuing to have gained knowledge and to have learned something

or in the sense of valuing to have gained more independence. This example shows that

paraphrasing functionings into capabilities does not necessarily reveal which valued freedoms

have been enhanced (FINNIS in ALKIRE 2002b: 43 et sqq., ALKIRE 2002a: 185 et sqq.).

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The topics-to-cover-list acts as a list of capability dimensions (the freedom-enhancement

within those being objectively valued in the research context) to which the found functionings

are subordinated. The evaluation of objectively valued freedoms can be assumed to be

adequate since they are a combination of ecosan drives evaluated in previous studies and

results of expert interviews in the field as well as theoretical knowledge on the Philippine

culture, hence they are considered to have developed over public consensus within the

research area and field. Nevertheless, there is space for opening up new domains, especially

if answers do not fit into the set dimensions. However, the problem of converting

functionings into valued capabilities remains. In order to increase the chance that

functionings are assigned to the right dimensions, questions concerning people’s overall

expectations towards sanitation as well as the change of their life in general through ecosan

can help to improve the possibility of finding the most valuable freedoms generated by

ecosan in the Philippines.

In total, all requirements for capability assessment as Sen defines them can be taken as

fulfilled, except specifically the condition that people should have reason to value them.

Since this topic would open up another theoretical and philosophical discussion and taking

into account that not all capability researchers are in agreement with it (cf. ALKIRE 2002a,b),

the here presented study does consider freedoms within capabilities domains that are

actually valued in this context.

Questionnaire and Evaluation Framework 4.2.4

4.2.4.1 Combined Methods

Explorative studies are known to combine theory testing with theory development. Thereby

open explorative questions, aiming at discovering new aspects of the topic, are combined

with standardized questions, testing theoretical knowledge or expected outcomes (SCHIRMER

2009: 90 et sqq.). Reviewing the questionnaires of the former studies, several implied

capabilities have already been tested additionally to open questioning. Those implied

capabilities or drives for ecosan and their functionings are listed below.

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Valuable Life / Capability Domain Functionings Economical security - gaining fertilizer

- saving money for fertilizer Comfortable life - saving time for getting water

- saving effort for getting water - saving time for searching places to defecate or waiting in line to be able to defecate

Concern about the environment: Natural Resources - saving water These implied capabilities and drives are equivalent to the implied capabilities from the previous questionnaires and part of the topics-to-cover-list for this study (Appendix III)

Table 5: Implied capabilities already tested in previous studies.

Consequently the questionnaire tests the capabilities assumed to be generated through

ecosan as well as using several open questions in order to detect other possible functionings

or capabilities that are generated through ecosan in the Philippines.

The whole questionnaire and its explanation are to be found in Appendix IV.

4.2.4.2 Evaluation Framework

The elaborated questionnaire consists of seven thematic parts and 32 questions. The

questions are distributed to the following topics:

(a) Questionnaire Identification (b) Personal Information (c) Usage of the toilets (d) Resources / Time (e) Acceptance (f) Capabilities (g) Socioeconomic Freedom

Validity – Questions in sector (c) about the usage of the toilet are used for a validation

process of the answers. Before this, it was decided that potential interviewees are required to

be personal owners of an ecosan toilet that is being used by at least one person of the family

and has been used for at least half a year. Even though the ecosan-users who are part of the

inquiry have been chosen based on these requirements, validity questions reassure the

adequacy of participants’ participation in the study.

Qualitative and Quantitative Evaluation Using Defined Life Domains – Parts (d) to (g) contain

open questions about advantages and disadvantages of ecosan, importance of sanitation,

likes or dislikes of ecosan, changes in their lives since ecosan was implemented as well as the

questions on implied capabilities (cf. table 5). The information gained in this part will lead to a

list of functionings gained by ecosan toilets in the Philippines. These are then listed and

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assigned to the life domains from the topics-to-cover-list, making them comparable to the

outcomes of the forgoing studies.

At the same time they can provide insight on the general aspect of life quality enhancement

through ecosan. Do people feel that their lives have changed and that they have profited

from the intervention in general? The latter can help to reflect on the resulting freedom

enhancement that is assumed to be generated through ecosan in the Philippines. As Schirmer

(2009) states, reflection has to be an integrated part of each research, since subjectivity is

always a central aspect of empirical work: There is no theory-free observation (SCHIRMER

2009: 91). Moreover, qualitative data can be used in a quantitative way as well, by listing the

valued functionings in regards to their frequency in being mentioned. Hereby the primary

valued life domains that are linked to ecosan can be detected (FLICK 2007: 47). Both, the

general picture on people’s change in their lives as well as defining life domains that have

been influenced the most by ecosan, enable concluding with more certainty on the capability

enhancement in the Philippines.

The following chart shows the assumed usefulness of the inquiry-questions within life quality

measurement and assessment of gained freedoms.

example question purpose of question implied indicator-type - What is the worst about open defecation? - Why do you think sanitation is important? - What were the reasons to get an ecosan toilet?

Getting an idea of the expectations, ideals and values concerning life quality related to sanitation.

Values

- Do you use manure and urine as fertilizer? - Did you generate income through ecosan?

Testing implied freedom enhancement in the domain: economic security

Economic input

- What are the advantages of ecosan? - How did ecosan change your life?

What functiongings were generated? OWB

- Are you satisfied with the toilet? Are they in general happy about their sanitation situation?

SWB

Table 6: Assumed usefulness of inquiry-questions within life quality measurement.

Finally OWB indicator functionings and Economic Input indicator functionings will be assigned

to the valued life-dimensions of the topics-to-cover-list, taking into account statements made

on values and SWBs. If a new functioning arises that cannot be subordinated to a valuable

life-domain as defined in the list, a new domain will be created.

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Case Study Research Field 4.2.5

One half of interviewees are beneficiaries of

an ecosan intervention project on the island

of Mindanao, in Misamis Oriental, whereas

the other half belongs to an ecosan

intervention project of the city of Bayawan,

on Negros Island. The candidates have been

selected based on availability and cover at

least 30% of each project’s beneficiaries.

4.2.5.1 The WAND Foundation’s Ecosan Project

The Water, Agroforestry, Nutrition and Development Foundation (WAND foundation) is an

NGO, financially supported by international donors and situated in Libertad, Misamis Oriental

in the north of Mindanao Island, 40 km west of Cagayan de Oro City. Their initiative on

tackling health, sanitation and food-security issues,

which started in 2010, is done by closing the loop with

ecosan.

Beneficiaries and their Problems – The majority of

beneficiaries are farmers or fishers belonging to the

ultra-poor (SAYRE 2011), coming from the

municipalities of Libertad, Initao and Manticao. In the

uplands lack of water-access is a constant hazard, whilst

in the coastal area and near the Initao river the tide, flooding and lack of space are

problematic. Septic tanks are expensive, not safe in flooding areas and face problems in

desludging, which is either not done or done in an unsanitary manner. Many families lack

financial capacity to obtain their own toilet, resulting in an open defecation rate of 30%. For

this reason, there exists a fairly high prevalence of parasites, worms and water borne diseases

in this area. UDDTs, not needing any water and being much lower in asset and maintenance

Picture 7: Roadsign WAND foundation (ZECH 2011).

Picture 6: Own adaption of Philippine map (GOOGLE MAPS 2013).

Bayawan City

Libertad Misamis Oriental

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costs as well as, offer the possibility for treating urine and manure locally and are considered

to be a promising solution.

Action and Aim of the WAND Foundation – The foundation aims at researching on optimizing

the toilets as well as the treatment of manure and urine and diminishing the costs by using

more local materials for construction in order to adapt ecosan to their context and raise

awareness as well as demand. The foundation has chosen single vault, hanging UDDTs as

most suitable for coastal areas and arborloos as well as basic single

vault UDDTs for the inland areas. Demand is created through

campaigns and the installation of example-toilets. By 2011, around

100 toilets were built by the foundation.

The main costs for installation and partially for maintenance are

taken over by the foundation. In order to support reuse and

recovering of the nutrients, WAND foundation offers free

collection of manure and urine, a treatment facility for faeces

(vermicomposting), seed-packages for the gardens of ecosan-users

and a demonstration farm where the treated faeces as well as the

urine are used as fertilizer. To promote and teach the closing-the-

loop principle, WAND foundation encourages gardening (also in coastal areas) and arranges

gardening-contests for ecosan-users (SAYRE and SAYRE n. d., SAYRE 2011).

4.2.5.2 Ecosan Project in Bayawan City

Bayawan City is located in the south-west of

Negros Island. It encompasses 28

barangays19, seven of which are urban and

21 rural. Based on the city’s relocation of

settlers, to deal with increasing settlement

around the city, and with the decree of the clean water act in 2004, a necessary research on

water quality released high contamination of ground-water resources through human excreta

coming from inadequate sanitation situations in the area. In this context, the Local

19 Barangay = Describes in the Visayan language a district of a city or a municipality (Bollos 2011).

Picture 8: Single vault UDDT in Libertad (ZECH 2011).

Picture 9: Sign above UDDT in Bayawayn City (ZECH 2011).

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Government Unit (LGU) decided to start with an implementation of ecosan dry toilets in order

to tackle these problems (SARAÑA 2007).

The water- and sanitation-situation in Bayawan – Only the urban barangays have access to a

sewage drainage system. Nevertheless, even the sludge from this system runs untreated into

open bodies of water. Septic tanks installed for wastewater disposal, face design-failures and

are not able to prevent ground-water contamination. Moreover, 80% of the population live in

rural areas, of which only 63% own a toilet. These toilets, however, are either pour-flush

toilets or pit-latrines and are problematic, owing to lack of water as well as to poor and

unsanitary conditions. As a result mortality and morbidity due to water-borne diseases is

high, especially in areas where people rely on shallow wells as drinking-water sources. Piped

potable water can thus far be provided only to the urban barangays. Therefore the city

started a partnership with the German organisation GTZ in order to initiate the

implementation of UDDTs, which are seen to provide an adequate solution that meets the

local environmental and technical conditions (SARAÑA 2007).

Ecosan in Bayawan City – The ecosan concept was introduced to the Visayan area of the

Philippines in 2004 by the DILG-GTZ water & sanitation program. Soon after that, the

partnership between GTZ and Bayawan City arose and constructed wetland as well as a

concept for dry decentralized sanitation in rural areas were planned to better handle

wastewater and sanitation management. The former mayor of Bayawan, Mr. German Saraña,

was a leading character in advancing the project.

In 2004 the city dedicated a budget for the instalment of 40 UDD toilets to be distributed to

all 28 barangays (1-2 in each) and in 2007 another budget was dedicated for building 500

more toilets. By 2011, around 100 toilets had been installed (in households, schools and

public areas). Maintenance as well as storage and treatment of faecal matter and urine are

left to the toilet owners to handle. To assure correct usage, awareness raising, training and

monitoring aspects are part of the project. 90% of the population are Christians20 and

therefore used to dry-cleaning with toilet paper, for the remaining population anal cleansing

areas for using water have been constructed. Single vault UDDTs with mobile collection

containers are preferred to double vault, since they are more flexible in maintenance. The

cost for a single vault UDDT in Bayawan is about 300 Euros, having a vault made out of

20 Moslems are used to anal cleansing with water and not toilet paper (often only using water feels clean to them) (GENSCH 2011).

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concrete as well as a ceramic bowl. 30% of the cost is covered by the beneficiaries, since it is

their duty to provide the super-structure.

Whilst many people in Bayawan City currently profit from the toilets that are built in this pilot

project, the main aim is to show the benefits of UDDTs to the local population in order to

raise awareness and demand. It is assumed that the broad acceptance and usage of UDDTs

will have a considerable impact on improving environmental protection, the health situation

and thereby people’s well-being (SARAÑA 2007; BOLLOS 2011).

Research Method and Case Study Introduction - Research Question II 4.3

Participation – Indicator Framework 4.3.1

Chosen aspects out of the ED theory have been transformed into indicators for participation

and ownership, fitting the school context.

aspects / support principles Endogenous Development

assumed related school context /environment

assumed indicator for participation in school context

Choice & Control Choice and demand for the project come from inside the school guidance. The principal as well as teachers, optimally even parents and pupils decide. Commitment by school guidance as well as the municipality is strong.

- decision making process - participation in planning & construction - participation of parents & municipality - action and engagement

Culture & Knowledge Even though ecosan brings a new and external idea into the school context, local knowledge, habits, way of construction and scientific working are used for the implementation. Moreover, the technology is culturally accepted and the initiative for

- local support - construction & planning - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation - cultural acceptance & accordance with ecosan approach

anal cleansing area for water usage

Picture 10: Double vault UDDT from outside and single vault UDDT from inside in Bayawan City (ZECH 2011).

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working out plans is taken by the beneficiaries themselves. Advantages of ecosan are seen and accord to cultural values.

Leadership Natural leaders of the school environment take over the leadership for the project. Leadership is not only a task but is triggered by personal interest.

- known responsible person - dedication / action taken by the person in charge

Economy The project achieves economic advantages.

- economic achievements

Learning Dynamics & Use of External Resources AND Informal education supporting local culture

Ecosan training and teaching is part of the general education curriculum. Teaching methods are the same as in other subjects, by ecosan becoming an own school subject or by being implemented into the existing subjects.

- integration into school subjects / environment - frequency of making ecosan a topic - ways of teaching & materials - external support

Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

Structures and rituals concerning pupils tasks on the school campus or school events / projects / contests are used for ecosan integration.

- activities concerning ecosan - frequent tasks concerning ecosan - related projects (such as gardening)

Table 7: Particpation indicators for evaluating school ecosan projects.

The assumptions on how ED aspects can fit into the school context are based on literature

about ecosan in schools (cf. 4.3.1). A listing of the indicators representation in the

questionnaires is shown in Appendix VI and VII.

