Becoming Eco-Logical With Second-Order Systems Theory: Sustainability In Re-Organization Of Economies And Food Systems

Ecological Economics has emerged across disciplines, and has begun to disentangle, not only the relationship between biophysical earth systems and economic activity, but also, fundamental relationships between objectivity, power, value, ethics, perspective and purpose. In part, this thesis represents an effort to illustrate basic transdisciplinary concepts necessary for understanding the project of Ecological Economics. At present, Ecological Economics is challenged by a seemingly infinite number of available considerations, with a relatively narrow repertoire of impactful mechanisms of control. Given this, it is apparent that the application of Cybernetics to Ecological Economics might provide insights. Cybernetics can help to lend concise language to manners for implementing control and also help to navigate the paradoxes which arise for self- regulating systems. While Cybernetics played an early role in the formulation of the relationship between the economy and an environment with available energy, second- order cybernetics can help to formulate the autonomy of Ecological Economics as a self-regulating system and shed light on the epistemology and ethics of circularity. The first article of this thesis identifies occasions when Ecological Economics has confronted circularity, and explores options moving forward. Ultimately, confronting paradox and circularity provide the means for the substantiation of Ecological Economics. The food system is prominent within Ecological Economics discourse. It serves as a good example of the ‘emergence’ of coordinated activity. In Cybernetics jargon, we can think of the ‘Food System’ as a symbol for the redundancy found in linked characteristics of particular Ecological-Economic inquiry. For instance, when we consider the food system we can be sure that we are dealing with resources that are essential, both rival and non-rival, excludable and non-excludable, and also highly sensitive to boundaries in scope, and scale, and thus highly sensitive to political and social change. In this sense, the food system acts as a symbol for the coordination of activity, and produces an output which is an input to the Ecological Economic ‘boundary’ between the Economy and the Ecosystem. The second article of this thesis provides an analysis of GHG emissions within the Chittenden County Foodshed. We conclude that urban agriculture, dietary change and agro-ecological production in concert, provide emission reductions which are not achieved when these options are considered separately. Given these conditions, we see mitigation beyond 90% of current emissions

Obo foundry food ontology interconnectivity

Since its creation in 2016, the FoodOn ontology has become an interconnected partner in various academic and government inter-agency ontology work spanning agricultural and public health domains. This paper examines existing and potential data interoperability capabilities arising from FoodOn and partner food-related ontologies belonging to the encyclopedic Open Biological and Biomedical Ontology Foundry (OBO) vocabulary platform, and how research organizations and industry might utilize them for their own operations or for data exchange. Projects are seeking standardized vocabulary across all direct food supply activities ranging from agricultural production, harvesting, preparation, food processing, marketing, distribution and consumption, as well as indirectly, within health, economic, food security and sustainability analysis and reporting tools. To satisfy this demand and provide data requires establishing domain specific ontologies whose curators coordinate closely to produce recommended patterns for food system vocabulary

4 Star Complementary Food Menu Recommendation System Using the Mobile-Based Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making (FMADM) Method

Toddler in the age category of six to twenty-four months should be ready to be given complementary food. In order to fulfill the nutritional needs for the toddler's growth, complementary foods must be sufficient for the kid according to their age while still paying attention to the continuity of breastfeeding. One thing that must be considered in choosing complementary foods is the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) which is categorized by age, weight, and food texture, which is adjusted to the toddler age category. In terms of fulfilling all aspects of choosing complementary foods, this study proposes the design of a 4-star daily menu recommendation system for toddlers which refers to the intake of daily calorie needs for toddlers, namely carbohydrates, animal protein, vegetable protein, and vitamins/minerals using the FMADM method (Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making). The FMADM method used is the Electre method. In this study, the authors succeeded in building the desired recommendation system using the Electre method which produces a daily menu based on the number of mealtimes, based on the age and weight of toddlers by observing the user's tendency to the texture and composition of food and its nutritional content in the recommendation system that is built, so that can be accessed via mobile devices owned by the user

