A comprehensive vulnerability assessment is a scientific basis for the realization of the United Nations' sustainable development goals. Energy resilience plays a crucial role in mitigating social vulnerability due to disaster shocks. Often, energy infrastructure and services collapse after disasters. The recent Russia-Ukraine war has exacerbated Europe's energy crisis and social vulnerabilities, making it even more urgent to add energy resilience to vulnerability assessments. This paper takes the Netherlands as the study area for vulnerability assessment, constructs a new social vulnerability indicator (SVI) system supplemented with the energy element, and compares that with the traditional energy indicator system. The results indicate that: 1) The introduction of energy indicators fills the gap of traditional SVI assessment. 2) Energy indicators reveal regional and spatial differences in potential social vulnerability in the Netherlands. 3) Energy-inclusive SVI demonstrates that uneven urbanization exacerbates risks and inequalities for vulnerable groups, with potential impacts on social vulnerability. Sustainable urban development requires the search for a recognized and coordinated approach to managing vulnerability across regions. The complementarity of energy indicators offers opportunities to provide a more comprehensive assessment of spatial patterns of social vulnerability, identify potentially vulnerable areas, enhance urban disaster resilience, and achieve sustainable urban development.
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The diversity and intensity of human activities in the North Sea region (NSR) and other maritime regions are increasing. This necessitates transboundary coordination at the sea basin level, which is required but yet insufficiently established. Through European co-funded projects, national policymakers, stakeholders, and scientists in MSP are enabled to develop transboundary coordination (TBC) mechanisms. TBC requires, alongside other factors, a form of social and policy learning between these actors in different countries. The NorthSEE project (2016–2022) was an example of such an EU-co-funded project and was aimed at enhancing coherence in MSP processes and plans across the NSR. This article examines the project's key learning outcomes, the role of the MSP Challenge Simulation Platform in supporting these outcomes, and factors that enabled or constrained learning within the project. Data was collected during the project via document analysis, questionnaires from participatory stakeholder workshops, interviews with sixteen project participants and ten workshop participants, and observations. The study highlights that project participants have gained more insight into each other's planning systems, are able to contact each other more easily, and have initiated several follow-up initiatives. Furthermore, it shows that interactive and participatory tools, such as the MSP Challenge Simulation Platform, can contribute to individual and social learning by providing participants with instant feedback on their decisions. These learning outcomes have been influenced by various enabling and constraining conditions, including time, resources, and the differing levels of expertise and knowledge among project partners and participants. Assessing the broader societal impact remains a challenge and warrants further attention.
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This paper seeks to highlight underlying issues of the tourism system that have led to tourism extremes of too much or too little tourism. Five phases are recognized that reflect different ways of dealing with too much tourism over time, after which the impact of a sudden lack of tourism is investigated in light of future renewal processes. This discussion highlights the remarkable capacity of the tourism industry to adjust to rapidly changing circumstances and crises, even when these cause anguish to individuals and within societies at large. The paper thus seeks to contextualize the current discussions regarding the transformation of tourism post COVID-19. It highlights the complexity of changing a tourism that multiple stakeholders depend on or have grown accustomed to. To come to a more balanced tourism, it is necessary to not only come up with alternative visions and strategies, but also to engage with the political economy nature of tourism development. A future research agenda should therefore also discuss facets of entangled power, social exclusion, inequalities and class differences to come to new reference points of what actually constitutes a more inclusive tourism success.
