Allocating Conservation Resources under the Endangered Species Act

The necessity to develop a priority system to guide the allocation of resources to the conservation of endangered species is widely recognized. The economic theory of biodiversity has established a framework to do so, and has identified priority criteria that should be considered when making conservation decisions. This paper uses a random effects ordered probit model of endangered species recovery to simulate the effects of reallocating conservation funds among species listed under the Endangered Species Act according to these criteria. Our results suggest that if the goal of conservation policy is to preserve a diverse set of species, reallocating conservation funds according to criteria identified by economic theory would yield an improvement over actual spending patterns without significant tradeoffs in terms of overall species recovery.Endangered Species Act, endangered species, recovery plans, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, biodiversity, critical habitat, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Public Participant Geographical Information Systems: Participation on the road to social sustainability

In this bachelor thesis the discourse of PPGIS will be mapped out both theoretically and empirically. I argue that participation is fundamental for social sustainability and that the emerging Neogeography field motivates citizen participation even more. The thesis explores the traditional disempowering views of GIS as it transforms into a tool for equality and empowerment of marginalized groups. Four different cases of PPGIS is examined and analysed through the theoretical framework ending in a review of PPGIS experiences so far, arguing that for a PPGIS project to be considered part of the social sustainability goals the communication within projects has to work two-ways. Discussion is a fundamental part of PPGIS but is sometimes forgotten when projects turn into pure intelligence gathering. I also argue that projects should not be viewed as single entities but parts of the bigger picture, not seen as isolated events but as on-going processes

Decentralized Planning for Pre-Conflict and Post-Conflict Management in the Bawku Municipal Assembly of Ghana

Decentralized governance in Ghana is aimed at spreading development. Such intention to some extent is marred by communal conflicts. A case studied for this paper is on the Bawku conflict. The Bawku Municipal Assembly, over the years, has put in measures to prevent further conflictbut has failed to bring an end to the long waging conflict that continues to explode from time to time. This paper examines the role of the Municipal Assembly in the Bawku conflict, as the planning authority, for the ways that it uses that function to plan toward overcoming the conflict. Framed as a case study, purposive and random sampling techniques were used toselect institutions and respondents for interviews. The study revealed that the Assembly had not been able to implement its Development Plans. The dynamics of the conflict also indicates that the feuding factions have maintained their opposing positions. Besides, the Assembly has never prepared any conflict management plan in order to address the recurrent conflicts. The study concludes that a collaborative approach though difficult, is a better option for conflict management between feuding factions. There will also be the need for the Assembly to be interested in designing conflict management plans, strengthening the capacity of the Municipal Thaddeus Arkum Aasoglenang and Cuthbert Baataar Planning and Coordinating Unit, the capitalization of a conflict planning programme and the adoption of decentralized institutional arrangements for conflict monitoring and evaluation. Such processes are ‘sine qua non’ to pre-conflict and post-conflict prevention.KEY WORDS: Decentralization, Conflict, Pre-conflict, Post-conflict, Planning, Managemen

A feasibility study for establishing a dedicated breast magnetic resonance imaging center in the city of Redlands

This study is intended to determine the feasiblity of establishing a high-quality, free-standing MR imaging center dedicated to the breast in or about the City of Redlands

Inland aquaculture in India: Past trend, present status and future prospects

In India, inland aquaculture has emerged as a fast-growing enterprise and a viable alternative to the declining capture fisheries. The present paper is an attempt to assess Indian inland aquaculture with respect to its resource base, output trends, systems and activities, yield gaps, adoption and impact on aquaculturists, economics, returns to inputs, investment needs, and future prospects. The paper is largely based on existing literature and observations made as part of an ICAR-WorldFish demand supply project. Indian aquaculture is primarily limited to inland sector and carp-oriented; for that reason, this activity received special attention. Freshwater aquaculture observed tremendous growth in the past 15 years, but immense scope still exists for horizontal expansion and increases in productivity (vertical expansion)

