Climate change, rapid urbanization and inappropriate urban planning policies in many countries have resulted in urban water-related problems, such as flooding disasters, water pollution and water ...shortages. To tackle these issues, the specific urban water management strategy known as Sponge City has been implemented in China since 2013. This is a complex method and one involving many challenges. This paper critically assesses the approaches associated with conventional urban water management. The Sponge City concept and its adoption are then scrutinized to comprehensively assess the limitations and opportunities. It emerges that Sponge City has four main principles, these being: urban water resourcing, ecological water management, green infrastructures, and urban permeable pavement. The uncertainties in Sponge City design and planning, and financial insufficiencies are the most serious problems that can risk the failure of the Sponge City concept. While significant barriers exist, the opportunities for implementing a Sponge City are evident. To obtain multi-ecosystem services of Sponge City, it should be implemented at the watershed scales and be flexible, depending on different decision levels or catchment characteristics. It is essential to apply an intelligent decision-making mechanism and consider the need for close cooperation between various agencies with which the central government can work. A suitable sized and harmonious Sponge City, ensuring a good balance between socio-economic development and environmental conservation, is the ideal.
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•Sponge City is considered a specific integrated urban water management.•Sponge City has particular benefits in addressing urban water issues.•Ecological services provision, and climate change adaptation are also its merits.•Uncertainties and financial insufficiencies are crucial challenges.•Future perspectives of Sponge City implication are clearly stated.
The Luxury Effect hypothesizes a positive relationship between wealth and biodiversity within urban areas. Understanding how urban development, both in terms of socio‐economic status and the built ...environment, affects biodiversity can contribute to the sustainable development of cities, and may be especially important in the developing world where current growth in urban populations is most rapid. We tested the Luxury Effect by analysing bird species richness in relation to income levels, as well as human population density and urban cover, in landscapes along an urbanization gradient in South Africa. The Luxury Effect was supported in landscapes with lower urbanization levels in that species richness was positively correlated with income level where urban cover was relatively low. However, the effect was reversed in highly urbanized landscapes, where species richness was negatively associated with income level. Tree cover was also positively correlated with species richness, although it could not explain the Luxury Effect. Species richness was negatively related to urban cover, but there was no association with human population density. Our model suggests that maintaining green space in at least an equal proportion to the built environment is likely to provide a development strategy that will enhance urban biodiversity, and with it, the positive benefits that are manifest for urban dwellers. Our findings can form a key contribution to a wider strategy to expand urban settlements in a sustainable way to provide for the growing urban population in South Africa, including addressing imbalances in environmental justice across income levels and racial groups.
By analysing the relationship between bird species richness and income level of urban dwellers in South Africa, we tested the Luxury Effect, which posits a positive correlation between wealth and biodiversity. We found that the relationship between species richness and income differed across an urbanization gradient. The Luxury Effect was evident in areas of lower urbanization, while the opposite pattern was found in more urbanized areas. Maintaining green space in at least an equal proportion to the built environment will provide a development strategy to enhance urban biodiversity, and with it, the positive benefits that are manifest for urban dwellers.
Over recent decades, information and communication technology (ICT) has had a profound impact on the economy and on society more broadly. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of ICT ...on socio-economic development in China by considering spatial effects. To understand the overall influence of ICT on socio-economic development, the study used principal component analysis (PCA) to establish composite ICT and socio-economic development indexes based on data collected from 31 provinces in the period 2009–2018. In applying the spatial panel data analysis, this article argues that a spatial Durbin model (SDM) with spatial fixed effects is the most suitable model for the purpose of making estimations. The results of the SDM suggest the socio-economic development of provinces contains strong spatial correlations. More specifically, although ICT plays an essential role in improving socio-economic development, the spatial spillover effects of ICT negatively affect the socio-economic development in adjacent areas, implying that a digital divide exists among China's provinces and that this digital gap can lead to unbalanced socio-economic development. The article concludes by outlining some practical policy recommendations for the advancement of ICT going forward to help alleviate the adverse effects of the digital divide and enhance the benefits of ICT-based socio-economic development.
