Integrated assessment of the Magdalena River Delta and estuary socio-ecological system

River-mouth systems and deltas are hotspots where many of the coastal symptoms can be found, moreover, these systems provide essential ecosystem services (e.g., recreation, food provisioning, protection against natural hazards). The present study focuses on the socio-ecological system (SES) that is present in the estuary formed in the central Caribbean Region in Colombia at the main river-mouth of the Magdalena River. This research seeks to assess the multidimensional sustainability of the Magdalena river-mouth system in order to improve the knowledge basis for its integrated management. To do so, an assessment tool named ‘Circles of Coastal Sustainability’ was used to evaluate the system splitting it into four domains (environmental, social, economic and governance) that were divided into 5 categories each. These domains were evaluated through a total of 52 indicators distributed like this: 16 for the Environmental domain, 16 for the Economic domain, 12 for the Social domain and, 8 for the Governance domain. The results show that the overall sustainability of the Magdalena River-mouth SES is classified as ‘Satisfactory’. None of the domains is in ‘Excellent’ or ‘Bad’ conditions. However, the evaluation of the categories shows that four (4) of them have ‘Poor’ conditions (i.e., Social Benefits, Demographics, Economic Security, and Resources Management). Hence, it is recommended to put those categories at the centre of the discussion to define management strategies (e.g., Preserving and restoring habitats; tackling sources of pollution and excessive sediment; local reduction of net GHG and adaptation to climate change; participation of local communities in the management design and implementation) without disregarding the interrelation with the other categories and dimensions. Finally, it is argued that despite all the improvement opportunities, the CCS is a valuable tool to evaluate the sustainability of coastal systems in Colombia and the world.This thesis is submitted by David Gallo Velez to the Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, Italy in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s Degree in Water and Coastal Management (WACOMA), in conjunction with the Universidade do Algarve, Portugal and the Universidad de Cádiz, Spain. The candidate was supported by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union

Influence of climate change in the water availability over the eastern side of Colombia

This PhD is focused on the eastern region of Colombia and the practical development of this work was composed of three stages that lead to three different articles which are the main body of this study. The first stage was focused on a systematic review of the climate characteristics over the last decades at eastern Colombia including a data survey and evaluation of the historical available data records. In the second stage, the Statistical Downscaling Model (SDSM) was used as a tool for downscaling meteorological data statistically over four representative water districts at the eastern side of Colombia. Here, data from the two Global Climate Models CanESM2 and IPSL-CM5A-MR, which are part of the CMIP5-project have been used to project future maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation and relative humidity for the periods 2021–2050 and 2071–2100. For both models, the Representative Concentration Pathways RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 were considered, representing two different possible future emission trajectories and radiative forcings. In the third stage, the results of the second stage together with the hydrological model BROOK90 and complementary data were utilized to determine the future changes in the water balance components in the previously selected four water districts in Eastern Colombia

Strategies for the development of the software industry in Columbia

Thesis (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2007.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 107-108).Using Michael Porter's framework for the competitiveness of the nations and Professor Michael Cusumano's theory on the orientation of the software companies toward services, I analyzed the country of Colombia's software industry to elaborate a diagnosis of current conditions and to generate some strategies for the Government and for the business sector using diagrams of dynamic systems. Keeping in mind that Colombia has significant human capital, success in this type of industry is likely, not only because the industry is highly dependent on human talent; but also because seeing the reality and determining that the number of qualified people is not very large, the country should create aggressive strategies to increase the number of people qualified for the industry. In the short term, it should emphasize the information technology (IT) services sector taking advantage of its strengths and looking for specific market niches. For the medium term it should look for software products where Colombia has a competitive advantage.(cont.) Studies the Government is conducting to identify industries favorable to domestic growth could be very valuable to the software industry and could focus on the products those types of industries need. For example, Colombia could begin to analyze if it is well-suited to develop software products for the bio-fuel industry, relatively new industry, Brazil could be a great client and Colombia already has the necessary natural resources for this type of industry.by Monica Cepero.S.M.M.O.T

Addressing Health Crises through Courts? Climate Litigation in Latin America, the Right to Health and Vulnerable Populations

