Valerie Nelson – författare

A new model for water management is emerging worldwide in response to water shortages, polluted waterways, climate change, and loss of biodiversity. Cities and towns are questioning the ecological and financial sustainability of big-pipe water, stormwater, and sewer systems and are searching for “lighter footprint” more sustainable solutions. Pilot projects are being built that use, treat, store, and reuse water locally and that build distributed designs into restorative hydrology. This book has been developed from the conference on Sustainable Water Infrastructure for Villages and Cities of the Future (SWIF2009) held in November 2009 in Beijing (China) that brought together an international gathering of experts in urban water and drainage infrastructure, landscape architecture, economics, environmental law, citizen participation, utility management, green building, and science and technology development. Water Infrastructure for Sustainable Communities China and the World reveals how imaginative concepts are being developed and implemented to ensure that cities, towns, and villages and their water resources can become ecologically sustainable and provide clean water. With both urban and rural waters as a focal point, the links between water quality and hydrology, landscape, and the broader concepts of green cities/villages and smart development are explored. The book focuses on decentralized concepts of potable water, stormwater, and wastewater management that would provide clean water. It results in water management systems that would be resilient to extreme events such as excessive flows due to extreme meteorological events, severe droughts, and deteriorated water and urban ecosystem quality. A particular emphasis is placed on learning lessons from the many innovative projects being designed in China and other initiatives around the world. The principal audience for the book is university faculty and students, scientists in research institutes, water professionals, governmental organizations, NGOs, urban landscape architects and planners. Visit the IWA WaterWiki to read and share material related to this title: http://www.iwawaterwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Articles/WaterInfrastructureforSustainableCommunitiesEdited by Professor Xiaodi Hao, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture, P. R. of China,  Professor Vladimir Novotny, Northeastern University, Boston, USA and  Dr Valerie Nelson, Coalition for Alternative Wastewater Treatment, MA, USA

Fairtrade goods are claimed to empower producers, and promote sustainable livelihoods, and it is these claims that attract consumers who willingly pay a premium for the sake of the benefits that they expect will be experienced by smallholders in developing countries. But what is the evidence for these improved impacts? How are these benefits measured, and what would be realistic expectations of the degree to which Fairtrade and other sustainability standards can tackle rural poverty in developing countries? Does Fairtrade exclude some groups or geographical regions? Do we know that benefits to smallholders reach their hired labourers? How can Fairtrade and other sustainability standards learn from empirical impact studies to reflect upon their theories of change and improve their impact?Exploring the impacts of Fairtrade presents a series of rich, detailed case studies from the field distilling insights and lessons about the contribution of Fairtrade and sustainability standards to different social groups in particular geographies. The book seeks to contribute to the lively debate on the impact of such schemes by showing the diverse outcomes and impacts that such schemes have as they are adopted or implemented in different geographical production and value chain contexts around the world. The different cases show the many limitations of such schemes, but also discuss potential strategies for improvement. This book is essential reading for all those interested in value chain development, fair and ethical trade, and sustainability standards, including researchers, students, policy makers, companies and those working for development agencies.