| 21. |
- Isacson, Åsa, 1983, et al.
(författare)
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The use of digital layers in post-growth communities - an exploratory study
- 2023
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Ingår i: Proceedings for the 6th International Conference on Smart Villages and Rural Development (COSVARD 2023). - 9780734057150
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The pursuit of infinite growth on a planet with finite resources is leading to a failure in achieving global sustainable transition goals. The concept of Degrowth or 'post-growth' has emerged as a counter-movement advocating for alternative approaches focused on living within resource constraints. Within this context, small-scale communities with post-growth orientations are particularly interesting, as they actively explore their own alternative development models. These communities have potential to act as decentralised laboratories for radical change, translating Degrowth/post-growth theory into actionable practices. This paper examines how the operational tools have changed for post-growth communities since 2004 (Web 2.0). Through in-depth interviews with tech-savvy representatives in this field, the study explores the potential of "new" technologies to empower post-growth communities.
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| 22. |
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| 23. |
- Rex, Emma, 1978, et al.
(författare)
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Energy efficiency along the value chain – ways of working for increased competitiveness
- 2015
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This report presents a project with the aim to develop methods for large companies on how to work with energy efficiency that stretches along the value chain. By studying organizational conditions and physical effects on energy and climate for six cases in three companies, recommendations are given to businesses and governments on how to work for increased life cycle energy efficiency.The results point to a range of organizational and economic challenges, but also to enablers. Four strategies for progress were identified: A) Find and share the life cycle benefits, B) Enable and encourage understanding and action, C) Get focus and priorities in line, and D) Seek or create a way forward. The study points to the need to be strategic, and to translate this strategy into priorities and operational work. Yet, it must be recognized that life cycle thinking is not the work by one company and there is a call for cross-actor arenas to discuss and develop governance of value chains beyond the act of single companies.
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| 24. |
- Rex, Emma, 1978, et al.
(författare)
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Organizational challenges and solutions for practical implementation of life cycle improvements.
- 2015
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Ingår i: Life Cycle Management LCM conference 2015.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Life cycle management is still not fully integrated as a deliberate part of most companies’ product and business strategy operations. Seemingly promising solutions never reach implementation, or potential options are not explored. Many possible reasons for this can be found in the literature. Barriers could stem from gaps in knowledge, data, and tools for identifying and evaluating alternatives, but may also (and possibly to a greater extent) relate to established mindsets, organizational structures and internal and external incentives along the value chain. Implementation of life cycle thinking may challenge existing norms e.g. regarding distribution of values and risks in the life cycle, or conceptions of what technical system to be optimized. Formal and informal management procedures may also act as barriers, such as responsibility-schemes for environmental, energy-related and economic results.While technical solutions for LCM can be found in LCA literature and managerial solutions in the management literature, this study add further insights on organizational challenges and possibilities based on organizational practices having life cycle implications. It explores promising solutions and potential options for mainstreaming life cycle improvements based on observed practices in large production companies.Data is collected through a number of historic and ongoing examples of product and process changes associated with environmental implications in a life cycle perspective. Examples include both deliberate actions of life cycle management and actions with life cycle implications originally based on other rationales. The study focuses large multinational corporations in a range of sectors such as energy, estate, automotive, chemicals and consumer goods. All studied companies have own in-house competence in life cycle thinking. Data and experiences are collected through interviews and workshops with representatives from both the life cycle metric departments and other corporate functions such as sales and marketing, product development etc.Enablers and barriers for mainstreaming life cycle management are described and categorized based on the nature and effects of observed practices. Ways to enhance promising solutions, and overcome identified barriers, are also further analyzed. It leads to a discussion about actual and perceived responsibilities for furthering life cycle improvements, among actors both internal and external to the organization.
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| 25. |
- Agrell, Erik, 1965
(författare)
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Kryptovalutor – energiförbrukning och miljöeffekter
- 2023
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Ingår i: En samhällsvetenskaplig introduktion till bitcoin och kryptovalutor.
