Post-Disaster Housing: A Complex Systems Approach to Social Resilience

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 31-40
Author(s):  
Ugochukwu K. Elinwa ◽  
Nothando Moyo

Conflicts are a form of man-made disaster changing the economy of nations, influencing energy concerns, food, shelter and demographic distributions. The breakdown of global systems has become a huge concern that needs working mechanisms to develop resilient cities. The working mechanisms vary from one country to another, thus making the process a complex reality. Resilience is a word that was derived from the Latin word “resalire” which means “to spring back”. In this work, the housing environment was considered as a system constituting of several subsystems (Social, Environmental, Political, Economic subsystems). It argues that for resilience to occur within the post-conflict housing environment there is a need for an inclusive evaluation of users' preferences and expectations. With a focus on the social subsystem, it tried to determine the level of significance of gender, age, income and level of exposure on the perceived social character of a post-conflict housing environment and the satisfaction derived thereof. The study showed the importance of inclusivity as it influences perception and satisfaction. Using regression analysis, the study revealed that Perception and satisfaction within a post-conflict housing environment were influenced by age (73%), gender (74%), income and level of exposure (54%).

1970 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 196-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. W. Jeffrey ◽  
C. S. Brown ◽  
M. Jurdant ◽  
N. S. Novakowski ◽  
R. H. Spilsbury

Increasing public pressure on Canada's land resources to produce a greater variety of social values indicates an urgent need for integrated resources management. This, in turn, requires a reorientation in the traditional "single resource" thinking of foresters and others. However, it is believed that the current major impediments to developing integrated resource management are to be found in the attitudes and opinions which prevail in the administrative centres of government in respect to social, political, economic, legal, and other matters. Integrated resource management is fundamentally a social concept and a prerequisite to long-term progress in this area is a better knowledge and awareness of the social-environmental needs of society on the part of all resource personnel. Foresters are closely identified in the public mind with responsibilities in wildland management and should be actively concerned with integrated resource management.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. 1600-1621
Author(s):  
E.V. Molchanova

Subject. The article discusses medical and demographic processes in Russia and Finland. Objectives. I evaluate cases of social innovations implemented for the preservation and strengthening of public health in Finland under the auspices of The Global Burden of Disease Study. Methods. Methodologically, the study relies upon the ideology of the GDB Project, which rests on the DALY (the Disability Adjusted Life Year). Results. I analyzed the morbidity and mortality rates, DALY in Russia and Finland, determined what mainly triggers the risk (environmental, behavioral, metabolic) fueling some public health degradation. The article provides the insight into the efficiency of some social innovations implemented in Finland and suggests what should be done to outline medical and demographic programs in Russia. Conclusions and Relevance. The medical and demographic situation in Russia requires new tools to find innovative solutions for the social policy and, inter alia, the use of the GBD technique, which proved to be effective. Referring to evidence from Finland, demographic challenges in Russian can be handled through a systems approach, i.e. socio-economic actions, improvement of the healthcare and social security, wellness propaganda.


Author(s):  
Janet Judy McIntyre-Mills

This article is a thinking exercise to re-imagine some of the principles of a transformational vocational education and training (VET) approach underpinned by participatory democracy and governance, and is drawn from a longer work on an ABC of the principles that could be considered when discussing ways to transform VET for South African learners and teachers. The purpose of this article is to scope out the social, cultural, political, economic and environmental context of VET and to suggest some of the possible ingredients to inspire co-created design. Thus the article is just a set of ideas for possible consideration and as such it makes policy suggestions based on many ways of knowing rooted in a respect for self, others (including sentient beings) and the environment on which we depend. The notion of African Renaissance characterises the mission of a VET approach in South Africa that is accountable to this generation of living systems and the next.


Author(s):  
Laura Salah Nasrallah

Through case studies of archaeological materials from local contexts, Archaeology and the Letters of Paul illuminates the social, political, economic, and religious lives of those whom the apostle Paul addressed. Roman Ephesos, a likely setting for the household of Philemon, provides evidence of the slave trade. An inscription from Galatia seeks to restrain traveling Roman officials, illuminating how the travels of Paul, Cephas, and others may have disrupted communities. At Philippi, a donation list from a Silvanus cult provides evidence of abundant giving amid economic limitations, paralleling practices of local Christ followers. In Corinth, a landscape of grief includes monuments and bones, a context that illumines Corinthian practices of baptism on behalf of the dead and the provocative idea that one could live “as if not” mourning. Rome and the Letter to the Romans are the grounds to investigate ideas of time and race not only in the first century, when we find an Egyptian obelisk inserted as a timepiece into Augustus’s mausoleum complex, but also of Mussolini’s new Rome. Thessalonikē demonstrates how letters, legend, and cult are invented out of a love for Paul, after his death. The book articulates a method for bringing together biblical texts with archaeological remains in order to reconstruct the lives of the many adelphoi—brothers and sisters—whom Paul and his co-writers address. It is informed by feminist historiography and gains inspiration from thinkers like Claudia Rankine, Judith Butler, Giorgio Agamben, Wendy Brown, and Katie Lofton.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Barbara L. Voss