Case Study Research Field 4.3.2

The seven schools interviewed for the

second research question are located in

Misamis Oriental (northern coast of

Mindanao Island). The ones belonging

to the PUVeP are located in barangays

in Cagayan de Oro City, whilst the

others, initiated by the WAND

foundation, are situated in barangays of

the municipalities Libertad and Initao.

As the WAND foundation has already

been introduced (cf. 4.2.5), only the PUVeP shall be presently presented.

The Periurban Vegetable Project is a research and social outreach project, initiated by the

Xavier University’s College of Agriculture (of Cagayan de Oro City). It started to operate in

1997 with the objective of researching on urban and periurban vegetable production in order

to enhance food security. Aside from the research purpose, in 2003 the instalment of urban

Cagayan de Oro City

Libertad & Initao

Picture 11: Own adaption of Mindanao map (GOOGLE MAPS 2013).

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allotment gardens started that (currently) provide legal access to land for vegetable growing

to more than 100 poor families. All gardens are equipped with compost heaps, where

biodegradable waste is converted into fertilizer. Furthermore, at least one UDDT has been

built for each garden. These ecological sanitation toilets were added to the PUVeP so as to

view hazards of food insecurity, poverty and health risks in a holistic way. Thus, allotment

gardens cannot secure healthy food production in an environment where proper sanitation is

not managed. Since – as previously mentioned – sanitary handling of manure and urine is not

self-evident in many Philippine regions, soil and groundwater pollution through open

defecation had to be dealt with in the PUVeP. Finally, the initiative also included allotment

garden projects within local schools, where the UDDTs investigated in the present study are

located (HOLMER et al. 2008, HOLMER 2009).

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5 Results

In the following the results of both research questions and all interviews are presented in two

subchapters.

Capability enhancement through Ecosan 5.1

The following subchapter presents the results gained within the first research question, by

interviewing 38 private owners of UDDT toilets in two Philippine projects. For validation

reasons, some basic information about the toilets and their owners is provided. Secondly a

general picture shall be drawn to show peoples’ values and expectations concerning

sanitation in the investigated areas. Finally, gained functionings are presented, according to

the defined capability / life domains (cf. Appendix III) and compared to the capability-lists

evaluated in the previous studies.

Basic Information and Status Quo 5.1.1

Of the 38 interviews conducted, four have not been considered within the evaluation, since

either the UDDTs were less than half a year old or their owners never had used it.

Interviewees were on average 36,5 years old and female (28f/6m) – since their husbands

were usually at work or otherwise not at home at the time the interviews were conducted.

Moreover, nearly two thirds (19) are living on farming, whilst nearly another third are fishers

(9), four own little shops and two work for ecosan projects themselves.

5.1.1.1 Information for Questionnaire Validation

In the beginning some facts about usage, sanitation habits and general information on

functionality of the toilets is provided in order to ensure that implementations have actually

been successful and that ecosan is accepted and used.

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Figure 7: Toilets used before and usage of the UDDT within the family.

The toilets are used broadly and people changed to UDD toilets from various other

kinds of toilets.

20 out of 34 users have a problem with the toilet, their main problems are:

- no ash and rain

- bad odour, rain

- materials do not withstand and break soon (broken pipes and chambers)

9 out of 34 users are not used to the ecosan method, mainly because:

- used to flush with water instead of using ash and prefer it for cleanliness reasons

- used to wash themselves with water and prefer it to toilet paper

- find it inconvenient to separate urine and manure and having such a big toilet

bowl

4 out of 34 users still practice open defecation sometimes

30 out of 34 users feel well instructed and do not have the feeling of missing

information

5.1.1.2 Explored Sanitation Values

To be healthy, hygienic, sanitary and save from sickness: The highest value concerning

health is seen in children being protected from illness. Being sanitary, hygienic and

avoiding the increase of flies and thereby sicknesses (such as dengue and diarrhoea) is

valued and seen to increase life quality also economically. Also, in order to avoid

5

8

57

9

What kind of toilet did you have before?

open defecationpublic ecosanprivate pitprivate antipolo or arborlooflush toilets

41

3

521

Who uses the UDDT?

used by no onenot husbandnot childrennot guestsused by everyone

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contamination of the environment and water, sanitation is perceived as important for

health reasons.

Not to be disgusted and to feel clean: Without sanitation people feel disgusted by dirty

surroundings, stepping into manure, bad odour, many flies and cockroaches. It makes

them feel unclean and unhealthy when human waste is disposed improperly. One

expectation of sanitation is to use water and this is seen as the proper way of cleaning

themselves and the toilet.

To have comfort in life, especially when sick: Having sanitation means that defecation is

not a problem anymore and does not bring discomfort to everyday life. It should be easy

to access, close and private. No waiting in line at public toilets, no discomfort for women

when they have their period. Not having to plan defecating and having a permanent and

private toilet is valued highly.

Peace of mind: Comfort in everyday life means not having to worry about sanitation and

feeling at ease about it. Feelings of uneasiness are caused by having to defecate in the

field with other people and by being scared of the septic tank filling beyond capacity. It

makes them feel at ease to have their own toilet and not have to share it and also that no

one but themselves is concerned with their human waste. Moreover, the feeling of

human excreta being disposed properly brings peace of mind.

Feeling safe: Being protected in visual sight, from the rain, from animals or other people

is valued as well as the protection from pathogens and over-flowing septic tanks.

Affordability: Finally affordability and profitability is expected from sanitation, since most

people cannot afford a toilet and suffer from water scarcity.

5.1.1.3 Influence of Ecosan on Subjective Well-Being

Only six of the 34 interviewees were in general not satisfied with ecosan, mainly because they

found it inconvenient to use and disliked the cleaning and maintenance procedures ecosan

requires.

26 of 34 recommended the toilet to neighbours and friends. Moreover, half of all

interviewees stated their preference for ecosan over other toilets and nearly all users would

be willing to contribute to ecosan in terms of payment, labour or material providing.

Gained Functionings and enhanced Capability Domains 5.1.2

As seen in subchapter 4.2.5, all interviewed ecosan users do currently not have the option of

having an ordinary flush-toilet. Therefore the results on gained freedoms through ecosan are

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not divided into benefits gained through sanitation in general and benefits gained through

ecosan. All benefits in these cases are understood as having been generated through ecosan.

Moreover, constraints of ecosan-implementations are not part of the present study.

At first the evaluated gained functionings are presented in table 8. In the following each life /

capability domain and its meaning within the Philippine context are explained separately.

The following table shows valuable Capability Domains (defined through the topics-to-cover-

list, cf. Appendix III), functionings within those domains that have been generated through

ecosan in the past as well as the answers given by private ecosan users in the Philippines. The

number of stating of each answer is mentioned in brackets. Furthermore, red marked

answers show statements that have not been evaluated in the previous studies and red

marked Capability Domains show domains, which were added within the evaluation process

in order to bundle the answers that did not fit into other domains. Bold marked functionings

from the second column are seen to be the most important Philippine functionings in the

respecting domain, according to interview answers.

Capability Domains

Valuable functionings as adapted from former studies

Answers gained functionings

Bodily Health

having hygienic life / sanitation-conditions being healthy being clean protecting family health

safer surroundings less flies prevention from illness in general (2) better health of children (less diarrhoea, less dengue) (3)

Bodily Integrity

feeling clean visual and social privacy when defecating

being and feeling clean more cleanliness in general visual privacy – not being seen by others

Nourishment

having better crops, food, income having rich vegetables in the garden (5) having richer crops and products (15)

SECURITY Shelter Protective Security Reliability

being sheltered being out of sight, visual privacy feeling secure when using the toilet appropriate conditions for elderly and handicapped people security as woman security when becoming pubescent living in a clean environment

having shelter and light when defecating (2) being and feeling safer (3) not being afraid of animals or other people clean environment – protection from sickness it works better than flush, which was often clogged water is scarce and flooding, so ecosan is an ideal solution (2) can use it if there is no water available

Economic Security

having fertilizer available for agricultural reasons saving expenses for fertilizer having financial independence in the long run having added value (income, crops, food, etc.) investing for one’s family providing for future of family saving money

improved economic situation in general gaining a toilet without spending (4) saving money for water saving money for medicine saving money for fertilizer (7) getting fertilizer (25) selling richer crops (9) providing a better future for their children by saving money (5)

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Comfortable life

having a comfortable toilet more convenience and comfort in daily life / female life having a nice looking toilet having a clean home living in a clean environment saving time and energy having more time for oneself or other things

more comfort (13) closeness / easy accessibility / no hassle (18) saving effort for getting water (8) cleanliness in home surroundings (5) no bad odour (5) easier to handle – only ash no water needed (6) easy to clean (only ash needed) saving time for getting water (3) saving time for waiting in line saving time for searching a place to defecate

Personal development & knowledge / understanding

being and feeling responsible for environment understanding environment understanding ecosan being intelligent saving energy believing in technology educating children

children‘s education – no more o.d. (7) education and seminars about hygiene and cleanliness + proper disposal of human waste (3) improved living environment (village has improved) awareness and learning about sanitary toilets (2) poster / instruction board helps to educate no more o.d.

AFFILIATION Personal liberty and freedom Self-direction / participation Dignity, Pride & Respect Community development

being self-determined women having equal rights as men social independence using a toilet without disgust having dignity social progress new lifestyle being and feeling modern not belonging to the poor feeling proud feeling good (because doing something good) being an example for others achieving status being a good housewife / husband having contact to other ecosan users

people are freer feeling of being complete (2) no feeling ashamed for waiting in line or asking neighbours (6) no more shame for not having a toilet (6) being envied by neighbours (2) improved life-style pride to own it – people visit it (6) proud to be chosen for ecosan (3) no irritation through people practicing o.d. like to own new things (2) working as a community in the village garden

Psychological well-being Peace of mind

being relaxed ease of mind having no pressure or fear when defecating

feeling at ease / good (8) not having to wait in line (7) not having to beg neighbours (5) no panic and rush when being sick (7) not having to plan going to the toilet less stress of needing water (2) no worries about full septic tank (8)

CONCERN ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT Pollution Natural Resources environmental harmony – visual perception and scenic quality

being aware of difficulty and sensitivity of the environment protecting environment being conscious about resources saving water having more water for other purposes better ground-water quality better soil-quality

clean shore (4) clean river (4) protecting groundwater – enabling better water saving water using manure and urine as resource nice and clean appearance of surroundings, no bad smell (4) cleaner village (9) village looks nicer – gained gardens

Control over ones environment

being infrastructural independent from others having a permanent toilet

is affordable – otherwise no toilet (2) self-controlled, easy handling no bad odour

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Ability to possess something

saving space having a clean home having property feeling responsible for property being creative and using skills to upgrade property

clean surroundings, no more o.d. (5) good to have your own toilet (10) feels good to own something new (2)

Table 8: Implied life domains, in which freedoms were enhanced through ecosan in the Philippines, with the corresponding gained functionings through ecosan.

In the following and according to the interview results, freedom enhancement through

ecosan within each Capability Domain will be described.

Bodily health: Within this domain the mentioned freedoms that were enhanced mainly

concerned the protection of children’s health and the prevention from diseases such as

diarrhoea and dengue fever. In general, improvement of bodily health through sanitation

was mentioned often as an advantage. However, few statements regarding experience

about concrete changes in bodily health were found.

Bodily integrity: Feeling cleaner, improved cleanliness in general as well as visual privacy

were mentioned as advantageous points of obtaining ecosan. This domain overall was not

mentioned very often in the interviews, due in part to most people already having toilets

before having ecosan.

Nourishment: In some places, gardens were implemented together with ecosan. Having

rich vegetables out of the garden, especially with the application of urine (and manure) as

fertilizer and having an increased harvest of crops on the field proved to be valued very

highly. Many answers pointed towards a great satisfaction with bringing gardens and

especially urine-fertilizer by implementing ecosan.

Security: Security in the way of visual protection and being sheltered was mentioned only

a few times. The feeling of being secure when going to the toilet in terms of not having to

fear animals or other people seemed to be more important as well as protection from a

contaminated environment. A new subdomain was created under the topic of security,

named reliability, which seemed to be important in feeling assured that sanitation is

provided and functioning when needed. In this domain ecosan was pointed out to bring

many advantages, since it doesn’t use water (which is scarce), will not confront them with

a full septic tank (which they often do not know how to empty properly) and is also a

better solution concerning flooding as well as easier to maintain self-directed compared

to flush toilets.

Economic security: Ecosan has shown to have a high value in improving economic

situations for the interviewed ecosan users. Many statements show that the intervention

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helped to save money for medicine, water and fertilizer and even more positive answers

were given on improved harvests through ecosan fertilizer. Finally, five interviewees felt

that they are able to provide a better future for their children through the economic

impacts of ecosan on their lives.

Comfortable life: More comfort in everyday life has shown to be a very strong advantage

for the users of ecosan. The intervention has made their lives easier in having a private

toilet nearby, no hassle and problem in having to use the toilet, not having to plan going

to the toilet and saved effort for fetching water. Ecosan saves the users time and energy,

prevents dirty surroundings and bad odour. Therefore, the interviews showed a very high

value of ecosan by making life easier and more comfortable.

Affiliation: In this domain another new subdomain was evaluated, named personal liberty

and freedom, relating to interview answers that said people feel freer and have a feeling

of being complete through ecosan. Capability enhancement in this dimension is adding a

new capacity to ecosan in the cross-national study. Moreover, pride, dignity and respect

play an important role in having ecosan. The main point here is that people do not have

to feel ashamed anymore for not having toilets, for having to wait in line or for having to

ask neighbours to use their toilets. Additionally many users feel proud to have their own

ecosan toilet or to have obtained something new. To some, ecosan brings the feeling of

an improved life-style and they no longer feel irritated by people defecating in the open.

