Public-private Collaboration Research Articles

What COVID-19 has introduced into education: challenges Facing Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)

ABSTRACT The effect of the latest novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) on higher education, specifically the transition from face-to-face sessions to online and interactive learning systems, is investigated in this study. The paper discusses the difficulties that higher education institutions face in transitioning to ‘online pedagogy,’ including mobility issues, technology connectivity, digital learning, and differential access to education. The key obstacles of a shift to distance learning during COVID-19, according to the findings, are technical resources and differential access to education. Though COVID-19 was challenging for students, it also served as a springboard for realistic alternatives such as artificial intelligence (AI), public-private educational collaborations, and digitalization. Universities should study policies to mitigate the detrimental effects of COVID-19, according to the findings, while maintaining a dedication to creativity and large-scale changes in practice.

Big data for climate action or climate action for big data?

Under the banner of “data for good,” companies in the technology, finance, and retail sectors supply their proprietary datasets to development agencies, NGOs, and intergovernmental organizations to help solve an array of social problems. We focus on the activities and implications of the Data for Climate Action campaign, a set of public–private collaborations that wield user data to design innovative responses to the global climate crisis. Drawing on in-depth interviews, first-hand observations at “data for good” events, intergovernmental and international organizational reports, and media publicity, we evaluate the logic driving Data for Climate Action initiatives, examining the implications of applying commercial datasets and expertise to environmental problems. Despite the increasing adoption of Data for Climate Action paradigms in government and public sector efforts to address climate change, we argue Data for Climate Action is better seen as a strategy to legitimate extractive, profit-oriented data practices by companies than a means to achieve global goals for environmental sustainability.

Management of COVID-19 Crisis: Bangladesh Perspectives

Bangladesh has one of the world's most extensive networks of community health workers and a robust tradition of public-private collaboration during crises, underpinned by resilient communities. These strengths highlight Bangladesh's capacity to navigate the current COVID-19 crisis effectively, finding optimal solutions to ensure survival amidst the catastrophe. Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has ravaged lives and caused widespread societal disruption, prompting closures of schools and workplaces aimed at curbing transmission and delaying the epidemic's peak. Bangladesh's strategy to combat COVID-19 cannot rely solely on governmental efforts; it necessitates unprecedented collaboration across public and private sectors, both locally and internationally. Initiatives such as the COVID-19 Action Platform by the World Economic Forum, in conjunction with the World Health Organization, have been pivotal in responding to the pandemic. Bangladesh can leverage these platforms to bolster its private sector, share its experiences in managing COVID-19, and enhance economic resilience. Data from the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control, and Research highlight that the majority (62%) of COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh have occurred among individuals aged 21-50. Notably, those aged 31-40 account for the largest segment (23%) of infections, followed by those aged 21-30 (20%), and 41-50 (19%). Patients aged 51-60 constitute 15% of cases, while those over 60 represent 13%. Adolescents (ages 11-20) and children (under 10) comprise 7% and 3% of cases, respectively. This demographic profile aligns with trends observed in neighboring India but differs from harder-hit countries like the USA, China, and Spain.

A Supporting System for Relieving COVID-19 Crew Change Crisis

Since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, a large number of international seafarers have been stranded aboard ships. Some seafarers have been banned from coming ashore even for over 18 months. Crew change crisis is a time bomb for marine trade because seafarers play an important role in ensuring the safety of ship navigation and maintaining the smooth flow of global supply chain. The purpose of this study is to analyze the reasons of crew change crisis and legal framework of seafarers’ right to stop working and leave the ships they serve, and to provide a supporting system for relieving COVID-19 international seafarers change crisis. Situation analysis, which is a widely held method in health policy research to understand the present condition, contributes to finding out the reasons for crew change crisis. Statistical analysis is used to demonstrate the obstacles encountered in public health governance on crew change. Information is collected from official websites of governments and international organizations. The study provides three solutions for relieving COVID-19 crew change crisis based on China’s successful experience. The first is to implement refined management including monitoring of the pandemic, crew transportation, tracking and preventing mechanism. The second is to construct public-private collaboration mechanism and provide policy support on helping shipping companies reduce cost, which contributes to shipping companies to relieve their economic pressure on seafarers shift arrangement. The third is to construct international cooperation mechanism for crew changes.

