Infrastructure Commons^™

Participatory Mapping, E-Participation, And E-Governance: Applications In Environmental Policy, Pragati Rawat, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

This chapter focuses on participatory mapping as an e-governance tool to facilitate public participation. Public participation is a key component of democratic governance, and there is a growing reliance on digital government tools such as the internet and social networking sites and geographic information systems (GIS). This chapter focuses on public engagement using information and communication technology, namely participatory mapping, known by a variety of terms such as participatory GIS (PGIS), public participation GIS (PPGIS), and voluntary GIS. While the analysis involves use of participatory mapping related to environmental issues, the chapter brings together seminal work from various fields of …

Challenges In Upgrading Emergency Power In Florida Nursing Homes Following Hurricane Irma, Nicole S. Hutton, Michael J. Allen

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

Maintaining and restoring electricity after a disaster helps to preserve the health and well-being of the elderly who are at increased risk of heat stress and may be dependent upon life-sustaining medical equipment. Mitigation policies altered in reaction to increased public interest without thorough consideration of industry-specific resources may contribute to delays in implementation and unrealized potential for emergency power coverage within individual facilities. The objectives of this research are twofold: (i) to examine the relationship between preexisting conditions of life-safety systems at facilities and date of implementation of emergency power regulation improvements and (ii) to assess the role of …

Rezistance: Diné Grassroots Organization And Modes Of Activism, Eric Robert Dougherty

Senior Projects Spring 2020

This ethnography looks at themes of Indigeneity and activism as it exists in the everyday realities of young people living in or around the Navajo reservation in the southwest United States. Through work-related projects of hogan construction, land reclamation, watershed management, and language restoration Navajo youth are given opportunities to take control of their present circumstances and imagine a different future for themselves and their families. Besides work, youth and activism are constituted through other mediums and spaces that allow people to express who they are, what they care about, and why these things are important to them. The consistent …

Urban Development In Nepal And The Impacts Of Covid-19, Ambika P. Adhikari, Keshav Bhattarai

Himalayan Research Papers Archive

The Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has created a public health crisis worldwide and is impacting the way we plan and design cities. While much is still being learned about Covid-19, we have seen that the virus spreads quickly and its fatality rate is also significant. The virus has already seriously impacted the global economies and most urban activities.

During pandemics, regular public interactions in the city can be the cause for spread of communicable diseases. In this context, urban planning should include approached to help mitigate the spread of virus. Designs of facilities should help the residents to physically distance themselves …

Arising: Hurricane (Superstorm) Sandy’S Impact On Design/Planning Professionals, Maxinne R. Leighton

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Standing by my bedroom window, looking out at the ocean, a huge wave comes and swallows up my building. Everything around me is gone, including me. I wake up. I am 13 years old and living in the Coney Island Houses on Surf Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. With ongoing anthropogenic changes to the natural environment such as sea level rise and intensifying storms, coastal communities, especially ones segregated by class and culture, are particularly vulnerable in this context that challenges a way of life, and in some instances, threatens that life's survival. This dissertation focuses specifically on what one massive …

Towards A Resilient Future: Federal Policies For Adapting The U.S. Coasts To Climate Change, Samuel Horowitz

Pitzer Senior Theses

Climate change is projected to have a devastating impact on the American coast, yet coastal communities and states have largely failed to prepare for projected impacts. This is in large part due to a lack of resources. This thesis analyzes innovative federal policy mechanisms that will address the current gap between actions and forecasted impacts, and will make U.S. coastal communities more resilient in the face of climate change.

More Than A Century After Problem Emerged, Manhole Explosions Still Injuring Dozens In New York City, Gaspard Le Dem, Gabriel Sandoval

Capstones

Since the early days of electrification, New York City has been rattled by manhole explosions –– underground blasts that injure residents, damage buildings, force evacuations, cause power outages and traffic disruptions.

Consolidated Edison, the city's largest electric provider, has for decades blamed manhole issues on bad weather and road salt that erodes underground wires. But some experts and former utility workers say lack of maintenance is at the root of the problem.

