Digital Ethnography Interview no. 1 Transcript

The document is a transcript of a Digital Ethnographic interview with the water management specialist at UNICEF Sri Lanka. It covers her background since 2004 in the environmental sector, WASH, and academia, including a PhD on farmer organizations and water-related social exclusion. She has worked across Sri Lanka, including the Anuradhapura district in the dry zone, focusing on drinking water and climate change; notes chronic water scarcity and quality issues, reliance on surface water from tanks for drinking and irrigation, groundwater depletion, and the disruptive effects of bulk water supply on community-managed schemes. Technological advancements in Anuradhapura include nano and RO plants, which were popular but largely unregulated and poorly maintained, leading to inefficiencies and groundwater concerns, with private sector uptake and insufficient public training. Climate change has spurred better preplanning, multi-tier water source strategies, and stronger government-community coordination.