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Bokkapitel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Detta kapitel fokuserar på bitcoins elförbrukning och även, i ett bredare perspektiv, annan miljöpåverkan. Efter en kort inledning i avsnitt 4.1 redovisas i avsnitt 4.2 några försök att uppskatta hur stor elförbrukningen egentligen är, och vilka källor till osäkerhet som finns i sådana uppskattningar. Motsvarande uppskattning av klimatskadliga utsläpp redovisas i avsnitt 4.3. Siffrorna sätts i perspektiv med några jämförelser i avsnitt 4.4. Utvecklingen över tid illustreras i avsnitt 4.5 och därmed kopplingen till bitcoinpriset. Miljöfrågan breddas till ett livscykelperspektiv i avsnitt 4.6, där produktion och skrotning av den specialtillverkade elektronik som används i bitcoinfabrikerna diskuteras. I avsnitt 4.7 ställs sedan den naturliga frågan: Vad finns det för alternativ? Kapitlet avslutas med några övergripande reflektioner i avsnitt 4.8.
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| 26. |
- Viktorelius, Martin, 1987
(författare)
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Saving energy at sea: seafarers’ adoption, appropriation and enactment of technologies supporting energy efficiency
- 2020
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The shipping industry is currently facing a major challenge related to environmental sustainability and energy efficiency. New regulations and ambitious international goals that aim at mitigating carbon-based emissions with 50 %, demands on profitability, along with a growing awareness about the climate change, has prompted the maritime sector to increasingly focus on how to improve energy efficiency and reduce fuel consumption in ship operations. This thesis aims at describing and understanding the challenges of improving energy efficiency seen from the lens of crew members’ work and to investigate the adoption, appropriation and use of particular technologies, purported to support energy efficiency in ship operation. Using an ethnographic approach and drawing on various practice-based concepts and theories such as communities of practice, activity theory and the imbrication of material and social agency, the four papers (I – IV) included in the thesis were based on extensive field studies in two shipping companies and onboard 11 passenger ferries. The empirical studies revealed that the introduction of new technologies and their subsequent incorporation in and change of established skills and practices is a complex social process depending on the knowing and learning of practitioners as well as their activities, meanings, identities and norms as developed and negotiated in specific settings over time. The thesis contributes to our general understanding of the situated process of adoption, appropriation and use of new technologies in the maritime domain and the sociomaterial nature of energy efficiency.
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| 27. |
- Kurdve, Martin, et al.
(författare)
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Par experience from production innovation in Mälardalen
- 2018
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Ingår i: PIN-C 2018 Conference Proceedings. ; , s. 411-415
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This case paper describes the role of Mälardalen Industrial Technology Center, an industry support organisation in Sweden and the way it scollaborative innovation support is operated. Three programmes where representatives from academia support industrial companies are studied. The coordinating organisation act as a developed collaboration research centre. This is important for action learning and group development. It is beneficial for the university and companies with a strong programme collaboration with researchers and students.