Problematika Pendidikan di Perbatasan: Studi Kasus Pendidikan Dasar bagi Anak Pekerja Migran Indonesia (PMI) di Negara Bahagian Sarawak, Malaysia

Education as one of the basic rights or fundamental rights that everyone must own has been discussed since 1948 in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Primary education becomes important later because education is a strategic aspect of human life. Malaysia, as one of the destination countries of Indonesian migrant workers as a place to work. From the data of 2.7 million people spread throughout the territory of Malaysia. The problems that arise are not only in the administration of the workers but also the children they bring to work there. It becomes a dilemma because the government cannot go down directly because of obstacles such as national borders and the applicable rules. The Transnational Public-Private Partnership, which is then carried out between the two countries and a third party, private then, can fulfill that education. CLC or Community Learning Center is a manifestation of this form of public-private collaboration. In this case, the private sector's involvement is significant in fulfilling the education of Indonesian migrant worker children in the Sarawak region. To date, 62 CLCs provide access to education for 1,658 Indonesian children. With local teachers/tutors who are Indonesian citizens, the company recruits to teach with a minimum high school / vocational certificate. Until June 2019, there were 94 Pamong Teachers in the Sarawak CLC, and Bina Teachers were teachers sent by the Indonesian Government (Kemendikbud RI) to teach at the CLC. As of June 2019, there were 23 Bina Teachers in the Sarawak CLC.

The Need for Investment in Rigorous Interventions to Improve Child Food Security

The Need for Investment in Rigorous Interventions to Improve Child Food Security

Analyzing Territorial and Sectorial Dimensions of Public–Private Partnerships in Science, Technology, and Innovation policies

AbstractThe performance of innovation systems depends, to a great extent, on the degree of public–private collaboration they involve. Thus, innovation policies often aim to enhance this collaboration through public–private partnerships. These partnerships are a multidimensional phenomenon whose success depends on factors related to each of their dimensions. This paper proposes the use of an analytical model that reflects the multidimensional nature of public–private partnerships and analyses to what extent they are applied in a specific innovation system in order to identify the territorial and sectorial factors that act as barriers or drivers to use them. This model aims to help policy makers design appropriate public–private partnerships in each context. The case under review is the Spanish innovation system, given that this system has been suffering from a structural lack of collaboration for several decades, despite the implementation of policies aimed to foster this. Thus, if the model works, it should be able to identify key factors that influence greater or more restricted use of the different PPP formulas.

Importance of Public-Private Mix Collaboration in Tuberculosis Control: It Is Also Valuable in Patients with Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

Importance of Public-Private Mix Collaboration in Tuberculosis Control: It Is Also Valuable in Patients with Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

More and Better Investment Now! How Unlocking Sustainable and Digital Investment Flows Can Help Achieve the SDGs

The global community can address the collapse of investment following COVID-19, drive digital transformation, and help achieve the SDGs through five actions: (1) establish a Facility and Fund to provide resources for technical assistance and facilitate private–public collaboration, including through a new EASI Alliance, (2) endorse a Sustainable Investment Framework to advance such collaboration, through aligning and coordinating efforts, (3) adopt specific investment policies and measures to support sustainable FDI for sustainable development, prioritizing linkages, (4) adopt specific policies and measures to facilitate investment in the digital economy, accelerating productive transformation while building resilience, and (5) develop partnerships and industry-based coalitions to operationalize these efforts.

PDG44 Recommendations from the RET-a Think TANK for the Management and Implementation of Advanced Therapies in Spain

