Symbiotic Urban Agriculture Networks (SUANs) are a specific class of symbiotic networks that intend to close material and energy loops from cities and urban agriculture. Private and public stakeholders in SUANs face difficulties in the implementation of technological and organisational design interventions due to the complex nature of the agricultural and urban environment. Current research on the dynamics of symbiotic networks, especially Industrial Symbiosis (IS), is based on historical data from practice, and provides only partly for an understanding of symbiotic networks as a sociotechnical complex adaptive system. By adding theory and methodology from Design Science, participatory methods, and by using agent-based modelling as a tool, prescriptive knowledge is developed in the form of grounded and tested design rules for SUANs. In this paper, we propose a conceptual Design Science method with the aim to develop an empirically validated participatory agent-based modelling strategy that guides sociotechnical design interventions in SUANs. In addition, we present a research agenda for further strategy, design intervention, and model development through case studies regarding SUANs. The research agenda complements the existing analytical work by adding a necessary Design Science approach, which contributes to bridging the gap between IS dynamics theory and practical complex design issues.
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Industrial Symbiosis Networks (ISNs) consist of firms that exchange residual materials and energy locally, in order to gain economic, environmental and/or social advantages. In practice, ISNs regularly fail when partners leave and the recovery of residual streams ends. Regarding the current societal need for a shift towards sustainability, it is undesirable that ISNs should fail. Failures of ISNs may be caused by actor behaviour that leads to unanticipated economic losses. In this paper, we explore the effect of these behaviours on ISN robustness by using an agent-based model (ABM). The constructed model is based on insights from both literature and participatory modelling in three real-world cases. It simulates the implementation of synergies for local waste exchange and compost production. The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) was used to model agent behaviour in time-dependent bilateral negotiations and synergy evaluation processes. We explored model behaviour with and without TPB logic across a range of possible TPB input variables. The simulation results show how the modelled planned behaviour affects the cash flow outcomes of the social agents and the robustness of the network. The study contributes to the theoretical development of industrial symbiosis research by providing a quantitative model of all ISN implementation stages, in which various behavioural patterns of entrepreneurs are included. It also contributes to practice by offering insights on how network dynamics and robustness outcomes are not only related to context and ISN design, but also to actor behaviour.
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The ‘Grand Challenges’ of our times, like climate change, resource depletion, global inequity, and the destruction of wildlife and biodiversity can only be addressed by innovating cities. Despite the options of tele-working, tele-trading and tele-amusing, that allow people to participate in ever more activities, wherever they are, people are resettling in cities at an unprecedented speed. The forecasted ‘rurification’ of society did not occur. Technological development has drained rural society from its main source of income, agriculture, as only a marginal fraction of the labour force is employed in agriculture in the rich parts of the world. Moreover, technological innovation created new jobs in the IT and service sectors in cities. Cities are potentially far more resource efficient than rural areas. In a city transport distances are shorter, infrastructures can be applied to provide for essential services in a more efficient way and symbiosis might be developed between various infrastructures. However, in practice, urban infrastructures are not more efficient than rural infrastructures. This paper explores the reasons why. It digs into the reasons why the symbiotic options that are available in cities are not (sufficiently) utilised. The main reason for this is not of an economic nature: Infrastructure organisations are run by experts who are part of a strong paradigmatic community. Dependence on other organisations is regarded as limiting the infrastructure organisation’s freedom of action to achieve its own goals. Expert cultures are transferred in education, professional associations, and institutional arrangements. By 3 concrete examples of urban systems, the paper will analyse how various paradigms of experts co-evolved with evolving systems. The paper reflects on recent studies that identified professional education as the initiation into such expert paradigms. It will thereby relate lack of urban innovation to the monodisciplinary education of experts and the strong institutionalised character of expertise. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63007-6_43 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karelmulder/
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De transitie van het onderwijs in de foodsector in de Rotterdamse regio
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This publication is a report of the summer research School symbiocene, which took place at Zeeburgereiland amsterdam between the 28th and 30th of june 2023. This summer research school is anInitiative of an kramer, action researcher of the Symbiocene, in collaboration with Inholland University of applied sciences and sluislab, social Impact island.
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In recent years, it has become a commonplace to argue that cities should be the focus point of sustainable development. Various authors have presented a variety of arguments why cities should be the preferred target to foster sustainable development-focused innovation; - The average consumption of resources of urban dwellers is higher. - The population of cities is growing continuously, while rural populations stabilize. - Deteriorating living conditions and segregation in cities caused by processes of gentrification of traditional neighbourhoods that drive out lower income groups to the suburbs. - Cities are ‘concentrated’ emitters of pollutants and therefore solutions and re-use might be easier to implement. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11185013 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karel-mulder-163aa96/
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At the age of a failing economic system and undeniable evidence of the effects humankind has had over the planet, it is necessary to look for alternatives to the way we live locally. This article explores the use of designing narratives and metanarratives to co-create imaginaries serving as the needed alternatives. This research starts by considering the historical factors to understand how industrialisation and the loss of traditional practices created a culture of disconnection from Nature in the Girona area, but also looks at why people start now reconnecting with it. The analysis is the foundation for speculative design practices to co-create a new local narrative of connection and regeneration. The project adopted the Integrative Worldviews Framework and used paradoxes to create possible future worldviews based on historical factors and literature. Citizens participated in conversational future-visioning workshops to develop and evaluate their local imagery of the previously created worldviews. This conversation-based exercise evidenced the potential of paradoxes in destructive futures to create imaginaries of regeneration. These imaginaries merge and form future stories. From the future narratives, the practice created cultural artefacts embodying a new culture of connection based on storytelling, traditional jobs, and a mythological understanding of Nature. Finally, as observed at the end of the project, these artefacts allow citizens to adopt them as their culture and expand their current worldview.
