Search results for: local government planning data

Authors: Jean-Philippe Amat, Timothée Vergne, Aymeric Hans, Bénédicte Ferry, Pascal Hendrikx, Jackie Tapprest, Barbara Dufour, Agnès Leblond

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The surveillance of infectious diseases is necessary to describe their occurrence and help the planning, implementation and evaluation of risk mitigation activities. However, the exact number of detected cases may remain unknown whether surveillance is based on serological tests because identifying seroconversion may be difficult. Moreover, incomplete detection of cases or outbreaks is a recurrent issue in the field of disease surveillance. This study addresses these two issues. Using a viral animal disease as an example (equine viral arteritis), the goals were to establish suitable rules for identifying seroconversion in order to estimate the number of cases and outbreaks detected by a surveillance system in France between 2006 and 2013, and to assess the sensitivity of this system by estimating the total number of outbreaks that occurred during this period (including unreported outbreaks) using a capture-recapture model. Data from horses which exhibited at least one positive result in serology using viral neutralization test between 2006 and 2013 were used for analysis (n=1,645). Data consisted of the annual antibody titers and the location of the subjects (towns). A consensus among multidisciplinary experts (specialists in the disease and its laboratory diagnosis, epidemiologists) was reached to consider seroconversion as a change in antibody titer from negative to at least 32 or as a three-fold or greater increase. The number of seroconversions was counted for each town and modeled using a unilist zero-truncated binomial (ZTB) capture-recapture model with R software. The binomial denominator was the number of horses tested in each infected town. Using the defined rules, 239 cases located in 177 towns (outbreaks) were identified from 2006 to 2013. Subsequently, the sensitivity of the surveillance system was estimated as the ratio of the number of detected outbreaks to the total number of outbreaks that occurred (including unreported outbreaks) estimated using the ZTB model. The total number of outbreaks was estimated at 215 (95% credible interval CrI95%: 195-249) and the surveillance sensitivity at 82% (CrI95%: 71-91). The rules proposed for identifying seroconversion may serve future research. Such rules, adjusted to the local environment, could conceivably be applied in other countries with surveillance programs dedicated to this disease. More generally, defining ad hoc algorithms for interpreting the antibody titer could be useful regarding other human and animal diseases and zoonosis when there is a lack of accurate information in the literature about the serological response in naturally infected subjects. This study shows how capture-recapture methods may help to estimate the sensitivity of an imperfect surveillance system and to valorize surveillance data. The sensitivity of the surveillance system of equine viral arteritis is relatively high and supports its relevance to prevent the disease spreading.

Keywords: Bayesian inference, capture-recapture, epidemiology, equine viral arteritis, infectious disease, seroconversion, surveillance

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Authors: Chrysoula Karathanasi, Senad Karavdic, Angela Odero, Michèle Baumann

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It is not only the economic determinants that impact on life conditions, but maintaining a good level of life satisfaction (LS) may also be an important challenge currently. In Luxembourg, university students receive financial aid from the government. They are then registered at the Centre for Documentation and Information on Higher Education (CEDIES). Luxembourg is built on migration with almost half its population consisting of foreigners. It is upon this basis that our research aims to analyze the associations with mental health factors (health satisfaction, psychological quality of life, worry), perceived financial situation, career attitudes (adaptability, optimism, knowledge, planning) and LS, for non-Luxembourgish and native postgraduate students. Between 2012 and 2013, postgraduates registered at CEDIES were contacted by post and asked to participate in an online survey with either the option of English or French. The study population comprised of 644 respondents. Our statistical analysis excluded: those born abroad who had Luxembourgish citizenship, or those born in Luxembourg who did not have citizenship. Two groups were formed one consisting 147 non-Luxembourgish and the other 284 natives. A single item measured LS (1=not at all satisfied to 10=very satisfied). Bivariate tests, correlations and multiple linear regression models were used in which only significant relationships (p<0.05) were integrated. Among the two groups no differences were found between LS indicators (7.8/10 non-Luxembourgish; 8.0/10 natives) as both were higher than the European indicator of 7.2/10 (for 25-34 years). In the case of non-Luxembourgish students, they were older than natives (29.3 years vs. 26.3 years) perceived their financial situation as more difficult, and a higher percentage of their parents had an education level higher than a Bachelor's degree (father 59.2% vs 44.6% for natives; mother 51.4% vs 33.7% for natives). In addition, the father’s education was related to the LS of postgraduates and the higher was the score, the greater was the contribution to LS. Whereas for native students, when their scores of health satisfaction and career optimism were higher, their LS’ score was higher. For both groups their LS was linked to mental health-related factors, perception of their financial situation, career optimism, adaptability and planning. The higher the psychological quality of life score was, the greater the LS of postgraduates’ was. Good health and positive attitudes related to the job market enhanced their LS indicator.

Keywords: career attributes, father's education level, life satisfaction, mental health

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Authors: Kolawole Taiwo Olabode

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This is a comparative study of ICTs adoption and use in selected manufacturing industries in for development. This study was carried out 2004 and was repeated 2013 (nine years after) using the same selected manufacturing industries to assess the level, improvement and extent ICT facilities used in these companies. The theory of modernization was explored to explain some developmental issues in this study. The same semi-structured questionnaire and IDI were used to elicit data on the subject matter. About 24.9% of the total workers (1,247) were sampled for this study using quota sampling technique. SPSS was used to analysis the quantitative data. The qualitative data was used to buttress the quantitative data. Findings indicated that Seven-Up Bottling Company and Frigoglass Glass Industry still remained Intensive ICT Users while only Niger Match Nigeria Limited still remained Non-Intensive ICT User while unfortunately, Askar Paint Nigeria Limited has gone liquidated. It is also important to discover that only the Intensive ICT users improved on relevant ICT facilities. The existing problems of ICT adoption and used in these companies remained the same in Niger Match Limited. The study concluded that for a society to be developed, management and government at all levels must do all things necessary to ensure that all existing organisations must be ICT compliance for workers and organisational performance and to enhance nation’s development in order to compete with other companies for global standard or recognition.

