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Book part
Publication date: 22 October 2019

Theresa Askham

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the corporate water reporting of the selected South African listed food producers with regard to the activities of measuring, managing…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the corporate water reporting of the selected South African listed food producers with regard to the activities of measuring, managing, engaging with their stakeholders, and disclosing of their water risks.

Design/Methodology/Approach

This chapter examined the sustainability and integrated reports of 14 food producer companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), for the years 2013 and 2017. The company reports were examined using the Ceres Aqua Gauge™ as the framework.

Findings

The findings of this study are that there were improvements in water disclosure from 2013 to 2017. Most companies are disclosing the basic water reporting requirements. However, critical areas around stakeholder engagement and supply chain water management were found to be lacking.

Originality/Value

This research contributes to the body of knowledge around water disclosure and increases the awareness of water scarcity and poor water quality in South Africa. Furthermore, the study highlights that the food producers could be doing a lot more with regard to water sustainability in their businesses and the country.

Details

Environmental Reporting and Management in Africa
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78973-373-0

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 June 2021

Montira Intason, Willem Coetzee and Craig Lee

The contradiction between the purpose of the water-splashing tradition, the use of water in a water-stressed destination and overconsumption during a time of water shortage led…

Abstract

Purpose

The contradiction between the purpose of the water-splashing tradition, the use of water in a water-stressed destination and overconsumption during a time of water shortage led the researchers to question the spirit of the Songkran Festival. It is important to keep the spirit of the festival alive without interrupting the livelihoods of the community and to critically engage with opportunities and challenges related to water-saving practices during the festival. Thus, this study aims to investigate the opportunities and challenges to responsible practices of water-saving at a cultural festival, using a case study of the water-splashing practice at the Songkran Festival in Thailand.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used the cultural practice, namely, the water-splashing tradition at the Songkran Festival in Thailand, as a case study. The researchers conducted document analysis on local newspapers, the Bangkok Post specifically and participant observation at the Songkran Festival in the Khao San Road area in Bangkok, to gain first-hand insights to develop comprehensive results which answers the study’s objectives.

Findings

The key findings show three significant themes representing the opportunities for implementing sustainable water-saving practices; a call for a water-saving campaign, education on water saving and water-splashing restrictions. In terms of challenges to implementing water-saving practices, two key themes emerged; a lack of water stress and drought awareness and the hedonistic characteristic of water splashing. The study findings provide important implications to theory and practice for sustainable event management and provide considerations for event stakeholders to minimise water overuse in festivals.

Originality/value

Environmental degradation is a key global issue that the United Nations addresses in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) scheme (United Nations Development Program, 2016). According to Pereira et al. (2009), water scarcity can be caused by both human activities and natural causes. Factors such as unlimited water consumption, population growth and climate change are some of the contributing factors that not only affects resident's access to water but also on events hosted within communities. It is crucial that event managers critically re-think the way festivals are designed in water-stressed destinations.

Details

International Journal of Event and Festival Management, vol. 12 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1758-2954

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 5 November 2021

Yoshitaka Okada

Cross-boundary cooperation with shared goals and values involving the poor has been argued as an indispensable means for inclusive business (IB) success. Cooperation may become…

Abstract

Cross-boundary cooperation with shared goals and values involving the poor has been argued as an indispensable means for inclusive business (IB) success. Cooperation may become dynamic, especially when exploratory and creative attempts with effective cooperative learning among partners can be realized. Even so, not many companies have reported successful in building the cooperation. One case, providing clean, affordable drinking water to the poor in Tanzanian rural villages, suggests that a delegated and grassroots-based approach in cooperation with a highly trustworthy local partner can successfully promote cooperative learning and transfer know-how in both operations and management. This approach also stimulates local and self-initiated activities for expanding water facilities and generating local businesses in an area where employment is scarce. Deviation from mainstream-institution-based operations and management is one example of institutional interconnections that enable the rural poor to self-manage projects and stimulate self-initiated business activities, consequently contributing to rural development and sustainable development goals.

Details

Institutional Interconnections and Cross-Boundary Cooperation in Inclusive Business
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80117-213-4

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 26 November 2014

Sya Buryn Kedzior

Recent years have produced significant demand for geographical contributions to the study of social movements in general and of environmental social movement organizations (ESMOs…

