2020

Backcasting is a scenario-building technique that can help decision-makers face uncertain and complex dynamics. For this reason, backcasting is often mentioned as suitable to deal with the transition to autonomous driving. However, at present the applications of backcasting to this transition in real-world cases are quite few. The article presents a backcasting carried out in the city of Turin (Italy), aimed at defining a policy pathway to steer the transition to autonomous driving towards objectives of sustainability and liveability of the city and its neighbourhoods.

In the last decades, the Sahelian area was hit by an increase of flood events, both in frequency and in magnitude. In order to prevent damages, an early warning system (EWS) has been planned for the Sirba River, the major tributary of the Middle Niger River Basin. The EWS uses the prior notification of Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS) to realize adaptive measures in the exposed villages. This study analyzed the performances of GloFAS 1.0 and 2.0 at Garbey Kourou.

It is well known that sudden variations of air temperature have the potential to cause severe impacts on human health. Therefore, it becomes necessary to provide information capable of quantifying the severity of the problem, considering that the continuous increase of temperature due to global warming and urban development will cause more intense effects in heavily populated areas.

In Kenyan rural areas belonging to the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs), water quantity and water quality are major issues for the local population. In North Horr Sub-County water quality is threatened by nitrate contamination due to fecal matter pollution. This research, hence, aims at assessing the vulnerability of open shallow water sources to nitrate contamination due to fecal intrusion following flooding events and nitrate percolation in groundwater.

Understanding ongoing trends at local level is fundamental in research on climate change. However, in the Global South it is hampered by a lack of data. The scarcity of land-based observed data can be overcome through satellite-derived datasets, although performance varies according to the region. The purpose of this study is to compute the normal monthly values of precipitation for the eight main inhabited areas of North Horr Sub-County, in northern Kenya.

Floods have recently become a major hazard in West Africa (WA) in terms of both their magnitude and frequency. They affect livelihoods, infrastructure and production systems, hence impacting on Sustainable Development (SD). Early Warning Systems (EWS) for floods that properly address all four EWS components, while also being community and impact‐based, do not yet exist in WA. Existing systems address only the main rivers, are conceived in a top‐down manner and are hazard‐centered.

The emergency created by the COVID-19 has shattered the world, with impacts in all countries. The restrictions introduced to reduce and contain the virus’ spread have changed lifestyles, illustrating the inequalities of our societies. Cities had to find rapid solutions to limit the socio-economic consequences, relying on their ability to react and adapt. This paper describes a local project that guaranteed food access to the most vulnerable population during the lockdown phase.

L’alta densità e la concentrazione di popolazione fragile nelle città fa sì che questi ambiti siano particolarmente vulnerabili in una situazione di rischio come la pandemia da Sars-CoV-2. In particolare, un profondo dibattito si è aperto sull’utilizzo degli spazi pubblici nella fase della quarantena, ma anche in seguito, durante la “convivenza” con il virus. Numerosi sono i problemi da affrontare: dalla difficoltà a mantenere il distanziamento fisico, ad applicare le misure di regolamentazione delle pratiche d’uso, all’individuare modalità nuove per vivere gli spazi pubblici.

La società contemporanea sta diventando sempre più interdipendente e complessa, e di conseguenza più vulnerabile ai rischi. Il concetto stesso di rischio sta subendo una ridefinizione: difficile da calcolare e prevedere pone sfide profonde alle pratiche predittive della pianificazione e alla gestione delle emergenze. Tra i molti temi emergenti, la pandemia da Sars-CoV-2 ha riportato al centro del dibattito quello della responsabilità individuale e dell’importanza dei comportamenti dei singoli nell’affrontare le crisi sanitarie.

In response to the threats posed by jihadist online propaganda, multiple countering violent extremism (CVE) campaigns were carried out with the goal of offering counter and alternative narratives able to contrast those of terrorist organizations. Although there is growing literature on the topic of how to build an effective CVE program, there is a lack of knowledge about how to evaluate a CVE online campaign.