Policy Management Framework Research Articles

Conceptual model for assessing a science–policy–management framework for threat mitigation

AbstractFire regimes are changing globally, leading to an increased need for management interventions to protect human lives and interests, potentially conflicting with biodiversity conservation. We conceptualized 5 major aspects of the process required to address threats to flora and used this conceptual model to examine and identify areas for improvement. We focused on threat identification, policy design, and action implementation. We illustrated the application of the conceptual model through a case study in southeastern Australia, where policies have been designed to prevent hazard reduction burns from exposing threatened flora to high‐frequency fire (HFF). We examined whether threatened species have been accurately identified as threatened by HFF, species were accounted for in key policies, and implementation of the policy reduced the incidence of HFF for target species. Species were mostly identified accurately as being threatened by HFF, and, broadly, the policy effectively minimized the threat from HFF. However, 96 species did not have HFF identified as a threat, and another 36 were missing from the policy entirely. Outcomes regarding the reduction of threat from HFF since policy introduction were species specific, despite an average increase in fire interval of 2 years. Despite the policy, over half (55%) the species studied have been affected by HFF since the policy was introduced. Although relatively minor improvements could optimize threat identification and policy design, the mixed success of action implementation highlights limitations that warrant further investigation. Our conceptual model enabled us to make clear and targeted recommendations for how different aspects of the policy could be improved and where further work is needed. We propose the conceptual model can be useful in a variety of contexts.

Perspectives of integrated climate change and water policies in Hungary

The paper aims to outline the climate impacts induced and transferred by water and the socio-economic factors that exacerbate them. It also seeks to provide a common and integrated policy framework for climate change adaptation and water management. The climatic and non-climate drivers, the risk chains and options for policy integration are assessed in four complex thematic areas: (i) ecosystem services, (ii) food supply chain: agriculture, food processing industry, food safety; (iii) industrial and service activities, energy and water supply, infrastructure, built environment, and (iv) human health and well-being, social justice. In these complex thematic areas, we examine the risk cascade chain, the current state of impacts and expected future challenges within a coherent framework and then make concrete proposals for possible specific areas of policy integration. Finally, in the conclusions, we present municipal-level good practices in water-resilient climate adaptation and formulate the horizontal actions needed to implement integrated climate-water policy.

Factors Influencing Adherence to Hazardous Waste Management Policy Frameworks among Health Workers in Private Hospitals in Nairobi County – Kenya

Purpose: This study, therefore, sought to investigate the factors influencing the adherence to hazardous waste management guidelines among healthcare workers in private hospitals in Nairobi County. The specific objectives of the study included; determining the level of adherence to proper HCWM practices among health workers, identifying the individual related factors that influence adherence to proper HCWM practices among health workers, and identifying the health facility-related (institutional) factors that influence adherence to proper HCWM practices in 4 selected hospitals in Nairobi County Kenya. From the population of 900 healthcare workers from 4 levels 4 facilities, random sampling was applied to identify the 90 respondents. Methodology: Data analysis and reporting was done using appropriate quantitative methods. Findings: The findings from this study show that the level of adherence to hazardous waste management policies among healthcare workers in private level four hospitals in Nairobi County is low. Despite the high level of awareness by the health workers on the important measures of collection, segregation, treatment, transportation and disposal of waste, the level of performance on the same is low. This is greatly attributable to negligence and unfavorable attitude towards healthcare waste management practices among healthcare workers. Unique contribution to theory, policy and practice: Based on the study findings, we would recommend the improvement of hazardous waste management efficiency.

英国科学数据发展政策与规划

The United Kingdom (UK) stands as a pioneer in offering a clear definition of scientific data/research data, setting a global standard with its policies on scientific data. The UK’s data development strategy, planning, and action plans have effectively positioned it as a global leader in the realm of scientific data management, sharing, and reuse. This paper conducts a systematic review of the UK's scientific data policies, supporting institutions, and development plans through a comprehensive analysis of literature, websites, and other information resources. The results illustrate that the UK has established a comprehensive policy framework for scientific data management across various levels, encompassing government departments, supporting institutions, and research organizations. This framework revolves around the development, management, sharing, and application of scientific data, and incorporates strategic planning and action plans at both the national and regulatory levels. These initiatives have laid a solid foundation for the UK’s international leadership in the open sharing and utilization of scientific data. Notably, the UK’s practice of incorporating scientific data centers into national infrastructure construction ensures the continuous accumulation, management, sharing, and efficient utilization of scientific data assets within the country. The UK’s policy system for scientific data development and its planning practices in fostering such progress can serve as a valuable reference for the establishment of scientific data centers in China.

