scholarly journals Smart mobility, age and data justice

2020 ◽  
pp. 146144482090268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Sourbati ◽  
Frauke Behrendt

This article examines converging trends in ageing, digitalisation and datafication in the context of mobility and transport. While mobility data are increasingly captured by (public) transport and mobility as a service (MaaS) providers, Internet of Things (IoT) vehicles, apps and so on, the increasing entanglement of mobility and datafication happens unevenly, for example, in relation to age. This is particularly significant in the light of the rise of data-driven policy-making, and its potential impacts on mobility provision for older people. The article highlights new questions for public policy around data gaps and social inclusion and examines them through a UK case study. The results show that old age and mobility is an area with significant gaps in the data available to policy makers. A key recommendation is for commissioning bodies to develop a strategic approach to structured data gathering and analysis that addresses issues of exclusion from smart public service infrastructure.

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 157
Author(s):  
Bernard Oladosu Omisore ◽  
Oyende Adeleke A.

Performance of the Nigerian public service has been a major concern to policy makers and researchers alike. This is because despite all measures put in place to arrest the ugly trend, it seems, it has defied all approaches towards tackling the problem of inefficiency and capacity collapse. Work ethics, attitudes and values can be influenced by the organization, through interventions like training, motivation and coaching, etc. However, they cannot be changed forcibly because they are intrinsic. It is, therefore, of fundamental importance that public functionaries act justly and fairly to all, not only paying lip service to ethical conduct but also ensuring that these are manifestly and undoubtedly seen to be done. This paper discusses the challenges of work ethics, values, attitudes and performance in the Nigerian public service. The major causes of unethical conduct in the public service were identified and the institutional mechanisms established by the government to curb these unethical behaviours were examined. This paper adopted content analysis as a method of data gathering and analysis. It suggested viable options for effective and efficient service-oriented public service. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 205395172110255
Author(s):  
Wim Naudé ◽  
Ricardo Vinuesa

This paper draws lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for the relationship between data-driven decision making and global development. The lessons are that (i) users should keep in mind the shifting value of data during a crisis, and the pitfalls its use can create; (ii) predictions carry costs in terms of inertia, overreaction and herding behaviour; (iii) data can be devalued by digital and data deluges; (iv) lack of interoperability and difficulty reusing data will limit value from data; (v) data deprivation, digital gaps and digital divides are not just a by-product of unequal global development, but will magnify the unequal impacts of a global crisis, and will be magnified in turn by global crises; (vi) having more data and even better data analytical techniques, such as artificial intelligence, does not guarantee that development outcomes will improve; (vii) decentralised data gathering and use can help to build trust – particularly important for coordination of behaviour.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Santi García-Cremades ◽  
Juan Morales-García ◽  
Rocío Hernández-Sanjaime ◽  
Raquel Martínez-España ◽  
Andrés Bueno-Crespo ◽  
...  

AbstractWe are witnessing the dramatic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic which, unfortunately, go beyond the impact on the health system. Until herd immunity is achieved with vaccines, the only available mechanisms for controlling the pandemic are quarantines, perimeter closures and social distancing with the aim of reducing mobility. Governments only apply these measures for a reduced period, since they involve the closure of economic activities such as tourism, cultural activities, or nightlife. The main criterion for establishing these measures and planning socioeconomic subsidies is the evolution of infections. However, the collapse of the health system and the unpredictability of human behavior, among others, make it difficult to predict this evolution in the short to medium term. This article evaluates different models for the early prediction of the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic to create a decision support system for policy-makers. We consider a wide branch of models including artificial neural networks such as LSTM and GRU and statistically based models such as autoregressive (AR) or ARIMA. Moreover, several consensus strategies to ensemble all models into one system are proposed to obtain better results in this uncertain environment. Finally, a multivariate model that includes mobility data provided by Google is proposed to better forecast trend changes in the 14-day CI. A real case study in Spain is evaluated, providing very accurate results for the prediction of 14-day CI in scenarios with and without trend changes, reaching 0.93 $$R^2$$ R 2 , 4.16 RMSE and 1.08 MAE.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 730
Author(s):  
Biao He ◽  
Lianxin Zhu ◽  
Xiaomei Cai ◽  
Jun (Justin) Li ◽  
Hong Zhu

