ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: The development process generates increases in economic and financial capital, requires vast amounts of natural resources, and generates huge amounts of waste. In many places, development also can bring social disruption and a significant loss in biodiversity. Poverty is often a consequence of structural change and income redistribution. Poverty and inequity are not issues only relevant in the less developed parts of the world-in the USA and the EU too, there are many thousands of people who live below their respective national poverty lines. The main drivers of poverty in urban areas tend to be related to social exclusion, migration and inequitable access to services, while in rural areas, it is more driven by lack of access to resources and infrastructure, droughts and floods, and low levels of educational enrolment. In sub-Saharan Africa, most poor people tend to live in areas where livelihoods depend on exploitation of natural resources (FAO, 2007). In this chapter, the ethical dimensions of development are discussed. Some suggestions are made as to how this can be better understood through a range of techniques, and an illustration of a rapid appraisal approach linking water to poverty is provided through an example of the Water Poverty Index.