Keywords: ICT, intensive ICT-users, entrepreneurial, manufacturing industries, industries and development

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Authors: Khaled Ali Soltan

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Iran can be considered a triangle that is affected by 3 forces: the government, the elite, and the people. Over the last 100 years, these three forces have been at odds with each other. This lack of coordination and sometimes antagonism among these three forces has led to lawlessness in Iran (both the government and the people have entered the cycle of lawlessness) and the spread of destructive processes in the country and the destruction of resources, both natural and human resources. The direct and negative impact of this issue on people's lives as well as the environment highlights the importance of this article. This article descriptively deals with the issue and suggests solutions and examines possible problems and obstacles. There seems to be a way to establish a connection’ closeness and coordination among these three forces and put them on the path of development. ELITE RAIN is a scientific-popular process that can create coordination and cooperation between these forces, prevent destructive processes in the country and put it on the path of sustainable development and a better life. This solution is a more advanced model of brainstorming technique introduced by Alex Osborn in 1953. Given that people have tried different types of protests to improve the status quo, such as the change of government in 1979 which led to the establishment of the theocracy, participating in elections that resulted in more frustration and corruption due to the lack of real parties, and sporadic street protests that resulted in nothing more than repression, it seems that this solution can be successful.

Keywords: corruption, destruction of resources, elite rain, Iran, legal complaints, sustainable development, the elite

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Authors: Jihyun Song, Kyeongjoo Kim, Minsoo Lee

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Due to the development of information technology and wireless Internet technology, various data are being generated in various fields. These data are advantageous in that they provide real-time information to the users themselves. However, when the data are accumulated and analyzed, more various information can be extracted. In addition, development and dissemination of boards such as Arduino and Raspberry Pie have made it possible to easily test various sensors, and it is possible to collect sensor data directly by using database application tools such as MySQL. These directly collected data can be used for various research and can be useful as data for data mining. However, there are many difficulties in using the board to collect data, and there are many difficulties in using it when the user is not a computer programmer, or when using it for the first time. Even if data are collected, lack of expert knowledge or experience may cause difficulties in data analysis and visualization. In this paper, we aim to construct a library for sensor data collection and analysis to overcome these problems.

Keywords: clustering, data mining, DBSCAN, k-means, k-medoids, sensor data

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Authors: Adila Shafqat

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Climate change and urbanization has changed the face of many cities in developing countries. Urbanization is linked with land use and land cover change, that is further intensify by the effects of changing climates. Green infrastructures provide numerous ecosystem services which effect the physical set up of the cities in the long run. Land surface temperatures is considered as defining parameter in the studies of the thermal impact on the land cover. Current study is conducted in the semi-arid urban areas of the Bahawalpur region. Accordingly, Land Surface Temperatures and land cover maps are derived from Landsat image through remote sensing techniques. The cooling impact of green infrastructure is determined by calculating land surface temperature of buffered zones around green infrastructures. A regression model is applied for results. It is seen that land surface temperature around green infrastructures in 1 to 3 degrees lower than the built up surroundings. The result indicates that the urban green infrastructures should be planned according to the local needs and characteristics of landuse so that they can effectively tackle land surface temperatures of urban areas.

Keywords: climate change, surface temperatures, green spaces, urban planning

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Authors: Alif Nur Irvan, M. Varaby Wahyu

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Indonesia is a country that have a lot of natural resources and as one of the most populous people in the world. In the last few years, the world economic is growing rapid, and then Indonesia must be able to develop his economy like the other country. The number of graduates in Indonesia always increase every year and the employment in Indonesia is getting decreased, this situation leads to rise unemployment in Indonesia. Limited employment makes people look for the ways to live decently. From this situation, entrepreneurs become an alternative in Indonesia to develop the economy. Being an entrepreneur means being able to find opportunities to utilize existing resources to take advantage of these opportunities. With the increasing number of entrepreneurs in Indonesia can increase employment, improve the quality of life, income distribution, utilize and mobilize resources to improve national productivity, and improve the welfare of government. The main sources for economic growth are the investments that improve the quality of capital or human resources, which in turn managed to increase the quantity of productive resources and can raise the productivity of all resources through new discoveries, innovations, creativity and technological progress. This paper is talking about the topic, discussions, and it offers the solutions to support entrepreneurs in Indonesia, and also talk about entrepreneurial problems that occurred in Indonesia, and the right solution to solve the problems of entrepreneurship in Indonesia and also discusses the role of government to support entrepreneurship to encourage the economy in Indonesia.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, economy, employment, government

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Authors: Laxuman Thakuri

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Despite the large number of in-depth case studies focused on policy analysis, institutional arrangement, and collective action of common property resource management; how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in community forest management and what kinds of effects produce it, the answers of these questions are largely silent among the policy-makers and researchers alike. The study examined how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in the lowland community forestry of Nepal and how the decisions affect to equitable distribution of benefits and livelihood improvement which are also objectives of Nepalese community forestry. The study assumes that forest products pricing decisions have multiple effects on equitable distribution and livelihood improvement in the areas having heterogeneous socio-economic conditions. The dissertation was carried out at four community forests of lowland, Nepal that has characteristics of high value species, matured-experience of community forest management and better record-keeping system of forest products production, pricing and distribution. The questionnaire survey, individual to group discussions and direct field observation were applied for data collection from the field, and Lorenz curve, gini-coefficient, χ²-text, and SWOT (Strong, Weak, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis were performed for data analysis and results interpretation. The dissertation demonstrates that the low pricing strategy of high-value forest products was supposed crucial to increase the access of socio-economically weak households, and to and control over the important forest products such as timber, but found counter productive as the strategy increased the access of socio-economically better-off households at higher rate. In addition, the strategy contradicts to collect a large-scale community fund and carry out livelihood improvement activities as per the community forestry objectives. The crucial part of the study is despite the fact of low pricing strategy; the timber alone contributed large part of community fund collection. The results revealed close relation between pricing decisions and livelihood objectives. The action research result shows that positive price discrimination can slightly reduce the prevailing inequality and increase the fund. However, it lacks to harness the full price of forest products and collects a large-scale community fund. For broader outcomes of common property resource management in terms of resource sustainability, equity, and livelihood opportunity, the study suggests local institutions to harness the full price of resource products with respect to the local market.