Finally, community development (which was taken up as a new dimension in the topics-

to-cover-list for the Philippine case study) was mentioned as an advantage by one user

who stated that the installed community gardens with ecosan strengthened the village’s

community.

Psychological well-being: This proved to be another domain where freedom was

enhanced strongly. Having to wait in line for the public toilet or having to ask neighbours

to use their toilet made people feel uneasy and panic stricken when sick. It also released

stress about full septic tanks and the need for water and made users in general feel more

relaxed and at ease in their lives. By having a private ecosan toilet, defecating does not

feel like a problem anymore.

Concern about the environment and other species: A benefit in less pollution in the

environment was mentioned positively as well as the ecosan advantages of saving water,

protecting water and recycling human excreta as resources. Furthermore, another

subdomain, called visual perception and scenic quality was added to the framework,

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which proved to be valued strongest under this topic. Hereby users answered that they

like the cleaner appearances of their village, that the smell was better and that the newly

implemented gardens look nice.

Control over one’s environment: Users value having the choice of owning a toilet as well

as the ability to influence the appearance and odour of their homes and surroundings.

Concerning the ability to possess something, values are even higher and interviewees

answered that they like having their own toilet and owning something new.

Cross-Country Comparison of enhanced Freedoms through Ecosan 5.1.3

Referring to the scientific need of comparability in capability research, the results gained

within the Philippine study are now compared to the results of three previous ecosan-

capability studies. Enssle’s study (2010) in India, Lienert’s study (2011) in Bhutan as well as

Peters’ study (2012) in Mongolia all revealed capabilities gained through certain ecosan

projects in those countries. Whilst Peters (2012) was the first to compare the evaluated

functionings with each other, she did not go as far to compare capabilities in order to avoid

bias through subjective interpretation. The present study though, precisely underlines the

attempt to concentrate more on capabilities and less on functionings. Therefore, the ecosan

drives presented by Peters are compared to the Capability Domains that were affected by the

same functionings in the Philippines. The freedom of domains that are marked bold, have

been enhanced, especially through the corresponding functionings.

Implied Capability Domain with enhanced freedoms in the Philippines

Ecosan drives in India (Enssle 2010)

Ecosan drives in Bhutan (Lienert 2011)

Ecosan drives in Mongolia (Peters 2012)

Bodily Integrity Comfortable life

- having hygienic life conditions (smell-free toilets)

(none mentioned: was seen to not be ecosan specific)

Bodily Health - being healthy - having financial added value (more income, better crops, etc.) - investing for one’s family - saving money - growing own food

Self-direction Security in Reliability Control over one’s environment

- being infrastructural independent from others (sewage firms, state) - being self-determined

- being infrastructural independent from others (sewage firms, state) - being self-determined

- living in a clean environment

Economic Security / Personal Development

- having financial independence in the long Run

- having financial added value (more income, better crops, etc.) - investing for one’s family - providing for the future of one’s family

- understanding the environment - protecting the environment - being and feeling responsible for the environment - conscious about resources

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Comfortable life Protective Security Dignity & Respect Visual perception and scenic quality




Concern about pollution Concern about natural resources

- being and feeling responsible for the environment

- being and feeling responsible for the environment - being conscious about resources


Comfortable life Economic Security

- saving water - saving water - having more water available for other purposes

- having fertilizer available for agricultural reasons

Comfortable life - saving time - having more time available for other purposes

- having better soil quality

Economic Security - having fertilizer available for agricultural reasons

- having better ground water quality

- having better soil quality - understanding ecosan and being aware of using excreta as resource - being aware of environmental sensitivity

Concern about natural resources

- having contact to other ecosan users

Personal development & knowledge (especially children’s education)

Community development Personal liberty and freedom

Ability to possess something

Table 9: Comparing gained ecosan functionings from previous studies with capability dimensions where freedoms were enhanced in the Philippine study.

For several reasons the researcher finds it difficult and questionable to compare the results of

these studies. First, the editing of results has been carried out differently in the present study

compared to the forgoing ones. Moreover, functionings gained by ecosan do not give

information on the values that people found in those and therefore cannot reflect on why

people’s lives did improve – or to put it differently, which valuable qualities were added to

people’s lives. It furthermore seems to make no sense comparing the functionings gained in

these studies in the context of ecosan, since they cannot be seen to reflect on country

specific ecosan values, because all studies are based on small case studies conducted under

very specific conditions in each country. Finally, it shall only be pointed out that freedoms in

the domains personal liberty and freedom as well as ability to possess something were added

newly to the list of ecosan capacities in providing better life quality. Whether or not those are

specific to the Philippines or resulted out of subjective interpretation remains open. The

researcher therefore does not wish to interpret this comparison in the context of ecosan,

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however the different studies will be used for further developing the practical application of

the CA.

Limitations of Findings 5.1.4

Several limitations are to be considered, when observing the here presented results.

Research findings were revealed within two certain ecosan projects, in limited areas on the

Philippines, within a time-frame of two months. Therefore, results are not assumed to reflect

on Philippine values concerning ecosan in general but are limited to the certain circumstances

within these projects. The study only regards what people think of their ecosan toilet in a

certain time and state and disregards technical or personal aspects that might prevent a

positive effect of ecosan on people’s lives.

Nevertheless, it is suggested that the presented results are able to reflect an overall picture of

ecosan impact in the investigated projects as well as to reveal a specification of life quality

enhancement through ecosan in the southern Philippines. This is claimed due to the many

aspects that were questioned in the interviews as well as the two very different projects

having been evaluated.

School Ecosan and Participation Factors 5.2

The following chapter presents the results of 34 interviews that were conducted in seven

Philippine ecosan-schools, researching on the influence of participation on successful ecosan

implementation in schools.

In the beginning the status quo of all investigated school projects is presented. Further on the

results of the second research question are described by providing a short summary for each

evaluated participation factor.

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Ecosan Schools Status 5.2.1

In the following, the status quo of all visited projects is summarized for each school.

5.2.1.1 Lapasan High School – PUVeP

The high school situated in the barangay Lapasan in Cagayan de Oro (CDO), teaches app. 2000

students and owns one UDDT since

2007, which is installed in one

classroom. Lapasan high school

obtained ecosan due to the

classroom being renovated and it

being a science classroom, it

therefore seemed appropriate to try

a new technology here specifically.

The toilet is maintained very well, knowledge is very high and the toilet is regularaly used by

both students and teachers. Since they do not rely solely on ecosan, it is mainly a showcase

and learning object for them and is highly values for this purpose.

5.2.1.2 Balulang Elementary School – PUVeP

The school is located in barangay Balulang in CDO, teaches app. 1800 pupils and owns two

ecosan toilets (boys/girls) since 2006. Ecosan was brought to the school within a food security

program and is used only by the 6th grade.

The toilets are used and maintained well. There are problems but action is taken to resolve

them. Ecosan is mainly valued for education reasons and the students like the project for

environmental reasons. There exists much knowledge and a large acceptance from the

students’ side.

Picture 13: UDDT at Balulang Elementary School (ZECH 2011).

Picture 12: UDDT and urine container at Lapasan High School (ZECH 2011).

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Picture 16: destroyed double vault UDDT through vandalism at FS Catanico (ZECH 2011).

5.2.1.3 Baluarte Elementary School – PUVeP

Located in the barangay Baluarte in CDO, the school teaches app. 260 students and owns in

total four ecosan toilets (two

since 2007, two since 2010). As

the school did not have enough

toilets and pupils used the

backyard to practice o.d., they

decided on obtaining the

ecosan toilets.

Ecosan is used as often as flush-toilets and it is very well accepted and liked by the students.

It made their life easier through not having to fetch water or practice o.d. However, manure

and urine are not used, many parts of the toilets are broken and have not been repaired and,

as a consequence, usage has decreased. Ecosan is mainly valued for having sanitation

(specifically without water) but supervision seems to be lacking.

5.2.1.4 FS Cantanico Elementary School – PUVep

Located in the barangay FS Catanico in CDO, the school teaches app. 400 pupils and owns two

ecosan toilets since 2005. The toilets came with an allotment garden for the barangay. They

were used in the very beginning but students and teachers were not used to using toilet

paper and the toilets were destroyed by vandalism on the weekends. They did not have lime,

a bad odour appeared and

finally they stopped using it.

Now, pupils sometimes ask

to go home to use the toilet

because there is no water

for flushing.

The toilets are not used and

there hardly exists knowledge about them. Some children have little knowledge about ecosan

and like the idea. No steps were taken by the school to resolve these problems.

Picture 15: First ecosan toilets at Baluarte Elementary School, from 2007

(Zech: 2011).

Picture 15: Toilet bowl of UDDT from 2010, Baluarte

Elementary School (Zech: 2011).

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5.2.1.5 Balubal High School – PUVeP

The high school is situated in the barangay Balubal in CDO, teaches app. 300 students and

owns one ecosan toilet since 2008.

The principal of the school heard about ecosan and

when opportunity arose, the school was immediately

interested. Until then, the school practiced o.d. Water

is scarce in the area. The school surroundings became

cleaner with ecosan and the garden products become

richer. However, not everyone uses it and o.d. is still

practiced.

The toilet is used every day, knowledge is very good

and research is made on ecosan fertilizer usage. There exists strong action for good

maintenance and the recycling and reuse of urine and faecal matter. Ecosan is very well

accepted and valued and the village and parents give their support for it.

5.2.1.6 Lubluban Elementary School – WAND foundation

The school is located in the barangay Lubluban, in the municipality of Libertad, teaches app.

180 students and owns two ecosan toilets (boys / girls)

since 2008. They wanted the ecosan toilet mainly

because there is water scarcity in the area and they had

to pitch water for the toilet. In general, students as well

as teachers use it and they feel that the school

surroundings are greener and cleaner since having

ecosan.

The toilets are used, accepted and valued. However,

o.d. is still practiced. Knowledge about ecosan is good and some feel the surroundings are

cleaner. Finally, ecosan is seen as a solution for schools that do not have toilets at all. The

school is rated less successful since answers were partly contradictory or unclear and most

action concerning ecosan is not very strong from the schools side but rather from the

foundation.

Picture 18: UDDT at Lubluban Elementary School (ZECH 2011).

Picture 17: UDDT at Balubal High School (ZECH 2011).

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5.2.1.7 Initao Central School – WAND foundation

The school is located in Initao municipality, teaches

app. 2000 students and owns two ecosan toilets (boys

/ girls) since 2008.

They approached the foundation because they were

concerned that their septic tank would over-flow soon.

Only the 5th grade uses it, due to their classroom being

closest to the toilets. They can save time for fetching

water and can use the extra time for soil cultivation and food production.

The toilets are used and knowledge about ecosan is existent. Manure is not used but

organised well, while urine is used. Ecosan helped pupils to learn about proper sanitation and

its connection to food production. Furthermore, they can now stay at school when needing to

use the toilet instead of having to go home to do so.

Participation Indicators 5.2.2

The following is a summary of the levels of the investigated participation factors in ecosan

school projects. A detailed transcription of interview answers is found in Appendix VIII.

5.2.2.1 Culture & Knowledge

Values: Sanitation in general is valued for cleanliness, hygiene and for supporting health

in all schools. More successful ecosan projects have shown a high value of sanitation in

the environmental context (water and ground contamination) and mention the

importance of seeing and teaching this interrelation..

Habits & Expectations: All interviewed students and teachers were not used to the way

ecosan is used. Sanitation is expected to be clean, odourless and to use water. Less

successful projects show high values in using water for cleaning themselves and the toilet

as well as in having sanitation that requires little effort. More successful projects on the

other hand mentioned proper disposal of human waste, saving water and saving expenses

as valuable attributes in sanitation options.

Acceptance: Acceptance seems to vary strongly even within schools but also proved to be

difficult to evaluate. Reasons for acceptance are twofold. Whilst in some schools, ecosan

is well accepted as a research project, in others acceptance is high due to a considerable

lack of conventional sanitation and water. In the latter cases the value is high, since pupils

Picture 19: UDDT at Initao Central School (ZECH 2011).

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can now use the toilets at school instead of going home for sanitation needs, plus they no

longer have to worry about needing/bringing water to flush. Schools where the projects

work well demonstrate that ecosan acceptance is strongly linked to proper and careful

usage. Ecosan can quickly change into producing bad odour or making them feel unclean

if not used properly. In the unsuccessful project, ecosan found little acceptance among

teachers and mixed answers among students. Whilst some students liked the idea of not

having to use water and producing fertilizer, others found ecosan to be difficult and

requiring effort in use.

Local support: In some of the more successful projects, local support is strongly existent,

in the remaining projects however, only the school is responsible for the toilets. In the

less successful projects, the village is not very involved.

5.2.2.2 Choice & Control

Parents – In all schools parents were initially informed about ecosan and in many cases

they helped in building or financing the toilets. Most parents like the idea of ecosan and

the help it provides. Currently there is little involvement of parents; (e.g.) only in one

project were they strongly involved in rebuilding ecosan after a typhoon.

Planning & Construction: Most toilets have anal cleansing areas for using water in order

to adapt to sanitation habits. All toilets were built by external project leaders; some with

voluntary work from parents (no difference in the success of the projects was seen). Only

one of the schools made an attempt to engage into the planning of the toilet.

Decision making: In all schools the decision making process involved teachers and the

principal. In more successful projects, the first initiative was taken initially by either one

teacher or the headmaster (i.e. the person most interested in obtaining ecosan). In less

successful cases, the main initiative was external.

Action & Engagement: It is clearly seen that the actions for maintenance, repairing and

seeking help when needed are strong in more successful projects, whilst less successful

projects did not ask for help or find solutions when problems occurred.

5.2.2.3 Learning Dynamics & Informal Education

Integration in school subjects: Evaluation shows that in more successful projects ecosan

became an important topic in many school subjects like science, economics, water

conservation, climate change, health, character education or even maths. Less successful

projects did not integrate ecosan into the general teaching curriculum.

