Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Design social infrastructure'

In the age of urbanisation and digitalisation it is easy to forget how important physical meetings and interactions are for our well-being. Open for anyone, the purpose of Our Urban Kitchen is to bring people together around the act of cooking and eating. The kitchen is to be situated in the future park Fållan in Slakthusområdet, Stockholm. A site that has been central for the meat production of the city for the past hundred years is now changing from an industrial area into a new urban neighbourhood. As meat production moves out of the city it inspires our food culture to change towards a more plant-based diet. Our Urban Kitchen aims to bring the heritage of cooking meat into a vegetable-based kitchen in the public space.  The kitchen is an assembly consisting of five different actors (products). In this project I have chosen to focus on the main actor - the smoker. The role of the smoker is to communicate the site’s narrative and pass on its history to future generations. In addition to the smoker, I have conceptualized four other actors and their roles in the kitchen. The fireplace (Beacon) that provides heat, a place to cook as well as activate the site; the seating furniture that provides a place to gather and somewhere to rest; the workbench that allows preparation of food; the water tap that provides water to drink and to cook with.

The successful delivery of large complex infrastructure projects continues to challenge the civil engineering profession, with a predominance of projects delivered late and over budget. Many researchers have investigated methods and means of improving the less-than-satisfactory record of the execution of these projects. One recent research direction suggests that improvements in project delivery may not be realized until the project setting is understood from the as-lived perspective of the participants. Following this direction, the research described in this dissertation explores the personal and interpersonal dynamics operating within projects, treating them as complex social processes. The social dimensions explored in this study involve team leaders and staff engineers in a matriced organization handling a large urban design-build infrastructure project. The interactions among the participants within and across units and levels had both positive and negative impacts. The data for this exploratory case study comes from semi-structured interviews and online surveys collected at three points over eleven months when the project was in the design phase. Interviews were conducted with a limited number of individuals; the survey was collected from the larger engineering organization. From the interview data, issues which impacted project delivery were identified as the relationship with supervision, the availability of information, an understanding of the larger project context, and the response to project constraints. The survey data was used primarily to understand the social dimensions affecting two engineering disciplines, one that performed well and one that performed poorly. Issues that aligned with the performance differences included frequency of contact with supervision, the ability to make decisions, and effective use of time available to complete design tasks. Data from the two modes of investigation demonstrated strong triangulation. Recommendations for both academia and industry are provided.
Ph. D.

Rapid urbanization of cities includes common characteristics of high-density populations and large number of impervious surfaces. The high percentages of impervious surfaces like rooftops, roads and parking lots in dense cities would block the natural hydrological infiltration process and increasing flooding threats. The goal of this study is finding solutions for meeting the nonpotable water use demand by applying water harvesting while also creating open green spaces for residents in urban communities. The design thesis explored the level of benefits that can be achieved by harvesting water from impervious surfaces like rooftops to fulfill the need for water consumption, purification and green open spaces for social activities in residential high-rise condominiums (multi-family residences) in Wuhan, China. The study has compared hydrological and social benefits from 3 different design scenarios in the selected urban community: 1) the existing site design with underground parking, 2) a new design without underground parking which expands water harvesting options, and 3) a new design with underground parking which limits the application of some BMPs (Best Management Practices). This study used open space design and water harvesting as a strategy to meet 94% of non-potable water consumption by harvesting water from residential rooftops as well as to decrease and purify surface runoff to reduce the flooding threat from ground surfaces in the selected community. The proposed open space design also achieved social benefits of providing places for social interactions, supporting various recreational activities, educating children about environmental issues while having in outdoor activities, experiencing nature and keeping or improving the physical and mental well-being of people in the selected urban community.
Master of Landscape Architecture
Dense cities have the characteristics of having high-density impervious surfaces roads, bridges, rooftops as well as a large amount of population. Since a large amount of increasing population in dense cities would result in high demands for water consumption, the water shortage problem, as a global issue, has challenged the distribution of water resources in dense cities. The massive number of impervious surfaces, as a result of rapid urbanization, have blocked the process of hydrological circulation by making natural infiltration impossible. Therefore, many dense cities are facing the challenges of waterlogging or flooding threat and the decreasing amount of water resources. This study focuses on using open space design and water harvesting as a strategy to relieve the stress of limited water resources and waterlogging or flooding threat in dense cities. This thesis has chosen an urban community in Wuhan, China for making open space design and bring the hydrologic and social benefits to the selected urban community by combing the practices of water treatment into the design. The new open design in the selected community not only has the hydrological benefits of decreasing and purifying surface runoff to reduce flooding threat, but also has many social benefits such as providing places for social interactions, supporting various of recreational activities, educating children about environmental issues while participating in outdoor activities, experience nature and keeping or improving the physical and mental well-being of people.