Planning in cyberenvironments: an analysis of the impacts of open data in Chicago

Technologies and the Internet have greatly enhanced the production and communication of information, increasingly impacting on our lives and cities. They have also fostered open access to information and the sharing of it via open data platforms. As a result, many cities are now embracing new modes of open data management. However, the impacts of open data extend beyond data management, transparency, and accountability to influencing governance and community participation. The purpose of this dissertation is to analyze open data as part of the “smart city,” analyzing its potentialities and implications for urban planning based on Cyberenvironments, a collaborative and open approach. I chose Chicago as a case study, where open data is a bridge to Chicago becoming a smart city. The research analyzes the impacts of open data in Chicago, and focuses on changes in governance and the role of non-governmental actors, such as participants in the civic technology community that has gained the trust of citizens, institutions, organizations, and companies. I employed quantitative and qualitative methods, as previous approaches have been highly dominated by quantitative methods lacking a qualitative perspective. Thus, in this exploratory research, qualitative and quantitative methods are integrated by analyzing a single case study. An online survey was included in order to provide a more detailed characterization of the community that I defined as the “Chicago civic technology community” (CCTC). I then conducted semi-structured interviews of experts and decision makers from different institutions involved with initiatives, plans, and projects regarding open data in Chicago. Chicago has a dynamic open data movement supported by the local government, non-government organizations, universities, and citizens interested in sharing and providing urban solutions. The Chicago open data portal was launched in 2010 and relaunched in 2011. It was then supported by the Chicago Technology Plan in 2013, which provided a framework, vision, and strategies turning Chicago into a technology-based city. The plan incorporated a “civic innovation” strategy to empower citizens to use open data. However, since 2010 citizens have been using requesting and transforming data. The data transformation, occurring in collaborative environments, is helping the City of Chicago to spur better decision-making and efficiency. The role of citizen as “civic innovators” is crucial in accelerating this dynamic civic ecosystem. In this dissertation, what I identified the Chicago civic technology community goes beyond a temporal open data movement or simple network to become an engine of innovation building knowledge-based collaborative environments. The civic technology community’s human capital shows how highly skilled citizens can take advantage of open data, add value to raw data, and transform data into knowledge; the Chicago civic technology community has developed an active environment for interaction and the sharing of knowledge. However, this dynamic may actually increase the gap between highly skilled citizens and less skilled citizens, reinforcing existing patterns of exclusion. Thus, the issue is not only access to the information alone, because people require the capacity to transform data into knowledge. Thus, this dissertation presents a shift of paradigm from the “information age” to the “knowledge age,” and the implications of this in a planning context. The main implication involves the evolution from “e-planning,” based on networks and information, to “knowledge planning” (k-planning), based on Cyberenvironments and knowledge. This dissertation’s main finding is that k-planning represent a new venue in planning, offering a comprehensive and contextualized understanding of “planning in Cyberenvironments,” where “urban space” and “time” work together simultaneously to build such Cyberenvironments. K-planning addresses the real-time dimension by utilizing the “acceleration” of space and time simultaneously as “the acceleration of territorial development.” In term of policy implications, open data means more than simply the availability of online datasets—it requires the development of a dynamic civic innovation space, crucial for both countries and cities. Thus, cities need policies directed at strengthening human capital and reducing the gap between highly and low skilled citizens. K-planning offers an alternative to the development of smart cities beyond mere technology operation. I define K-planning for generation of urban development and for re-generation of existing cities; both cases taking into account “genius loci” (origin) and “milieu innovator” as an outcome. K-planning can be applied to the urban generation of smart cities and regeneration for smarter existing cities. K-planning is about synergies, innovation, and integration; it is about partnership based on ownership (specific achievements) and the contribution made by stakeholders for better policy making and promoting a culture of available, open, and relevant data. The aim is to nurture collective knowledge to meet the needs of the civil society via better governance, consensus building and policy making