Moving from traditional government to new adaptive governance: the changing face of food security responses in South Africa

The food system faces increasing pressure from dynamic and interactive, environmental, political and socio-economic stressors. Tackling the complexity that arises from such interactions requires a new form of 'adaptive governance'. This paper provides a review of various conceptions of governance from a monocentric or politicotechnical understanding of governance through to adaptive governance that is based in complex adaptive systems theory. The review is grounded by a critique of the existing institutional structures responsible for food security in South Africa. The current Integrated Food Security Strategy and tasked governmental departments are not sufficiently flexible or coordinated to deal with an issue as multi-scalar and multidisciplinary as food security. However, actions taken in the non-governmental sector signal the emergence of a new type of governance. Apart from an increasing recognition of food security as an issue of concern in the country, there is also evidence of a changing governance structure including collaboration between diverse stakeholders. We review these governance trends with an understanding of the food system as a complex adaptive socio-ecological system where actors in the food system self-organize into more flexible networks that can better adapt to uncertain pressure

Global Investments and Regional Development Trajectories: the Missing Links. LEQS Discussion Paper No. 118/2016 October 2016

Regional economic development has been long conceptualised as a non-linear, interactive and socially embedded process: these features were traditionally regarded as spatially mediated and highly localised. However, unprecedentedly fast technological change coupled with the intensification of global economic integration processes has spurred the need to place regional development in a truly open and interdependent framework. Despite substantial progress made by the academic literature, rethinking regional development in this perspective still presents a number of challenges in terms of concepts, empirical evidence and policy approaches. Following an interdisciplinary assessment of how openness and connectivity – proxied by one particular of the many cross-border flows, i.e. global investments – interact with regional economic development trajectories, this paper presents a picture of the geography of foreign investments from and to the European regions and its change after the financial and economic crisis in 2008. This simple exercise allows us to shed some initial light on how the operationalisation of regional connectivity can improve our empirical understanding of the evolution of regional economies and the policy approach needed to support their reaction to change

On the human impacts and governance of large-scale tree plantations

Because of the pace and magnitude of land cover change, terrestrial ecosystems across the globe are under unprecedented pressure. Industrial production of wood in large-scale tree plantations is one of the drivers of this change. The development of funds of natural capital on private lands for marketable commodities, however, often comes at the expense of other non-marketable benefits that people derive from ecosystems. The disturbances to existing ecosystems and social systems caused by the establishment of plantations can be drastic. Identifying factors that foster and impede actors and institutions to solve problems and address injustices thus becomes crucial for advancing sustainability through changes in policies and practices. This dissertation synthesises findings from four articles. It takes on the task of filling two gaps in the previous scholarly literature: the first concerning the human impacts of large-scale tree plantations (articles I and II); the second concerning the different institutions that shape their governance (articles III and IV). It also brings these contributions together under a framework for empirical analysis, which combines and structures key concepts of environmental social sciences ranging from systems ecology to sociology. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods have been used in the four articles. Article I presents the findings from a systematic review of the impacts of large-scale tree plantations for local communities. The review shows that impacts are frequently grounded in the process of land acquisition for plantations and the subsequent loss of livelihoods. Plantations have often caused more losses of livelihoods than created jobs. Article I also identifies gaps in the evidence base. Article II applies the concept of resilience and qualitative content analysis to analyse the Uruguayan beekeepers’ experiences of and responses to land cover change to plantations. The results show that the community faces this change as multiple interlinked challenges (e.g., lower honey yields and higher costs), to which they generally have a limited capacity to adapt. Both articles III and IV use data from the domain of South African tree plantation policy. Based on an analysis of policy beliefs, the former identifies two competing coalitions: a dominant business-as-usual coalition, of which ideas a minority justice and change coalition challenges. Article III also clarifies the role that beliefs concerning specific policy instruments play in coalition formation. Article IV focuses on policy learning – the acquisition and dissemination of information between actors with diverse knowledge. It tests hypotheses concerning actors’ information exchange behaviour and finds that actors tend to exchange information and build trust with those who think alike. However, its findings support the idea that co-participation in policy forums enables policy learning. Large-scale tree plantations have often caused negative impacts for local communities. The unfolding of impacts, however, also depends on the context (e.g., land use rights). The impacts are in many ways rooted in the governance of plantations, the dynamics of which can be better understood through coalition formation and policy learning