The modern day mechanical integration and organisation of cities have disturbed the natural systems and sequences of the environment, as well as the social fabric and collective notions of society within cities (Mumford, 1938:17). Man's progressive "liberation" from the natural environment has desensitised him to nature (Crowe, 1995:233) creating an artifi cial realm where man is removed from nature. Pretoria's establishment was greatly infl uenced by its landscape - aptly called "the valley between the ridges and the rivers" (Dippenaar, 2013:6). Urban modernisation and infrastructure development have however progressively disregarded the river and the landscape within the city, consequently detaching the city from these natural elements, which resulted in the loss of their signifi cance. As one of the last remaining underdeveloped sites in the inner city of Pretoria, Berea Park represents a continuation of the landscape and the Apies River channel into the city. Situated at the southern gateway of the city, Berea Park was Pretoria's fi rst offi cial recreational, social and cultural venue, hosting numerous sport, outdoor and other events. Unfortunately Berea Park is currently in a derelict and idle state. Infrastructural developments have gradually disconnected the site from the surrounding city fabric and community. The isolated and forgotten park, has like the river, tragically lost its essential signifi cance. The divide between the city fabric, the Apies River channel and the Berea Park landscape presents the opportunity to explore architecture's role in re-integrating and connecting experiences of "nature" into the city to enhance the quality of urban life. This dissertation explores architecture and the hybrid typology of "building as a landscape", as a means to create a new topography and interface between the Berea Park landscape, river channel and the city. The concept of a hybrid architecture that merges the typologies of urban park, landscape, infrastructure, public amenity and building is explored with the intention to develop a new typology that can respond to the contextual challenges. The building becomes an extension of the park, and the park becomes an extension of the building. The new interface, proposed programme and activities are aimed at linking the city, its inhabitants, communities, the landscape and the river.
Die hedendaagse meganiese integrasie en organisasie van stede het die natuurlike sisteme en ritmes van die omgewing, asook die sosiale strukture en kollektiewe opvattings van gemeenskappe in stede versteur (Mumford, 1038:17). Die mens se progressiewe "bevryding" van die natuurlike omgewing het gelei tot 'n skeiding tussen die mens en die natuur (Crowe, 2013:6), wat der volglik ? kunsmatige domein waarbinne die mensdom uit die natuurverwyder is, geskep het. Die totstandkoming van Pretoria was grootliks be?nvloed deur sy natuurlike landskap - met die gepaste benaming van " 'n vallei gele? tussen rante en riviere" (Dippenaar, 2013:6). Met stedelike modernisering en infrastruktuur ontwikkeling is daar stelselmatig minder ag geslaan op die rivier en die omliggende stadslandskap, wat daartoe gelei het dat die stad van die natuurlike omgewing afgesonder geraak het en uiteindelik het dit die verlies van die essensi?le betekenis en waarde van die natuurelemente veroorsaak. Berea Park, een van die laaste oorblywende onderontwikkelde terreine in die sentrale stadsgebied van Pretoria, is gele? aan die suidelike ingang van die stad en verteenwoordig 'n verlenging van die landskap en die Apiesrivierkanaal na die stad. Di? terrein was Pretoria se eerste amptelike ontspannings-, sosiale en kulturele byeenkomsplek, wat sport-, buitelugen ander byeenkomste aangebied het. Ongelukking is Bera Park tans 'n verlate, verwaarloosde en onbenutte area. Infrastruktuur ontwikkeling van di? gebied het geleidelik die terrein afgesonder van die omliggende stad en gemeenskap. Die ge?soleerde en vergete park het, soos die rivier, tragies geen betekenis of nut meer nie. Die skeiding tussen die stedelike bouomgewing, die Apiesrivierkanaal en die landskap van Berea Park bied die geleentheid om argitektuur se rol met betrekking tot die herintegrering en verbinding van die "natuur" met die stad te ondersoek derhalwe die gehalte van 'n stedelike lewenswyse te verhoog. Die skripsie ondersoek argitektuur en die hibriede tipologie van 'n gebou as 'n landskap, wat deur die fasilitering van 'n nuwe topografi e 'n interaktiewe verbinding tussen die landskap van Berea Park, die rivierkanaal en die stad tot stand kan bring. Hibriede-argitektuur is 'n konsep wat die samesmelting van die tipologie? van stedelike park, landskap, infrastruktuur, openbare fasiliteit en gebou ondersoek met die doel om 'n nuwe tipologie te ontwikkel wat kontekstuele uitdagings kan aanspreek. Die gebou word 'n uitbreiding van die park en die park word 'n uitbreiding van die gebou. Die doelwit van die gebou as nuwe interaktiewe verbinding en die voorgestelde program en aktiwiteite, is om die stad se inwoners, gemeenskappe, die landskap en die rivier te herverbind.
Mini Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2016.
Architecture
MArch (Prof)
Unrestricted

