Metropolitan Governance and Telecommunications Policy

2011 ◽  
pp. 169-196
Author(s):  
Roger Richman

This chapter explores some implications of the emerging telecommunications networks for urban areas and concludes that new networks will do more to support metropolitan governance than to reinforce localism within traditional city and suburban municipal boundaries. Employing U.S. telecommunications policy as its setting, the chapter proposes creation of metropolitan nongovernmental organizations for urban regions to undertake telecommunications policy roles that currently are unaddressed. The proposed Metropolitan Telecommunications Organization (MTO) would represent urbanized areas interests in guiding the build-out of the new public network; in designing the metropolitan telecommunications system, in providing network security, in insuring open access and universal service, and in undertaking other important system governance roles that currently are not being addressed by local governments. In the U.S., MTOs would be an advocate for the values of community in society, including promoting digital democracy, community access centers, metropolitan telecommunications tax equity, and support for community institutions.

2019 ◽  
Vol 79 (6) ◽  
pp. 1060-1070
Author(s):  
Bruno Eustaquio de Carvalho ◽  
Samuel Alves Barbi Costa ◽  
Rui Cunha Marques ◽  
Oscar Cordeiro Netto

Abstract Brazil faces a severe lack of wastewater coverage. Even in urban areas, wastewater is directly disposed of in watercourses without any treatment for a large part of the population. Although the federal, state, and local governments have invested in water and wastewater services (WWS), the expected results have not been achieved. To overcome this problem, the present paper provides an opportunity to observe an ex-ante regulatory impact assessment (RIA) as a policy tool in Brazil. The regulatory policy options will be appraised through the multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) according to the following objectives: (i) protect the customers with respect to social aspects; (ii) safeguard the economic, operational and infrastructure sustainability; and (iii) protect the environment. The results show that by making decisions based on evidence, policy makers should reduce the households not connected to wastewater services by 75% and for that they should incur BRL 33 million to the year 2023. Hence, the extra revenues to be obtained with these new connections are capable of making a surplus estimated as BRL 42 million for the same period. This study promotes the use of RIA as a rational, robust and transparent decision framework by the regulatory agencies worldwide.


Author(s):  
Made Agus Mahendra ◽  
Syamsul Alam Paturusi ◽  
Ngakan Ketut Acwin Dwijendra ◽  
I Dewa Gede Agung Diasana Putra

Urban areas are areas that give different atmosphere and taste in different places. There are aspects that can affect the atmosphere of urban areas. Where in each urban area has different characteristics. Klungkung city area which basically is strongly influenced by the strong cultural character of the past. Urban atmosphere has a very important role in the identity of urban areas. cities on the island of Bali have unique and unique characteristics that make the city atmosphere different. Moreover, Bali in national and international scope already has an attraction that cannot be separated from the atmosphere of the island of Bali. The atmosphere of the city space gives a different atmosphere both in the identity and character of the urban area of Klungkung, Bali. In the urban environment there is a spatial atmosphere as an indicator and reference for the development of the identity of the Klungkung urban area, Bali.    This research is motivated by the lack of understanding and understanding of the community, institutions and local governments about the atmosphere of urban space. The atmosphere of urban space provides a very important understanding and analysis of the taste and atmosphere of urban areas. The approach to the atmosphere of the city can be seen from nine aspects that must be considered in creating atmosphere in buildings and cities. The atmosphere in this study has the meaning of the sense of taste, the atmosphere in which a person is in space, creativity, taste and intention that form a shelter in a particular area. The atmosphere in this study emphasizes the atmosphere, the meaning of space and taste which includes local Balinese culture, especially in the city of Klungkung. This research uses qualitative methods by emphasizing descriptive studies, and literature studies. This study aims to determine the urban atmosphere of the Klungkung region and the relationship between the urban atmosphere and the identity of the Klungkung Bali urban area. From the results of the analysis in the conceptual order, the benefits and results obtained provide an overview of the atmosphere of the urban space as one of the identity of the Klungkung Bali urban area. Index Terms— Urban atmosphere, urban identity, urban space, urban areas  


