Communicating water conservation: how can the public be engaged?

2004 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 33-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Howarth ◽  
S. Butler
Keyword(s):  
Water Conservation ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Radio Station ◽  
Water Efficiency ◽  
Individual Property ◽  
The Public ◽  
Active Involvement ◽  
Success Stories ◽  
Environment Agency ◽  
The Individual

In 2001 the Environment Agency and Thames Water completed a collaborative research project “The Effectiveness of Marketing Campaigns in Achieving Water Efficiency Savings”. The project attempted to assess the effectiveness of a water efficiency campaign in a residential area of 8000 properties. The results showed that the campaign had no significant effect on water demand both at the individual property level and the total flow into the area. Responses to direct questions about the campaign indicated that at most 5% had noticed it despite the fact that 25% claimed to read the local newspaper and listen to the local radio station used for the campaign, and the fact that a leaflet was sent to all households. The market research provided some clues as to why the customer response to this campaign was so disappointing, principally because the public regard water as low priority compared to other environmental issues. Other research is reviewed that provide additional reasons for the unwillingness of the public to engage on this issue. This paper reviews “success stories” from Phoenix, Arizona and Singapore and identifies the main learning points from these programs. Article 14 of the Water Framework Directive calls for active involvement in water policy. An assessment is made of what this might mean for public participation in water conservation programs.

scholarly journals The Dialectics of Sovereignty and Property

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergio Dellavalle
Keyword(s):  
Social Order ◽  
Private Property ◽  
Individual Property ◽  
Specific Content ◽  
The Public ◽  
Private Interests ◽  
First Case ◽  
Essential Components ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Private Domain

AbstractRespectively in the public andin the private spheres, both sovereignty and property are expressions of the turn to the primacy of the interests of the individual at the beginning of the Modern Ages: in the first case this primacy is related to the individual state, in the second to the individual economic actor. The centrality of individuality, as the most distinguishing feature of modern thinking, thus lies at the basis of the interconnection between the two concepts. This is developed according to three distinct patterns. In the light of the first pattern, sovereignty degenerates into a mere means in the service of defending private interests, thereby eluding its fundamental public function. On the other hand, from the perspective of the second pattern, individual property leaves the private domain, claiming absoluteness and presuming to replace the public dimension. Both these patterns reflect one-sided relations in which the two terms — sovereignty and property — merge in opposite ways, but always losing their specific content and rationale in the context of the social order. The third pattern is the only one in which sovereignty and property maintain their respective functions, with the two elements synergistically contributing to a social order in which public sphere and private dimension are both recognized as essential components. Here, public sovereignty and private property are co-essential insofar as sovereignty derives from individual will, private property is fundamental for the individual to pursue the personal self-realization that lies at the basis of his/ her legitimation of sovereignty, and — finally — public power is at the service of defending the rights and interests of all individuals.

scholarly journals XERISCAPE: A NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

HortScience ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 491d-491
Author(s):  
Douglas F. Welsh
Keyword(s):  
Water Conservation ◽  
Green Plant ◽  
Limiting Factor ◽  
Water Efficiency ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Public ◽  
Excess Water ◽  
Soil Preparation ◽  
Education Tool ◽  
National Perspective

Xeriscape, water conservation through creative landscaping, offers a viable alternative to traditional landscapes which require high inputs of water and labor. Xeriscape is not cactus and rock gardening; but, quality landscaping combining beautiful, function, and water efficiency. Xeriscape is based on horticulturally sound principles, including: good design, through soil preparation, practical turf areas, appropriate plant selection, efficient watering techniques, mulching and proper maintenance. Green plant and water industries across the nation have recognized Xeriscape as a proactive, education tool to curb excess water-use by the public and private sectors. In an era where water may become the limiting factor in economic growth for many regions of the nation, Xeriscape may truly be the state-of-the-art.

Public Service Motivation in Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Public Voices ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Mastracci
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Public Service Motivation ◽  
Public Servants ◽  
Buffy The Vampire Slayer ◽  
The Public ◽  
American Popular Culture ◽  
Public Servant ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Individual

In this paper, the author examines public service as depicted in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS). First, she shows how slaying meets the economist’s definition of a public good, using the BtVS episode “Flooded” (6.04). Second, she discusses public service motivation (PSM) to determine whether or not Buffy, a public servant, operates from a public service ethic. Relying on established measures and evidence from shooting scripts and episode transcripts, the author concludes Buffy is a public servant motivated by a public service ethic. In this way, BtVS informs scholarship on public service by broadening the concept of PSM beyond the public sector; prompting one to wonder whether it is located in a sector, an occupation, or in the individual. These conclusions allow the author to situate Buffy alongside other idealized public servants in American popular culture.

What Can Economists Contribute to the Common Good Tradition?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew M. Yuengert
Keyword(s):  
Common Good ◽  
Common Pool Resources ◽  
Economic Approach ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Private Provision ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Common Good ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Insight Into

Although most economists are skeptical of or puzzled by the Catholic concept of the common good, a rejection of the economic approach as inimical to the common good would be hasty and counterproductive. Economic analysis can enrich the common good tradition in four ways. First, economics embodies a deep respect for economic agency and for the effects of policy and institutions on individual agents. Second, economics offers a rich literature on the nature of unplanned order and how it might be shaped by policy. Third, economics offers insight into the public and private provision of various kinds of goods (private, public, common pool resources). Fourth, recent work on the development and logic of institutions and norms emphasizes sustainability rooted in the good of the individual.

Private Water, Public Good

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madeline Baer
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Human Right ◽  
The Public ◽  
Strong State ◽  
Neoliberal Reforms ◽  
Narrow Definition ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
State Interventions

Chapter 4 provides an in-depth case study of water policy in Chile from the 1970s to present, including an evaluation of the outcomes of water policy under the privatized system from a human rights perspective. The chapter interrogates Chile’s reputation as a privatization success story, finding that although Chile meets the narrow definition of the human right to water and sanitation in terms of access, quality, and price, it fails to meet the broader definition that includes citizen participation in water management and policy decisions. The chapter argues that Chile’s relative success in delivering water services is attributable to strong state capacity to govern the water sector in the public interest by embedding neoliberal reforms in state interventions. The Chile case shows that privatization is not necessarily antithetical to human rights-consistent outcomes if there is a strong state role in the private sector.

scholarly journals The impact of end-userś participation (cancer patients) during the optimization process

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Houwaart
Keyword(s):  
End Users ◽  
Public Health Care ◽  
Optimization Process ◽  
Patient Organization ◽  
End User ◽  
The Public ◽  
Patient Organizations ◽  
Crucial Information ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact

Abstract End-user (e.g. patients or the public) testing of information material is becoming more common in the German public health care system. However, including the end-user (in this case patients) in an optimisation process and thus enabling a close collaboration while developing PIMs is still rare. This is surprising, given the fact that patients provide the exact perspective one is trying to address. Within the isPO project, a patient organization is included as a legal project partner to act as the patient representative and provide the patient's perspective. As such, the patient organization was included in the PHR approach as part of the PIM-optimisation team. During the optimisation process, the patients gave practical insights into the procedures of diagnosing and treating different types of cancer as well as into the patient's changing priorities and challenges at different time points. This was crucial information for the envisioned application of the individual PIMs and their hierarchical overview. Moreover, the developed PIM-checklist enabled the patients to give detailed feedback to the PIMs. With their experience of being in the exact situation in which the PIMs will be applied, their recommendations, especially on the wording and layout of the materials, have been a valuable contribution to the PIM optimisation process. In this part of the seminar, we will take a closer look at the following skill building aspects: What is gained from including patients as end-users in the development and optimization of PIM?How can we reach patients to contribute to a PIM optimization process? Which requirements and prerequisites do patients have to provide to successfully work on an optimisation team?How to compromise and weigh opinions when different ideas occur? Altogether, this part will construct a structured path of productive patient involvement and help to overcome uncertainties regarding a collaboration with patient organizations.

