| 1. |
- Bagheri, Ali, et al.
(författare)
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A framework for process indicators to monitor for sustainable development: Practice to an urban water system
- 2007
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Ingår i: Environment, Development and Sustainability. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1573-2975 .- 1387-585X. ; 9:2, s. 143-161
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although very often used, the concept of sustainable development has not yet been perceived pragmatically. Due to its process nature, in this paper, we argue that sustainable development is a process in which the essential feedback loops, or Viability Loops as we name them, in the system in question are kept healthy and functional. This process deals with evolutionary changes with the end point not known in advance. According to this perception, measurement of sustainable development does not make sense. Rather, we should look for the process indicators to monitor systems for sustainable development. The purpose of the paper is to develop a methodology to deal with monitoring systems for sustainable development and its practice in an urban water system. Using a system dynamics approach, the paper adopts a systemic monitoring framework based on the idea of Viability Loops to define process indicators to monitor systems for sustainable development. To illustrate the application of the framework, its practice in the urban water system of Tehran, the capital of Iran, is provided as an example. The example of the urban water supply system of Tehran is given as a case study, albeit with some unavailable data. Here, four typical viability loops are discussed. The results of this application show that the flows of informative signals are lacking. Adopting the process indicators, we can see the gaps between the public perceptions of water abundance, the costs of water provision and energy utilizations, and what is going on in the reality are getting wider. That indicates that the viability loops are not functional enough to produce effective changes to offset the reinforcing mechanisms. The sustainable development of the system is impaired due to the persistence of those reinforcing mechanisms.
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| 2. |
- Bagheri, Ali, et al.
(författare)
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Monitoring for sustainable development : a systemic framework
- 2005
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Ingår i: International Journal of Sustainable Development. - 0960-1406. ; 8:4, s. 280-301
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- 'Sustainable development' is a widely used, but less practised, complex term. Using the idea of 'Viability Loops' (VL) based on a System Dynamics (SD) approach and considering sustainability as an ideal for development efforts, this paper argues that sustainable development should be considered as an unending process rather than a state. Thus, a systemic framework is proposed to 'monitor' systems for sustainable development, rather than 'measuring' their sustainability. Then, it is shown that a set of theoretically anticipated VL, in the form of a market-technology balancing mechanism, do not function in practice owing to a lack and/or distortion of information.
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| 3. |
- Bagheri, Ali, et al.
(författare)
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Planning for sustainable development: a paradigm shift towards a process-based approach
- 2007
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Ingår i: Sustainable Development. - : Wiley. - 0968-0802 .- 1099-1719. ; 15:2, s. 83-96
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Prevailing approaches of planning and strategy making, which traditionally deal with the states of systems in terms of fixed goals, fail to acknowledge the process nature of sustainable development. Using a system dynamics approach and relying on the concept of viability loops, the paper aims to illustrate a practical implementation of sustainable development with an urban water system as an example. It argues that planning for sustainable development should be 'process-based' - rather than 'fixed-goal'-oriented. Unlike the traditional approaches of strategy making to set fixed goals related to either supply-side and/or demand-side management, it is argued that triggering a social learning process with full involvement of all stakeholders and planners in the process would be the most suitable strategy for sustainable development. To this end, backcasting is recommended as a suitable tool and the process of model building is regarded as a means of learning rather than forecasting. Copyright (c) 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Hjorth, Peder, et al.
(författare)
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Adaptive Water Management : On the Need for Using the Post-WWII Science in Water Governance
- 2023
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Ingår i: Water Resources Management. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0920-4741 .- 1573-1650. ; 37:6-7, s. 2247-2270
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although the UN concluded, already in 1997, that water would be the most contentious issue of the 21st century, water governance is still confused, nearly everywhere. Even the severe impacts of escalating water bankruptcy and global warming have so far failed to incur a marked improvement in governance systems. The global community has adopted sustainable development as a common vision and guide for the future. Yet, the adoption of the underlying principles of sustainable development has been slow in the water sector and elsewhere. Despite the realization that water governance is a political issue, the near-universal neoliberal agenda tends to only employ technologic and economic solutions to address water problems. This paper presents a historical overview, from the end of the Second World War (WWII) and onwards, of events that could, or should, have had an impact on water management frameworks. It evidences some important consequences of the institutional rigidity exposed during that period. The paper also turns to the fields of science, policy, and management, to pinpoint failures in the translation of political rhetoric as well as new scientific findings into change at the operational level. It explores how an updated knowledge base could serve a quest for sustainable water governance strategies. It is argued that a persistent failure to learn is an important reason behind the dire state that we are now in. As a result, water management is still based on century-old, technocratic, and instrumental methodologies that fail to take advantage of important scientific advancements since WWII and remain unable to properly deal with real-world complexities and uncertainties. The paper concludes that when it is linked to a transformation of the institutional superstructure, adaptive water management (AWM), a framework rooted in systems thinking, emerges as a prominent way to embark on a needed, radical transformation of the water governance systems.
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| 6. |
- Hjorth, Peder
(författare)
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Development Assistance and Sustainable Development: A Critical Assessment
- 2015
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Ingår i: American Journal of Business, Economics and Management. - 2381-4462. ; 3:2, s. 75-85
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sustainable development is currently said to be an overriding development goal, also for development assistance. It requires new approaches that challenge not only economic rationality but also bureaucracies in ways that encourage political pluralism and the participation by civil society. As the gap between rich and poor increases and as the pressures on already strained systems constantly increase, the legitimacy of the development industry has increasingly been called into question. Development processes are nonlinear `open' systems that are extremely fluid, in which continuous learning is the sine qua non of being able to respond and intervene effectively. But superficial learning is common within the development industry, because real learning implies change and challenge, and many development failures are due to institutional rather than technical problems. Somehow, agencies and managers have largely allowed the indications of new and better approaches or opportunities go undetected. They seem not to understand that building people's capacity to learn and make connections becomes more important than accumulating information about lessons learned in the past, and that it is more important to target interesting (positive or negative) experiences for learning instead of `averaging' experience across the board. A revamping of policies is urgently needed. This paper tries to provoke a more productive discussion about development assistance which goes beyond pervasive blind faith and thoughtless mantras and discusses some ideological and structural foundations that have prevented the development industry from making progress towards sustainable development. It analyzes what can be done and asserts that it is clear that, if sustainable development is to be supported and realized, it has to be built on the consent and support of those whose lives are affected. Promoting sustainability and understanding and tackling the roots of poverty is a challenge that requires unlocking material resources and allowing people to take part in social, economic and environmental decision making. There is a need to draw on more diverse perspectives and to cut across sectoral boundaries to counter the monovalent approaches that have dominated mainstream development assistance practice. To that end, there is a dire need develop frameworks that can help actors understand the real meaning of sustainable development.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Hjorth, Peder
(författare)
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Knowledge development and management for urban poverty alleviation
- 2003
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Ingår i: Habitat International. - 0197-3975. ; 27:3, s. 381-392
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper assesses the performance of poverty alleviation projects, asks why so many have failed, and why successful projects have been successful. It gives a retrospective. overview of the development of the concept of poverty, and argues that the way towards poverty eradication goes through holistic, participatory, approaches that build on sharing of knowledge and learning by doing. Projects and programmes should build on the full knowledge of all stakeholders. This way we can create dynamic collaborative environments that build knowledge strategically by developing and applying knowledge as it comes available. It is suggested that approaches should be guided by an enabling framework, within which a multiplicity of partnerships can develop and be effective. Common sense and holistic systems thinking are found to be essential starting points for improvements of the quality of decision-making and the learning and innovation in poverty alleviation efforts.
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