The CAR-T cells therapy represents a therapeutic revolution for patients with some types of cancer, but it also poses healthcare, regulatory and economic challenges to the system. The objective of the RET-A think tank was to develop a strategic reflection on the short, medium and long-term challenges of managing CAR-T in Spain, and to propose improvement opportunities. More than forty experts participated in this multidisciplinary reflection. The CORE group was responsible for the design and overall approach. Four thematic working groups agreed on relevant aspects related to the strategic starting point, the integrated care pathway, the innovative Health Technology Assessment and funding models, and future projections. The three main challenges identified were to increase the number of qualified centers for the management of CAR-T, going from 10 to 17 in the short term, and to 32 in the medium term; to simplify the processes in order to reduce the average time of access to the therapy; and to advocate for therapeutic individualization with a multidisciplinary approach. In the economic sphere, some of the proposals were to develop alternative value-based payment models, considering the individual benefit of each indication, conditioned to real world evidence; to establish explicit and differential cost-utility thresholds; to consider the creation of a potential specific fund for emerging therapies; to establish an explicit expenditure ceiling; to apply a more long-term decision-making vision; and to monitor the results obtained through the use of adequate information systems. Moreover, there is a need to improve the training of all the involved stakeholders, and to increase public-private collaboration. CAR-T represents an opportunity to redefine the management of the whole healthcare system, but additional efforts are needed to ensure access and sustainability.

Partnering to Build Human Resources for Health Capacity in Africa: A Descriptive Review of the Global Health Service Partnership's Innovative Model for Health Professional Education and Training From 2013-2018.

Several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (3, 16, 17) point to the need to systematically address massive shortages of human resources for health (HRH), build capacity and leverage partnerships to reduce the burden of global illness. Addressing these complex needs remain challenging, as simple increases in absolute numbers of healthcare providers trained is insufficient; substantial investment into long-term high-quality training programs is needed, as are incentives to retain qualified professionals within local systems of care delivery. We describe a novel HRH initiative, the Global Health Service Partnership (GHSP), involving collaboration between the US government (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief [PEPFAR], Peace Corps), 5 African countries, and a US-based non-profit, Seed Global Health. GHSP was formed to enlist US health professionals to assist in strengthening teaching and training capacity and focused on pre-and in-service medical and nursing education in Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Eswatini and Liberia. From 2013-2018, GHSP sent 186 US health professionals to 27 institutions in 5 countries, helping to train 16 280 unique trainees of all levels. Qualitative impacts included cultivating a supportive classroom learning environment, providing a pedagogical bridge to clinical service, and fostering a supportive clinical learning and practice environment through role modeling, mentorship and personalized learning at the bedside. GHSP represented a novel, multilateral, public-private collaboration to help address HRH needs in Africa. It offers a plausible, structured template for engagement and partnership in the field.

Efficiency in chronic illness care coordination: public-private collaboration models vs. traditional management

BackgroundThe aim of this paper is to analyze the differences in the coordination of chronic illness care between the different public hospital management models coexisting in the Spanish region of Madrid (25 hospitals) during the period 2013–2017.MethodsThe performance of hospitals might be affected by the characteristics of the population they serve and, therefore, this information should be taken into account when estimating efficiency measures. For this purpose, we apply the nonparametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) conditioned to some contextual variables and adapted to a dynamic framework, so that we can assess hospitals during a five-year period. The outputs considered are preventable hospitalizations, readmissions for heart failure and readmissions for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, whereas the inputs considered are the number of beds, personnel (physicians and other healthcare professionals) and total expenditure on goods and services.ResultsThe results suggest that the level of efficiency demonstrated by the public-private collaboration models of hospital management is higher than traditionally managed hospitals throughout the analyzed period. Nevertheless, we notice that efficiency differences among hospitals are significantly reduced when contextual factors were taken into account.ConclusionsHospitals managed under public-private collaboration models are more efficient than those under traditional management in terms of chronic illness care coordination, being this difference attributable to more agile and flexible management under the collaborative models.

The Potential Role of Stakeholders in the Energy Efficiency of Higher Education Institutions

Higher education institutions (HEIs) have a huge potential to save energy as they are significantly more energy-intensive in comparison with commercial offices and manufacturing premises. This paper provides an overview of the chief actions of sustainability and energy efficiency addressed by the University of Alcalá (Madrid, Spain). The policies implemented have shifted the University of Alcalá (UAH) to become the top-ranking university in Spain and one of the leading universities internationally on environmentally sustainable practices. The paper highlights two key elements. First, the actions adopted by the managerial teams, and second, the potential of public–private collaboration when considering different stakeholders. A descriptive study is developed through document analysis. The results show that energy consumption per user and energy consumption per area first fall and are then maintained, thereby contributing to meeting the objectives of the Spanish Government’s Action Plan for Energy Saving and Efficiency (2011–2020). Because of the research approach, the results cannot be generalized. However, the paper fulfils an identified need to study the impact of HEIs and their stakeholders on sustainable development through initiatives in saving energy on their campuses and highlights the role of HEIs as test laboratories for the introduction of innovations in this field (monitoring, sensing, and reporting, among others).

