scholarly journals Urban sprawl and citizen participation. A case study in the municipality of La Pobla de Vallbona (Valencia)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Gielen ◽  
Yaiza Pérez Alonso ◽  
José Sergio Palencia Jiménez ◽  
Asenet Sosa Espinosa
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Urban Sprawl ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Mediterranean Coast ◽  
City Council ◽  
Social Characteristics ◽  
High Dispersion ◽  
Good Government ◽  
The City

The accelerated urban growth of the last decades in Europe has caused, especially in the Spanish Mediterranean coast, a paradigm shift in much cities, moving from a mostly compact urban form to a more diffuse one. The concept of city has changed so much that even in a lot of dispersed municipalities, it becomes difficult to define its limits. This change implies not only ecological and economic impacts, but also, social effects. Urban sprawl makes difficult social interaction and reduces the community feeling, and therefore, social cohesion and identity. This produces also changes in the relations of citizens between them and with the city council. The research propounds a discussion about the challenges that the urban sprawl causes for the application of participative models in the decision making, understanding them as basic criterion of good government. We analyze a case study to extract the complexity of articulating processes of citizen participation in territory with high dispersion based on a project carried out in the municipality of La Pobla de Vallbona (Valencia) on participatory budgets. It analyzes the results of the process carried out in relation to the urban model, the morphology of their urban pieces and spatial structure, and the demographic and social characteristics of the municipality. The question is identifying the problematic for the articulation of participative processes in territories with this idiosyncrasy. Finally, the article suggests a series of strategic lines as starting points to achieve participatory processes in the city characterized by urban sprawl.

scholarly journals Citizen Participation and Machine Learning for a Better Democracy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Procter ◽  
Miguel Arana-Catania ◽  
Felix-Anselm van Lier ◽  
Nataliya Tkachenko ◽  
Yulan He ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Information Overload ◽  
City Council ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Democratic Systems ◽  
The City

The development of democratic systems is a crucial task as confirmed by its selection as one of the Millennium Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations. In this article, we report on the progress of a project that aims to address barriers, one of which is information overload, to achieving effective direct citizen participation in democratic decision-making processes. The main objectives are to explore if the application of Natural Language Processing (NLP) and machine learning can improve citizens? experience of digital citizen participation platforms. Taking as a case study the ?Decide Madrid? Consul platform, which enables citizens to post proposals for policies they would like to see adopted by the city council, we used NLP and machine learning to provide new ways to (a) suggest to citizens proposals they might wish to support; (b) group citizens by interests so that they can more easily interact with each other; (c) summarise comments posted in response to proposals; (d) assist citizens in aggregating and developing proposals. Evaluation of the results confirms that NLP and machine learning have a role to play in addressing some of the barriers users of platforms such as Consul currently experience.

scholarly journals ASSESSMENT OF URBAN SPRAWL USING SHANNON’S ENTROPY AND FRACTAL ANALYSIS: A CASE STUDY OF ATAKUM, ILKADIM AND CANIK (SAMSUN, TURKEY)

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 264-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derya OZTURK
Keyword(s):  
Urban Sprawl ◽  
Fractal Analysis ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Entropy Method ◽  
Shannon’S Entropy ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Maximum Likelihood Classification ◽  
Shannon's Entropy ◽  
Box Counting

Urban sprawl is one of the most important problems in urban development due to its negative environmental and societal impacts. Therefore, the spatial pattern of urban growth should be accurately analyzed and well understood for effective urban planning. This paper focuses on urban sprawl analysis in the Atakum, Ilkadim and Canik districts of Samsun, Turkey. In this study, urban sprawl was examined over a period of 24 years using Shannon's entropy and fractal analysis based on remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS). The built-up areas in 1989, 2000 and 2013 were extracted from Landsat TM/ETM+/OLI images using the maximum likelihood classification method, and urban form changes in the 1989–2013 period were investigated. The Shannon's entropy method was used to determine the degree of urban sprawl, and a fractal analysis method based on box counting was used to characterize the urban sprawl. The results show that Atakum, Ilkadim and Canik experienced important changes and have considerable sprawl and complex characteristics now. The study also revealed that there is no monotonic relationship between Shannon's entropy and fractal dimension.

scholarly journals Public Reveal: Finding a place for Civic Architecture in the Contemporary City.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Amber Venter
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Spatial Arrangement ◽  
City Council ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Civic Architecture ◽  
Design Case ◽  
Design Case Study ◽  
Design Proposal ◽  
The City

