Seismic Analysis and Fragility Curves of Gravity Waterfront Structures

The aim of the study is to propose adequate fragility curves for waterfront/ retaining structures for ground shaking without the presence of liquefaction, using available data from past earthquakes’ damages in Europe and worldwide and numerical analysis of typical cases. Existing fragility curves and damage states are evaluated and their shortcomings and/or limitations are assessed. Typical waterfront structures, with different geometry, foundation soil conditions and seismic excitations, are studied using appropriate numerical modeling. The corresponding damage levels are estimated with respect to the induced residual displacements and the seismic response of the soil-structure system. Considering aleatory uncertainties of the parameters involved, analytical fragility curves are then constructed for the different types of waterfront structures and foundation conditions. The computed analytical fragility curves are compared with the validated empirical ones, in order to propose fragility functions and corresponding damage levels for gravity waterfront/ retaining structures based on European distinctive features

Navigating the Green Transition During the Pandemic Equitably: A New Perspective on Technological Resilience Among Boston Neighborhoods Facing the Shock

Cities, public authorities, and private organizations respond to climate change with various green policies and strategies to enhance community resilience. However, these community-level transition processes are complex and require deliberate and collective planning. Under this context, the purpose of this study is to understand the energy actions taken at the local level, as well as to analyze the differences between the neighborhoods’ green energy transitions in terms of their socio-economic aspects, using a big data perspective. The paper is addressing the following question: what was the role that the pandemic played in accelerating or slowing Boston’s green investments, and to what extent do different racial and socioeconomic groups invest in green technologies during this period? The study aims to answer these research questions using the City of Boston as a case study to reveal different neighborhoods’ paths in achieving the transformation of city ecosystems towards green neutrality. Next, the theoretical framework builds the linkages among the city’s measures, climate actions proposed by the City of Boston, and their associated contexts and outcomes in shaping new policy and planning models for higher ‘green’ performance. Following the understanding of the actions, the neighborhoods’ socio-economic and building permit data were assessed to understand whether economic disparities exacerbated during the pandemic have affected neighborhoods’ performance in green transition. This method is applied in a comparative study of its 23 neighborhoods, using a dataset provided by Boston Area Research Initiative (BARI). Intriguingly, the paper’s findings show that racial differences within the city have no significant impact on tech-related expenditures. There is a clear negative correlation between poverty rate and investment, which indicates the reverse relationship between these socio-economic factors. The study concludes that city authorities will need to address the challenges of each community achieving green transition with more targeted programs based on its needs

The Role of Soil and Site Conditions in the Vulnerability and Risk Assessment of Lifelines and Infrastructures. The Case of Thessaloniki (Greece).

Soil conditions and site effects play an important role in the vulnerability assessment of lifelines and infrastructures under strong seismic excitation. Due to the spatial extent of these networks, they are subjected to non-uniform and incoherent ground motion as a result of the variability of soil and geological conditions; consequently their vulnerability assessment depends entirely on the variability of soil conditions and ground motion, known as site effects, for a given seismic scenario. Fragility functions for the exposed elements at risk, composing the different lifelines and infrastructure systems, play an equally important role. The paper presents some selected results of a recent application of a comprehensive methodology assessing the vulnerability of several lifeline systems in Thessaloniki in Greece. The work is part of a large research program, aiming to the development of a general methodology for the assessment of the seismic risk for the building stock, lifeline systems and infrastructures at urban scale. Key factors of the methodology are the inventory, the typology, the specific characteristics and the importance (global value) of the elements at risk, the development of seismic scenarios (seismic hazard) and the geotechnical characterization, with the detailed site response analysis. The methodology and the role of soil and site conditions are highlighted with representative examples of the application in Thessaloniki

Smart Systems of Innovation for Smart Places: Challenges in Deploying Digital Platforms for Co-Creation and Data-Intelligence

