The Local Governance of the 2014 Ebola Epidemic: A Comparative Case Study of Liberia and Sierra Leone

This research investigates community-led interventions in Liberia and Sierra Leone. The objective is to examine the parallels and differences in the response and outcomes of the 2014 Ebola epidemic. Many challenges made aid less effective such as misinformation, rumors, stigma, and logistical difficulties that lowered the demand for aid resources. These market inefficiencies were the demand-side barriers that were prolonging the disease spread. A qualitative methodology was employed to answer the research question. Sixty-seven semi-structured interviews were conducted from January to July 2017; 33 of these interviews were in Sierra Leone and 34 interviews in Liberia. Informants included health workers, chiefs, chiefs’ advisors, a secret society leader, NGO representatives, a government worker, and volunteers during the outbreak. Thematic analysis and the data were supported by NVIVO. The key themes are: ‘Government’s Response and Community Reaction,’ ‘Local Institutional Intervention,’ and ‘Governing the Outbreak.’ Informants were chosen through purposeful sampling methods in three provinces in each country. The findings demonstrate that traditional leaders in Sierra Leone immediately responded through rulemaking and enforcement after the first Ebola case was officially announced. Specifically, rulemaking helped to create behavior changes to increase demand for aid resources, such as mandatory referrals to the health centers. These laws and door-to-door contact tracing were scaled up to a national emergency strategy, relying on traditional leaders to monitor and enforce them. In Liberia, community and traditional leaders organized in many areas to correct some of these demand-side barriers too. In both cases, the response from community-level leaders happened before the international community scaled up aid resources in August 2014, with some donors and humanitarians arriving as late as December 2014. However, Liberia’s local strategies were not scaled up and coordinated nationally, as it was in Sierra Leone. Thus, the interventions implemented were not universal. According to figures by the World Health Organization, Sierra Leone had 25% more Ebola cases than Liberia but had 18% fewer Ebola deaths. This is interpreted as contact tracing and institutional changes having more impact in Sierra Leone to refer Ebola patients into early treatment and reduce deaths

Interplay between network configurations and network governance mechanisms in supply networks a systematic literature review

Purpose: This work systematically reviews the extant academic management literature on supply networks. It specifically examines how network configurations and network governance mechanisms influence each other in supply networks. Design: 125 analytical and empirical studies were identified using an evidence-based approach to review the literature mainly published between 1985 and 2012. Synthesis: Drawing on a multi-disciplinary theoretical foundation, this work develops an integrative framework to identify three distinct yet interdependent themes that characterize the study of supply networks: a) Network Configurations (structures and relationships); b) Network Governance Mechanisms (formal and informal); and c) The Interplay between Network Configurations and Network Governance Mechanisms. Findings: Network configurations and network governance mechanisms mutually influence each other and cannot be considered in isolation. Formal and informal governance mechanisms provide better control when used as complements rather than as substitutes. The choice of governance mechanism depends on the nature of exchange; role of management; desired level of control; level of flexibility in formal contracts; and complementary role of formal and informal governance mechanism. Research implications: This nascent field has thematic and methodological research opportunities for academics. Comparative network analysis using longitudinal case studies offers a rich area for further study. Practical Implications: The complexity surrounding the conflicting roles of managers at the organisation and network levels poses a significant challenge during the development and implementation stage of strategic network policies. Originality/value: This review reveals that formal and informal governance mechanisms provide better control when used as complements rather than as substitutes

Intelligent Circuits and Systems

ICICS-2020 is the third conference initiated by the School of Electronics and Electrical Engineering at Lovely Professional University that explored recent innovations of researchers working for the development of smart and green technologies in the fields of Energy, Electronics, Communications, Computers, and Control. ICICS provides innovators to identify new opportunities for the social and economic benefits of society.　 This conference bridges the gap between academics and R&D institutions, social visionaries, and experts from all strata of society to present their ongoing research activities and foster research relations between them. It provides opportunities for the exchange of new ideas, applications, and experiences in the field of smart technologies and finding global partners for future collaboration. The ICICS-2020 was conducted in two broad categories, Intelligent Circuits & Intelligent Systems and Emerging Technologies in Electrical Engineering

Challenges for engineering students working with authentic complex problems

Engineers are important participants in solving societal, environmental and technical problems. However, due to an increasing complexity in relation to these problems new interdisciplinary competences are needed in engineering. Instead of students working with monodisciplinary problems, a situation where students work with authentic complex problems in interdisciplinary teams together with a company may scaffold development of new competences. The question is: What are the challenges for students structuring the work on authentic interdisciplinary problems? This study explores a three-day event where 7 students from Aalborg University (AAU) from four different faculties and one student from University College North Denmark (UCN), (6th-10th semester), worked in two groups at a large Danish company, solving authentic complex problems. The event was structured as a Hackathon where the students for three days worked with problem identification, problem analysis and finalizing with a pitch competition presenting their findings. During the event the students had workshops to support the work and they had the opportunity to use employees from the company as facilitators. It was an extracurricular activity during the summer holiday season. The methodology used for data collection was qualitative both in terms of observations and participants’ reflection reports. The students were observed during the whole event. Findings from this part of a larger study indicated, that students experience inability to transfer and transform project competences from their previous disciplinary experiences to an interdisciplinary setting

Exploring the practical use of a collaborative robot for academic purposes

This article presents a set of experiences related to the setup and exploration of potential educational uses of a collaborative robot (cobot). The basic principles that have guided the work carried out have been three. First and foremost, study of all the functionalities offered by the robot and exploration of its potential academic uses both in subjects focused on industrial robotics and in subjects of related disciplines (automation, communications, computer vision). Second, achieve the total integration of the cobot at the laboratory, seeking not only independent uses of it but also seeking for applications (laboratory practices) in which the cobot interacts with some of the other devices already existing at the laboratory (other industrial robots and a flexible manufacturing system). Third, reuse of some available components and minimization of the number and associated cost of required new components. The experiences, carried out following a project-based learning methodology under the framework of bachelor and master subjects and thesis, have focused on the integration of mechanical, electronic and programming aspects in new design solutions (end effector, cooperative workspace, artificial vision system integration) and case studies (advanced task programming, cybersecure communication, remote access). These experiences have consolidated the students' acquisition of skills in the transition to professional life by having the close collaboration of the university faculty with the experts of the robotics company.Postprint (published version