Societal Impacts最新文献

Using a collaborative ethnographic action-oriented approach, we researched the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of three vulnerable groups of female labour migrants in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Our goal was to understand the health challenges faced by these women and work towards effective interventions and services. Their issues often emanate from deep-seated structural inequalities, as well as legal, socio-cultural, political, and economic factors. In this article, we highlight the interconnected and overlapping - tangible and intangible - societal impacts that arose both as a consequence of our study and as inherent components of the research process in both the short and long term. We define "social impact" as the transformative difference academic research can make in the lives of individuals and society as a whole.

Greenspaces and urban trees play an important role in moderating and improving urban environments to make them more comfortable and healthy for people. While trees provide important wellbeing benefits to people, urban planning and maintenance practices can create inhospitable and stressful environments where trees are unable to flourish or reach their potential. As the impacts of climate change intensify, the health of urban trees will become increasingly important. To explore how planning and maintenance practices are affecting urban trees, we draw on a case study of 31 street and park trees adjacent to high-use pedestrian areas in Wellington, New Zealand. We analysed these trees using six key factors that influence tree health to identify how planning and maintenance practices could be adjusted to support tree health and ecosystem function. We suggest that the six key factors have planning and maintenance implications for urban trees which are relevant to a variety of urban contexts, but particularly space-constrained urban streets requiring multiple functions and infrastructure. We argue that as climate impacts intensify, using these six key factors can help promote urban tree health and ecosystem function and avoid mal-adaptive planning and maintenance practices.

The transition from a linear, fossil-based economy to a circular, bio-based economy is needed in order to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. However, it is important to ensure that the bio-based economy delivers the expected environmental and social impacts, by respecting and implementing sustainability principles. One effective way to reduce uncertainty regarding bio-based product properties and benefits is through the use of sustainability standards, certification schemes, and ecolabels. These measures can play a significant role in advancing the transition to a sustainable, circular bio-based economy. They provide a solid foundation for assessing sustainability of “green” products and initiatives and contribute greatly to building trust in products among consumers, providing a reliable framework for evaluation. To measure the sustainability of bio-based products, several robust and reliable tools are under development, gathering evidence from research and collaborative efforts of several European projects – including STAR-ProBio, which is the focus of the current paper and which resulted in the development of a pre-standard. The application of these tools represents a path alternative to the more treaded one of mandates issuing from government, bringing to the fore the idea of first convening to build consensus and bringing about the participation that is crucial for every sector, which then helps in the development of standards that will be effective and will be observed. In this paper, we report on the main achievements of the STAR-ProBio project to date and reflect on their societal impacts.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly changing the way we work and the way we live. The emergence of ChatGPT has thrust AI, especially Generative AI, into the spotlight. The societal impact of AI is on most people's minds. This article presents several research projects on how AI impacts work and society. Three research works are discussed in this article. The first study develops a theoretical framework structuring the legal and ethical objectives that are needed and the means to achieve them. The second study concentrates on bias and discrimination issues embedded in AI applications. It focuses on enhancing the collaboration between AI users and AI systems to alleviate bias and discrimination issues. The third study focuses on the governance of AI, and the study will design and develop an integrated AI governance framework to help guide the design and development of AI applications and facilitate the evolutions and revolutions of ethical AI systems.

Recent advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) research have opened up new opportunities for leveraging AI research for societal impacts. AI research offers novel ways of tackling societal problems including environmental, health, and education challenges. Despite the potential, there are limited documented use cases and methodologies for translating AI research to societal impact at a large scale. This paper presents AirQo, an AI and advanced technology-driven use case for urban environmental pollution monitoring and modelling and the resulting societal impacts that have been realised. The research outputs include a set of digital solutions for the environmental air pollution challenges including (1) custom-designed low-cost air quality monitors that are premised on IoT technology (2) a methodology for deploying a high-resolution and citizen-driven air quality monitoring (3) AI-powered digital tools for air quality information modelling and analysis for citizens and city leaders, and (4) a framework for engagement for citizens and leaders. The AirQo project has been deployed and scaled out in cities in Eastern, Western, and Central African countries. The societal impacts resulting from the implementation of the AirQo research project include policy and regulations, education and awareness, and research around air quality issues.