Abstract

Recent years have produced significant demand for geographical contributions to the study of social movements in general and of environmental social movement organizations (ESMOs) in particular. Geographical approaches to the study of ESMOs emphasize “the mediation of social movement agency by place” (Miller, 2000; Routledge, 1993) and call attention to the role of place-based environmental knowledge (EK) in the broader “struggle(s) over meaning” that increasingly constitute environmental politics (Buechler, 1997; Escobar, 1992; Rangan, 2000; Watts, 1990). My chapter responds to this call by providing an examination of the reproduction of EK by antipollution organizations in India’s central Ganges River Basin (GRB). Through interviews with organization leaders and members, along with analysis of organizational websites and publications, I examine the EK of two key antipollution organizations in the GRB: The Sankat Mochan Foundation (SMF) and Kanpur Eco-Friends (KEF). Analysis focuses on methods of knowledge reproduction employed by each organization, their respective framing practices, and the localized natures of the EK they reproduce. I argue that each organization works to reproduce a specific and place-based understanding of pollution in the GRB that informs their framing of the pollution problem, the tactical activities in which their members engage, and the power relations that exist between the two organizations and their leaders. Further, I argue that engaging with EK as both a method of understanding pollution and a tactic for consolidating political power is essential to making sense of the relative success of these movement organizations and the challenges they face in trying to build a broader coalition and mass-mobilization against pollution in the Ganges.

Details

Occupy the Earth: Global Environmental Movements
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78350-697-2

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 15 July 2009

Chung-Chi Wu, Ching-Tang James Wang, Hsiou-Hsiang Jack Liu and Wei-Ching Wang

The purpose of this article is to explore the three types of water-based recreationists' (nonmotorized, motorized, and dual participants) perception on recreation conflict as well…

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to explore the three types of water-based recreationists' (nonmotorized, motorized, and dual participants) perception on recreation conflict as well as their use of coping mechanisms and further understand the influence of specialization level on their choice of coping mechanism. Recreationists were divided into three groups based on the concept of experience use history. Data were collected between June and September 2007 at entry of five intra-site water recreation areas with every five individuals selected. Study findings partly supported the predictive relationships. Among all three groups (motorized, nonmotorized, and dual participants), less conflict was reported for nonmotorized participants than motored participants. Moreover, the data also suggest that coping mechanisms are widely employed in outdoor recreation. Implications for future research and practice were discussed.

Details

Advances in Hospitality and Leisure
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84855-675-1

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2022

Bahar Ferah, Ayse Gul Gemci and Omar Algburi

This paper's main objective emphasizes the importance of waterfront design in coastal cities. It reveals that a location is associated with the activities it hosts to become…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper's main objective emphasizes the importance of waterfront design in coastal cities. It reveals that a location is associated with the activities it hosts to become attractive for people or, in other words, to be a destination. In this respect, it proposes students' concept projects for the selected waterfront field study in Istanbul.

Design/methodology/approach

This study's conceptual framework is designed according to the qualities compiled from the place-diagram and the power of 10+ (plus) concepts of the PPS (project for public spaces). Accordingly, a fieldwork study based on the qualitative and quantitative research method was conducted as fieldwork in the Istanbul Sarayburnu waterfront, where historical and touristic sight-seeings of the Golden Horn meet with the Bosphorus coastal line. In addition to photo-video recordings, survey questions were also prepared during the field study.

Findings

Survey questions inquiries multi questions searching for the place-diagram qualities provide suggestions of 90 people who responded in situ. Results of the case study highlight six alternative proposal projects for the fieldwork prepared based on the power of 10+ concept by the third grade students of the School of Architecture of Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University (IZU). Based on the survey questions and literature review findings, 10 sub-spatial qualities of waterfronts were disaggregated at the end of the study.

Research limitations/implications

The power of 10+ concept in the study provides a gauge for architects and urban planners; it gives them an excellent tool for assessing the quality of public spaces for placemaking in waterfronts.

Originality/value

Previous studies have generally been based on the PPS's place-diagram qualities with little mention of the interaction with the power of 10+ concept in placemaking. The proposed sub-qualities in the paper's conclusion contribute to architects and urban planners considering a model approach derived from those PPS concepts.

Article
Publication date: 19 October 2018

María Paula Flórez, María Catalina Ramírez, Luisa Fernanda Payán-Durán, Mauricio Peralta and Andres Esteban Acero Lopez

This study aims to present a systemic methodological proposal for the reduction of water consumption in rural areas, based on participatory tools.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to present a systemic methodological proposal for the reduction of water consumption in rural areas, based on participatory tools.

Design/methodology/approach

A theoretical framework was constructed based on the importance of stakeholders’ participation in the adequate use of the hydro resources, technologies to save water and modeling the adoption of possible water-saving technologies. After that, it was proposed a methodology for the reduction of water consumption in rural areas. This methodology was tested in a participatory study case, including the system dynamics model.

Findings

This study proposes a participatory systemic methodology – PAWAME – participation-water waste-adoption-model-empowerment, which consists of four steps: identify stakeholders and the activities related with the waste of water in the study site and establish their values, measure the adoption that the technology would have based on the awareness generated, relate in a model the variables of the water-consuming activities and the variables of the technology and its adoption to analyze possible future behaviors and empowerment of the technology to reduce water consumption.