As Latin America faces increasing climate-related health crises that disproportionately affect populations experiencing poverty and social exclusion, it becomes increasingly urgent to realize the most vulnerable\u27s right to health. While the region\u27s new constitutionalism (NLAC) has made progress in protecting this right, it has only recently begun to intersect with climate change law through rights-based climate litigation. This dissertation takes a transdisciplinary multi-methods research approach to answer the following question: How do health crises emerge within, and how are they addressed by courts through, domestic climate litigation in Latin America? Specifically, it examines how health concerns for vulnerable populations are raised and addressed in climate litigation, aiming to identify how the profiles, motives, and resources of claimants and judges influence how they protect the right to health of the most marginalized groups. By also considering the legal and broader socio-political contexts intertwined with climate-related health crises, the research aims to contribute to a better understanding of Latin America\u27s climate litigation by exploring how the socio-ecological dimensions of health vulnerability are reflected in and redressed by judicial decisions. The dissertation concludes that within the corpus of climate litigation in Latin America (77 cases of which 61 are rights-based), health crises manifest and are addressed by domestic constitutional courts in diverse manners, none of which sufficiently address the full socio-ecological spectrum of health vulnerability. This partial manifestation of health crises is underpinned by the complex interplay between the socio-political realities of both claimants and judges, which influence their framing and utilization of normative tools. In particular, while the right to health has emerged as a prominent instrument in climate litigation, enabling claimants to obtain legal standing and courts to justify the cessation of climate change-inducing activities, the social dimension of vulnerability (health’s relationship with poverty and social exclusion) remains partially redressed. For the most part, climate litigation serves as a platform for unidimensional ecological concerns. The research thus contends that the judicial pathway is not currently sufficient as the sole mechanism for addressing health crises. However, there is potential for improving climate litigation’s alignment with climate justice by broadening strategic and interpretative horizons for claimants and courts to account for the realities faced by those most vulnerable to climate change. To achieve this, employing socio-ecological bottom-up strategies by litigant civil society organizations, adopting open legal standing rules, embracing broad-ranging remedial designs within progressive legal traditions, and deepening judges’ understanding of claimants\u27 social contexts seem to be crucial components. Currently, these prospects appear more likely to materialize in Colombia and Ecuador than in Chile and Mexico. Abstract (Spanish) A medida que América Latina enfrenta crecientes crisis de salud relacionadas con el clima, las cuales afectan de manera desproporcionada a las poblaciones en condiciones de pobreza y exclusión social, se vuelve cada vez más urgente garantizar el derecho a la salud de estos segmentos de la población. Aunque el nuevo constitucionalismo de la región (NLAC) ha progresado en la protección de dicho derecho, sólo recientemente ha comenzado a intersectar con el derecho del cambio climático a través de los litigios climáticos basados en derechos humanos. Esta disertación adopta un enfoque de investigación transdisciplinario y multimétodo para responder a la siguiente pregunta: ¿Cómo emergen y cómo son abordadas por los tribunales nacionales las crisis de salud en el contexto de los litigios climáticos en América Latina? Específicamente, examina cómo se presentan y adjudican las preocupaciones de salud de las poblaciones vulnerables en los litigios climáticos, con el objetivo de identificar cómo los perfiles, motivos y recursos de los demandantes y jueces influyen en la protección del derecho a la salud de los grupos más marginados. Al considerar también los contextos legales y sociopolíticos que enmarcan las crisis de salud exacerbadas por el cambio climático, la investigación contribuye a una mejor comprensión de los litigios climáticos de América Latina al explorar cómo se reflejan y se remedian las dimensiones socioecológicas de la vulnerabilidad en salud en las decisiones judiciales. La disertación concluye que, dentro del corpus del litigio climático en América Latina (77 casos de los cuales 61 son basados en derechos), las crisis de salud se manifiestan y son abordadas por los tribunales constitucionales nacionales de diversas maneras, ninguna de las cuales atiende suficientemente el espectro socioecológico de la vulnerabilidad en salud. Esta manifestación parcial de las crisis de salud ocurre debido a la compleja interacción entre las realidades sociopolíticas tanto de los demandantes como de los jueces, las cuales influyen en su comprensión y consecuente utilización de herramientas normativas. En particular, si bien el derecho a la salud ha surgido como un instrumento prominente en los litigios climáticos, permitiendo a los demandantes demostrar legitimación y a los tribunales justificar la cesación de actividades que contribuyen al cambio climático, la dimensión social de la vulnerabilidad (la relación de la salud con la pobreza y la exclusión social) es abordada parcialmente. En su mayoría, el litigio climático ha fungido como plataforma para preocupaciones ecológicas unidimensionales. Por tanto, la investigación sostiene que el camino judicial no es actualmente suficiente como único mecanismo para abordar las crisis de salud. No obstante, existe potencial para mejorar la alineación de los litigios climáticos con la justicia climática ampliando los horizontes estratégicos e interpretativos para que los demandantes y los tribunales consideren las realidades a las que se enfrentan los segmentos de la población más vulnerables al cambio climático. Para lograr esto, se consideran componentes cruciales: el empleo de estrategias socioecológicas de abajo hacia arriba por parte de las organizaciones de la sociedad civil litigante, la legitimación activa amplia, la adopción de diseños remediales de amplio alcance y de tradiciones legales progresistas, y el profundizar la comprensión de los jueces sobre los contextos sociales de los demandantes. Actualmente, estas perspectivas parecen más propensas a materializarse en Colombia y Ecuador que en Chile y México

Territoriality and Commerce: Political Conflict Over the Panama Canal in Geographic Perspective.

