Digital Commons Network^™

Defining Your Own Sustainable Future, Jacob Johnsen

Jacob Johnsen, MSc

How do you create – and maintain – an attractive service portfolio, and how to compete in a shifting environment? In our changing world, survival is not a question of size, speed or coverage. You must be adaptive. Posts can find out where to adapt, by examining the changes in customer behaviour, changing demands and technological achievements. Volumes are shifting from letters to packets, and so far, courier companies have taken market share from posts. Jacob Johnsen looks at the current changes and gives some guidelines on how to set up pointers for an ever-changing direction.

A Review Of Life Cycle Assessment Method For Building Industry

Faculty of Engineering University of Malaya

A recent study suggested that buildings globally consume up to 40% of energy and responsible for half of world greenhouse gas emission. Introducing life cycle assessment (LCA) to the building industry is important because it can measure every environmental impact involved in every process from cradle to grave systematically. Within the last decade, research on LCA has increased covering from construction process to manufacturing of building materials. The methods to assess buildings are diverse as buildings have different functions, materials, sizes and locations. The aim of this article is to review the LCA methods and to distinguish phases and materials …

Sustainability And The Economics Of Embedded Values, Madhavi Venkatesan

Madhavi Venkatesan

Increasing global awareness of natural resource depletion, heightened weather-related volatility attributable to climate change, and the subsequent emergence of multi-disciplinary sustainability programs in higher education have pronounced the void in the explanatory discipline of economics to address the values that have yielded the economic and environmental outcomes observable in prevailing sustainability discussions. Economic theory, models, and analysis are central to a discussion of how individuals interact not only with one another but also with the environment. Further, the implicit inclusion of economics in the daily behavior of individuals and nations strongly influences the observations of global sustainability, including economic equity …

Issues & Challenges For Sustainable Small Scale Fisheries In Inland Fisheries Sector Of India, A P. Sharma, Ganesh Chandra

Ganesh Chandra

This paper was presented in the panel discussion on Implementing the FAO-SSF Guidelines: Is there need for governance reforms? (How to create an enabling socio-economic, legal and policy environment for small-scale fisheries). the present paper focuses on the small scale fishers in Inland fisheries sector in India and the fisheries governance system in various states of india.

Sustainable Cybersecurity: Applying Lessons From The Green Movement To Managing Cyber Attacks, Scott J. Shackelford, Tim Fort

Scott Shackelford

According to Frank Montoya, the U.S. National Counterintelligence Chief, “We’re an information-based society now. Information is everything. That makes . . . company executives, the front line – not the support mechanism, the front line – in [determining] what comes.”[1] Chief Montoya’s remarks underscore the central role played by the private sector in ongoing efforts aimed at enhancing cybersecurity, much like the increasingly vital role firms are playing in fostering sustainability. For example, according to Accenture surveys, the number of managers who consider sustainability to be critical to the future success of their organizations jumped from fifty to more …

Incorporating Sustainability Into Principles Of Macroeconomics: A Case Study, Madhavi Venkatesan

Madhavi Venkatesan

Using grant funded resources, this case study explicitly engaged students in a Principles of Macroeconomics course with respect to the impact of sustainability-based values on economic indicators and standard of living parameters, while coincidentally opening discussion to the implicit nature of consumption-based values in the economic assessment of growth. Student assimilation and reaction to the curriculum was documented over the period of the course. Students provided responses to weekly questionnaires, which tracked their changing perceptions, values, and behaviors. Weekly class discussions and individual student assessment of the awareness fostered by reviewing the two divergent value structures also contributed to qualitative …

Roads And Resources: Groundwater Depletion In Lankao Country In The North China Plains, Ujjayant N. Chakravorty, Xiangzheng Deng, Yazhen Gong, Martino Pelli, Zhang Qian

Ujjayant Chakravorty

China produces most of its food grains in the North China Plains. However, there is evidence that groundwater aquifers in this region are being overexploited. We use a unique GIS-referenced dataset of the depth of the water table for all the 12,000 odd tube wells in Lankao county. We find that the construction of new highways has led to a depletion of the water table in wells close to the highways. This relationship is robust to a variety of controls, including distance to river and primary canals, village and township fixed effects, the date of drilling of the well and …

