The connection between water and energy in cities: a review

2011 ◽  
Vol 63 (9) ◽  
pp. 1983-1990 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. Kenway ◽  
P. A. Lant ◽  
A. Priestley ◽  
P. Daniels

We have only rudimentary understanding of the complex and pervasive connections between water and energy in cities. As water security now threatens energy and economic security, this is a major omission. Understanding the water-energy nexus is necessary if we want to contribute to solving water and energy issues simultaneously; if we want to stop moving problems from one resource dimension to another. This is particularly relevant in the Australian context where energy use for water supplies is forecast to rapidly escalate, growing around 300% from 2007 levels, by 2030. This paper presents a literature review with an aim of characterising the research to date with a particular focus on cities, the major centres of consumption and growth. It systematically analyses a wide range of papers and summarises the diverse objectives, dimensions, and scale of the research to-date together with knowledge gaps. There are many major gaps. These include energy use associated with water in industrial and commercial operations as well as socio-political perspectives. A major gap is the lack of a unifying theoretical framework and consistent methodology for analysis. This is considered a prerequisite for quantitative trans-city comparisons.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9591
Author(s):  
Sepehr Abrishami ◽  
Rocío Martín-Durán

The main goal of this study is to explore the adoption of a design for manufacturing and assembly (DfMA) and building information management (BIM) approach during the whole lifecycle of assets. This approach aims to tackle issues inherent in the design of traditional construction methods, such as low productivity and quality, poor predictability and building performance, and energy use, through the implementation of a BIM library of off-site components. In recent years, a renewed interest has been directed to the attempt to provide solutions to these urgent problems through the adoption of new advancements in technologies. However, while there are studies focussing on a BIM-DfMA approach, there is a lack of research regarding how this approach should be adopted during the whole lifecycle of the assets. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, defining an efficient way of developing a component-based BIM object library has not yet been included in any of the available studies. A mixed methodology approach has been used in this research. A conceptual framework was developed as the result of an extensive literature review to investigate new advancements in the AEC sector. Following the literature review, the framework was tested and validated through a case study based on the production and adoption of a BIM library of off-site components at the design stage of an asset. The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has recognised the necessity of a new approach that helps to resolve the well-known issues presented in traditional methods of construction. The conceptual framework and case study proposed presents a valuable new method of construction that support the implementation of a BIM and DfMA approach, highlighting their benefits. This framework has been created using many valuable and reliable sources of information. The result of this research supports the idea of a novel new construction method that focuses on a manufacturing-digital-driven industry, with the use of DfMA in a BIM-integrated approach. This novel method will add significance and be beneficial for a wide range of aspects in the construction sector, contributing to the theoretical and practical domain.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Gauer ◽  
Barbara Germann

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework on how to deal with stressors emerging from the COVID-19 outbreak. The theoretical framework aims to explain pandemic-related stressors and potential ways to prevent them, considering a wide range of interacting factors at individual, team and organizational levels to ensure their employees’ health. Design/methodology/approach The authors drew on an integrative literature review to identify pandemic-related stressors influenceable by the organization and gathered solution approaches to counteract them. Popular psychological stress theories served as a theoretical base for the framework. Findings The authors based the framework on an integration of the transactional stress theory (Lazarus and Folkman, 1984) and the job demands resources model (Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004), focusing on their respective theoretical strengths. The final framework offers a solid orientation for scholars regarding the introduction of holistic and strategic measures in coping with pandemic-related stressors. A section describing possibilities for practitioners’ use of the framework has been integrated. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to offer a framework on how to handle COVID-19-related stressors in the workplace by implementing teamwide and companywide measures.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-28
Author(s):  
Madhu Neupane Bastika ◽  
Bal Mukunda Bhandari

Thesis writing requires a wide range of reading, the skill of critiquing, a good skill of academic writing, and a proper collaboration of student and supervisor; however, it is poorly understood, less explored, and replete with problems. In this paper, we present the merits of thesis writing, supervisors' and students' commonly held perceptions, the effectiveness of supervisory feedback, and the value of student engagement. Then we present two components of thesis writing (i.e., introduction and literature review, including theoretical framework). Considering the need of the novice researchers (i.e., master's students) who are writing their thesis for the first time, we present these two components' introduction and provide suggestions for supervisors. We also present commonly used language features and examples. This paper is expected to be beneficial to students and supervisors alike.