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The role of smart cities in order to improve older people’s quality of life, sustainability and opportunities, accessibility, mobility, and connectivity is increasing and acknowledged in public policy and private sector strategies in countries all over the world. Smart cities are one of the technological-driven initiatives that may help create an age-friendly city. Few research studies have analysed emerging countries in terms of their national strategies on smart or age-friendly cities. In this study, Romania which is predicted to become one of the most ageing countries in the European Union is used as a case study. Through document analysis, current initiatives at the local, regional, and national level addressing the issue of smart and age-friendly cities in Romania are investigated. In addition, a case study is presented to indicate possible ways of the smart cities initiatives to target and involve older adults. The role of different stakeholders is analysed in terms of whether initiatives are fragmentary or sustainable over time, and the importance of some key factors, such as private–public partnerships and transnational bodies. The results are discussed revealing the particularities of the smart cities initiatives in Romania in the time frame 2012–2020, which to date, have limited connection to the age-friendly cities agenda. Based on the findings, a set of recommendations are formulated to move the agenda forward. CC-BY Original article: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17145202 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers "Age-Friendly Cities & Communities: State of the Art and Future Perspectives") https://www.dehaagsehogeschool.nl/onderzoek/lectoraten/details/urban-ageing#over-het-lectoraat
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Background: In the past years, a mobile health (mHealth) app called the Dutch Talking Touch Screen Questionnaire (DTTSQ) was developed in The Netherlands. The aim of development was to enable Dutch physical therapy patients to autonomously complete a health-related questionnaire regardless of their level of literacy and digital skills. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the usability (defined as the effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction) of the prototype of the DTTSQ for Dutch physical therapy patients with diverse levels of experience in using mobile technology. Methods: The qualitative Three-Step Test-Interview method, including both think-aloud and retrospective probing techniques, was used to gain insight into the usability of the DTTSQ. A total of 24 physical therapy patients were included. The interview data were analyzed using a thematic content analysis approach aimed at analyzing the accuracy and completeness with which participants completed the questionnaire (effectiveness), the time it took the participants to complete the questionnaire (efficiency), and the extent to which the participants were satisfied with the ease of use of the questionnaire (satisfaction). The problems encountered by the participants in this study were given a severity rating that was used to provide a rough estimate of the need for additional usability efforts. Results: All participants within this study were very satisfied with the ease of use of the DTTSQ. Overall, 9 participants stated that the usability of the app exceeded their expectations. The group of 4 average-/high-experienced participants encountered only 1 problem in total, whereas the 11 little-experienced participants encountered an average of 2 problems per person and the 9 inexperienced participants an average of 3 problems per person. A total of 13 different kind of problems were found during this study. Of these problems, 4 need to be addressed before the DTTSQ will be released because they have the potential to negatively influence future usage of the tool. The other 9 problems were less likely to influence future usage of the tool substantially. Conclusions: The usability of the DTTSQ needs to be improved before it can be released. No problems were found with satisfaction or efficiency during the usability test. The effectiveness needs to be improved by (1) making it easier to navigate through screens without the possibility of accidentally skipping one, (2) enabling the possibility to insert an answer by tapping on the text underneath a photograph instead of just touching the photograph itself, and (3) making it easier to correct wrong answers. This study shows the importance of including less skilled participants in a usability study when striving for inclusive design and the importance of measuring not just satisfaction but also efficiency and effectiveness during such studies.
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As an active member of the Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities, The Hague has been monitoring the progress over the years. In 2022, a second cross-sectional survey based on the Age Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ) was conducted among 396 community-dwelling older citizens in the municipality. During times of the pandemic, scores for Social Participation went notably down, and scores for Respect and Social Inclusion increased. For the first time, based on survey data, four personas were found through cluster analysis. These personas ranged from the precariat and people with personal health issues with lower scores, to the silent majority without the limitations of health problems, and the upper echelon who score positively in all domains. Age-friendly policies in The Hague should focus particularly on the first two clusters through dedicated action plans, which would help steer efforts towards those most in need for support. This would help The Hague to become an age-friendly city for all, and not only for those living in good health and with sufficient financial means.
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Current global trends show that different regions of the globe face an increased level of urbanization, and there is a swift aging process from the Western to the Eastern European countries. Romania is a typical country expecting to triple the percentage of the older population aged 65 and over in the next 30 years. Urban policies often neglect such demographic perspectives. The World Health Organization launched the age-friendly city and communities' movement that proposes solutions for older people to age actively by improving their welfare and social participation. The concept of an age-friendly city comprised eight dimensions: (1) outdoor spaces and buildings; (2) transportation; (3) housing; (4) social participation; (5) respect and social inclusion; (6) civic participation and employment; (7) communication and information; and (8) community support and health services. It raises some important questions about how to measure and evaluate urban policies in this framework. Current work presents the process of adaptation and validation for the Romanian older population of a standardized tool - the Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ). The validation study was conducted in Bucharest (n = 424) on a representative sample of older people, who were asked to rate their life in the city, following the eight dimensions and an additional one regarding their financial situation. Four clusters were differentiated in the analysis, resulting in different views of older adults on their experience of living in the city, showing that people's socio-economic status, their living arrangements and health situation play a role in shaping their views on city life. The results highlight the importance of standardized tools to design urban policies following an age-friendly agenda.
