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For the first time, the UK research evaluation system, known as the Research Excellence Framework, considered 'measures' of impact in the 2014 review. Here, we focus on impact case studies that had an engineering and international development orientation. We found that writers of impact case studies commonly chose to employ an ecological modernization (economic, environmental, and social value) discourse to shape value claims. We also found that the type of engineering and international development research that appears in impact case studies tends to be high tech, best-with-best, and exclusive, rather than low tech, humanitarian, and inclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many problems faced by the South are rooted as much in longstanding social, economic and environmental difficulties as in the dearth of appropriate engineering solutions. Constraints range from the institutional, to the cultural, to the technological and spatial. Engineers engage with these hurdles in different ways. The contributors to this policy arena map out different ways institutions and engineers connect with the challenges, whether informally, or out of necessity, or through the iterative unfolding of society and technology. In so doing, they add to discussions about how policy can support best practice in engineering. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The professional ideology of engineers is said to be rooted in feelings of self-importance and a belief in an ability to lead, based on qualities of technical expertise and rational decision-making not held by the public at large. This paper outlines the views of another group of engineers, labelled ‘reflexive engineers’, having a much more integrated view of socio-technical systems. Interviews were conducted with engineers working in the Global South in fields such as community water supply and sanitation. The paper aims to uncover how they make sense of the social and how they perceive factors shaping development practice. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports the results of a study in Great Britain about press coverage of the genetically modified (GM) food debate in 2003 as well as expert and non-expert reactions to that coverage. Findings show that both in the press and in public reaction, the issue was closely related with other political events of the time, particularly the invasion of Iraq. In addition, pro-GM characterization of the issues as primarily scientific was rejected by the anti-GM press campaigners and by the focus-group participants.

Faced with a well-documented fresh water crisis in many parts of the world, international institutions are advocating market-based solutions involving the privatization and commodification of water. The definition of water as a commodity by multilateral organizations in the early 1990s allowed a handful of transnational corporations, supported by the World Bank and the IMF, to become centrally involved in management of public water services in poorer countries. The years 2000 to 2003 saw the retreat of TNC investment in water due to national economic crises, social protest, and the difficulties of extracting profit delivering water to indigent consumers. This article examines the shift in discursive strategy of development organizations, and the resulting rise and fall of TNC involvement in water and sanitation provision in the Third World. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]