scholarly journals DIY Urbanism: Influences & Impacts on Community Planning

Topophilia ◽  
2017 ◽  
pp. 67-71
Author(s):  
Steven Shuttle
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Public Safety ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Community Planning ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Do It Yourself

‘Do It Yourself’ (DIY) urbanism is usually initiated by community members using a grassroots approach to change urban areas. Community planning involves making decisions about urban areas. This paper examines topics regarding DIY urbanism and community planning. Community engagement, neoliberalism and municipal support are key influences of DIY urbanism related to planning. DIY urbanism impacts the planner’s role as well as the relationships between planners, communities and municipalities. Three Canadian examples of DIY urbanism are introduced, including the Urban Repair Squad, PARK(ing) Day, and CITYlab. Discussion focuses on the opportunities and potential challenges of DIY urbanism for planners to consider. Potential challenges include public safety and municipal liability. Recommendations for planners regarding DIY urbanism are provided. DIY urbanism can be beneficial if planners work collaboratively and focus on small scale, low cost improvements.

scholarly journals Understanding Spatial Variability of NO2 in Urban Areas Using Spatial Modelling and Data Fusion Approaches

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 179
Author(s):  
Said Munir ◽  
Martin Mayfield ◽  
Daniel Coca
Keyword(s):  
Data Fusion ◽  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Dispersion Model ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Spatial Modelling ◽  
City Centre ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
The City

Small-scale spatial variability in NO2 concentrations is analysed with the help of pollution maps. Maps of NO2 estimated by the Airviro dispersion model and land use regression (LUR) model are fused with measured NO2 concentrations from low-cost sensors (LCS), reference sensors and diffusion tubes. In this study, geostatistical universal kriging was employed for fusing (integrating) model estimations with measured NO2 concentrations. The results showed that the data fusion approach was capable of estimating realistic NO2 concentration maps that inherited spatial patterns of the pollutant from the model estimations and adjusted the modelled values using the measured concentrations. Maps produced by the fusion of NO2-LCS with NO2-LUR produced better results, with r-value 0.96 and RMSE 9.09. Data fusion adds value to both measured and estimated concentrations: the measured data are improved by predicting spatiotemporal gaps, whereas the modelled data are improved by constraining them with observed data. Hotspots of NO2 were shown in the city centre, eastern parts of the city towards the motorway (M1) and on some major roads. Air quality standards were exceeded at several locations in Sheffield, where annual mean NO2 levels were higher than 40 µg/m3. Road traffic was considered to be the dominant emission source of NO2 in Sheffield.

scholarly journals Reducing post-harvest losses in fruits and vegetables for ensuring food security – Case of Sri Lanka

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-16
Author(s):  
Leelananda Rajapaksha ◽  
DMC Champathi Gunathilake ◽  
SM Pathirana ◽  
TN Fernando
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Fruit And Vegetables ◽  
Cold Chain ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Post Harvest ◽  
Wide Range

In Sri Lanka, 70% of 21 million population live in non-urban areas, and agriculture provides livelihood for approximately 40% of them. The agricultural marketing process in the country is a complex operation due to services and functions involved in moving a crop product from where it was produced to where it would finally be consumed. Further, with a wide range of agricultural crops being produced, post-harvest handling process create different degrees of quantitative and qualitative losses in a complex market chain, which are estimated at 20% to 40% for vegetables and 30% - 40% for fruits. Improper and non-scientific post-harvest practices and handling, gaps in integration of cold chain practices & elements with post-harvest process, and lack of knowledge & awareness on many related aspects at grass root farmer level etc. appear to contribute to losses that finally prevent due economic benefits reaching the small-scale producer. In order to increase the effectiveness of post-harvest process handling of fruit and vegetables, appropriate corrective measures targeting small scale producers as well as commercial scale producers need to be popularized and practiced. At small scale producer level, promotion of appropriate low-cost post-harvest practices and procedures, facilitating low-cost cold chain elements and user-friendly information flow mechanism on market situation would certainly help avoid some of the steps that lead to losses. Monitoring system of commercial post-harvest handling process that ensure scientific bulk handling, storage and transportation of fruit and vegetables, properly designed economic centers with well regulated environmentcontrolled storages etc. would greatly reduce loses in bulk handling, ensuring better food security in the island.

