On the nexus of changing public facilities management practices: purposive and co-creative actions across multiple levels

Building on a practice-oriented approach and the theoretical construct of institutional work, the organizational nexus of changing practices for public facilities management is conceptualized in a multi-level framework. To support the conceptual framework, changing management practices are illustrated with the help of real-life experiences gained in a case study of a strategy project in a Swedish public construction client organization with the goal of developing a strategic facilities plan. These real-life examples, captured through interviews and field observations, cohere with the research method of narrative inquiry. The framework envisions projective agencies of various actors, both human and non-human (objects), in change processes. Findings show how key actors, through collaborative co-creation processes, take different complementary roles when promoting new practices into a specific organizational setting. By jointly promoting a set of preferred arrangements they establish proto-institutions. In addition, various objects were attributed rhetorical agency to support new public FM practices in that these served as purposeful non-human actors, triggering and legitimizing actions taken. With focus on emerging institutions in the making and especially projective agencies for institutional change, this research contributes to furthered layered understandings on institutional work related to change in construction in general and specifically in public sustainable facilities management.     

城市工业遗产转型公园景观叙事策略研究

景观叙事学是当代景观设计学的独立学科,在城市工业遗产转型公园的众多实践中具有相关诠释和应用。本文对叙事与景观叙事之间的关联进行概述分析,结合典型案例,从主体与客体、主题与情节两方面,阐释景观叙事结构;从撰写语义—隐性信息呈现、构建空间—传播文化记忆、演进时空—强化场所精神三个层面,提出城市工业遗产转型公园的景观叙事策略;对景观叙事理论在工业遗产转型公园中的应用进行系统论证和研究,为工业遗产保护提供新的视角和途径。     

Social Mix Discourse and Local Resistance to Social Housing: The Case of the Nation Building Economic Stimulus Plan,Australia

In response to the Global Financial Crisis of 2007–2009, the Australian government introduced the Nation Building Economic Stimulus Plan. Central to the plan was the allocation of AU$5 billion to the construction of 19 000 new social housing dwellings. The construction was seen by the Australian government to be a way of stimulating the economy and adding to the social housing sector. While social housing construction was supported by the not-for-profit sector and academics, a number of localised disputes arose. This article traces the ways in which the discourse of social mix was mobilised by residents to resist social housing construction. Simultaneously, the discourse of social mix was used to position residents as supporters of social housing, while actively seeking to resist new construction in their neighbourhood, which was positioned as running counter to the ideals embedded within the discourse. In promoting the perceived benefits embedded within the discourse of social mix, residents mobilised a complex resistance strategy that worked to destabilise claims of self-interest and NIMBYism.     

Determination of strategic adaptation actions for public housing in Singapore

Although building adaptation finds it significant in combating building deterioration and delivering building sustainability, what level of adaptation a building shall receive always seems puzzling to property portfolio managers. This research aims to provide policy makers with a theoretical approach to choose strategically desired adaptation actions for buildings. Personal interviews with policy makers in Singapore public housing sector gave rise to the construction of an Attribute-Action database; this database was used to derive an Attribute-Action Matrix, which consists of a set of preference values for each adaptation action (i.e. retaining, renovating and rebuilding). This approach was then applied to a real public residential building in Singapore. The results show that the total preference values for the actions of retaining, renovating and rebuilding are 157.849, 111.609, and 90.575, respectively; the action of retaining with minor maintenance of building facades is found to be the most desired adaptation strategy for the case building, because compared with the other two, retaining has the maximum total preference value. The presented approach would therefore extend the understanding of how strategic adaptation actions can be made for existing buildings that require adaptation. Lessons learnt in Singapore public housing context may be useful for many other cities in face of similar problems.     

试论空间文本结构的非线性转向

以对文本结构的剖析为切入点,通过比较阅读叙事文本从卡尔维诺“时间零”理论到超文本结构中“超链接”运用的发展转变,对建筑空间组织结构进行关联性的对比分析,探讨了空间文本结构从线性到非线性的历史转向。     

Building a better future: An exploration of beliefs about climate change and perceived need for adaptation within the building industry

The present research explored beliefs about climate change among an important yet relatively understudied population: representatives of the building industry. We also assessed the perceived adequacy of current climate-related actions within the industry and the perceived need for developing new practices. The results of a survey administered within a large engineering firm suggest a fairly high level of concern about climate issues within this sector: participants perceived climate change to be an important issue, current practices to be inadequate, and a need to develop new ways of addressing climate change. Despite this, there was notable and consequential variability in how participants thought about climate change. Higher levels of seniority were associated with greater satisfaction with current practices, and the belief that climate change was a natural rather than man-made phenomena was associated with a reduced support for the idea that changes to current practices were necessary. In addition, when thinking about climate relevant actions (whether current practices or the alternatives) participants focussed almost exclusively on mitigation rather than adaptation. The implications of these patterns for innovation around climate change within the building industry are discussed.     