Keywords: community, equitable, forest, livelihood, socioeconomic, Nepal

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Authors: Anifowose Oluwafemi Dele, Ngah Rohana, Hasni Abdulahi

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The economic crisis, which resulted in university funding cuts with an astronomically devastating impact on teaching and research around the world. Sequel to this, Nigerian universities are in disarray due to insufficient government funding and are under pressure to discover new financial streams of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) to disentangle finance-related teething problems and most tangible means of outsourcing finance inclusively for the creation of more entrepreneurial ventures through the possibilities of prudent IGR management. To the best of our knowledge, one way to address this still-unknown or underappreciated cog is through the strategic use of IGR and the outsourcing of financing for the launch of entrepreneurial ventures. As a result, it is critical to investigate and evaluate financial inclusion through prudently managed IGR to achieve greater financial inclusion for more long-term entrepreneurial ventures. Justifying the need to look inward and devise mechanisms for strong instruments internal fund raising and managing cash inflows to benefit university entrepreneurial ventures to increase the University's IGR for the benefit of the university and its stakeholders. The paper concludes that University Managers must fully accept the use of genuine means of boosting IGR through financial inclusion of in-house funds to aggressively established IGR boosting and the creation of entrepreneurial ventures that could serve as an alternative to inadequate government funding.

Keywords: government funding, university managers, financial inclusion, entrepreneurial venture

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Authors: A. Pietro Rimoldi, B. Anilkumar Gopinath, C. Minimol Korulla

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Coastal engineering structure is conventionally designed for a shorter planning horizon usually 20 years. These structures are subjected to different offshore climatic externalities like waves, tides, tsunamis etc. during the design life period. The probability of occurrence of these different offshore climatic externalities varies. The impact frequently caused by these externalities on the structures is of concern because it has a significant bearing on the capital /operating cost of the project. There can also be repeated short time occurrence of these externalities in the assumed planning horizon which can cause heavy damage to the conventional coastal structure which are mainly made of rock. A replacement of the damaged portion to prevent complete collapse is time consuming and expensive when dealing with hard rock structures. But if coastal structures are made of Geo-synthetic containment systems such replacement is quickly possible in the time period between two successive occurrences. In order to have a better knowledge and to enhance the predictive capacity of these occurrences, this study estimates risk of encounter within the design life period of various externalities based on the concept of exponential distribution. This gives an idea of the frequency of occurrences which in turn gives an indication of whether replacement is necessary and if so at what time interval such replacements have to be effected. To validate this theoretical finding, a pilot project has been taken up in the field so that the impact of the externalities can be studied both for a hard rock and a Geosynthetic tube structure. The paper brings out the salient feature of a case study which pertains to a project in which Geosynthetic tubes have been used for reformation of a seawall adjacent to a conventional rock structure in Alappuzha coast, Kerala, India. The effectiveness of the Geosystem in combatting the impact of the short-term externalities has been brought out.

Keywords: climatic externalities, exponential distribution, geosystems, planning horizon

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Authors: G. Gurguze, I. Turkoglu

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Today, the developing features of technological tools with limited energy resources have made it necessary to use energy efficiently. Energy management techniques have emerged for this purpose. As with every field, energy management is vital for robots that are being used in many areas from industry to daily life and that are thought to take up more spaces in the future. Particularly, effective power management in autonomous and multi robots, which are getting more complicated and increasing day by day, will improve the performance and success. In this study, robot management algorithms, usage of renewable and hybrid energy sources, robot motion patterns, robot designs, sharing strategies of workloads in multiple robots, road and mission planning algorithms are discussed for efficient use of energy resources by mobile robots. These techniques have been evaluated in terms of efficient use of existing energy resources and energy management in robots.

Keywords: energy management, mobile robot, robot administration, robot management, robot planning

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Authors: Alieu B. Sanneh

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In a country where there are minimal economic opportunities, with a declining living condition of the people, do electorates in Africa’s newest democracy reevaluate their support for a candidate based on issues or ethnicity. In the 2016 presidential election in The Gambia, the opposition coalition party had successfully managed to overthrow an authoritarian government, which has ruled the country for 22 years. The results of the election are not only surprising but also presented an interesting theoretical puzzle that raises important this paper is going to address. An important fact is that dictator had organized an election which he lost, and this paper will assess the voting decisions of Gambian electorates to determine whether they were more concerned with issues such as status of the economy, human rights abuses by the Jammeh administration or the ethnicities of the contestants who took part in the election. This study uses field survey data, conducted six months after this historic vote, to evaluate the opinion of the electorates. Contrary to the notion of the prevalence of ethnic voting in African elections, an argument made by many scholars, this study concluded that Gambian voters were more concerned with issues such as the economy and human rights under the Jammeh administration than they were for the ethnicities of the candidates. The election was issue-based, and that Jammeh lost the polls due to the concern the electorate had on human rights abuses by his government.

