Global Health Issues

 In this module we will be considering the many issues related to environmental health. We will be looking specifically at issues of global water scarcity, desertification, and sanitation. Students will utilize the theory of Structural Violence to analyze the social, cultural, economic, political and historical issues that underlie global water scarcity. Foucault's theory of Biopower and Merton's Theory of the Unintended Consequences of Purposive Social Action are both useful in understanding the significant criticism of Community-led Sanitation programs (CLTS). The work of Yacouba Sawadago, a farmer from Burkina Faso, in the fight against desertification, serves to call into question Western ethnocentric ideas about who is capable of making a significant difference in environmental health problems.

By the completion of this module, the student should be able to do the following:

• Analyze the structural issues that have contributed to global water scarcity and describe the major global health impacts of this problem.
• Describe current local efforts to fight desertification in Africa and reflect on how this changes perceptions about who is responsible for or capable of making a significant difference in issues of environmental health.
• Describe Community-led Total Sanitation programs (CLTS) and discuss the significant criticism of this model. 

Narrated Power Point: