scholarly journals Urban Sustainability Deficits: The Urban Non-Sustainability Index (UNSI) as a Tool for Urban Policy

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 12395
Author(s):  
Rubén Raedo
Keyword(s):  
Urban Policy ◽  
Urban Sustainability ◽  
Composite Indicator ◽  
Sustainability Indicators ◽  
Underlying Structure ◽  
Sustainability Index ◽  
Global Sustainability ◽  
Practical Usefulness ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Proper Balance

Urban sustainability has been revealed as one of the key elements in achieving global sustainability. There is a wide range of indicators in this field; however, sustainability indicators have not been exempt from criticism, in both their formal aspects and practical usefulness. If measuring sustainability is “measuring the immeasurable”, then the objective of this article is to propose a composite indicator that evaluates only the deficits of sustainability or, which is the same thing, the unsustainability of cities. This focus has the advantage of showing up the particular deficiencies and thus the priorities that each city must attend to. For this purpose, only unsustainability, defined as the distance to a sustainability target, was considered. Aggregation was carried out through generalized means, which lead to a proper balance between compensatory and non-compensatory aggregation. The results emerging from the application of our methodology to a sample of fifty different cities suggest that all cities should attend to some aspect concerning sustainability, and that no city is sustainable, but only less unsustainable, showing both significant differences between cities in terms of the degree of unsustainability and a common underlying structure of unsustainability in which the environmental dimension contributes the most.

scholarly journals The Global Sustainability Index: An Instrument For Assessing The Progress Towards The Sustainable Organization

2015 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 215-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentin Grecu
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Optimal Solution ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Sustainability Index ◽  
Global Sustainability ◽  
Multiple Indicators ◽  
Mathematical Algorithms ◽  
General Indicator

Abstract There is rarely an optimal solution in sustainable development but most frequently a need to build compromises between conflicting aspects such as economic, social and environmental ones and different expectations of stakeholders. Moreover, information is rarely available and precise. This paper will focus on how to use indicators to monitor sustainable development, integrating the information provided by many of them into a complex general sustainability index. Having this general indicator is essential for decision makers as it is very complicated to evaluate the performance of the organization based on multiple indicators. The objective of this paper is to find mathematical algorithms for simplifying the decision-making process by offering an instrument for the evaluation of the sustainability progress.

scholarly journals The Model’s Limitations. What ‘Urban Sustainability’ for Port-au-Prince? European Urban Projects Put to the Test by the Haitian City

2014 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-56
Author(s):  
Marie Redon
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Urban Planning ◽  
Urban Policy ◽  
Urban Sustainability ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Sustainable City ◽  
Temporal Discontinuity ◽  
City Model ◽  
Systemic Functioning

In 2010, the capital of Haiti was devastated by an earthquake that seemed to provide the opportunity for the country, as well as foreign donors, to put Port-au-Prince on the track of an ordered, planned urban policy, in line with its multi-risk context. Prior to the earthquake, the lack of a legal framework for urban planning was called into question. In its wake, speeches making the capital the emblem of a new ‘sustainable’ start have flourished. The European Union, the main donor of funds for Haiti, has embarked on a programme of support for reconstruction, but with what results three years later? The paper proposes to approach the limitations of the ‘sustainable city’ model, conditioned by spatiotemporal continuity. The systemic functioning underlying urban sustainability clashes with the context of Port-au-Prince, where spatial division and temporal discontinuity are determinant. In spite of itself, aid and its operation by projects, seems to enforce urban fragmentation and dissonance.

scholarly journals A hierarchical Bayesian framework for force field selection in molecular dynamics simulations

2016 ◽  
Vol 374 (2060) ◽  
pp. 20150032 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Wu ◽  
P. Angelikopoulos ◽  
C. Papadimitriou ◽  
R. Moser ◽  
P. Koumoutsakos
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Molecular Dynamics ◽  
Force Field ◽  
Computational Cost ◽  
Md Simulations ◽  
Bayesian Framework ◽  
Underlying Structure ◽  
Hierarchical Bayesian ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Selection Of

We present a hierarchical Bayesian framework for the selection of force fields in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The framework associates the variability of the optimal parameters of the MD potentials under different environmental conditions with the corresponding variability in experimental data. The high computational cost associated with the hierarchical Bayesian framework is reduced by orders of magnitude through a parallelized Transitional Markov Chain Monte Carlo method combined with the Laplace Asymptotic Approximation. The suitability of the hierarchical approach is demonstrated by performing MD simulations with prescribed parameters to obtain data for transport coefficients under different conditions, which are then used to infer and evaluate the parameters of the MD model. We demonstrate the selection of MD models based on experimental data and verify that the hierarchical model can accurately quantify the uncertainty across experiments; improve the posterior probability density function estimation of the parameters, thus, improve predictions on future experiments; identify the most plausible force field to describe the underlying structure of a given dataset. The framework and associated software are applicable to a wide range of nanoscale simulations associated with experimental data with a hierarchical structure.

