Vulnerability analysis of building structures to floods

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 629-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geraldine Kikwasi ◽  
Elinorata Mbuya
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Building Structures ◽  
Water Drainage ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Peace Of Mind

Purpose There is evidence of increasing urban floods being aftermath of climate change. The purpose of this paper is to present findings-related analysis of vulnerability of building structures in informal settlements to floods and associated coping strategies. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a case study strategy, supported by field surveys and laboratory experiments. The informal settlement taken as case study is Sunna sub-ward. Field surveys involved interviews, questionnaires and observations and tests were conducted to determine the strength of walls, blocks and mortar. Findings The findings reveal that vulnerability of building structures to floods are due to poor quality of materials used in construction of houses which are influenced by income levels, location (lower areas of Sunna sub-ward) and inadequate storm water drainage system. Moreover, socio-economic vulnerabilities do exist in the settlements and are related to lack of peace of mind, outbreak of disease and expenses related to repairing of flood affected houses. Coping strategies used in the sub-ward for built structures are building barrier walls at the front door of the house and use multiple strategies which are supported by reactive and recovery strategies. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study were mostly affected by limited knowledge of respondents on construction materials and processes. Practical implications Findings of the paper provide an insight on the effects of climate change on building structures in informal settlements and coping strategies in place to protect buildings. The outputs can be used for any other informal settlement in Dar es Salaam the only limitation is the terrain. Originality/value The paper recommends use of quality building materials and technicians/artisans, improvement of surface water drainage and training of residents on the effects of climate change and variability. In addition, promising coping strategies should be adopted while those under-performing should be discouraged as they increase the cost burden among the urban poor.

Conflicts in adaptation: case studies from Nepal and the Maldives

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 304-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phu Doma Lama ◽  
Per Becker
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Critical Examination ◽  
Content Type

Purpose Adaptation appears to be regarded as a panacea in policy circles to reduce the risk of impending crises resulting from contemporary changes, including but not restricted to climate change. Such conceptions can be problematic, generally assuming adaptation as an entirely positive and non-conflictual process. The purpose of this paper is to challenge such uncritical views, drawing attention to the conflictual nature of adaptation, and propose a theoretical framework facilitating the identification and analysis of conflicts in adaptation. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on case study research using first-hand narratives of adaptation in Nepal and the Maldives collected using qualitative interviews, participant observation and document analysis. Findings The findings identify conflicts between actors in, and around, communities that are adapting to changes. These conflicts can be categorized along three dimensions: qualitative differences in the type of conflict, the relative position of conflicting actors and the degree of manifestation of the conflict. Originality/value The three-dimensional Adaptation Conflict Framework facilitate analysis of conflicts in adaptation, allowing for a critical examination of subjectivities inherent in the adaptation discourses embedded in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation research and policy. Such an inquiry is crucial for interventions supporting community adaptation to reduce disaster risk.

scholarly journals Land Readjustment for Regularization of Informal Settlements

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 40-50
Author(s):  
Robina Manandhar
Keyword(s):  
Public Services ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Land Development ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Tenure Security ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
Land Registration ◽  
The Social ◽  
Land Readjustment

Regularization of informal settlements involves the process of legalization of tenure and upgrading of public services and infrastructures through land development. However, some settlement manages to get the services from formal authorities but lags legal tenure security. Legalization of tenure security is important so as to reduce their threat of eviction from formal authorities and improvement of their living standard. Various land development tools involves upgrading of public services and development of infrastructures but legalization of tenure security is left behind. Land development and legalization of tenure security both are the important components for regularization of informal settlements and recognize as formal settlements. Land readjustment is the tool or technique commonly used for the land development in Nepal. Thus this paper aims to indentify the applicability of land readjustment in regularization of informal settlement. In Nepal, there are prominent numbers of informal settlements along the river banks and also in urban core areas. Chadani tole along the Bagmati River is taken as a case study and analysis of applicability of land readjustment under the social and legal condition for regularization is carried out. This research has adopted both desk research and case study methodology. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis is adopted in this study. The results of research reveal that public participation and long term occupancy are the social positive aspects for the application of LR in informal settlements. Lack of land registration, legal recognition and development regulations are the legal hurdles for the application of LR in informal settlements. Land registration of informal settlement has not been done in Nepal which is important aspect for application of LR. Thus land registration of Nepal should include the components of STDM for the pro poor land registration and recognition of social tenure to informal settlements. Applicability of LR is difficult due to the lack of sufficient area. So to address the issue and ascertain the rights of dwellers to live in the same area, high rise apartments can be adopted.

scholarly journals Participatory enumerations at the national level in Namibia: the Community Land Information Programme (CLIP)

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Muller ◽  
Edith Mbanga
Keyword(s):  
Land Tenure ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
National Level ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
National Government ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Development Initiatives ◽  
Local Ngo

This paper describes how the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia developed the capacity to undertake enumerations and mapping of informal settlements and, with support from the national government and a local NGO, developed the Community Land Information Programme. Through this initiative, the federation has profiled and mapped all of the informal settlements in Namibia, covering more than 500,000 people without secure land tenure and setting a significant precedent in terms of the ability of the federation to work at scale. For each settlement, a profile was developed by the residents that stimulated discussions of their priorities and also discussions with government. In the second phase, the residents of informal settlements were supported to undertake more detailed enumerations and mapping to identify development priorities and provide the information needed for development initiatives. The paper describes how this was done in a case study of an informal settlement in Swakopmund municipality and ends with a discussion of what has been learned, especially with regard to keeping the process rooted in the concerns and priorities of the residents of each settlement.