James and Whitehead: Assemblage and Systematization of a Deeply Empiricist Mosaic Philosophy

This paper contributes to a growing body of philosophical and psychological work that draws parallels between the writings of William James and Alfred North Whitehead. In Part One I introduce Whitehead’s distinction between assemblage and systematization (section 1) and suggest that Whitehead’s philosophy was in part a systematization of James’ psychological and philosophical assemblage (section 2). The systematization is based on a rethinking of the entity/function contrast (section 3) by way of Whitehead’s concept of the actual entity/occasion (section 4). This permits a process-oriented ontological extension and James’ notion of pure experience (sections 5 & 6), which yields a deepened version of radical empiricism (section 7). The four sections of Part Two build a more specific argument that James’ often implicit distinctions between energetic, perceptual, conceptual and discursive modes of experience can be systematized by way of Whitehead’s concepts of causal efficacy, presentational immediacy and symbolic reference. Following the suggestion of Magritte’s famous Ceci n’est pas une Pipe artwork, this yields an analysis of the sum of human experience into four progressively integrated factors: power, image, proposition and enunciation

Constructing Freshness: The Vitality of Wet Markets in Urban China

Wet markets, a ‘traditional’ form of food retail, have maintained their popularity in urban China despite the rapid expansion of ‘modern’ supermarket chains. Their continued popularity rests in the freshness of their food. Chinese consumers regard freshness as the most important aspect of food they buy, but what constitutes ‘freshness’ in produce is not simply a given. Freshness is actively produced by a range of actors including wholesalers, vendors as well as consumers. The paper examines what fresh food means to consumers in the Chinese market. It argues that wet markets create a sense of freshness that resonates with this culinary culture through their sensoria, atmosphere, and trust between food vendors and consumers. Together these respond to desires for and reproduce criteria used to evaluate freshness. Within a fragmented food trade system, wet market vendors have an advantage in offering ‘freshness’ through their ability to connect various wholesalers, agencies, and middlemen, and shorten supply chains. The paper is based on participatory observation, a consumer survey and in-depth interviews of various stakeholders in southern China, especially Sanya in Hainan and Guangzhou in Guangdong. This study suggests that this cultural construction of freshness creates a niche for small-scale players and ‘traditional’ markets in an increasingly concentrated global food system

An investigation into practices and determinants of the circular economy in the food by-product management using multiple case research design

Food waste is one of the biggest global challenges in our modern time due to its serious environmental, economic, social and ethical implications. There is a pressing concern to address this challenge globally, which prompts governments, industries and academia alike to rethink the food system and take actions to reduce and manage the waste issues effectively. A circular economy that drifts away from the linear take-make-dispose model is touted as a practical solution to not only enable dual goals of wealth generation and GHG mitigation but also radically transform the way we look at and manage food waste. However, little is known about how the circular economy can be properly translated and executed in food by- product valorisation. This is intensified by a lack of genuine interest from practitioners as a result of enormous and systemic changes required in the circular economy concept. The practitioners are still struggling to grasp a consistent understanding of the concept for onward implementation. Coupled with a response to calls to move the attention to food by-product management, this study was undertaken to understand the nature of the circular transition with the view to shed light on its implementations in the food by-product management and the associated determinants along the transition process in the UK context. For the explorative purpose, a multiple case study research method following an abductive qualitative research approach was adopted. The last decade has witnessed interesting dynamics in food by-product management in the UK. For example, anaerobic digestions continue to take off in volume and efficiency, yet other types of innovations continue to exhibit in the valorisation of the food by-products. Therefore, six cases of small and medium-sized food by-product processors were theoretically sampled to elucidate these innovative efforts. The cases have direct involvement in processing food by-products in the UK. This enabled the researcher to explore and gain insights into the phenomenon of circular innovations in the contemporary context of food waste management. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews, triangulated with evidence from other sources, including observations from site visits and exclusively accessed and publicly available documents.The findings yielded critical themes concerning three research questions. The circular practice specifies the types of innovation practices employed in each case that centre on the operations and technologies, by-product procurement, output products and their markets. A list of 11 drivers and 13 barriers is yielded and aggregated into six themes, regulatory, social, cognitive, economic, supply chain, and technological sources. Interestingly, the technological factor is not listed in the list of drivers. The nexus of circular practices, drivers and barriers is then elaborated on the theoretical anchor of an integrated institutional theory with an institutional logic add-on. Overall, the finding indicates that weak momentum for the circular engagement is due to deep uncertainty perceived in such engagement. Finally, theoretical, methodological and practical contributions are discerned while future research directions are suggested