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Frequency of mentioning ecosan: In most projects students are only reminded about how

to use ecosan properly, whilst in two schools ecosan is a topic each week. Only in one

project is ecosan not a topic and only some have heard of it.

Teaching: In all schools students are in charge of cleaning the toilets and this is usually

supervised by a teacher. Yet, it was observed that in less successful projects, supervision

seems to be less strict and frequent. In more successful ecosan schools, scientific projects

have been conducted about urine as fertilizer for food production. Moreover, it is part of

the education requirements that students have to at least try using ecosan.

5.2.2.4 Leadership

Responsibility: In more successful projects responsibilities are defined clearly and

teachers in charge (usually science teacher) are known by everyone. In less successful

projects, no one was stated to be in charge or the persons were not named and more

than one person were in charge (it is possible that responsibilities change).

Dedication: In more successful projects teachers responsible for ecosan are very

dedicated to the project and are in general interested in ecosan. They either would like to

have ecosan themselves or think of it as a valuable contribution to the school. Those

teachers make sure that soap and toilet paper is available, teach pupils the correct usage

of ecosan and organize help when needed. Dedication to the project in unsuccessful

projects from the teachers’ sides clearly lacks. They feel that ecosan requires a lot of

effort, is only a solution for schools where water is unavailable (i.e. they do not see

themselves as such, even if they too suffer from water scarcity) and see it to be a good

alternative to pit latrines.

Action: In successful and very successful schools action for maintenance and usage of

ecosan fertilizer is taken and teachers use the ecosan toilets as well. In less successful

schools actions concerning maintenance and role modelling are lacking.

5.2.2.5 Use & Creation of Structures

In more successful ecosan schools, the project is strongly linked to the school garden,

fertilizer is applied regularly and ecosan is a frequent topic in science classes. Less successful

projects do not use ecosan fertilizer and in one project it was used as fertilizer only with the

external project leaders in the beginning.

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5.2.2.6 Economy

Aside from two projects, all have gained economic advantages through growing richer crops

and vegetables that can be consumed or sold and thereby save the school money on the

water bill.

Limitations of Findings 5.2.3

Results gained in the field visit of the school research have to be interpreted, considering

different limitations. First, all schools were told about the researchers’ visit and therefore

could prepare for it, taking away the advantage of observing ecosan within every-day school

life. Moreover, the study concentrates exclusively on the aspect of participation regarding

success or failure of ecosan projects. Aspects that might have an influence on success and

participation at the same time are thereby left out. Eventually, the ecosan school study could

not evaluate the visited schools and their projects in a deeper manner than thus

accomplished due to limited time and opportunities.

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6 Conclusion

In this final chapter the outcome of the case study is interpreted, in order to provide the basis

for evaluating the operationalization of the CA for life quality assessment. Moreover, the

researcher declares some critique on the study itself, reflects on the viability of the outcome

and respectively identifies possible study biases.

Finally the researcher’s suggestions for further studies as well as the concrete contribution of

this master’s thesis to the scientific dialogue are presented.

How Ecosan improves People’s Lives 6.1

Which individual capabilities are generated by ecosan in the Philippine context?

Social Values determine Gained Capabilities 6.1.1

The revealed results are evaluated using the theoretical and methodological inputs about life

quality indicators from chapters 2.1 and 4.2. In order to make the assignment of evaluated

functionings to certain Capability Domains more reliable. Furthermore, the functionings

gained by ecosan (accounting for enhanced objective well-being) are put in context with

estimations about life quality change through ecosan (accounting for subjective well-being) in

general as well as sanitation-specific values in the Philippines.

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Design of life quality change through ecosan in the Philippines (Mindanao and Negros):

Figure 8: Found OWB factors and SWB factors in the ecosan Philippine study filtered through Philippine values, resulting in indicated freedom enhanced life / capability domains.

The results show that ecosan does enhance life quality in the Philippines. Thereby an

intervention such as ecosan touches nearly all life-domains, however not all domains are

valued in the same way by all users.

Health and environmental advantages of ecosan are mentioned by users, however not that

often and statements like we were told that ecosan would make us healthier, leave the

impression that health improvements are mentioned because people were educated about

ecosan rather than due to observable health improvements through ecosan.

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Ecosan however proved to have a strong effect on life quality enhancement by bringing more

comfort into people’s everyday lives and by making people feel more at ease and less

worried. Moreover, ecosan had a social effect by making people feel more accepted and

belonging more in their social surroundings. Freedom was enhanced in these life-domains

strongly, which at the same time represent important values in the Philippines. While these

capabilities were strengthened for ecosan users who were deprived from private sanitation

before, it was for the same reasons (comfort, acceptance and feeling at ease) that people

using conventional toilets before did not like to use ecosan.

Furthermore, all of the already mentioned improvements could also be achieved through

other kinds of sanitation. Yet, it is clear that the ecosan technology brought many economic

advantages, which were also valued highly, mainly by the poor population. Ecosan is

affordable to obtain and to maintain in comparison to conventional toilets and it is also a

more sustainable solution in the ecological sense. Moreover, the ecosan advantages of

bringing fertilizer and saving water are a major source of satisfaction for users.

To sum up, ecosan has the capacity to ameliorate life quality strongly, especially for many

Philippine regions, where other toilets are neither possible nor sustainable or economical.

The statement of one ecosan user ecosan was a gift from heaven for us shows how positive

the effect of ecosan can be. Nevertheless, comfort, cleanliness, status and peace of mind are

valued strongest in the Philippines and functioning conventional toilets are seen to be the

easiest and best solution by many people. This is also underlined by users stating ecosan does

not feel clean to us, therefore we avoid using it. Yet, because many do not have any other

possible option, ecosan is acknowledged as a good solution especially for the poor population

of the country.

Ecosan makes People feel freer 6.1.2

Comfort, feeling at ease, not having to worry and feeling as a part of society have shown to

be very strongly valued in the Philippines context (in comparison to the other studies; cf.

5.1.2). Moreover, some statements in these domains were given, which were not mentioned

in the other studies. One user, for example, mentioned that people feel freer with ecosan,

whilst another stated ecosan made me feel complete. Most people obtaining ecosan in the

Philippines originally would not have been able to have access to any kind of private

sanitation due to their poor financial situation. These people live in very deprived

circumstances where sanitation is not a priority. Having ecosan made them feel more

6 Conclusion

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respected, however not especially for health or even economic reasons but because they

would own something new, which they liked and made them feel proud and accepted.

Participation in School Ecosan Projects 6.2

Can participation and endogenous power in the implementation of ecosan be considered to

be basic requirements regarding individual capabilities enhancement through ecosan toilets

in Philippine schools?

How Participation Factors influence Project Success 6.2.1

A grading system has been developed interpreting the success of ecosan school projects

concerning the aspects of usage, knowledge, action & problem solving as well as acceptance

& positive influence. This grading system is understood to be important for having an

overview of the school projects, in order to relate them to answers on participation criteria.

All information about the schools relies on the interviews conducted as well as the

observations made during the field visit.

Grading system for the school ecosan projects:

Very successful: A very well implemented project, where the toilets are regularly used

and actively maintained. Plus ecosan is integrated into everyday-school-life and shows

positive effects on the school environment.

Successful: A well implemented project, where ecosan toilets are accepted and used as

well as maintained. Knowledge about ecosan is good and the toilet is handled in an

adequate way.

Not successful: Project failure, the toilets are not used and knowledge about ecosan

hardly exists.

The following table combines the schools success factor with the participation factors tested:

School success factor indicators supporting ecosan strongest Lapasan Highschool Very successful Choice & Control (decision making, action & engagement)

Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (integration in school subjects) Leadership (dedication, action) Use & Creation of Structures

Balulang Elementary School

Very successful Culture & Knowledge (acceptance, local support) Choice & Control (parents & municipality, decision making, action & engagement) Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (integration in school subjects) Leadership (dedication, action) Use & Creation of Structures

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Baluarte Elementary School

Successful Culture & Knowledge (values, sanitation habits, acceptance, local support) Choice & Control (parents) Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (teaching) Economy

FS Catanico Elementary School

Not successful Culture & Knowledge (acceptance from pupils) Choice & Control (parents interest and acceptance)

Balubal High School Very successful Culture and Knowledge (values, acceptance, local support) Choice & Control (parents & municipality, decision making, action & engagement) Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (integration in school subjects, frequent mentioning, teaching) Leadership (dedication, action) Use & Creation of Structures

Lubluban Elementary School

Successful - very successful

Choice & Control (parents, decision making) Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (frequent mentioning, teaching) Use & Creation of Structures

Initao Central School Very successful Culture and Knowledge (values) Choice & Control (decision making, action & engagement) Learning Dynamics & Informal Education (integration in school subjects, frequent mentioning, teaching) Leadership (dedication, action) Use & Creation of Structures

Table 10: Evaluation of school ecosan projects concerning success and participation factors.

Three of the endogenous development indicators have shown to correlate strongest with

success or failure of school ecosan projects. Those are Choice & Control, Learning Dynamics &

Informal Education as well as Leadership. Schools with very well implemented ecosan projects

exemplify several characteristics.

First, the projects are demanded and initiated stronger by the schools themselves than by

external project leaders and main actions concerning maintenance are taken by the school

staff. Secondly, ecosan is more than just another toilet and becomes part of the school

curriculum. Finally, leadership within the school grounds has been identified to be the most

crucial success factor. Responsibility taken over by one person of the school staff has shown

to positively influence all other aspects. Moreover, a strong dedication to the ecosan

technology is required in order to make the implementation in schools successful, since

ecosan requires effort, maintenance and supervision in order to function properly.

Leadership as Success Factor 6.2.2

Implementation of ecosan in schools is not comparable to household sanitation. The situation

of ownership and participation is very different, since the toilet does not belong to one

person in particular. Yet, participation concerning leadership was evaluated to be a very

strong influence factor on the success of ecosan projects in schools.

6 Conclusion

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There are different reasons for the success of ecosan projects within the school context. On

the one hand ecosan can be useful as a study case or a research example and have a great

teaching value, by combining social, health, environmental and economic aspects of life. On

the other hand ecosan also proved to be an option for being the main sanitation solution to a

school, without the possibility of enjoying a conventional sanitation system. In both cases one

person of the school staff needs to be deeply engaged with the project and show personal

interest in its success. Moreover, the conscious choice of implementing ecosan as well as a

strong willingness to control and manage the project is essential for its sustainability. Strong

involvement of the ecosan topic in every-day school life was also identified as important

aspect for the success of a project.

However, not all tested indicators proved to have influence. Cultural habits and village

commitment, for example, did not play a considerable role in the success of school ecosan. It

could be seen that if leadership from the school side is strong, the village does not have to be

part of the project. In addition sanitation habits were found to be changeable over time.

Parent’s acceptance finally was seen to be mainly important for external support of the

project.

In conclusion, strong participation from the school’s side is very important for implementing

ecosan in schools. Without a strong interest and willingness from the school staff, projects

are not sustainable and should rather not be implemented to prevent the danger of setting

negative examples. Good examples show very positive effects on students and their lives

concerning education, health and psychological wellbeing. This proves that ecosan in schools

can subsidise the flourishing of individual capabilities, provided that the implementation is

supported strongly by the school leaders (the latter being important role models for

students). Although endogenous development seemed to set indicators that were too strong

and thereby requiring more specific participation indicators for further evaluation, it can be

said that school participation is a basic precondition for successful ecosan implementation.

Critical Reflection on the Study Results 6.3

There are three critical points concerning the here presented study results, which the

researcher acknowledges and wishes to address.

At first, translation in general is not safe from resulting in biased information, since languages

are strongly bound to culture and subtle statements or meanings get lost in translation. This

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bias cannot be avoided, however, using local values to validate meanings of people’s

statements contributes to reflecting a less biased and more authentic picture.

Secondly, the researcher approaches ecosan users as an independent scientist, and this may

be misunderstood by interviewees. There remains the possibility that users feel intimidated

by foreign researchers or perceive the researcher as an inspector who controls their project.

It can therefore not be ruled out that ecosan users tried to picture the projects more

successful than they really are. Some contradicting answers in the households as well as in

the schools give reason to this concern.

Thirdly and finally concerning the school projects it was found to be too little to interview

three students of each school. Their answers are given a high weighting in evaluating the

projects, their knowledge and opinions however are very individual and may not be a

representative sample for the success of the whole project.

Implications of Findings 6.4

The initial main research aim concerns usage and operationalization of the CA for life quality

assessment. Therefore, reflecting on the results of the case study, what new inputs can be

concluded from the present study?

Implications on Capability Research 6.4.1

Three main aspects evolved out of pursuing the ecosan case study in the Philippines that

directly concern the usage of the CA for improving life quality assessment and development.

Firstly, the present study attempted to not simply show the functionings gained through

ecosan but to translate them into the most valued freedoms that were enhanced through

these functionings in the Philippines. It can be seen that ecosan influenced the same life-

domains as in other countries, regions or projects, but not all are valued in the same way. This

resulted in concluding that the main freedoms gained through ecosan in the Philippines are

comfort and peace of mind linked to security and affiliation. Health and environmental

improvements are definitely a component of the advantages of ecosan, however they were

not mentioned very often. This could be drawn back to the fact that Sen’s idea of measuring

not only freedoms that are valued but also have reason to be valued was not considered in

this research (due to this point being criticized by other capability theorists and the

complexity in its pursuit). However, it is acknowledged that environmental and health aspects

have a great influence on the values gained through ecosan in the Philippines. The researcher

6 Conclusion

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therefore assumes that these freedoms are just as important as the freedoms evaluated to be

valued most in the Philippines. Subsequently, it is seen that the aspect of reason to be valued

as well as the aspect of agency freedom do play an important role in life quality assessment

and that both have not been given considerable attention in the cross-national study, which

leads to a second finding in this thesis.

