scholarly journals Contextual knowledge co-production and capacity building for sanitation planning: experience from Kerala, India

Water Policy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sruthi Pillai ◽  
N. C. Narayanan
Keyword(s):  
Capacity Building ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Contextual Knowledge ◽  
Science And Society ◽  
Southern State ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
New Thinking ◽  
The Town ◽  
Critical Consideration

Abstract Small towns in the global South face huge infrastructure deficits in sanitation due to the lack of technical, institutional and financial capacity to establish treatment systems. This knowledge gap and capacity deficit are a socio-ecological challenge that requires knowledge co-production by both science and society. This work focuses on a transdisciplinary initiative on capacity building and knowledge co-production called CANALPY in Alleppey, a town located in the southern state of Kerala, India. The project recognises the need for data and knowledge for developing a fine-grained understanding of the sanitation situation in the town and also raises awareness about canal pollution to arrive at participatory solutions. This study analyses the drivers of co-production of knowledge with its enabling conditions as well as the challenges associated with it. The initiative has been instrumental in creating a space and platform for collaborations, dialogues and discussions on problems of sanitation, water quality and pollution. CANALPY has ensured the dissemination of findings among a larger audience and has inspired new thinking and action. It is also important to take into critical consideration the different practical, socio-political, institutional and competence-related challenges that impede the project's goal of knowledge sharing and capacity building.

scholarly journals Architectural and Urban Attractiveness of Small Towns: A Case Study of Polish Coastal Cittaslow Towns on the Pomeranian Way of St. James

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 724
Author(s):  
Alicja K. Zawadzka
Keyword(s):  
Small Towns ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Development Policies ◽  
Quality Of Urban Life ◽  
Size Criterion ◽  
The Town ◽  
Modern Technologies

The paper presents the results of a study on the attractiveness to tourists and natives of the cultural qualities of coastal towns on The Pomeranian Way of St. James that are members of the Cittaslow network. Attention to the quality of urban life is inscribed in the development policies of towns applying to join the Cittaslow movement. In order to join the network (apart from the size criterion), towns need to meet a minimum of 50% plus one of the 72 criteria grouped into seven categories. One of the category is Quality of Urban Life Policy, so the towns applying to join Cittaslow commit themselves to actions aimed at improving the quality of urban life. The study on the attractiveness of cultural qualities of towns to tourists and natives was conducted using the author’s BRB method, whose added value is its universality and the possibility to study small towns regardless of their membership in the Cittaslow network. BRB is an acronym that stands for BUILDINGS, RELATIONSHIPS, BALANCE, and comprises three scopes of activities: BUILDINGS (iconic building and important sites where the inhabitants and the tourists are present); RELATIONSHIPS (the visual effects of the relations between the inhabitants and the town) and BALANCE (solutions that implement modern technologies). This method enables identification of places that are important to the inhabitants, where urban life takes place and which are often created with the involvement of the inhabitants. These are often the same spaces as those that attract tourists and perhaps stimulate them the desire to visit the town again (BRB—be right back). The aim of the BRB method is shown the attractiveness of small towns. The study has shown that the characteristic feature of Polish Cittaslow towns is their diversity: the architectural attractiveness of three towns is high both to tourists and natives. On the other hand, the urban attractiveness of the examined towns is an insufficient.

scholarly journals Re-orientating the Experience of a Small Town

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Katherine Hailstone
Keyword(s):  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Traditional Approach ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Design Approach ◽  
Master Plan ◽  
Large Cities ◽  
Aging Populations ◽  
Declining Populations ◽  
The Town