Hybrid Simulation-based Planning Framework for Agri-Fresh Produce Supply Chain

The ever-increasing demand for fresh and healthy products raises the economic importance of managing Agri-Fresh Produce Supply Chain (AFPSC) effectively. However, the literature review has indicated that many challenges undermine efficient planning for AFPSCs. Stringent regulations on production and logistics activities, production seasonality and high yield variations (quantity and quality), and products vulnerability to multiple natural stresses, alongside with their critical shelf life, impact the planning process. This calls for developing smart planning and decision-support tools which provides higher efficiency for such challenges. Modelling and simulation (M&S) approaches for AFPSC planning problems have a proven record in offering safe and economical solutions. Increase in problem complexity has urged the use of hybrid solutions that integrate different approaches to provide better understanding of the system dynamism in an environment characterised by multi-firm and multi-dimensional relationships. The proposed hybrid simulation-based planning framework for AFPSCs has addressed internal decision-making mechanisms, rules and control procedures to support strategic, tactical and operational planning decisions. An exploratory study has been conducted using semi-structured interviews with twelve managers from different agri-fresh produce organisations. The aim of this study is to understand management practices regarding planning and to gain insights on current challenges. Discussions with managers on planning issues such as resources constraints, outsourcing, capacity, product sensitivity, quality, and lead times have formed the foundation of process mapping. As a result, conceptual modelling process is then used to model supply chain planning activities. These conceptual models are inclusive and reflective to system complexity and decision sensitivity. Verification of logic and accuracy of the conceptual models has been done by few directors in AFPSC before developing a hybrid simulation model. Hybridisation of Discrete Event Simulation (DES), System Dynamics (SD), and Agent-Based Modelling (ABM) has offered flexibility and precision in modelling this complex supply chain. DES provides operational models that include different entities of AFPSC, and SD minds investments decisions according to supply and demand implications, while ABM is concerned with modelling variations of human behaviour and experience. The proposed framework has been validated using Table Grapes Supply Chain (TGSC) case study. Decision makers have appreciated the level of details included in the solution at different planning levels (i.e., operational, tactical and strategic). Results show that around 58% of wasted products can be saved if correct hiring policy is adopted in the management of seasonal labourer recruitment. This would also factor in more than 25% improved profits at packing house entity. Moreover, an anticipation of different supply and demand scenarios demonstrated that inefficiency of internal business processes might undermine the whole business from gaining benefits of market growth opportunities

Managing corporate memory on the semantic web

Corporate memory (CM) is the total body of data, information and knowledge required to deliver the strategic aims and objectives of an organization. In the current market, the rapidly increasing volume of unstructured documents in the enterprises has brought the challenge of building an autonomic framework to acquire, represent, learn and maintain CM, and efficiently reason from it to aid in knowledge discovery and reuse. The concept of semantic web is being introduced in the enterprises to structure information in a machine readable way and enhance the understandability of the disparate information. Due to the continual popularity of the semantic web, this paper develops a framework for CM management on the semantic web. The proposed approach gleans information from the documents, converts into a semantic web resource using resource description framework (RDF) and RDF Schema and then identifies relations among them using latent semantic analysis technique. The efficacy of the proposed approach is demonstrated through empirical experiments conducted on two case studies. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York