Re-Envisioning Sanitation As a Human-Derived Resource System.

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Social Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Sanitation access and resource intensity are global challenges.
• Current efforts lack a shared language, hindering knowledge accumulation.
• Managing human excreta requires integrated human-natural systems approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To adapt the social-ecological systems framework for bodily excreta.
• To establish a shared vision for sanitation as a resource system.
• To guide interdisciplinary research for sustainable sanitation.

Main Methods:

• Modification of the social-ecological systems framework.
• Development of a multitiered lexicon for sanitation variables.
• Focus on human excreta as a resource within coupled systems.

Main Results:

• A modified framework viewing sanitation as a human-derived resource system.
• A structured lexicon to harmonize interdisciplinary sanitation studies.
• Identification of sanitation's impact on human experiences and environments.

Conclusions:

• The framework facilitates a unified approach to sanitation research.
• It promotes understanding of resource cycles involving human excreta.
• This approach supports sustainable development at the nature-society interface.