On the human impacts and governance of large-scale tree plantations

Because of the pace and magnitude of land cover change, terrestrial ecosystems across the globe are under unprecedented pressure. Industrial production of wood in large-scale tree plantations is one of the drivers of this change. The development of funds of natural capital on private lands for marketable commodities, however, often comes at the expense of other non-marketable benefits that people derive from ecosystems. The disturbances to existing ecosystems and social systems caused by the establishment of plantations can be drastic. Identifying factors that foster and impede actors and institutions to solve problems and address injustices thus becomes crucial for advancing sustainability through changes in policies and practices. This dissertation synthesises findings from four articles. It takes on the task of filling two gaps in the previous scholarly literature: the first concerning the human impacts of large-scale tree plantations (articles I and II); the second concerning the different institutions that shape their governance (articles III and IV). It also brings these contributions together under a framework for empirical analysis, which combines and structures key concepts of environmental social sciences ranging from systems ecology to sociology. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods have been used in the four articles. Article I presents the findings from a systematic review of the impacts of large-scale tree plantations for local communities. The review shows that impacts are frequently grounded in the process of land acquisition for plantations and the subsequent loss of livelihoods. Plantations have often caused more losses of livelihoods than created jobs. Article I also identifies gaps in the evidence base. Article II applies the concept of resilience and qualitative content analysis to analyse the Uruguayan beekeepers’ experiences of and responses to land cover change to plantations. The results show that the community faces this change as multiple interlinked challenges (e.g., lower honey yields and higher costs), to which they generally have a limited capacity to adapt. Both articles III and IV use data from the domain of South African tree plantation policy. Based on an analysis of policy beliefs, the former identifies two competing coalitions: a dominant business-as-usual coalition, of which ideas a minority justice and change coalition challenges. Article III also clarifies the role that beliefs concerning specific policy instruments play in coalition formation. Article IV focuses on policy learning – the acquisition and dissemination of information between actors with diverse knowledge. It tests hypotheses concerning actors’ information exchange behaviour and finds that actors tend to exchange information and build trust with those who think alike. However, its findings support the idea that co-participation in policy forums enables policy learning. Large-scale tree plantations have often caused negative impacts for local communities. The unfolding of impacts, however, also depends on the context (e.g., land use rights). The impacts are in many ways rooted in the governance of plantations, the dynamics of which can be better understood through coalition formation and policy learning

Appraising the impact and role of platform models and Government as a Platform (GaaP) in UK Government public service reform: towards a Platform Assessment Framework (PAF)

The concept of “Government as a Platform” (GaaP) (O'Reilly, 2009) is coined frequently, but interpreted inconsistently: views of GaaP as being solely about technology and the building of technical components ignore GaaP's radical and disruptive embrace of a new economic and organisational model with the potential to improve the way Government operates – helping resolve the binary political debate about centralised versus localised models of public service delivery. We offer a structured approach to the application of the platforms that underpin GaaP, encompassing not only their technical architecture, but also the other essential aspects of market dynamics and organisational form. Based on a review of information systems platforms literature, we develop a Platform Appraisal Framework (PAF) incorporating the various dimensions that characterise business models based on digital platforms. We propose this PAF as a general contribution to the strategy and audit of platform initiatives and more specifically as an assessment framework to provide consistency of thinking in GaaP initiatives. We demonstrate the utility of our PAF by applying it to UK Government platform initiatives over two distinct periods, 1999–2010 and 2010 to the present day, drawing practical conclusions concerning implementation of platforms within the unique and complex environment of the public sector.Non