This dissertation examines the recurring conflict between the United States and the Republic of Panama regarding the Canal and the Canal Zone by analyzing three salient geographic issues: first, the extent to which international commerce or national security required the building of a canal in Central America; second, ambiguities arising out of notions of sovereignty and extraterritoriality in United States constitutional law; and third, the political controversies between an inland society and a maritime society in Panama itself The theoretical implications of Edward Fox\u27s work in his geographic history of French politics and the works of Panamanian historians and sociologists studying eighteenth and nineteenth-century Panama were used to offer an explanation of Panama\u27s contemporary political relations with the United States. Panama has historically been divided between an inland and a maritime society, with the maritime society tending to be the more politically and economically dominant one. After its independence in 1903, Panama\u27s internal political competition created a situation where all sides felt compelled to assume an antagonistic posture with the United States and demand treaty concessions beyond what might even seem to be within Panama\u27s reasonable national economic interest. The interpositionist role of the United States in Panamanian affairs is the product of a longstanding commitment. The United States has assumed sole responsibility for protecting the neutrality of interoceanic communication across Panama since the middle of the nineteenth century. The goal was to prevent European powers from threatening a maritime choke point affecting U.S. national security and potential commercial expansion. The project to construct an American Panama Canal was, therefore, a product of commercial as well as military concerns. Contrary to conventional thinking about the nature of U.S.-Panamanian relations, this dissertation examines how the influence of the United States, at times, became the means by which Panamanian opposition leaders leveraged political pressure against internal rivals

Climate change communication in Colombia

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Oxford University Press via the DOI in this record.Peru is one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet. More than 65% of the country is covered by the Amazon rainforest, and the Andes region is home to more than 70% of the world’s tropical glaciers. This abundance of natural resources also makes the country highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The Peruvian government therefore requires the development and implementation of action plans to adapt to the present and future impacts of climate change. At the same time, it requires the development of sound communication strategies that include collaboration with stakeholders such as the media and nongovernmental organizations. Media coverage of climate change can have important implications for policy decision making. This is especially salient in a context of low information availability where media reports play an important role in filling knowledge gaps that in turn can affect the way policies are developed. Climate change, as an environmental and social issue in Peru, is not highly politicized, as it is in countries such as the United States and Australia. There is no major debate about the reality of climate change, the scientific evidence, or the need for political action and technological and policy innovations. This approach is also reflected in the media’s coverage of the issue. Peru’s media tend to focus on climate change mostly during key policy events. Among these major events was the capital city of Lima’s hosting in 2010 of the V meeting of Latin American, Caribbean, and European Union countries, where the main topics of discussion were climate change and poverty. In addition, Lima hosted the COP20, which preceded the Paris meeting in 2015 that led to a major global agreement. The media’s coverage of these events was intense. These were the exceptions: A good proportion of Peru’s newspaper coverage comes from international news wire agencies. Coverage from those sources focuses mostly on mitigation actions, instead of adaptation, which is more relevant to vulnerable countries such as Peru. This coverage is in line with the government’s view of mitigation as a business opportunity. There is, however, a lack of studies that explore, first, the factors that affect this coverage, and, second, the way other mediums such as television or radio cover the issue. Strategic communication by governmental organizations, as well as accurate and fact-based media reporting about climate change, is necessary to better communicate the urgency and magnitude of the problem to the general public, grassroots organizations, industry, and international agencies, among others

