Who Is to Blame for the Failures of Sustainable Reconstruction Projects?

Abstract

This paper examines who and what is to blame for the failures of sustainable disaster reconstruction. In the classic, nonsociological tradition, people involved in sustainable reconstruction generally blame individuals. Alternatively, using a sociological perspective, this research suggests that strong social structural forces beyond the individual keep people and communities from embracing sustainable actions. Such forces include energy and auto subsidies, historical changes in social and institutional structure, and the cultural assumptions and vernacular differences between claimsmakers and local citizens.