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomasz Kaczmarek

The scale and dynamics of socio-economic and spatial processes in Poland in the last three decades, including territorial diversification of the pace of economic development and demographic and social changes, as well as processes such as metropolisation and suburbanization, determine new challenges in the management and programming of the development of large cities and their areas functional. The new processes require state and local authorities to take actions in the strictly political, legal and organizational and planning dimensions. In Poland, for almost 20 years, there has been a discussion on the introduction of specific forms of management of metropolitan areas. Failure to adopt systemic solutions at the level of the entire country (lack of political will for metropolitan reform and the creation of metropolitan self-government county) leads to the emergence of numerous grassroots integration initiatives of local governments (metropolitan associations of cities and municipalities). Since 2015, the EU cohesion policy instrument Integrated Territorial Investments has been implemented in functional urban areas. Since 2017, the first multi-task metropolitan union (Metropolitan Union of Upper Silesia—Górnoślasko-Zagłebiowska Metropolis) established by the parliament (special act) and the government (executive regulation) has been operating in Poland. The first—sui generis—statutory metropolis encourages local authorities of other metropolitan areas to adopt their own legislative initiatives (Kraków, Łódz, Tricity: Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot). Is the choice of the path for creating individual statutory solutions for each of the Polish metropolises in the form of a metropolitan union appropriate? Does diferrentia specifica for various metropolitan areas seem to be the most justified at the moment, taking into account the political conditions and the bottom-up and top-down approach to metropolitan governance in Poland? The article presents the complex path to solving the issue of management in Polish metropolitan areas and assesses the legitimacy of a solution based on a model tailored to each metropolis, introduced by a separate metropolitan act.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Mwaikambo ◽  
Sarah Brittingham ◽  
Saori Ohkubo ◽  
Ruwaida Salem ◽  
Denis Joel Sama ◽  
...  

Abstract Background There has been greater recognition of the importance of country ownership in global health and development. However, operationalising country ownership to ensure the scale up and sustainability of proven interventions remains elusive at best. To address this challenge, we undertook a thematic analysis of interviews collected from representatives of local governments, public health systems, and communities in poor urban areas of East Africa, Francophone West Africa, India, and Nigeria, supported by The Challenge Initiative (TCI), aiming to rapidly and sustainably scale up evidence-based reproductive health and family planning solutions. Methods The main objective of this study was to explore critical elements needed for implementing and scaling evidence-based family planning interventions. The research team conducted thematic analysis of 96 stories collected using the Most Significant Change (MSC) technique between July 2018 and September 2019. After generating 55 unique codes, the codes were grouped into related themes, using TCI’s model as a general analytical framework. Results Five key themes emerged: (1) strengthening local capacity and improving broader health systems, (2) shifting mindsets of government and community toward local ownership, (3) institutionalising the interventions within existing government structures, (4) improving data demand and use for better planning of health services, and (5) enhancing coordination of partners. Conclusion While some themes feature more prominently in a particular region than others, taken together they represent what stakeholders perceive to be essential elements for scaling up locally-driven health programmes in urban areas in Africa and Asia.


Author(s):  
Hiroki Baba ◽  
Yasushi Asami

This study examines regional differences in local environment factors to better understand the sustainability of local governments indexed by per capita public spending. Under the condition of heterogeneous population size, we examine how factor characteristics differ depending on the spatial context represented by the urban area category. By employing a Cobb–Douglas cost function with congestion effects on public service provision, the estimated factors enable us to articulate major factors and differences in cost-efficiency between urban area categories. We found that statistical significance and even the signatures of local environment factors differ depending on the urban employment area category. Regarding factors such as the ratios of employees in secondary and tertiary industries, these did not tend to be statistically significant in small-sized urban areas, while small-sized cities in large-sized urban areas were likely to gain confidence intervals. Moreover, we did not observe any statistical significance for the ratio of elderly people due to the balance of spending between national and local governments. These findings could contribute to sustainable management of cities in the advent of population decline.


Urban Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 5
Author(s):  
Hadi Zamanifard ◽  
Edward A. Morgan ◽  
Wade L. Hadwen

Modern stormwater treatment assets are a form of water sensitive urban design (WSUD) features that aim to reduce the volumes of sediment, nutrients and gross pollutants discharged into receiving waterways. Local governments and developers in urban areas are installing and maintaining a large number of stormwater treatment assets, with the aim of improving urban runoff water quality. Many of these assets take up significant urban space and are highly visible and as a result, community acceptance is essential for effective WSUD design and implementation. However, community perceptions and knowledge about these assets have not been widely studied. This study used a survey to investigate community perceptions and knowledge about stormwater treatment assets in Brisbane, Australia. The results suggest that there is limited community knowledge of these assets, but that communities notice them and value their natural features when well-maintained. This study suggests that local governments may be able to better inform residents about the importance of these assets, and that designing for multiple purposes may improve community acceptance and support for the use of Council funds to maintain them.