Les systèmes photovoltaïques de pompage d'eau (PVWPS) sont une solution intéressante pour améliorer l’accès à l’eau dans les communautés rurales des pays en voie de développement. Cette thèse développe une méthodologie de conception optimale des PVWPS pour l’accès à l’eau domestique basée sur une approche interdisciplinaire. L’objectif est de déterminer les dimensionnements du PVWPS et ses positions géographiques dans le village qui maximisent l’impact positif du système sur le développement socio-économique et minimisent son coût sur cycle de vie. Cette méthodologie est appliquée au cas d’un village rural du Burkina Faso, où nous avons collecté des données techniques et sociaux-économiques depuis 2 ans. La première originalité principale de ce travail est la modélisation du lien entre la conception du PVWPS et son impact socio-économique, ce qui permet d’inclure l’impact socio-économique comme fonction objectif de l’optimisation. La seconde originalité principale est l’intégration de la position géographique du PVWPS dans le village comme variable d’optimisation, en plus du dimensionnement du système. Cette méthodologie pourrait également être appliquée à la mise en place d'autres types de systèmes, tels que les moulins communaux alimentés par énergie photovoltaïque dans les zones isolées ou les bornes de recharges publiques pour les véhicules électriques dans les villes
Photovoltaic water pumping systems (PVWPS) are an interesting solution to improve access to water in rural communities of developing countries. This thesis develops a methodology for the optimal design of PVWPS for domestic consumption based on an interdisciplinary approach. The objective is to determine the sizings of the PVWPS and its geographical positions in the village that maximize the positive impact of the system on socio-economic development and minimize its life-cycle cost. This methodology is applied to the case of a rural village in Burkina Faso, where we have been collecting technical and socio-economic data for 2 years. The first main originality of this work is the modelling of the link between the design of a PVWPS and its socio-economic impact, which allows to include the socio-economic impact to be included as an objective function of the optimisation. The second main originality is the inclusion of the geographical position of the PVWPS in the village as an optimisation variable, in addition to the sizing of the system. There is potential for applying the proposed methodology for the set-up of other types of systems such as community mills powered by photovoltaic energy in isolated areas and public charging points for electrical vehicles in cities

As the case with most countries across Latin America, unprecedented migration to urban areas has strained city infrastructure systems. More particularly, the region faces a pressing crisis of water security, where rapid urbanization has outpaced water sector development. This thesis addresses the water infrastructure reform in El Alto and La Paz, Bolivia, focusing on strategies to better promote water access for the peri-urban poor. The research investigates the level of progressivity of water service expansion and pricing regimes: in other words, does the present model of water distribution positively improve the lives of the poorest groups? By investigating these social dimensions of water management, this study brings perspectives on the broader dialogue on Bolivia’s economic development, along with issues of participatory governance. Resumen: Como es el caso en muchos países latinoamericanos, la migración a áreas urbanas a niveles sin precedentes ha superado la capacidad de infraestructura. Concretamente, la región se enfrenta a una urgente crisis en la seguridad de agua potable dado que la rápida urbanización ha sobrepasado el desarrollo de este sector. Esta tesis aborda la reforma de la infraestructura de agua potable en El Alto y La Paz, Bolivia, enfocando en las estrategias para mejorar el acceso a agua por parte de los residentes periurbanos pobres. La investigación averigua el nivel de progresividad de los regímenes de precios y expansión de servicios de agua potable. En otras palabras, ¿contribuye el actual modelo de distribución de agua al mejoramiento de la vida de los grupos más desfavorecidos? Al investigar estas dimensiones sociales en el manejo de agua potable, este estudio ofrece perspectivas en cuanto al diálogo amplio del desarrollo económico de Bolivia, así como asuntos de gobernanza participativa.