Keywords: election, issue, ethnicity, regime change

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Authors: Imelda Albert Gisip, Tarsiah T. Z. Taman

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In Asia, particularly in Malaysia women entrepreneurs contribute substantially to economic growth. This paper presents a review of women entrepreneurs’ program, focusing on Creating Millionaires among Young Women Entrepreneurs (CREAM@YWE) program in Sabah Malaysia which aims to accelerate the entrepreneurship among young women in Sabah Malaysia. Entrepreneurs is seen as essential for growth, job creation and social progress and the virtues of small business for Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ), the Sabah state government Sabah State development plan for the year 2021-2025. SMJ guides the direction of the government's policies and programs, further guiding the implementation in a planned and strategic manner, to achieve targets and goals that coincide with the development needs of the state. One of the government’s agenda is to put its efforts more strongly to ensure that women entrepreneurs are well supported and enhanced. Thus, The CreaM@YWE Program was developed in 2018 with the main objective is to produce competitive young women entrepreneurs in Sabah and achieve "millionaire" status. CreaM@YWE Program is an innovation process which specifically developed to accelerate entrepreneurship sector particularly for women entrepreneurs in Sabah by incorporating strategic partnerships and collaborations with government agencies and industry players. Being the first of its kind in Sabah, the novelty of this project is providing a supportive ecosystem including six months intensive courses, guided through "hands-holding”, collaborations with strategic partners and easy access to government's assistance. Since its inception, the program has significantly impact society’s wellbeing particularly in empowering young women entrepreneurs in Sabah for the past six years and has produced many successful women entrepreneurs with “millionaire” status. Generally, improving women’s enterprise sector in Malaysia needs an overall enabling environment that allows development opportunities for women entrepreneurs including access to resources and support services. Since achieving the goal of women entrepreneurship policy requires effective partnerships and inclusiveness, Cream @YWE Program has managed to practice these in assisting small entrepreneurs among young women in Sabah in accessing public goods and business opportunities. This proves that achieving women’s economic empowerment requires sound policies, a holistic approach and long-term commitment. Thus, this paper presents how Cream@YWE Program has been supporting Sabah young women entrepreneurs by reforming the business environment to help create opportunities for women, while addressing the few existing gender-specific hurdles.

Keywords: entrepreneurship programs, women, Sabah, Malaysia

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Authors: Mojtaba Aghajari, Alireza Aghasi

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The first challenge which the current research faced has been the identification or determination of the level of knowledge in Isfahan public transportation corporation, and the second challenge has been the recognition and choice of a proper approach for the instructional system design. Responding these two challenges will present an appropriate model of instructional system design. In order to respond the first challenge or question, Nonaka and Takeuchi KM model has been utilized due to its universality among the 26 models proposed so far. The statistical population of this research included 2200 people, among which 200 persons were chosen as the sample of the research by the use of Morgan’s method. The data gathering has been carried out by the means of a questionnaire based on Nonaka and Takeuchi KM model, analysis of which has been done by SPSS program. The output of this questionnaire, yielding the point of 1.96 (out of 5 points), revealed that the general condition of Isfahan public transportation corporation is weak concerning its being knowledge-centered. After placing this output on Jonassen’s continuum, it was revealed that the appropriate approach for instructional system design is the system (or behavioral) approach. Accordingly, different steps of the general model of ADDIE, which covers all of the ISO10015 standards, were adopted in the act of designing. Such process in Isfahan public transportation corporation was designed and divided into three main steps, including: instructional designing and planning, instructional course planning, determination of the evaluation and the effectiveness of the instructional courses.

Keywords: instructional system design, system approach, knowledge management, employees

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Authors: O. T. Oluriz, O. D. Akinyemi, J. A.Olowofela, O. A. Idowu, S. A. Ganiyu

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This study was carried out using aeromagnetic data which record variation in the magnitude of the earth magnetic field in order to detect local changes in the properties of the underlying geology. The aeromagnetic data (Sheet No. 261) was acquired from the archives of Nigeria Geological Survey Agency of Nigeria, obtained in 2009. The study present estimation of source parameters within an area of about 3,025 square kilometers on geographic latitude to and longitude to within Ibadan and it’s environs in Oyo State, southwestern Nigeria. The area under study belongs to part of basement complex in southwestern Nigeria. Estimation of source parameters of aeromagnetic data was achieve through the application of source imaging parameters (SPI) techniques that provide delineation, depth, dip contact, susceptibility contrast and mineral potentials of magnetic signatures within the region. The depth to the magnetic sources in the area ranges from 0.675 km to 4.48 km. The estimated depth limit to shallow sources is 0.695 km and depth to deep sources is 4.48 km. The apparent susceptibility values of the entire study area obtained ranges from 0.01 to 0.005 [SI]. This study has shown that the magnetic susceptibility within study area is controlled mainly by super paramagnetic minerals.

Keywords: aeromagnetic, basement complex, meta-sediment, precambrian

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Authors: Edmond Jaro Malihan

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This study aimed to develop and propose Project Financial Literacy Information Program (FLIP) for the Schools Division of Quezon to improve the financial management skills of Supreme Student Government (SSG) officers across different school sizes. This employed a descriptive research design covering the participation of 424 selected SSG officers using purposive sampling procedures from the SDO-Quezon. The consultation was held with DepEd officials, budget officers, and financial advisors to validate the design of the self-made questionnaires in which the computed mean was verbally interpreted using the four-point Likert scale. The data gathered were presented and analyzed using weighted arithmetic mean and ANOVA test. Based on the findings, generally, SSG officers in the SDO-Quezon possess high financial management skills in terms of budget preparation, resource mobilization, and auditing and evaluation. The size of schools has no significant difference and does not contribute to the financial management skills of SSG officers, which they apply in implementing their mandated programs, projects, and activities (PPAs). The Project Financial Literacy Information Program (FLIP) was developed considering their general level of financial management skills and the launched PPAs by the organization. The project covered the suggested training program vital in conducting the Virtual Division Training on Financial Management Skills of the SSG officers.

