scholarly journals Challenges of Urban Living Labs towards the Future of Local Innovation

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 89-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aksel Ersoy ◽  
Ellen Van Bueren

Finding new approaches to overcome complex urban problems such as climate change has always been of interest to policymakers and academics. The changing dynamics of urban development result in the diversification of new practices during which experimentation is used to inform urban practice. Amongst these approaches, urban living labs (ULLs) have become a popular form of urban experimental innovation in many countries in the last decade. These ULLs respond to the increased complexity of future challenges calling for local solutions that acknowledge the local conditions—political, technical, and social. Even though a great deal of attention has been given to this form of urban innovation, there has been little consideration of the learning and innovation processes within ULLs. Based on a comparative case study of three innovation projects in a ULL in the city of Amsterdam, we analyse and discuss the claims of ULLs regarding innovation and the different orders of learning they foster. We argue that in the processes of experimentation within ULLs, combining mechanisms of learning and innovation is key to promoting the development of particular local solutions. However, since the learning processes are especially concerned within a particular ULL learning setting, there is a mismatch between the expectations of policymakers, industry, citizens, and knowledge institutes, as well as how the lessons learned can be useful for other contexts.

Author(s):  
Grazia Sveva Ascione ◽  
Federico Cuomo ◽  
Nicole Mariotti ◽  
Laura Corazza

AbstractIn the attempt to foster circular economy (CE), cities are increasingly adopting urban living labs (ULLs) as sites of co-production aimed at testing alternative solutions based on the reuse of products, reduction of consumption and recycling of materials. Taking this perspective, our study adopts an exploratory research design to discover the pragmatic implications emerging from a case study. The City of Turin joined proGIreg, a European project that entails the regeneration of former industrial districts by means of nature-based solutions (NBS). Ranging from aquaponics to green roofs, seven NBS have been experimented in Turin, which rely on the use of natural systems to tackle social, economic and environmental challenges efficiently and sustainably. Among them, the most promising is related to the production and test of the ‘new soil’, a blend obtained by mixing earth materials coming from construction sites with compost, zeolites and mycorrhizae. The case herein presented is interesting to analyse for the multi-stakeholder management setting used, where public institutions, private companies, research institutions, citizens and associations collaborated in the co-creation and testing phase of the NBS. Consequently, the data collected through participant observation and direct interviews allow researchers to describe multi-stakeholders’ dynamics and how they work. Thus, this paper narrates a micro-contextual experience while providing a critique. Results include an analysis of the unique combination of different stakeholders, which strongly impacted on the management and the effectiveness of the entire project. By consequence, the paper offers both theoretical contributions to the relational branch of stakeholder theory and practical evidence in demonstrating the importance of the relational branch of the theory over a more traditional transactional view.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J Madison

Assessments of the relationship among law, innovation, and economic growth often begin with one or more propositions of law or law practice and predict how changes might affect innovation or business practice. This approach is problematic when applied to questions of regional economic development, because historic and contemporary local conditions vary considerably. This paper takes a different tack. It takes a snapshot of one recovering post-industrial economy, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. For most of the 20th century, Pittsburgh's steelmakers were leading examples worldwide of American economic prowess. Pittsburgh was so vibrant with industry that a late 19th century travel writer called Pittsburgh "hell with the lid taken off," and he meant that as a compliment. In the early 1980s, however, Pittsburgh's steel economy collapsed, a victim of changing worldwide demand for steel and the industry's inflexible commitment to a large-scale integrated production model. As the steel industry collapsed, the Pittsburgh region collapsed, too. Unemployment in some parts of the Pittsburgh region peaked at 20%. More than 100,000 manufacturing jobs disappeared. Tens of thousands of residents moved away annually. Over the last 30 years, Pittsburgh has slowly recovered, building a new economy that balances limited manufacturing with a broad range of high quality services. In 2009, President Barack Obama took note of the region's rebirth by selecting the city to host a summit of the Group of 20 (G-20) finance ministers. The paper describes the characteristics of Pittsburgh today and measures the state of its renewal. It considers the extent, if any, to which law and the legal system have contributed to Pittsburgh's modern success, and it identifies lessons that this Pittsburgh case study might offer for other recovering and transitioning post-industrial regions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 407-434
Author(s):  
Maria Antonieta Del Tedesco Lins