Until It's a regulation It's not my fight: Complexities of a voluntary nonlead hunting ammunition program

Wildlife and human health are at risk of lead exposure from spent hunting ammunition. Lead exposure persists for bald eagles due to bullet fragments in game animal gut piles and unretrieved carcasses, and is also a human health risk when wild game is procured using lead ammunition. Programs encouraging the voluntary use of nonlead ammunition have become a popular approach mitigating these effects. This study explored attitudes and experiences of United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) staff implementing an outreach program encouraging deer hunters to voluntary use nonlead ammunition on 54 National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) in the Upper Midwest, U.S. to understand factors affecting program implementation. We conducted 29 semi-structured interviews of USFWS staff along with 60 responses from an open-ended survey question. Twelve themes emerged from the data and were grouped into three broad categories: (1) challenges of dealing with complex issues, (2) importance of messengers and messages, and (3) resistance from staff. Challenges of dealing with complex issues included administrative restraint and uncertainty, scope and scale of program, human health not an agency responsibility, contextual political influences, and public-private collaborations. Importance of messengers and messages included the importance of experience, and salience of human health risk. Finally, resistance from staff included skepticism of the science and motives behind the program, competing priorities for refuge staff, differing perceptions of regulatory and voluntary approaches, cost and availability of nonlead ammunition, and disregard by some about lead ammunition and human health risks. Staff identified numerous challenges implementing the program, many of which were external factors beyond the control of the participants. Understanding the factors affecting program implementation may help guide future efforts encouraging the voluntary use of nonlead ammunition.

Nature works for us: it is our business to protect it

Biodiversity loss endangers ecosystemic services, which threatens both society and businesses that depend on them, and in turn investors and insurers that rely on a well-functioning economy. We view the biodiversity challenge as a natural extension of our climate efforts. Indeed, climate change is severely compounding the destruction of ecosystems all around the world, adding pressures related to drought, ocean acidification, more intense natural catastrophes, etc. This is why in 2018 we publicly decided to investigate how biodiversity loss is impacting society and how we can act both as an insurer and an investor. We have made progress since then. We encourage public-private collaboration as well as a strong ‟Kunming Agreement” in 2021 to ‟mainstream” biodiversity action.

The impacts of a new type of actor as an intermediary in public–private collaboration in health-care prevention

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the dyadic relationships of actors engaged in public–private (P-P) collaboration in health-care prevention. The purpose is to characterize a new type of actor as an intermediary that connects different actors in P-P collaboration and to compare P-P collaboration based on results expected with and without the inclusion of this new actor.Design/methodology/approachFor the investigation, the Industrial Marketing and Purchasing Group approach to business relationships is used. The substance (activities-resources-actors) and the functions (dyadic, single actor and network) of business relationships are applied as a research framework. The analysis is based on these theories through a case study.FindingsThis study delivers four important findings: the relationship with this new type of actor results in new resources for all of the participants that are involved, the new actor is a key channel for generating corporate social responsibility recommendations for private actors, relationships with this new type of actor are a great basis on which private firms may build relationships with the public that involve higher levels of health care and also generate sponsorship for public causes, thereby increasing social welfare and the new type of actor can cause potential tensions that require constant and coordinated management.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the conceptualization of the “interacted actor” through characterizing a new type of actor and its renewing network in P-P collaboration.