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| 28. |
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| 29. |
- André, Hampus, 1989
(författare)
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Assessing Mineral Resource Scarcity in a Circular Economy Context
- 2020
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Due to humanity’s dependence on metal resources there are growing concerns regarding impacts related to their potential scarcity, both for current and future generations. The vision of a more circular economy suggests that extending the functional use of metals through measures aiming for resource-efficiency (RE) such as increasing technical lifetime, repairing and recycling could reduce mineral resource scarcity. However, evidence of this is limited. In addition, there is limited understanding regarding on what principles metals can be prioritized when assessing mineral resource scarcity. The aim of this thesis is to provide knowledge on mineral resource scarcity impacts of RE measures applied to metal-diverse products and on which conditions they depend. This is achieved by: 1) studying RE measures from a life cycle perspective; 2) comparing principles of prioritization between metals on which mineral resource scarcity impacts are assessed and 3) analysing how such principles (of prioritization) can affect conclusions regarding RE measures applied to metal-diverse products. The research is conducted through case studies, syntheses of literature and method development within the methodologies of life cycle assessment, material flow analysis and criticality assessment. Results indicate that effects of RE measures depend on a number of product characteristics and real-world conditions. RE measures can both increase and decrease mineral resource scarcity impacts compared to business as usual and effects vary greatly between metals. RE measures based on use extension e.g. reuse of laptops, repair of smartphones, and increasing technical lifetimes of LED lighting, have been indicated to reduce impacts through two principal features: use extension, and, increased functional recycling. However, there are risks of increasing mineral resource scarcity impacts if RE measures require additional metal use, product use extensions are short and if functional recycling is lacking. For example, repair of smartphones risks to increase the use of metals in commonly replaced components such as screens. Because of the varying effects on different metals, implementation of RE measures requires prioritizing some metals over others. The principles of prioritization give diverging results, and, are sometimes unclear and methodologically inconsistent. The thesis clarifies how they relate to concepts such as depletion, criticality, rarity and scarcity. Further it suggests that, although mineral resources are fundamentally stock resources, they can pose stock, fund and flow problems. Distinguishing between these different problems in distinct methodologies is conducive to purposive and complementary assessment by resolving methodological inconsistencies and providing accurate terminology. In the long term, scarcity is most purposively addressed by focusing on depletion of ecospheric stocks. Accordingly, the Crustal Scarcity Indicator is proposed to assess potential long term scarcity in life cycle assessment, alongside other environmental impacts. In the near term, potential scarcity for nations, industries and companies, as commonly assessed in criticality assessment, is most purposively addressed by focusing on technospheric circumstances, such as geopolitics, which can disrupt technospheric resource flows. In medium term, secondary resources in technospheric funds could be relevant, especially, with the advent of a more circular economy. Altogether, it is recommended that implementation of RE measures to metal-diverse products are based on analysis of product characteristics and real-world conditions and that effects of RE measures are assessed by methodologies which distinguish between mineral resource flows, funds and stocks so that well-informed prioritizations between metals can be made.
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| 30. |
- af Hällström, Anna, 1987
(författare)
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If you want to go far, go with others – How using a collaborative project delivery model affects the project network in infrastructure construction projects
- 2021
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The growth of projects has elicited much interest in the last decades, both in academia and amongst practitioners. The increase in scale and complexity has further brought attention to the particulars of interorganisational collaboration: as projects grow, the relevance and impact of interdependencies between participating organisations rise to the surface. No organisation is an island and so a project becomes an archipelago of interconnected networks. Current literature on interorganisational collaboration focuses on contract and procurement, both important aspects of project management. There is, however, less research pertaining to project realisation and how these changes in interorganisational collaboration shape the project process. A field where this change has been especially noticeable is the infrastructure construction industry, where collaborative project management models have been introduced to reduce adversity and improve project outcomes. These new models necessitate a study of changes these new models bring with them to the conventional ways of work within the field, as they call for new processes and roles in the projects, thus changing how the actors engage with the project network. As such models are based on collaboration, the role of social ties within the project become an especially interesting question. In this work, I expand on the theory pertaining to project networks in the empirical setting of infrastructure projects applying a collaborative project management model, with the aim of examining and gaining a deeper understanding of the collaboration between interorganisational project actors in a collaborative project delivery model. The methods used in this thesis are based in the qualitative research tradition and emphasise interviewing and observation. During this work, 44 interviews were completed in a pre-study and two case projects and observation of both project’s shared office space was carried out. I also analysed project documents and analysed the social network between respondents in the case projects. My results show the importance of social relations as enablers of the realisation of expected benefits of collaborative models. They moreover illustrate the changes necessary for the models to be effective, as well as study how the use of such project models affect the actors’ engagement in the project network.
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