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Innovations are required in urban infrastructures due to the pressing needs for mitigating climate change and prevent resource depletion. In order to address the slow pace of innovation in urban systems, this paper analyses factors involved in attempts to introduce novel sanitary systems. Today new requirements are important: sanitary systems should have an optimal energy/climate performance, with recovery of resources, and with fewer emissions. Anaerobic digestion has been suggested as an alternative to current aerobic waste water treatment processes. This paper presents an overview of attempts to introduce novel anaerobic sanitation systems for domestic sanitation. The paper identifies main factors that contributed to a premature termination of such attempts. Especially smaller scale anaerobic sanitation systems will probably not be able to compete economically with traditional sewage treatment. However, anaerobic treatment has various advantages for mitigating climate change, removing persistent chemicals, and for the transition to a circular economy. The paper concludes that loss avoidance, both in the sewage system and in the waste water treatment plants, should play a key role in determining experiments that could lead to a transition in sanitation. http://dx.doi.org/10.13044/j.sdewes.d6.0214 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karel-mulder-163aa96/
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There is more to be learned from nature as a whole. In practice ‘nature’ is often used in teaching, training, consultancy and organisational development as a metaphor, as a source of inspiration or as an example for all kinds of processes, including leadership, cooperation, relationships and the development of organisations and society. Mainly ecological, and much less frequently biological, processes are generally involved here. The question has gradually arisen whether we can learn more from nature in the social environment than what we ‘see’ on the surface - which is often translated in metaphors. Seen more holistically, this is about the systemic side, the complexity, the context and the coherence. For example, can we demonstrate that applying fundamental ecological principles, such as cycles (learning, self-organising, selfregulating and self-sufficient capacity), succession, diversity and resilience, social and cooperative behaviour, interconnectedness and interdependency within an organisation leads to a sustainable organisation? Mauro Gallo is conducting research into the significance of technical innovation in and for the agricultural and food sector, and into the question whether biomimicry can in fact be backed up in such a way that it contributes to the social sciences domain. At the same time there is a clear teaching issue: Is it logical from the perspective of our green DNA to include biomimicry thinking in our teaching? Is it possible to learn to apply biomimicry, and can biomimicry be applied in teaching/learning? (How) can we apply biomimicry in green VMBO and MBO, pass it on to the teachers of the future in teacher training courses and include it in making current lecturers more professional? Is it conceivable that it could become an integral component of the curricula in green HBO?
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There is more to be learned from nature as a whole. In practice ‘nature’ is often used in teaching, training, consultancy and organisational development as a metaphor, as a source of inspiration or as an example for all kinds of processes, including leadership, cooperation, relationships and the development of organisations and society. Mainly ecological, and much less frequently biological, processes are generally involved here. The question has gradually arisen whether we can learn more from nature in the social environment than what we ‘see’ on the surface - which is often translated in metaphors. Seen more holistically, this is about the systemic side, the complexity, the context and the coherence. For example, can we demonstrate that applying fundamental ecological principles, such as cycles (learning, self-organising, selfregulating and self-sufficient capacity), succession, diversity and resilience, social and cooperative behaviour, interconnectedness and interdependency within an organisation leads to a sustainable organisation? Mauro Gallo is conducting research into the significance of technical innovation in and for the agricultural and food sector, and into the question whether biomimicry can in fact be backed up in such a way that it contributes to the social sciences domain. At the same time there is a clear teaching issue: Is it logical from the perspective of our green DNA to include biomimicry thinking in our teaching? Is it possible to learn to apply biomimicry, and can biomimicry be applied in teaching/learning? (How) can we apply biomimicry in green VMBO and MBO, pass it on to the teachers of the future in teacher training courses and include it in making current lecturers more professional? Is it conceivable that it could become an integral component of the curricula in green HBO?
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This study furthers game-based learning for circular business model innovation (CBMI), the complex, dynamic process of designing business models according to the circular economy principles. The study explores how game-play in an educational setting affects learning progress on the level of business model elements and from the perspective of six learning categories. We experimented with two student groups using our game education package Re-Organise. All students first studied a reader and a game role description and then filled out a circular business model canvas and a learning reflection. The first group, i.e., the game group, updated the canvas and the reflection in an interactive tutorial after gameplay. The control group submitted their updated canvas and reflection directly after the interactive tutorial without playing the game. The results were analyzed using text-mining and qualitative methods such as word co-occurrence and sentiment polarity. The game group created richer business models (using more waste processing technologies) and reflections with stronger sentiments toward the learning experience. Our detailed study results (i.e., per business model element and learning category) enhance understanding of game-based learning for circular business model innovation while providing directions for improving serious games and accompanying educational packages.
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