Promoting an image of independence: An institutional perspective on nonprofit organizational strategies

This article focuses on how the alleged value of independence in nonprofit organizations should be conceptualized, researched, and advanced. Through the conceptualization of independence as an institutional norm, the article makes several contributions to research on strategies for independence in nonprofit organizations. Rather than focusing on independence as a tangible organizational quality, the article studies and analyzes overarching strategies with which nonprofit organizations promote an image of independence. Recategorizations of results from previous research and illustrations from case studies of Swedish nonprofit ecolabeling serve as the main empirical material. By conceptualizing how nonprofit organizations employ multiple, and sometimes even contradictory, organizational strategies for being perceived as independent, the scope of research is broadened and the roles of institutional contexts and processes are highlighted

Gendered Experiences of Adaptation to Drought: Patterns of Change in El Sauce, Nicaragua

The changes men and women in a rural community in Nicaragua say they have implemented over the past decades differ in ways that relate to their vulnerability to drought. Short-term coping was more common among the women, especially the female heads of households, while adaptive actions were more common among the men. The Community Capitals Framework offers a tool to understand the differences. A gendered culture meant that the division of other types of capital (natural, human, social, financial, built, cultural, and political) as well as the division of labor in the case study area were also highly gendered. These gendered inequalities in access to and control over different forms of capital has led to a gender-differentiated capacity to respond to climate change, men being able to adapt and women experiencing a downward spiral in capacity and increasing vulnerability to drought. Resumen Los cambios que hombres y mujeres en una comunidad rural en Nicaragua dicen que implementaron en las últimas décadas difieren en aspectos relacionados con su vulnerabilidad a sequía. Medidas para hacer frente en el corto plazo fueron más comunes entre las mujeres, mientras medidas de adaptación fueron más comunes entre los hombres. El Marco de Capitales de la Comunidad es una herramienta útil para entender esas diferencias. La persistencia de una fuerte cultura patriarcal implica una división desigual del trabajo y de acceso a y control de capitales marcadas por el género. Estas desigualdades generaron una capacidad diferenciada por género para responder al cambio climático, resultando en hombres siendo capaces de adaptarse y mujeres experimentando una espiral descendente en la capacidad y un aumento de vulnerabilidad a sequía

Vulnerability and vulnerable groups from an intersectionality perspective

In general, the identification and protection of vulnerable groups in the case of hazards or when a crisis unfolds is an issue that any crisis and disaster risk management should address, since people have different levels of exposure to hazards and crises. In this article, we promote the application of the intersectionality perspective in the study of vulnerable groups, and we call for intersectionality as a guiding principle in risk and crisis management, to provide a better and more nuanced picture of vulnerabilities and vulnerable groups. This can help national and local authorities and agencies to formulate specific guides, to hire staff with the skills necessary to meet particular needs, and to inform vulnerable groups in a particular way, taking into account the differences that may coexist within the same group. Intersectionality allows us to read vulnerability not as the characteristic of some socio-demographic groups. It is rather the result of different and interdependent societal stratification processes that result in multiple dimensions of marginalisation. In this vein, we argue that research should focus on 1) self-perceived vulnerability of individuals and an intersectionality approach to unpack vulnerable groups; 2) cases of crises according to the level and/or likelihood of individual exposure to hazards, to better nuance issues of vulnerability.publishedVersio

Multiple stressors in Southern Africa: the link between HIV/AIDS, food insecurity, poverty and children's vulnerability now and in the future

Several countries in Southern Africa now see large numbers of their population barely subsisting at poverty levels in years without shocks, and highly vulnerable to the vagaries of the weather, the economy and government policy. The combination of HIV/AIDS, food insecurity and a weakened capacity for governments to deliver basic social services has led to the region experiencing an acute phase of a long-term emergency. “Vulnerability” is a term commonly used by scientists and practitioners to describe these deteriorating conditions. There is particular concern about the “vulnerability” of children in this context and implications for children's future security. Through a review of literature and recent case studies, and using a widely accepted conceptualisation of vulnerability as a lens, we reflect on what the regional livelihoods crisis could mean for children's future wellbeing. We argue that an increase in factors determining the vulnerability of households — both through greater intensity and frequency of shocks and stresses (“external” vulnerability) and undermined resilience or ability to cope (“internal” vulnerability) — are threatening not only current welfare of children, but also their longer-term security. The two specific pathways we explore are (1) erosive coping strategies employed by families and individuals; and (2) their inability to plan for the future. We conclude that understanding and responding to this crisis requires looking at the complexity of these multiple stressors, to try to comprehend their interconnections and causal links. Policy and programme responses have, to date, largely failed to take into account the complex and multi-dimensional nature of this crisis. There is a misfit between the problem and the institutional response, as responses from national and international players have remained relatively static. Decisive, well-informed and holistic interventions are needed to break the potential negative cycle that threatens the future security of Southern Africa's children

“Top-Down-Bottom-Up” Methodology as a Common Approach to Defining Bespoke Sets of Sustainability Assessment Criteria for the Built Environment

