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Article
Publication date: 13 February 2017

Chinh Luu, Jason Von Meding and Sittimont Kanjanabootra

One of the main strategic targets in the national power development plan of Vietnam is to give priority to hydropower. However, there is evidence that the most “at risk” in…

Abstract

Purpose

One of the main strategic targets in the national power development plan of Vietnam is to give priority to hydropower. However, there is evidence that the most “at risk” in Vietnamese society have, to date, broadly failed to benefit from hydropower development but rather have become more vulnerable. This paper aims to broaden the perspective of decision makers (government agencies, investors and banks) in the hydropower industry regarding the environmental and social impacts of unrestrained development and the critical need to not only reduce disaster risk for communities but also provide a sustainable model for Vietnam’s energy demand.

Design/methodology/approach

This position paper presents a critique of public policy in Vietnam related to hydropower industry, undertaken alongside an analysis of socio-economic community resilience and disaster risk reduction literature.

Findings

Small hydropower investment must be delayed until measures are put in place to ensure that multi-stakeholder risk is a central component of the investment dialogue. Current pricing policies are not aligned with the hydropower development management, and this erects barriers to environmentally and socially conscious decision-making.

Practical implications

This paper suggests that the development of small hydropower projects must be curtailed until new measures are put in place. This has practical implications for investors, policy makers and residents of affected areas. The authors argue for a significant shift in government strategy toward building resilience as opposed to growth and profit at any cost.

Social implications

Conscious of Vietnam’s energy demands and development goals, this paper investigates the context of increasing disaster risk and ecological pressures, as well as social injustice relating to the hydropower industry. This kind of analysis can support future efforts to reduce disaster risk and the vulnerability of marginalized groups in Vietnam.

Originality/value

The authors present a comprehensive review of Vietnamese hydropower from a disaster resilience perspective and provide analysis that will be useful in further research in this emerging area.

Details

International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, vol. 8 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1759-5908

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 October 2017

Vanessa Cooper, Giuseppe Forino, Sittimont Kanjanabootra and Jason von Meding

There is a need to provide more effective learning experiences for higher education (HE) students in transdisciplinary contexts such as disasters and emergency management. While…

Abstract

Purpose

There is a need to provide more effective learning experiences for higher education (HE) students in transdisciplinary contexts such as disasters and emergency management. While much has been written on the value of simulation exercises (SEs) for emergency management practitioners, research has focussed less on their value for HE students. The purpose of this paper is to identify how a practitioner-oriented framework for the design and use of SEs in emergency management is relevant to the HE context and how this framework may need to be adapted to support effective learning by HE students.

Design/methodology/approach

An interpretive approach based on a qualitative content analysis of 16 semi-structured interviews with emergency management practitioners and educators is used to enable an in-depth understanding of the social phenomena to be obtained.

Findings

The paper highlights that a framework for the design and use of SEs for emergency management practitioners is potentially valuable in the HE context but should be applied in a nuanced way.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is based on a small number of interviews and future studies could usefully analyse a wider set of perspectives (e.g. students), using a variety of alternative methods (e.g. surveys), to further test and/or enrich the framework.

Practical implications

Insights from the paper can inform the design and use of SEs in the HE context with a view to supporting more effective learning that better prepares students to operate during disaster events when they enter the emergency management workforce.

Originality/value

This is the first paper that has investigated the value of a practitioner-oriented framework for the design and use of disaster SEs in the HE context. In so doing, the paper has highlighted how the dimensions of the framework apply in the HE context and has revealed other issues that need to be addressed to support effective learning by HE students.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 9 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 November 2013

Sittimont Kanjanabootra, Brian Corbitt and Miles Nicholls

This paper aims to propose a framework for the evaluation of artefacts in Design Science and test it using an exemplar case of a knowledge management system (KMS) developed for an…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to propose a framework for the evaluation of artefacts in Design Science and test it using an exemplar case of a knowledge management system (KMS) developed for an Australian refrigeration manufacturing company.

Design/methodology/approach

The research uses Design Science research methodology in a specific case study context. The artefact studied was developed using an ontology based on an engineering design conceptualisation and created using an ontology generator, Protégé. Research data for the evaluation of the framework were collected using a combination of document analysis, interviews, shadowing and observations.

Findings

The evaluation framework developed for the research and applied to the KMS specifically built for the company was shown to be useful in determining the efficacy and effectiveness of the research outcomes in terms of usefulness to the company engineers in the technical analysis of their work, and for the CEO and COO as part of their strategic planning for the company. The evaluation framework helped the researcher and the engineers as collaborators to demonstrate the extent of improvement in the design and build processes in the company.

Originality/value

Prior research in both Information System and Design Science has not provided a specific, generalizable, evaluation framework for system developers to use as a guide during the systems development process. This research proposes an evaluation framework which covers all broad aspects of evaluation and efficacy, accepting that evaluation frameworks must be flexible in enabling changes to accommodate variations in the types and purposes of artefacts developed.

Details

Journal of Systems and Information Technology, vol. 15 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1328-7265

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 June 2016

Jason von Meding, Joel Wong, Sittimont Kanjanabootra and Mojgan Taheri Tafti

One of the key elements contributing to successful post-disaster project teams is individual competence. Each project participant brings his or her own knowledge, experience and…

Abstract

Purpose

One of the key elements contributing to successful post-disaster project teams is individual competence. Each project participant brings his or her own knowledge, experience and ideas to the collective. The kind of chaotic and fragmented environment that is common in post-disaster scenarios presents specific barriers to the success of projects, which can be mitigated by ensuring that staff members possess competencies appropriate for their deployment to particular contexts. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The study utilizes a mixed-methods approach, incorporating unstructured interviews to extract key factors of competence, project barriers and strategy, and a subsequent questionnaire survey, designed to quantify the various elements. Interviews were undertaken and analysed using a cognitive mapping procedure, while survey data were processed using SPSS. The data were then utilized in the development of a software prototype using Design Science Research methodology, capable of modelling the deployment of staff under various disaster scenarios.

Findings

Analysis of the survey and cognitive mapping data, in conjunction with relevant established frameworks, has allowed the classification of relevant competency elements. These elements have subsequently been measured and modelled into the competency-based tool and developed into a working prototype.

Originality/value

The developed system offers novel disaster competency assessment criteria. The system contains a variety of real-life scenarios derived from extensive data collection. These multi-hazard scenarios are embedded with knowledge and competency valuation criteria that can facilitate actors to assess their team’s knowledge based on selective scenarios. In disaster response, time is a critical element, and this tool assists decision makers. It can enable disaster response actors to evaluate and assemble the appropriate personnel to deploy into disaster areas and into specific types of disaster environment.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management, vol. 25 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

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