<p>An experience by definition can imply that it leaves an impression. It can be how people experience our small towns that influence its viability and success. Small towns in Aotearoa face aging populations, growing social issues and tend to lack economic viability. Current statistics show population growth in our large cities and declining populations in our regions impacting the urban landscape and the experience of our regional towns. So, how can designing from an experiential approach make a difference to town life?  A traditional approach to changing the experience of towns and cities is through consultation, a production of a master plan and then staging the design over time. Consider what could be gained if we used on-the-ground experience to inform the structure our towns?  If we intensely engage with the ‘on the ground experience’ of the town, looking at how the town structures experience, we should be able to identify opportunities that could re-orientate how people interact with the town. These opportunities or potential design alterations, could reshape the way that the town is structured and therefore inform the development of a master plan or long term plan. Through an experience-based design approach the opportunities that can be identified from this method are often not visible from other techniques such as top down mapping and other common forms of data collection. Through a combination of; an understanding of the experience of the town, its history, influences, though various forms of mapping and the understanding the viability of proposed design alterations we could strategically transform the experience.  Therefore, through an experiential design approach and understanding how our small towns work in Aotearoa; can we focus design actions in the public environment to develop potential future change?</p>

scholarly journals Analysis of Traffic Accidents in the Area of Small Towns in the Republic of Croatia

2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-140
Author(s):  
Vinko Višnjić ◽  
Marko Pušić
Keyword(s):  
Key Words ◽  
Traffic Safety ◽  
Safety Assessment ◽  
Traffic Accidents ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
The Road ◽  
Road Traffic Safety ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Town

The safety of road traffic in small towns in the Republic of Croatia is not at a satisfactory level. As proof, the safety of road traffic participants in the area of the town of Nova Gradiška and its wider environment has been studied and analyzed. The paper includes the available data in the period from 2000 to 2007. The analysis and the assessment of road traffic safety can be applied also to other towns and counties of the Republic of Croatia. Having in mind that there are 531 settlements in the Republic of Croatia (119 towns and 412 districts), out of which only 78 are larger than 10,000 inhabitants or 14.69% of the total number, which means that the analysis could be made for any settlement in the Republic of Croatia. The road traffic safety assessment was conceived according to the modified Smeed model which may be applied for any settlement or town. The road traffic safety analysis has led to the conclusion that safety of all the traffic participants is endangered. This paper provides solutions about what has to be done in order to reduce the danger to all the road traffic factors. KEY WORDS: drivers, traffic, traffic accidents, safety and small towns

Light Design of Small Towns’ Coastal Areas

2021 ◽  
pp. 51-54
Author(s):  
Oleg G. Maksimov ◽  
Olga Yu. Zaripova
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Water Storage ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Town Development ◽  
Experimental Project ◽  
Storage Basin ◽  
Effective Use ◽  
The Town ◽  
Functional Concept

This paper touches upon the problems of development and illumination of small Russian towns located on the banks of rivers and water storage basins (as exemplified by master’s theses). These problems lie on the plane of preservation and effective use of architectural, historical, and cultural heritage of towns, their unusual aura and colour. In the experimental project of town development based on the town of Yurievets situated on the bank of Volga water storage basin, the authors propose an architectural-spatial functional concept of filling up the town territory with the ideas on original colour and light design in the evening and at night.

scholarly journals Who Supports International Development Cooperation in Times of Crisis? Public Opinion in Rural Spain

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 2027
Author(s):  
Juan Gómez-Quintero ◽  
Pilar Gargallo Valero ◽  
Jesús Miguel Álvarez
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
International Development ◽  
International Cooperation ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Development Aid ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Multivariate Statistical ◽  
Official Development Aid ◽  
The Town

The official development aid provided by donor countries does not solely depend on government decisions; it is also affected by trends in public opinion. This means that it is important to find out more about the opinions, views and attitudes of the citizens of donor countries. In spite of this, very few research studies have specifically analysed the opinions of people from rural areas. The aim of this research is to analyse the attitudes of the inhabitants of rural areas in northeast Spain to assess the degree of support for policies of international cooperation and development. To this end we carried out a survey of 403 people resident in small towns, selected using a stratified sampling process. We then conducted multivariate statistical techniques of the information we had gathered, in which we found that there were three types of individuals according to their level of interest, concern and action: aware but not actively involved, not interested and passive, and proactive with strong convictions. This research has shown that educational level, size of the town and age all influence the person’s interest in the problems affecting the rest of the world and their support for international cooperation.