鲜花浪漫中的悲情——读曼斯菲尔德《稚气却很自然》

曼斯菲尔德《稚气却很自然》的表面文本是一对少男少女鲜花盛开般的情感世界,而细读之下却能发现一个纯真爱的理想主义必然幻灭的悲情主题。而这种悲哀之所以能含蓄地潜行于文本之下,得力于作者对叙述策略的有意控制和细节性的伏笔。     

Clean energy transition in the Turkish power sector: A techno-economic analysis with a high-resolution power expansion model

The Turkish power sector achieved rapid growth after the 1990s in line with economic growth and beyond. However, domestic resources did not support this development and therefore resulted in a high dependency on imported fossil fuels. Furthermore, the governments were slow off the mark in introducing policies for increasing the share of renewable energy. Even late actions of the governments, as well as significant decreases in the cost of wind and especially solar technologies, have recently brought the Turkish power sector into a promising state. A large-scale generation-expansion power-system model (TR-Power) with a high temporal resolution (hours) is developed for the Turkish power generation sector. Several scenarios were analyzed to assess their environmental and economic impacts. The results indicate that a transition to a low-carbon power grid with around half of the electricity demand satisfied by renewable resources over 25 years would be possible, with annual investments of 3.97–6.88 billion in 2019 US$. Moreover, TR-Power indicates that the shadow price of CO₂ emissions in the power sector will be around 17.1 and 33.8 $/per tCO2 by 2042, under 30% and 40% emission reduction targets relative to the reference scenario.     

基于空间叙事手法的地上地下一体化设计研究

由于地下空间开发的特殊性,现有的地下空间开发常出现与地面空间产生断裂与关联度低的情况。针对此问题,尝试探讨将空间叙事手法植入地上地下空间一体化设计的可能性,并以广州新中央商务区的天环商场为例进行深入分析,探讨了空间叙事手法的运用,怎样在布局上让地上、地下、公园三者之间的空间逻辑能有所连接;同时,归纳出天环商场如何在地上地下交会节点的处理上具备采用确立空间叙事主题、以人为主体的体验模式、营造叙事感知氛围,以及与周边街景相融合的叙事场所等方面主要策略,并因而强化了地上与地下之间的延续性。最后,指出将空间叙事手法运用于地上地下空间一体化设计既补充了城市设计层面的空间叙事研究,也不失为我国未来地下空间设计的一个新选择。     

Strategic change towards cost-efficient public construction projects

The cost of public construction projects is a central topic in project management. However, studies have primarily focused on cost at the project level, not on cost management at the portfolio level. In this paper, we take the perspective of a government agency, conducting a strategic initiative to increase cost-efficiency in their portfolio of construction projects. We use an action research approach to investigate the dynamics of the initiative and the implementation of resulting actions to achieve lasting change towards cost-efficiency. Co-creating actions for cost-efficiency together with the project teams was important for the success of the strategic initiative. For successful implementation, alignment of the objectives of the initiative with organizational strategy, and knowledge transfer between projects is central. This study expands the project management literature regarding strategic cost management of portfolios of construction projects and provides practical guidance for organizations.     

Conceptualizing ‘the Urban’ Through the Lens of Durban,South Africa

Contemporary urban theory raises many questions about how ‘the urban’ is being conceptualized in a fast changing world that is approaching an urban epoch. Evolving debates about what it means to be urban, including the similarities and differences between so-called northern and southern cities, the future of cities, the way to manage and sustain cities, and cities’ relationships to the new Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, reveal the need for urban theory that can explain and provide insights into contemporary urban governance, processes, and outcomes. This special issue uses Durban as a lens to provide insight into the changing nature of cities in the Global South and Africa in particular, which encapsulate and reflect both formality and informality; tradition and modernity; uneven and unequal growth and social transformation; environmental crises and ‘resilience and sustainability’. This paper reflects on the dominant processes shaping the development of the city, revealing the challenges, tensions, and opportunities that emerge as the city assembles new ways of being urban, through the rationalities, knowledge, experiences, practices and actions of the state, citizens, and the private sector.     

开创上海绿化新局面的实践与探索

上海在迈向国际化大都市的同时，把抓好以绿化工程为重点的城市基础设施作为市委，市政府的一项战略决策，本文通过对上海城市特点和绿化现状的总结和分析，结合新一轮上海城市绿地系统发展目标，提出了开创上海绿化新局面，实现上海城市与自然和谐的生态环境建设目标。     

生活的舞台——当代西方景观叙事作品解读

景观叙事作为一种景观设计创作的表达方式．通过对生活场景的提炼．运用景观语言表达和诠释对生活的认知,从而创造出有情趣和有记忆的生活空间。在景观中从生活的视角切入叙事．不仅有益于凸显景观的人文生态本质．而且通过对社会、历史和文化的重新演绎和组合．可提升景观自身的可读性．同时增强大众对景观的认同感和归属感。本文尝试从景观叙事由表及里的三个层．面即实体叙事、文本叙事、哲学叙事．来解读和剖析景观．重新认识已经成为大众生活一部分的景观．并赋予景观新的内涵和意义。     

陆海统筹视角下临海工业用地开发思考

陆海统筹发展有助于合理高效的利用资源、实现海洋及城市的可持续发展。"十二五"期间规划的临海工业项目正处于建设初期,在此背景下,亟需探讨陆海统筹概念应用于临海工业开发中的工作框架。文章介绍辽南临海用地开发中存在的过度建设、职住分离等问题。初步设想了在临海工业用地开发中落实陆海统筹战略的方式,提出从区域层面开展项目选址、完善海岸带规划指导具体建设、在规划及运营方面建立陆海产航多部门协作等相关建议。     

Should the public sector play a greater role funding brownfield redevelopment projects? A transatlantic comparison

In the US and Germany, various public funding tools are available to make brownfield redevelopment projects financially feasible. The practices of private or public sector involvement differ from an international perspective. The following discussion will explore funding practices in the US and Germany. In Germany, there is a long tradition of public sector involvement while the US is predominately driven by private sector funding. A comparison will help identify long-standing practices in Germany and how they might be adapted to the US context. In a manner similar to the previous chapter on policies and programs, findings in this chapter are discussed at federal US, state of Michigan and local municipal levels, and European Union, Germany, and local-level funding.     

Performance benchmarking using composite indicators to support regulation of the Portuguese wastewater sector

This paper develops a benchmarking framework to support performance-based sunshine regulation in the water sector. It uses benefit-of-the-doubt composite indicators formulated with a directional distance function. Weight restrictions are incorporated in the model to account for different perspectives in the performance assessment. The framework is tested using data of the Portuguese regulation authority concerning the activity of wastewater operators. The information obtained using this framework reflects overall performance at the firm level and complements traditional evaluations of regulatory authorities based on the analysis of individual indicators. The results can be used to disseminate best practices, motivate continuous improvement, and foster enhancements in the governance of regulated utilities.     

叙事性思维下的建筑设计教学方法探索

营造具有叙事性的场所与空间,是当代建筑最为重要的设计倾向之一。在设计建筑时,从体验互动的角度来理解建筑的叙事性,是非常重要的设计思维方式。在毕业设计的教学中,通过引导学生在设计中构建叙事性的空间场所,加强对学生叙事性设计思维的训练,提升学生在设计作品中的逻辑性,并以部分作品为例,探讨在设计课程中贯彻叙事性设计思维的可操作性,以期为今后的教学改革提供方向和依据。     

Institutional reforms to integrate regulation and competition policy: Economic analysis,international perspectives,and the case of the CNMC in Spain

We review the related academic literature and the international evidence on the institutions of regulation and competition policy, to analyze the creation in 2013 of the new macro regulator in Spain, the CNMC. The institutional reform merged the competition policy authority with virtually all sector regulators with the exception of the financial regulator. The aim of the paper is to assess the extent to which the Spanish reform follows international best practices as well as how it fits within the analysis found in the academic literature. Although there is not a universally superior approach, neither in practice nor in theory, important shortcomings remain with the model that was finally adopted in Spain. Some institutional diversity would facilitate an optimal level of regulatory independence and governmental coordination for each sector, and ultimately achieving better results in terms of consumer welfare.     

Understanding the governance of urban water services from an institutional logics perspective

In recent decades, the urban water sector has experienced accelerating social complexity that derives from conflicting goals and beliefs, making the sustainability of the sector primarily a governance issue. However, existing governance models do not reflect the new reality. There is thus an urgent need to develop an urban water governance model reflecting this increasing complexity, to support sustainable governance. We integrate concepts from sociology, institutional theory and sustainability transitions to build a governance framework that includes interactions of social structures, and practices, shaped by different institutional logics and categorised at strategic, tactic, operational, and reflexive level.     

‘Playing back-spin balls’: narrating organizational change in construction

What does change mean for organizational members? Although researchers have attempted to capture its intrinsic complexities, there remains uncertainty as to what change really is and how it happens. Drawing on a longitudinal interpretative case study of change in a large Swedish construction company, a narrative approach is used to elicit middle managers’ stories of change episodes over the past two decades. These stories have then been compared with the narratives of the same episodes in governing documents. We found that the lived and the formal narratives, respectively, depicted two very different interpretations and enactments of change: the former described a discontinuous process of discrete contingencies demanding immediate short-term responses whereas the latter described a proactive incremental strategic plan. A narrative approach to the study of organizational change contributes to deeper insights into the ramifications of an organization’s socio-cultural system by enabling the capture of significant variations, contradictions and tensions, both for organizational members and for the researchers who study change.