Reviewing qualitative research approaches in the context of critical infrastructure resilience

Modern societies are increasingly dependent on the proper functioning of critical infrastructures (CIs). CIs produce and distribute essential goods or services, as for power transmission systems, water treatment and distribution infrastructures, transportation systems, communication networks, nuclear power plants, and information technologies. Being resilient becomes a key property for CIs, which are constantly exposed to threats that can undermine safety, security, and business continuity. Nowadays, a variety of approaches exist in the context of CIs’ resilience research. This paper provides a state-of-the-art review on the approaches that have a complete qualitative dimension, or that can be used as entry points for semi-quantitative analyses. The study aims to uncover the usage of qualitative research methods through a systematic review based on PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). The paper identifies four principal dimensions of resilience referred to CIs (i.e., techno-centric, organisational, community, and urban) and discusses the related qualitative methods. Besides many studies being focused on energy and transportation systems, the literature review allows to observe that interviews and questionnaires are most frequently used to gather qualitative data, besides a high percentage of mixed-method research. The article aims to provide a synthesis of literature on qualitative methods used for resilience research in the domain of CIs, detailing lessons learned from such approaches to shed lights on best practices and identify possible future research directions

Constraints to secure livelihoods in the informal sector: the case of informal enterprises in Delft South, Cape Town

Includes bibliographical references.Most people who work in developing cities, work in the informal sector. In South Africa's townships, many poor households rely on home-based informal economic activities as their primary source of livelihood. However, these livelihoods often face multiple constraints, and thus remain precarious. The main research question is: What are the key constraints to securer informal livelihoods in Delft South? The research employs the case study method to address this question. This dissertation engages with the lived realities of informal business operators in Delft South, Cape Town. Enterprise census data was analyzed and in-depth interviews with a selection of enterprise owners conducted. This provides a unique insight into the nature of the informal economy in Delft South and the way in which planning shapes current livelihoods. This case is located in previous research on home based work both in South Africa and internationally. This is with a view to informing more appropriate planning responses. The findings indicate the high degree of saturation in Delft South's informal sector. As such, business competition is rife, and livelihoods are compromised. Also evident is that the informal operators of Delft South ply their trades in a regulatory environment oscillating between extremes of neglect and oppression. The permission granted to spaza shop and hair care enterprise operators to conduct their businesses is accompanied by little else in the way of support for business growth. Alternatively, the livelihoods of shebeen owners are under threat, as these enterprises are prohibited from operating in all residential areas of the settlement; and are instead forced to relocate to the high street. This is compounded by the closure to which they are subjected, owing to their exclusion from the framework of the Western Cape Liquor Act. Crime also emerges as a significant impediment to business growth, and its effects are experienced by most of the operators in Delft South. Notably, it distinguishes the working climate of the area's informal sector from those of many other developing contexts. Under the guidance of the enterprise operators, key state interventions are recommended in response. The study concludes by proposing an area-based management approach in which collective action among operators is promoted

Uncovering the Progress of Planning for Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise & Coastal Storms: A Plan Evaluation of Norfolk, VA & New York City

In response to recent storms like Superstorm Sandy and sea-level rise influenced by climate change, cities, particularly those located at the coast, have taken initiative to combat these growing threats with adaptive urban planning. Although civilians residing in susceptible neighborhoods are often the most vulnerable socioeconomically, there has been minimal evidence that planning has accounted for the characteristics of vulnerability. This thesis evaluates the recent planning efforts and vulnerability of Norfolk, VA and New York City to gauge the progress being made toward reducing citizen vulnerability and raising adaptability and preparedness. The most recent peer-reviewed research is consulted to forge the evaluation framework and also to recognize breakthroughs and conformity. After analyzing the performance of the sets of planning documents in both cities, it is evident that the ability to effectively plan for the public’s vulnerability is contingent in part on inter-governmental capacity, but more specifically on disaster experience

Human experience in the natural and built environment : implications for research policy and practice

22nd IAPS conference. Edited book of abstracts. 427 pp. University of Strathclyde, Sheffield and West of Scotland Publication. ISBN: 978-0-94-764988-3

Powerful-synergies: Gender Equality, Economic Development and Environmental Sustainability

This is a collection of evidence-based papers by scholars and practitioners that explore the interconnections between gender equality and sustainable development across a range of sectors and global development issues such as energy, health, education, food security, climate change, human rights, consumption and production patterns, and urbanization. The publication provides evidence from various sectors and regions on how women's equal access and control over resources not only improves the lives of individuals, families and nations, but also helps ensure the sustainability of the environment

Investigating the experiences of refugees in accessing proper housing in urban areas: the case of eThekwini Municipality (Durban CBD), South Africa.