Small Towns and China's Urbanization Level

1989 ◽  
Vol 120 ◽  
pp. 771-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yok-shiu F. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Urban Population ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Huge Number ◽  
Partial Explanation ◽  
Urbanization Level ◽  
Urban Sector ◽  
Governing System ◽  
State Statistical Bureau ◽  
Chinese State ◽  
The Town

China'sde jureurbanization level more than doubled in the five years between 1982 and 1987, jumping from 20.8 per cent to 46 6 per cent (Table 1). The Chinese State Statistical Bureau (SSB) officials explained that this unprecedented increase was largely the result of an increase in the number of urban towns since the mid 1984 relaxation of criteria for urban town designation.1 This is, however, only a partial explanation. My own analysis shows that much of the gain in the town population was in fact due to the post-1984 governing system of“town administering village” (zhen guan cun). Many newly designated urban towns (and some existing towns as well) have enlarged their administrative territories to include a huge number of agricultural residents in their official urban population. Most of these rural persons, however, judged by strict occupational and residential criteria, should not have been counted as urban population. The inclusion of many agricultural persons in the urban sector since mid 1984 has thus greatly exaggerated the actual urbanization level.2

Small Town Services and Facilities: The Influence of Social Networks and Civic Structure on Perceptions of Quality

2003 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 102-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lois Wright Morton
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Organization ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Public Facilities ◽  
The Social ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Civic Structure ◽  
The Town

In this research, it is posited that perceptions of the quality of services and facilities in small towns are dependent on the social organization of those places. Two components of this social organization are the social capital that inheres among individuals and the civic structure of the town. This hypothesis is tested using multi‐level models that combine individual‐level social capital and community‐level civic structure to explain variations among 99 rural towns in Iowa. I find that civic structure contributes positively and significantly to effects between communities, while individual‐level social capital is positive and a significant contributor to effects within communities. The civic structure models explain 32 percent of the variance in perceptions of the quality of core public facilities and services and 43 percent of the variance in secondary public‐private services. The strong contributions of individual social capital and civic structure suggest that investments in the micro and macro social structure of small towns can assist in strengthening perceptions of community infrastructure.

scholarly journals Socio-economic transformation of small towns in East Germany after 1990 - Colditz case study

2012 ◽  
Vol 17 (17) ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Waldemar Cudny
Keyword(s):  
East Germany ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Social Changes ◽  
East And West Germany ◽  
Spatial Changes ◽  
Size Population ◽  
The Town

Socio-economic transformation of small towns in East Germany after 1990 - Colditz case study The article presents the main demographic and social, as well as functional and spatial changes that took place in Colditz after 1990. The town is inhabited by 4,870 people (2009) and is situated in Saxony, in the area of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). The aim of the article is to present the main changes, which took place there after East and West Germany reunited in 1990. The author describes demographic and social changes in the population size, population growth, migration balance, unemployment, and other elements of urban community. Moreover, the article presents the changes in the economic-functional structure, such as de-industrialisation, succession of urban functions, and tourism development, as well as the main spatial changes in Colditz, such as architectural revitalisation and reconstruction of urban infrastructure. In the conclusions, the author briefly presents potential directions in the future development of the town.

A Natural Experiment in Political Decentralization: Local Institutions and Citizens' Political Engagement in Uruguay

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 91-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernando Rosenblatt ◽  
Germán Bidegain ◽  
Felipe Monestier ◽  
Rafael Piñeiro Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Natural Experiment ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Institution Building ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
Political Decentralization ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
The Town

AbstractThe potential democratizing effect of political decentralization reforms has been a matter of substantial theoretical and empirical debate. This article analyzes the effect of local democratic institution building on the political attitudes and behavior of citizens living in small towns in Uruguay. More specifically, using a natural experiment design, this research seeks to establish the causal impact of recently established elections of local authorities on individuals' political engagement. It develops a comparative case study analyzing the consequences of this institutional innovation in two towns. It shows that individuals from the town where citizens have the opportunity to elect their local authorities have more positive attitudes toward politics than those from the town without such elections.

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