Employees on social media: A multi-spokespeople model of CSR communication

Increasing societal and stakeholder expectations, along with easy access to information through social media, means corporations are asked for more information. The traditional approach to CSR communication, with corporations controlling what and how much to share with stakeholders has been restructured by social media, with stakeholders taking control. As legitimacy on social media is created through the positive and negative judgements of stakeholders, corporations must plan how to meet stakeholder demands for information effectively and legitimately, and this includes choosing appropriate spokespeople. Corporations in India have now turned towards their employees as CSR spokespeople. By encouraging employee activity on social media, these corporations are attempting to meet stakeholder demands and generate legitimacy through spokespeople whom stakeholders perceive as equals. This article examines that strategy and discusses its viability of using employees as spokespeople for CSR communication and engagement with stakeholder

Environmental Contaminant Exposure and Effects on Bats: Studies in Sichuan Province, China and Colorado, U.S.A.

As the world’s only flying mammals, bats fill an important ecological role in most ecosystems, acting as agents of seed dispersal, pollination, fertilization, and insect control. The human-mediated release of environmental contaminants has been implicated in the decline of many bat populations over the past few decades. Given bats’ ecological significance, I studied how bat presence and activity related to contaminated food and water sources in two global regions: 1) in and around the growing urban city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, China, and 2) along the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, U.S.A., which has been subject to 150 years of mining. In China (Chapter II), I tested mercury concentrations in fur and organochlorine concentrations in guano to assess their relationships to land use type and bat species, relative age, body condition, and phonic type. Because the Japanese pipistrelle (Pipistrellus abramus) had the highest fur mercury concentrations of bats sampled, in Chapter III I examined genetic identity and gene flow to confirm that all bats sampled were indeed P. abramus and to better understand local movements and potential implications of the contaminant concentrations. Finally, in Colorado (Chapter IV), I tested whether bat activity and feeding attempts differed locally above streams of high versus low metal contamination at high-elevation sites (\u3e2,900 m). In China (Chapter II), total mercury concentrations were significantly higher in adult P. abramus than in adult Chinese noctules (Nyctalus plancyi) (P \u3c 0.001), and significantly higher in adult N. plancyi relative to juveniles (P \u3c 0.001). There was no significant difference in concentrations by land use type (urban versus suburban), but 57% of adult pipistrelles had fur mercury concentrations above the threshold for reduced homeostatic control, with the maximum (33 ppm) from an adult female in an agricultural area. There was no relationship between fur mercury concentration and bat body condition for either species. Hexachlorobenzene, alpha-chlordane, p,p’-DDE, o,p’-DDD, and p,p’-DDD were detected in guano but at levels well below those associated with harm. More bat phonic types were detected at a forested mountain site than agricultural or urban areas, though this could not be related to contaminant concentrations. In Chapter III, mitochondrial (cyt b) and nuclear studies confirmed that all individuals assumed to be P. abramus matched the species genetically and that there was weak population structure in Chengdu. This corroborated high gene flow in the area and a likely home range size o

Participatory Planning at the National Level - the Case of Sustainable and Integrated Urban Development Strategy of Serbia

The paper focuses on the assessment of participatory process in formulation of national urban development policy of Serbia until 2030. The assessment of participation is attached to the complexities in defining auxiliary set of evaluation criteria, while the process itself requires activities focused on individuals, organizations and their institutional environment, and the linkages between the different governance levels and instruments. The assessment in this paper is based on a mixed method approach. Quantification is used to measure the level of satisfaction/dissatisfaction of actors involved in the process, while the qualitative analysis provides an in-depth understanding on the visible and less visible results of their engagement. Findings point out the increase in participants’ knowledge and understanding of the planning process, and the possibility of institutionalising such a process in a way that coordination and cooperation are continually unfolding. The most important elements of active stakeholder involvement were recognised in the possibility to attain the public discourse which enabled: 1) prioritization of the national urban development programs, 2) linking planning with financing, and 3) better understanding of the relation between traditional spatial/urban planning and new governance instruments. The identified challenges relate to the need for further support to the implementation of the strategy through legislation, institutions, capacities and funding. The fragility of institutions and resistance to change in the transitional context of the post-socialist country is present. At the same time there is a need to deal with complexity and uncertanity, where the findings point out at the necessity to rely on the openness and vitality of the local level and experts involved in the process

Turin Augmented Metropolis

Chapter reporting in summary form The Metropolitan Strategic Plan (2021-2023), applied research commissioned by the Metropolitan City of Turin and developed by a large multidisciplinary team. Nicola Russi was responsible for the PTGM Metropolitan General Territorial Plan, preparatory for development of the Strategic Plan. / Capitolo che riporta in forma sintetica Il Piano Strategico della Città Metropolitana di Torino (2021-2023), ricerca applicata commissionata dalla Città Metropolitana di Torino e svilppata da un ampio team multidisciplinare. In particolare Nicola Russi è stato responsabile del PTGM Piano Territoriale Generale Metropolitano, propedeutico allo sviluppo del Piano Strategico

Adaptive reuse scenarios

Chapter reporting in a summary form the results of the research project "La Cittadella di Alessandria. Adaptive Reuse Scenarios for the Cittadella of Alessandria," developed in 2017 by Matteo Robiglio as scientific coordinator, and Nicola Russi, Elena Vigliocco, as project coordinators. / Capitolo che riporta in forma sintetica i risultati del progetto di ricerca "La Cittadella di Alessandria. Scenari di riuso adattivo per la Cittadella di Alessandria", sviluppato nel 2017 da Matteo Robiglio come coordinatore scientifico, e Nicola Russi, Elena Vigliocco, come coordinatori del progetto

Contemporary Rentscapes

Contemporary rentscapes Chapter reporting in a summary form the results of the research: “Contemporary Rentascapes” focusing on transformative strategies for large rental housing stocks. The first part of this project was published in the book “Re-housing, the house as an Integration device”, The second iteration of the project was published in the book “Living beyond Property”. / Capitolo che riporta in forma sintetica i risultati della ricerca “Contemporary Rentascapes” incentrato sulle strategie di trasformazione dei grandi stock abitativi in affitto. La prima parte di questo progetto è stata pubblicata nel libro Re-housing, "La casa come dispositivo di integrazione", mentre la seconda iterazione del progetto è stata pubblicata nel libro (Living beyond Property)