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1 – 10 of 11New technology tends to invite speculation on the future of societies, inspiring visions of both hope and horror. This chapter continues that tradition, exploring the application…
Abstract
New technology tends to invite speculation on the future of societies, inspiring visions of both hope and horror. This chapter continues that tradition, exploring the application of emerging technology, such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to processes of governance and learning in education. Drawing on both utopian visions and twin nightmares of machinic-dystopias, the analysis reflects on the application of new technology designed to fulfill the UN’s post-2015 agenda in education. In highlighting divergent traditions, the analysis then shifts to the application of the same technology in China as part of the Chinese Dream, under which the Chinese government aims to become the world leader in AI while revitalizing the nation’s cultural traditions. These ambitions are explored through the introduction of Smart Cities, a system of Social Credit, and Smart Schools. Finally, the chapter reflects on these visions of twenty-first century pedagogy and possible resources for thinking about a future that cannot be fully apprehended.
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Barbara A. Norgard, Michael G. Berger and Christian Plaunt
Alexandra E. MacDougall, John E. Baur, Milorad M. Novicevic and M. Ronald Buckley
On many occasions, organizational science research has been referred to as fragmented and disjointed, resulting in a literature that is, in the opinion of many, difficult to…
Abstract
On many occasions, organizational science research has been referred to as fragmented and disjointed, resulting in a literature that is, in the opinion of many, difficult to navigate and comprehend. One potential explanation is that scholars have failed to comprehend that organizations are complex and intricate systems. In order to move us past this morass, we recommend that researchers extend beyond traditional rational, mechanistic, and variable-centered approaches to research and integrate a more advantageous pattern-oriented approach within their research program. Pattern-oriented methods approximate real-life phenomena by adopting a holistic, integrative approach to research wherein individual- and organizational-systems are viewed as non-decomposable organized wholes. We argue that the pattern-oriented approach has the potential to overcome a number of breakdowns faced by alternate approaches, while offering a novel and more representative lens from which to view organizational- and HRM-related issues. The proposed incorporation of the pattern-oriented approach is framed within a review and evaluation of current approaches to organizational research and is supplemented with a discussion of methodological and theoretical implications as well as potential applications of the pattern-oriented approach.
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Rachael L. Narel, Therese Yaeger and Peter F. Sorensen
The environment in which businesses operate today is uncertain, chaotic, and changing at a more rapid pace than ever before. In this new dynamic world, current approaches to…
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The environment in which businesses operate today is uncertain, chaotic, and changing at a more rapid pace than ever before. In this new dynamic world, current approaches to organizational design and processes are not as effective as they have been. Recent research has provided insight into organizational agility as a method to help organizations survive and thrive in these environments. A divergent body of literature is presented that explores agility, learning, and thriving. An exploratory mixed-methods study was conducted at the team level to examine the relationship between these constructs as well as their relationship to performance. Based on the results, we present a series of propositions for future research and provide an illustration of the Components of Agile and Thriving teams to be used as its foundation. The discussion serves to synthesize these initial findings and provide both implications for practice as well as theory.
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Jessica Paddock and Terry Marsden
Critically reflecting upon the role of and integrative function that relocalisation of agri-food plays in the development of what we call rural and regional ‘webs’ of…
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Critically reflecting upon the role of and integrative function that relocalisation of agri-food plays in the development of what we call rural and regional ‘webs’ of interconnection, this chapter revisits two regional case studies in Devon and Shetland, UK. Exploring the challenges and continuities in the unfolding of the rural web, we pay particular attention to the role that agri-food initiatives play in mobilising distinctive rural and regional development processes. Although we point in both cases to the marginalisation of agri-food and its potential centrality in rural development, it is clear that this fails to disappear completely. The trends in these two rural regions, at either ends of the UK archipelago, suggest that the combinational effects of declines in multi-functional agri-food support, on the one hand, and a neo-liberalised retraction of non-agricultural rural development support on the other, are providing a potential and chaotic new governance squeeze which is likely to severely reduce the massive but latent adaptive capacity embedded in the rural eco-economy. Indeed, a more multi-functional governance and policy-based approach, based upon creating conditions for the eco-economic rural web to flourish needs to find ways of harmonising different aspects of the post-carbon landscape such that its various segments (energy, tourism, agriculture, creative industries, etc.), can work in synergy with one another. To conclude, we argue that such fragmented and competing conditions as those revealed in both case study areas are unlikely to be sufficiently capable of meeting the new national and global demands for food security which have risen up the political agenda since our earlier phases of field work.