•The socio-economic development of Chinese provinces have strong spatial dependence.•The ICT progress can improve socio-economic level in the focal province, but has negative impact on the adjacent provinces.•To alleviate the digital divide among areas, the ICT-based socio-economic development strategy may offer a good reference.
The paper presents the results of the study, the purpose and practical input of which was the analysis and evaluation of municipal governments, including the identification of municipalities best ...developed in socio-economic terms in conditions of data uncertainty. To this end, factors with a significant impact on the concept of territorial development were identified. For the purpose of the analysis, the variables were adopted that were related to various spheres of municipal development, including the social, economic, infrastructural, environmental and administrative ones. The study used such methods and exploration techniques as: desk research analysis, critical analysis of the literature on the subject, methods of economic analysis and methods of multidimensional comparative analysis. The uncertainty of data was caused, among other things, by the fact that the study did not take into account the effect of barriers hampering development processes and focused exclusively on variables whose highest values indicated the most effective use of development stimulating factors. Moreover, the diversification of the municipalities' endogenous potential was not included in the considerations. The above reasons seem to confirm the study results that found two municipalities: Kołobrzeg and Świnoujście to be the best developed in socio-economic terms. In the period under analysis the values of the diagnostic variables of both municipalities were the most similar to the benchmark municipality. The explanation for the results can be found, among others, in the high endogenic potential of both municipalities, especially in comparison with other coastal municipalities of the West Pomeranian Voivodship. The study contributes to further in-depth research on the best method of selecting variables for analyzing the development of municipalities. Future research in this field should be focused on identifying the best method of selecting diagnostic features where some features are uncertain or imprecise.
The study aims to investigate the characteristics of socio-economic development in the context of countries' tourism advancement. The paper analyzes the Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) and ...the Happiness Rating (HR). The sample covers data from 102 countries for the year 2021. The analysis showed that there are differences in the relationships between TTDI and HR, as well as their sub-indices, among groups of countries distributed according to income level. The research methodology includes the use of such methods as correlation analysis to determine the relationships between indicators like factor analysis to identify the degree of indicators' influence on the sample and a graphical method to visualise the analysis results. The study uses the World Bank approach to classify countries into income groups. The study confirms that a country's welfare level is one factor that determines patterns in various areas, including tourism.
Small towns around the world contribute to sustainable development at the regional, national and international level, and play an important role in human settlement networks. They can create ...cooperation networks to increase their competitive advantage relative to large cities and to promote regional growth. Organizations that provide a shared platform for mutual assistance, cooperation, exchange of experiences and the implementation of measures for resolving socio-economic problems can increase small towns' growth potential and promote the achievement of common goals. One of such organizations is the International Cittaslow Network which brings together small towns willing to implement the Slow City philosophy. The aim of this study was to classify the member towns of the Polish Cittaslow Network based on their socio-economic development and to identify the opportunities that arise from Cittaslow membership. It was also the authors' intention to present and popularize the Wrocław taxonomic method in the international arena. The results of the study indicate that members of the Polish Cittaslow Network differ considerably in socio-economic development, growth potential and barriers to development. However, the socio-economic status of most towns has improved. The study demonstrated that small towns can benefit from joining cooperation networks at the national and international level.
•The taxonomic method for evaluating the Polish Cittaslow Network was implemented.•The benefits of Cittaslow membership were presented.•The Wrocław taxonomic method supports analyses of towns' development potential.•The analyzed towns differed in their levels of socio-economic development.•The results offer valuable insights for towns that aspire to become Cittaslow members.