This study has been conducted on behalf of Vectura Consulting AB with the purpose to examine how different actors perceive the dimensions of sustainability and sustainable construction. The purpose is also to provide an understanding of existing barriers and opportunities for sustainable construction within the industry and exemplify with different directions for the actors in order to develop sustainability. The study has approach the research problem by using systems theory, developed by Checkland, to identify the relevant system. Other systems theories has been used as an theoretical framework in order to identify barriers and opportunities, which in this study are based on Hughes’s theory about reverse salients and salients. Interviews with a selection of different actors in the industry and prior research have in this study served as empirics and the perspective of the systems theory defines the necessary tools to be used. The study shows that no consistency prevails regarding the definition of sustainability among the actors. Although, the environmental aspect of sustainability is prioritized by a majority of the actors oppose to social and economic aspects. Furthermore, for some of the actors economy is governing while for others it is decisive. Sustainable construction is characterized by a long-term parallel process with incentives such as branding, recruiting, and optimized operations. Moreover, the study indicates a willingness among the actors to define the concept of sustainability in order to achieve an industry wide definition. Such a definition would be of benefit for simplifying procurement and developing sustainable construction. The study identified two barriers and two opportunities. The actors agrees on that the procurement regulations of the Swedish infrastructure authority “Trafikverket” in combination with contracts defined by multiple products, and the objectives of Trafikverket,  are the two main barriers for holding back the development of sustainability in the industry. However, Trafikverket’s goal to increase the number of contracts based on function is seen as an opportunity as it enables creativity and innovation and a possible side effect of sustainable development. In addition, side bids from different actors are considered as a driver that will accelerate Trafikverket’s work regarding sustainability and especially sustainable construction. Finally, the authors give examples of directions for the industry to enhance sustainable construction and by doing so the authors connect vision with practice.

Large-scale and long-term planning imposes extensive requirements on governance efforts regardless of whether it involves public organisations, private organisations, or both. The proportions of such planning entangle many actors and stakeholders as system components within and around a complex system. These system components and conditions in a complex planning environment introduce a diverse variety of strategic objectives into the planning. This study investigates how strategic objectives can affect the governance of complex planning systems, particularly in the context of national critical infrastructure protection. For this purpose, this thesis concentrates on a national planning procedure, STYREL, which Sweden has recently implemented for the case of power shortages. This case involves various actors from the national, regional and local levels who act on behalf of both public and private organisations in a planning process with four-year intervals, and it thus constitutes a relevant subject for this study. The investigation entailed the collection of evidence from documents and interviews. First, publicly available Swedish documents regarding the case provided an understanding of the planning. Second, interviews with decision-makers who are entrusted with this planning at municipalities and county administrative boards as well as with a few planners from power grid providers offered a deeper comprehension of both the proceedings in practice and the strategic objectives involved in this complex system for planning of critical infrastructure protection. Particularly, the findings resulted in several conceptual models that demonstrate these understandings in more detail. A soft system model visualises the problem situation and contains several elements, such as the system components, interrelations and conditions. Moreover, a multi-level planning model specifies sources of uncertainty in the planning and decision-making process that are associated with an insufficient alignment of strategic objectives in the STYREL case. These decompositions of the Swedish planning environment – both horizontal and vertical – further enabled this study to identify significant parameters of the systemic conditions and strategic objectives involved in such complex planning environments that challenge their governance. The findings of this study suggest that the Swedish process is not yet fully developed. The investigation particularly indicates that a better alignment of strategic objectives is necessary to ensure a selection of adequate goals and means that advances the future usability of the produced plan, which in turn would legitimate and strengthen this complex planning process for critical infrastructure protection.
Storskalig och långvarig planering ställer höga krav på styrning. Detta gäller oavsett om offentliga eller privata organisationer, eller båda, är involverade. Omfattningen av en sådan planering engagerar många aktörer och intressenter som komponenter inom och omkring ett komplext system. Dessa komponenter samt deras villkor inbäddade i en komplex planeringsmiljö skapar en mångfald av strategiska målbilder som följer med in till planeringen. Denna studie undersöker därför hur strategiska målbilder kan påverka styrningen av komplexa planeringssystem, särskilt i kontexten av skyddet av kritisk infrastruktur i samhället. Undersökningen fokuserar på en nationell planeringsprocess, kallad STYREL, som avser beredskapsplanering för elbristsituationer och som implementerats i Sverige. Planeringsmiljön omkring STYREL är ett relevant studieobjekt eftersom den involverar många aktörer från nationell, regional och lokal nivå. Dessa aktörer representerar offentliga och privata organisationer i den planeringsprocess som genomförs med fyraårsintervaller. Under undersökningens gång har bevis samlats in från dokument och intervjustudier. Först har offentlig tillgängliga dokument om fallet skapat en förståelse om planeringen. Intervjuer med beslutsfattare som är ansvariga för STYREL-planeringen hos länsstyrelser, kommuner samt elnätsbolag har sedan genererat en ännu djupare förståelse. Detta gällande både förfaringssättet i praktiken och de strategiska målbilder som är involverade i detta komplexa system för planering av kritisk infrastruktur-skydd. Resultaten ledde i synnerhet till några konceptuella modeller vilka demonstrerar förståelserna på ett detaljerat sätt. En systemmodell visualiserar problemsituationen och innehåller flera element såsom systemkomponenter, relationer och villkor. En multinivå-planeringsmodell specificerar källor av osäkerhet i planerings- och beslutsprocessen vilka är associerade med en otillräcklig harmonisering av strategiska målbilder i STYREL fallet. Dekompositionerna av den svenska planeringsmiljön – både horisontellt och vertikalt – gjorde det möjligt att identifiera signifikanta parametrar av de systemiska villkor och strategiska målbilder som är involverade i dessa komplexa planeringsmiljöer och utmanar deras styrning. Resultaten av studien indikerar att den svenska processen inte är fullt utvecklat. Undersökningen visar att en bättre harmonisering av strategiska målbilder är nödvändig för att säkerställa ett urval av adekvata mål och medel som skulle utveckla den framtida användbarheten av den producerade planen. Denna skulle i sin tur legitimera och stärka den komplexa planeringsprocessen för skyddet av kritisk infrastruktur. Därtill kunde detta främja en målgruppsorienterad kommunikation om risker och relevanta åtgärder.

