A holistic framework for reshaping urban energy infrastructure in Global South cities, a case study of the Greater Cairo Region, Egypt

Key Messages- Cities are complex systems that need integrated approaches to understand their characteristics and to identify challenges and opportunities for sustainable development.- Context-based and tailored solutions are required for achieving SDGs and developing circular flows. This is particularly important in the Global South.- Integrated and cross-sectoral planning and collaboration are necessary to improve the development of sustainable strategies and interventions to reduce trade-offs. Areas like the Greater Cairo Region in Egypt demonstrate the complexities of action across formal/informal sectors of waste management.

Forecasting for the Optimal Numbers of COVID-19 Infection to Maintain Economic Circular Flows of Thailand

We evaluated the movement in the daily number of COVID-19 cases in response to the real GDP during the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand from Q1 2020 to Q1 2021. The aim of the study was to find the number of COVID-19 cases that could maintain circulation of the country’s economy. This is the question that most of the world’s economies have been facing and trying to figure out. Our theoretical model introduced dynamic stochastic general equilibrium (DSGE) models with a special emphasis on Bayesian inference. From the results of the study, it was found that the most reasonable number of COVID-19 cases that still maintains circulation of the country’s economy is about 3000 per month or about 9000 per quarter. This demonstrates that the daily number of COVID-19 cases significantly affects the growth of Thailand’s real GDP. Economists and policymakers can use the results of empirical studies to come up with guidelines or policies that can be implemented to reduce the number of infections to satisfactory levels in order to avoid Thailand lockdown. Although the COVID-19 outbreak can be suppressed through lockdown, the country cannot be locked down all the time.

Non-circular flows in HIghMass galaxies in a test of the late accretion hypothesis

We present Hα velocity maps for the HIghMass galaxies UGC 7899, UGC 8475, UGC 9037 and UGC 9334, obtained with the SITELLE Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, to search for kinematic signatures of late gas accretion to explain their large atomic gas reservoirs. The maps for UGC 7899, UGC 9037, and UGC 9334 are amenable to disk-wide radial flow searches with the DiskFit algorithm, and those for UGC 7899 and UGC 9037 are also amenable to inner-disk kinematic analyses. We find no evidence for outer disk radial flows down to $\bar{V}_r \sim 20 \ \mathrm{km\, s}^{-1}$ in UGC 9037 and UGC 9334, but hints of such flows in UGC 7899. Conversely, we find clear signatures of inner (r ≲ 5 kpc) non-circularities in UGC 7899 and UGC 9037 that can be modelled as either bisymmetric (which could be produced by a bar) or radial flows. Comparing these models to the structure implied by photometric disk-bulge-bar decompositions, we favour inner radial flows in UGC 7899 and an inner bar in UGC 9037. With hints of outer disk radial flows and an outer disk warp, UGC 7899 is the best candidate for late accretion among the galaxies examined, but additional modelling is required to disentangle potential degeneracies between these signatures in H i and Hα velocity maps. Our search provides only weak constraints on hot-mode accretion models that could explain the unusually high H i content of HIghMass galaxies.

District Circular Transition e progettoDistrict Circular Transition and technological design towards a Circular City model

In the processes of urban regeneration, in a circular transition perspective, a multiscalar, integrated and systemic approach allows intervention scenarios to be defined, based on a renewed conception of environmental-economic-social sustainability characterised by circular flows of material and non-material resources. Research results translate these demands into a methodological model at the district scale, trialled in two public housing neighbourhoods in Rome, to turn them into “circular districts”. It is demonstrated that, by applying a circular model of ecological transition to urban districts, the 2050 goal of climate neutrality may be attained, while at the same time improving ecosystemic quality, environmental performance and bioclimatic adaptivity in a wide vision of green cities.

Towards Circular Social Housing: An Exploration of Practices, Barriers, and Enablers

The concept of Circular Economy (CE) and its application in the built environment is an emerging research field. Scholars approach CE from various perspectives covering a wide range of topics from material innovation to city-scale application. However, there is little research on CE implementation in housing stock, particularly that which is managed or owned by the social housing organisations (SHOs) and which offers opportunities to generate circular flows of materials at the portfolio level. This research focuses on Dutch SHOs and uses the Delphi method to examine CE practices in their asset management, as well as the main barriers to and potential enablers of its uptake. The analysis of two iterative rounds of expert questioning indicates that Dutch SHOs are in the early experimental phase in CE implementation. From the results, it is evident that organisational, cultural, and financial barriers are the most pressing ones that hinder the wider adoption of CE in their asset management. Building on the panel input, this study suggests potential enablers to overcome these barriers, such as CE legislation, best practice case studies, commitment and support from the top management, and the creation of a clear business case.

China in Quesnay’s doctrine: Interpretations, translations, cultural aspects

The paper analyzes the Chinese influences on the doctrine of the French physiocrat François Quesnay from the perspective of the cultural specifics of the perception of economic and political ideas. The approaches of Chinese researchers were impacted by Marxist methodology, sinocentric views and fragmentary use of primary sources. The application of the Marxist concept of socio-economic formations supported the arguments that feudal Confucianism could not influence the views of physiocrats, which reflected the emergence of capitalist relations. In the 18th century opponents of the physiocrats used the comparison of the Tableau Économique with the scheme of the Chinese Book of Changes to disqualify Quesnay’s doctrine. For Chinese researchers this comparison became a confirmation of the value of the Tableau Économique and an incentive to search for the ideas of circular flows and equilibrium in both tables. The study of Despotism in China content confirms its connection with the actual historical China. It is concluded that Chinese scholars seek to interpret the historical precedent of the influence of Confucian thought on Quesnay’s doctrine in the context of plans to increase the global clout of China’s social sciences.