Angeliki Paidakaki and Frank Moulaert
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of “resilience” by disentangling the contentious interactions of various parameters that define and guide resilience…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of “resilience” by disentangling the contentious interactions of various parameters that define and guide resilience trajectories, such as the physical infrastructure, socio-spatial inequalities, path dependencies, power relationships, competing discourses and human agency. This socio-political reconstruction of “resilience” is needed for two reasons: the concept of resilience becomes more responsive to the complex realities on the ground, and the discussion moves toward the promotion of more dynamic recovery governance models that can promote socially just allocated redundancy in housing actions, which could be seen as a key to incubating resilience.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper that mobilizes theories of urban political ecology, social innovation and housing with the aim to examine the tensions between various discourses that steer housing production during post-disaster recovery processes, and put a spotlight on the heterogeneity in the transformative capacity of the various actors, institutions and visions of housing systems that preexist or emerge in the post-disaster city. This heterogeneity of actors (i.e. growth coalitions, neighborhood associations and housing cooperatives) consequently leads the discussion toward the investigation of “new” roles of the state in formulating relevant disaster governance models and housing (re)construction systems.
Findings
The initial stress produced by a natural event is often extended because of long-term unmet housing needs. The repercussion of this prolonged stress is a loss of social progress partly due to the reiterated oppression of alternative housing production propositions. In this paper, the authors conclude that an asset-based community development approach to recovery can provide an antidote to the vicious cycles of social stress by opening up diverse housing options. This means that the recovery destiny is not predetermined according to pre-set ideas but is molded by the various bottom-up dynamics that democratically sketch the final socially desirable reconstruction outcome(s).
Originality/value
The contribution of this paper is twofold. By using theoretical insights from urban political ecology, housing studies and social innovation, the paper first builds up onto the current reconstruction of the notion of disaster resilience. Second, by identifying a heterogeneity of “social resilience cells”, the paper leads the discussion toward the investigation of the “new” role of the state in formulating relevant recovery governance models. In this respect, the paper builds a narrative of social justice in terms of the redistribution of resources and the cultivation of empowerment across the various housing providers who struggle for their right to the reconstruction experiment.
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The purpose of this paper is to offer pointers to local government executives on the qualities of leadership that drive social innovation (SI) as well as locate the roles of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to offer pointers to local government executives on the qualities of leadership that drive social innovation (SI) as well as locate the roles of leadership and participation in the output and outcome of SI. Further, the findings of the study can hopefully contribute to the discourse on leadership for a sustainable future.
Design/methodology/approach
The purpose of the study was to highlight the forms of participation among the actors in the different stages of SI, the qualities of the leaders that drove SI and the roles of leadership and participation in the output and outcome of SI. To answer the research questions, the researcher applied the case study research design and employed the grounded theory approach for data analysis and interpretation.
Findings
The cases showed leadership that encourages, as leadership qualities of the governors. These were manifested in terms of being empowering, giving the freehand, being goal-oriented, resource mobilizer, consultative and practicing both bottom-up and top-bottom approaches to make sure that the outputs are achieved, as well as having the qualities of a supportive leader. The cases showed all three employed forms of participation, as categorized by Lowndes et al. (2001). Government can indeed foster innovation when there is close involvement and participation of the workforce in innovation. Leadership and participation play a big role in achieving output and outcome of SI.
Originality/value
The study is a review of the unpublished dissertation by Gallardo (2014) at the National College of Public Administration and Governance, University of the Philippines.
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Istvan Rado and Prapin Nuchpiam
This paper aims to provide a nuanced understanding of philosophies underpinning social innovation based on the action research strategies applied in the field.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide a nuanced understanding of philosophies underpinning social innovation based on the action research strategies applied in the field.
Design/methodology/approach
Literature review was conducted to identify action research strategies referred to in the social innovation literature. Through stratified purposive sampling, the authors then selected nonprofit organizations, each closely associated with one of the strategies. Qualitative content analysis was applied to documents published by these organizations for an in-depth exploration of how the action research strategies frame the three dimensions of social innovation, namely, the product, process and empowerment dimensions.
Findings
The authors identified four broad action research strategies referred to in the social innovation literature. Each strategy inspires four distinct narratives of social innovation centered around key concepts: prototyping, evidence, asset-building and co-creation.
Research limitations/implications
The methodology used is characterized by depth rather than scope. Although diverse types of documents were used, the documents are limited to publications by four institutions. A deductive approach using the categories should be used in future empirical research.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the discussion about different schools and research agendas in the field of social innovation. In particular, the authors examine the action research strategies adopted in the field, shedding light on incompatible views and strategies within certain research clusters while identifying common ground between authors belonging to different schools.
