Towards Sustainable Middle Eastern Cities: A Local Sustainability Assessment Framework

The construction of a guiding methodological framework for local sustainability assessment is a key to achieving a sustainable future. This study develops an approach to local sustainability assessment (ALSA), a methodological framework that facilitates the formulation, selection and prioritisation of key indicators to guide the assessment of city sustainability at a local level in Middle Eastern cities. Based on a literature review, this research devised a methodological framework, ALSA, which is a combination of the Commission on Sustainable Development’s (CSD)Theme Indicator Framework (2001) (themes, sub themes and indicators) and a Goal-Based Framework (indicators that most directly reflect the issues of a case study and its local communities and stakeholders). This combination framework is shown to be more appropriate in this instance than other types of frameworks, in terms of overcoming some inherent weaknesses, leading to the adoption of a top-down / bottom-up approach. Such an approach is shown to be the best way of developing indicators which are (top-down) scientifically valid and generic with (bottom-up) stakeholder and local communities needs. The ALSA methodological framework involves four steps, which are: issue identification, objective formulation, indicator formulation and indicator selecting and ranking. The first set of proposed indicators contained 98 indicators. This set of proposed indicators was revised and analysed by means of a series of shared ideas from literature and through consultation with experts from specific areas, using a workshop format. This revision stage was used to reformulate and select valid and useful indicators (comparable, measurable, and sensitive). The second set of valid and useful indicators (after the first revisions) contains 57 indicators. The indicators were ranked on the basis of priority to identify a final set of indicators that cover the four dimensions of sustainability, which are defined within this work as environmental, social, economic and institutional. The evaluation (SWOT analysis) of this framework was examined during this study. The city of Hilla, Iraq, was selected as a case study to prove the applicability of the ALSA methodological framework in a real world case study. It is argued that this study is pioneering in adding knowledge and understanding of the development of a methodological framework to provide local sustainability indicators in a post-conflict, Middle Eastern city in an oil-rich country. It is concluded that the ALSA methodological framework provides an efficient and rigorous approach for the formulation, selection and prioritization of key indicators that will measure and encapsulate the essence of a sustainable city and could help Middle Eastern cities achieve higher levels of progress towards sustainability in practice.Self fundin

Towards a framework for multiparadigm multimethodologies in systems thinking and practice

Burrell and Morgan (2000) claimed that knowledge is paradigmatic, encompassing a distinct worldview and rationality governing research strategies and methods for which they identified four sociological paradigms to locate them based on “metatheoretical assumptions about the nature of reality, knowledge, and human behavior” (Cunliffe, 2010). They regard the competing theories developed from different paradigms as incommensurable—those working in one paradigm are not understood by those committed to another. Moreover, “there can be no measure, outside of the paradigms, which can be used as a basis for comparing and adjudicating between the claims toknowledge of theories produced from within different paradigms” (Jackson, 2000).This new theory states that because the problem of paradigm incommensurability begins at the level of ontology the solution lies there as well. Rather than supporting just one or a few paradigms, a different type of ontology is needed to explain ontological variety. It is argued that we can only perceive reality as meaningful paradigmatically, just as in the metaphor of the blind men and the elephant (Saxe, ca. 1850) where each comes upon a different part of an elephant andgeneralises that the whole is like their one piece. Furthermore, they cannot understand what they have found by comparing experiences.Solving the incommensurability issue is the theoretical key needed to properly underpin pluralist approaches to systems theory, design and intervention. But to do so, this new ontology is placed so that it operates within a suitable and otherwise complete theoretical framework which does not circumscribe, subsume, or in any way alter existing approaches, paradigms and theories—it purpose is only to sanction their use in a pluralist systemic approach. Such a framework, calledP–S Multiparadigm Perspectivity is described in this thesis.Ten interviews with systemists were conducted with mixed results. The tests mistakenly assumed that systemists were generally aware of paradigms and incommensurability—instead, an aversion to theory was discovered. Surprisingly, though, two methods to address the issue were also found in the data. One of the interviewees teaches theory through storytelling; another demonstrates methods first, to pique the learner’s interest and evoke their questions. It was learned that the adoption of this theory depends upon an improved awareness of the concepts of critical systems paradigms within the systemist community

Towards a Framework for the Transferability of Results in IS Qualitative Research

Despite the diverse calls for transferability in IS research, most IS qualitative research studies still pay little attention to the possible applicability of theirresults in other social contexts (settings). We argue that one way to enhance transferability is to characterize the deep features of the research setting. The two main premises of this paper are that although in IS qualitative research knowledge about results is context-bound, (1) the settings in which IS phenomena occur may have common features and characteristics, and therefore, the settings may be commensurable, and (2) the transferability ofresearch results from one setting to another depends on the fit between those common features and characteristics of the settings. In this article, we draw on the constituents of structure proposed by Giddens to suggest these common features and develop a framework of four pure structuralconfigurations. We consider this framework may be a first approximation to typifying the setting in which IS phenomena occur, and therefore, a way to enhance the transferability of IS qualitative research by delineating the applicability of its results

