Rosa of the Wild Grass

Fiona M. Macintosh

Rosa of the Wild Grass, the Story of a Nicaraguan Family is a true story which spans the last fifty years of the life of this small Central American republic. This fascinating and deeply moving personal and family chronicle brings alive the tumult of events in a way no textbook of contemporary polit...

Stepping Stones with Children

Gill Gordon

Acquiring HIV may no longer be a death sentence, but its effects are still profound. Many people living with HIV face rejection and are unsure about their futures, and these anxieties may be felt all the more keenly by children and young people. Stepping Stones with Children equips organizations...

Technology Justice

Amber Miekle

Half of the world is without access to basic technologies that deliver clean water and sanitation, a modern energy supply, generic medicines, and mechanized agriculture — and the other half takes these technologies for granted. This publication presents the concept of Technology Justice and the case...

Citizen-led Innovation for a New Economy

Alison Mathie, John Gaventa

This collection of eleven cases from Canada and the United States gives expression to the ideal of a new economy based on fairness and environmental sustainability. Grappling with complex problems in their local communities, organized citizens are forging innovation, prying open cracks in the prevai...

Delivering decentralisation

This is an introductory leaflet to the project Delivering decentralization: slum dwellers' access to decision making for pro poor infrastructure services.

Quality assurance checklist for house construction in disaster prone areas

This document is intended mostly to help building contractors and site supervisors to maintain reliable standards in order to ensure that the final product would be of durable quality. It is hoped that users of this information will contribute to the construction of houses that will successfully wit...

Walls using the ‘rat-trap bond’ technology: technical brief

The rat-trap bond technology has been developed by Architect Laurie Baker with the HABITAT Resource Centre in India and is a result of its experimentations in cost-effective housing technologies conducted over 40 years.

Making a Manual Fuel Briquette Press

This brief describes the process of making and using a simple low-pressure manual press for fuel briquette production. This press can also be used for other purposes, such as vegetable oil extraction. In this brief however we will concentrate on fuel briquette making only.

Developing Mini-grids in Zambia

Up to now, mini-grids have struggled to grow beyond pilot projects. Today, raising awareness about the main hurdles and learning from successful experiences is imperative in order for mini-grids to make a meaningful contribution to electricity access. ENEA and Practical Action are convinced that bui...

Sustainable Livelihoods and Rural Development

Ian Scoones

The message of Sustainable Livelihoods and Rural Development is clear: livelihoods approaches are an essential lens on questions of rural development, but these need to be situated in a better understanding of political economy. The book looks at the role of social institutions and the politics of p...