Lienert (2011) mentions structural capabilities, to talk about societal preconditions for gaining

individual capabilities in terms of enabling structures. Peters (2012) engages in the topic of

endogenisation as an enabling factor. Finally, Sen mentions agency freedom as a precondition

(cf. SEN 1985). The present study has defined participation as a precondition for gaining

individual capabilities through a development intervention. The belief behind this hypothesis

is that people do indeed engage and participate in actions that truly improve their lives and

that they furthermore must be able and willing to participate for the success of an

intervention. Finally, participation could be observed as a good validation factor for how and

if life quality was improved through an intervention. Therefore, it is assumed that there exist

preconditions for the development or enhancement of individual capabilities. However, it

remains unclear where in this theory the exact influence and definition of structural

capabilities and agency freedom as well as the question where the aspects endogenisation

and participation belong as preconditions.

The aspect of outcome reliability finally leads to the last new insight on capability research

this study generated. Previous studies used capabilities as the one indicator that would depict

life quality enhancement, even though capabilities are not as observable as, for example,

economic indicators. Subsequently, gained functionings were used to show capability

enhancement. This, however, does not accord with the basic idea that underlies the CA. By

putting capabilities or freedoms into perspective with other life quality indicators (objective,

subjective and economic) capabilities have now been given a clearer position and definition

within life quality. This provides a new starting point to evaluate how they are used best for

life quality assessment. The researcher hence suggests that the different indicators (SWB,

OWB, economic indicators) have to be considered for improving life quality assessment and

should be evaluated through their interrelations with each other.

6 Conclusion

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Conclusion on Life Quality Assessment through the CA 6.4.2

Capabilities have been found in the present study to be difficult to evaluate and to demand

the evaluation of many different indicators. Yet, they are also found to contribute to life

quality assessment but cannot necessarily reflect life quality on their own.

The CA in practice remains a complex field of study. As unclear as it is in theory as difficult is

its usage in the research practice. Yet, the here attained results, combined with the previous

master’s thesis show that life quality research using the CA has a deep impact on the

understanding of development interventions, respectively on their outcomes and possible

improvements. The researcher concludes that by putting evaluated capabilities stronger into

context with other indicators, while also considering basic conditions that are known to

enable development, a clearer evaluation can be gained. Capabilities in this context take over

a role that helps to understand people’s main concerns and perceptions concerning their life

and its quality. Yet, they are seen by the researcher to not replace objective and universal

indicators, since the interrelation amongst different indicators is strong.

The Philippines study reveals one example that underlines the reason of this argument. Even

though health aspects have not been mentioned that much in the evaluation of enhanced

freedoms through ecosan, health has a strong influence on providing a good life for one’s

family and thereby gaining affiliation and acceptance in society. This leads back to Sen’s

discussion about means and ends. When one end of good life quality in the Philippines is

leading a comfortable and respected life, it is then important to know that this aspect is

valued highly, however health can then certainly be recognized as an important means to

reach this end. Therefore, even if the understanding of peoples’ ends regarding good life

quality helps to understand societies and thereby can improve development interventions,

the evaluation of means plays a role that is just as important. The question remaining here is:

How far does the means versus ends debate go and how to know what is the end and what is

the means?

This conclusion also leads back to Nussbaum’s opinion, that a too open approach would

prioritize wrong capabilities countered by Alkire’s statement, that dignity might not lead to

better health but does contribute to better life quality (cf. page 19). The overall conclusion of

this thesis is that evaluation of valued freedoms is essential for life quality assessment and

provides very valuable information, not putting them into perspective with other indicators

however, would bias the gained results.

6 Conclusion

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Recommendations and Further Research 6.4.3

Assessment of capabilities, as accomplished in this thesis and in the previous theses, still

implies exploratory work where theoretical basis often lacks behind. This, however, is a

chance for new theory development. The latter is shown in the fact that all studies conducted

in this context have continuously contributed to the further development of usability and

utility of using the CA within life quality measurement. Thus, it is recommended that further

studies take up the same path in order to bring capability measurement to a reliable state

and set its position within SD.

Moreover participation was identified as a crucial element for the sustainability of

implemented projects, however, precise indicators are lacking theoretical background. It is

suggested by the researcher that further scientific work on how people’s participation

interacts with enhancing life quality will make a great contribution to further development

work.

Contribution to the Scientific Dialogue 6.5

This master’s thesis is completed by distinguishing its contribution to the scientific dialogue

and concluding with the gained insights and findings for the social sciences.

First, this study provides first scientific material on life quality enhancement as well as

enhancement of capabilities through ecosan interventions in the Philippines. Thereby, a new

evaluation is provided.

Secondly, the present study has further developed the methodology of using the CA within

life quality assessment and brought new aspects into the picture on how to reveal capability

enhancement. It thereby contributes to theory development in the field of capability and

sustainability research.

Finally, this work contributes to participation research in general, the meaning of

participation in school projects and the significance of different participation indicators in the

implementation of ecosan.

It is the researchers overall opinion that, even though conducting development research by

using the CA is a significantly complex undertaking, the results gained in these studies bare

high value for more sensitive and therefore more effective and more sustainable working

processes in the field of development interventions.

Page 82

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Spangenberg, J. H. (2002) Environmental space and the prism of sustainability: frameworks for indicatiors measuring sustainable development. In: Ecological Economics Cologne (3), p. 295-309. Cologne, Germany: Elvesier. URL: http://ac.els-cdn.com/S1470160X02000651/1-s2.0-S1470160X02000651-main.pdf?_tid=b981a738ab77632fc06f13242ac47bd7&acdnat=1336473781_4733153dd2ed9ff2daf8cbb3903ee3e7 [28th July 2013]

Stewart, F.; Deneulin, S. (2002) Amartya Sen's contribution to development thinking. In: Studies in Comparative International Development 37 (2), p. 61–70. Providence, Connecticut: Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University.

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UNDP (2013) 2013 Human Development Index. New York: United Nations Development Programme. URL: http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR2013_EN_Summary.pdf [5th June 2013]

Virgilio, E. (1986) Philippine World-View. Singapore: Southeast Asian Studies Program, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

WB – The World Bank (2003) Philippines Country Water Resources Assistance Strategy. Manila: The World Bank. URL: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTRANETENVIRONMENT/1705736-1127758054592/20680779/PhilippinesWaterResourcesAssistanceStrategy.pdf [27th July 2012]

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Expert Interviews

Bollos, I. (2011) Expert Interview on Ecosan Project in Bayawan City. Bayawan City, Philippines: 21st June 2011, interviewed by Elisabeth Zech.

Gensch, R. (2011) Expert Interview on Projects of the Sustainable Sanitatoin Center of Xavier University. Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines: 17th May 2011, interviewed by Elisabeth Zech.

Sayre, E. (2011) Expert Interview on the WAND foundation’s Ecosan Project. Libertad, Misamis Oriental, Philippines: 31st May 2011, interviewed by Elisabeth Zech.

Picture Sources

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Wafler, M. (2008) ‘Hanging urine-diversion dehydration toilet‘ in coastal area in Libertad, Misamis Oriental, Philippines. URL: http://www.sswm.info/category/implementation-tools/water-use/hardware/toilet-systems/uddt [28th July 2013]

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Appendix

Appendix I – drives lists: Enssle 2010, Lienert 2011, Peters 2012

Drives list Enssle Drives list Lienert Drives list Peters - being healthy - having hygienic sanitation conditions

- being and feeling healthy - having hygienic conditions - being and feeling healthy

- feeling clean - being and feeling clean - being and feeling clean - having freedom of mind (not to worry, have pressure, be afraid)

- having freedom of mind - having freedom of mind - being relaxed - having no pressure or fear when defecating

- protecting family health - being secure being secure when becoming pubescent having security as woman

- having visual and social privacy

- protecting children and the family health - being protected, being sheltered - being out of sight, having visual privacy - being and feeling secure, when use the toilet - having appropriate conditions for handicapped and elder people

- protecting family health - being and feeling secure when using the toilet - having appropriate conditions for elderly, children and handicapped - protecting family security

- bodily integrity - having dignity

- bodily integrity - preserving ones dignity, having privacy

- having bodily integrity - having privacy when defecating - having a nice looking toilet - preserving ones pride and dignity - using a toilet without disgust - having a clean home

- having convenience and comfort in the daily life - having more convenience in daily female life

- having more convenience and comfort - having more convenience and comfort in daily life

- having a comfortable toilet - more convenience and comfort in daily life

- having more time available for oneself - saving time

- having more time available - having a permanent toilet - saving time and energy

- women having equal rights as men

- being a good houswife

- being a good houswife - being a good husband - investing in ones family - providing for future of family

- having social pride and status - being and feeling modern - being and feeling modern

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- affiliation to modern society - not belonging to the „poor“ - having social progress - expressing a new lifestyle - improving civilization - socil independence

- being „intelligent“ - keeping up with time - feeling proud - achieving a status

- feeling proud - feeling good ( because doing something good) - being an example for others - achieving status

- being infrastructural independent from others - being self-determined

- being infrastructural independent - being self-determined

- having finanical independence in the long run - less fertilizer expenses

- having fertilizer - having better crops - saving money - better soil quality - having added value

- having better soil quality - having better ground-water quality - saving money - having fertilizer - growing own food - having better crops - having added value - investing in family

- being and feeling responsible for the environment

- being and feeling responsible for the environment - being conscious about resources

- understanding the ecosan approach - being aware of the possibility to use ecosan as fertilizer - believing in technology - being aware of difficulty - being aware of sensitivity of environment - educating children on sanitation in early stage - being and feeling responsible for environment - being conscious about resources


- living in a clean environment - living in a clean environment - understanding the environment - protecting the environment

- saving water

- saving water - having more water available for other purpose

- saving space for other purposes - saving space - having a clean home

- having property - feeling responsible of property - being creative to upgrade property - using own skills to upgrade property

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Appendix II – questionnaire expert interviews

1. Organization 1.1 Who are the beneficiaries of the toilets built? 1.2 How much do they cost? Do the users take over a part of the costs? How are the toilets financed in total? 1.3 Did you manage to reduce costs over time/ Are toilets now cheaper than in further projects? How? 1.4 In which facilities were the toilets implemented (school, public toilet, household, …)? 1.5 How are people convinced to get an Ecosan toilet? 1.6 Do they also have the possibility to get flush toilets? If no, why not? 1.7 Which approaches (HCES, CLTS, etc.) for implementing a sanitation system do you know? Which one did you use for implementing your

project(s)? Why? 1.8 Is the building of toilets demand-driven and are the people involved in the whole process? 1.9 Who disposes fecal matter? Is it treated? Where? How is it financed? 1.10 Is fecal matter used as fertilizer? Is urine used as fertilizer? By whom? 2. Value for users 2.1 Could you describe the poverty level of the people (in the village)? 2.2 Why do you enforce the implementation of Ecosan toilets? 2.3 How strongly enforces the Philippine government these projects? If not, why not? (health-situations could be resolved, health-costs could be

lowered) 2.4 Are people aware of the reasons, why they should have Ecosan? 2.5 Why is open defecation a problem? 2.6 Do you think these problems (2.2, 2.4, 2.5) have been resolved through the implementation of the toilets? 2.7 Do people prefer Ecosan to conventional toilets? Why? 2.8 You think people have value of sanitation in general? Do they have other or additional value of Ecosan? 2.9 What would you say, in which ways did the lives of the people change, who are now Ecosan users? 2.10 Why would people refuse to have Ecosan? 3. Danger of catastrophes 3.1 How does the risk of natural catastrophes – like typhoons – influence sanitation projects like yours?

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3.2 Do the toilets bear up to those or do they have to be rebuilt? 3.3 How did the last typhoon in December affect your projects?

Appendix III – topics-to-cover-list

Research Questions

Topics to cover list I from Enssle former drives lists

Questions for further

operationalization

Cultural Aspects / Values

Philippines

Topics to cover list II

1. Which inidvidual capabilities are generated by ecosan in the Philippine Context?

What do people in the Philippines value about ecosan toilets?

How did the intervention change their lives?

Life Bodily health

o Mental health/ psychological well-being o Physical

Nourishment Security

o Housing o Economic security o Protective Security

Work and play Economic facilities Relationships/

friends/ intimacy Leisure-time

activities Comfortable life

(Prosperity) Social

opportunities Personal

development Community

development o Social networks o Political

Knowledge/ understanding Political Freedom Transparency guarantees Social well-being

o Self-direction/ participation o Self-respect o Dignity

Psychological well-being o Emotions o Personal liberty and freedom o Inner-peace/ spirituality o Practical reason o Senses, imagination, thought o Peace of mind

Bodily integrity Environmental Harmony

o Climate, Pollution o Nuisance o Visual perception and scenic quality

Other species Control over one´s

environment Natural Resources

o Goods Social infrastructure and

drives list Enssle drives list Lienert drives list Peters (see their lists further down)

Who benefits from ET? Who pays for ET? Were costs reduced over time? Where are toilets implemented (schools, households, etc.)? How are people convinced of ET? Do they have the possibility of having flush toilets? Implementation approach? Is it demand driven? Disposal/use of fecal matter and urine? Level of poverty? Project background? Why ecosan? What’s the governments role? Are people aware of the problems without toilets? Do they prefer ET or conventional

to trust in god family

centeredness strong role of

motherhood machismo having respect of

the elder hospitality joy and humor

(p. 57 [Emerito S. Quito], 140 [Serafin D. Talisayon]: values in philippine culture)

to save face / not lose pride

non-confrontational – no is said in a very polite and metaphorical way

nonverbal communication plays a big part (facial expressions)

(Filipino Mind: p. 85ff, Handbuch

Bodily Health Bodily integrity Nourishment Security

o Shelter o Protective Security o Protection of family and elderly

Economic security Comfortable life Personal development Kowledge /Understanding Affiliation

o Self-direction/ participation o Dignity o Pride & Respect o Community

Psychological well-being o Peace of mind

Concern about the environment o Pollution o Natural Resources

Control over one´s environment o ability to possess something

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participation

services toilets? Sanitation value in general? How did their lives change through ET? Why would people refuse to use ET?

