1,720,969 research outputs found
Science-policy communication for improved water resources management: Contributions of the Nostrum-DSS project
Full text linkThe Nostrum-DSS EU funded Co-ordination Action (CA) aims at contributing to the achievement of improved governance and planning in the field of sustainable water management within the Mediterranean Basin by establishing a network between the science, policy, and civil society spheres and through the development and dissemination of Best Practices Guidelines (BPGs) for the design and implementation of DSSs for IWRM in the Mediterranean Area. Decision Support Systems (DSS) have a great theoretical potential as tools for the identification of optimal water resource management regimes in the Mediterranean basin, thus helping policy makers (PMs) to bring the principles of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) into practice. However, such tools are only episodically exploited outside the academia. This article presents the outcomes of project activities targeting the development of more effective communication strategies, in order to facilitate the development of research products with greater potential for been up taken by the expected end-users, i.e. the community of policy makers, and their staffs, advisors, consultants, etc., in the Mediterranean Region
Decision Support Systems for water resources management: current state and guidelines for tool development
No full textEcosystem services in practice: well-being and vulnerability of two European urban areas
Full text linkLa gran mayoría de la población europea habita en ciudades y el mejoramiento de la calidad de vida
en zonas urbanas constituye un objectivo primordial de las políticas gubernamentales. Las ciudades
se ven típicamente afectadas por apiñamientos, tráfico intenso, contaminación atmosférica y acústica,
y factores que aumentan su vulnerabilidad con respecto a riesgos naturales. Esta Tesis explica cómo
los ecosistemas contribuyen a mejorar la habitabilidad de las ciudades, con foco en zonas urbanas
europeas medianas, sirviéndose para ello de estudios empíricos integrados (por ejemplo cualitativos
y cuantitativos o socio-ecológicos), así como estudios relevantes con respecto a las medidas a tomar
por las autoridades gubernamentales. Explora cómo y porqué las zonas urbanas pueden beneficiarse,
en términos del bienestar de sus habitantes y de la reducción de las vulnerabilidad frente a riesgos
naturales, de una más amplia gama de medidas y soluciones cuando se tienen en cuenta en forma
apropriada los aspectos ecológicos utilizando diferentes escalas geográficas.
La revisión de la literatura consultada para esta Tesis comprueba que las funciones reguladoras de los
sistemas ecológicos a menudo proveen alternativas eficientes y rentables o soluciones
complementarias para las infraestructuras que contribuyen a asegurar el bienestar de la población
urbanas y reducir el riesgo de desastres. La investigación empírica en la ciudad de Colonia (Alemania)
demuestra que las variables medioambientales juegan un rol central y decisivo, ya que determinan las
características de la vulnerabilidad del sistema socio-ecológico urbano por ejemplo cuando es
afectado por olas de calor. A su vez, en Barcelona (España), el asesoramiento de servicios reguladores
ejemplifica cómo una ciudad compacta se beneficia al estar rodeada de una vasta superficie verde
adyacente, que le permite alcanzar un nivel de rendimiento ecológico y un potencial regulador de
amenazas naturales comparables con otras ciudades más “verdes” de la Europa occidental. Por lo
tanto, aparte de las dimensiones sociales, económicas y físicas bien exploradas de la vulnerabilidad,
también su dimensión ecológica debe ser tenida en cuenta en el estudio de las zonas urbanas. En este
sentido, dos aspectos revelan ser esenciales cuando se analiza la fragilidad urbana: los impactos de la
urbanización en los sistemas ecológicos locales que tienden a agudizar aún más los daños causados
por el sistema social-ecológico cuando azota un riesgo; y las conexiones del centro de la urbe con las
zonas verdes circundantes.
La investigación presentada en esta Tesis provee asimismo conclusiones teóricas respecto a la
naturaleza de las interacciones y el acoplamiento de los sistemas sociales y ecológicos al asesorar la
vulnerabilidad relacionada con amenazas naturales. Subraya cómo el sistema social depende del
ecosistema para reducir la exposición a tales riesgos y aumentar la resiliencia. Para ello se requiere
también la inclusión de datos ecológicos detallados concernientes la salud del ecosistema. El ecosistema, especialmente en caso de degradación, puede perder efectividad o fallar en la provisión
de servicios en caso de amenazas, exacerbando así la vulnerabilidad de la populación humana.
Volviendo atrás los pasos que llevaron en el pasado a la configuración y distribución actual de zonas
verdes en y alrededor de la ciudad de Colonia y en especial de Barcelona, la investigación contribuye
a caracterizar las dimensiones históricas y políticas de los ecosistema pertinentes, y por lo tanto, de
la vulnerabilidad en zonas urbanas. Los ecosistemas, a más de ser determinados por características
biofísicas del territorio, son el producto del enfrentamiento de diferentes articulaciones sociales
valuatorias que son a menudo antagónicas. Los conflictos referentes a la gestión de zonas verdes son
evidentes en su mayor parte en las zonas urbanas dado el alto valor del espacio y la lucha por
obtenerlo. Los ecosistemas por lo tanto pueden ser vistos como construcciones sociales que no
solamente requieren ser asesoradas y valorizadas, sino también ser incluídas en un proceso más
amplio de toma de decisiones en el que se discuten los conflictos de intereses en forma participative.