<p><b>This research is an architectural enquiry into how the visibility of local government can mimic the performance of everyday political life. Using the conceptual framework of place and understanding of the collective community. The intention of this design proposal is to encourage the transparency of local authority through an architectural intervention in the city.</b></p> <p>The driver of this research is the reduced physical presence of civic practices, with particular regard to the congregating place of local government. A framework is developed as a precursor to develop an understanding of the traditional civic architype. The aim is to reimagine a contemporary civic architecture which is detached from the corporate functions of local government. Architecture supports the celebration of collective rituals of movement and meeting.</p> <p>An archetype investigation formalises a set design criteria by which the design case study is evaluated against. The background research comprises a critique of the spatial arrangement of the traditional town hall. An additional background task is consisted of a comparative inquiry into today’s local government accommodation.</p> <p>The site is located in Tamaki Makaurau/Auckland City. The site analysis criteria utilised by this thesis is grounded in the research of Jan Gehl and his understanding of architectures impact on peoples’ behaviour in cities.</p> <p>Finally the design case study is driven by dynamic circulation, which establishes a celebration of the formal and informal interactions between the participants of local government. Transparency and hierarchy are used to challenge the spatial and functional qualities of Auckland City Council. The result of the research will contribute to the inclusive understanding of the ordinary rituals of local government through architecture in the city.</p>

scholarly journals Informing the design of courtyard street blocks using solar energy models: a case study of a university campus in Singapore

2021 ◽  
Vol 2042 (1) ◽  
pp. 012050
Author(s):  
Ekaterina Vititneva ◽  
Zhongming Shi ◽  
Pieter Herthogs ◽  
Reinhard König ◽  
Aurel von Richthofen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
University Campus ◽  
Quasi Monte Carlo ◽  
Energy Models ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
Input Variables ◽  
The City

Abstract This study discusses the interplays between urban form and energy performance using a case study in Singapore. We investigate educational urban quarters in the tropical climate of Singapore using simulation-based parametric geometric modelling. Three input variables of urban form were examined: street network orientation, street canyon width, and building depth. In total, 280 scenarios were generated using a quasi-Monte Carlo Saltelli sampler and Grasshopper. For each scenario, the City Energy Analyst, an open-source urban building energy simulation program, calculated solar energy penetration. To assess the variables’ importance, we applied Sobol’ sensitivity analysis. Results suggest that the street width and building depth were the most influential parameters.

scholarly journals FRAGMENTATION AND DEGRADATION OF THE URBAN LANDSCAPE IN HERGLA, TUNISIA

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. 60-77
Author(s):  
Meriem Chaggar ◽  
Mohsen Boubaker
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Urban Sprawl ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Landscape Degradation ◽  
The City

This research proposes to identify the factors of the urban landscapes degradation in Hergla’s city (Tunisia) according on the citizen participation. It is based on the survey method which is developed around two axes: the citizen perception of urban landscapes and the factors of their degradation. According to the responses obtained, "the sea" represents the particular value of the landscapes identified as "quality" in Hergla. Citizens don’t appreciate landscapes of urban sprawl which makes the city lose its identity. Moreover, the lack of citizen participation in the urban actions and the non-observance of the urban regulations are the most cited factors of the landscape degradation. These results highlight the importance of involving the citizens in the planning process for a sustainable territory.

Arcology, Arcosanti and the Green Urbanism Vision

2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 56-62
Author(s):  
Ruth A. Rae
Keyword(s):  
Urban Sprawl ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Steering Committee ◽  
Natural Landscape ◽  
The Past ◽  
Green Urbanism ◽  
Pedestrian Transportation ◽  
The City ◽  
Central Arizona

Arcosanti is a prototype city being built based on the visionary architect Paolo Soleri’s principles of Arcology which integrates architecture with ecology. Arcology proposes a compact three-dimensional urban form to provide a lean alternative to the unsustainable urban sprawl city form found in most of America. In its reduction of dependence on the automobile, reliance on pedestrian transportation, proximity to nature and proposal to have agriculture integrated into the city, Arcology is a vision of Green Urbanism. The design of Arcosanti incorporates Biophilic principles that preserve the biodiverse natural landscape, has a compact organic form, and functions with a circular metabolism that is analogous to nature when complete. Arcosanti, located in central Arizona, was begun in 1970 as an urban laboratory, and has been constructed by over 7,000 workshop volunteers over the past 45 years. Following Soleri's death in 2013, the Cosanti Foundation has established a Strategic Planning Steering Committee to help guide the continued development of Arcosanti as a prototype Arcology. The Strategic Plan will provide a framework for future organization and development. This article examines how the concept of Arcology and the development of the Arcosanti prototype encompasses principles of Green Urbanism and sustainable development.