YesThe top-down-bottom-up (TDBU) methodology for defining bespoke sets of sustainability criteria for specific civil engineering project types is introduced and discussed. The need to define sustainability criteria for specific civil engineering project types occurs mainly in one or both of the following cases: (1) when a more comprehensive and indicative assessment of the sustainability of the project type in question is required; and/or (2) there is no readily available bespoke sustainability assessment tool, or set of criteria, for assessing the sustainability of the project type. The construction of roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, dams, flood banks, bridges, water supply, and sewage systems and their supporting systems are considered to be unique civil engineering/infrastructure project types. The normative definition of sustainable civil engineering/infrastructure projects and the framework for assessing its sustainability is defined and provided by the authors. An example of the TDBU methodology being applied to define sustainability criteria for transport noise reducing devices is presented and discussed. The end result of applying the methodology is a systematically researched and industry validated set of criteria that denotes assessing the sustainability of the civil engineering/infrastructure project type. The paper concludes that the top-down-bottom-up will support stakeholders and managers involved in assessing sustainability to consider all major research methods to define general and unique sustainability criteria to assess and so maximize sustainability

Transport infrastructure: making more sustainable decisions for noise reduction

There is a global and growing sustainability agenda for surface transport yet there are no specific means of assessing the relative sustainability of infrastructure equipment. Transport noise reduction devices are a significant part of the surface transport infrastructure: they specifically address environmental and social needs, have a high economic impact, and involve a wide range of raw materials raising multiple technical issues. The paper presents an account of the bespoke tool developed for assessing the sustainability of transport noise reduction devices. Regulatory standards for noise reduction devices and the relevant sustainability assessment tools and procedures adopted worldwide were reviewed in order to produce a set of pertinent sustainability criteria and indicators for NRDs projects, which were reviewed and edited during a stakeholder engagement process. A decision making process for assessing the relative sustainability of noise reduction devices was formulated following the review of the literature. Two key stages were identified: (1) collection of data for criteria fulfillment evaluation and (2) multi-criteria analysis for assessing the sustainability of noise reduction devices. Appropriate tools and methods for achieving both objectives are recommended

Vad vet vi om resultatet av Bostad först för människor i långvarig hemlöshet i Sverige? : En systematisk litteraturöversikt av forskning, uppsatser, utredningar, utvärderingar och rapporter

Den här rapporten sammanställer och analyserar resultat och effekter av Bostad först och dess påverkan på människor i hemlöshet med stödbehov i Sverige. Med hjälp av systematisk litteraturöversikt som metod och relevanta texter, i form av forskning, uppsatser och utredningar, som material identifieras och kategoriseras egenskaper hos kunskaps- och forskningsfältet såväl som resultat och effekter. Översikten identifierar ett flertal positiva resultat och effekter, inklusive grad kvarboende, förbättringar i boendesituationen, framsteg vad gäller livssituation, livskvalitet och hälsa, ett minskat alkohol- och drogberoende, en gynnsam utveckling i sysselsättningsgrad samt förbättrade relationer till anhöriga, professionella och andra grupper. Samtidigt framkommer variationer i resultat och effekter mellan studier, grupper och kommuner. Det går inte heller att enkelt generalisera resultaten och effekterna till alla grupper, områden eller kommuner. Vidare finns det texter som visar en avsaknad av påverkan på vissa faktorer, som livskvalitet, hälsa samt alkohol- och drogberoende, samt negativa utsagor om störningar i boendesituationen och ett ökat missbruk. Det är också oklart om alla resultat och effekter är bättre för Bostad först än för andra insatser för människor i hemlöshet med stödbehov. Rapporten avslutas med ett antal förslag till framtida forskning om Bostad först i Sverige, inklusive behovet av fler jämförande studier, exempelvis mellan kommuner, olika typer av insatser och olika grupper av människor i hemlöshet med stödbehov, av både kvantitativ och kvalitativ natur, och ytterligare systematiska litteraturöversikter.Avskaffa hemlösheten med Bostad förs

Culture and Capacity : Drought and Gender Differentiated Vulnerability of Rural Poor in Nicaragua, 1970-2010

This dissertation interprets gender-differentiated vulnerability to drought within a rural community located in the dry zone, la zona seca, of Nicaragua, a region that has been identified by the government and NGO sector as suffering from prolonged and, since the 1970s, more frequent droughts.  A combination of gender, capitals, and vulnerability demonstrates the value in using a multidimensional perspective to look at the socioeconomic and cultural contexts that form the capacity individuals have had to reduce their long-term vulnerability to drought in Nicaragua.  Due to the place-based characteristics of gender as well as vulnerability the analysis is mainly based on people’s stories about the history of their lives.  Based on these stories a local level picture is created of the households’ situation over time, how their work strategies and management of resources have varied, and how they perceived changes in capacity and vulnerability in relation to continuity and change in the climate.  The issue of adaptive capacity, which currently is less covered in research on gender and vulnerability and recognized in the literature as in need of more attention, and how it distinguishes itself from coping capacity in relation to vulnerability, is placed at the center of analysis.  In an additional analysis of how Nicaragua’s hazard management policies look upon the role and importance of interaction among societal levels and actors in reducing hazard vulnerability I show how the discourse has moved from emergency response to risk management with an increased emphasis on capacity building.  However, the recognition to differentiated vulnerability is lacking which risks hampering a successful vulnerability reduction.At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 2: Accepted. Paper 3: Manuscript.</p