Keywords: financial management skills, SSG officers, school size, financial literacy information program

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Authors: Emiliano Castillo

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The aim of this research is to analyze the origins, the development and possible outcomes of the environmental conflict between grassroots organizations, indigenous communities, Kinder Morgan Corporation, and the Canadian government over the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. Building on the political ecology and the environmental justice theoretical framework, this research examines the impacts and risks of tar sands extraction, production, and transportation on climate change, public health, the environment, and indigenous people´s rights over their lands. This study is relevant to the environmental justice and political ecology literature because it discusses the unequal distribution of environmental costs and economic benefits of tar sands development; and focuses on the competing interests, needs, values, and claims of the actors involved in the conflict. Furthermore, it will shed light on the context, conditions, and processes that lead to the organization and mobilization of a grassroots movement- comprised of indigenous communities, citizens, scientists, and non-governmental organizations- that draw significant media attention by opposing the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. Similarly, the research will explain the differences and dynamics within the grassroots movement. This research seeks to address the global context of the conflict by studying the links between the decline of conventional oil production, the rise of unconventional fossil fuels (e.g. tar sands), climate change, and the struggles of low-income, ethnic, and racial minorities over the territorial expansion of extractive industries. Data will be collected from legislative documents, policy and technical reports, scientific journals, newspapers articles, participant observation, and semi-structured interviews with representatives and members of the grassroots organizations, indigenous communities, and Burnaby citizens that oppose the Trans Mountain pipeline. These interviews will focus on their perceptions of the risks of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion; the roots of the anti-tar sands movement; the differences and dynamics within the movement; and the strategies to defend the livelihoods of local communities and the environment against tar sands development. This research will contribute to the understanding of the underlying causes of the environmental conflict between the Canadian government, Kinder Morgan, and grassroots organizations over tar sands extraction, production, and transportation in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. Moreover, this work will elucidate the transformations of society-nature relationships brought by tar sands development. Research findings will provide scientific information about how the resistance movement in British Columbia can challenge the dominant narrative on tar sands, exert greater influence in environmental politics, and efficiently defend Indigenous people´s rights to lands. Furthermore, this research will shed light into how grassroots movements can contribute towards the building of more inclusive and sustainable societies.

Keywords: environmental conflict, environmental justice, extractive industry, indigenous communities, political ecology, tar sands

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Authors: Caroline Spencer, Suzanne Cross, Dudley McArdle, Frank Archer

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Objectives: The evolution of the Victorian Compendium of Community-Based Resilience Building Case Studies and its capacity to help communities implement activities that encourage adaptation to disaster risk reduction and promote community resilience in rural and urban locations provide this paper's objectives. Background: Between 2012 and 2019, community groups presented at the Monash University Disaster Resilience Initiative (MUDRI) 'Advancing Community Resilience Annual Forums', provided opportunities for communities to impart local resilience activities, how to solve challenges and share unforeseen learning and be considered for inclusion in the Compendium. A key tenet of the Compendium encourages compiling and sharing of grass-roots resilience building activities to help communities before, during, and after unexpected emergencies. The online Compendium provides free access for anyone wanting to help communities build expertise, reduce program duplication, and save valuable community resources. Identifying case study features across the emergency phases and analyzing critical success factors helps communities understand what worked and what did not work to achieve success and avoid known barriers. International exemplars inform the Compendium, which represents an Australian first and enhances Victorian community resilience initiatives. Emergency Management Victoria provided seed funding for the Compendium. MUDRI matched this support and continues to fund the project. A joint Steering Committee with broad-based user input and Human ethics approval guides its continued growth. Methods: A thematic analysis of the Compendium identified case study features, including critical success factors. Results: The Compendium comprises 38 case studies, representing all eight Victorian regions. Case studies addressed emergency phases, before (29), during (7), and after (17) events. Case studies addressed all hazards (23), bushfires (11), heat (2), fire safety (1), and house fires (1). Twenty case studies used a framework. Thirty received funding, of which nine received less than $20,000 and five received more than $100,000. Twenty-nine addressed a whole of community perspective. Case studies revealed unique and valuable learning in diverse settings. Critical success factors included strong governance; board support, leadership, and trust; partnerships; commitment, adaptability, and stamina; community-led initiatives. Other success factors included a paid facilitator and local government support; external funding, and celebrating success. Anecdotally, we are aware that community groups reference Compendium and that its value adds to community resilience planning. Discussion: The Compendium offers an innovative contribution to resilience research and practice. It augments the seven resilience characteristics to strengthen and encourage communities as outlined in the Statewide Community Resilience Framework for Emergency Management; brings together people from across sectors to deliver distinct, yet connected actions to strengthen resilience as a part of the Rockefeller funded Resilient Melbourne Strategy, and supports communities and economies to be resilient when a shock occurs as identified in the recently published Australian National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework. Each case study offers learning about connecting with community and how to increase their resilience to disaster risks and to keep their community safe from unexpected emergencies. Conclusion: The Compendium enables diverse communities to adopt or adapt proven resilience activities, thereby preserving valuable community resources and offers the opportunity to extend to a national or international Compendium.

Keywords: case study, community, compendium, disaster risk reduction, resilience

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Authors: Wu Chao

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The urban design of the new district in China is different from other existing cities at the city planning level, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, etc. And the urban problems of these super-cities are same as many big cities around the world. The goal of the new district construction plan is to enable people to live comfortably, to improve the well-being of residents, and to create a way of life different from that of other urban communities. To avoid the emergence of the super community, the idea of "decentralization" is taken as the overall planning idea, and the function and form of each community are set up with a homogeneous allocation of resources so that the community can grow naturally. Similar to the growth of vines in nature, each community groups are independent and connected through roads, with clear community boundaries that limit their unlimited expansion. With a community contained 20,000 people as a case, the community is a mixture for living, production, office, entertainment, and other functions. Based on the development of the Internet, to create more space for public use, and can use data to allocate resources in real time. And this kind of shared space is the main part of the activity space in the community. At the same time, the transformation of spatial function can be determined by the usage feedback of all kinds of existing space, and the use of space can be changed by the changing data. Take the residential unit as the basic building function mass, take the lower three to four floors of the building as the main flexible space for use, distribute functions such as entertainment, service, office, etc. For the upper living space, set up a small amount of indoor and outdoor activity space, also used as shared space. The transformable space of the bottom layer is evenly distributed, combined with the walking space connected the community, the service and entertainment network can be formed in the whole community, and can be used in most of the community space. With the basic residential unit as the replicable module, the design of the other residential units runs through the idea of decentralization and the concept of the vine community, and the various units are reasonably combined. At the same time, a small number of office buildings are added to meet the special office needs. The new functional mixed community can change many problems of the present city in the future construction, at the same time, it can keep its vitality through the adjustment function of the Internet.

