Instructor: Prof. K. Sraku-Lartey

Project: Environmental and Socio-Economic Impacts of Indigenous Metal Working Processes in Kumasi

This project will be centered right in Kumasi's manufacturing sector, where the student will conduct various forms of case studies, interviews, and fieldwork samples. As an environmental audit, this project will explore the different types of manufacturing and engineering processes which are prevalent in Kumasi, such as welding, casting, food processing, mechanics. Examining the types of tools and methods used, the student will concentrate their efforts on extracting the manufacturer's attitude towards environmental standards and preservation.

Professor Sraku-Lartey will prepare the student with a thorough understanding of city environmental regulations and begin to explore the socio-economic culture and impacts of these metalworking processes. Along with presenting a final project, the student will have the opportunity to prepare a manual or series of suggestions that will enable the manufacturing sector to better comply with environmental imperatives.

Among several other questions, the student could explore the following:

• What types of manufacturing takes place in Kumasi? How were these trades adopted? How is machinery taught and used in the non-Western world?
• What skills are necessary for individual trades?
• What is each artisan's personal understanding of environmental issues? How was this perception conceived? What influences his/her cognized environment?
• What are the city regulations? How closely are they regulated and maintained? What are the penalties for defiance?
• How could this sector better manage sanitation and waste problems?
• What are the socio-economic factors affecting one's adherence to environmental preservation? How does one "make ends meet"? How much income does their work bring in? What are the artisan's family situations like?
• How could these conditions be improved?