Masters Degree, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.The provision of proper housing has been an urgent and a thorny issue in South Africa for decades. The country attempted to deal with this challenge through the RDP (Reconstruction and Development Programme) in the post-1994 dispensation. The attempt was not only meant to address housing for the poor, but also to encourage economic growth and make it possible for a large number of people from informal settlements to enter the housing market. Most importantly, RDP was also an attempt to fulfil the requirements of section 26 of the Constitution, which states that everyone has the right to have access to adequate housing. One of the main shortcomings of the RDP programme was that one had to be a South African citizen to receive a ‘RDP house’, which then raises a question on the constitutional imperative of housing for all, making it much more complex. The Constitution also makes it clear that everyone, irrespective of citizenship, has the right to access proper housing. What then does this mean for refugees, whether poor or not? Do they, in practice, have access to adequate housing? This study thus investigates the experiences of refugees in accessing housing, especially in the urban areas where most refugees are likely to stay for both economic and security reasons. With the vast number of immigrant applications currently being processed by the Department of Home Affairs (DoHA), most refugees are on waiting lists and some are only provided with temporary residence for only a few months. Both the aforementioned challenges make it difficult for them to get occupancy in the rental housing market and also hinders their ability to buy houses; consequently, refugees are pushed into unregulated, overcrowded and dilapidated inner-city buildings. This is where they are exposed to crime, exploitation by landlords and discrimination including xenophobia. The abovementioned experiences which are substantiated by the findings of this study places an onus on the responsible governmental bodies to address the issue of access to proper housing. Further, the current planning and strategic policies do not seem to be utilising housing as an instrument for sustainable development, promoting social cohesion and combating crime to achieve the objectives stated in the National Development Plan (NDP)

Inundated: Holistically Improving Institutional Coordination And Crisis Management Following Superstorm Sandy

This Capstone analyzes institutional coordination and crisis management efforts surrounding Superstorm Sandy in the New York Metropolitan Area. It argues that response and recovery efforts were inconsistent, and at times ineffective, due to the lack of utilizing a holistic and systems thinking approach. Using the Rockaway Peninsula as a fractal exemplar of the region, this document identifies ways to improve preparation, response and recovery in a resilient fashion through improving communication, establishing trust, overcoming cognitive biases, creating a greater linkage between disaster planning and emergency management, and leveraging tools such as risk analysis and needs assessments. Through institutional coordination, crisis management and organizational dynamics research; stakeholder interviews with those involved with response and recovery efforts; and comparative analysis with regional, national and international examples, it develops a set of recommendations for holistic preparation and response in a disaster event, while considering the complex political and geographic structure of the region

Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook

The purpose of the Sourcebook is to act as a guide for practitioners and technical staff in addressing gender issues and integrating gender-responsive actions in the design and implementation of agricultural projects and programs. It speaks not with gender specialists on how to improve their skills but rather reaches out to technical experts to guide them in thinking through how to integrate gender dimensions into their operations. The Sourcebook aims to deliver practical advice, guidelines, principles, and descriptions and illustrations of approaches that have worked so far to achieve the goal of effective gender mainstreaming in the agricultural operations of development agencies. It captures and expands the main messages of the World Development Report 2008: Agriculture for Development and is considered an important tool to facilitate the operationalization and implementation of the report's key principles on gender equality and women's empowerment

Machina ex deos. Successes and challenges of implementing mobile computing technologies for development. The experience of nine Indian village health projects using a project-issued mobile application

As mobile computing technologies become increasingly functional and affordable, global donor and local development organizations find ways to justify and fund their use in grassroots development work. This dissertation asks two questions: (1) In resource-constrained social sector settings, what project features govern and structure use of work-issued mobile devices? And: (2) How do decision-makers adjust to maximize the benefit of newly-introduced devices while minimizing new burdens to the project and project staff? More simply, what variables under social sector projects’ control might promote successful use of information and communication technologies in development (ICTD) projects? This research represents systematic, qualitative comparison of nine extended deployments of a popular mobile health application, CommCare. Each studied project deployed devices loaded with CommCare to health workers in India as a supportive job aid and/or a data collection tool to help monitor beneficiary populations’ health status and frontline workers’ work. This dissertation examines the conditions under which these health workers were able and willing to use CommCare devices in their jobs, and whether and how they deviated from the use of those devices prescribed by their supervisors. Primary data for this study come from 62 in-depth, semi-structured interviews, extensive review of project documents, and personal observations from field study in India over six months in 2013. Employing a sociotechnical lens and a principal agent model, my data support expectations that use of CommCare devices would help align community health workers’ behavior with their supervisors’ organization and mission-related priorities. Use of the devices improved health workers’ professional competence and improved communications, data quality, and data access. These improvements facilitated project supervisors’ monitoring of health workers and beneficiaries, and funders’ monitoring of projects. Contradicting expectations, use of CommCare devices also weakened organizational oversight and control through new data challenges and increased health worker autonomy in their personal and professional lives. These dual benefits and challenges ultimately served the overall projects’ missions.Public Affair