Keywords: decentralization, mixed functional community, shared space, spatial usage data

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Authors: Thorben Kuprat, Julian Becker, Jonas Mayer, Peter Nyhuis

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For years now, it has been recognized that logistic performance capability contributes enormously to a production enterprise’s competitiveness and as such is a critical control lever. In doing so, the orientation on customer wishes (e.g. delivery dates) represents a key parameter not only in the value-adding production but also in product regeneration. Since production and regeneration processes have different characteristics, production planning and control measures cannot be directly transferred to regeneration processes. As part of a special research project, the Institute of Production Systems and Logistics Hannover is focused on increasing the logistic performance capability of regeneration processes for complex capital goods. The aim is to ensure logistic targets are met by implementing a model specifically designed to align the capacities and load in regeneration processes.

Keywords: capacity planning, complex capital goods, logistic performance, regeneration process

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Authors: Ajeni Ari

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In addressing gender and transport, considerations of mobility disparities amongst users are important. Public transport (PT) policy and design do not efficiently account for the varied mobility practices between men and women, with literature only recently showing a movement towards gender inclusion in transport. Arrantly, transport policy and designs remain gender-blind to the variation of mobility needs. The global movement towards sustainability highlights the need for expeditious strategies that could mitigate biases within the existing system. At the forefront of such plan of action may, in part, be mandated inclusive infrastructural designs that stimulate user engagement with the transport system. Fundamentally access requires a means or an opportunity to entity, which for PT is an establishment of its physical environment and/or infrastructural design. Its practicality may be utilised with knowledge of shortcomings in tangible or intangible aspects of the service offerings allowing access to opportunities. To inform on existing biases in PT planning and design, this study analyses qualitative data to examine the opinions and lived experiences among transport user in Ireland. Findings show that infrastructural design plays a significant role in users’ engagement with the service. Paramount to accessibility are service provisions that cater to both user interactions and those of their dependents. Apprehension to use the service is more so evident with women in comparison to men, particularly while carrying out household duties and caring responsibilities at peak times or dark hours. Furthermore, limitations are apparent with infrastructural service offerings that do not accommodate the physical (dis)ability of users, especially universal design. There are intersecting factors that impinge on accessibility, e.g., safety and security, yet essentially, infrastructural design is an important influencing parameter to user perceptual conditioning. Additionally, data discloses the need for user intricacies to be factored in transport planning geared towards gender inclusivity, including mobility practices, travel purpose, transit time or location, and system integration.

Keywords: public transport, accessibility, women, transport infrastructure

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Authors: Imad Eddine Charif, Wafaa Benchouk, Sidi Mohamed Mekelleche

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The regioselectivity of a series of 16 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions of nitrile oxides with 2(5H)-furanones has been analysed by means of global and local electrophilic and nucleophilic reactivity indices using density functional theory at the B3LYP level together with the 6-31G(d) basis set. The local electrophilicity and nucleophilicity indices, based on Fukui and Parr functions, have been calculated for the terminal sites, namely the C1 and O3 atoms of the 1,3-dipole and the C4 and C5 atoms of the dipolarophile. These local indices were calculated using both Mulliken and natural charges and spin densities. The results obtained show that the C5 atom of the 2(5H)-furanones is the most electrophilic site whereas the O3 atom of the nitrile oxides is the most nucleophilic centre. It turns out that the experimental regioselectivity is correctly reproduced, indicating that both Fukui- and Parr-based indices are efficient tools for the prediction of the regiochemistry of the studied reactions and could be used for the prediction of newly designed reactions of the same kind.

Keywords: 1, 3-dipolar cycloaddition, density functional theory, nitrile oxides, regioselectivity, reactivity indices

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Authors: Acha Mildred Endam

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Gentrification brings changes in socio-economic and environmental aspects in cities. This is a concern for local governments and urban residents, as rapid urbanization poses a challenge to SDGs 11 and 13. This paper aims to: (1) examine the dominant gentrification actions that counteract the drive towards green urbanism; (2) evaluate policy actions and institutions created to promote green urbanism; (3) explore the constraints that hinder development proponents from achieving the goal of green urbanism. A mixed research design (survey and exploratory) was used, along with snowball sampling techniques, to administer the questionnaire. Structured interviews and focus group discussions were also conducted to assess the efforts and success rate of planning and development proponents in achieving green urbanism. Secondary data provided the basis for a literature review on activities that promote brown cities, which hinder green urbanism. The results of the study revealed that gentrification in Bamenda is mainly focused on upgrading infrastructure within the city centre. This transition is accompanied by unsustainable architectural developments, sprawl into peri-urban ecosystems, and climate-incompatible developments. Efforts to achieve green urbanization in Bamenda are insignificant. Socio-economic and policy actions of residents do not reflect a move towards sustainable cities, which is a common theme in most development agendas. This undermines the ecology, health, and general well-being of its inhabitants, increasing vulnerability. The study suggests that there is a need to learn from the few green cities in Africa and adopt a holistic approach towards green urbanization. This approach should include green transportation, preservation of green spaces, and retrofitting brown buildings to green buildings, through synergies, motivation and subsidization through green governance.