Implementation of Social Media Concepts for E-Government

2019 ◽  
pp. 1071-1091
Author(s):  
Raimundo Díaz-Díaz ◽  
Daniel Pérez-González
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Smart Cities ◽  
City Council ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
The Public ◽  
Partnership Model ◽  
The Government ◽  
Technological Platform

Some governments have proven social media's potential to generate value through co-creation and citizen participation, and municipalities are increasingly using these tools in order to become smart cities. Nevertheless, few public administrations have taken full advantage of all the possibilities offered by social media and, as a consequence, there is a shortage of case studies published on this topic. By analyzing the case study of the platform Santander City Brain, managed by the City Council of Santander (Spain), the current work contributes to broaden the knowledge on ambitious social media projects implemented by local public administrations for e-Government; therefore, this case can be useful for other public sector's initiatives. The case studied herein proves that virtual social media are effective tools for civil society, as it is able to set the political agenda and influence the framing of political discourse; however, they should not be considered as the main channel for citizen participation. Among the results obtained, the authors have found that several elements are required: the determination and involvement of the government, a designated community manager to follow up with the community of users, the secured privacy of its users, and a technological platform that is easy to use. Additionally, the Public Private Partnership model provides several advantages to the project, such as opening new sources of funding.

Dual Legitimacy in the Development of the Network City - A Case Study of Kaohsiung City Council

2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 591-621 ◽  
Author(s):  
Da-Chi Liao ◽  
Hsin-Che Wu ◽  
Chen-Hsun Li
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
Executive Branch ◽  
City Council ◽  
Dual Systems ◽  
City Network ◽  
The City ◽  
Kaohsiung City

This paper discusses the theoretical rheology of local governance from the bureaucratic system to the network city and explores whether and how such a city network can be developed in a dual local government system. This paper suggests that, in dual systems, councilors are nodes which extend their networks, and councilors together can construct a more comprehensive network than a city executive branch alone does, so as to remedy the executive branch’s deficiencies concerning city affairs. This paper chooses Kaohsiung city council as its case study and provides evidence that the network developed by city council and councilors covers many city affairs which are ignored by the city executive branch. This result also implies that the network city may be better feasible in a dual local government system than in a unitary one.

scholarly journals Women Empowerment and Micro Finance Programs: A Case Study of District Khairpur

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-116
Author(s):  
Misbah Rahman ◽  
Muhammad Saleem Rahpoto ◽  
Ghulam Muhammad Mangnejo
Keyword(s):  
Minimum Wage ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Minimum Wages ◽  
Women Empowerment ◽  
Micro Data ◽  
Small Country ◽  
Pay Gap ◽  
Earned Income ◽  
The City

The model of double monetary improvement contains the lowest wages (between difference foundations) responsible for the continuous dualism. We use 2 years of micro data from a large number of workers in Pakistan to test whether legally lowest wages have different effects on formal compensation, as opposed to the occasionally different segment. We find that the evidence from Pakistan rejects the assumptions of these models: raising the minimum wage not only extends the compensation in the city format part (big urban effort), which are enclosed through the least wages rule, nonetheless also increases the salaries of altogether other specialists, z Lowest legal allowance, which is generally considered to be an occasional split and is not regularly enforced (eg, small municipal companies, large provincial companies and small country companies). Our finding also suggest that the lowest statutory minimum wages increase wages for specialists in these “random” departments more than in the urban form, and therefore may lose the normal pay gap amid these segments and city additional part, which is considered non- binding nonetheless not governed b the Least Wage Act: the freelance (in together city and provincial regions). Least salaried may therefore lead to a symmetry amid official & casual workers, who referred to as self-employed and paid labors. In any case, we discovery no indication that self-earned income falls by the lowest pay.

To Participation and Beyond?

2014 ◽  
pp. 215-228
Author(s):  
Paul Burton ◽  
Stephen Hilton
Keyword(s):  
Social Inclusion ◽  
City Council ◽  
Local Elections ◽  
Local Democracy ◽  
Grass Roots ◽  
Government Institutions ◽  
Local Program ◽  
The Times ◽  
The City

This chapter provides a case study of local developments in e-democracy in the city of Bristol, UK. Although some of these developments relate to periodic local elections, most are concerned with supporting new forms of engagement between local citizens and local government institutions and processes in the times between these. Starting with the coordination of its own consultation activities, then encouraging greater participation in council-run activities, and finally supporting grass roots engagement activities, Bristol City Council embarked on a local program of e-democracy activities from 2000 onwards. This grew into a national pilot scheme that enabled a number of valuable comparative evaluations of e-democracy in practice. The chapter draws on the results of a number of evaluations of these local and national developments and highlights the more widespread and enduring challenges of trying to broaden the scope and the effectiveness of local democracy and improve the practices of social inclusion.

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