A framework on interplay of knowledge types and dimensions in pandemics – Example of COVID‐19

AbstractRecent literature has documented numerous knowledge management (KM) policy frameworks and models utilised for managing pandemics such as COVID‐19. Perhaps the major focus of existing scholarly work is on the role and relevance of healthcare KM in the COVID‐19 crisis compared to the understanding of healthcare knowledge dimensions and knowledge types in pandemic management and control. Considering the complexities of COVID‐19, we attempt to address a literature gap in the management knowledge of pandemics as the study problem in this paper. The paper proposes a framework to analyse the interplay between the dimensions and knowledge types and its application benefits using the example of COVID‐19 management in the state of Kerala. Considering the disparities in how the pandemic was managed globally, we use the Kerala case to illuminate the different interactions between the three types and four dimensions of knowledge for pandemic management. Future studies may explore the extension and testing of the proposed interplay framework in other contexts.

Depressive symptoms among women in disaster-prone region in Bangladesh

Women are one of the crucial mental health victims of disaster but there is a lack of rigorous research in this area. This study, therefore, conducted a survey using a questionnaire among 350 randomly selected women from Khulna district (a disaster-prone region in Bangladesh) to explore the prevalence of depression and associated factors among women. 9-items Patient Health Questionnaire was used to measure the depressive symptoms and 63% were found to have the moderate to severe level of depression. Similarly, the ordered logistic regression model revealed that being married, having children, facing physical injury, job loss in disaster, damage of house, damage of crops, loss of domestic animals, worrying about future possible loss, family conflicts, and physical violence were the significant risk factors of depression among women in disaster-prone Bangladesh. This is because disasters increase caregiving obligations, financial instability, weak social support, and gender-based violence among women comparing men. Thus, it is crucial to prioritize mental health interventions for women including livelihood and emotional supports within disaster management policy framework. Likewise, future studies should use a longitudinal design with an extensive sample and study region since the current study employed a cross-sectional design with a small sample and study region.

Living review framework for better policy design and management of hazardous waste in Australia

The significant increase in hazardous waste generation in Australia has led to the discussion over the incorporation of artificial intelligence into the hazardous waste management system. Recent studies explored the potential applications of artificial intelligence in various processes of managing waste. However, no study has examined the use of text mining in the hazardous waste management sector for the purpose of informing policymakers. This study developed a living review framework which applied supervised text classification and text mining techniques to extract knowledge using the domain literature data between 2022 and 2023. The framework employed statistical classification models trained using iterative training and the best model XGBoost achieved an F1 score of 0.87. Using a small set of 126 manually labelled global articles, XGBoost automatically predicted the labels of 678 Australian articles with high confidence. Then, keyword extraction and unsupervised topic modelling with Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) were performed. Results indicated that there were 2 main research themes in Australian literature: (1) the key waste streams and (2) the resource recovery and recycling of waste. The implication of this framework would benefit the policymakers, researchers, and hazardous waste management organisations by serving as a real time guideline of the current key waste streams and research themes in the literature which allow robust knowledge to be applied to waste management and highlight where the gap in research remains.

Agriculture Water Management is an Important Approach for Mitigating the Effects of Climate Change in Afghanistan

As climate change continues to impact Afghanistan, effective strategies for mitigating its effects are crucial to ensuring food security and sustainable agricultural practices. Agriculture's water management plays a vital role in adapting to and mitigating the impacts of climate change. This article aims to highlight the significance of agriculture water management as an approach to addressing climate change challenges in Afghanistan. The study involved 29 farmers, and the approach included surveys and field observations. The findings found that the primary challenges in Paktika were a lack of irrigation water, old irrigation methods, a lack of modern irrigation systems, and farmers' lack of understanding about crop water requirements. To improve sustainable water management in irrigated agriculture, capacity building, and farmer education, providing knowledge and techniques for water-saving practices, sustainable irrigation systems such as drip and sprinkler, rainwater harvesting, integrated water resource management, crop diversification, conservation agriculture, and strong policy frameworks and robust institutional support are necessary to promote agriculture water management.