Vid tidpunkten för framläggningen av avhandlingen var följande delarbeten opublicerade: delarbete 1 under granskning, delarbete 3 under granskning.

At the time of the defence the following papers were unpublished: paper 1 under review, paper 3 under review.

Informationssystemen blir en allt större del av vår vardag och ger oss nya möjligheter attinteragera med varandra men det är dess design som bestämmer hur vi gör det. Genomanvändningen av system genereras mängder av värdefull information om oss ochproblematiken uppstår när system, direkt eller indirekt, skadar användare. Studiensforskningsfrågor handlar om hur makt, design, kapitalism, brist på etik och konsekvenstänkkan leda till skadligt bruk av design samt vad Weaponised Design är och varför begreppet ärviktigt. Studiens primära syfte är att undersöka hur man som konsument, individ ochsamhälle påverkas av design samt att definiera begreppet Weaponised Design. Studien ärkvalitativ och består av en semistrukturerad intervju samt litteraturinsamling för att kunnabesvara forskningsfrågorna. Undersökningen visade på att design kan leda till ett skadligtbruk på åtskilliga sätt. Användare kan nyttja system för att utöva makt och skada varandra.Felsteg i konsekvenstänk vid skapandet av design kan leda till skadligt bruk av design.Användares inflytande inom den digitala världen är näst intill obefintligt vilket kan leda tillett skadligt bruk av design eftersom det leder till att designteamen sitter på ensidig makt. Dendigitala kapitalismen som vill få användare att hyra tjänster via licensavtal kan leda till ettskadligt bruk av design eftersom användare inte får möjlighet till att förhandla om villkoren.Weaponised Design beskriver när ett system agerar som det är menat att agera menfortfarande leder till ett dåligt utfall. Weaponised Design är ett viktigt begrepp eftersom detger ett namn på en problematik som finns men som tidigare inte haft någon tydlig benämning.
Information systems are becoming a bigger part of our everyday lives and provide us withnew opportunities to interact with each other and its design decides how we do it. The use ofsystems generates a great amount of valuable information about us and a problem emergeswhen systems directly or indirectly harm users. The research questions concerns how power,design, capitalism, lack of ethics, and thought of consequence can lead to harmful use ofdesign and what Weaponised Design is and why the term is important. The primary purposeof the study is to research how consumers, individuals and society are affected by design andto define the concept of Weaponised Design. The study is qualitative and consists of asemi-structured interview and literature collection to be able to answer the research questions.The study shows that design can lead to harmful use in several ways. Users can use systemsto exercise power and harm each other. Incorrect steps in consequential thinking whencreating design can lead to harmful use of design. Users' influence in the digital world isalmost non-existent, which can lead to a harmful use of design as it leads to the design teamssitting on one-sided power. Digital capitalism that wants users to rent services throughlicensing agreements can lead to a harmful use of design because users are not given theopportunity to negotiate the rules. Weaponised Design describes when a system acts as it ismeant to act but still has a bad outcome. Weaponised Design is an important concept becauseit gives a name to a problem that exists but has not previously had a clear name.

