Books on the topic 'LCA sustainability'

The challenges to which contemporary building design needs to respond grow steadily. They originate from the influence of changing environmental conditions on buildings, as well as from the need to reduce the impact of buildings on the environment. The increasing complexity requires the continual revision of design principles and their harmonisation with current scientific findings, technological development, and environmental, social, and economic factors. It is precisely these issues that form the backbone of the thematic book, Sustainable and Resilient Building Design: Approaches, Methods, and Tools. The purpose of this book is to present ongoing research from the universities involved in the project Creating the Network of Knowledge Labs for Sustainable and Resilient Environments (KLABS). The book starts with the exploration of the origin, development, and the state-of-the-art notions of environmental design and resource efficiency. Subsequently, climate change complexity and dynamics are studied, and the design strategy for climate-proof buildings is articulated. The investigation into the resilience of buildings is further deepened by examining a case study of fire protection. The book then investigates interrelations between sustainable and resilient building design, compares their key postulates and objectives, and searches for the possibilities of their integration into an outreaching approach. The fifth article in the book deals with potentials and constraints in relation to the assessment of the sustainability (and resilience) of buildings. It critically analyses different existing building certification models, their development paths, systems, and processes, and compares them with the general objectives of building ratings. The subsequent paper outlines the basis and the meaning of the risk and its management system, and provides an overview of different visual, auxiliary, and statistical risk assessment methods and tools. Following the studies of the meanings of sustainable and resilient buildings, the book focuses on the aspects of building components and materials. Here, the life cycle assessment (LCA) method for quantifying the environmental impact of building products is introduced and analysed in detail, followed by a comprehensive comparative overview of the LCA-based software and databases that enable both individual assessment and the comparison of different design alternatives. The impact of climate and pollution on the resilience of building materials is analysed using the examples of stone, wood, concrete, and ceramic materials. Accordingly, the contribution of traditional and alternative building materials to the reduction of negative environmental impact is discussed and depicted through different examples. The book subsequently addresses existing building stock, in which environmental, social, and economic benefits of building refurbishment are outlined by different case studies. Further on, a method for the upgrade of existing buildings, described as ‘integrated rehabilitation’, is deliberated and supported by best practice examples of exoskeleton architectural prosthesis. The final paper reflects on the principles of regenerative design, reveals the significance of biological entities, and recognises the need to assign to buildings and their elements a more advanced role towards natural systems in human environments.

This article examines La Vía Campesina (LVC), or the International Peasant Farmers' movement. The LVC, founded by farm leaders in 1993, is currently made up of 148 peasant organizations in sixty-nine countries. LVC claims to represent the interests of at least 200 million farmers and has been touted as the largest and one of the most important social movements in the world. The article describes the LVC's fight for normatively defensible values-for a food system reflecting ideals of ethics and justice-and its quest to develop defensible lifespaces for small farmers in terms of socioeconomic, ecological, and political autonomy. It also examines how their aims and tactics align with current scholarship on the issues of sustainability and autonomy.

Historically, governments in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) have accumulated extensive assets. In recent decades, austerity and cost-cutting needs, sustainability agendas, the changing role of the State, information and communication technologies, public management reforms, and increasing knowledge sharing, have significantly changed the management practices of public buildings, movable property, land, forests, cultural heritage, and other nonfinancial public assets. Unfortunately, LAC societies have not reaped the many potential benefits that nonfinancial public assets could generate. Outdated regulatory frameworks and lack of adequate management instruments and technological tools, limit the economic and social uses of these assets. These affects their ability to contribute to the emergence from crises. The first chapter discusses the many benefits of efficient asset management. It evaluates the situation of public asset management in LAC and presents a model with the core components of an efficient public asset management system (governance, information, financing, risk management, measurement and control, and strategic asset planning). The second chapter presents an example of asset management transformation at the national level, describing the background and scope of the reforms undertaken by New Zealand three decades ago. The third chapter analyzes the implications of efficient asset management for local governments, concluding with a proposal for the creation of urban wealth funds.