Keywords: environmental sustainability, green urbanism, green governace, retrofitting

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Authors: Jorge Cortés, Alejandra Martínez, Carlos Pérez, Anaid Simón

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The presence of government, news media, and general citizenry in social media allows considering interactions between them as a form of political communication (i.e. the public exchange of contradictory discourses about politics). Twitter’s asymmetrical following model (users can follow, mention or reply to other users that do not follow them) could foster alternative democratic practices and have an impact on Mexican political culture, which has been marked by a lack of direct communication channels between these actors. The research aim is to assess Twitter’s role in political communication practices through the analysis of interaction dynamics between government, news media, and citizens by extracting and visualizing data from Twitter’s API to observe general behavior patterns. The hypothesis is that regardless the fact that Twitter’s features enable direct and horizontal interactions between actors, users repeat traditional dynamics of interaction, without taking full advantage of the possibilities of this medium. Through an interdisciplinary team including Communication Strategies, Information Design, and Interaction Systems, the activity on Twitter generated by the controversy over the presence of Uber in Mexico City was analysed; an issue of public interest, involving aspects such as public opinion, economic interests and a legal dimension. This research includes techniques from social network analysis (SNA), a methodological approach focused on the comprehension of the relationships between actors through the visual representation and measurement of network characteristics. The analysis of the Uber event comprised data extraction, data categorization, corpus construction, corpus visualization and analysis. On the recovery stage TAGS, a Google Sheet template, was used to extract tweets that included the hashtags #UberSeQueda and #UberSeVa, posts containing the string Uber and tweets directed to @uber_mx. Using scripts written in Python, the data was filtered, discarding tweets with no interaction (replies, retweets or mentions) and locations outside of México. Considerations regarding bots and the omission of anecdotal posts were also taken into account. The utility of graphs to observe interactions of political communication in general was confirmed by the analysis of visualizations generated with programs such as Gephi and NodeXL. However, some aspects require improvements to obtain more useful visual representations for this type of research. For example, link¬crossings complicates following the direction of an interaction forcing users to manipulate the graph to see it clearly. It was concluded that some practices prevalent in political communication in Mexico are replicated in Twitter. Media actors tend to group together instead of interact with others. The political system tends to tweet as an advertising strategy rather than to generate dialogue. However, some actors were identified as bridges establishing communication between the three spheres, generating a more democratic exercise and taking advantage of Twitter’s possibilities. Although interactions in Twitter could become an alternative to political communication, this potential depends on the intentions of the participants and to what extent they are aiming for collaborative and direct communications. Further research is needed to get a deeper understanding on the political behavior of Twitter users and the possibilities of SNA for its analysis.

Keywords: interaction, political communication, social network analysis, Twitter

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Authors: Pragya Bhawsar, Utpal Chattopadhyay

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Small and Medium Enterprises play crucial role in contributing to economic objectives of an emerging nation. To support SMEs, the idea of creation of clusters has been prevalent since past two decades. In this paper, an attempt has been done to explore the impact of being in the cluster on the competitiveness of SMEs. To meet the objective, Nasik Cluster (India) has been selected. The information was collected by means of two focus group discussions and survey of thirty SMEs. The finding generates interest revealing the fact that under the concept ‘Cluster’ a lot of ambiguity flourish. Besides the problems and opportunities of the firms in the cluster the results bring to notice that the benefits of clusterization can only reach to SMEs when the whole location can be considered/understood as a cluster, rather than many subsets (various forms of clusters) prevailing under it. Fostering such an understanding calls for harmony among the various stakeholders of the clusters. The dynamics of interaction among government, local industry associations, relevant institutions, large firms and finally SMEs which makes the most of the location based cluster, are significant in shaping the host cluster’s competitiveness and vice versa.

Keywords: SMEs, industry clusters, common facility centres, co-creation, policy

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Authors: A. Lianah, B. Peter Sopade, C. Krisantini

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Walikadep/Tetrastigma glabratum (Blume) Planch is a traditional herb that has been used by people of Blumah village; it is believed to have a stimulant effect and ailments for many illnesses. Our survey demonstrated that the people of Blumah village has exploited walikadep from Protected Forest of Mount Prau. More than 10% of 448 households at Blumah village have used walikadep as traditional herb or jamu. Part of the walikadep plants used is the liquid extract of the stem. The population of walikadep is getting scarce and it is rarely found now. The objectives of this study are to examine the stimulant effect of walikadep, to measure growth and exploitation rate of walikadep, and to find ways to effectively propagate the plants, as well as identifying the impact on the environment through field experiments and explorative survey. Stimulant effect was tested using open-field and hole-board test. Data were collected through field observation and experiment, and data were analysed using lab test and Anova. Rate of exploitation and plant growth was measured using Regression analysis; comparison of plant growth in-situ and ex-situ used descriptive analysis. The environmental impact was measured by population structure vegetation analysis method by Shannon Weinner. The study revealed that the walikadep exudates did not have a stimulant effect. Exploitation of walikadep and the long time required to reach harvestable size resulted in the scarcity of the plant in the natural habitat. Plant growth was faster in-situ than ex-situ; and fast growth was obtained from middle part cuttings treated with vermicompost. Biodiversity index after exploitation was higher than before exploitation, possibly due to the toxic and allellopathic effect (phenolics) of the plant. Based on these findings, further research is needed to examine the toxic effects of the leave and stem extract of walikadep and their allelopathic effects. We recommend that people of Blumah village to stop using walikadep as the stimulant. The local people, village government in the regional and central levels, and perhutani should do an integrated efforts to conserve walikadep through Pengamanan Terpadu Konservasi Walikadep Lestari (PTKWL) program, so this population of this plant in the natural habitat can be maintained.