Electricity Production from Small-Scale Photovoltaics in Urban Areas

2015 ◽  
pp. 124-161
Author(s):  
Constantinos S. Psomopoulos ◽  
George Ch. Ioannidis ◽  
Stavros D. Kaminaris
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Production Data ◽  
Solar Photovoltaic ◽  
Pv System ◽  
The World ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Utility Scale

The interest in solar photovoltaic energy is growing worldwide. Today, more than 40GW of photovoltaics have been installed all over the world. Since the 1970s, the PV system price is continuously dropping. This price drop and the adaptation of feed-in tariffs at governmental or utility scale have encouraged worldwide application of small-scale photovoltaic systems. The objective of this chapter is to present the potential for electricity production focusing mainly on the benefits of small-scale installations in urban areas, along with the growth of the global photovoltaics market. The types of installation alternatives are described but the focus is on the rooftop installations due to their simplicity and relatively low cost for urban areas. Electricity production data are presented together with their technical characteristics. Furthermore, analysis of the cost reduction is attempted and the benefits gained from the implementation of small-scale systems are also presented, demonstrating the sustainability role they will play.

scholarly journals IoT Sensing Platform as a Driver for Digital Farming in Rural Africa

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 3511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Oliveira-Jr ◽  
Carlos Resende ◽  
André Pereira ◽  
Pedro Madureira ◽  
João Gonçalves ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Sensing Platform ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Rural Africa ◽  
Do It Yourself ◽  
Software Modularity ◽  
Small Scale Farmers ◽  
Digital Farming

Small-scale farming can benefit from the usage of information and communication technology (ICT) to improve crop and soil management and increase yield. However, in order to introduce digital farming in rural areas, related ICT solutions must be viable, seamless and easy to use, since most farmers are not acquainted with technology. With that in mind, this paper proposes an Internet of Things (IoT) sensing platform that provides information on the state of the soil and surrounding environment in terms of pH, moisture, texture, colour, air temperature, and light. This platform is coupled with computer vision to further analyze and understand soil characteristics. Moreover, the platform hardware is housed in a specifically designed robust casing to allow easy assembly, transport, and protection from the deployment environment. To achieve requirements of usability and reproducibility, the architecture of the IoT sensing platform is based on low-cost, off-the-shelf hardware and software modularity, following a do-it-yourself approach and supporting further extension. In-lab validations of the platform were carried out to finetune its components, showing the platform’s potential for application in rural areas by introducing digital farming to small-scale farmers, and help them delivering better produce and increasing income.

scholarly journals Preliminary results on the control of Aedes spp. in a remote Guatemalan community vulnerable to dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus: community participation and use of low-cost ecological ovillantas for mosquito control

F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 598 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerard Ulibarri ◽  
Angel Betanzos ◽  
Mireya Betanzos ◽  
Juan Jacobo Rojas
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Vector Control ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Health Personnel ◽  
Mosquito Control ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Integrated Intervention

Objective: To study the effectiveness of an integrated intervention of health worker training, a low-cost ecological mosquito ovitrap, and community engagement on Aedes spp. mosquito control over 10 months in 2015 in an urban remote community in Guatemala at risk of dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus transmission. Methods: We implemented a three-component integrated intervention consisting of: web-based training of local health personnel in vector control, cluster-randomized assignment of an ecological modified ovitrap (ovillantas: ovi=egg, llanta=tire) or standard ovitraps to capture Aedes spp. mosquito eggs (no efforts have been taken to determine the exact Aedes species at this moment), and community engagement to promote participation of community members and health personnel in the understanding and maintenance of ovitraps for mosquito control. The intervention was implemented in local collaboration with Guatemala’s  Ministry of Health’s Vector Control Programme, and in international collaboration with the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico. Findings: Eighty percent of the 25 local health personnel enrolled in the training programme received accreditation of their improved knowledge of vector control. When ovillantas were used in a cluster of ovitraps (several in proximity), significantly more eggs were trapped by  ecological ovillantas than standard ovitraps over the 10 month (42 week) study period (t=5.2577; p<0.05). Repetitive filtering and recycling of the attractant solution (or water) kept the ovillanta clean, free from algae growth. Among both community members and health workers, the levels of knowledge, interest, and participation in community mosquito control and trapping increased. Recommendations for enhancing and sustaining community mosquito control were identified. Conclusion: Our three-component integrated intervention proved beneficial to this remote community at risk of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. The combination of training of health workers, cluster use of low-cost ecological ovillanta to destroy the second generation of mosquitoes, and community engagement ensured the project met local needs and fostered collaboration and participation of the community, which can help improve sustainability. The ovillanta intervention and methodology may be modified to target other species such as Culex, should it be established that such mosquitoes carry Zika virus in addition to Aedes.