Održiva i otporna građena sredina je složen sistem čije se značenje kontinualno razvija. Cilj ove publikacije je da problemu održivosti i otpornosti pristupi kroz sistematsko istraživanje različitih segmenata i razmera izgrađenog okruženja, odnosno da predstavljanjem preglednih radova (poglavlja), među kojima je uspostavljena odgovarajuća funkcionalna veza, podstakne razvoj specijalizovanog znanja, podigne kritičku svest o potrebi za interdisciplinarnim i transdiciplinarnim istraživanjem i ojača vezu između univerzitetskog obrazovanja i naučnog istraživanja. Analiza razvoja održivosti i otpornosti, istraživanje aktuelnih pitanja i predviđanja o mogućoj održivoj i otpornoj budućnosti zajedno omogućavaju sveobuhvatno razumevanje ovih koncepata i njihovih međusobnih odnosa u kontekstu građene sredine. Publikacija je izbor recenziranih radova, objavljenih na engleskom jeziku u okviru tematske serije pod naslovom Reviews of Sustainability and Resilience of the Built Environment for Education, Research and Design. I pomenuta serija i ova publikacija predstavljaju rezultate Erazmus+ projekta Stvaranje mreže laboratorija znanja za održive i otporne sredine (skr. en. KLABS), koji je posvećen uspostavljanju sveobuhvatne obrazovne platforme u okviru drugog ciklusa visokog obrazovanja na prostoru zapadnog Balkana. Širi cilj svih KLABS publikacija je bio da se razviju pregledi održivosti i otpornosti građene sredine, korisni za studente, nastavnike, istraživače i stručnjake koji se ovim važnim temama bave na međunarodnom nivou. Publikacija se sastoji iz dva dela. Prvi se bavi održivošću i otpornošću urbanog prostora a drugi nivoom zgrada. Istraživanje počinje teorijskim pregledom istorijske i savremene debate o problemu urbanizacije u svrhu razumevanja i novih tumačenja (urbane) održivosti. Zatim se tumače poreklo, istorija i razvoj koncepta otpornosti, evolucija njegove definicije, tipovi i ključni principi. U trećem poglavlju istraživanje je usmereno na neka fundamentalna pitanja u okviru socio-kulturološke ravni građene sredine. Sledeće poglavlje pruža pregled pojmova i strategija koncepata „efikasnosti resursa“ i „otpornosti“, prikazuje njihova zajednička područja delovanja, kao i potencijalne protivrečnosti i suprotnosti, u svrhu nalaženja uzajamne ravnoteže i davanja doprinosa ispunjavanju širih ciljeva održivosti. Istraživanje alternativnih modela potrošnje, potrebnih za postizanje održivih urbanih transformacija, predstavlja predmet petog poglavlja u okviru ove publikacije. U nastavku se pažnja usmerava na rekonstrukciju trenutnog naučnog istraživanja i nalaženje ograničenja i mogućnosti inicijativa koje su do sada preduzete, kao i na sintezu metodoloških i praktičnih predloga, kako bi se javnoj upravi i lokalnim organima ponudio „praktičan način” stvaranja efikasnijih klimatskih politika i planova. „Pouka Milana”, u sedmom poglavlju, pokazuje kako aktivno uključivanje poljoprivrednika može pomoći javnim politikama, štiteći zajedničko dobro u teškim okolnostima i dajući povod za alternativne načine planiranja; ona naročito može da inspiriše istraživanje u kontekstima gde su otvoreni prostori oko gradova ugroženi, a uključivanje u proces donošenja odluka predstavlja cilj koji treba postići. U poslednjem poglavlju prvog dela elaboriraju se definicija, klasifikacija i kritička analiza uticaja braunfilda na okruženje i definišu ciljevi održivosti koje treba postići kroz njihovu obnovu i ponovni razvoj. Drugi deo publikacije počinje uspostavljanjem veze između efikasnog korišćenja prirodnih resursa i smanjenja ekoloških uticaja zgrada. Ovde se daje pregled sadašnjih trendova i izazova u pogledu upotrebe energije, materijala, vode i zemljišta i promišljaju mogući scenariji efikasne budućnosti u kojoj bi šire socijalne i ekonomske sheme postale relevantnije za uspešno projektovanje ekološki ispravnih zgrada. Fokus se, zatim, usmerava na analizu složenosti i dinamike klimatskih promena kao ključnih faktora u oblikovanju strategija za projektovanje zgrada otpornih na delovanje klime. Na osnovu značaja sagledanih rizika, varijabilnosti i neizvesnosti u vezi sa klimatskim promenama izvodi se opšti projektantski okvir, obrazlaže značenje termina „transponovani regionalizam“ i diskutuje odnos između otpornosti i adaptacije zgrada u (ne)izvesnoj klimatskoj budućnosti. U trećem poglavlju drugog dela istražuju se međusobni odnosi održive arhitekture i arhitekture otporne na promenu klime tako što se upoređuju njihovi osnovni postulati i analiziraju ključni ciljevi, kroz prizmu uzajamnih (ne)konzistentnosti. Sledeće poglavlje obrazlaže hijerarhijski pristup projektovanju održivih zgrada i daje pregled niza aktivnih i pasivnih projektantskih mera koje su, pre svega, u funkciji postizanja energetske efikasnosti, poput toplotne zaštite, ostvarivanja solarnih dobitaka, disipacije toplote, generisanja toplote, aktivnog ventilisanja i hlađenja, kao i generisanja električne energije iz obnovljivih izvora. Energetska svojstva i toplotni komfor u zgradama, u petom poglavlju drugog dela, razmatrani su sa aspekta uticaja materijala. Na primeru karakterističnih tipova stambenih zgrada sa područja Beograda, koje su prikazane i analizirane, razmatran je stepen zadovoljavanja ukupnih zahteva komfora, kao i međuzavisnost koja postoji između različitih tipova komfora (toplotnog, vazdušnog, zvučnog i svetlosnog). Poslednje poglavlje prikazuje činjenice i primere koji su relevantni za razumevanje i primenu metodologije ocene životnog ciklusa u različitim projektantskim i inženjerskim okvirima. Ovde se detaljno analizira struktura metode ocene životnog ciklusa (en. Life Cycle Assessment – LCA), koja se koristi za kvantifikovanje ekoloških uticaja.