Vinhogal, Exporting Portuguese culture through its wine culture

The main purpose of this entrepreneurial project is to analyze the viability of exporting Portuguese culture through its wine culture to Colombia, as well as the different aspects to be considered when entering a new market, especially when the wine consumption is not that common. This analysis shows two different cultures and histories in order to see how Portuguese wine can be inserted into the Colombian market. On one hand, we have Colombia, a country whose wine consumption is low compared to other countries and does not have a lot of wine production due to the climate conditions, however, it has been facing some changes in its consumption, increasing in the last years, especially after the pandemic started. On the other hand, there is Portugal, a country where the wine industry plays a very important role, an aspect being part of its culture with different types of wine according to each region, which is influenced by its geography at the same time and making it recognized for the production of unique wines. The methodology used in this analysis is based on a search carried out on the context of wine consumption in Colombia and Portugal, the Hofstede’s model to compare both cultures and be able to see the similarities and differences. Then, a market study through a survey has been made in order to know better the opinion of Colombian people about the Portuguese culture and wine, to then, define which types of wine are more adapted to the Colombian wine market, that has been showing an increase in sales lately and how to distribute them, using the Business Model Canvas. As a result, in Vinhogal’s Business model, we identified two segments, the consumer and distributor market, with a relationship based on social media, direct contact, events and training courses. Employing direct sales, retailers and restaurants as distribution channels and whose value proposition is based on emotional and functional aspects as it offers not only a product but guidance during this discovering experience. The key activities are focused on relationship management, partnership creation, updated website, marketing and promotion and gain more visibility through entities related to wine, Portuguese associations or Colombian entities in charge of promoting other cultures.O objetivo principal deste projeto empresarial é analisar a viabilidade de exportar a cultura portuguesa através da sua cultura do vinho para a Colômbia, bem como os diferentes aspectos a ter em consideração ao entrar num novo mercado, especialmente quando o consumo de vinho não é tão comum. Esta análise mostra duas culturas e histórias diferentes para ver como o vinho português pode inserir-se no mercado colombiano. Por um lado, temos a Colômbia, um país cujo consumo de vinho é baixo comparado a outros países e não tem muita produção de vinho devido às condições climáticas, porém, tem enfrentado algumas mudanças no seu consumo, aumentando nos últimos anos, especialmente após o início da pandemia. Por outro lado, encontra-se Portugal, um país onde a vitivinicultura desempenha um papel muito importante, aspecto que faz parte da sua cultura com diferentes tipos de vinho consoante cada região, que é influenciada pela sua geografia ao mesmo tempo e pela reconhecida produção de vinhos únicos. A metodologia utilizada nesta análise baseia-se numa pesquisa realizada no contexto do consumo de vinho na Colômbia e em Portugal, o modelo de Hofstede para comparar as duas culturas e poder perceber as semelhanças e diferenças. Em seguida, foi feito um estudo de mercado através de um survey com o objetivo de conhecer melhor a opinião dos colombianos sobre a cultura e o vinho portugueses, para então definir quais tipos de vinho são mais adaptados ao mercado vitivinícola colombiano, que tem vindo a mostrar um aumento das vendas ultimamente e como distribuí-las, utilizando o Business Model Canvas. Como resultado, no modelo de Negócios da Vinohgal, identificamos dois segmentos, o mercado consumidor e distribuidor, com relacionamento baseado em mídias sociais, contato direto, eventos e treinamentos. Empregando vendas diretas, varejistas e restaurantes como canais de distribuição e cuja proposição de valor se baseia em aspectos emocionais e funcionais, pois oferece não só um produto, mas uma orientação durante essa experiência de descoberta. As principais atividades estão focadas na gestão do relacionamento, criação de parcerias, atualização do site, marketing e promoção e ganham maior visibilidade através de entidades vinculadas ao vinho, associações portuguesas ou entidades colombianas responsáveis pela promoção de outras culturas

Muddy waters : framing littoral maritime security through the lens of the Broken Windows theory

This dissertation explores the growing field of study around Maritime Security. While an increasingly common sub-heading in American naval strategy documents, maritime security operations are largely framed around individual threats (i.e. counter-piracy, counter-terrorism, counter-narcotics). Here, we endeavor to explore how a seemingly disparate set of transnational issues fit into a more coherent framework to give greater theoretical substance to the notion of Maritime Security as a distinct concept. In particular, we examine, as our research question, whether the Broken Windows theory, a criminological construct of social disorganization, provides the lens through which to theorize maritime security in the littorals. By extrapolating from criminology, this dissertation engages with a small but growing impulse in studies on insurgencies, terrorism, and piracy to look beyond classic theories of security to better understand phenomena of political violence. To evaluate our research question, we begin by identifying two critical components of the Broken Windows theory, multidimensionality and context specificity. Multidimensionality refers to the web of interrelated individuals, organizations, and infrastructure upon which crime operates. Context specificity refers to the powerful influence of an individual or community’s environment on behavior. These two themes, as explored in this dissertation, are brought into stark relief through an application of the Broken Windows theory. Leveraging this understanding of the theory, we explore our research question by employing process-tracing and detailed descriptions across three case studies (one primary and two illustrative)—the Caribbean Basin, the Gulf of Guinea, and the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. In so doing, we demonstrate how applying the lens that Broken Windows provides yields new and interesting perspectives on maritime security. As a consequence, this dissertation offers an example of a theoretical framework that provides greater continuity to the missions or threats frequently binned under the heading of maritime security, but infrequently associated with one another in the literature