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Berkan Demiral and Nalan Demiral
Poverty has been an important social problem from the beginning of humanity and will be till the end of the world. But the rapid change in technology took away the capability of…
Abstract
Poverty has been an important social problem from the beginning of humanity and will be till the end of the world. But the rapid change in technology took away the capability of human effort to cover his necessities alone. The people must improve their education, talent and capacity continuously. In this respect, today's globalizing poverty is more concrete and a difficult problem to solve than ever.
The purpose of this self‐reflective paper is to focus on practical efforts to combat inequality and foster intercultural dialogue in education. It introduces “knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this self‐reflective paper is to focus on practical efforts to combat inequality and foster intercultural dialogue in education. It introduces “knowledge alliances”, a type of social practice open for education technologies.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is structured in a theoretical and an empirical part. The theoretical part ledge production is divided in two sections: the first one summarizes transdisciplinarity and Paulo Freire's dialogical pedagogy as two innovative approaches to knowledge sharing, production and appropriation. In the second section knowledge alliances are presented as innovative forms of lasting learning and research partnerships. The empirical part presents a case study and discusses the potential and limits of this specific knowledge alliance.
Findings
The paper demonstrates the importance of a partnership approach to combat inequality and discrimination. Knowledge alliance is a normative as well as an analytical concept to grasp the dynamics of lasting and transdisciplinary cooperation. For multicultural education, their implementation can be supported by learning technologies.
Research limitations/implications
The paper is a self‐reflection on a lasting learning and research cooperation which offers deep insights into practical challenges. The limitations of these socially innovative practices are the lack of ex‐ante scientific rigor.
Practical implications
The paper argues in favour of lasting cooperation.
Social implications
The paper shows the necessity to link practice and theory in knowledge alliances which last beyond the single project.
Originality/value
The paper introduces the term knowledge alliances and the related normative and analytical implications.
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María del Rosario González Ovalle, José Antonio Alvarado Márquez and Samuel David Martínez Salomón
The purpose of this article is to provide organized, synthesized information related to initiatives throughout the world based on knowledge‐based development (KBD) such as…
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to provide organized, synthesized information related to initiatives throughout the world based on knowledge‐based development (KBD) such as knowledge cities (KCs), knowledge regions, and knowledge countries. A first search was conducted using the Internet and specialized databases under the keywords “knowledge cities”. The information compiled led to other related keywords which branched out the search. All resulting information was then collated and integrated into a number of categories all unified under the field of knowledge‐based development. A compilation of information on the topic “knowledge cities” and other topics related to knowledge‐based development. The information is presented in eight sections: a glossary of KC‐related terms, a list of knowledge‐based development initiatives, a list of associations and organizations related to the topic, a list of urban KBD‐related value dimensions and their indicators, a list of international rankings, a list of special editions on KCs, a bibliography, and a directory of related sites on the Internet. This effort resulted in a public service available at the World Wide Web. The information included in this compilation is limited mainly to public domain information available throughout Internet in both English and Spanish, as well as in selected databases.
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Hanan Elsawahli and Azlan Shah Ali
Neighbourhood environmental factors are associated with active lifestyle. Despite the considerable research that examined their relationship with elderly active lifestyle, the…
Abstract
Neighbourhood environmental factors are associated with active lifestyle. Despite the considerable research that examined their relationship with elderly active lifestyle, the measures' reliability and validity attracted less attention. This pilot study aimed at examining the reliability and validity of eleven neighbourhood environmental factors hypothesized to promote active lifestyle among the elderly. The neighbourhood environmental factors ratings were compared from previous studies scale and the NEWS scale among young elderly residing in two cities in Malaysia. The identified items were further examined to identify their potential association with elderly active lifestyle. All the measures showed valid values except for convenience in both neighbourhoods and accessibility in Taman Meru. All items showed good-excellent reliability except for convenience in Taman Meru. All factors showed moderate-good correlations with active lifestyle except for walkability and convenience in Taman Meru, maintenance and safety in TTDI. The neighbourhood environmental factors can be used in neighbourhood and relevant surveys.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the entrepreneurial behaviour of small tourism businesses and their ability to contribute to regional development in the context of a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the entrepreneurial behaviour of small tourism businesses and their ability to contribute to regional development in the context of a transitional economy.
Design/methodology/approach
The research, by combining in‐depth interviews and a survey, reports on a case study of Wairarapa, a region of New Zealand that has recently seen a large expansion in the tourism sector.
Findings
The paper identifies a number of important criteria for the effective interaction of private‐public sectors as well as illustrating how small tourism firm owners are facing challenges in one of the most liberal economic environments whilst taking action to ensure periphery endurance.
Originality/value
Inductive theory or a bottom‐up model for regional development provides the conceptual structure for the research. The paper argues that the related paradigm is increasingly underpinned by entrepreneurial behaviour of a multiplicity of stakeholders in rural localities where tourism is seen as a key agent for regional rejuvenation on the demise of traditional economic activities.