[Alcance y objetivos]. Este documento tiene como objetivo presentar las estrategias políticas y metodológicas para la creación y el fortalecimiento de los programas nacionales de guías enfocados en los procesos de adaptación de guías informadas por la evidencia en las Américas. La directriz presentada en este documento muestra las consideraciones que se deben tener en cuenta en los programas nacionales de guías con el fin de facilitar su implementación y sostenibilidad, así como las metodologías y herramientas para su elaboración. También se exponen las generalidades de la implementación de las guías con el fin de facilitar a las entidades gubernamentales, los actores del sistema de salud y la sociedad civil el uso de guías informadas en la evidencia dentro de los procesos de toma de decisiones a nivel individual, organizacional y de los sistemas de salud. La directriz busca apoyar la elaboración e implementación de guías brindando un mapa general de los requerimientos, presenta los diferentes recursos y manuales regionales y muestra de forma operativa el proceso metodológico. De forma general, toma elementos de diferentes métodos de adaptación, como Adolopment (Schünemann et al., 2017), y los operativiza con el fin de servir de apoyo a los procesos de adaptación de guías. [Scope and objectives]. The purpose of this document is to present policy-oriented and methodological strategies for developing and/or strengthening national guideline programs, focusing on the adaptation of evidence-informed guidelines in the Americas. The information presented in this document includes considerations to be taken into account in national guideline programs in order to facilitate their implementation and sustainability. It presents methodologies and tools for adapting the guidelines, as well as general information on the implementation of guidelines to help governmental agencies, stakeholders in the health care system, and civil society use evidence-informed guidelines in decision-making processes at the individual, organizational, and health system level. This document seeks to support the development and implementation of guidelines while providing a general map of the requirements. It also presents the different resources and regional manuals that discussing greater detail the methodological process. In general, this document takes elements of different methods of adaptation as “Adolopment” (Schünemann et al., 2017) and operationalize them to support the adaptation processes of guidelines.