Construction Supply Chain Economics

This is the first comprehensive investigation of the industrial sourcing and procurement practices throughout sixty-eight construction industry supply channels across seven major commodity sectors at all levels. London presents real-world case studies to combine theory and practice to describe the economic structural and behavioural characteristics of sectors integral to the construction industry performance. Construction Supply Chain Economics details 'everyday' experiences and procurement decisions made by people in firms in the industry related to projects as they seek out other firms to work with during the tendering stage. London creates a language that enables us to classify and understand behaviour and recognise the impact of our decisions on firms and projects within the industry. Construction Supply Chain Economics introduces a new model for mapping the construction sector of particular interest to construction management and economic researchers and to procurement decision makers, including policymakers and clients, as well as industry practitioners, such as contractors, consultants and materials suppliers

Emerging food retailers and the development of hybrid food retail institutions in Ugandan produce supply chains

Changing institutional arrangements are central to the nascent transformation of food retail in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA). These emergent arrangements are reshaping the power relations, roles, and livelihood outcomes for actors in the region\u27s food systems. This study examines processes of institutional change within fruit and vegetable supply chains that are stemming from the expanding geographical scope of global private food standards, and from policy and demographic shifts in Uganda. First, the study examines the mechanisms through which global private food standards influence procurement strategies of emerging food retail operators (supermarkets, hotels, fast food restaurants and cafés) and how suppliers are responding to these institutional changes. Second, the dynamics of long-term change within market-oriented producer organizations linked to emerging food retailers are analyzed. Dissertation fieldwork involved 12 months of qualitative research in Uganda. During the first phase, data on the influence of global private food standards on procurement strategies were collected through in-depth interviews with 14 large format food operators in Kampala and 25 produce suppliers to these retailers. Additional data were collected through participant observation in a supermarket and fast food restaurant for a period of one month. The second phase analyzed institutional change at the farmer level, based on a case study of the Nyabyumba Farmers Association, a small scale producers\u27 group in Kabale district that supplies an international emerging food retailer in Kampala. Seven focus groups and 40 household interviews were conducted with members of the association. Three mechanisms through which global private food standards are transferred to the local level are identified: 1) direct embedding of retailers within international quality assurance schemes; 2) articulation of standards mimicking private food standards but lacking the requisite administrative and technical enforcement mechanisms; and 3) identification with global food systems but complete reliance on local informal institutional arrangements. Suppliers have responded to emergent hybrid institutional arrangements either by increasing the scale of operation or by carving out supply niches for knowledge intensive crops. At the producer level, transformations in the market and local institutional environment increased the perceived cost in time and effort spent on those association activities geared towards supplying the emerging food retailer. In addition, different levels of technical knowledge and skills resulted in significant modifications in the motivation and consistency of participation in association activities and the decision making structure. The findings have implications for the likely impacts of retail transformation processes on the roles of global processes in the transformation of food systems in ESA, the responsibility of government and non-governmental actors in assuring market access for small scale producers and food security for urban populations as well as the conditions under which women are likely to benefit from market oriented collective action

Leveraging Information Systems Capabilities for Operational Performance in Services: The Role of Supply Chain Integration

The purpose of this thesis is to explore the link between IS capabilities and operational performance in services. More specifically, it aims to investigate how the processes for supplier and customer integration affect IS capabilities and consequently, firms’ operational performance. Accordingly, this study examines the effects of three dimensions of IS capabilities (IT for supply chain activities, flexible IT infrastructure, and IT operations shared knowledge) on cost and quality performance via the mediation of the processes developed for supplier and customer integration in service firms. This is achieved by measuring SCI in terms of supply side integration processes (supplier integration) as well as customer side integration processes (customer transactions, customer connection, and customer collaboration). A survey-based research design intended to measure the estimated relationships was adopted. Data were collected from 156 service establishments in the UK. Mediated multiple regression analysis revealed that integrating specific processes with supply chain members (supplier integration, customer transactions, customer connection, and customer collaboration) can fully or partially mediate the effects of IT for supply chain activities and IT operations shared knowledge on cost and quality performance; no support was found for the relationships between flexible IT infrastructure and cost and quality performance. These results provide a valuable explanation to academics as well as to practitioners regarding the importance of various processes developed for integration with supply chain members in leveraging IS for operational performance in services. This thesis takes a step towards quelling concerns about the business value of IS, contributing to the development and validation of the measurement of IS capabilities in the service operations context. Additionally, it adds to the emerging body of literature linking supply chain integration to the operational performance of service firms