Appraisal Of Social And Health Impact Of A Cement Plant At Host Communities In Yandev, Nigeria, Fanan Ujoh Ph.D, Frederick Terkuma Ujoh Mr

Dr. Fanan Ujoh

Nigeria has extensive mineral and natural resources hence, developmental projects are being proposed and executed on a daily basis, many of which involve large-scale alteration of human, animal and plant ecosystems. Limestone mining and cement production commenced in 1980 at the study area, Yandev, without an environmental impact assessment to ascertain the extent of impact these activities could bring to bear on the physical and living conditions of the host environment. This study was carried out to appraise the social and health impact that mining of limestone and production of cement has inflicted on the host communities. Descriptive statistics and …

The Value Of Less Light, Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska

Dr. Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska, IALD, IES, CIE, RIBA

Dr. Karolina M. Zielinska – Dabkowska is an architectural lighting designer and researcher. As one of the plenary speakers during the inaugural ALAN 2013 conference considering the problems of light pollution, she offers her overview of the event.

Multi-Temporal Change Detection At A Limestone Mining And Cement Production Facility In Central Nigeria, Fanan Ujoh Ph.D, Muhammad Mamman Alhassan Ph.D, Frederick Terkuma Ujoh Mr

Dr. Fanan Ujoh

Limestone mining and cement production at Yandev, Nigeria commenced in 1980 without an environmental impact assessment (EIA) to ascertain the extent of impact these activities could bring to bear on the physical and living conditions of the host environment. This study was carried out to assess the impact that mining of limestone and production of cement has inflicted on the quality and density of vegetation within the study area about 32 years since production commenced. Multi-temporal satellite imageries of the study area (Landsat for 1976, 1986, 1996 and Nigeriasat-1 for 2006), ILWIS Academia 3.3 and SPSS Version 15 were used …

Performance And Economic Benefits Of Four Streetscape Renovations: A Comparative Case Study Investigation, Bo Yang, Yue Zhang, Pamela Blackmore

Bo Yang

The demonstration of landscape performance benefits has become increasingly important in landscape architecture practice and in communicating to interdisciplinary audiences. This paper provides an overview of the Landscape Architecture Foundation Case Study Investigation (CSI) program and introduces four built streetscape projects investigated in the 2012 CSI program, including a large-scale permeable pavement project in Charles City, Iowa, and the American Society of Landscape Architects’ award-winning projects in Missouri, California, and Colorado. Unlike traditional streetscape design that mainly focuses on safety and engineering principles, these four streetscape projects tackled unique design challenges, and more importantly, have captured baseline data that help …

Sustainable Governance Indicators. Country Report The Netherlands, 2014, Robert Hoppe, Henk Woldendorp, Nils Bandelow

Robert Hoppe

No abstract provided.

The Value Of Less Light – Sustainable Architectural Lighting Design, Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska

Dr. Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska, IALD, IES, CIE, RIBA

Since its beginning, the art of external illumination has substantially influenced the creation and the perception of architecture and the night-time urban environment. In this paper, the author examines and defines the significant interdisciplinary conditions related to architectural lighting design that have evolved over the years, starting from the first simple exterior lighting projects to the more modern, complex concepts of illumination.

A Letter From Doug Band, Doug Band

Doug Band

A letter from Doug Band during his service on the Coca-Cola Company International Advisory Committee (the Committee). The Committee is a third-party group, which is composed of well-known, outside experts in the fields of health policy, environmental policy and public policy generally. The Committee was formed in 2012 to provide strategic guidance in support of the Company's business priorities and to strengthen a network of global opinion leaders. The Committee assists us in understanding related developments and trends in the world at large, and also in devising appropriate, responsive Company policy and action.

