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The paper proposes a five-step effective method for creating sustainable, thriving urban communities, from sky-is-the-limit creative mapping to polished final execution. The underlying belief is that although every urban area is different, the use of the proposed method enables, under certain circumstances, the creation of favourable conditions for sustainable and shared prosperity. Drawing from the author's two decades of high-profile experience as an urban regeneration expert, the paper offers comments and thoughts on each step, sharing some key lessons learned from real-life project examples. It shows how to identify a community's unique strengths and competitive advantages, as well as the needs, motivations, inequalities and weaknesses that can be fundamental ingredients for crafting a strong vision for its future. It also proposes how to ensure communities have real purpose and how a collaborative approach can deliver lasting tangible benefits in all contexts — physical, social and economic — and generate places where people are happy to build their lives. Finally, it touches on how to break silos, dissipate political resistance, and disrupt unproductive decision-making structures and traditionally inefficient procedures, for creating sustainable shared value. One of the crucial aspects highlighted is that the proposed method must be intended not as a process with a beginning and an end, but rather a continuous iterative long-term effort aimed at achieving and maintaining a virtuous condition. The implication is that, as the context continues to change over time, it is necessary to create the conditions for 'strategic urban agility'. This requires the adoption of a culture of flexibility in all regulatory, planning, design, construction and operational dimensions of an urban regeneration initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Actor–Network Theory is used to reflect relevant issues of local interaction and involvement in this paper's analysis of Tehran. A combination of quantitative and qualitative methods is used in the project to investigate non-human and human factors. The Perceived Residential Environment Quality Index was used to study 422 residents of Bagh-Shater, and community semi-structured interviews and interviews with key informants were performed using an interpretive approach. According to the analysis, a diagnosis of the current state of local interactions and involvement is given by transposing the situation in Bagh-Shater into elements that can demonstrate successive urban changes. These components form a single collection when combined with macro and main networks. Our concentration is on the urban situation, which is a place where changes occur at a time when modern aspects of Tehran's urban life align with local characteristics and country structures, or vice versa. As a result, the dominant model in Tehran's development could be machine-centered rather than human-centered, and people, both elites and lower classes may hold a favorable opinion of it and use it to further their own interests. Convergence may be motivated by a variety of factors, as well as community-based conservation projects. The city government has begun the process of implementing the oriented-community strategy. Nevertheless, many such plans due to some facts like the fact that urban technocrats and bureaucrats do not have the adequate motivation, ability, and knowledge to be able to use culture as a great resource for improving urban conditions also they have wasted resources and expanded bureaucracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The Consistent outbreak in PPR Batu Muda area has become major curiosity among the researcher despite consorted efforts has been taken by local authority. Therefore, this study was aim to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of community, which later might contribute for better approach in tackling the dengue outbreak episode. Methods: The PPR Batu Muda was selected in this study due to its consistent outbreak, therefore the residents were assumed to be exposed with various dengue prevention and control efforts, hence make them reliable to answer this questionnaire. 373 residents were participated in this survey. The information collected was subjected to analysis by Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0. Results: The result shows 100% of respondents have a high level of knowledge on dengue fever. Meanwhile sociodemographic factors do not influence the respondents' knowledge level on dengue fever (p-value > 0.05). Sociodemographic factors do not influence the respondents' practice level towards prevention of dengue fever (p-value > 0.05). The attitude of the respondents was also observed with high level of knowledge (p-value <0.05). While the community in this study was observed to be good in their knowledge on dengue fever, poor prevention practices are common among them (p-value > 0.05). Conclusion: The public awareness on signs and symptoms of dengue fever, as well as the variables that contribute to the spread and control of the disease's vectors, were substantially observed to be less effective in promoting good practices in preventing dengue fever outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education institutions (HEIs) are engaging in workforce development initiatives to include collaborating with urban communities. To date, there are limited analyses through a funds of knowledge conceptual framework approach, examining perspectives of urban community workforce providers and participants. Subsequently, such an analysis would provide valuable information to better develop meaningful workforce collaborations. In this study, the authors utilized a qualitative critical-narrative approach to report on provider and participant experiences prior to the formation of the Parramore Education Innovation District (PEID), a university-led project that works with K-12, state college, community, and city government. The PEID project was created as an educational ecosystem to optimize job readiness. To guide this study the central research question was: How should HEIs work to engage urban communities regarding workforce programming? The initial analysis found HEIs must establish sustainable, co-constructed programming from perspective participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to determine receptivity for advancing the Learning Healthcare System (LHS) model to a novel evidence-based health care delivery framework—Learning Health Care Community (LHCC)—in Baltimore, as a model for a national initiative. Using community-based participatory, qualitative approach, we conducted 16 in-depth interviews and 15 focus groups with 94 participants. Two independent coders thematically analyzed the transcripts. Participants included community members (38%), health care professionals (29%), patients (26%), and other stakeholders (7%). The majority considered LHCC to be a viable model for improving the health care experience, outlining