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This chapter assesses the accuracy of the assumption that organizational change research is too thematically narrow. The proposition is explored by assessing the nature of…
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This chapter assesses the accuracy of the assumption that organizational change research is too thematically narrow. The proposition is explored by assessing the nature of articles on change, published since 1947, in eight representative management and organization journals (n=454). Results indicate that more research on change is being published but has not lead to significantly more developed knowledge, as it increasingly relies on refinement rather than idea overthrow, and is largely made up of themes that received most of their critical attention up to a decade ago. The critique concludes by highlighting further development and career challenges for change researchers.
Sarah Opitz-Stapleton and Karen MacClune
Hydrological and climatological modeling is increasingly being used with the intent of supporting community-based climate change adaptation (CCA) and disaster risk reduction (DRR…
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Hydrological and climatological modeling is increasingly being used with the intent of supporting community-based climate change adaptation (CCA) and disaster risk reduction (DRR) initiatives in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH), as well as filling critical data gaps in a region that contributes significantly to the water resources and ecosystem diversity of Asia. As the case studies presented in the previous chapters illustrate, the utility of modeling in informing and supporting CCA and DRR initiatives depends on a number of criteria, including:•appropriate model selection;•ability to interpret models to local contexts; and•community engagement that incorporates and addresses underlying vulnerabilities within the community.
There are significant challenges to meeting all three of these criteria. However, when these criteria are met, we find:•There is a clear role for modeling to support CCA. The climate is changing now and will continue to do so for several centuries, even if carbon emissions were to stabilize tomorrow. Models, and other scenario development tools, provide our best insight into what the future climate might be and resulting impacts on dynamic social, environmental, political, and economic systems.•There is a clear role for local CCA. The impacts of climate change will be felt mostly at local levels, necessitating community adaptation responses. At the same time, most of the HKH communities and countries engaged in CCA initiatives have pressing, immediate development and livelihood needs. Making current development and livelihood initiatives incorporate climate adaptation considerations is the best way to ensure that the choices made today can set us on paths of increasing resilience, rather than almost inevitable disaster, for the future.•To achieve the best of both modeling and CCA requires thoughtful and patient application of modeling, tailored to local needs, conditions, and politics, with communities engaged around all stages of generating, interpreting, and applying the results. This requires a rare combination of technical skill, cultural sensitivity, political awareness, and above all, the time to continually engage with and build relationships within the community in order to foster resilient change.
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Deejaysing Jogee, Manta Devi Nowbuth, Virendra Proag and Jean-Luc Probst
It is now well-established that good water quality is associated with economic prosperity, reduced incidence on public health and the good functioning of the various ecosystems…
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It is now well-established that good water quality is associated with economic prosperity, reduced incidence on public health and the good functioning of the various ecosystems found in our environment. Water contamination is mostly related to both diffused (agricultural lands and geologic rock degradations) and point sources of pollution. Mauritius has many water resources which depend solely on precipitation for their replenishment. Water parameters which are of relevance include total dissolved solids (TDS), temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, dissolved and particulate organic carbon and major cations and anions. The traditional methods of analysis for these parameters are mostly using electrical and optical methods (probes and sensors in the field), while chemical titrations, Flame AAS and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography techniques are carried out in the laboratory. Image Classification techniques using neural networks can also be used to detect the presence of contaminants in water. In addition to basic water quality parameters, the field sensors range have been extended to cover important major ions and can now be integrated with Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based models for the prediction of variations in water quality to better protect human health and the environment, reduce operation costs of water and wastewater treatment plant unit processes.
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