Practical implications

In Colombia, part of the population has the wrong perception about the abundance of the hydro resource, and for this reason, people do not use water in a correct way. The inclusion of a participatory systemic methodology was fundamental to apprehend the dynamic aspects of users’ behaviors, as well as of the management of the water resource. The model addresses the complexity of the situation, allowing exploring future scenarios of environmental protection.

Originality/value

This study advances the knowledge in participatory systemic methodology to design and adopt a local technology to save water.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 48 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 November 2016

K.G.A.S. Waidyasekara, Lalith De Silva and Raufdeen Rameezdeen

The purpose of this paper is to explore ways to enhance water use efficiency at construction sites according to project stakeholders’ perceptions.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore ways to enhance water use efficiency at construction sites according to project stakeholders’ perceptions.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire survey was developed based on drivers, barriers and potential water use efficiency measures identified through a literature review. It was administered among professionals working in the construction industry who have more than ten years of work experience.

Findings

The study highlighted cost of water and sources of water as main drivers that promote water use efficiency on sites. Lack of priority for water management among host of other managerial functions was identified as the main barrier. In order to conserve water, respondents favoured “soft” measures such as changes in workers’ behaviour and managerial policies and planning for water savings, as opposed to “hard” measures which were primarily technology based.

Research limitations/implications

The major implications of the study are related to how behaviour of the workers could be changed to accommodate water use efficiency in their everyday activities. Water saving measures such as leak detection, auditing and sub-metering were favoured by respondents referring to policies and planning, as well as implementing a water action plan when a project begins.

Originality/value

This study makes a contribution to the body of knowledge on the subject of water sustainability at construction projects. This is an understudied area. In addition, the findings will enhance the understanding of construction companies on water use efficiency and should serve as a platform to develop improved and appropriate techniques.

Details

Built Environment Project and Asset Management, vol. 6 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-124X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 August 2020

Verónica Torrijos, Manuel Soto and Domingo Calvo Dopico

The University of A Coruña (UDC) elaborated the SOSTAUGA project, aiming to reach a higher sustainable level of its water management. SOSTAUGA defined four priority points of…

Abstract

Purpose

The University of A Coruña (UDC) elaborated the SOSTAUGA project, aiming to reach a higher sustainable level of its water management. SOSTAUGA defined four priority points of action: the restoration of the natural courses on the campus; the adoption of an ecological sanitation model; the sustainable management of urban runoff; and the reduction of water consumption in university facilities and activities. This paper aims to present the methodology, the actions and the results related to the reduction of water consumption and the potential for the use of endogenous resources.

Design/methodology/approach

The agents involved were the senior management of the centres, the committees of the Green Campus, the scholarship students and the Office for the Environment. Several actions have been experienced: audit of water consumption in sanitary services; flow reduction in washbasin taps by means of valve adjustment (and repair of the valves when necessary); replacement of tap aerators with other more eco-efficient ones; replacement of faucets; introduction of dual-flush (DF) in cisterns; and information to users (eco-label).

Findings

Water audit reached 68% of the total number of washbasins and tanks in the UDC. Efficient aerator installation covered 16% of taps and valve adjustment covered the further 33.5% and provided flow reduction of 42%. Another 20% of valve units required repair. The current situation in toilets combines tankless flush valves and cisterns with single flush mechanisms. The introduction of DF mechanisms was assessed and proposed. The cost of these actions was very low, as evidenced by the investment return period while showing a high potential for user awareness.

Originality/value

Both from the environmental (water saving) and from the economic and social points of view, this study shows that similar projects aimed at the efficient and rational use of water are applicable to the universities and other public and private schools, with potentially positive results on sustainability and people awareness.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 21 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 18 July 2007

Herwig Unnerstall and Frank Messner

The requirement of full cost recovery for water services including environmental and resource costs in accordance with the polluter pays principle in Art. 9 EU-Water Framework…

Abstract

The requirement of full cost recovery for water services including environmental and resource costs in accordance with the polluter pays principle in Art. 9 EU-Water Framework Directive is a unique provision in the history of the European environmental law. The wording of the provision is a compromise between the Council's and the Parliament's versions that mirrors different conceptual ideas on how to internalize environmental and resource costs. Art. 9 now contains a two-step concept for the achievement of the aim. The uniform implementation of the full cost-recovery calls for common accounting standards for the calculation of financial cost and a common methodology for the estimation of environmental and resource costs on the European level. In Germany, the requirements of the first step are partly fulfilled, but necessities of the second step are not being met at the moment.

Details

Ecological Economics of Sustainable Watershed Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84950-507-9

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