Strategies to accelerate the production and diffusion of fuel cell electric vehicles: Experiences from California

Fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) can play a key role in accelerating the electrification of road transport. Specifically, they offer longer driving ranges and shorter refuelling times relative to Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) while reducing needs for space-intensive public charging infrastructure. Although the maturity and market penetration of hydrogen is currently trailing batteries, transport planners in several countries are looking to both technologies to reduce carbon emissions and air pollution. Home to the world’s largest on-road fleet of FCEVs, California is one such jurisdiction. Experiences in California provide an ideal opportunity to address a gap in literature whereby barriers to FCEV diffusion are well understood, but knowledge on actual strategies to overcome these has lacked. This study thus examines governance strategies in California to accelerate the production and diffusion of FCEVs, key outcomes, lessons learned and unresolved challenges. Evidence is sourced from 19 expert interviews and an examination of diverse documents. Strategies are examined from four perspectives: (i) supply-side (i.e. stimulation of vehicle production), (ii) infrastructure (i.e. construction of refuelling stations and hydrogen production), (iii) demand-side (i.e. stimulation of vehicle adoption) and (iv) institutional (i.e. cross-cutting measures to facilitate collaboration, innovation and cost-reduction). Findings reveal a comprehensive mix of stringent regulation, market and consumer incentives, and public–private collaboration. However, significant challenges remain for spurring the development of fuel cell transport in line with initial ambitions. Highlighting these provides important cues for public policy to accelerate the deployment of FCEVs and hydrogen in California and elsewhere.

Impact assessment of rural PPP MaaS pilots

The purpose of this paper is to present the impact assessment results of Mobility as a Service pilots based on public-private collaboration. In the pilots, companies and local and regional stakeholders joined their expertise to experiment with different ways of organizing mobility services in rural areas. The pilots included demand-responsive transport and integrated transport of different user groups and combining trips that include customers paying themselves and those being publicly subsidized. In addition to the call centre service, a smartphone application was introduced. The impact assessment of these pilots spans individual/user, business/organizational and societal levels. The main findings include improved accessibility of transport services in rural areas and resource efficiency in terms of improved occupancy rates of vehicles, reduced driven kilometres and emissions, and cost savings for the public sector.

Transitions governance with a sense of direction: synchronization challenges in the case of the dutch ‘Driverless Car’ transition

Current sustainability challenges call for transitions in locked-in socio-technical systems. The governance of transitions often remains limited to the cultivation of sustainable ‘niche’ innovations, however. This paper explores how to handle transitions directionality, i.e. the diversity of possible socio-technical development paths. It reaches beyond hitherto rather abstract and fragmented insights. STS, political-science and systems-evolutionary angles are combined into an integrative framework. Concrete directionality challenges are identified through the analysis of socio-technical multiplicity, divergent normative appraisals and process dynamics. The driverless car transition provides an exemplar case. As highlighted through qualitative evidence from the Dutch Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) sector, common innovation discourses of a ‘race to automation’ misrepresent the pace and direction of the nascent transition. The transition requires much more than the cultivation of driverless vehicles: Next to the commercial development of vehicle automation, it involves governmental traffic management ambitions and public-private collaboration towards ‘cooperative systems’. Other insights on directionality-conscious transitions governance pertain to the sustained synchronization between institutionally diverse actors, and to the changing material conditions for steering. The overall conclusion is that the framework provides a useful lens to explore the governance of directionality in socio-technical transitions. Future studies should explore its usefulness beyond the ITS domain.

Prostate Cancer Foundation-Department of Veterans Affairs Partnership: A Model of Public-Private Collaboration to Advance Treatment and Care of Invasive Cancers.

Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed and treated cancer in the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). As the leading philanthropic source for prostate cancer research, the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) entered into a unique public-private biomedical research partnership with the VA with the goal of addressing the urgent health challenges faced by veterans with prostate cancer. With a commitment of $50 million from PCF and the VA's vast medical center infrastructure, the PCF-VA partnership has established 12 precision oncology Centers of Excellence to date, forming a collaborative network called the Precision Oncology Program for Cancer of the Prostate (POPCaP) Network. A 4-year review reveals the importance of executive leadership, mission-driven advocacy, setting shared ambitious goals, maximizing existing infrastructure and human capital, recruiting talent and resources, and creating space for adaptation and iteration in the context of a learning health care system. The PCF-VA partnership seeks to continue translating clinical research into national standards of care for veterans and serves as an innovative model of public-private collaborations for future health initiatives.