Moving an Evidence-Based Policy Agenda Forward: Leadership Tips From the Field

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 158-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresa Garrett
Keyword(s):  
Change Process ◽  
Nursing Profession ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Policy Agenda ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
The Public ◽  
Leverage Point ◽  
Evidence Based Policy ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Improve Health

Advancing evidence-based policy change is a leadership challenge that nurses should embrace. Key tips to ensure that evidence-based policy changes are successful at the individual, community, and population levels are offered to help nurses through the change process. The public trust in the nursing profession is a leverage point that should be used to advance the use of evidence, expedite change, and improve health for students and across communities.

scholarly journals Feeling Uncertainty during the Lockdown That Commenced in March 2020 in Greece

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 5105
Author(s):  
Dimitris Zavras
Keyword(s):  
Lower Class ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
International Literature ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Emotional Status ◽  
Limited Health Literacy ◽  
The Public ◽  
Limited Health ◽  
The Individual

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in significant uncertainty for the global population. However, since not all population groups experience the impacts of the pandemic in the same way, the objective of this study was to identify the individual characteristics associated with the feeling of uncertainty during the lockdown that commenced in March 2020 in Greece. The study used data from the “Public Opinion in the European Union (EU) in Time of Coronavirus Crisis” survey. The sample consisted of 1050 individuals aged between 16 and 54 years. According to the analysis, which was based on a logistic regression model, the emotional status of older individuals, those who experienced income and job losses since the beginning of the pandemic, and middle-class and high-class individuals, is more likely to be described as a feeling of uncertainty. In addition, the emotional status of individuals with less concern for their own health and that of family and friends is less likely to be described as a feeling of uncertainty. Although the results related to age, income, and job losses, as regards concern for health, agree with the international literature, the limited health literacy of lower-class individuals may explain the reduced likelihood of their experiencing feelings of uncertainty. The results confirm the international literature describing several aspects of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Democracy and Its Limits: Gender and Rights in the Czech Lands, 1918–1938

2002 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 553-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Feinberg
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Ethnic Nationalism ◽  
New Era ◽  
The Public ◽  
Universal Language ◽  
National Ideology ◽  
Democratic Nation ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Czech Lands ◽  
Public Imagination

On 28 October 1918, a group of Czech nationalists stood on the steps of the Obecni Dům (Municipal House) in Prague and proclaimed their independence from the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, allying themselves with the new state of Czechoslovakia. Their declaration marked the beginning of a new era in the Czech lands, one in which Czechs, as the majority nation, hoped to redefine the terms of political discourse. The new Czechoslovak Republic, its Czech supporters declared, would be the antithesis of the Habsburg regime. In the place of a multinational Monarchy, they would erect a democratic nation-state. The second half of this political vision was complicated by the fact that the new Czechoslovakia actually contained many ethnic groups, but Czechs still tended to imagine their new Republic as the political expression of the Czech nation. At the same time, this “Czech-centered” politics also emphasized the democratic basis of the new country. Czechoslovakia, Czech leaders said, would be a state governed by its people and dedicated to protecting their rights and freedoms as individuals. A political culture that rested on both ethnic nationalism and democratic values obviously contained some internal tensions: the need to protect the interests of one specific nation and the duty to protect the individual rights of all citizens could rub uncomfortably against each other. Yet, at that moment in 1918, most Czechs failed to register this potential for ideological conflict, instead seeing an essential link between democratic politics and the good of the Czech nation. For many Czechs, democracy itself was a need of the nation, a political structure crucial to Czech national self-realization. This idea came from one prominent conception of Czech nationhood that had captured the public imagination in the fall of 1918. According to this strain of Czech national ideology, the Czech nation had a sort of democratic character. This meant that only an egalitarian, democratic government would suit a “Czech” state. So, paradoxically, a universal language of rights and freedoms was the key to building a truly national Czechoslovak Republic. It was with a state that emphasized equality and personal freedom that the Czechs would fulfill their national destiny.

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