(Re)envisioning the contribution of design to the sustainable transition of healthcare systems

The health emergency has challenged our health systems, stressing the weakest points but also revealing the strengths to be harnessed. Among these, the concern for the environmental, social and economic aspects of health systems – gathered under the heading of sustainable healthcare – has suffered a temporary setback but will certainly experience strong growth in the post-pandemic era. During 2018 and 2019, a collaborative foresight process on the future of sustainable healthcare was conducted with over 150 healthcare stakeholders. This paper starts from the strategies that emerged from the collaborative foresight to re-read them in light of the impacts of COVID-19 on health systems. A systematic literature review mapped the effects of the pandemic on the sustainable development of health systems and, therefore, on the defined strategies. Hence, the paper defines the connections with design disciplines and the possible contribution of designers in the development of sustainable healthcare in the post-pandemic era

The Amazonia Third Way Initiative: The Role of Technology to Unveil the Potential of a Novel Tropical Biodiversity-Based Economy

Abstract For the last two decades, the Amazon development debate has been torn between attempts to reconcile two rather opposing views of land use: on one hand, a vision of setting aside large tracts of the Amazon forests for conservation purposes (referred hereafter to as The First Way) and, on the other hand, seeking a ‘sustainable’ resource-intensive development, mostly through agriculture/livestock, energy and mining (referred hereafter to as The Second Way). The decrease of Brazilian Amazon deforestation from 2005 to 2014 (about 75% decline) opens a window of opportunity to conceive a novel sustainable development paradigm: The Amazonia Third Way initiative (A3W). It can represent a new opportunity emerging to protect the Amazon ecosystems and the indigenous and traditional peoples who are their custodians and at the same time develop a vibrant, socially inclusive biodiversity-driven ‘green economy’ in the Amazon by harnessing Nature’s value through the physical, digital and biological technologies of the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR). 4IR technologies are increasingly harnessing these assets across many industries from pharmaceutical to energy, food, cosmetics, materials and mobility, and making profits. A3W addresses ways to channel to the Amazon the benefits of the 4IR for the creation of bio-industries and local development as it protects the forests

Re-Envisioning the North: The Importance of Effective Cultural Planning for Economic Growth & Sustainability in Northwestern Ontario Rural Communities

Since the fall of the forestry industry over a decade ago, Northwestern Ontario has struggled to find its footing in an ever changing, global economy. As the hub of NWO, Thunder Bay has kept their economic engine fired through the facilitation of research and development, and by aggressively promoting itself as a travel destination. But without an anchor industry, research facilities, and major infrastructure, how will northern rural communities continue to sustain themselves? In today’s economic climate, diversification and sustainability must be achieved through attraction of creative talent. Peeling back the layers of the development happening within Nipigon, a small town 110 km east of Thunder Bay, we see that such a transformation is beginning to happen, although not by design. What is Nipigon already successfully doing to transform itself into a creative community? What deliberate actions should it take to achieve further success? Through the development and facilitation of a cohesive cultural planning strategy, Nipigon will be an evolutionary model for other northern rural communities experiencing similar economic challenges.Key Words: cultural planning, creative community, sustainability, arts, culture, nort

A ‘soft Brexit’ is the only viable strategy in a post-liberal world

Brexit is a process taking place in a new political and economic environment of rising protectionism throughout the western world. However, a successful Brexit strategy is still possible, but negotiating it will be less straightforward than previously thought. A ‘hard Brexit’ in the current economic and security context would leave the UK isolated in an unfavourable trade environment. Arnaud Hoyois argues a ‘soft Brexit’ is the only viable strategy in a post-liberal world

Smart Energy for the World: The Rise of a Technonationalist Discourse in Japan in the Late 2000s

In recent years, "smart city" has become a buzzword in discussions about urbanisation. While in Europe and North America the initial utopian optimism has now receded, due to booming implementation costs and surveillance concerns, the smart city model has taken root in rapidly urbanising Asia in particular, thanks to the activism of China and Japan. For the latter, smart city technologies and technical know-how represent the new frontier of export goods. In April 2018, the Government of Japan and that of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam announced the construction of a new smart city on the outskirts of the Vietnamese capital Hanoi that is set to become Japan's largest ODA project to date. Despite changes in the global hegemonic narratives on smart cities, the new project bears the features of an urban settlement that revolves around technological data collection for the sake of perfect efficiency, rather than for its prospective inhabitants. Against this backdrop, how did the Government of Japan succeed in constructing a convincing narrative for made-in-Japan smart cities? Since 2011, thanks to specific initiatives by Japan's government and investments by Japanese tech companies in the sector, a Japanese discourse on smart cities has emerged. Through an examination of earlier critiques of the smart city model and a close analysis of official policies and books by energy policy intellectuals, this paper will identify the main features of the Japanese discourse on smart cities and place it in the context of an evolving broader global narrative. The study demonstrates how the Japanese discourse on smart cities largely reflects a corporate managerial vision of the city and, at the same time, a “technonationalist” approach that informs the country's foreign policy

Beyond Rio+20: governance for a green economy

This repository item contains a single issue of the Pardee Center Task Force Reports, a publication series that began publishing in 2009 by the Boston University Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future.As an intellectual contribution to the preparations for the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, a.k.a. Rio +20), the Boston University Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future convened a task force of experts to discuss the role of institutions in the actualization of a green economy in the context of sustainable development. A stellar group of experts from academia, government and civil society convened at the Pardee Center and were asked to outline ideas about what the world has learned about institutions for sustainable development from the past, and what we can propose about the governance challenges and opportunities for the continuous development of a green economy in the future. The Task Force members were encouraged to think big and think bold. They were asked to be innovative in their ideas, and maybe even a little irreverent and provocative. They were charged specifically NOT to come to consensus about specific recommendations, but to present a variety and diversity of views. This report presents their thoughts and ideas

Facilitating trade in mineral resources : policy implications for trade between Africa, South Africa and East Asia

Includes bibliographical references.This thesis aims to carry out a comparative research to analyse the policies and countermeasures taken by various countries related to the trade in Rare Earth Elements (REEs). The similarity of the approaches of East Asian countries – China, Korea, and Japan – towards the African continent, and South Africa's mineral policies with the goal of national development provides the basis for the formulation of a SWOT Matrix analytical tool. As mineral resources, particularly REEs, have increased in significance with the advancement of modern technology, it will be valuable from an academic, business and political perspective to undertake such research in order to consider the optimal policy instruments that can benefit resource poor countries, such as Korea in particular, and resource rich countries such as South Africa. In Chapter 3, a number of proposals for Korea to establish rational policy systems to secure a stable REE supply chain will be put forward, followed in Chapter 4 by a SWOT Matrix analysis to provide some recommendations to South Africa for a number of policy instruments to meet its requirements of generating inclusive economic growth through establishing cooperative models