Cities are highly unequal systems and rapid, top-down development is increasingly causing segregation between people of different socio-economic statuses through gentrification. In response, a bottom-up, more community centred approach is often proposed, yet this method also not without significant issues. In this thesis I investigate the role of the designer as a mediator, facilitator and translator between the top-down and bottom-up approaches to urban development. Using Grønland, Oslo as a case study, I start by gathering high-level research in order to understand the large-scale strategies that the municipality and private developers have for the area. In the second section, I undertake on-the-ground research in order to understand the everyday issues that people who live in, or use, the area face. In the final section I propose a research laboratory and makerspace that can activate the local community, providing the resources in order for everyday people to be able to have a positive impact on their city, in addition to gathering long-term, in-depth research on the area in order to influence the future of Grønland. This thesis is written as a working document that can, and should, be used by a wide range of people, from the municipality to local residents, and is designed to be added to as the project develops.

This paper attempts to provide a cost-benefit analysis of the economic and social effects of hosting the Olympic Games. I provide an overview of the economic and social impacts of the Games and analyze their effects. I focus the economic effects of the Games on tourism, trade, corporate sponsorship and the sale of television rights. I also look at the social effects of the Games on infrastructure and employment. Finally I assess why the Olympics remain an appealing venture for cities, despite evidence that demonstrates how they produce more actual harm than good for the host city. In addition, I provide predictions for two alternative directions that the Olympics could take in the future: to either continue in the current trend of immense growth and commercialization, or alternatively, implement a new Olympic bidding process that establishes stricter criteria for candidate cities.

This thesis draws on the concept of product stewardship and its focus on incorporating all of the actors in a product’s lifecycle into steps to take responsibility for waste management. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) recognizes the producer’s distinct potential to consider and drive change in waste management. Producers often serve like mediators between the design and use phases of a product’s lifecycle. Through EPR policies, the producer takes on the costs of ensuring safe end-of-life waste disposal. In this way, EPR can be expected to help relieve the public of some of the costs of waste disposal, and to support consideration of social and environmental impacts that a product may incur. This thesis examines EPR policy adoption and effectiveness in order to understand its ability to meet its theoretical expectations. Exploring the consideration and implementation of EPR policy measures, and particularly a case study of these policies in California, this thesis identifies several emerging challenges and trends that define openness to, and the success of, EPR. EPR policy proposals often encounter resistance that limits their strength and reach. In order to realize the full potential benefits of EPR, regulatory bodies will need to wholeheartedly support competition and enforcement to preserve the incentives within these policies. This thesis suggests that EPR still holds strong potential to bring together the social, environmental, and economic costs of waste management, both in theory and in practice, and offers broad recommendations for efforts to support this alignment.

The rapid growth of Louisiana's coastal restoration science and technology assets is paralleled by the growth of business resources to fulfill myriad project needs. Many institutions and organizations in Louisiana seek to further develop the state's research, education, engineering and related restoration assets into a globally competitive set of industries with exportable expertise and products that help the state capitalize on its water challenges. Globally, similar efforts are identified (and often branded) as water technology innovation clusters (or more simply water clusters). This paper explores the phenomenon of the development of water clusters by public-private partnerships and initiatives, nationally and internationally, in a comparative analysis with Louisiana.

To effectively prevent and mitigate the outbreak of natural disasters is a more pressing issue in the twenty-first century than ever before. The frequency and cost of natural disasters is rising globally, most especially in developing countries where the most severe effects of climate change are felt. However, while climate change is indeed a strong force impacting the severity of contemporary catastrophes, it is not directly responsible for the exorbitant cost of the damage and suffering incurred from natural disasters -- both financially and in terms of human life. Rather, the true root causes of natural disasters lie within the power systems at play in any given society when these regions come into contact with a hazard event. Historic processes of isolation, oppression, and exploitation, combined with contemporary international power systems, interact in complex ways to affect different socioeconomic classes distinctly. The result is to create vulnerability and scarcity among the most defenseless communities. These processes affect a society’s ideological orientation and their cultural norms, empowering some while isolating others. When the resulting dynamic socio-political pressures and root causes come into contact with a natural hazard, a disaster is likely to follow due to the high vulnerability of certain groups and their inability to adapt as conditions change. In this light, the following discussion exposes the anthropogenic roots of natural disasters by conducting a detailed case analysis of natural disasters in Haiti, Ethiopia, and Nepal.