Wasteaware adaptation to the context of a Latin American country: evaluation of the municipal solid waste management in Cali, Colombia

According to the World Bank report, Colombia generated 5.6% (13 million tons per year) of municipal solid waste in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2016. About 30% of this waste came from the three main cities of the country, Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali. Evaluation of the performance of municipal solid waste management systems is important for reducing environmental and public health impacts in cities. Wasteaware benchmark indicators have been used worldwide for monitoring those systems. The results of the adaptation of this methodology to the Context of a Latin American Country are presented in this research. The solid waste comprehensive management policy and regulatory framework in Colombia were considered. As a case study, the adaptation of Wasteaware was implemented using the data from the Cali solid waste management system for 2019. The results of the evaluation for Cali indicate that system presents a high overall performance (91%). Cali achieved the highest performance when compared to other Latin American cities. The implementation of this management instrument in Colombian cities will provide sufficient and relevant information regarding the municipal solid waste management systems. It is expected that this initiative will be replicated in other cities in Latin America.

KubeAegis: A Unified Security Policy Management Framework for Containerized Environments

KubeAegis: A Unified Security Policy Management Framework for Containerized Environments

Towards development of effective policies and regulations for sustainable off‐grid solar electronic waste management systems in Kenya

AbstractOff‐grid solar systems provide clean and affordable energy sources. Adoption of off‐grid Solar energy is becoming increasingly popular in Kenya as a source of renewable energy, with an estimated 10 million people using off‐grid solar power systems as of the end of year 2022. However, the rising off‐grid solar systems technology uptake comes with a growing amount of solar e‐waste, which can have harmful environmental and health effects if not managed properly. Current data on the exact amount of solar e‐waste being generated in Kenya is unavailable and this amount will continue to rise with the expiry of many of these off‐grid solar systems lifespans. This study through stakeholder's workshop and document review data collection and analysis approaches, established that Kenya just like many countries in the Global South has a robust general waste policy and regulation management framework. However, it lacks specific policies and regulations on off‐grid‐solar electronic waste management a challenge that many countries in the Global North have made considerate steps in addressing. In addition, there is a lack of awareness of the hazardous nature of off‐grid solar systems' e‐waste components to both consumers and institutions of governance. There is a lack of adequate infrastructure and sufficient systems for off‐grid solar e‐waste management in the country. Enforcement and implementation challenges of the existing general waste regulations due to limited resources and capacity and corruption culture are major impending factors. This calls for the development of effective policies and regulations to ensure sustainable off‐grid solar e‐waste management in Kenya against the backdrop of the rising uptake of off‐grid solar systems.

Disaster vulnerability and flood management policy framework in the Himalayas

The Himalayas are one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world and have experienced an increasing number of disasters, particularly floods in recent years that have hampered the socio-economic development in the region. Flood management policies are key in mitigating and managing disasters and are an important part of disaster risk reduction. In the present study, we discuss the disaster vulnerability and policy framework in the North-Western Himalayas, with a focus on the flooding in the Kashmir Valley, which is one of the most vulnerable regions in the Himalayas. Kashmir has a long history of flooding that has affected society and the environment on a wide scale. However, flood management began at the beginning of the nineteenth century. The present work explores the primary sources to make a historical analysis of flood management in Kashmir. The study provides an in-depth analysis of the important policies and proposals for flood management in the region. It discusses the top priorities established by various flood management suggestions and examines how the focus was given to Srinagar city and the reclamation of agricultural land while neglecting other areas. The study highlights the failure of the flood management plans and why the problem of flood management persists in the Kashmir Valley. The study also discusses the vulnerability of the Kashmir Valley to floods and the resultant causes.