Meanwhile, city and state officials have failed to rein in the problem through weak laws and loose oversight. As a result, unsuspecting drivers and pedestrians continue to be …

Single Versus Multi-Center Surgeons' Risk-Adjusted Mitral Valve Repair Procedural Outcomes, Anne Bennett, Thomas Bogue, Samuel Greenberg, Joshua Zhu, Samantha Novotny, Joseph Pizzuti, Lee A. Santore, Robert H. Habib, Annie Laurie Laurie Shroyer, Jonathan Price, Henry Tannous, Thomas Bilfinger

Department of Surgery Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to explore strategies to improve mitral valve repair (MVr) outcomes. This research explores postoperative outcomes of patients undergoing MVr surgery by single center surgeons versus patients of multicenter surgeons. Specific outcomes of interest include 30-day operative mortality, major operative complications (e.g., deep sternal wound infection, permanent stroke, renal dysfunction requiring dialysis, reoperation, and prolonged ventilation), length of stay, and 30-day readmissions.

In brief, the serisk-adjusted outcome rates for surgeons that perform mitral valve repair procedures will be compared for surgeons that operate at a single center [i.e. SC surgeons] versus multiple centers [i.e. MC …

Crafting The Government Mobile Application: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Public Value Creation As It Relates To Citizen Engagement And Participation In The Development Of Government Smart City Mobile Application, Sean M. Mossey

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

With smart city and e-government (electronic government) initiatives striving for increased levels of citizen participation, public managers continue to search for a way to increase the utilization of Information Technology (IT) services. However, most efforts focus on linking operations and IT services, rather than facilitating greater means of citizen engagement in government service development (Granier & Kudo, 2016). Furthermore, few studies examine the effect of citizen engagement, particularly in relation to the New Information Communication Technology (NICT), or the smartphone mobile application. These smartphones and their associated mobile applications are quickly becoming one of the primary tools for smart cities …

Infrastructure In Asia: The Reality, The Challenge, The Opportunity, Philip Charles Zerrillo

Asian Management Insights

While the urgency to build and improve infrastructure is always imminent, investing in it is a high stakes game for emerging countries. Investments these countries make should be well-prioritised to maximise the economic winds that fill their sails.

The U.S. Has A Serious Shortage Of Affordable Housing, Especially For Younger And Older Adults, Sarah Mawhorter

Population Health Research Brief Series

There is a significant shortage of affordable housing throughout the US, especially for older and younger adults. This has important implications for their quality of life and health outcomes.

Restoring The Damaged Pieces: Practicing Graduate Service-Learning In Hurricane Harvey–Wrecked Houston, Desiree Shannon, Genny Fultz

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Hurricane Harvey was an astonishingly destructive Category Four hurricane that made landfall in South and Coastal Texas. This destructive storm left numerous people dead and thousands displaced. It created record levels of flooding damaging over 200,000 homes, businesses, and facilities. Harvey’s disaster destruction will have lasting impacts on Texas, and beyond, for months to years of repair. A group of students, from a variety of Masters programs, set out with the goal to serve those affected by the hurricanes. Desiree Shannon and Genny Fultz had the opportunity to lead this team of nine Krannert Masters students to Houston to help …

Tls Newsletter, Fall 2019, Unf Transportation And Logistics Society

Transportation & Logistics Society Newsletter

Inside the Newsletter: Upcoming Fall Events. 18th Annual Hubbard House Holiday Drive. President's Corner.

Strategic Implications For The United States Of The Belt And Road Initiative In Africa, Alec Monnie

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The belt and road initiative is one of the most significant developments of the twenty-first century, which the United States will need to learn to adapt to. Much of the academic literature regarding the belt and road initiative mentions that Africa is a significant participant in this policy development, but fail to elaborate as to why that is, or what the implications for this are for the United States. This article expands upon the strategic significance of the African continent, and explains the implications thereof for the United States and China. This article argues that the belt and road initiative …

Leap Of Faith Megaprojects: The Effect Of Civic Dialogue On Megaproject Legacies In The St. Louis Region, Nathan Theus

