Juliet Willetts - Research paradigms for poverty alleviation

A Prof Juliet Willetts, Institute for Sustainable Futures, UTSSydney 21-22 November 2013

Research paradigms for poverty alleviation and sustainable development:

a balancing act of different knowledges, ethics, rigour and relevance

My main point – to ask ourselves…

What kind of research do we need to create change?

The balancing act

ethics different knowledges, ways of knowing

rigour

relevance

Ways of knowing

What exists?

What are we capable of doing?

What is it we want to do?

What should we do?

M A Max Neef (2005) Foundations of Transdisciplinarity. Ecological Economics 53: 5-16

Characteristics of transdisciplinary research

1. Civil society, business and government roles in water and sanitation services

Technical ‘fix’

Social ‘fix’

1. Civil society, business and government roles in water and sanitation services

government

community

business

2. Climate change, disasters and health

Few stakeholders

Lots of stakeholders

One discipline

Lots of disciplines

Single problem dimension

Complex interlinked issues

Clear rules

and

standards

No rules

Awareness of power

structures and how

knowledge is used

Responsible

just for new

knowledge

Looking to the future, what kind of research do we need to create change?

Humility as researchers Respect for different types of knowledge and disciplinesCourage to dare to think differently and make new suggestionsIntegrity and ethicsFlexibility to adapt approach

Thankyou

juliet.willetts@uts.edu.au

Sanitation services that meet economic, environmental, institutional and social aims

Strengths-based approaches to community development

Gender equality in water and sanitation

Governance and service delivery for the poor