scholarly journals Preliminary results on the control of Aedes spp. in a remote Guatemalan community vulnerable to dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus: community participation and use of low-cost ecological ovillantas for mosquito control

F1000Research ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 598 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerard Ulibarri ◽  
Angel Betanzos ◽  
Mireya Betanzos ◽  
Juan Jacobo Rojas
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Vector Control ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Health Personnel ◽  
Mosquito Control ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Integrated Intervention

Objective: To study the effectiveness of an integrated intervention of health worker training, a low-cost ecological mosquito ovitrap, and community engagement on Aedes spp. mosquito control over 10 months in 2015 in an urban remote community in Guatemala at risk of dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus transmission. Methods: We implemented a three-component integrated intervention consisting of: web-based training of local health personnel in vector control, cluster-randomized assignment of an ecological modified ovitrap (ovillantas: ovi=egg, llanta=tire) or standard ovitraps to capture Aedes spp. mosquito eggs (no efforts have been taken to determine the exact Aedes species at this moment), and community engagement to promote participation of community members and health personnel in the understanding and maintenance of ovitraps for mosquito control. The intervention was implemented in local collaboration with Guatemala’s  Ministry of Health’s Vector Control Programme, and in international collaboration with the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico. Findings: Eighty percent of the 25 local health personnel enrolled in the training programme received accreditation of their improved knowledge of vector control. When ovillantas were used in a cluster of ovitraps (several in proximity), significantly more eggs were trapped by  ecological ovillantas than standard ovitraps over the 10 month (42 week) study period (t=5.2577; p<0.05). Repetitive filtering and recycling of the attractant solution (or water) kept the ovillanta clean, free from algae growth. Among both community members and health workers, the levels of knowledge, interest, and participation in community mosquito control and trapping increased. Recommendations for enhancing and sustaining community mosquito control were identified. Conclusion: Our three-component integrated intervention proved beneficial to this remote community at risk of mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. The combination of training of health workers, cluster use of low-cost ecological ovillanta to destroy the second generation of mosquitoes, and community engagement ensured the project met local needs and fostered collaboration and participation of the community, which can help improve sustainability. The ovillanta intervention and methodology may be modified to target other species such as Culex, should it be established that such mosquitoes carry Zika virus in addition to Aedes.

scholarly journals COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ON MEDIA LITERACY (CE: ML) ECOSYSTEM: TOWARDS QUINTUPLE HELIX COLLABORATION AND RURAL SUSTAINABILITY

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (17) ◽  
pp. 94-101
Author(s):  
Norsiah Abdul Hamid ◽  
Zauridah Abdul Hamid ◽  
Sabrina Mohd Rashid ◽  
Mohd Sobhi Ishak ◽  
Abbas Ghanbari Baghestan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Engagement ◽  
Media Literacy ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Double Helix ◽  
Willingness To Participate ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Quintuple Helix ◽  
The Media

Current development in the usage of media and the Internet proved that community members are increasingly exposed to various gadgets and media applications, which undoubtedly can have positive and negative impacts on their lives. Yet, despite interest in and the emergence of examples of inspirational community engagement and the increasing usage of media among citizens, relatively little is known about the scale as well as the ecosystems of the emerging media literacy of Malaysian rural citizens. The objective of this research is to identify the important elements in conducting community engagement on media literacy programs in the rural community. A program which is called “Community Engagement on Media Literacy” (CE: ML) has been designed to assist the community members in utilizing the media in their daily lives. This program is a collaboration between faculty members and students of a university and committee members of a mosque in the northern district of Malaysia. The community selected is one large community area in the northern state containing about 3,000 members. This area is unique since it covers rural and sub-urban areas containing seven villages and five structured residential areas of low-to-middle-income families. Researchers were directly involved with the media literacy program, hence get a better chance to observe the processes of CE: ML. The program took two months to be completed, from February until April 2019. Altogether, 18 activities have been conducted, which mostly involved school children and youth ranging from 6 to 18 years old. Based on observation method, 15 elements of CE: ML ecosystem have been identified, namely Coordination, Communication, Contents Creation, Stakeholders Support, Location, Supporting Facilities, Targeted audience and their willingness to participate, Funding and Costing, Risk, Scheduling, Spirit of Volunteerism, Development of Soft skills, Multi-racial and International Unity, Training of trainers and Visibility and promotion of programs. At the time of the implementation, CE: ML was designed on double helix collaboration, merging two actors – university and the local community. Hence, based on the actual experience, CE: ML program can be improved to be extended to “quintuple helix” collaboration involving the university, government, private sector, local community, and the environment.