Lam Pui Wing Caspar.
"Architecture Department, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Master of Architecture Programme 2008-2009, design report."
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 110).
Introduction
Preface --- p.2
Table of Content --- p.4
Research
Mobility Definition --- p.8
Mobility & City --- p.10
Mobility: Issues & Concerns --- p.13
Methodological Research --- p.14
Case Study 1 - Urban Design of Philadelphia --- p.16
Case Study 2 - The McCormickTribune Campus Centre --- p.22
Macau Lightrail: Background Research
Abstracted Renderings --- p.26
Lightrail Scheme Development Process --- p.28
Newspaper Cuttings --- p.30
Mapping of Macau LRT: at PRD Scale --- p.34
Mapping of Macau LRT: at City Scale --- p.36
Zooming into the 23 Stations --- p.38
Design Preliminary Stage
Site Study --- p.42
Methodology Experiments --- p.52
Schemetic Models --- p.54
Proposed Circulation Pattern --- p.56
Proposed Network of Open Spaces --- p.58
Development Models --- p.60
Presentation
Connection at Regional Scale --- p.64
Connection at Local Scale --- p.72
Connection at Architectural Scale --- p.88
Appendix
Bibliography --- p.110
Tickets --- p.112
Panels --- p.114

Attempts during the late twentieth century to create an office/work space containing an appropriate amount of flexibility, combined with generic specificity (to make speculative developments economically viable) have failed. High-rise workplaces no longer work [there's no room for fun and just being there is a drag]. The nature of work is changing [the nature of work is change]. As early as 1993, 21% of Fortune 500 companies had telecommuting programs in place. By 2000,80% of all jobs in America will involve knowledge work. Today, 15% of active people work 50% of their time at home [or outside of what would be considered (traditional) office space]. Lines between formal and social programs within the workplace are beginning to blur. The product of these changes in the economic climate, coupled with the continued advancement/development of mobile and information technologies necessitate evolution of the workplace.

We address the challenge of providing low-cost, universal access of useful information to people in different parts of the globe. We achieve this by following two strategies. First, we focus on the delivery of information through computerized devices and prototype new methods for making that delivery possible in a secure, low-cost, and universal manner. Second, we focus on the use of participatory media, such as blogs, in the context of news related content, and develop methods to recommend useful information that will be of interest to users. To achieve the first goal, we have designed a low-cost wireless system for Internet access in rural areas, and a smartphone-based system for the opportunistic use of WiFi connectivity to reduce the cost of data transfer on multi-NIC mobile devices. Included is a methodology for secure communication using identity based cryptography. For the second goal of identifying useful information, we make use of sociological theories regarding social networks in mass-media to develop a model of how participatory media can offer users effective news-related information. We then use this model to design a recommender system for participatory media content that pushes useful information to people in a personalized fashion. Our algorithms provide an order of magnitude better performance in terms of recommendation accuracy than other state-of-the-art recommender systems. Our work provides some fundamental insights into the design of low-cost communication systems and the provision of useful messages to users in participatory media through a multi-disciplinary approach. The result is a framework that efficiently and effectively delivers information to people in remote corners of the world.