Keywords: utilization, medical plants, traditional, Tetastigma glabratum

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Authors: Monica Sanchez

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What responsibility does urban planning have on climate changes? How does the territory give us answers of resilience? Historically, urban plans have civilized territories: waters are channeled, grounds are sealed, foreign species are incorporated, native ones are extinguished, and/or enclosed spaces are heated or cooled. Socially this facilitates coexistence, but in turn brings negative environmental consequences. The past fifty years, mankind has tried to redirect these consequences through different strategies. Research studies produced strategies designed to alleviate climate change. Exploring the nature of territories has been incorporated in urban planning to discover natures response. The case to be studied is Santiago, Chile: for its combined impacts of climate change and the significant response by this city on climate governance in the last decades. Warmer areas in Santiago are seen in the areas of high-density buildings such as the commune of Recoleta, while the coldest are characterized by the predominance of low residential densities as the commune of Providencia. These two communes are separated and complemented by an undulating body that comes from the Andes mountains called San Cristobal Hill. What if the hill were taken into account when making roads, zoning and buildings? Was it difficult to prolong in the urban plans the hill characteristics to the city solving the intersection with other natural areas? Apparently it was, because the projected-profile informs us that the planned strategies used correspond to the same operations used in the flat areas of Santiago. This research focuses on: explaining the geographic relationships between city-hill; explaining the planning process around the hill with a morphological analysis; evaluating how the hill has been considered the in the city in the plans that intended to cushion the environmental impacts and studying what is missing on the hill and city to strengthen their integration. Therefore, the research will have different scales of understanding: addressing territorial scale -understanding the vegetation, topography and hydrology; a city scale -analyzing urban plans that Santiago has dealt with the environment and city; and a local scale -studying the integration and public spaces and coverage- norms of the adjacent communes. The expected outcome is to decipher possible deficits and capabilities of the current urban plans for climate change. It is anticipated that the hill and valley is now trying to reconcile after such a long separation. Yet it seems that never will prevail all the Rules of Nature, but the Urban Rules. The plans will require pruning, irrigation, control of invasive alien species and public safety standards, but will be rejoining a dose of nature with the building environment -this will protect us better from it from the time that we feared from it and knew little about it. Today we know a little more, enough to adapt to the process. Although nature is not perceived and we ignore it, it has a remarkable ability to respond.

Keywords: resilience, climate change, urban plans, land use, hills and cities, heat islands, morphology

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Authors: H. Al-Jabli

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The research on the presence of heavy metals and bromate in drinking water is of immense scientific significance due to the potential risks these substances pose to public health. These contaminants are subject to regulatory limits outlined by the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations. Through a comprehensive analysis involving the compilation of existing data and the collection of new data via water sampling in residential areas of Kuwait, the aim is to create detailed maps illustrating the spatial distribution of these substances. Furthermore, the investigation will utilize GRAPHER software to explore correlations among different chemical parameters. By implementing rigorous scientific methodologies, the research will provide valuable insights for the Ministry of Electricity and Water and the Ministry of Health. These insights can inform evidence-based decision-making, facilitate the implementation of corrective measures, and support strategic planning for future infrastructure activities.

Keywords: heavy metals, bromate, ozonation, GIS

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Authors: Olufunke Olufunmilayo Ilemobayo, Barakat. O Abdulazeez

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Profit making among poultry egg farmers has been a challenge to efficient distribution of scarce farm resources over the years, due majorly to low capital base, inefficient management, technical inefficiency, economic inefficiency, thus poultry egg production has moved into an underperformed situation, characterised by low profit margin. Though previous studies focus mainly on broiler production and efficiency of its production, however, paucity of information exist in the areas of profit efficiency in the study area. Hence, determinants of profit efficiency among poultry egg farmers in Ondo State, Nigeria were investigated. A purposive sampling technique was used to obtain primary data from poultry egg farmers in Owo and Akure local government area of Ondo State, through a well-structured questionnaire. socio-economic characteristics such as age, gender, educational level, marital status, household size, access to credit, extension contact, other variables were input and output data like flock size, cost of feeder and drinker, cost of feed, cost of labour, cost of drugs and medications, cost of energy, price of crate of table egg, price of spent layers were variables used in the study. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, budgeting analysis, and stochastic profit function/inefficiency model. Result of the descriptive statistics shows that 52 per cent of the poultry farmers were between 31-40 years, 62 per cent were male, 90 per cent had tertiary education, 66 per cent were primarily poultry farmers, 78 per cent were original poultry farm owners and 55 per cent had more than 5 years’ work experience. Descriptive statistics on cost and returns indicated that 64 per cent of the return were from sales of egg, while the remaining 36 per cent was from sales of spent layers. The cost of feeding take the highest proportion of 69 per cent of cost of production and cost of medication the lowest (7 per cent). A positive gross margin of N5, 518,869.76, net farm income of ₦ 5, 500.446.82 and net return on investment of 0.28 indicated poultry egg production is profitable. Equipment’s cost (22.757), feeding cost (18.3437), labour cost (136.698), flock size (16.209), drug and medication cost (4.509) were factors that affecting profit efficiency, while education (-2.3143), household size (-18.4291), access to credit (-16.027), and experience (-7.277) were determinant of profit efficiency. Education, household size, access to credit and experience in poultry production were the main determinants of profit efficiency of poultry egg production in Ondo State. Other factors that affect profit efficiency were cost of feeding, cost of labour, flock size, cost of drug and medication, they positively and significantly influenced profit efficiency in Ondo State, Nigeria.

Keywords: cost and returns, economic inefficiency, profit margin, technical inefficiency

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Authors: Sven Ratković

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The survey of public attitudes and knowledge was conducted as part of the Dinara back to LIFE project during June and July 2020. The aim of the research was to collect public opinions and knowledge on the topics of the biodiversity of Dinara, perception of tourist potential, sustainable development, and acceptance of the project. The research was conducted using the survey method in the cities of Sinj, Knin, Vrlika, and Trilj, and the municipalities of Hrvace, Otok, Kijevo, and Civljane, where a total of 404 people were surveyed. The respondents perceive the cultural and recreational potential of Dinara and recognize it as a potential for agriculture and tourism. According to respondents, the biological diversity of Dinara is most affected by fires and human activity. When it comes to nature protection, the majority of respondents don’t trust local self-government units and relevant ministries. The obtained results indicate the need for informing and educating the community, and they serve to adjust the project activities and better guide the touristic development of the project area. The examination will be repeated in the last project year (2023).

Keywords: protected area tourism, Dinara Nature Park, dry grasslands, touristic infrastructure

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