Author(s):  
Catherine G. Campbell ◽  
Shelli D. Rampold

Abstract In many US states, the power to regulate urban agriculture (UA) rests in local governments. Although there has been increased interest in UA, some local governments have been slow to adopt policies or ordinances to foster food production in urban areas or have actively sought to limit UA in their municipalities. To learn more about the disconnect between resident interest and local government policy, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension and Center for Public Issues Education conducted a statewide survey of local government stakeholders (LGS) to assess their attitudes toward UA, subjective knowledge of UA, perceived benefits of and barriers to the implementation of UA and educational needs. Responses were collected using 5-point semantic differential and Likert-type scales. Overall, respondents displayed positive attitudes and moderate knowledge of UA, and they identified a number of benefits of and barriers to implementing UA in their communities. The findings of this study support the hypothesis that lack of basic knowledge about UA is one difficulty in fostering UA. Despite being positively disposed toward UA, LGS may not fully understand how to effectively develop and implement policies to foster UA. This finding may also help explain reluctance to adopt local government policies to support UA. Efforts to provide LGS key information and enhance their knowledge of UA may support the development of UA activities.


10.1068/c3p ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 466-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Kessides

In this paper I ask how the ongoing processes of urban and local government development in Sub-Saharan Africa can and should benefit the countries, and what conditions must be met to achieve this favourable outcome. The region faces close to a doubling of the urban population in fifteen years. This urban transition poses an opportunity as well as a management challenge. Urban areas represent underutilised resources that concentrate much of the countries' physical, financial, and intellectual capital. Therefore it is critical to understand how they can better serve the national growth and poverty reduction agendas. The paper challenges several common ‘myths’ that cloud discourse about urban development in Africa. I also take a hard look at what the urban transition can offer national development, and what support cities and local governments require to achieve these results. I argue that, rather than devoting more attention to debating the urban contribution to development in Africa, real energy needs to be spent unblocking it.


Author(s):  
Franco Clerici ◽  
Silvia Mirabella

<p>The present paper relates to the design of a cable-stayed footbridge, composed by ready made elements and with span suitable to various urban and building areas. At present, in order to find a solution to traffic problems, local governments look for many ways to alleviate city’s main roads, increasing public transportation and designing dedicated underground pedestrian routes. Although this subways already built are not really used by pedestrians, which prefer wide-open spaces, such as skyways also designed for people with reduced mobility. In this context the described footbridge, with access ramps designed in accordance with accessibility standards, represents not only a good solution for cycle and pedestrian mobility problems, but it is also easy to transport and to be installed, due to its modular elements. The access ramps are suspended to pilons with inclination depending by the required bridge lengths and they can be assembled in different configurations in order to be well integrated also in limited space areas. Finally a particular focus is dedicated to cables, with dismountable end terminations designed to reduce transportation space and costs</p>


2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 513 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Perevochtchikova

Se ha visto que sin un sistema de monitoreo ambiental integral y eficiente, que propor­cione datos duros de soporte para un diagnóstico de la situación ambiental, no es posible elaborar nuevas políticas públicas para resolver la problemática que enfrentan las áreas urbanas. En el presente trabajo se revisa la situación actual del sistema de monitoreo ambiental de la Zona Metropolitana de la Ciudad de México desde tres ángulos: climatológico, hidrométrico y de calidad de aire. Asimismo se detectan sus principales avances, limitaciones y otras particularidades y al final se complementa el monitoreo ambiental con la parte social y económica. AbstractIt has been proved that without an efficient, integral environmental monitoring system that provides hard back-up data for a diagnosis of the environmental situation, it is impossible to draw up new public policies to solve the problem faced by urban areas. This paper reviews the current status of environmental monitoring in the Mexico City Metropolitan Zone from three angles: climatological, hydrometric and air quality. It also detects the main progress, limitations and other particularities and at the end, environmental monitoring is complemented by the social and economic part.


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