Are Green Cities Nice Places To Live? Examining The Link Between Urban Sustainability And Quality Of Life, David S. Bieri

David S Bieri

The growing importance of nonmarket assets such as the environment, combined with the unprecedented availability of high-resolution data, has renewed broad interest in quantifying sustainability at different spatial levels. Policy-related decision making requires that potential sustainability measures meet three key requirements; (i) sustainability metrics need to be comprehensive such that they reflect the experience of representative households; (ii) sustainability indices need to be comparable across different geographic scales, and; (iii) measures of sustainability need to be economically meaningful, ideally tying into the larger system of national accounts. However, conventional sustainability indices do not tend to meet these criteria, rendering them …

The State Of Global Sustainable Food Production, Green Supply Chain Management And Decision Making: A Multidisciplinary Review, Renato Alas Msc

Renato A Martins MSc

Abstract This review aims to promote a discussion about the development of a new global supply chain structure, as emergent economies such as the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) are coming to the scene. In this review we try to understand the dynamic processes of global food distribution and its logistics taking into account the impact of emergent economies. As XXI century society faces an increasing global population that imposes a greater challenge for self-sustainable food production, quality and distribution. How then we cope with such great supply demands? In support to UN-FAO goal of reducing the …

Global Private Regulation, Global Finance And The Future Of Corporate Human Rights Accountability, Ariel Meyerstein

Ariel Meyerstein, JD, PhD

The large industrial footprints of large-scale infrastructure projects often impose a variety of environmental and social harms on local, marginalized (often indigenous) populations, many of whom, particularly in countries with weak regulatory capacity, have very little political voice in the project approval process. In 2003, responding to pressure from transnational activists and the changing norms and practices of development finance institutions such as the World Bank, some of the largest commercial banks in the world created a global private regulatory regime—the Equator Principles (“EPs”)—to standardize their environmental and social risk review of their investments in these projects. This Article contextualizes …

Biomes And Ecosystems, Robert Warren Howarth

No abstract provided.

Our Own Private Sustainable Community: Are Green Covenants, Conditions, And Restrictions A Viable Alternative To A More Environmentally Sustainable Future For Homeowners?, Darren Prum, Robert Aalberts

Darren A. Prum

Residential and commercial property owners have sought for centuries to develop and enrich their physical environment through private land use planning. In more recent decades, residential owners residing in community interest communities have been particularly active in crafting an evolving array of deed restrictions contained in Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions( CC&R’s). CC&R’s, which are generally created by the CIC developer , are mutually binding and enforceable against all those who live or conduct business in self-selected residential subdivisions or commercial developments . Importantly, CC&R’s are monitored sometimes quite forcefully, under the watchful eye of an empowered planned development association.

Although …

Data Protection By Design And Technology Neutral Law, Mireille Hildebrandt, Laura Tielemans

Mireille Hildebrandt

This article argues that to achieve a technology neutral law, technology specific law is sometimes required. To explain this we discriminate between three objectives, often implied in the literature on technological neutrality of law. The first we call the compensation objective, which refers to the need to have technology specific law in place whenever specific technological designs threated the substance of human rights. The second we call the innovation objective, referring to the need to prevent legal rules from privileging or discriminating specific technological designs in ways that would stifle innovation. The third we call the sustainability objective, which refers …

Sustainable Development Or Integrated Rural Tourism? Considering The Overlap In Rural Development Strategies, Holly Barcus

Holly Barcus

No abstract provided.

Socio-Environmental Considerations At The Usuma Reservoir In Abuja, Nigeria, Fanan Ujoh Mr, James Ikyernum Mr, Olarewaju O. Ifatimehin Dr

Dr. Fanan Ujoh

Reservoirs are Man’s attempt towards water re-distribution from regions/seasons of abundance/surplus to regions/seasons of scarcity. This study focuses on socio-environmental impacts of the Lower Usuma dam in Abuja, on its four surrounding communities. Stratified random sampling technique was employed in the administration of a questionnaire to 200 respondents. Using descriptive statistics and the student t-test for the analysis, the study discovered that: (i) there has been no significant improvement in infrastructure provision by Government; (ii) cases of water-borne diseases are high; (iii) the communities have lost land for cultivation; and, (iv) the communities believe that the resettlement scheme is not …

Synergistic Green Networks To Transform Lonsdale Suburbia, Archana Sharma

Archana Sharma

No abstract provided.

