1,720,959 research outputs found
Empowering Development. Strategies and Projects for Sustainable Waste Management in the Majority World
Full text linkLa gestione dei rifiuti solidi rappresenta una sfida ambientale e sociale cruciale, soprattutto nei paesi a basso e medio reddito. La crescita economica è legata al consumo di risorse e alla generazione di rifiuti, con le economie in rapida espansione che registrano un forte aumento della produzione di rifiuti solidi urbani (MSW). Queste regioni spesso affrontano difficoltà nel gestire i rifiuti, con conseguente degrado ambientale e rischi per la salute. Per affrontare tali sfide, sono necessarie strategie innovative e sostenibili adattate alle specifiche esigenze del "Majority World".
Lo studio si concentra sul sistema di gestione dei rifiuti in Uganda, un paese rappresentativo dell'Africa subsahariana. Tra i principali problemi individuati figurano bassi tassi di raccolta, smaltimento scorretto e riciclaggio spinto da condizioni di povertà, che ostacolano il raggiungimento degli Obiettivi di Sviluppo Sostenibile (SDGs). In questo contesto, le priorità includono il miglioramento della raccolta, la costruzione di discariche controllate, condizioni di lavoro più sicure per i lavoratori informali, l'eliminazione del lavoro minorile e la promozione di energia pulita e imprenditorialità locale nel riciclaggio.
La ricerca analizza soluzioni sostenibili utilizzando metodi come analisi dei flussi di materiali, valutazioni ambientali (LCA), analisi sociali e analisi di governance. Lo studio si focalizza sulla municipalità di Gulu e sul St. Mary’s Lacor Hospital, evidenziando che il sistema ospedaliero, grazie a risorse finanziarie e competenze gestionali adeguate, può rappresentare un modello per iniziative di riciclaggio e tecnologie sostenibili. A Gulu, un'adeguata gestione dei rifiuti entro il 2030 potrebbe evitare circa 17,000 tonnellate di emissioni di CO2-eq all'anno tra il 2030 e il 2050.
In Uganda, i rifiuti organici costituiscono la maggior parte dei rifiuti urbani e vengono spesso smaltiti in discariche a cielo aperto, causando emissioni nocive. La gestione efficace dei rifiuti organici è cruciale, poiché il 20% delle emissioni antropogeniche di metano proviene dalla decomposizione anaerobica. Lo studio esamina la fattibilità di impianti di compostaggio e digestione anaerobica per trattare i rifiuti organici al Lacor Hospital. Sebbene la digestione anaerobica offra vantaggi ambientali, il compostaggio su piccola scala risulta più sostenibile dal punto di vista economico e gestionale nei contesti con risorse limitate.
Un impianto pilota di compostaggio al Lacor Hospital è stato quindi dimensionato ed implementato, trattando circa 45 tonnellate di rifiuti organici all'anno, producendo 22 tonnellate di compost e riducendo l’impatto ambientale del 97% rispetto allo smaltimento tradizionale in discarica. Lo studio dimostra come tale approccio riduca significativamente il potenziale di riscaldamento globale, promuovendo anche comportamenti di riciclo collettivi.
Infine, un caso studio sulle isole Pelagie (Italia) mostra come l'efficacia di progetti innovativi sia altamente dipendente dal contesto in cui gli stessi sono implementati. In questo caso, il trattamento locale dei rifiuti organici ha portato a una riduzione di oltre 1,100 tonnellate di emissioni di CO2-eq all'anno e risparmi economici di oltre 250,000.0 euro grazie all'eliminazione dei costi di trasporto e smaltimento.
Le attività al Lacor Hospital hanno prodotto un quadro strategico replicabile per la gestione sostenibile dei rifiuti, compreso un nuovo sistema di raccolta differenziata, un impianto pilota di compostaggio e progetti pronti per essere finanziati e implementati. I risultati offrono dati preziosi per progettare impianti e scalare soluzioni sostenibili nei contesti a basso reddito.Solid waste management (SWM) is a critical environmental and social challenge, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Economic growth drives increased resource consumption and waste generation, with rapidly expanding economies struggling to manage the resulting waste effectively. This leads to environmental degradation and health risks, highlighting the need for sustainable and innovative strategies tailored to the needs of developing regions.
The study focuses on Uganda’s SWM system, analyzing circular strategies implemented over the past decade. Key challenges include low waste collection rates, unsafe disposal practices, and poverty-driven informal recycling, all of which hinder progress toward Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Prioritized actions include improving waste collection, constructing sanitary landfills, creating safer conditions for informal workers, eliminating child labor, promoting access to clean energy, and fostering local entrepreneurship in recycling.
The research explores sustainable SWM solutions using material flow analysis, environmental analysis, social surveys, and governance analysis, focusing on Gulu municipality and St. Mary’s Lacor Hospital in Uganda. While Gulu faces financial constraints that hamper effective waste management, the hospital’s system demonstrates financial and managerial efficiency, supporting recycling initiatives and sustainable practices. By adopting improved waste management, Gulu could avoid approximately 17,000 metric tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions annually between 2030 and 2050.