Finalmente, en cada uno de los capítulos que enfocan los diferentes grados de dependencia de la
población urbana de los servicios proporcionados por los ecosistemas (tanto en el ámbito urbano
propiamente dicho como en cuencas y vertientes), la investigación demuestra que, a pesar del foco
tradicional concentrado en la escala local, el ecosistema urbano alberga en si mismo diferentes niveles
anidados que complementan los servicios prestados a los habitantes de la ciudad. Esta definición más
comprensiva de lo que los ecosistemas urbanos abarcan implica la ampliación del conjunto de
medidas y soluciones políticas que tienen como objetivo favorecer las zonas urbanas.The large majority of the population in Europe lives in cities and the improvement of the quality of
life in urban areas is a policy objective of primary importance. Cities are typically affected by
crowding, traffic, air and noise pollution and present features that make them more vulnerable to
natural hazards. This Thesis explains how ecosystem services help improve the livability of cities,
with a focus on European medium-sized urban areas, using empirical, integrated (e.g. qualitative and
quantitative or social-ecological) and policy relevant studies. It explores how and why urban areas
can benefit, in terms of well-being and reduction of vulnerability to hazards, from a broader range of
policies when ecological aspects are properly accounted for at different geographical scales.
The literature reviews of this Thesis find that the regulating functions of ecosystems often provide
efficient, cost-effective alternatives or complementary solutions to hard infrastructures for the wellbeing
of populations and disaster risk reduction in urban areas. Empirical research in the city of
Cologne (Germany) shows that environmental variables play a central role in shaping the
vulnerability of the urban social-ecological system to heat waves. While, in Barcelona (Spain), the
assessment of regulating and cultural services supplied by the Collserola peri-urban Natural Park,
demonstrates how a compact city benefits from the presence of a vast adjacent green area that enables
it to reach an environmental performance and a hazards regulation potential comparable to that of
other greener, western urban areas. Thus, besides the well-explored social, economic and physical
dimensions of vulnerability, information about the ecological dimension needs also to be taken into
account in urban vulnerability studies. In this respect, two features are found to be essential with
respect to the vulnerability of urban areas: the impacts of urbanization on the local and surrounding
ecosystems, which tend to further increase the damages that the social-ecological system can cause
when a hazard strikes; and the connections of the urban core with surrounding green areas.
The research presented in this Thesis also yields theoretical conclusions about the nature of the
interactions and coupling between the social and the ecological systems in the vulnerability
assessment to natural hazards. It highlights how the social system depends on the ecosystem for
exposure reduction and increased resilience. Detailed ecological information on ecosystem health
should also be included. The ecosystem, especially if degraded, might not be effective or fail in
supplying services when a hazard strikes, exacerbating the vulnerability of the human population.
Tracing back the steps that led to the present configuration and distribution of green areas in and
around Cologne and especially in Barcelona, the research contributes to the characterization of the
historical and political dimension of ecosystem services, and thus of vulnerability, in urban areas.
Ecosystem services, besides being determined by the biophysical features of the territory, are the outcome of the controversy between different and more often than not antagonistic social articulations
of value. Conflicts over the management of green areas are mostly evident in urban areas due to the
highly contested nature of space. Ecosystem services can thus be seen as socially constructed and
need not only to be assessed and valued, but also to become part of a broader, participatory decision
making process in which conflicting interests are discussed.