This article is the second in a two-part series that analyzes current research on harassment in archaeology. Both qualitative and quantitative studies, along with activist narratives and survivor testimonials, have established that harassment is occurring in archaeology at epidemic rates. These studies have also identified key patterns in harassment in archaeology that point to potential interventions that may prevent harassment, support survivors, and hold perpetrators accountable. This article reviews five key obstacles to change in the disciplinary culture of archaeology: normalization, exclusionary practices, fraternization, gatekeeping, and obstacles to reporting. Two public health paradigms—the social-environmental model and trauma-informed approaches—are used to identify interventions that can be taken at all levels of archaeological practice: individual, relational, organizational, community, and societal.


2018 ◽  
Vol 81 (4) ◽  
pp. 555-574
Author(s):  
Tomasz Załuski

Abstract This article critically reworks the issue of the social impact of art in terms of its ‘effectiveness’. The study shows art’s general economy by taking into account a number of ambivalences, difficulties, and deficiencies related to art activities that turn towards the social, political, economic, and cultural exterior of the field of artistic production. Finally, it tries to mount a careful, complex, and balanced defense of their potentials. Reframing and grounding the discussion on artistic activism in selected concepts from political theory, the author argues that if artistic practices are to be socially effective, art needs to be understood and practiced as a politic of redistribution. A way of practicing such a politic is to be sought in understanding and performing action as susceptible to interception. This entails responsibility for the usage of an action, for co-actions that accompany it, and for potential alliances with intercepting subjects.


2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 373-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
John T. Foley ◽  
Meghann Lloyd ◽  
Viviene A. Temple

This study examined temporal trends in body mass index (BMI) among United States adults with intellectual disability (ID) participating in Special Olympics from 2005 to 2010. In addition, the prevalence of obesity was compared with published National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) statistics. After data cleaning, 6,004 height and weight records (male = 57%) were available from the Special Olympics International Healthy Athletes Health Promotion database for the calculation of BMI. Rates of overweight and obesity were very high but generally stable over time. Compared with NHANES statistics, the prevalence of obesity was significantly higher for Special Olympics female participants in each data collection cycle. Integrated efforts to understand the social, environmental, behavioral, and biological determinants of obesity and among Special Olympics participants are needed.


2015 ◽  
Vol 87 (4) ◽  
pp. 2335-2348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Milanez

ABSTRACT In this article, I argue that attempting to solve real problems is a possible approach to bring social and natural sciences together, and suggest that - as Environmental Impact Assessment necessarily brings together social and environmental issues - this debate is a strong candidate for such a task. The argument is based on a general discussion about the possibilities and limitations of Environmental Impact Assessments, the social-environmental impacts of mining activities and three case studies. The analysis of the cases indicates possibilities and limitations of the dialogue between scientists from various areas - and of the collaboration with social movements and affected communities - in avoiding negative impacts of mining projects and, eventually, increasing their sustainability.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7097
Author(s):  
Margherita Masi ◽  
Yari Vecchio ◽  
Gregorio Pauselli ◽  
Jorgelina Di Pasquale ◽  
Felice Adinolfi

Italy is among the most important countries in Europe for milk production. The new European policies encourage a transition towards sustainability and are leading European dairy farms to follow new trajectories to increase their economic efficiency, reduce their environmental impact, and ensure social sustainability. Few studies have attempted to classify dairy farms by analyzing the relationships between the structural profiles of farms and the social, environmental, and economic dimensions of sustainability. This work intends to pursue this aim through an exploratory analysis in the Italian production context. The cluster analysis technique made it possible to identify three types of dairy farms, which were characterized on the basis of indicators that represented the three dimensions of sustainability (environmental, social, and economic sustainability) and the emerging structural relationships based on the structural characteristics of the dairy farms. The classification made it possible to describe the state of the art of the Italian dairy sector in terms of sustainability and to understand how different types of farms can respond to the new European trajectories.


2021 ◽  

This book addresses the controversies surrounding smallholders’ opportunities for economic and social upgrading by joining global agricultural value chains (AVC). While international organizations encourage small farmers to become part of AVC, critics point out its risks. Unlike previous single case studies, researchers from three continents compared the influence of the characteristics of the crop (coffee, mango, rice), the end markets, and the national political economic contexts on the social and economic conditions for smallholders and agricultural workers. Their findings highlight the importance of collective action by smallholders and of a supportive state for economic and social upgrading. With contributions by Angela Dziedzim Akorsu, Do Quynh Chi; Francis Enu Kwesi, Daniel James Hawkins, Jakir Hossain, Khiddir Iddris, Clesio Marcelino de Jesus, Manish Kumar, Michele Lindner, Mubashir Mehdi, Rosa Maria Vieira Medeiros, Antonio Cesar Ortega, Thales Augusto Medeiros Penha, Bruno Perosa, Sérgio Schneider and Santosh Verma.


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