Organic waste dominates Uganda’s municipal solid waste (MSW) and is often disposed of in open dumps, contributing to harmful methane emissions. The study evaluates anaerobic digestion (AD) and composting as methods for managing the organic fraction of MSW (OFMSW) at Lacor Hospital. Economic and environmental analyses indicate that while AD has advantages, small-scale composting is more viable in resource-constrained settings serving around 3,000 people, as it ensures economic and management sustainability.
The research includes the construction and operation of a pilot composting plant at Lacor Hospital, processing 45 tonnes of organic waste annually and reducing environmental impacts by 97% compared to open dumping. This method also lowers the global warming potential (GWP) by 14 times. Waste collection infrastructure was introduced to encourage recycling behaviors, and temperature monitoring ensured effective composting.
A comparative case study from the Pelagian Archipelago (Italy) highlights the importance of context in waste management projects, showcasing economic savings and CO2-equivalent emission reductions through onsite organic waste treatment.
The research outcomes include a strategic framework for replicable sustainable waste management solutions, such as a novel waste collection system, a pilot composting facility, and wastewater treatment innovations. These results provide practical insights and references for scaling up waste management projects in resource-limited settings, paving the way for future developments in the Majority World
Organic waste valorization in remote islands: analysis of economic and environmental benefits of onsite treatment options
Full text linkSolid waste management (SWM) represents an important issue for small islands. This research evaluates the municipal SWM system of the Pelagian archipelago, in Italy. The research aims to evaluate environmental and econoemic benefits of onsite treatment plants for the valorization of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste. The sizing of the anaerobic digestion (AD) and composting plant was developed, and the characteristics of the plant were used to conduct a cost analysis and an environmental life cycle assessment. The current waste management system (S0) has been compared with the new strategy proposed (S1). Results showed that S1 leads to save more than 250,000 € y−1 due to the avoidance of organic waste final disposal and shipping, determining a payback time of about 7 years. Environmental benefits include a lowering of CO2-eq emission of more than 1100 tonnes per year and a reduction of all the six environmental impacts analysed. The outcomes represent a novel contribution to the scientific literature since the research provides the first comparison of quantitative data about environmental and cost benefits of onsite AD plants in small islands. The research underlines that onsite waste treatment systems are viable options to improve SWM systems in isolated regions
Anaerobic digestion or composting? Small-scale plants design and holistic evaluations in a Sub-Saharan African context
Full text linkIn small developing settings, is it worth building anaerobic digestion (AD) or composting plants? This study explores the economic, management, and environmental dimensions of two small-scale alternatives for organic fraction municipal solid waste (OFMSW) treatment within the context of Lacor Hospital (Uganda): aerated static pile composting (S1) and AD with digestate composting (S2), both designed to manage approximately 347.5 tOFMSW annually. In the optimistic scenario, S1 achieves a cost savings of about -2.9 USD tOFMSW-1 , while S2 incurs costs of 2.1 USD tOFMSW - 1 . In the pessimistic scenario, S1's costs rise to 3.9 USD tOFMSW- 1 , while S2 becomes more expensive at 9.5 USD tOFMSW - 1 . Management analysis underlines S2's complexity due to AD operations and digestate drying. Total normalized environmental impacts of S1 can be quantified with about 0.125 mPt tOFMSW - 1 , whereas S2 is equal to about -6.163 mPt tOFMSW- 1 . However, in an optimistic scenario, climate change endpoint category results are similar. On balance, the LCA analysis indicates that AD can be better than standalone composting. However, in developing settings serving approximately 3000 inhabitants, it is crucial to prioritize economic and management sustainability that can be obtained only by small-scale composting plants. These findings provide definite insights for small-scale waste management projects in low-income regions, offering valuable data and references for plant design and their replicability. The study sets the ultimate definition of the most feasible option to treat OFMSW in low-income settings: community composting. Unfortunately, economic barriers remain the main challenge: citizens should pay for the service and landfill management fees should be set by local governments
Setting priorities to achieve Sustainable Development Goals through appropriate waste management systems in Uganda
No full textDeveloping countries suffer poor solid waste management (SWM) systems. and setting priorities to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is urgent. The current research aims to assess Ugandan SWM system, and the main circular strategies implemented in the last decade to identify actions that should be prioritised towards a sustainable development. Low collection rates, unsound waste disposal, and poverty-driven recycling are the common issues that threaten the achievement of SDGs in Uganda. Waste collection improvement and construction of controlled sanitary landfills must be prioritised to reduce environmental contamination and avoid the generation of unsafe work for informal workers. End child labour, ensuring access to affordable and clean energy sources, and valorising local entrepreneurship in waste recycling are also fundamental actions to achieve an effective and inclusive SWM system. This review contributes to
identify the priorities to start circular actions now, supporting decision makers in implementing policies and innovative solutions to assist the transition towards sustainable SWM systems in Uganda and the Global South
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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