scholarly journals Work-based learning as a catalyst for sustainability: a review and prospects

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tony Wall ◽  
Ann Hindley ◽  
Tamara Hunt ◽  
Jeremy Peach ◽  
Martin Preston ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Higher Education ◽  
Cultural Change ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
Professional Service ◽  
Boundary Crossing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Learning Module ◽  
Climate Literacy

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight the continuing dearth of scholarship about the role of work-based learning in education for sustainable development, and particularly the urgent demands of climate literacy. It is proposed that forms of work-based learning can act as catalysts for wider cultural change, towards embedding climate literacy in higher education institutions. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws data from action research to present a case study of a Climate Change Project conducted through a work-based learning module at a mid-sized university in the UK. Findings Contrary to the predominantly fragmented and disciplinary bounded approaches to sustainability and climate literacy, the case study demonstrates how a form of work-based learning can create a unifying vision for action, and do so across multiple disciplinary, professional service, and identity boundaries. In addition, the project-generated indicators of cultural change including extensive faculty-level climate change resources, creative ideas for an innovative mobile application, and new infrastructural arrangements to further develop practice and research in climate change. Practical implications This paper provides an illustrative example of how a pan-faculty work-based learning module can act as a catalyst for change at a higher education institution. Originality/value This paper is a contemporary call for action to stimulate and expedite climate literacy in higher education, and is the first to propose that certain forms of work-based learning curricula can be a route to combating highly bounded and fragmented approaches, towards a unified and boundary-crossing approach.

scholarly journals Steering Energy Transitions through Landscape Governance: Case of Mathare Informal Settlement, Nairobi, Kenya

Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 206
Author(s):  
Peris Njoroge ◽  
Amollo Ambole ◽  
Daniel Githira ◽  
George Outa
Keyword(s):  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Landscape Governance ◽  
Energy Demands ◽  
Poor Households ◽  
Political Dimensions ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

Poor households in urban informal settlements face a big challenge in accessing clean energy for cooking, heating, and lighting. We use Kenya’s Mathare informal settlement as a landscape site to better understand how cross-sector collaboration can enhance access to sustainable energy in informal settlements. We also demonstrate that academics are well-placed in facilitating multi-stakeholder engagements between community members, experts, and policy actors. This is pursued by drawing on the results of two energy research projects (CoDEC and AfriCLP). We employ a landscape governance framework to re-conceptualise the findings from the CoDEC and AfriCLP projects. Specifically, we use the ecological, socio-cultural, and political dimensions of landscape governance to discuss the relationships between energy demands and other landscape issues in the case study. In conclusion, the paper recommends landscape governance as a promising approach for integrating energy issues with other competing landscape interests, while also encouraging cross-sector collaboration.

scholarly journals Could refurbishment of “traditional” buildings reduce carbon emissions?

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Atkins ◽  
Rohinton Emmanuel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Improve Performance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Post Occupancy Evaluation ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Very High

Purpose – Evaluate the post occupancy performance of a typical “traditional” building using multiple post occupancy evaluation (PoE) protocols against design intents to learn lessons about their suitability in meeting UK's climate change reduction targets. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – PoE studies of a single case study, Norton Park, using three PoE methodologies. Gaps and overlaps between the PoE protocols are assessed and their role in improving energy and carbon emission performance of traditional buildings is explored. Findings – Refurbishment of the type undertaken in this case study could halve the energy use in traditional buildings with comparable savings in CO2 emission. Research limitations/implications – Traditional buildings could positively contribute to achieving climate change reduction targets; regular feedback loops improve performance over time. Practical implications – Quantification of the likely national benefit of focusing retrofit actions on traditional buildings is explored. Originality/value – The research study demonstrates that very high levels of energy saving can be achieved when traditional buildings are refurbished. In addition on-going monitoring and PoE studies highlight opportunities to optimise the performance of traditional buildings.

scholarly journals Placemaking in Informal Settlements: The Case of France Colony, Islamabad, Pakistan

Urban Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Ramisa Shafqat ◽  
Dora Marinova ◽  
Shahed Khan
Keyword(s):  
Social Economic ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Rural Migrants ◽  
Systematic Analysis ◽  
Alternative Perspective ◽  
Spatial Attributes ◽  
Life Values

This paper provides an alternative perspective on urban informal settlements by analysing them as places of rural remnants, reservoirs of regional cultural heritage, and spaces entailing traditional sustainable elements that are brought to the urban realm by rural migrants. These socio-cultural and spatial attributes of a settlement converge under the notion of a “place.” Placemaking analysis is thus contended to be appropriate for comprehensive understanding of an informal settlement. The selected case study of France Colony, Islamabad, employs the placemaking methodology framework to investigate sustainability values and practices from the day-to-day living of its inhabitants. Data collected through on-site interviews during transect walks in France Colony are then translated into four maps as a spatio-cultural documentation of the sustainable elements found in the informal settlement. The four maps relate to form and users, activities and amenities, image and characteristics, and access and linkages. This systematic analysis assisted in categorising the sustainability characteristics of the informal settlements according to the three pillars (social, economic, and environmental) of sustainability. The findings show that the organic placemaking, originating from everyday life, values, behaviour, and lifestyle of the informal dwellers, allows for a strong and vibrant resilient community to emerge.

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