Philippinen: p. 336ff)

METHODS: Existing Knowledge (List of capabilities taken adapted from Enssle 2010, elaborated through theoretical research on capabilities approach)

Existent literature: former ecosan studies

Explorative Interviews Experts

literature research on Philippine Culture

Limitation of topics to cover through new knowledge of theoretical research on philippine culture and expert interviews

Appendix IV – questionnaire explanation households

Question Options Kind Scale Specific purpose Contributing to information on:

Capabilities or constraints?

1. Number Identification 2. Date Identification 3. Village Identification 4. Age Open Knowing the kind of people

interviewed to better interprete results.

Sociodemographic 5. Sex Female

Male Standardized Nominal

scale Sociodemographic

6. Source of income Open Sociodemographic 7. Since when do you have an ecosan toilet?

Less then half a year Half a year One year Longer

Standardized Ordinal scale

Should be in use at least half a year.

Validation

8. Do all family members use the toilet?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal scale

At least parents should use the toilet.

Validation

a) who not? Children Wife Husband Guests

Standardized Ordinal scale

Where are constraints for whome, doesnt it fit?

Validation, Constraints -

b) why not? Open More information on constraints.

Constraints -

9. Did you have a toilet before?

Open Information on change in life – helping within interpretation

Validation

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Which kind? of results. 10. Do you have any problems with the toilet?

Yes No


Is it technically usable? Validation, Constraints -

a) Which? Open Further information on constraints or failure.


11. Is the construction of the toilet adapted to your defecating methods?

Yes No


Do they have to adapt to new methods could this be a constraint?

Constraints -

12. Do you still use other facilities for defecation?

Field Water Garden Forest Other

Standardized Ordinal Double check weather the goal of providing improved sanitation was met.


13. Do you use fertilizer?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Check weather ecosan could enhance economic security by using manure and urine as fertilizer.

Capability: economic security

+

a) How much do you spend yearly?

Open Could money be safed? Capability: economic security

+

14. Do you use manure and urine as fertilizer?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Capability: economic security

+

a) Why not? Open Constraint for using it as fertilizer

Constraints -

15. How far do you have to go to get water?

Open Testing on the capability of saving time and saving water.

Capability: having more time available

+

a) Is water a scarce resource?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Capability: having more water available

+

16. How long did you have to walk before, to be able to defecate?

Just by the house 10 min. Up to 30 min.

Standardized Ordinal Capability: having more time available

+

17. What were the reasons to get the toilet in the first place?

Open Did they think beforehand it would make their life better? In how far? Is there a demand?

Idea of good life quality concerning sanitation of the population.

+

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18. What do you think is the worst thing about open defecation?

Open What kind of valuable life-enhancement can sanitation bring them, compared to having no toilet?

Idea of good life quality concerning sanitation of the population.

+

19. Are you satisfied with the toilet?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Were expectations met? Did it make their life better?

Is there a general feeling that their life has become better with ecosan. Validation

20. What are the main advantages of ecosan for you?

Open How did ecosan or sanitation in general make their life better?

Capabilities +

21. What do you not like about the toilet or miss?

Open Finding out about constraints and the general idea of life quality enhancing sanitation.

Ecosan vs. Other Sanitation Idea of good life quality concerning sanitation of the population.

-

22. What would you change about the toilet?

Open Ecosan vs. Other Sanitation Idea of good life quality concerning sanitation of the population.

-

23. How did ecosan change your life?

Open What kind of capabilities were touched or are important to the people? Did they improve or become less?

Capabilities / Constraints + / -

24. How did it change the life in the village?

Open Capabilities / Constraints + / -

25. Did you recommend the toilet, do neighbours or friends also want one since they got to know it?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Did it make a big difference in their life quality?

Is there a general feeling that their life has become better with ecosan? Validation

26. Why do you think sanitation is important for life?

Open What is their idea of capabilities gained through sanitation?

Idea of good life quality concerning sanitation, of the population.

+

27. Would you prefer another toilet?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Is the expected life quality met by providing ecosan?

Ecosan vs. Other Sanitation Ida of good life quality, concerning sanitation, of the population.

a) yes: which one why?

Open What capabilities are not generated through ecosan but

Ecosan vs. Other Sanitation Ida of good life quality,

-

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through other toilets? concerning sanitation, of the population. Constraints

b) no: why do you prefer ecosan?

Open Does ecosan provide more capabilities than other toilets?

Ecosan vs. Other Sanitation Ida of good life quality, concerning sanitation, of the population. Capabilities

+

28. Did you pay for the toilet?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal The value and priority of ecosan or sanitation for them.

Status of sanitation or ecosan within life quality in general.

29. What would you be willing to pay / could you pay?

Open Status of sanitation or ecosan within life quality in general.

30. Has ecosan generated income for you or added any other value?

Open Testing capability: economic security

Capability: economic security

+

31. Is the toilet of personal value for you?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Testing capability: Affiliation Capability: Affiliation +

a) why? Open Specific capabilities concerning affiliation

+

32. Do you feel you were instruced enough?

Yes No

Standardized Nominal Technical knowledge of handeling the toilet.

Validation

a) What information do you miss?

Open Validation

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Appendix V – questionnaire answers households

question answer reason / explanation / … q. 6) Source of income?

19/34 farming (some plus fishing or little store) 9/34 fishery 4/34 Sari Sari Store, cab driver 2/34 Ecosan Employees

10 from the farmers use urine and manure as fertilizer, 3 of them use urine only

q. 8) Who doesnt use the toilet and why not?

4/34 noone uses the toilet - used to until floor broke and they didnt call for help - used to, but manure and urine was supposed to be collected but wasnt - ash puffs back „blocks lungs“ is dangerous - have to share it with neighbours - find it inconvienient so dont use it all the time

1/34 husabnd doesnt use the toilet - is moslem and used to use water to clean himself 5/34 guests dont use it - not used to it

- complain because of ashes - are ashamed to let them use it (send them to neighbour with flush)

3/34 children - dont know how to use it - use flush - use old pit

q. 9) Did you have a toilet before?

5/34 none, dug a whole, went to field 8/34 used the public ecosan (arborloo) – was washed away by flood 5/34 antipolostyle 5/34 pit latrine 2/34 private arborloo 9/34 flush toilet

5x open defecation 5x private pit latrine 8x public ecosan (arborloo) 7x private antipolo style or arborloo (covered pit) 9x flush toilet

q. 10) Do you have problems with the toilet?

20/34 yes - ash big problem, often not available – bad odor - when it rains bad odor - pipe system (urine and handwash) broken, clogged - closing for a chamber is broken - rain is a problem roofs and floors are broken (flooding areas – material is sensitive) - ash puffs up they inhale it and cough + odor of carbonized rice hulls is bad (burn rice hulls to have ash) - dont like it dont find it „clean“ - container for manure breaks, manure comes out

q. 11) Are you used to the method?

9/34 no - used to use water instead of ash to clean or cover - used to wash themselves with water, not used to use tissue - prefer to use water to clean - prefer to clean toilet with wather - unconvenient to separate urine and manure

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- seat is big and uncomfortable YES: - it is more comfortable now - used to go to the field - like to use ash – then can use manure as fertilizer

q 12) Do you still use other facilities to defecate?

4/34 also use a flush toilet, own one or neighbours when their toilet is broken 2/34 still use public toilet when theirs is broken 4/34 still defecate in the open when the toilet is broken or there is no ash

4/34 flush 2/34 public 4/34 o.d.

q 13) Did you use fertilizer before you got ecosan?

18/34 no 16/34 yes

Average expenditure on fertilizer/year: Php 4500,-

q 14) Do you use manure and urine as a fertilizer?

13/34 both 10/34 urine only 11/34 no

Why not? - manure is picked up - urine is picked up (research university) - not on the field because people think it’s dirty and wouldnt buy our corn anymore - dont use manure cause are scared of pathogenes – it is disgusting to use it

q 15) Distance to fetch water?

14/34 in/by the house 7/34 ten meters 7/34 2-5 Minutes 6/34 5-10 Minutes By the house: 1,2,5,6,8,9,19,21,22,23,24,25,26,27, 30,31,36

2-5 minutes = water pump on private property, if it doesnt work or they dont let them take the water anymore, they have to walk much longer or pay for water.

q. 15a) Is water scarce?

14/34 yes 20/34 no

Yes: 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 29, 30, 34, 37

q. 16) Distance to toilet before?

20/34 own toilet by the house 3/34 into the bushes 2. Min away 6/34 public toilet: 2 min. away plus waiting in line 5/34 public toilet 5-10 min. away plus waiting in line

q. 17) Reasons to get ecosan?

- more comfortable (when sick) – having diarrhea (they have it occasionally) - easier - more accessable - nicer to have own toilet then having to use others or public - defecation not a problem anymore

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- not having to wait in line - cleaner surrounding - shore is manure free - closer - saves time - for poor people it’s difficult to get a toilet - because it was provided - to get fertilizer (we were influenced by sayre) - afraid of septic tanks filling and no way to empty it - dirty to defecate in the river felt ashamed when we were caught - we liked public ecosan toilet (is clean and doesnt smell) - no more public toilets since the flood - safer to have a toilet at night (not having to go outside alone as woman) - awkward and disgusting if many people use same toilet (no privacy) afraid someone would come in before i am finished – hassle - to not defecate anywhere - came with the house we had no option - recommendation of barangay captain (leader authority of a barangay), each baranagay should have one, mine was the first in whole bayawan city - to safe water (we pay for water Php35/month) - it is for poor people but we feel more protected - water is not contaminated through this method - i was told that i would safe money and be safer from disease - pay less for fertilizer - was a gift from heaven, we could have never afforded it - selected from the barangay, they looked for someone who accepted it

q. 18) What do you think is the worst about o.d.?

- dangerous for children: catch dieases when playing outside - children step on it, is disgusting - disgusting - dirty surroundings - bad odor, unhygienic - unsanitary, unsafe - health risk, you get sick easily - have to search for clean places (when defecating open) - flooding areas: contaminated water, contaminated environment and surroundings - contamination at the shore, lower housholds are affected by it - stepping onto it is disgusting - feels awkward, used to use a toilet - river is contaminated from it so we cant wash our cloths there anymore - many flies and cockroaches, then get in contact with our food - you are not alone on the field there are other people as well - ichy in anal parts - shit will not disappear but come back to them

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- makes you sick, especially in rainy season - especially dangerous when the person is sick - not so bad for men, BUT very bad for women especially when they have their period

q. 19) Are you satisified with ecosan?

6/34 are in general not satisfied with ecosan Who is not satisfied: 7, 20, 22, 23, 24, 27;

- not used to not using water in the toilet (to clean it or themselves) - have to clean bowl outside (carry it outside, wash and dry in sun) - it is inconvinient to use - requires much care and effort - prefer flush

q. 20) Advantages of Ecosan?

- easy access (2) - no hassle looking for a free toilet (2) - it is closer - saving time (doesnt need water) - feeling more at ease - gives fertilizer, helps economically (12) - fertilizer that doesnt expire - i learned how to use manure economically - no rush when stomachache or feeling sick (2) - no waiting in line - more comfort (4) doesnt need water - cleanliness (is cleaner then public toilet, but needs to be maintained) (2) - feels good to have an own toilet (4) - not having to beg the neighbours (2) - children do not defecate outside anymore (3) - shore is cleaner - doesnt need water (we dont have much water available) (3) - it is new: we prefer new things to old things - we can throw the dipers in the hole - is and feels safer especially at night (is afraid of dogs at night) (3) - there is light - good to use manure and urine as a resource - having rich vegetables in the garden (2) - if used properly there is no bad odor - the product of the crops (corn and the sugar cane) are much richer now (4) - helps us to provide a better future for our children – we safe money - safe half of the money they payed for fertilizer yearly - see a change in childrens health – safes trouble and money for meds ( kids used to be often sick with fever and diarrhea) - people around envy us – we are greatful for having it and that we got it for free - makes the surrounding safer – think maybe once they will even be able to drink ground-water - use black bag for the manure in the basket, then they only have to take out the bag (no problem)

q. 21) What do you not like about ecosan?

- ash is not always enough – without ash, theres a bad smell (3) - can have a bad smell

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- when not enough ash or it rains, we use the public toilet (2) - the roof is leaking (ashes get wet) (4) - bowl is heavy to lift (2) - i dont like using ashes to cover i would rather use water to clean it (feels cleaner) (4) - floor is broken - we cannot use water to clean the toilet and ourselves - visitors are not used to it, when theres not enough ash and visitors have to use it we worrie - ashes puff up and make us caugh (we need masks to cover our mouth) - when it rains heavily the manure and urine overfloat - it is inconvinient – some people even left the village because of ecosan (nr.22) - feeling uncomfortable, when manure is not being picked up – so we avoid filling it - burning the rice hulls to get ash – makes suffocating odor - scared that children fall into the bowl – so doesnt let them use it - water toilet feels cleaner (but is only a solution for people who have enough water and they dont)

q. 22) What would you change about the toilet?

