scholarly journals Municipal digital infrastructure and the COVID-19 pandemic: A case study of Calgary, Canada

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-157
Author(s):  
Gregory Taylor ◽  
Katelyn Anderson ◽  
Dana Cramer
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Local Data ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Digital Service ◽  
Digital Infrastructure ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Face ◽  
Public And Private Sector

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed unprecedented demands upon digital infrastructure as large portions of the population work, socialize and attend school online. National regulators worldwide have been struggling to maintain service for all citizens as the essential place of internet access in contemporary life becomes paramount. This article narrows the policy focus from the national to the municipal level. Using the case study of Calgary, Canada, the authors outline a unique and successful private–public partnership where local internet service providers have been able to adapt to the changing demands of the COVID era, supported by forward-thinking municipal policy. The authors draw upon local data sources, municipal reports and interviews with key public and private sector officials to explore how municipalities can best position themselves to provide resilient and sustainable digital service in the face of this global pandemic.

Indicators for assessing the sustainability of Australia's marine ecosystems

2000 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 435 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor J. Ward
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Management ◽  
Sediment Quality ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Environmental Indicators ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Face ◽  
Water And Sediment Quality ◽  
Public And Private Sector ◽  
Technical Capacity

Principles of integrated ecosystem-based management have been used to derive 61 potential environmental indicators for reporting on Australia’s marine and estuarine ecosystems. They are focused on tracking the condition of marine ecosystems in the face of a variety of uses and pressures, and are consistent with approaches used for assessment of public- and private-sector environmental activities, and with the international standard. The in icators cover issues in protected species, common habitats, renewable and non-renewable resources, water and sediment quality, and integrated management. Gaps in knowledge and technical capacity include: knowledge of the nature of the ecosystems is incomplete (ineffective indicators may be selected); scientific understanding of environmental issues is limited (the wrong cause may be identified); the resolving capacity of a monitoring programme cannot be determined (monitoring may falsely infer that no changes have occurred, or provide an answer to the wrong question); procedures for synthesis and aggregation of data across spatial, temporal and taxonomic scales, or for estimating uncertainty in national summaries are lacking; case-study trials, reference sites, and suitable interpretative models are needed; and an established procedure for revising and updating the indicators as new knowledge accrues, or if new issues arise, is lacking.

scholarly journals Theorizing Actor Interactions Shaping Innovation in Digital Infrastructures: The Case of Residential Internet Development in Belarus

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aljona Zorina ◽  
William H. Dutton
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Collaborative Relationships ◽  
Digital Innovation ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Self Organized ◽  
Digital Infrastructure ◽  
Parasitic Interactions

This paper focuses on how digital innovation develops in ecologies of distributed heterogeneous actors with contesting logics, diverse technologies, and various forms of orchestrations. Drawing on the insights from emerging theories of digital innovation augmented by an institutional logics perspective, we examine a case study of how residential internet infrastructure was shaped over 20 years by the interplay of self-organized residential communities, corporate internet service providers (ISPs), and a state ISP. Our analysis of this case leads to the identification of four types of interactions that shape the trajectories of digital infrastructure development beyond direct actor interplays and competitive or collaborative relationships. We label these interactions symbiotic generative, symbiotic mutualistic, parasitic complementary, and parasitic competitive and explain the processes and conditions of their development and their innovation outcomes. Drawing on these findings, we develop a model of symbiotic and parasitic interactions shaping digital infrastructure development and identify key characteristics of the ecologies where these emerge. The case study and the model that emerged aim to contribute to the growing field of research on complex and nonlinear paths of digital innovation development constituted by the dynamics of its distributed agency. The article concludes by highlighting avenues for future research.

scholarly journals William James and the Sustainable Transformation of Values, with a Case Study for Rethinking the American Dream

Human Arenas ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Croce
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Social Transformation ◽  
American Dream ◽  
William James ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Virus Spread ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Many

AbstractThis article addresses the call of the Psychology of Global Crises conference for linkage of academic work with social issues in three parts: First, examples from conference participants with their mix of bold calls for social transformation and realization of limits, a combination that generated few clear paths to achieving them. Second, presentation of Jamesian practical idealism with psychological insights for moving past impediments blocking implementation of ideals. And third, a case study of impacts from the most recent prominent crisis, the global pandemic of 2020, which threatens to exacerbate the many crises that had already been plaguing recent history. The tentacles of COVID’s impact into so many problems, starting with economic impacts from virus spread, present an opportunity to rethink the hope for constant economic growth, often expressed as the American Dream, an outlook that has driven so many of the problems surging toward crises. Jamesian awareness of the construction of ideological differences and encouragement of listening to those in disagreement provide not political solutions, but psychological preludes toward improvements in the face of crises.

scholarly journals Identifying Risk Factors of Boot Procurement: A Case Study of Stadium Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-20
Author(s):  
Marcus Jefferies ◽  
Swee Eng Chen
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
Significant Risk ◽  
Public Works ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Public And Private Sector ◽  
High Level ◽  
Bidding Process

Private sector input into the procurement of public works and services is continuing to increase. This has partly arisen out of a requirement for infrastructure development to be undertaken at a rate that maintains and allows growth. This has become a major challange for the construction industry that cannot be met by government alone. The emergence of Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) schemes as a response to this challange provides a means for developing the infrastructure of a country without directly impacting on the governments budgetary constraints. The concepts of BOOT are without doubt extremely complex arrangements, which bring to the construction sector risks not experienced previously. Many of the infrastructure partnerships between public and private sector in the pastare yet to provide evidence of successful completion, since few of the concession periods have expired. This paper provides an identified list of risk factors to a case study of Stadium Australia. The most significant risk associated with Stadium Australia include the bidding process, the high level of public scrutiny, post-Olympic Games facility revenue and the complicated nature of the consortium structure.  

scholarly journals Analysis of a voluntary initiative to reduce sodium in processed and ultra-processed food products in Argentina: the views of public and private sector representatives

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciana Castronuovo ◽  
Lorena Allemandi ◽  
Victoria Tiscornia ◽  
Beatriz Champagne ◽  
Norm Campbell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sodium Content ◽  
Processed Food ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Salt Reduction ◽  
The Public ◽  
Voluntary Initiative ◽  
Public And Private Sector ◽  
Depth Interviews

Abstract: The Less Salt, More Life program was the first voluntary salt reduction initiative in Argentina. This article analyzes the perspectives of the stakeholders involved in this voluntary agreement between the Ministry of Health and the food industry to gradually reduce sodium content in processed foods. This exploratory case study used a qualitative approach including 29 in-depth interviews with stakeholders from the public and private sectors and identified the role of the different stakeholders and their perceptions regarding the challenges encountered in the policy process that contribute to the debate on public-private partnerships in health policies. The article also discusses the initiative’s main challenges and controversies.

scholarly journals Best and worst practice: a case study of qualitative gender balance in Irish broadcasting

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne O’Brien ◽  
Jane Suiter
Keyword(s):  
Private Sector ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Gender Bias ◽  
News Coverage ◽  
Worst Case ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Gender Balance ◽  
Public And Private Sector ◽  
Radio News

This article focuses on the gender of voices chosen as sources and presenters of radio news coverage in Ireland. The study examines the best and worst case studies across public and private sector broadcasters and argues that the question of gender balance in broadcasting goes beyond the simple issue of quantitatively proportionate participation to require a more complex and qualitatively fair and balanced presentation of women within news programming. We find a very clear gender bias with male-dominated coverage in both public and private sectors but with greater stereotyping by the latter.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document