Adaptstar Model: A Climate-Friendly Strategy To Promote Built Environment Sustainability, Sheila Conejos, Craig Langston, Jim Smith

Sheila Conejos

Building adaptive reuse plays a critical role in emissions reduction and supports global climate protection. Thus, the designing of future buildings with embedded adaptive reuse potential is a useful criterion for sustainability. This paper describes the development of a new rating tool known as adaptSTAR, which offers holistic and unified design criteria suitable for assessing the adaptive reuse potential of future buildings. The findings show that criteria can be identified and weighted according to physical, economic, functional, technological, social, legal and political categories to calculate an adaptive reuse star rating. In addition, this paper reports on the first stage …

The Oil And Gas Evolution: Learning From The Hydraulic Fracturing Experiences In North Dakota And West Virginia, Joshua P. Fershee

Joshua P Fershee

This Article discusses major differences and similarities in U.S. oil and gas extraction via hydraulic fracturing through a comparison of the experiences in North Dakota and West Virginia. Although there are other parts of the country experiencing growth in oil and gas extraction, Pennsylvania and Texas as but two examples, North Dakota and West Virginia are particularly apt for comparison. Both states have relatively small populations, meaning that the impact of large-scale energy extraction in each state is likely to have a large impact on the state, economically, environmentally, and socially.

This Article focuses on three main areas of comparison. …

Economics Of Residue Harvest: Regional Partnership Evaluation, David W. Archer, David J. Muth Jr., Jacob J. Jacobson, Douglas L. Karlen

David J. Muth

Economic analyses on the viability of corn (Zea mays, L.) stover harvest for bioenergy production have largely been based on simulation modeling. While some studies have utilized field research data, most field-based analyses have included a limited number of sites and a narrow geographic distribution. An Iowa case study is developed illustrating the use of data extracted from a database of geographically distributed field studies for a region-specific economic analysis. The analysis utilizes grain and residue yield and associated management information from two Iowa field research sites that are Sun Grant Regional Partnership locations associated with the Corn Stover Regional …

Green Building Liability: Considering The Applicable Standard Of Care & Strategies For Establishing A Different Level By Agreement, Darren Prum

Darren A. Prum

Recently, many in the construction industry appear to be adopting the standards and practices of green buildings on new and existing projects. With this shift to more sustainable approaches by the various participants and with the corresponding need for parties that specialize in these practices to fulfill an owner’s goals, the applicable standard of care for a given relationship when a problem occurs also may become an undetermined and overlooked risk for those involved in these types of projects. As such, the applicable standard of care for liability situations concerning green building construction will inevitably become an issue the courts …

In Third Parties We Trust? The Growing Antitrust Impact Of Third-Party Green Building Certification Systems For State And Local Governments, Darren Prum, Robert Aalberts, Stephen Del Percio

Darren A. Prum

According to the American Institute of Architects, there has been a 50 percent increase in the number of municipalities with a green building program in place since 2007. And 24 of the country's 25 largest metropolitan areas are built around a city with green building legislation on its books. Reducing buildings' environmental impact is a noble - and critical - goal. But governments' reliance on private, third-party standard-setting organizations - and the rating systems that they promulgate - as the basis for that legislation may be legally problematic.

This Article reviews one of those potentially problematic bases: antitrust. In order …

Climate And Water Governance Chapters, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Waters and Water Rights is the authoritative reference on this highly complex and rapidly evolving area of law. Primarily national in scope, but with interstate, state-specific and international coverage, this treatise contains more in-depth information than any other publication on legal issues involving water rights, water usage and water quality. These issues are of increasing importance to counsel and their clients for several reasons: • Water is the resource that will likely require the greatest adaptation to many of the most critical impacts of climate change, and may also provide opportunities for climate change mitigation. • Water has long been …

The Sustainable Corporation: Lessons From Avatar, Norm Borin

Norm A. Borin

This article uses the fictitious company RDA from the movie Avatar as a textbook case of corporate non-sustainability. We provide a list of mistakes RDA made and provide parallel corporate examples in our own society in the areas of stakeholder analysis, corporate governance and systems thinking using the triple bottom line. For each area we present a framework that companies could use to operate in a more sustainable manner.