POLICY ARENA: Social capital in waste—a solid investment?

Both decentralization and 'civic engagement' are key concerns in current debates on solid waste management (SWM). This paper examines two different examples of community involvement in solid waste management, in Bangalore, India, and in Faislabad, Pakistan. It shows that expectations based in the concept of social capital are wanting because of the way in which it obscures problems having to do with local power structures. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.