Diffusion of Innovation – Implementation of Constructed Wetlands in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Abstract

Constructed wetlands (CW) can be considered an efficient municipal wastewater treatment technology, suitable to be used on a local level in both rural and urban environments. This technology is popular and normally used in Europe having the attributes of a success story -cheap in investment and simple in operation. Nevertheless, the transfer of this technology to developing countries is a challenge of some kind, the main reason being a different technological and cultural context there. The paper discusses the implementation process of CWs in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, the East. The concept of diffusion of innovation is used as the guideline, namely two of its perspectives -motivation of end-users to implement the technology, and the way the information about the technology is spread. Empirical data were obtained by use of semi-standardized interviews with the three types of stakeholders involved, the end-users themselves, local authorities, and pertinent NGOs. On this basis, three main reasons (motivations) to implement CWs for municipal sewage water treatment were found, which can appear in a combination -environmental-religious, pragmatical and prestigious. In parallel, three communication channels were identified which can be metaphorically named professional enlightenment, peer influence (or exempla trahunt) and direct external aid.