12.4 Ethical Considerations There are several ethical considerations to be considered while analysing the problem and designing a subsequent framework for change. The main ethical consideration is to understand the intricacies of culture and people in providing voice towards analysis and planning. For years, cotton farming has been the livelihood of several small holder farmers in India. To radically analyses or reduce the production would mean a significant change in the lifestyle and sources of income for these farmers. It would also result in serious alterations in the cotton industry, especially the migrant laborers and daily wage workers who are involved with the production and processing of cotton. This brings a serious ethical dilemma if such a measure is to be taken, will the society be able to cope with it. But at the same time, without doing any changes would only mean that the lives of the farmers will continue to suffer and will soon reach a point of no return. Subsequently, while considering the ecosystem services as main drivers for the project, there is a possibility that economic stability is affected and hence could have impact on the society. There is also dilemma regarding the ways in which environmental factors play a role, such as the rich biodiversity and the use of that as a means to address human needs. There are also several ethical consideration related to the socio political issues such as farmer suicides and the influence of case systems in contributing to vulnerabilities. Finally any objective decision making is inherently influenced by political choices, of the designer as well as of the decision maker. Hence the personal biases of the designer is inevitable in the design and framework. The policies outcomes that are favored is based on the political and personal choices and may be subjective. This is something that is impossible to escape while conducting an academic research. The proposal of various infrastructure projects also has serious environmental as well as human rights consideration, as often these projects are in places of informal settlements and require rehabilitation efforts, which always brings the question, ‘Who does the land ultimately belong to? Who has the right and who decides?
12.5 Reflections on the studio : Urban metabolism This project is part of the larger studio group ‘urban metabolism’ which deals with the understanding of the metabolism of urban environments and its relationships to infrastructure, nature and ecology . Urban metabolism investigates the performance of infrastructures, environmental technology and systems in relation to spatial quality, environmental sustainability, livability and the social wellbeing of future cities. This research project is an example of the fact that the extent of urbanisation and globalisation goes beyond the limits of the city itself and how various systems influence each other. The concept of ‘planetary urbanisation’ and ‘territorial metabolism’ talks about this idea of a connected world and the interlinking of the problems we face as a planet. With the aim of to foster research at the different levels of planning, from local to global, this project is an example at the understanding the issue of urbanisation and spatial planning from a larger perspective. It is important to understand that the consumption of certain products such as the food we eat, the clothes we wear and so on comes from different parts of the world. By understanding the synergies of the system that constitutes this connection, we can change the system to function in a better, more sustainable and more just way, which I believe are also the core principles of urban metabolism studio.
Fig 12.3 Children at Murmi village, Marathwada
Source: Photo by : author
Appropriation of Water
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Appropriation of Water