Mega-events, as a strategic approach taken by entrepreneurial governments, have the ability to transform the image of a city. This study explores mega-events and their relationship to urban development by developing a coupling coordination degree model and using the official statistics of Qionghai, China, from 2010 to 2015. The results of this study show that the dynamic of coordination between mega-events and urban development is a classical S-shaped growth curve. In the coupling system, this study also reveals that relevance index and the economy, as sub-indicators, make significant contributions to mega-events and urban development, respectively. Finally, the researchers concluded that the international large-scale events can significantly promote the urban development in host cities. This study reveals theoretical issues and practical implications for policy makers and event managers to achieve integrated and coordinated development between mega-events and urban development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 9306
Author(s):  
Assed Haddad ◽  
Ahmed Hammad ◽  
Danielle Castro ◽  
Diego Vasco ◽  
Carlos Alberto Pereira Soares

The social, economic, and environmental impacts associated with fuels used to power cities cause the sustainability of energy produced and consumed in our urban environment to be constantly challenged. In order to address the issue of urban energy sustainability, we propose a Framework for Assessing Urban Energy Sustainability (FAUES), whose main approach relies on defining a method for determining critical indices associated with the major criteria of sustainable energy generation and consumption. The framework is based on developing a three-step process that integrates historical data regarding energy consumption and production and forecasted parameters on energy sustainability and can be used both in urban energy operations and in planning new urban settlements. The framework was implemented in Brazil as a representative case study, given that its cities lack social inclusion, economic stability, and environmental protection when it comes to energy. The framework functions so that policy makers and managers can assess the sustainability of energy produced and consumed in urban environments on the basis of relevant criteria for the city in which the energy is being evaluated.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 191-221
Author(s):  
Rekha Pande

Abstract The present paper views globalisation and women’s work and exploitation in a micro enterprise in India, the beedi (indigenous cigarette) industry with a case study from one of the states in India. Rural occupational structures and employment patterns in India have undergone a transition in the last few decades due to globalisation. Newer forms of employment like construction work, domestic services and beedi making have become alternatives to agricultural labour for women. Beedi is an indigenous cigarette, in which tobacco is rolled in a tendu leaf and tied with a cotton thread. This is smaller and less expensive than a cigarette and in the popular imagination it stands for the working class. This work is done sitting at home and mostly women and girls do it. This is a very gendered industry, for only women and girls that too from low-income groups make beedis. There is a lot of exploitation in this industry and this has only increased with the advent of globalisation but this is generally ignored by data gathering systems, policy makers and administrators. There is an occupational health hazard too for many of these workers suffer from various health hazards not because they are smoking these beedis but because they are making them.


2011 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 57-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fréderic Lavoie ◽  
Marlei Pozzebon1 ◽  
Lauro Gonzalez

Investigating the replication of microcredit methodologies in Brazil, this paper seeks to explore the conditions under which microfinance and microcredit, two “financial inclusion” strategies, are likely to enhance social inclusion. A qualitative case study was conducted focusing the path of CrediAmigo, a Brazilian microfinance institution (MFI). This study is probably the first to provide an integrated perspective on critical issues concerning the replication of microcredit methodologies in Brazil. The findings may support MFI managers and policy makers in taking steps to facilitate the expansion of microfinance across Brazil.


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-143
Author(s):  
Julie Boyles

An ethnographic case study approach to understanding women’s actions and reactions to husbands’ emigration—or potential emigration—offers a distinct set of challenges to a U.S.-based researcher.  International migration research in a foreign context likely offers challenges in language, culture, lifestyle, as well as potential gender norm impediments. A mixed methods approach contributed to successfully overcoming barriers through an array of research methods, strategies, and tactics, as well as practicing flexibility in data gathering methods. Even this researcher’s influence on the research was minimized and alleviated, to a degree, through ascertaining common ground with many of the women. Research with the women of San Juan Guelavía, Oaxaca, Mexico offered numerous and constant challenges, each overcome with ensuing rewards.


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