Gender disparity between men and women has been brought to light recently, highlighting inequalities within the fields of medicine and academia. Achieving equality within these professions is beneficial not only to women but for medicine, research, and patients. Diversity in fields of practice ensures a variety of thought, innovation, stronger teams and better outcomes for all. Women are less likely to be recognised as experts and leaders, with fewer women speaking at national medical conferences, receiving prestigious awards, being promoted or holding leadership roles. This article presents the societal impacts based on outcomes from several sources, including our recent research exploring gendered transitions experienced by female surgeons, our recent women's conference and best practices from industry and the university sector aimed at addressing the barriers faced by women in academic and clinical medicine. The main societal impacts include (i) increasing awareness of gender disparity through knowledge transfer, (ii) improving representation and advancement opportunities for Women, and (iii) developing partnerships to achieve and promote equity.

While comprising 50% of early-career academics, women’s representation dwindles to a mere 20% in senior roles, with this disparity attributed to gendered dynamics and institutional complexities. The oversimplification of women’s experiences, as well as the intricate formation of academic identities, entangled with societal expectations and caregiving responsibilities, necessitated a nuanced exploration across career stages. Employing Foucauldian Discourse Analysis through Interpretivism, this research engaged early, middle, and later-career women academics, unveiling the dynamic evolution of identities influenced by discourse, power dynamics, and societal forces. Noteworthy positional developments underscored challenges faced at specific career junctures, emphasising the imperative for nuanced navigation within academic settings. Future research should delve into evolving identities, societal discourses, and collaborative resistance strategies, contributing to inclusive policies, and reshaping higher education environments. This study serves as a guiding beacon, promoting practices fostering diversity, equity, and unwavering support in academia’s transformative journey.

The impact case enhances the understanding of socio-legal research that contemplates the development of novel legal company forms which serve the well-being of humans and nature equally. Introducing novel company law forms for social change regards research in the field of social entrepreneurship and law, such as the development of tailor-made legislation for social enterprises in the Netherlands. Current legal forms for companies in the Netherlands do not support types of social entrepreneurial activity. Our research influenced directly the regulatory-making process of the novel forthcoming company law entity named the Besloten Vennootschap maatschappelijk (BVm), i.e., the private limited company with societal purpose which is about to be introduced in the Dutch company legislation. Particularly, our research team: (i) formulated key indicators for the BVm, which were accepted by the government in 2020 and will form the basis for new legislation which is currently being drafted; (ii) generated multiple academic studies, publications, seminars and conferences, as well as a PhD dissertation about the topic; (iii) supported many social enterprises in finding suitable legal forms (through educational programs, network sessions and collaboration with company and tax law experts).

The release of bilge water into the oceans presents a high environmental risk and poses a serious threat to marine life, which are already affected negatively by climate change. Nowadays, technologies like satellite allows to real policing of the oceans. Adequate port reception facilities combined with comprehensive crew training and improved oil-water separation technologies can facilitate the recovery of bilge water and its use in on-shore waste-to-energy power plants to generate electricity and heating. This paper presents several proposals to effectively reduce oily water discharges at sea categorized under three drivers: technological, behavioral, and managerial measures. Ensuring the proper maintenance of the equipment, promoting awareness of the legal and environmental consequences of bilge dumping, and providing suitable facilities for the disposal of the water-oil mixture in ports are essential. The reduction of bilge dumping in the ocean provides a three-fold benefit to society: first, it enhances marine conservation by improving the health of the oceans and preserving their biodiversity. Secondly, by transforming waste into an energy source, it contributes to the recovery of useful energy, which benefits humankind. Finally, it reduces the pressure on ships' crews to avoid accidental discharges while operating bilge treatment machinery.

Universities around the world are establishing hubs that promote and support citizen science. A key challenge to the long-term sustainability of such hubs is the absence of an objective, transparent, and efficient way to measure their performance and impact. The main reason is that the benefits of citizen science do not linearly follow an input-to-impact intervention logic. In response, we propose a methodology for developing a dedicated monitoring and evaluation framework. All steps from design to implementation are described, accompanied by examples from INCENTIVE, a project where our methodology was tested in real-life settings. The results indicate that our methodology, with minor adaptations, can be used by similar types of hub setting such as living labs, city labs, innovation hubs, science and technology parks, etc.