Towards a framework for environmental risk assessment of CCS: subsea engineering systems

Nowadays, we are observing a continuous rise in trends of greenhouse gasses’ concentration in the atmosphere, especially of carbon dioxide, and this is, in great part, attributable to human activities. The first detrimental effects on climate have already been observed and ever more long-term changes in weather patterns should be expected if no concrete action to contrast these trends is put in practice. The scientific community is thus suggesting innovative and practical solutions for both mitigating climate change and adapting to its impacts: carbon capture and storage (CCS) is one such option. CCS involves capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) from power plants, industrial activities and any other sources of CO2 and storing it in a geological formation. The appeal of this technique resides in the fact that CCS is able to combine the use of fossil fuels, on which our society still relies a lot, with the environmental exigency to cut carbon dioxide’s emissions. However, despite the interesting mitigation option offered by CCS, there is the impelling need, as for any other human activity, to assess and manage risk; this work is intended to do so. The focus is, more precisely, on marine environmental risk posed by CO2 leakages, as how this risk should be addressed still represents a largely debated topic. Specific risks can be associated to each of the stages of a CCS system (capture, transport and storage). The focus of this work is on the subsea engineering system, thus, offshore pipelines (transport) and injection / plugged and abandoned wells (part of the storage). The aim of this work is to start approaching the development of a complete and standardized practical procedure to perform a quantified environmental risk assessment for CCS, with reference to the specific activities mentioned above. Such an effort would be of extreme relevance not only for companies willing to implement CCS, as a methodological guidance, but also, by uniformizing the ERA procedure, to begin changing people’s perception about CCS, that happens to be often discredited due to the evident lack of systematized methods to assess the impacts on the marine environment. The backbone structure of the framework developed sees the integration of ERA’s main steps, which are the problem formulation, exposure assessment, effect assessment and risk characterization, and those belonging to the well-known quantified risk assessment (QRA). This, in practice, meant giving relevance to the identification of possible hazards, before the fate of CO2 in seawater could be described (exposure assessment), and estimating the frequencies of the leakage scenarios, in order to finally describe risk as a combination of magnitude of the consequences and their frequency. The framework developed by this work is, however, at a preliminary stage, as not every single aspect has been dealt with in the required detail, thus, several alternative options are presented to be used depending on the situation. Further specific studies should address their accuracy and efficiency and solve the knowledge gaps emerged, in order to establish and validate a final and complete procedure. Regardless of the knowledge gaps and uncertainties, that surely need to be addressed, this preliminary framework can already find some relevance in on field applications, as a non-stringent guidance to perform CCS ERA, and, anyways, it constitutes the foundation of the final framework

Interoperability challenges for ICT-enabled governance: towards a pan-European conceptual framework

In the European academic and institutional debate, interoperability is predominantly seen as a means to enable public administrations to collaborate within Members State and across borders. The article presents a conceptual framework for ICT-enabled governance and analyses the role of interoperability in this regard. The article makes a specific reference to the exploratory research project carried out by the Information Society Unit of the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) of the European Commission¿s Joint Research Centre on emerging ICT-enabled governance models in EU cities (EXPGOV). The aim of this project is to study the interplay between ICTs and governance processes at city level and formulate an interdisciplinary framework to assess the various dynamics emerging from the application of ICT-enabled service innovations in European cities. In this regard, the conceptual framework proposed in this article results from an action research perspective and investigation of e-governance experiences carried out in Europe. It aims to elicit the main value drivers that should orient how interoperable systems are implemented, considering the reciprocal influences that occur between these systems and different governance models in their specific context

Towards a framework for the integration of information security into undergraduate computing curricula

