Are you interested in how social inequality influences domestic water and thus broader water sustainability issues?


Summary of the article titled Social inequality and water use in Australian cities: the social gradient in domestic water use from 2021 by Paul Satur and Jo Lindsay, published in the Local Environment – The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability.


This is a great preparation to our next interviewee, Paul Satur who deeply cares about water use and social inequality.


Since we are investigating the future of cities, I thought it would be interesting to see how the social gradient influences domestic water use. This article presents the complex social and environmental dynamics that shape water use in urban areas, and highlights the need for more equitable and sustainable water management strategies.


As the most important things, I would like to highlight 3 aspects:

Sustainable, resilient and liveable water-sensitive cities should not just be for those with the capacity and resources to access them, but for everyone.
Variability in economic, social, cultural and material resources profoundly influences the nature of water use practices and there is a social gradient in water use where community levels of advantage and disadvantage have an impact on the meanings, materials and competencies associated with water use.
To ensure socially inclusive progress to water-sensitive cities and sustainability development in general, future implementations and initiatives will need to more effectively address the social gradient in water use.

You can find the article through this link.


Abstract: This paper explores the impact of social inequality on household water use in urban communities in first-world contexts, an under researched field. We report on an in-depth qualitative study of six communities in two Australian cities to determine the connections between levels of social advantage and household approaches to water use. The different meanings, materials and understandings that underpin domestic water use in each of these communities are documented. We found these elements were influenced by socio-economic status alongside broader systems and infrastructures, technologies and biophysical influences in each city context. Socially advantaged communities used water for leisure and luxury while disadvantaged communities struggled to meet their health and welfare needs. We propose that there is a social gradient in urban water use, which influences the types of sustainability and levels of resilience and liveability people can achieve in cities. The implications for ensuring socially inclusive urban sustainability are discussed.


Connecting episodes you might be interested in:

No.027 - Interview with Richard Manasseh about urban water management;
No.135 - Interview with Paul Satur about water use in cities;

You can find the transcript through this link.


What wast the most interesting part for you? What questions did arise for you? Let me know on Twitter @WTF4Cities or on the wtf4cities.com website where the shownotes are also available.


I hope this was an interesting episode for you and thanks for tuning in.


Music by Lesfm from Pixabay

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