An assessment of the legal and policy framework for participatory forest governance in Bangladesh

A robust and well-designed legal and policy framework is vital for ensuring successful public participation in forest management and engaging local governments and communities in conservation efforts. However, despite the presence of various policies and laws aimed at protecting environmental and biological resources, Bangladesh continues to experience significant depletion of its forest resources. This can be largely attributed to inadequate implementation of forest laws, a weak institutional structure, and a bureaucratic approach to forest management. This article undertakes an analysis of Bangladesh's policy and legal framework concerning participatory forest governance. It specifically examines the incorporation of participatory elements within the country's legal and policy framework for forest management. The assessment encompasses forest tenure, land use, and the practice of participatory forest management (PFM). Furthermore, the effectiveness of social forestry and co-management, the two primary approaches to achieving participatory forest governance in Bangladesh, is evaluated. Additionally, the article identifies the challenges hindering the successful implementation of these approaches. The argument put forth is that despite the apparent support for participatory forest management within Bangladesh’s policy and legal framework, the actual implementation of PFM and sustainable forest management (SFM) remains ineffective. This ineffectiveness can be attributed to poor policy execution, prioritization of profit-generation over sustainable management practices, lack of coherence within the legal framework, and the centralized decision-making process regarding state-owned forests.

Disaster Management Policy Framework in Bangladesh: The Role of Mobile Phones during the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID-19, officially recognized as an epidemic by the WHO on March 11, 2020, has spread rapidly across Europe, the US, South America, India, Pakistan, Thailand, and Myanmar. Bangladesh has implemented preventive measures, such as the Disaster Management Act of 2012 and the Infectious Disease Prevention, Control, and Elimination Act of 2018, to prevent the virus and control mobilizations and gatherings. This constrained social and economic activities as well. The COVID-19 epidemic has necessitated the reliance on connectivity as an essential means for the sustained operation of commercial and social activities. The government has recognized the significance of mobile technology in supporting social and economic activities. Mobile connectivity in Bangladesh is crucial for economic and social activities during the pandemic, enabling businesses and educational institutions to sustain operations, facilitate social interaction, support work-related tasks, and provide access to services that improve quality of life. The government has categorized mobile technology and operators as a crucial public service. Mobile phones and mobile internet utilization is expected to continue enabling connectivity, providing access to novel opportunities, and contributing to economic growth and progress towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Digital Bangladesh. The capacity of individuals to access and effectively utilize mobile phone and internet services is essential for fully utilizing the social and economic benefits of mobile connectivity.

Extended Producer Responsibility for Waste Management Policy

Solid waste management, which always ends in landfills, causes various environmental and socio-economic impacts. Tegal City also experiences overcapacity landfill conditions because the waste management model focuses on landfills. This study aims to identify existing waste management regulations and how EPR can become a policy framework to achieve waste management beyond landfills. The result explains that by regulation, the government has regulated the flow of solid waste management by prioritizing the 3R principles, starting from the transportation process, sorting at TPS/TPST, and even processing to become a product with economic value. However, in the end, all this waste still ends up in landfill. From the government's perspective, this is due to the need to integrate responsibilities between the government, society, and producers. Producer responsibility must be fully implemented in waste management. However, several regulations have yet to regulate the form of waste management that producers can carry out the responsibility of producers as specifically to be responsible for the product until it ends up as waste. In addition, this study illustrates that EPR as a policy framework for waste management can be applied in other cities, primarily if the government's point of view supports the division of responsibilities for waste management.

An overview of economic valuation of ecosystem services in protected areas and its roles in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Protected areas (PAs) provide a variety of benefits and services related to human welfare, poverty alleviation, and sustainable development. However, economic valuations of PAs are poorly measured to date. The majority of PAs management policy frameworks are based on biodiversity conservation. The purpose of this overview is to highlight the importance of PAs in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by reviewing current and past studies related to the economic value of ecosystem services and the valuation methodologies of PAs at local, regional, and national levels. In addition, the role of PAs in enhancing the sustainability of ecosystem services has been discussed. Furthermore, two case studies related to the ecosystem-economic perspective of PAs; Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and India’s Nagarhole Park, were highlighted. In general, the economic value of PAs is based on the components of ecosystem services, such as provisioning, regulating, supporting, and culture. The management of PAs is critical for valuation of species conservation as one of the standards derived from the ecosystem services. Additionally, it improved the level of financial income of the communities, their educational and health levels, revitalizing local businesses and providing job opportunities through the success of PA’s management strategies as local, national, and international tourist destinations. This review provides a snapshot of the roles of PAs in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), useful for future researchers, planners, park managers, and policymakers to develop policies for sustainable investment and improvement of PAs.