Abstract Thanks to lessons learned and reforms implemented after the financial crises of the late 1990s, most emerging market economies proved relatively resilient to the 2008 global crisis. Yet to cope with the turbulence that ensued, several interventions by monetary authorities in foreign exchange and capital markets were carried out. The literature on Latin American financial systems and central bank reform tends to emphasize international actors and pressures as key determinants of policy change. In contrast, this paper raises the hypothesis that domestic concerns were the main drivers of financial policymaking after the 2008 crisis even in countries with different institutional arrangements and macroeconomic trajectories such as Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. Through a comparative case study analysis, it is concluded that indeed the three countries’ approaches to exchange markets and capital controls contradicted international perceptions and even the IMF’s stance on foreign exchange policies and the management of capital flows. By pursuing more autonomy and responding to domestic priorities, each of the three countries adopted different policy measures.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (16) ◽  
pp. 5191
Author(s):  
Andrzej Sobczak ◽  
Leszek Ziora

Smart cities are an extremely important, multi-faceted subject, both in terms of their practical aspects and in terms of research. This is expressed, among other things, in the multitude of approaches to this concept. These approaches differ based on the emphasis placed on individual aspects: some focus more on technology, and others put more weight on social issues, while still others value sustainable development issues. Currently, an important topic of discussion about the development of the smart city—the importance of which has become even greater in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic—is the digital transformation of the city. The use of robotic process automation (RPA) tools can be a part of such a transformation, as such tools, using advanced software, enable the automation of those tasks carried out thus far by humans. Although such an approach has, to date, been widespread in the case of enterprises (in particular, those operating in the financial and BPO/SSC sectors, but less often in the utilities sector, the first applications of these solutions in the context of process automation for cities are also beginning to emerge in various parts of the world. This article is based on a case study approach. The implementation conditions (including the constraints) of such an approach, the benefits achieved, and the lessons learned (which can be important for other local government units) are outlined using the example of the Bydgoszcz city hall’s (Poland) electricity billing document management. The results of the case study presented here lead to the conclusion that the use of RPA tools enables, very quickly and at relatively low cost, measurable results to be achieved that are related to the processing of electricity billing documentation for the city of Bydgoszcz. This allows the assertion to be made that robotic process automation can be taken into consideration as one of the tools used to build smart cities.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (14) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robiah Suratman ◽  
Maryanti Mohd Raid ◽  
Mohd Izuan Nadzri ◽  
Salfarina Samsudin ◽  
Nurkhairiyah Mohammad

This article attempts to discuss the implementation of standards approach, 2 hectares per 1000 population as approved by the National Physical Planning Council in 2005. Using Kuala Lumpur as case study, the analysis showed that the uniformity of standards approach implementation has failed to take into account the distinction within the local conditions which have implications on the level of achievement for the 6 planning zones in Kuala Lumpur from 2011 to 2017. Use of the standards approach without modifications has created high density zones such as the City Centre, Sentul-Manjalara and Wangsa Maju-Maluri failed to attain the standards. Besides, other zones namely Damansara-Penchala, Bandar Tun Razak-Sungai Besi and Bukit Jalil-Seputih have exceeded the targeted standards. Based on the analysis, the distinction of local condition for each zone in Kuala Lumpur in terms of population number, urban land availability, land value, urbanization process and densification rate of the city need to be considered in implementing standards approach.