Information is an important and valuable asset, in both our everyday lives and in various organisations. Information is subject to numerous threats, these can originate internally or externally to the organisation and could be accidental, intentional or caused by natural disasters. As an important organisational asset, information should be appropriately protected from threats and threat agents regardless of their origin. Organisational employees are, however, often cited as the “weakest link” in the attempt to protect organisational information systems and related information assets. Additionally to this, employees are one of the biggest and closest threat-agents to an organisation’s information systems and its security. Upon graduating, computing (Computer Science, Information Systems and Information Technology) graduates typically become organisational employees. Within organisations, computing graduates often take on roles and responsibilities that involve designing, developing, implementing, upgrading and maintaining the information systems that store, process and transmit organisational information assets. It is, therefore, important that these computing graduates possess the necessary information security skills, knowledge and understanding that could enable them to perform their roles and responsibilities in a secure manner. These information security skills, knowledge and understanding can be acquired through information security education obtained through a qualification that is offered at a higher education institution. At many higher education institutions where information security is taught, it is taught as a single, isolated module at the fourth year level of study. The problem with this is that some computing students do not advance to this level and many of those that do, do not elect information security as a module. This means that these students may graduate and be employed by organisations lacking the necessary information security skills, knowledge and understanding to perform their roles and responsibilities securely. Consequently, this could increase the number of employees who are the “weakest link” in securing organisational information systems and related information assets. The ACM, as a key role player that provides educational guidelines for the development of computing curricula, recommends that information security should be pervasively integrated into computing curricula. However, these guidelines and recommendations do not provide sufficient guidance on “how” computing educators can pervasively integrate information security into their modules. Therefore, the problem identified by this research is that “currently, no generally used framework exists to aid the pervasive integration of information security into undergraduate computing curricula”. The primary research objective of this study, therefore, is to develop a framework to aid the pervasive integration of information security into undergraduate computing curricula. In order to meet this objective, secondary objectives were met, namely: To develop an understanding of the importance of information security; to determine the importance of information security education as it relates to undergraduate computing curricula; and to determine computing educators’ perspectives on information security education in a South African context. Various research methods were used to achieve this study’s research objectives. These research methods included a literature review which was used to define and provide an in-depth discussion relating to the domain in which this study is contained, namely: information security and information security education. Furthermore, a survey which took the form of semi-structured interviews supported by a questionnaire, was used to elicit computing educators’ perspectives on information security education in a South African context. Argumentation was used to argue towards the proposed framework to aid the pervasive integration of information security into undergraduate computing curricula. In addition, modelling techniques were used to model the proposed framework and scenarios were used to demonstrate how a computing department could implement the proposed framework. Finally, elite interviews supported by a questionnaire were conducted to validate the proposed framework. It is envisaged that the proposed framework could assist computing departments and undergraduate computing educators in the integration of information security into their curricula. Furthermore, the pervasive integration of information security into undergraduate computing curricula could ensure that computing graduates exit higher education institutions possessing the necessary information security skills, knowledge and understanding to enable them to perform their roles and responsibilities securely. It is hoped that this could enable computing graduates to become a stronger link in securing organisational information systems and related assets

Towards a knowledge sharing framework based on student questions : the case for a dynamic FAQ environment

Includes bibliographical references.This study investigates the impact of anonymous computer mediated interaction on question-driven knowledge acquisition among students. A growing concern for educational institutions in general and educators in particular has been to augment what students are formally taught and what they informally learn from one another. Anecdotal evidence suggests that students consult one another informally. However, informal consultations suffer from three limitations: a) they are limited to clusters of friends; b) shared information is not retained; c) educators have no access to informal knowledge. My argument is that knowledge shared informally among students is a potential knowledge resource for both students and educators. As a student resource, it allows students to reconstruct their own understanding as they share their knowledge with each other. As an educators' resource, it serves as a diagnostic tool about students' knowledge levels hence identifying areas of misunderstanding or misconceptions

Augmenting data warehousing architectures with hadoop

Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Information Management, specialization in Information Systems and Technologies ManagementAs the volume of available data increases exponentially, traditional data warehouses struggle to transform this data into actionable knowledge. Data strategies that include the creation and maintenance of data warehouses have a lot to gain by incorporating technologies from the Big Data’s spectrum. Hadoop, as a transformation tool, can add a theoretical infinite dimension of data processing, feeding transformed information into traditional data warehouses that ultimately will retain their value as central components in organizations’ decision support systems. This study explores the potentialities of Hadoop as a data transformation tool in the setting of a traditional data warehouse environment. Hadoop’s execution model, which is oriented for distributed parallel processing, offers great capabilities when the amounts of data to be processed require the infrastructure to expand. Horizontal scalability, which is a key aspect in a Hadoop cluster, will allow for proportional growth in processing power as the volume of data increases. Through the use of a Hive on Tez, in a Hadoop cluster, this study transforms television viewing events, extracted from Ericsson’s Mediaroom Internet Protocol Television infrastructure, into pertinent audience metrics, like Rating, Reach and Share. These measurements are then made available in a traditional data warehouse, supported by a traditional Relational Database Management System, where they are presented through a set of reports. The main contribution of this research is a proposed augmented data warehouse architecture where the traditional ETL layer is replaced by a Hadoop cluster, running Hive on Tez, with the purpose of performing the heaviest transformations that convert raw data into actionable information. Through a typification of the SQL statements, responsible for the data transformation processes, we were able to understand that Hadoop, and its distributed processing model, delivers outstanding performance results associated with the analytical layer, namely in the aggregation of large data sets. Ultimately, we demonstrate, empirically, the performance gains that can be extracted from Hadoop, in comparison to an RDBMS, regarding speed, storage usage and scalability potential, and suggest how this can be used to evolve data warehouses into the age of Big Data