Alternative Policy Management Framework in Determination of Long-Distance Travel Permit Based on Covid-19-like Symptoms Using Data Mining

Even though the obligation to carry out a Covid-19 booster vaccination still applies to long trips using public transportation in Indonesia. One clause regarding checking policy for symptoms of Covid-19 is still often ignored by train passengers because the symptoms of Covid19 are still similar to those of influenza. Somehow, the travel policy is not fair for comorbid person which cannot have Covid-19 vaccination. This research goal is to propose an alternative policy, which is a part of policy management framework, to prevent the transmission of covid19 by long-distance train travel in new era when the enforcement of Covid-19 regulation has been repealed. As alternative of Covid-19 vaccination requirement, the use of data mining algorithm will be proposed ning algorithm to determine whether or not it is permissible to travel long distances by using the dominant covid-19 like symptoms. The results of this study are in the form of a reasoning knowledge regarding the symptoms that passengers need to pay close attention to avoid the risk of transmission of Covid-19. Even though the accuracy of the decision is still 66.67% using C4.5 algorithm, it is the first step to be implemented in a new era, namely the era of prevention of Covid-19, no longer an era of mitigation. The publication of this result is put on bulletin board design

An Investigation of Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Drought Forecasting

Following the impact of droughts witnessed during the last decade there is an urgent need to develop a drought management strategy, policy framework, and action plan for Satara District. This study aims to provide a historical baseline using the standardized precipitation index (SPI) and meteorological drought maps, and to investigate the spatial and temporal trends using long-term historical precipitation records. Drought is a natural hazard that is difficult to quantify in terms of severity, duration, area and impact. The present study has been designed to evaluate the metrological drought for Man and Khatav (Maharashtra) using the Standard Precipitation index (SPI). The data and information obtained in this area to monitor and forecast drought can also be useful in future to control and reduce the impact of drought on drinking water and agriculture in this region. The SPI is calculated at Mann and Khatav in many series over different periods of time to show drought and drought-free years. The lowest rainfall in Khatav station was less than 200mm, while in Mann; it was about -2.5mm, indicating extremely dry seasons.

Records Management Practices in Uganda's Public Pension Office

The purpose of this study was to assess the records management practices in Uganda's public pension office. The study's objectives were: to find out the categories of records managed in Uganda's public pension office; to examine the records management practices in Uganda's public pension office; to find out the challenges faced in the management of records in Uganda's public pension office, and to propose strategies to improve the management of records in Uganda's public pension office. The study adopted a mixed methods research design. It was conducted at the Ministry of Public Service, specifically in the Compensation Department and Department of Records and Information Management. The study population was composed of thirty (30) staff working in the two departments, who were all adopted as the sample size, given the small population. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, self-administered questionnaires and a document review. The findings revealed that personnel records were mostly kept and that the records management practices followed were guided by the Basic Registry Procedures Manual, a manual specifically developed for registries at the Ministry of Public Service. Despite having a records manual in place, some staff had poor attitudes towards records management due to poor remuneration while others had no/limited training in records management. Other challenges faced included inadequate equipment, non-streamlined records management practices and a lack of a Centre for benchmarking its practices as stipulated by the National Records and Information Management Policy framework. It is expected that the findings revealed by this study will inform policymakers, the government of Uganda and the Ministry of Public Service on the key issues to solve in a bid to strengthen records management in the public pension office to enhance the process of pension processing which is usually delayed by the lack of records.

A gendered analysis of Cyclone Idai disaster interventions in Chimanimani district, Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT When disasters happen in the world, government departments and NGOs collaborate to support survivors through various interventions. Whether these interventions respond to the gendered impacts of these disasters is an area that has not been given adequate research attention. This paper provides a gendered analysis of the interventions targeted at Cyclone Idai survivors in Zimbabwe’s Chimanimani District. It draws from data generated through focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and key-informant interviews with cyclone survivors and representatives from government agencies and NGOs that provided humanitarian assistance in Chimanimani District. The study revealed that the interventions were implemented without comprehensively integrating gendered issues due to the absence of a clear gender responsive national policy framework for disaster management in Zimbabwe. The study recommends gender sensitive training to those who assist in distributing humanitarian assistance and the need to address gender-skewed responses caused by treating gender as synonymous with women.