certain parameters for success such as the inclusion of home visits, presentation of research evidence, and incorporation of social determinants and patients' input. Lessons learned and challenges discussed by participants can help health systems and communities explore the LHCC aspiration to align health care delivery with an engaged, empowered, and informed community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explore the experiences of urban youth of color, as well as perceptions, of feeling disconnected and having an overall negative sense of community (SOC). Drawing on data from 11 focus groups, youth (N = 59) describe their communities and lived experiences. We document several themes put forward through the lens of SOC and community connection that highlight perceived lack of membership, needs fulfillment, influence, and overall emotional connection to their community. Unpacking youth's perceptions of their community, we suggest that—in the face of such realities—community‐based organizations, such as those the youth find themselves in, aid in creating connectedness and help heal youth from the effects of social conditions experienced daily. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Peer victimization is experienced by an alarming number of youth. A variety of coping strategies may be used by youth to avoid the risk of peer victimization, including behaviors such as avoidance, displaying a tough demeanor, defensive behaviors, establishing a reputation, and forming affiliations with family and community members. However, little research has examined how these coping strategies are simultaneously associated with peer victimization experiences. Objective: The present study explored how these five coping strategies were associated with peer victimization among African American youth living in low-income urban communities, a group of youth at risk for high levels of exposure to violence and victimization. It was hypothesized that more use of these strategies would be associated with less peer victimization. Method: The study comprised of 534 African American youth from low-income communities located in Chicago's Southside. Multivariate regression analysis was conducted to identify which coping strategies, when assessed simultaneously, were associated with a lower risk of peer victimization. Results: Results indicated that defensive behavior was negatively associated with peer victimization. Higher levels of tough demeanor and affiliation with family and community members were associated with higher levels of peer victimization. Coping strategies of avoidance and establishing a reputation were not significantly associated with peer victimization. Conclusion: Peer affiliation does not always contribute to positive outcomes, particularly among adolescents in urban areas. A further examination of the coping strategies and socialization processes of urban African American youth in low-resourced communities is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What do public libraries and communities classified as food deserts have in common? This paper will share how the Cleveland Public Library addressed food security issues in Cleveland, Ohio, through collaboration with local organizations such as The Ohio State University (OSU) Extension in Cuyahoga County and the Cuyahoga County Land Bank (CCLB). Public Libraries are changing the way they serve patrons in disadvantaged communities. Librarians are beginning to share concerns about health issues of their communities. The author provides a step-by-step approach to beginning a community garden at your local public library or community property. The program will benefit groups of all ages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Adequate nutrition is needed by preschool-aged children to allow for growth and development optimally. Eating behavior during the preschool years also shapes lifelong dietary preferences. This study aimed to describe the pre-schooler eating behavior in urban communities. Method: The design used was descriptive with a cross-sectional approach. The population consisted of mothers and preschool-aged children (aged 3-5 years) in Gresik Regency (an urban area in East Java). The sample size was 90 respondents, taken using a simple random sampling technique. Preschool eating behavior is defined by energy adequacy level and dietary diversity. The data was collected using food recall over 24 hours and this was described using frequency and percentage distribution. Results and Analysis: The results showed that most pre-schoolers had a good energy adequacy level (64.4%). The most significant contributors to energy were carbohydrates, protein and fat. Most pre-schoolers have good dietary diversity (75.6%). Most of their food composition consisted of rice, animal and plant protein and milk. Vegetables and fruits were rarely consumed. Discussion: It can thus be concluded that the pre-schooler’s eating behavior in urban communities was good. Further research can use these findings to develop an intervention to enhance the healthy eating behavior of pre-school children in urban communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Learning urban community structures refers to the efforts of quantifying, summarizing, and representing an urban community's (i) static structures, e.g., Point-Of-Interests (POIs) buildings and corresponding geographic allocations, and (ii) dynamic structures, e.g., human mobility patterns among POIs. By learning the community structures, we can better quantitatively represent urban communities and understand their evolutions in the development of cities. This can help us boost commercial activities, enhance public security, foster social interactions, and, ultimately, yield livable, sustainable, and viable environments. However, due to the complex nature of urban systems, it is traditionally challenging to learn the structures of urban communities. To address this problem, in this article, we propose a collective embedding framework to learn the community structure from multiple periodic spatial-temporal graphs of human mobility. Specifically, we first exploit a probabilistic propagation-based approach to create a set of mobility graphs from periodic human mobility records. In these mobility graphs, the static POIs are regarded as vertexes, the dynamic mobility connectivities between POI pairs are regarded as edges, and the edge weights periodically evolve over time. A collective deep auto-encoder method is then developed to collaboratively learn the embeddings of POIs from multiple spatial-temporal mobility graphs. In addition, we develop a Unsupervised Graph based Weighted Aggregation method to align and aggregate the POI embeddings into the representation of the community structures. We apply the proposed embedding framework to two applications (i.e., spotting vibrant communities and predicting housing price return rates) to evaluate the performance of our proposed method. Extensive experimental results on real-world urban communities and human mobility data demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed collective embedding framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flood disasters and its consequent damages are on the rise globally. Pakistan has been experiencing an increase in flood frequency and severity along with resultant damages in the past. In addition to the regular practices of loss and damage estimation, current focus is on risk assessment of hazard-prone communities. Risk measurement is complex as scholars engaged in disaster science and management use different quantitative models with diverse interpretations. This study tries to provide clarity in conceptualizing disaster risk and proposes a risk assessment methodology with constituent components such as hazard, vulnerability (exposure and sensitivity) and coping/adaptive capacity. Three communities from different urban centers in Pakistan have been selected based on high flood frequency and intensity. A primary survey was conducted in selected urban communities to capture data on a number of variables relating to flood hazard, vulnerability and capacity to compute flood risk index. Households were categorized into different risk levels, such as can manage risk, can survive and cope, and cannot cope. It was found that risk levels varied significantly across the households of the three communities. Metropolitan city was found to be highly vulnerable as compared to smaller cities due to weak capacity. Households living in medium town had devised coping mechanisms to manage risk. The proposed methodology is tested and found operational for risk assessment of flood-prone areas and communities irrespective of locations and countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is the role of energy in building communities and to what extent are communities invested in particular energy practices? The hypothesis of this paper is that energy is embedded in the everyday life of urban communities in multiple ways. The assemblage of shared understandings within the community and the material elements that mediate the provision of energy and its use constitute an urban energy landscape. While this energy landscape is embedded in wider political economies, communities also shape it both through discursive and material engagements with energy. This hypothesis is examined with reference to an urban energy landscape in the neighbourhood Chamanculo C, in Maputo, Mozambique. For this study, we conducted a participatory mapping workshop in which a representative group of local residents discussed the use of energy and mapped different elements of the energy system in their neighbourhood using walking as a research tool. The case study reveals multiple understandings of energy in the community and how energy is embedded in different forms of living and in livelihoods. The community shares a complex energy landscape in which multiple fuels and forms of energy co-exist. These findings question current energy policies for urban development focused exclusively on the extension of the electricity network and street lighting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By investigating the social dynamics of home in one of the enduring communities of Cairo, this article reveals the way ordinary people construct and consume their private and public domains on a daily basis. It reveals what is central and what is marginal in the cognitive idea of home. This article adopts an interdisciplinary strategy of investigation, utilizing sociological and anthropological data to read and visit spatial practices in the home. Building on historical as well as contemporary accounts of residents and families, the concept of home is envisioned as a spectrum of social spheres that is liberated from the physical determinants of space, hence revealing a new domain of part-time spaces and dynamic spatiality. The emergent idea of home intertwines work, domesticity, recreation and hospitality in an interplay of space-activity-time relationships. Homes of old Cairo have proved to be responsive to continuous change, and have evolved dynamic forms of the temporal settings required for accommodation of emerging home-based professional activities such as hospitality, home-workers and care-homes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relative roles of social ties and collective efficacy in explaining community variations in violent victimization in Australia. Using data from a survey of 2,859 residents across 82 communities in the city of Brisbane, coupled with official reported crime data provided by the Queensland Police Service and Australian Bureau of Statistics census data for 2001, the authors employ multilevel statistical models to depict the relative importance of social ties and collective efficacy in predicting between-neighborhood violent victimization in an Australian context. The models include measures of social relationships and community-based crime prevention programs, and the authors compare and contrast their findings with studies of collective efficacy in Chicago and Stockholm, finding similar results. These findings suggest that despite structural and cultural differences between the United States and Australia in particular, collective efficacy is a significant mechanism in explaining the spatial distribution of self-reported violent victimization in the Australian context. This research underscores the importance of cross-cultural theory testing and the need to further develop the measurement of ecological constructs such as social ties and organizational behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensuring access to safe drinking water is a challenge in many parts of the world for reasons including, but not limited to, infrastructure age, source water impairment, limited community finances and limitations in Federal water protections. Water quality crises and the prevalence of impaired waters globally highlight the need for investment in the expansion of drinking water testing that includes public and private water systems, as well as community outreach. We provide justification including a case example to argue the merits of developing drinking water testing and community outreach programs that include drinking water testing and non-formal education (i.e., public outreach) regarding the importance of drinking water quality testing for human well-being and security. Organizers of drinking water testing programs should: (1) test drinking water quality; (2) develop drinking water quality databases; (3) increase public awareness of drinking water issues; (4) build platforms for improved community outreach; and (5) publish program results that illustrate successful program models that are spatially and temporally transferrable. We anticipate that short-term and intermediate outcomes of this strategy would improve access to drinking water testing, facilitate greater understanding of water quality and increase security through inclusive and equitable water quality testing and outreach programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]