Systems ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Andrew Huey Ping Tan ◽  
Eng Hwa Yap ◽  
Yousif Abdalla Abakr

Water security plays a crucial role in maintaining livelihoods, especially emerging economies. In Malaysia, understanding the inter-relationships of water within the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus is at its infancy. This paper investigates the interactions of the water sector with energy sector in Malaysia, through the lenses of WEF nexus, using system dynamics. The first part of the research involves qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in the water sectors, which provides validation for the initial causal loop relationships built and qualitative inputs of the water-energy nexus through the lenses of the water sector. The second part of the research is a quantitative simulation of stock and flow based on four carefully designed scenarios revolving around Malaysian water security. Key findings include an apparent disconnect between the states and federal governments in managing water supply, poor economic sustainability of the water supply and services industry, and significant energy use in the water sector. On the other hand, environmental impacts stemming from the water sector is minimal. Streamlining water governance and revising water tariffs have thus been suggested as policy recommendations, where their implementation could propagate into downstream benefits for the energy sector.


Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1566
Author(s):  
Ernesto Mesa-Vázquez ◽  
Juan F. Velasco-Muñoz ◽  
José A. Aznar-Sánchez ◽  
Belén López-Felices

Over the last two decades, experimental economics has been gaining relevance in the research of a wide range of issues related to agriculture. In turn, the agricultural activity provides an excellent field of study within which to validate the use of instruments employed by experimental economics. The aim of this study is to analyze the dynamics of the research on the application of experimental economics in agriculture on a global level. Thus, a literature review has been carried out for the period between the years 2000 and 2020 based on a bibliometric study. The main results show that there has been a growing use of experimental economics methods in the research on agriculture, particularly over the last five years. This evolution is evident in the different indicators analyzed and is reflected in the greater scientific production and number of actors involved. The most relevant topics within the research on experimental economics in agriculture focus on the farmer, the markets, the consumer, environmental policy, and public goods. These results can be useful for policy makers and researchers interested in this line of research.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 563
Author(s):  
Bing Ran ◽  
Scott Weller

Despite the growing utility and prevalence of social entrepreneurship, an accepted definition remains elusive and infeasible. Yet, it is imperative that the principles guiding social entrepreneurship are identified so that common ground is established to facilitate future research. On the basis of a systematic literature review, this conceptual paper proposes a theoretical framework outlining social entrepreneurship as a three-dimensional framework as a function of continua of “social” and “business” logics, “beneficial” and “detrimental” social change logics, and “innovation” and “mundane” logics. The framework accommodates the fuzziness and ambiguity associated with social entrepreneurship whilst remaining a workable, identifiable construct. By accounting for the shifting logics practiced by social entrepreneurship that both influence and are influenced by the organizational environment, this framework provides an exit strategy for the definitional elusiveness of social entrepreneurship. The resultant structures and functions of social entrepreneurship are shaped by these constraints as reflected by the fluidity and flexibility endorsed by the framework. Four avenues for future research regarding social entrepreneurship are recommended on the basis of the framework proposed in this article.


Author(s):  
Florentine U. Salmony ◽  
Dominik K. Kanbach

AbstractThe personality traits that define entrepreneurs have been of significant interest to academic research for several decades. However, previous studies have used vastly different definitions of the term “entrepreneur”, meaning their subjects have ranged from rural farmers to tech-industry start-up founders. Consequently, most research has investigated disparate sub-types of entrepreneurs, which may not allow for inferences to be made regarding the general entrepreneurial population. Despite this, studies have frequently extrapolated results from narrow sub-types to entrepreneurs in general. This variation in entrepreneur samples reduces the comparability of empirical studies and calls into question the reviews that pool results without systematic differentiation between sub-types. The present study offers a novel account by differentiating between the definitions of “entrepreneur” used in studies on entrepreneurs’ personality traits. We conduct a systematic literature review across 95 studies from 1985 to 2020. We uncover three main themes across the previous studies. First, previous research applied a wide range of definitions of the term “entrepreneur”. Second, we identify several inconsistent findings across studies, which may at least partially be due to the use of heterogeneous entrepreneur samples. Third, the few studies that distinguished between various types of entrepreneurs revealed differences between them. Our systematic differentiation between entrepreneur sub-types and our research integration offer a novel perspective that has, to date, been widely neglected in academic research. Future research should use clearly defined entrepreneurial samples and conduct more systematic investigations into the differences between entrepreneur sub-types.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6753
Author(s):  
Moiz Masood Syed ◽  
Gregory M. Morrison

As the population of urban areas continues to grow, and construction of multi-unit developments surges in response, building energy use demand has increased accordingly and solutions are needed to offset electricity used from the grid. Renewable energy systems in the form of microgrids, and grid-connected solar PV-storage are considered primary solutions for powering residential developments. The primary objectives for commissioning such systems include significant electricity cost reductions and carbon emissions abatement. Despite the proliferation of renewables, the uptake of solar and battery storage systems in communities and multi-residential buildings are less researched in the literature, and many uncertainties remain in terms of providing an optimal solution. This literature review uses the rapid review technique, an industry and societal issue-based version of the systematic literature review, to identify the case for microgrids for multi-residential buildings and communities. The study describes the rapid review methodology in detail and discusses and examines the configurations and methodologies for microgrids.


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