Theses

Megaprojects are unique capital improvements that are defined by their large-scale development plans and construction budgets. Industrial Belt cities, like St. Louis, are no stranger to these projects, and both government actors and private developers have walked hand in hand in planning and constructing megaprojects, while assuring the general public that the benefits would always outweigh the costs. Though there has been considerable quantitative research analyzing the statistical economic effects of various megaprojects, there has been relatively little discussion on other, specifically, qualitative means of analysis. This paper will examine the role civic dialogue has on the perceived and real …

An Integrated Climate Science-Economic Model For Evaluating Adaptations To Sea Level Rise: A Prototype Model For Monterey, California, Charles S. Colgan, Fernando Depaolis, Philip King

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Preparing for flooding that will be exacerbated by climate change and sea level rise must take place in the context of "deep uncertainty". One strategy for dealing with that uncertainty is to convert unknown probabilities into know probabilities using techniques such as Monte Carlo analysis. This paper demonstrates the feasibility of creating a cost-benefit model for sea level rise adaptation options using an integrated climate change/sea level rise-weather-economic model. The model tests the probability of benefits exceeding costs for shoreline protection such as beach nourishment and armoring under multiple iterations of possible climate futures. It uses shoreline segments in Monterey, …

Full Potential Of Future Robotaxis Achievable With Trip-Based Subsidies And Fees Applied To The For-Hire Vehicles Of Today, John Niles

Mineta Transportation Institute Publications

As described by Grush and Niles in their textbook, The End of Driving: Transportation Systems and Public Policy Planning for Autonomous Vehicles, there are two distinct market states for the future of automobility as vehicles become increasingly automated. The first, Market-1, is comprised of all vehicles that are manufactured and sold to private owners and used as household vehicles. This private consumer fleet will—through automated driver assistance systems (ADAS)—be increasingly capable of hands-off operation, even self-driving in certain environments such as limited-access expressways. The second category, Market-2, represents all the vehicles made expressly for the service market, i.e., roboshuttles and …

Building Health Equity One Institution At A Time: The Research Infrastructure In Minority Institutions Project, Laura H. D'Anna, Dennis G. Fisher, Lyka Eunice F. Trinidad, Carol Canjura, Jefferson L. Wood

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Developing a well-trained workforce interested in, and prepared for, conducting health equity research is an important national priority. Scientists from Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) bring unique perspectives and experiences with racial, ethnic and social inequities in health and health status but often lack access to training and mentoring opportunities, which is crucial for increasing the diverse pool of investigators who are adequately prepared to conduct health disparities research and to compete for National Institutes of Health research funding. The focus of the California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) Research Infrastructure in Minority Institutions (RIMI) Project was to: (a) enhance CSULB’s infrastructure …

Enhancing Ontario’S Rural Infrastructure Preparedness: Inter-Community Service Sharing In A Changing Climate — Rural Community Practitioners Workbook, Bryce Gunson, Brenda Murphy

Social and Environmental Justice Faculty Publications

This practitioner workbook draws together the insights from a three-year (2016-19) Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) funded research study. The purpose of the research project was to 1) assess the potential of inter-community service cooperation (ICSC) as a possible tool to address the impacts of climate change (CC) in small (500-7500 pop.) Ontario rural communities south of the Sudbury region and 2) understand the extent to which such collaboration and the impacts of CC are, or could be, embedded within the community’s infrastructure (asset) management processes (AMP). While the conclusions of this workbook are generalized to …

Enhancing Ontario’S Rural Infrastructure Preparedness: Inter-Community Service Sharing In A Changing Climate — Policy Brief, Brenda Murphy, Bryce Gunson

Social and Environmental Justice Faculty Publications

This policy brief draws together the insights from a three-year (2016-19) Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) funded research study. The purpose of the research project was to 1) assess the potential of inter-community service cooperation (ICSC) as a possible tool to address the impacts of climate change (CC) in small (500-7500 pop.) Ontario rural communities south of the Sudbury region and 2) understand the extent to which such collaboration and the impacts of CC are, or could be, embedded within the community’s infrastructure (asset) management processes (AMP). While the conclusions of policy brief are generalized to …