The continuity of the green environment, economy, and entrepreneur-ship is essential for sustainable development. Therefore, this research aims to explored the potential of informal institutions in ...promoting Green Enterpreneurship (GE) and sustainable socio-economic development. The method employed used microeconomic data rooted in local wisdom, social norms, and localized moral commitments from various regions of Indonesia. Data collection comprised surveys and structured interviews relevant to the research objectives. Quantitative data material was obtained by conducting a field survey of 150 household samples of green entrepreneurship respondents taken representatively in various regions using simple random sampling techniques. The design employed a two-stage mixed-method approach, including exploratory and explanatory designs. The result showed the significance of Green Enterpreneurship (GE) in mitigating the impacts of global climate change and economic crises, thereby contributing to the attainment of sustainable development goals. However, the main results of the research confirm that the capacity of formal institutions has not been able to navigate the complexity of these problems isssues is limited. Conversely, informal institutions, though capable of mitigating global climate change and advancing sustainable development, remained localized and lacked national and global integration and collaboration. Green Enterpreneurship (GE), as a form of social innovation, gave rise to new models of socio-economic solidarity within unique local communities. The research also underscored the pivotal role of informal institutions in facilitating these endeavors, thereby filling a void in high-quality new institutional economic theory
•We build a theoretical framework for the socio-economic impacts of ICT.•A model to describe the socio-economic impacts of ICT on citizens is developed.•The study uses the interpretive approach and ...the narrative research method.
There is a widespread belief that information and communication technologies (ICTs) can play a significant role in the socio-economic development of a developing country. ICT has the potential to affect many aspects of economic and societal activities such as GDP growth, employment, productivity, poverty alleviation, quality of life, education, and healthcare. While the literature provides a myriad of definitions and elements of socio-economic development, the focus tends to be on theoretical conceptualizations from various disciplines and impacts from isolated individual projects. In particular, the impact of ICT on socio-economic development has not been carefully examined from the viewpoint of the ultimate stakeholder, the citizens of a country, who are the final consumers of the technology. This study fills this gap by focusing on the citizens’ view in describing ICT-driven socio-economic development in a developing country. A theoretical framework influenced by the “capabilities approach” was developed to guide this research, and the interpretive stance was used to conduct the study. More specifically, the narrative research method, which is seldom used in IS research but is appropriate for this study, was used. Narratives allow deeper and profound insights into social representations and participants' beliefs about the role of ICT in socio-economic development. Using this methodology, a model of the impact dimensions of socio-economic development is presented.
Excessive differentiation of socio-economic development of regions leads to the collapse of a single socio-economic space and the emergence of socio-economic inequality. This study assessed ...socio-economic inequality in Kazakhstan and its impact on regional development management. It analyzed interregional disproportion of socio-economic development of regions through the index approach using statistical data from the Bureau of National Statistics for 2011–2019. A comprehensive study of the socio-economic development of Kazakhstan and its regional differences employed the proposed index of social and economic development. It was revealed that Kazakhstan has a high level of interregional differentiation of socio-economic development, which indicates the existing socio-economic inequality, requiring the development of new and improvement of existing mechanisms to create an inclusive economy. There are significant gaps in socio-economic development between Kazakhstani regions. According to the proposed index, Kazakhstan is at the above-average level (42, B). From 2011 to 2019, the index was practically at the same level (39-42). The average social and economic development was shown by Almaty (61.1, B++), Nur-Sultan (59.9, B+), Karaganda (53.1, B+), and East Kazakhstan (51.0, B+). Low social and economic development was shown by Akmola (29.8, C+) and North Kazakhstan (22.4, C+). The difference in the socio-economic development of the regions is directly interconnected with the regional economic and social policy. According to the results, to implement state policy in inclusive development and overcome socio-economic inequality, respective measures should promote economic integration, including the mechanisms of regional, industrial, and research policy, comprising all levels of state regulation.
AcknowledgmentsThis study is supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan within the project “The science impact on Kazakhstan’s socio-economic development: methodology, assessment models and development scenarios” (IRN AP08052745).
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