Broken Pumps and Promises: Incentivizing Impact in Environmental Health

By: Evan A. Thomas

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Synopsis: This volume highlights some of thechallenges in delivering effective environmental health interventions, andpresents examples of emergent theories and case studies that can help close thegap between intent and impact. These include impact crediting systems,objective evidence gathering tools, and social businesses that service environmentalhealth. The case studies presented cross disciplines, scales, organizationaland national boundaries and can defy easy categorization. A water project maybe designed for a health impact, but financed with a climate change tool, andleverage high tech cell phone sensors. A cookstove program may be primarilyconcerned with employment and capacity building, but balance environmental andhealth concerns. Presently, the impact of interventions may notalways be aligned to the intent sought. In this book, readers will discoveralternative ways to move the mindset of funders and implementers towardpay-for-performance models of humanitarian and environmental interventions. Undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in social enterprise, socialentrepreneurship, global health, appropriate technology, internationaldevelopment and development engineering would benefit from these increasinglynon-traditional case studies that challenge commonly accepted presentations ofpoverty reduction and social enterprise.