Impacts of climate change on cultural heritage; The case of the Greek theatre of Dionysus

Climate change is an ongoing fact with evident impacts on earth, humanity and our heritage. The management and protection of heritage from the effects of climate change should be taken into consideration, so as to act dynamically and immediately, since the effects of climate change are rapidly evident in all aspects of life. The objective of this research is to study the vulnerability of the ancient Greek Theatre of Dionysus, as it forms a monument with embedded heritage values exposed to the climate change. This case study is the tangible result of a particular cultural and historic research, bearing historic knowledge, cultural meanings via a recognizable architectural structure and it reflects the conjunction of culture with society and nature. Materiality and its pathology combined with the condition of the natural landscape and the altering pattern of cultural tourism can lead to the study of climate change imprint on this kind of heritage, which should be examined as a wholeness of culture and nature. The uniqueness in the Theatre’s identity and historic path deserves interpretation of the effects of climate change, so as to manage adaptation, proactive planning, mitigation and dissemination of the discovered results.

Housing challenges, mid-sized cities and the COVID-19 pandemic

This article examines key housing challenges in mid-sized cities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two questions guide our critical reflection: understanding to what extent the pandemic represents new challenges and what planners can do to respond to them? We use the example of the Region of Waterloo, situated 100km west of Toronto and one of Canada’s fastest growing urban areas. Waterloo has many similar characteristics to other mid-sized cities within commuting distance of large urban regions. In this article, we focus on two of the biggest (and inter-related) housing issues: inward migration from the Toronto Region and growing unaffordability. Both these challenges long-predate the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are early indicators that they are accelerating because of it. By rooting the challenges of the pandemic within longer trends and trajectories, our critical reflection suggests that many solutions that have long been understood to address housing inequalities are still important during the pandemic. Rather than devising new solutions, we argue that the pandemic requires implementing ideas called upon for years by researchers and advocates and more proactive planning to address market deficiencies.

An analysis of Covid-19 implications for SMEs in Pakistan

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to ascertain the impact of coronavirus (Covid-19) on small and medium enterprises in Pakistan, which are vulnerable to crisis situations. This study also aims to provide policy recommendations to the stakeholders by reviewing the situation of small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) after the Covid-19 sudden surge. Design/methodology/approach The descriptive study is based on quantitative data technique and primary data collection is undertaken. The survey instrument is adapted from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics public documents. Collected responses from SME owners are descriptively analyzed using appropriate graphs. Findings The analysis infers that SMEs in Pakistan have encountered unfavorable implications of Covid-19 in the form of shortage of goods, blockage in transportation, decrease in demand of products and services, decline in profits and sales, limited operations, lockdown and employee’s layoff. Research limitations/implications The limited sample and precise use of instruments are few limitations along with valuable implications of this research. The analysis of Covid-19 impact on SMEs is an ongoing phenomenon and aids in proactive planning for the second wave of this outbreak. Financing schemes, youth entrepreneurship loans, retention of skilled staff and proactive planning for adverse future are few recommended measures for revival of the SMEs sector. Originality/value The use of a unique sample and quality data set collected using the Bureau of Labor Statistics instrument adds value to the findings of the study and their consistency. The existing body of knowledge in the context of the SMEs sector of Pakistan is strengthened with an analysis of crisis implications for this sector, which remained unaddressed in the past.

Does it matter where they come from? This is the duty of humanity

The author describes his personal experience as a young refugee from a revolution in Europe, through his later intimate contact with three refugee communities in the course of decades of work in Asia, and reflects upon the greater context of the numerous issues impacting on decision-making and enveloping the sphere of refugees. Especially in the current tide of millions displaced, it is not possible in times of crises to simply segue in an attempt to harmonize the exceedingly complex situation. All components of the inter-related issues and results, namely causes of flight, reception outside their home countries, plans for resettlement and actual resettlement, as well as retaining some level of communication with those left behind need to be understood through improved, proactive planning and preparation.

Proactive Planning of Project Team Members’ Competences

Among the many factors that cause project delays or cancellations are disruptions, that is, unforeseen events occurring during the implementation of a project, which postpone or interrupt the performance of project activities. Examples of disruptions include employee absenteeism, addition of new activities, and others. One way to deal with this type of events is to predict potential disruptions and prepare redundant resources to be used should a disruption occur (proactive approach). The focus of the present paper are human resources, in particular redundant project team competence frameworks, which allow to continue work on a project in the event of a disruption. Previous studies on planning competence frameworks regard insensitivity (robustness) to one type of disruption, caused by employee absenteeism (an absence of one, two, or three employees). The goal of this article is to present a proactive procedure that allows to seek competence frameworks robust to two types of disruptions: absence of one employee and addition of new activities not included in the project plan. Examples are provided to illustrate how the proposed approach can be used in practice.