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The global agenda to move societies towards a more sustainable course of development also affects the lives of older people in our ageing populations. Therefore, it is important to understand the drivers, intentions and behaviours concerning sustainability among older adults. The aim of this study is to translate and cross-culturally validate an existing instrument (SustainABLE-16 Questionnaire), developed in the Netherlands, which measures how older people view the theme of environmental sustainability in their daily lives, for use in Romania, Poland, North Macedonia and Israel. The SustainABLE-16 covers three domains: 1) Pro-environmental behaviours; 2) Financial position; and 3) Beliefs. The scale was translated in Romanian, Polish, Macedonian, Albanian and Hebrew. Its 16 items were appraised for relevance by older people and experts in the field. A total of 2299 older people, including the original Dutch respondents, were included for the assessment of the level of measurement invariance across six languages, spoken in five countries. As the initial validation of the SustainABLE-16 did not meet internationally-recognised fit requirements, the shorter SustainABLE-8 was validated instead. This instrument proved valid for use in all participating countries (configural validity). Subsequently, increasingly constrained structural equation models were applied to test their fit with the data, ensuring that the fit did not deteriorate. The test results of measurement invariance across the countries indicated that items were stable, achieving partial scalar invariance, with five items demonstrating full scalar invariance. The shorter SustainABLE-8 functions uniformly across all language groups and can, therefore, be used to evaluate sustainable practices among older people. A better understanding of the drivers and practices among older citizens across Europe could, in turn, feed into more fitting public policies on sustainability in the built environment.
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The Netherlands is known globally for its widespread use of bicycles and some call it a “cycling nation”. Indeed, many Dutch inhabitants own a bike and cycle frequently. Numbers show that 84% of the Dutch inhabitants from age 4 years and older own a bike. Those owners have an average of 1.3 bikes per person. This results in 18 million bikes in the Netherlands and 13.5 million bike owners.6 The Dutch use their bike as a means of transportation, but also for sports and exercise. Bike-use fits well in an active lifestyle and it is highly plausible that cycling is responsible for a large part of the daily physical activity in Dutch youth. It is estimated that Dutch people have on average a 6 months longer life expectancy attributable to bicycle use.7 It seems that the nation itself is well shaped to cycle: no large mountains, only a few small hills, and an extensive layout of cycle paths and routes in every city and village. In many urban areas separate cycle paths are very common. Our results show that many Dutch children use the bike as their way of transportation. It was demonstrated that active transportation is responsible for a large part of schoolrelated physical activity in Dutch youth.8 80% of 12-17 year-old children cycled three or more days to or from school/work.9 This resulted in an ‘A’ for the indicator active transportation (walking is included in the grade as well). Active transport is associated with increased total physical activity among youth.10,11 Also evidence is reported for an association between active transport and a healthier body composition and healthier level of cardiorespiratory fitness among youth. Although Dutch children accumulate a lot of daily physical activity through cycling, it is not enough to meet the current national physical activity guidelines of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day. Even though cycling is an important component to the amount of daily physical activity, Dutch youth are not cycling to health
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This paper introduces a novel distributed algorithm designed to optimize the deployment of access points within Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs) for better service quality in infrastructure less environments. The algorithm operates based on local, independent execution by each network node, thus ensuring a high degree of scalability and adaptability to changing network conditions. The primary focus is to match the spatial distribution of access points with the distribution of client devices while maintaining strong connectivity to the network root. Using autonomous decision-making and choreographed path-planning, this algorithm bridges the gap between demand-responsive network service provision and the maintenance of crucial network connectivity links. The assessment of the performance of this approach is motivated by using numerical results generated by simulations.
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