Finally, in each of the chapters focusing on different scales of the dependence of the urban population
on ecosystems (from the properly urban to the watershed), the research shows that, despite the
traditional focus on the local scale, the urban ecosystem presents different nested levels which are
complementary in terms of the ecosystem services they provide to the city’s inhabitants. This broader
definition of urban ecosystems has implications in terms of an enlarged set of more targeted policies
that can benefit urban areas
Science-Policy Communication for Improved Water Resources Management: Contributions of the Nostrum-DSS Project
Full text linkThe Nostrum-DSS EU funded Co-ordination Action (CA) aims at contributing to the achievement of improved governance and planning in the field of sustainable water management within the Mediterranean Basin by establishing a network between the science, policy, and civil society spheres and through the development and dissemination of Best Practices Guidelines (BPGs) for the design and implementation of DSSs for IWRM in the Mediterranean Area. Decision Support Systems (DSS) have a great theoretical potential as tools for the identification of optimal water resource management regimes in the Mediterranean basin, thus helping policy makers (PMs) to bring the principles of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) into practice. However, such tools are only episodically exploited outside the academia. This article presents the outcomes of project activities targeting the development of more effective communication strategies, in order to facilitate the development of research products with greater potential for been up taken by the expected end-users, i.e. the community of policy makers, and their staffs, advisors, consultants, etc., in the Mediterranean Region
Integrating the Grey, Green, and Blue in Cities: Nature-Based Solutions for Climate Change Adaptation and Risk Reduction
No full textUrban Watershed Services For Improved Ecosystem Management and Risk Reduction, Assessment Methods and Policy Instruments: State of the Art
No full textUnder scenarios of increasing unplanned urban expansion, environmental degradation and hazard exposure, the vulnerability of urban populations, especially of their poorer segments, needs to be tackled through integrated economic, social and environmental solutions. Basing our analysis on the concept of ecosystem services, we suggest that urban areas would benefit from a shift in perspective towards a more regional approach, which recognizes them as one of many interconnected elements that interact at the watershed level. By integrating an ecosystem approach into the management of water-related services, urban management policies can take a first step towards fostering an improvement of the health of upstream and downstream areas of the watershed, activating environmentally sound practices which aim at guaranteeing the sustainable and cost effective supply of services. These strategies can for instance be supported by using payment schemes for ecosystem services or similar strategies, allowing for the redistribution of resources among communities in the watershed. From our analysis it results that, through the recognition of the primary role played by watershed ecosystems, cities can benefit from an enlarged set of policies, which can help strengthen the supply of essential environmental services, while reducing the vulnerability of its population and contributing to the maintenance of healthy ecosystems
Multi-hazard risks in New York City
No full textMegacities are predominantly concentrated along coastlines, making them exposed to a diverse mix of natural hazards. The assessment of climatic hazard risk to cities rarely has captured the multiple interactions that occur in complex urban systems. We present an improved method for urban multi-hazard risk assessment. We then analyze the risk of New York City as a case study to apply enhanced methods for multi-hazard risk assessment given the history of exposure to multiple types of natural hazards which overlap spatially and, in some cases, temporally in this coastal megacity. Our aim is to identify hotspots of multi-hazard risk to support the prioritization of adaptation strategies that can address multiple sources of risk to urban residents. We used socioeconomic indicators to assess vulnerabilities and risks to three climate-related hazards (i.e., heat waves, inland flooding and coastal flooding) at high spatial resolution. The analysis incorporates local experts' opinions to identify sources of multi-hazard risk and to weight indicators used in the multi-hazard risk assessment. Results demonstrate the application of multi-hazard risk assessment to a coastal megacity and show that spatial hotspots of multi-hazard risk affect similar local residential communities along the coastlines. Analyses suggest that New York City should prioritize adaptation in coastal zones and consider possible synergies and/or trade-offs to maximize impacts of adaptation and resilience interventions in the spatially overlapping areas at risk of impacts from multiple hazards.</p
Urban Watershed Services For Improved Ecosystem Management and Risk Reduction, Assessment Methods and Policy Instruments: State of the Art
Full text linkUnder scenarios of increasing unplanned urban expansion, environmental degradation and hazard exposure, the vulnerability of urban populations, especially of their poorer segments, needs to be tackled through integrated economic, social and environmental solutions. Basing our analysis on the concept of ecosystem services, we suggest that urban areas would benefit from a shift in perspective towards a more regional approach, which recognizes them as one of many interconnected elements that interact at the watershed level. By integrating an ecosystem approach into the management of water-related services, urban management policies can take a first step towards fostering an improvement of the health of upstream and downstream areas of the watershed, activating environmentally sound practices which aim at guaranteeing the sustainable and cost effective supply of services. These strategies can for instance be supported by using payment schemes for ecosystem services or similar strategies, allowing for the redistribution of resources among communities in the watershed. From our analysis it results that, through the recognition of the primary role played by watershed ecosystems, cities can benefit from an enlarged set of policies, which can help strengthen the supply of essential environmental services, while reducing the vulnerability of its population and contributing to the maintenance of healthy ecosystems
In the AI of the beholder: A comparative analysis of computer vision-assisted characterizations of human-nature interactions in urban green spaces
No full textBig data from photo-sharing platforms offer unique opportunities for the study of human-nature interactions and landscape planning. Research increasingly relies on computer vision in artificial intelligence to identify elements of interest in photographs and user preferences and sentiment towards them. Studies largely rely on pre-trained models from one of several available cloud-based, commercial image recognition services, but the extent to which findings depend on the implemented technology has not yet been explored. Here, we analyze ∼ 10,000 outdoor photographs retrieved from three social media platforms and geolocated within green and blue spaces in Haifa (Israel) by means of machine tags from three popular cloud-based services. We find that clustering of the 45 investigated sites based on common characteristics of the photographs is considerably affected by the image recognition service chosen, especially for sites with limited data points (<80 photographs). Moreover, after associating the individual tags to specific aspects of the outdoor experience, we find substantial differences in the identification and ranking of outdoor recreational activities, characterization of the local biophysical environment (e.g., wildlife and vegetation), and feelings associated with the photographs. With no image recognition service clearly outperforming the others in all evaluation criteria, we argue that the optimal choice of image recognition service to rely on likely depends on the intended final application. Time and resource permitting, future studies should consider combining information from multiple sources for a characterization that is more nuanced and less prone to be affected by the idiosyncrasies of the individual technologies
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