- would like to use water instead of ash (7) want to flush with water eventhough it is scarce - by not using water we feel ashamed in front of visitors - want to use water to wash myself – not used to tissue - smells bad when theres not enough ash – water we would have enough - would feel cleaner to use water and children dont know how to use ash - roof (is broken) – elevate it more and built it so that the water runs down from it (doesnt drip in) (4) - floor is broken (drips into manure and tank) (2) - new lid for a tank (broken) - pipe is very small and breaks fast, bassin broken (2) - woudl rather have a septic tank to use water (but house is rented, we would have to ask permission from government) (3) (Nr. 23,24, 27) - smaller bowl & septic tank to disopse manure properly (Nr. 24) - woudl like concrete walls (last longer) - there is a hole in the wall, feels ashamed people can see her (is only toilet in the barangay)

q. 23) How did ecosan change your life?

- is more comfortable (7) - easier (5) - safe money (4) - saves time and water (2) - defecating doesnt feel to be a hassle anymore, no waiting in line (4) - do not have to plan going to the toilet - do not have to panic or rush to go to the toilet (2) - no more uncomfort when you feel sick or it is very urgent to wait in line or search a place (3) - feels better - vegetables are growing better in the garden (3) - do not feel ashamend anymore for not having a toilet - makes me feel complete - children are less sick - life is a little better having our own toilet

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- it is more uncomfortable now – was more comofort to use flush - feels very uncomfortable to use it, i try to avoid having to defecate - surrounding is cleaner - we are sheltered - worsk better then flush (was often clogged) - less smelly - river is cleaner - it is easy to clean i can just use the ashes - NEGATIVE: i have to clean it the whole time, digging a hole was easier - do not have to search a place to defecate - requires much time and effort, more complicated than flush (3) - we have some fertilizer (4) - imrpoved cleanliness in general: ecosan requires proper use and knowledge about hygiene gives education - crops are much richer now (2) - improved life-style - proud of it many people from the village and visitors use it - prevents us from illness

q. 24) How did ecosan change the village?

- Appearance (little bit only, children still defecate outside), many people still defecate outside or in plastic bags and put it in the river - village is cleaner (9) – not so much plastic bags with manur in it anymore - less manure in field, river and shore (3) - people dont get sick that much - village has improved - village looks nicer, with ecosan many people starting gardening - people are freer - no more o.d. - less smelly (3) - village garden and people use it together (nice to see, social, gives vegt….) - education for children – they dont defecate open anymore - before feaces was everywhere, it was dirty and children deficated anywhere - for ash many rice hulls are burned – that disturbs us - inconvenience for our neighbours (smell) - awareness was raised about options of sanitary toilets (2) - improved economic situation for villagers - more comfort in village, no irritation by people defecating in the open - also the school started to build it – no smelly surrounding, cleaner - less cases of decentary (Magendarm) - less flies - neighbours are envious and interested, people with toilet invite them to come to their toilet: so they have more fertilizer to use

q. 25) Did you recommend ecosan to

Yes: 26 No: 8

4 of those who recommended it said: they tried to convince friends or neighbours but they didnt like the idea or found it disgusting.

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friends and neighbours? q. 26) Why do you think sanitation is important?

- to keep children healthier and cleaner, important to have a clean environment – are especially sensitive to water-borne diseases (9) - cleaner surrounding (11) - being and feeling healthier (9) - to not have a bad smelling area (3) - not having to walk through dirty surroundings (3) - more pleasent surroundings - to avoid diseases (11) - more hygiene (2) - less mosquitos – spread diseases (2) - it is nice to use clean things - to feel comfortable - to be safe (2) - to have peace of mind (2) - to save money – we used to have lots of medical expenses (2) - to prevent from contaminated water – makes sick - to prevent Dengue-fever (less mosquitos) (3) is a threatening disease to them and spreads fast - prevent diarrhea - there is no disturbance and everythign is in order - that germs and bacteria can not spread (2)

q. 27) Which toilet do you prefer?

15/34 flush/water toilet 17/34 ecosan 2 would like to have flush as well but keep ecosan

q. 27a) Why do you prefer flush?

- it is cleaner with water then with ash (3) - problem with ash, not always enough - easier and more comfortable to use water to clean it, water feels clean – eventhough it is hard to get (3) - we are ashamed in front of visitors - we are ashamed that our manure is collected - we are afraid that manure is being forgotten and not collected - people dont know how to use it and use water - so that waste is disposed properly - water is available - we are used to water toilets

q. 27b) Why do you prefer ecosan?

- gives fertilizer and we use the waste (no fear of full tank) (5) - plants in garden grow better - in our flooded area water toilets are not possible so ecosan is a good solution (2) - because it is affordable and the flush not (2) - because urine and manure are being picked up and we have no problem with a septic tank - easier needs only ashes no water, water is far to get, save water(6)

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- i can also use it if there is no water - doesnt smell - we got used to it and or now comfortable with it, more comfort (3) - fits to the village it is the most ideal solution here there is often high tide, so other toilets are no option - saves us money - comfort when we are sick or at nights to use the toilet

q. 28) Did you pay for the toilet? How much?

6/34 did provide material and labor for the building of the toilet (Walls and ceiling – superstructer) Nr. 29 - 34

7/34 got the toilet as part of the house, they rent the house for Php200/month for 3 years (then ist theirs) Nr. 21 – 27

q. 29) Would you be willing to pay for the toilet?

13/34 would be willing to pay what they can afford 2/34 would only be willing to pay for flush toilet 6/34 would be willing but couldnt afford anything 2/34 no 6/34 would be willing to provide material or labor

q. 30) Did you generate income through ecosan?

Yes: 19/34 No: 15/34

-better crops, richer harvest, selling vegetables etc. (9) - gained fertilizer (3) – but product is very little (2) - save water, save effort to fetch water (4) - save money for fertilizer, now use ecosan fertilizer and dont buy it anymore (saved between 1.000 and 9.000 Php/ year) (6) - was free-did at least not have to spend money

q. 31) Do you have personal value of ecosan?

Yes: 30/34 No: 4/34 Why not: - we are ashamed to show it to friends - sometimes it smells bad

- no hassle, feeling more at ease, are not ashamed anymore to have no toilet, not feeling insecure anymore (11) - feeling more at ease and not having to bother neighbours or wait in line anymore, especially when sick, made us feel ashamed (9) - it is new, we like new things (2) - it was for free, we gained a toilet and didnt have to spend money (2) - i feel complete having a toilet - it feels better to have an own toilet, we are proud of that (5) - the urine is useful - children got educated (2) - we got educated, could attend seminars – we like that and it made neighours envious (2) - proud to be „chosen“ for getting the toilet (2) - proud to have this kind – ecosan – toilet (3) - saves us problems with full septic tanks or getting water to flush

q. 32) Was the instruction good?

Yes: 30/34 No: 4/34 No:

- learned about sanitation and health - learned about manure and urine as fertilizer - had seminar orientation - could attend many seminars

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- were only instructed by neighbours who have an arborloo - used it due to knowledge from using the public ecosan - new comers, the toilet came with the house, only learned from the instruction board in the toilet

- children also were educated - poster helps a lot too

Comment Nr. 32: couldnt see the toilet, doesnt sound like they use it at them moment, say dont use it since mother got sick; prefer conventional toilet and are used ot it; say children know how to use it – also say they dont want the children to use it – are scared they fall into the bowl. Say vegetables in the garden are richer but also say they never used the fertilizer, gave it to sister (she uses it in the garden?) Nr. 36: sometimes cant look after toilet, then other people use it and dont use it right; is disappointed from barangay capatain, he doesnt coem to check often, when door was broken he didnt help, said he doesnt use the toilet so its not his problem; she likes ecosan, brought her a lot; but its the only toilet in the barangay and she feels like noone provides help, when its broken or they need something. She is proud to own a toilet. Nr. 37: the toilet doesnt look used at the moment, dog just got puppies in there; are happy to have it to safe water; prefer ecosan because water is scarce, profit from fertilizer through vegetables, find saniation very important to have a clean environment and prevent dengue e.g.; use manure but only in the garden cause its not so much; problem: when theres no ash and it rains it smells bad

Appendix VI – questionnaire explanation principals and teachers

Question Options Kind Specific purpose Aspect of Endogneous

Development

Assumed indicator for participation in school

context 1. Number Identification / background information 2. Date Identification / background information 3. School / Village Identification / background information 6. number of students at school

Identification / background information

7. number of ecosan toilets implemented

Identification / background information

8. involvement of school in other projects

Open How is the enabling environment for implementing projects in general. Is there a „school culture“ of involving pupils in different projects?

Culture & Knowledge Use and Creation of Structures

- local support - related projects

9. time of existence of ecosan at school

General information on present status

10. are toilets still in use

Yes / No General information on present status

Appendix

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a) why not? What is used instead?

Open Open questioning beforehand about what are the reasons that the project failed.

11. toilets for students AND teachers

Yes / No Do teachers act as role models? How strongly are teachers dedicated to it, do they really integrate it into everyday life?

Leadership Learning Dynamics Informal Education Culture & Knowledge

- dedication of responsible person - action taken by responsible person - ways of teaching - local support

12. problems with the toilet

Open Open questioning beforehand about what are the reasons that the project failed.

13. construction adapted to defecation habits

Yes / No Is the project adapted to the local, cultural context, does it fit and respond to local needs, habits and values?

Choice & Control Culture & Knowledge

- participation in planning and construction - local support - way of construction - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation

14. how are urine and manure handled

Open Is ecosan economically interesting for the school? Is the usage and treatment of urine and manure used as creative teaching exercise? Is it being integrated into the topics related to ecosan? Have other projects or school activities emerged through that

Leadership Economy Learning Dynamics & Informal education Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

- action taken by person responsible - economic achievements - integration into school subjects - ways of teaching - activities concerning ecosan - related projects

15. institutions in charge for maintenance

Open Who participates, where do the responsibilities lie? Is it only the school or are the village and parents involved? Is Xavier University still engaged?

Choice & Control Leadership

- decision making process - participation in planning and construction - known responsible person

16. reasons for getting ecosan

Open What is the motivation, does it come from within? How much is the project demanded, how much is it implied.


- decision making process - expectation to sanitation

Appendix

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- value of sanitation a) who took decision Open Choice & Control - decision making process b) who was involved in decision making

Open Choice & Control - decision making process

17. main advantages of ecosan

Open What is valued? Are ecosan specific aspects valued or simply to have sanitation? Is there a dedication towards ecosan?

Culture & Knowledge - expectations to sanitation - value of sanitation

18. main disadvantages

Open What is not liked, does not fit to culture, values or interests, is not wanted?


19. waters scarce? Open Which role does water play? Is ecosan valued for being a water saving technology? Does the toilet fit into the environmental context?


20. income generated, money saved through ecosan?

Open Is ecosan valued for its specialty to be economically viable? Are the possibilities bailed out? How high is the value of ecosan for the school?

Economy Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

- economic achievements - activities concerning ecosan - related projects

21. change of every-day school routine or school appearance through ecosan?

Open Influence of the project? Integration into the school routine, has it adapted to every-day school life, is it now part of the “school culture”? checking general success of project to compare with participation

Learning Dynamics & Informal education Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

- integration into school subjects - activities concerning ecosan - frequent tasks concerning ecosan - related projects

22. recommend ecosan to other schools?

Open Were the expectations met? Are they satisfied with the project? Did get successfully adapted? checking general success of project to compare with participation

Culture & Knowledge - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation

23. what should other schools consider when implementing ecosan?

Open Obstacles. What didn’t they expect or what doesn’t fit to the school context from ecosan? What do they have trouble with? Seeing which parts are difficult to integrate and need special attention.

Culture & Knowledge - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation - cultural acceptance and fitting of ecosan approach

24. toilet they had before: (dis)advantages

Open Who wanted ecosan and why, what are the reasons? Are they happy to have ecosan, or it’s just the only solution but not a good one for them. Environmental fitting into the context.


- decision making - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation

25. who was instructed

Teachers &

Are all stakeholders involved? Participation in general?

Choice & Control

- decision making - participation in planning and

Appendix

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Principal Students Parents Barangay leaders

Culture & Knowledge

construction - participation of parents & municipality - local support

26. instructed well? Open How much is the school part of the project, feels instructed well and if not, took action on their own to know more about ecosan? How much are they and do they feel involved?

Choice & Control - action and engagement

27. take part in construction process

Yes / No How much is the school involved into and dedicated to the project? Do they want to convert it into their own?


- participation in planning and construction - action & engagement - way of construction

28. involvement of parents

Open Choice & Control - participation of parents & municipality

29. subject changes through ecosan

Open How much is it integrated into the school curriculum? Is the project really adopted?

Learning Dynamics & Informal Education

- integration into school subjects - frequency of making ecosan a topic - ways of teaching - teaching materials

30. why is ecosan important at schools?

Open Is sanitation seen by the school leaders in its holistic way, is it being connected to its related topics and is its importance understood?


31. school concerning topics related to ecosan?

Open Is ecosan understood in its holistic way and adopted in this way to the school environment?

Leadership Learning Dynamics & Informal Education

- dedication / action taken by person in charge - integration into school subjects - ways of teaching - teaching materials

32. who is in charge Open Leadership - known responsible person a) of cleaning Open Culture & Knowledge

Leadership Learning Dynamics & Informal education Use and Creation of

- local support - dedication / action taken by person in charge - ways of teaching - teaching materials - activities concerning ecosan

b) treating manure and urine

c) when problems arise

Appendix

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Structures and Rituals - frequent tasks concerning ecosan

33. barangay involvement into school ecosan

Open Is the project embedded into the local context? Is it supported by local structures rather than by Xavier University?


- participation of parents & municipality - local support

34. imagine having an ecosan at home?

Open Dedication and conviction of teachers and persons in charge. Personal interest.

Leadership

- dedication of the responsible person

Appendix VII – questionnaire explanation students

Question Options Kind Specific purpose Aspect of Endogneous

Development

Assumed indicator for participation in school

context 1. Number Identification / background information 2. Date Identification / background information 3. School / Village Identification / background information 4. student’s age Identification / background information 5. name Identification / background information 6. knowledge on sanitation

Open What do students know / think about sanitation. Checking how sanitation in understood by students.