2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 255-270
Author(s):  
Claudia Andrea Reyes-Quilodran ◽  
Catherine A LaBrenz ◽  
Gabriela Donoso

Recent attention to juvenile delinquency has led to calls for alternative approaches for youth offenders that can reduce recidivism. This research analyzes how practitioners in Sweden, England, Italy, and Chile perceive the implementation of victim offender mediation (VOM). An emphasis is given to challenges and strategies that practitioners in Sweden, England, and Italy report, in order to provide a framework for implementation of VOM in a country in the early stages of implementation and consideration, such as Chile. An instrumental comparative case study design was used to compare the four cases of VOM implementation, conducting in-depth interviews in each country with key informants about the implementation process. The results suggest that practitioners are overwhelmingly satisfied with VOM in each European country, and that their experiences can be incorporated as lessons learned for practitioners in other countries seeking to implement VOM. Implications for adapting VOM to a different cultural context are described in the discussion, as well as a critical analysis of the need for more empirical evidence and further research on VOM and its underlying philosophy of social justice and accountability.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huey Chen ◽  
Hui-Ling Wendy Pan ◽  
Liliana Morosanu ◽  
Nannette Turner

Recent interest was noted in the evaluation community in expanding focus from program implementation and outcomes to program design and planning. One important step for moving in this direction is to examine existing evaluation models and to assess their relative strengths and weaknesses for planning purposes. We present a comparative case study of applying logic models and the action model/change model schema for planning the Learning Community Program in Taiwan. Lessons learned from these applications indicate that logic models are relatively easy to learn and effective for identifying major program components and indicators, but not sufficient in articulating the theoretical significance of the program.  On the other hand, the action model/change model schema requires more time to learn and practice, but it has relative advantages for providing theoretical insights on contextual factors and causal mechanisms of the program unlike logic models. This comparison can serve as a guide for evaluation practitioners when selecting evaluation tools to apply in planning and/or evaluating their programs.   


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 187
Author(s):  
Jenifer Maria Miranda de Sousa Pinheiro ◽  
Rubén Oscar Pecchio Vergara ◽  
Mariana Bezerra Lyra ◽  
Ana Karina Araújo de Moraes

RESUMO: Este artigo apresenta informações sobre os desafios e aprendizagens da implementação de Políticas Públicas de Juventude (PPJs) a luz do estudo de caso do Programa Casa das Juventudes de Pernambuco. Para uma melhor compreensão, aborda: um breve histórico do marco legal das PPJs no Estado de Pernambuco, e um pequeno diagnóstico da realidade dos jovens pernambucanos. Em seguida, apresenta o Programa Casa das Juventudes, a sua proposta de intervenção no território, sua relação com o poder municipal e com a sociedade civil. E por fim, faz uma análise dos desafios e oportunidades para avançar no desenvolvimento territorial das PPJs com qualidade. Palavras-chave: juventude, políticas públicas de juventude, programa casa das juventudes. ABSTRACT: This article presents information on the challenges and lessons learned from the implementation of Public Youth Policies (PYPs) the light of the case study of the Program Youth Houses of Pernambuco. For a better understanding, it covers: a brief history of the legal framework of PYPs in the state of Pernambuco, and a small diagnosis of the reality of young Pernambuco. It then presents the Program of the Youth Houses, its proposal of intervention in the territory, its relationship with the city government and civil society. Finally, we provide an analysis of the challenges and opportunities to foster the territorial development of PYPs quality. Keywords:  youth, public policies of youth, houses of youth program.


2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 33-39
Author(s):  
Chyi-Lu Jang ◽  
Luke H.C. Hsiao ◽  
Shang-Pao Yeh

A fundamental change in the planning and delivery of new housing projects has taken place in the last years, with the focus shifting towards adding value to projects based on a better understanding of housing preferences. This issue becomes even more critical when it is intended to the provision of affordable houses for low and middle income groups. This paper describes a model designed to help developers and housing users to achieve their expectations regarding quality, affordability and including also reasonable profits. Developed through a “methodological pluralism”, this study identifies people-oriented variables and assumptions. The model was developed based on a case study in the city of Guayaquil-Ecuador, and information obtained from field work research was used to test it. The study examines implications and limitations of the model for inclusion of housing preferences considering local conditions and cultural values. The different parts of the model along with data requirements for each part are described. The paper concludes with findings regarding the identification of most preferred attributes by housing users and the use of alternatives methods to incorporate additional value into projects, translated into more appealing profits for developers and the provision of better and more affordable houses for users.


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