A Composite Indicator to Measure Agricultural Sustainability

2011 ◽  
pp. 597-623
Author(s):  
José A. Gómez-Limón ◽  
Laura Riesgo
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Composite Indicator ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Agricultural Sustainability ◽  
Irrigated Agriculture ◽  
Global Sustainability ◽  
Duero Basin ◽  
Policy Scenarios

This paper deals with a comparative analysis of alternative methods of constructing composite indicators to measure the global sustainability of the agricultural sector. The comparison is implemented empirically on the irrigated agriculture of the Duero basin in Spain as a case study. For this purpose, the study employs a dataset of indicators previously calculated for different farm types and policy scenarios. The results enable us to establish a hierarchy of policy scenarios on the basis of the level of sustainability achieved. By analysing the heterogeneity of different farms types in each scenario, it is also possible to determine the main features of the most sustainable farms in each case. All this information is useful for the support of agricultural policy design and its implementation, as we attempt to improve the sustainability of this sector.

scholarly journals Measuring Progress toward Urban Sustainability: Do Global Measures Work for Arctic Cities?

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 3708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Berman ◽  
Robert W. Orttung
Keyword(s):  
Urban Sustainability ◽  
Sustainability Indicators ◽  
Indigenous Populations ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Underlying Basis ◽  
Characteristic Features ◽  
Sustainability Challenges

The International Organization for Standardization recently responded to a growing global interest in cities by developing an index for measuring urban sustainability (ISO 37120). We address how well this standard applies to Arctic cities, and potential modifications that might improve its performance. After briefly discussing the goals of sustainability indicators, we examine the extent to which Arctic cities’ remote location, cold and changing climate, and thin, largely resource-based economies may create different sustainability challenges. We then critically examine the content of ISO 37120 and the context in which it was created. We place the index within a broader discussion of urban sustainability indicators and examine the extent to which it really addresses sustainability. We then analyze how well the ISO 37120 accounts for the characteristic features of Arctic cities that produce unique sustainability challenges. Our findings show that only half of ISO 37120′s 128 indicators actually measure future-oriented concerns. We suggest that, while the ISO 37120 may be a useful starting point in quantifying Arctic urban sustainability, the index should only be used as a foundation for a more in-depth analysis. To better represent Arctic cities, the ISO 37120 would need to include indicators that situate cities within their regional contexts, addressing both remoteness and the underlying basis of the Arctic city economy. The index should also measure the role of Indigenous populations, and chart the extent to which cities are working to increase levels of sustainability.

scholarly journals Assessing How Sustainability Is Promoted in Ghana’s National Urban Policy and Action Plan

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7556
Author(s):  
Kwasi Anarfi ◽  
Chris Shiel ◽  
Ross A. Hill
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Urban Policy ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Urban Sustainability ◽  
Policy Goal ◽  
Performance Targets ◽  
Poverty Reduction Strategy ◽  
Evaluation Matrix ◽  
Sustainability Framework

Managing contemporary and future urbanisation to create sustainable outcomes is a globally acknowledged policy goal. However, despite the increasing uptake and implementation of National Urban Policies (NUPs), little research has explored how these policies incorporate and promote sustainability as a concept in the context of urbanisation. This paper provides a critical analysis of the extent to which sustainability is promoted within urban policy in the context of Ghana. We review Ghana’s NUP and supporting Action Plan (AP) to determine whether their initiatives promote sustainability. An evaluation matrix is used to show how the initiatives in the documents align with the dimensions of urban sustainability outlined in the UN-Habitat’s City Prosperity Index (CPI); and in addition, consideration is given to how the contents align with the dimensions of the World Bank’s Urban Sustainability Framework (USF). The overarching argument that emerges from the analysis is that while Ghana’s NUP and AP provide adequate scope and an eclectic mix of initiatives that promote urban sustainability, the sustainability benefits are potentially undermined by factors which include: (i) threats to inclusivity and social sustainability due to the neo-liberal outlook of policy documents; (ii) explicit lack of a poverty reduction strategy; and (iii) lack of environmental performance targets. To this end, suggestions are provided that could potentially enhance the sustainability impacts of Ghana’s NUP and AP in the context of urbanisation.

scholarly journals A Process Oriented MCDM Approach to Construct a Circular Economy Composite Index

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Garcia-Bernabeu ◽  
Adolfo Hilario-Caballero ◽  
David Pla-Santamaria ◽  
Francisco Salas-Molina
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
National Level ◽  
Composite Index ◽  
Composite Indicator ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Monitoring Framework

The purpose of this contribution is to develop a Circular Economy Composite indicator to benchmark EU countries performance. Europe is at the forefront of the global transition towards a sustainable and circular economy. To this end, the European Commission has launched in 2015 a Circular Economy Action Plan including a monitoring framework to measure progress and to assess the effectiveness of initiatives towards the circular economy in the European Union (EU) and Member States. Still, this monitoring framework lacks a composite indicator at the national level to aggregate the circular economy dimensions into a single summary indicator. Although there is a wide range of sustainability composite indicators, no aggregate circular economy index exits to this date. We use a multi-criteria approach to construct a circular economy composite index based on TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preferences by Similarity to Ideal Solutions) methodology. In addition, we introduce a novel aggregation methodology for building a composite indicator where different levels of compensability for the distances to the ideal and anti-ideal (or negative-ideal) values of each indicator are considered. In order to illustrate the advantages of this proposal, we have applied it to evaluate the Circular Economy performance of EU Member States for the year 2016. This proposal can be a valuable tool for identifying areas in which the countries need to concentrate their efforts to boost their circular economy performance.

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