Culture & Knowledge

- value of sanitation

7. is sanitation important

Yes / No Why?

Open What do students know / think about sanitation. Checking how sanitation in understood by students.

Culture & Knowledge - value of sanitation

8. have toilet at home

Yes / No General information on present status

9. which type of toilet at home

Open What are students used to? Is ecosan an improvement to their used sanitation methods? Relation to composting toilets.

Culture & Knowledge - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation

10. know what ecosan is? explain

Open Students knowledge of ecosan. How clear has it been communicated, how well do they know ecosan and all its aspects. Checking the success of the implementation.

11. which toilet to do you prefer?

Open Acceptance, value and adoption of ecosan in the school. AND how does it fit into the cultural context, can pupils adapt to it.

Culture & Knowledge - expectation to sanitation - cultural acceptance & fitting of the ecosan approach

12. are parents Yes / No Holistic participation in and acceptance of Choice & Control - participation of parents &

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familiar with ecosan ecosan. Culture & Knowledge

municipality - local support - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation - cultural acceptance and fitting of ecosan approach

a) where did parents learn

Open Parents participation

b) what do they think

Open Parents acceptance, commitment and dedication

13. knowledge of ecosan at the school

Open How much are students involved. Checking success of implementation.


- integration into school environment

14. knowledge on how ecosan works

Open Do students know how it works, are they used the right way? Checking success of implementation.

15. do you use ecosan at school

Yes / No Why not?

Open Checking success of implementation and reasons for failure.

Culture & Knowledge - cultural acceptance & fitting of ecosan approach

16. ecosan easy to use?

Yes / No Why not?

Open Checking success of implementation and reasons for failure.

Culture & Knowledge - cultural acceptance & fitting of ecosan approach - sanitation habits - expectations to sanitation

17. like / dislike about ecosan

Open Acceptance and fitting of ecosan technology into the school and the cultural context

Culture & Knowledge - cultural acceptance & fitting of ecosan approach - sanitation habits - expectations to sanitation

18. who instructed students? How often are they instructed?

Open How is ecosan implemented and how are students educated about it? How often is it topic, is ecosan integrated into the whole school routine?

Leadership Learning Dynamics & Informal Education

- integration into school subjects / environment - frequency of making ecosan a topic - ways of teaching & materials - external support

19. think ecosan was a good idea

Open How much are pupils convinced of ecosan at their school? What are the reasons for thinking it is good / not good? Checking if implementation was successful.

Culture & Knowledge

- expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation

20. tasks concerning ecosan

Open Integration of ecosan into every-day school routine, participation of students in ecosan


- integration into school environment

Appendix

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project Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

- frequency of making ecosan a topic - ways of teaching & materials - frequent tasks concerning ecosan - related projects

21. change at school with ecosan

Open Is the implementation of ecosan seen. Is it really integrated into the school and did it bring significant changes. Checking if implementation was successful.

Learning Dynamics & Informal Education Use and Creation of Structures and Rituals

- integration into school subjects / environment - ways of teaching & materials - activities concerning ecosan - frequent tasks concerning ecosan - related projects

22. would you want ecosan at home

Open Students acceptance and dedication towards ecosan. Has it become “normal” to them to they like / understand / value it? Checking if implementation was successful.

Culture & Knowledge - local support - cultural sanitation habits - expectation to sanitation - value of sanitation - cultural acceptance & fitting of the ecosan approach

Appendix VIII – evaluation school questionnaires / participation indicators

Lapasan Culture & Knowledge

Values: cleanliness; clean and save surroundings; enough sanitation facilities; save toilet – septic tanks often unsafe, water contamination is a problem Sanitation habits: using water Acceptance: the way it is implemented and used advantages outweigh disadvantages, but takes time for getting used to, it is accepted as project Local support: only the school takes care of the toilet

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents paid for toilets, now have nothing to do with it; village is not involved Planning & Construction: adapted to students habit in anal cleansing Decision making: initiated by science teacher; teachers and principal decided together Action & engagement: strong from responsible teacher; production of fertilizer and vermicomposting; seeks for help when needed


Integration in school subjects: usage of fertilizer in garden, vermicomposting, science; topic in water conservation, biodiversity, climate change Frequency of mentioning: reminded sometimes when needed Teaching: in class; through tasks of cleaning and emptying drums; everyone has to use it at least once a year

Leadership Responsible: science teacher in charge for the ecosan at school Dedication: very dedicated, makes sure soap and paper are there, is strict about the usage and cleaning Action: acts as role model, reminds constantly, vermicomposting and usage of fertilizer

Use & Creation of Strong relation to school garden: fertilizer, working in the garden, teaching about environment and agriculture

Appendix

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Structures Economy No special advantages through ecosan

Balulang Culture & Knowledge

Values: cleanliness; protection from illness; hygiene; connection between health and sanitation should be part of education Sanitation habits: pour-flush, septic tanks, using water Acceptance: great among students – like the idea of producing fertilizer instead of waste, good for environment, plants grow better; dislike: bad odour & problems with cleanliness in removing the urine Local support: barangay provides help when it is needed

Choice & Control Parents & Municipality: parents are involved and help with cleaning and repairing – were sceptical at first, now they accept it; barangay helps Planning & Construction: completely done by XU Decision making: ecosan was part of a feeding-program; teachers, principal and barangay took the decision Action & Engagement: seek for help when they need it; treat and use manure and urine; feel well instructed


Integration in school subjects: part of many subjects like: character education, science, health, English (explanation board is in English); big topic especially in 6th grade Frequency of mentioning: ecosan is a topic at school each day Teaching: science project about urine; applying fertilizer in the garden; group of students is responsible each week

Leadership Responsibility: interviewed teacher Dedication: sees many school topics related to ecosan, coordinates ecosan carefully, very interested in ecosan and would want it also for herself Action: manure and urine collection, usage in garden and on corn; urine science project

Use & Creation of Structures

gardening is done twice a week and is strongly linked to the ecosan topic; school also does composting, garbage recycling, community clean-up; have 5 washing-areas at school: hand washing and teeth brushing is part of education

Economy save money on water bill; with fertilizer they get richer products

Baluarte Culture & Knowledge

Values: no flies and mosquitos; not to get sick; clean surrounding; be able use a toilet safely; not having to practice o.d.; no more absence of pupils due to sickness or no toilets at school; “health is wealth” Sanitation habits: aborloo; antipolo-style; bowl with water usage (different pit latrines); used to using water for anal cleansing Expectations: want to use water and not take so much time for sanitation; to have toilets at all Acceptance: happy to have proper toilet; not having to use water (is scarce) Local support: local carpenter helped in building the toilet

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents learned about ecosan at school – are happy it exists and that children can stay at school for defecating, like the usage of ash instead of water Planning & Construction: parents participated in construction pahina (=offering work without being paid for it) Decision making: because have not enough toilets and no water supply, pupils practiced o.d.; forum of teachers and Xavier University decided on it Action & engagement: initial action to get the toilets; lately no action taken on repairing

Appendix

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Integration in school subjects: ecosan was explained – no subject changes Frequency of mentioning: sometimes mentioned and reminded Teaching: instruction for pupils in the beginning of the school year; teachers see relation to the topics: science, maths, health; frequent cleaning task

Leadership Responsible: interviewed teacher; school and Xavier University Dedication: feeling it takes much effort; often the toilets are not cleaned properly; seen as good method when there’s no water supply; manure and urine was treated in the beginning Action: teachers use the toilets and pay for soap and toilet paper


at first manure was stored and treated properly and used as fertilizer; frequent tasks are mentioned by some pupils not by all; each Friday should be cleaned by 6th grade; related project: school garden

Economy vegetables grow better, some of them are sold some go to students; water bill is reduced

FS Catanico Culture & Knowledge

Values: clean surrounding; not getting sick; being clean Sanitation habits: flush-toilets with septic tank exist in all classrooms Expectations: clean, nice toilets (ecosan was liked in the very beginning); no odour Acceptance: not having to bring water from home; feel ecosan is much effort and difficult to use; don’t like to use paper; teachers think: pupils do not accept it; some pupils: like idea of fertilizer instead of waste, to save water, think is a good idea and could be useful (also parents opinion), could imagine their families to use it Local support: village is not involved

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents know about it, accept it and were interested, but more in the garden than in ecosan Planning & Construction: constructed in pahina with teachers and parents Decision making: was offered by XU; thought it was a good idea to have it additionally to other toilets; came with the garden; principal decided Action & engagement: bad odour, no lime, vandalism – no action was taken; teachers feel instructed well


Integration in school subjects: no subject changes Frequency of mentioning: some have heard about ecosan Teaching: sometimes it is still a topic, like in home economics

Leadership Responsible: no one particularly Dedication: teachers not very convinced: pupils didn’t accept it, students want to defecate at home – but see that it “could be a solution to water scarcity” Action: no action taken (teachers didn’t want to be interviewed)


Manure and urine was only handled by XU staff; no tasks assigned; have tree-planting project; gardening was mainly introduced and done by XU

Economy no advantages (think they could have saved money on water bill)

Balubal

Appendix

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Culture & Knowledge

Values: being healthy; feeling comfortable with proper disposal of human waste; clean environment; protection when defecating Sanitation habits: pour-flush toilets; not used to separate urine and faeces Expectations: no expenses; no water usage; to have proper sanitation Acceptance: don’t have to fetch water; flush-toilet problem: septic tank often doesn’t work and water is scarce; happy to have ecosan, works and brings them fertilizer; very well accepted and preferred to pour-flush; feel it is very comfortable and easy to use; much less o.d. now Local support: barangay participates in the project and takes over the monitoring (there are two more ecosan toilets in the village)

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents know about ecosan, learned at school or participated in pahina; take part in maintenance; like the idea: fertilizer, no water, no septic tank Planning & Construction: parents participated in the construction Decision making: they had already heard about ecosan and were interested; decision made by parents, teachers and barangay; feel it is the best solution since water is scarce and o.d. was practiced Action & engagement: toilet was destroyed by typhoon – was rebuilt through the effort of parents and teachers; encourage other schools to also get ecosan; feel very well instructed


Integration in school subjects: part of subjects: science, maths (dilution water and urine), history, biology, gardening Frequency of mentioning: are reminded about ecosan by the teacher weekly Teaching: treatment and usage of manure and urine in the garden, knowledge about it very well; instructed by teachers husband, who is involved with ecosan External support: get financial support from DEPED; support from local community; local farmer is in charge of treating urine and manure

Leadership Responsible: science teacher, who was interviewed; the school Dedication: toilet is used by all teachers; could imagine having ecosan at home Action: products of human waste are always used when gardening; food-production-study conducted


strong connection with gardening and many subjects; food production: once a months they cook for students, rest is sold; waste segregation program; feeding program; treatment of manure with farmer; assignments for cleaning the toilet frequently

Economy sell crops, which are bigger now; do not buy fertilizer

Lubluban Culture & Knowledge

Values: clean surrounding; healthy environment; no odour; learning about proper sanitation Sanitation habits: there was/is o.d. practiced at the school & flush-toilets; used to have flush-toilets with septic tanks close to the classroom Expectations: cleanliness; no bad odour; not much effort; clear information Acceptance: is accepted; made school surroundings cleaner; 5th grade cleans it, sees no problem in that; but feeling that not everyone knows how to use it and is often dirty Local support: parents like it, are happy that there is proper sanitation at school

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents help in maintaining and educating; give their children ashes for it Planning & Construction: did not take part in construction Decision making: ecosan was built because of water scarcity and having to fetch water; principal decided after asking teachers Action & engagement: feel well instructed

Learning Dynamics & Informal

Integration in school subjects: integrated into science class and learning about healthy ecosystems Frequency of mentioning: were instructed once; now it is not often a topic, only sometimes they are reminded to use it properly

Appendix

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Education Teaching: urine is applied as fertilizer – see that plants grow richer; teachers and WAND foundation instructed them together External support: manure is collected by foundation, strong support

Leadership Responsible: one teacher for surroundings, one teacher for toilet; school and foundation Dedication: teacher thinks ecosan is better than a pit latrine; urine can be used Action: frequent reminding of students; some teachers use it


usage of urine in the garden; frequent cleaning with supervision of teachers; urine and manure frequently emptied with principal

Economy mangos grow richer and healthier, they are sold; do not have to buy fertilizer anymore

Initao Culture & Knowledge

Values: having sanitation at school; not having to fetch water; being clean and healthy Sanitation habits: used to flush-toilets and to using water; had to get used to ecosan and do not all feel it is easy Expectations: feel clean; no bad smell Acceptance: like ecosan; some say it doesn’t smell, some say it smells; now they can urinate at school and even use the urine as fertilizer; teachers only sometimes use it; see no disadvantages; less problems with septic tanks Local support: barangay is not engaged

Choice & Control Parents & municipality: parents are informed and asked to participate and help – not strongly involved though Planning & Construction: teacher planned a mixed toilet on her own, but foundation wanted to separate boys and girls Decision making: needed a new toilet and were afraid of the septic tank to fill up; teacher in charge brought up the idea and presented to other teachers and principal, then she decided on it Action & engagement: usage of boys and girls urine differently; asks for help when needed (got cement for building a new pathway)


Integration in school subjects: integrated into: home economics, health, science, agriculture, food production Frequency of mentioning: reminding students each Monday morning Teaching: using the urine in the garden and topic within school subjects; empty the urine and manure containers together with teacher External support: the foundation is very supportive

Leadership Responsible: interviewed teacher Dedication: strong dedication; initiated the project; supervises strictly; had own ideas of design Action: keeps logbook; uses urine with pupils; asks parents for support


usage of urine; more garden-work by saving time for fetching water; everyday cleaning of toilets; make vegetable soup at school with garden products; separate and collect trash

Economy the water bill is reduced

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