The effect of digital transformation towards more efficient, place-based and bottom-up innovation policies at different spatial scales has proven significant, as digital technologies modify existing policy-design routines in cities and regions. Smart places (cities, districts, neighbourhoods, ecosystems) depend on the way digitalisation disrupts systems of innovation in cities, making it more open, global, participatory and experimental. We argue that the rise and interconnection of various types of intelligence (artificial, human, collective) could bring profound changes in the way smart places are being created and evolve. In this context, cyber-physical systems of innovation are deployed through multiple nodes acquiring digital companions, collaboration is deployed over physical, social, and digital spaces, and actors can use complex methods guided by software and get insights from data and analytics. The paper also presents the case study of OnlineS3, a two-year Horizon 2020 project, which developed and tested a digital platform composed of applications, datasets and roadmaps, which altogether create a digital environment for empowering the design of smart specialisation strategies for local and regional systems of innovation. The results indicate that digital transformation allows the operationalisation of multiple methodologies which have not been used earlier by policy makers, due to lack of capabilities. It can also increase the scalability of indicators facilitating decision making at different spatial scales and, therefore, better respond to the complexity of innovation systems providing dynamic and scale-diverse information

Intelligence and co-creation in smart specialisation strategies: towards the next stage of RIS3

The white paper on “Intelligence and Co-creation in Smart Specialisation Strategies” outlines some key conclusions from the Online S3 project, funded under the Horizon 2020 programme of the European Commission. The Online S3 project has produced an online platform composed of software applications and roadmaps that facilitate the design and implementation of Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3). Using a baseline set of methodologies for strategy design, Online S3 is advancing the understanding of RIS3 as a place-based and evidence-driven innovation policy, relying on large datasets and software for user engagement, co-creation and collective intelligence in policy design. In this white paper, the core building blocks of RIS3 are presented, as they appear in EU documents and related literature, such as ex ante conditionalities, stakeholder engagement, specialisation by diversification, entrepreneurial discovery, policy co-design, monitoring and assessment. This white paper also discusses weaknesses of the current period and what can be done better in the near future; thus, puts RIS3 in retrospect and prospect for 2021-2027. At the same time, it looks into critical dimensions for the next stage of RIS3, focusing on how strategies can be improved by datasets and software, enabling the implementation of complex methods; thus, facilitating collective intelligence and co-creation of solutions, which both are able to usher a transition from the triple to quadruple helix model of collaboration. Finally, the annex presents a short description of the 28 software applications and the 4 roadmaps hosted on the Online S3 Platform, which enable the use of datasets and sophisticated methodologies by policy-makers

Online S3 D2.3 - Online S3 mechanism for knowledge-based policy advice

No abstract available

Intelligence and co-creation in smart specialisation strategies: towards the next stage of RIS3

The white paper on “Intelligence and Co-creation in Smart Specialisation Strategies” outlines some key conclusions from the Online S3 project, funded under the Horizon 2020 programme of the European Commission. The Online S3 project has produced an online platform composed of software applications and roadmaps that facilitate the design and implementation of Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3). Using a baseline set of methodologies for strategy design, Online S3 is advancing the understanding of RIS3 as a place-based and evidence-driven innovation policy, relying on large datasets and software for user engagement, co-creation and collective intelligence in policy design. In this white paper, the core building blocks of RIS3 are presented, as they appear in EU documents and related literature, such as ex ante conditionalities, stakeholder engagement, specialisation by diversification, entrepreneurial discovery, policy co-design, monitoring and assessment. This white paper also discusses weaknesses of the current period and what can be done better in the near future; thus, puts RIS3 in retrospect and prospect for 2021-2027. At the same time, it looks into critical dimensions for the next stage of RIS3, focusing on how strategies can be improved by datasets and software, enabling the implementation of complex methods; thus, facilitating collective intelligence and co-creation of solutions, which both are able to usher a transition from the triple to quadruple helix model of collaboration. Finally, the annex presents a short description of the 28 software applications and the 4 roadmaps hosted on the Online S3 Platform, which enable the use of datasets and sophisticated methodologies by policy-makers

Online S3 D2.3 - Online S3 mechanism for knowledge-based policy advice

No abstract available