Electricity Production from Small-Scale Photovoltaics in Urban Areas

2017 ◽  
pp. 618-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Constantinos S. Psomopoulos ◽  
George Ch. Ioannidis ◽  
Stavros D. Kaminaris
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Production Data ◽  
Solar Photovoltaic ◽  
Pv System ◽  
The World ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Utility Scale

The interest in solar photovoltaic energy is growing worldwide. Today, more than 40GW of photovoltaics have been installed all over the world. Since the 1970s, the PV system price is continuously dropping. This price drop and the adaptation of feed-in tariffs at governmental or utility scale have encouraged worldwide application of small-scale photovoltaic systems. The objective of this chapter is to present the potential for electricity production focusing mainly on the benefits of small-scale installations in urban areas, along with the growth of the global photovoltaics market. The types of installation alternatives are described but the focus is on the rooftop installations due to their simplicity and relatively low cost for urban areas. Electricity production data are presented together with their technical characteristics. Furthermore, analysis of the cost reduction is attempted and the benefits gained from the implementation of small-scale systems are also presented, demonstrating the sustainability role they will play.

scholarly journals A Nonlinear Land Use Regression Approach for Modelling NO2 Concentrations in Urban Areas—Using Data from Low-Cost Sensors and Diffusion Tubes

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 736
Author(s):  
Said Munir ◽  
Martin Mayfield ◽  
Daniel Coca ◽  
Lyudmila S Mihaylova
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
City Centre ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Land Use Regression ◽  
Diffusion Tubes ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The City ◽  
And Diffusion

Land Use Regression (LUR) based on multiple linear regression model is one of the techniques used most frequently for modelling the spatial variability of air pollution and assessing exposure in urban areas. In this paper, a nonlinear generalised additive model is proposed for LUR and its performance is compared to a linear model in Sheffield, UK for the year 2019. Pollution models were estimated using NO2 measurements obtained from 188 diffusion tubes and 40 low-cost sensors. Performance of the models was assessed by calculating several statistical metrics including correlation coefficient (R) and root mean square error (RMSE). High resolution (100 m × 100 m) maps demonstrated higher levels of NO2 in the city centre, eastern side of the city and on major roads. The results showed that the nonlinear model outperformed the linear counterpart and that the model estimated using NO2 data from diffusion tubes outperformed the models using data from low-cost sensors or both low-cost sensors and diffusion tubes. The proposed method provides a basis for further application of advanced nonlinear modelling approaches to constructing LUR models in urban areas which enable quantifying small scale variability in pollution levels.

Tenants' Satisfaction in High Residential Building

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
UMMU SHOLEHAH MOHD NOR
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Residential Building ◽  
Real Estate Market ◽  
The Real Estate ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction ◽  
Considerable Impact ◽  
Residential Living ◽  
Medium Cost

High residential living in Malaysia has not been widely given a significant emphasises in literature despite its increasing scale and significance in the real estate market. The significance of high rise is mainly due the increasing rate of migration from rural to urban. It is estimated a total of 77.2 percent of the Malaysian population lived in urban areas in 2020. Approximately, 30 percent of this urban population lives in strata housing. These percentages are predicted to continue to increase in the future. The emergence of high residential building has been argued as confronting various problems which has considerable impact on this life style. Satisfaction is an important outcome of living in one’s dwelling, although it is not the only consideration. High residential building in Malaysia encountered numerous problems in term of management aspects, legislation aspects, and residents’ satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the tenants’ satisfaction living in high residential buildings in Klang Valley. The questionnaires survey is conducted amongst 276 tenants at low cost and medium cost HRB using random sampling in HRB located at areas under jurisdiction Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL), Majlis Bandaraya Subang Jaya (MBSJ), Majlis Bandaraya Shah Alam (MBSA), Majlis Bandaraya Subang Jaya (MBSJ), Majlis Perbandaran Selayang (MPS) and Majlis Perbandaran Ampang Jaya (MPAJ). The result from this study shows that tenant in medium cost residential building are more satisfied in term of facilities and management as compared to tenants in low cost residential building. Tenants also not disclosed to the existing act and procedure related to high residential building. In conclusion, this study suggested the Local Authority to emphasise the role of tenant. These recommendation hopefully will increase the level of satisfaction amongst the residents in HRB.

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