abstract: Cities are increasingly using nature-based approaches to address urban sustainability challenges. These solutions leverage the ecological processes associated with existing or newly constructed Urban Ecological Infrastructure (UEI) to address issues through ecosystem services (e.g. stormwater retention or treatment). The growing use of UEI to address urban sustainability challenges can bring together teams of urban researchers and practitioners to co-produce UEI design, monitoring and maintenance. However, this co-production process received little attention in the literature, and has not been studied in the Phoenix Metro Area. I examined several components of a co-produced design process and related project outcomes associated with a small-scale UEI project – bioswales installed at the Arizona State University (ASU) Orange Mall and Student Pavilion in Tempe, AZ. Specifically, I explored the social design process and ecohydrological and biogeochemical outcomes associated with development of an ecohydrological monitoring protocol for assessing post-construction landscape performance of this site. The monitoring protocol design process was documented using participant observation of collaborative project meetings, and semi-structured interviews with key researchers and practitioners. Throughout this process, I worked together with researchers and practitioners to co-produced a suite of ecohydrological metrics to monitor the performance of the bioswales (UEI) constructed at Orange Mall, with an emphasis on understanding stormwater dynamics. I then installed and operated monitoring equipment from Summer 2018 to Spring 2019 to generate data that can be used to assess system performance with respect to the co-identified performance metrics. The co-production experience resulted in observable change in attitudes both at the individual and institutional level with regards to the integration and use of urban ecological research to assess and improve UEI design. My ecological monitoring demonstrated that system performance met design goals with regards to stormwater capture, and water quality data suggest the system’s current design has some capacity for stormwater treatment. These data and results are being used by practitioners at ASU and their related design partners to inform future design and management of UEI across the ASU campus. More broadly, this research will provide insights into improving the monitoring, evaluation, and performance efficacy associated with collaborative stormwater UEI projects, independent of scale, in arid cities.
Dissertation/Thesis
Masters Thesis Sustainability 2019

Disasters due to war and conflict or natural forces are responsible for the 26 million people displaced across the world today. The crisis extends into the temporary, yet indefinite, displacement camps where people live in congested living arrangements, vulnerable to an increased risk of disease, death, and social violence (spousal abuse, rape). Even when chaos subsides, social and physical networks have frayed rendering the temporary displacement camp a permanent home for some. Often, despite this “permanence”, access to adequate services and infrastructure and hence social and economic growth remains in a state of emergency. This thesis proposes that water infrastructure is the key social catalyst for developing these displacement camps into permanent sustainable communities. An urban displacement camp in the town of Gulu, Northern Uganda, is the case study location for a speculative design intervention. During rebel activities from 1996 to 2004, the town of Gulu more than tripled in size, absorbing almost 100,000 displaced people forced to flee their land. These people settled in displacement camps next to, and within the wetlands that border the town on all sides. The urban metabolism of the town has become polluted as the displaced people use, alter and degrade the wetlands because they have no other alternatives. Following the instigation of a peace process in 2006, some people have begun the journey home. However, it is estimated that just over half of these people will continue to live in the squalid camps, without an opportunity to prosper. A strategy is proposed for addressing and subsequently re-defining this urban metabolism. By synthesizing the existing urban fabric with strategies for harnessing the natural landscape, varying scales of water infrastructure are proposed. New opportunities for agricultural production is supported, while the spatial relationships created by the physical structuring of the water infrastructure renews the influence that water collection and distribution has in creating the social locus of a community.

Cette recherche a été financée par le Fonds de recherche sur la société et la culture du Québec et le Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines. L’auteur a de plus reçu le support financier du programme de remboursement des frais de scolarité des forces armées canadiennes. Les cartes ont été produites grâce au logiciel ArcGIS (ESRI).
Ce mémoire fait l’état des lieux des projets de transport du Plan Nord du gouvernement du Québec. Son but est de déterminer si les infrastructures de transport prévues s’inscrivent en continuité avec le développement territorial du Québec sur le plan du design, du positionnement et de la planification. L’étude s’articule autour de quatre étapes. Tout d'abord une revue de littérature du Plan Nord, du développement du Nord québécois et méthodologique est réalisée. Ensuite, une analyse de design des infrastructures de transport est produite par le biais des schémas d'aménagement et documents de planification. Troisièmement, des entrevues réalisées avec les principaux acteurs concernés permettent de déterminer la composante du positionnement. Finalement, les projets du Plan Nord sont vérifiés par une méthode de planification stratégique hybride SWOT-PESTEL. L’étude démontre que bien que certains projets soient en adéquation sur les trois plans étudiés, d’autres s’inscrivent mal dans la démarche de planification stratégique.
This thesis contains a situation report about the transportation projects proposed within the Quebec Government’s Plan Nord. The objective is to verify if the planned transport infrastructures are coherent with the historical territorial development of Quebec, specifically design, positioning and planning. Firstly, we conduct a literature review on the Plan Nord, Quebec’s northern development, and methodological practices. Secondly, an analysis of the design behind the infrastructure projects is done with the various development plans produced by Quebec’s counties and regions. Thirdly, we verify the positioning of the projects relative to the answers given by multiple stakeholders during interviews. Lastly, the transport projects of the Plan Nord are analysed through a hybrid SWOT-PESTEL strategic planning method. The results unveil that while some transport projects fit with the patterns obtained, others doesn’t fit and should not be put forward.