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To date, the Government of Cambodia has issued at least 2,216 policies in response to Covid-19. These have largely been directed at limiting the spread of the Covid-19 within Cambodia, with clear attempts to mitigate the burden on economically- and socially-vulnerable groups. This study explored the ways in which the policy response to Covid-19 has been experienced by vulnerable migrant workers and people vulnerable to trafficking in persons. We interviewed seven social workers and independent experts, four migrant workers, and nine survivors of trafficking in order to gather evidence about gaps in the policies’ abilities to protect people and to identify mechanisms by which they impacted vulnerability. We find that, while the policies have attempted to provide protection to vulnerable groups, the majority of our respondents were not able to access it effectively. Workers in informal sectors have been particularly impacted by work stoppages since they have less bargaining power with employers and are much less able to access government unemployment support. Migrant workers trapped abroad faced hardships and discrimination, with many making risky journeys back to Cambodia or losing their regular migrant status. Border closure policies meant that many people were not able to safely return to Cambodia or travel for their livelihoods. This resulted in an increased reliance on brokers to cross borders illegally and to attempt to find work, which in turn increased risks of exploitation and trafficking at the very time when officials and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were least able to monitor and identify violations.

Every year, countless people become victims of human trafficking. The number is countless because the vast majority of those cases go unidentified and unreported. As a result, victims remain invisible, go unsupported, continue to suffer abuses, and continue to face stigma and trauma even after finding their way out of trafficking. This lack of visibility also makes it difficult to really understand how trafficking works, which seriously hinders international counter trafficking efforts.

This paper examines the changes to social networks of people living in seven informal settlements in Raipur, India, who, in line with the “Indian Alliance” model of community organizing, worked with NGO partners to form local associations in their settlements. These associations were meant to help the participants and their fellow settlement residents to access more secure housing through the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) policy. This paper presents findings from a quantitative social network analysis, demonstrating the impact of the organizing efforts in reshaping their relationship structures and strengthening their agency. These findings were tested for resonance and further fleshed out with qualitative details by going through the analysis with participants. Finally, this paper offers reflections on incorporating technical research methods into organizing and action research interventions, affirming the notion that people living in informal settlements are well placed to generate and make use of sophisticated data on their own communities and cities.

सीमित संसाधन वाले नगरीय परिवेशों में किसी संकट स्थिति या आपात्कालीन प्रतिक्रिया के दौरान सर्विलांस में प्रौद्योगिकी का उपयोग, तथ्यों की जाँच और समन्वित नियंत्रण के जैसे विषयों में शामिल मूल मुद्दों पर विचार करने के उपरांत यह संक्षिप्त विवरण श्रेष्ठ डेटा प्रैक्टिस संबंधी अपनी अनुशंसाएं प्रस्तुत करता है। शहरों में कोविड-19 प्रतिक्रिया के दौरान डेटा सक्षम प्रौद्योगिकियों का किस प्रकार से उपयोग किया गया था, और साथ ही मानक कार्यांवयन की पद्धतियाँ किस प्रकार से महामारी द्वारा प्रभावित हुई थीं, इन सभी विषयों से हमने सीख हासिल की है। स्मार्ट शहरों के बुनियादी ढांचों का निर्माण करने में रोग का नियंत्रण एक दीर्घ काल स्थायी विचार का विषय रहा है जब कि मानवीय कार्यों का तेजी से डिजिटलीकरण हो रहा है। लेकिन, कोविड-19 की प्रतिक्रिया में प्रतिस्पर्धी शहर के दृष्टिकोणों को उपयोग में लाया जा रहा है। यह अन्य मानवीय परिवेशों में विस्तृत प्रकार की प्रौद्योगिकी-आधारित प्रतिक्रियाओं का परिणाम है। इन दृष्टिकोणों के तहत प्रौद्योगिकी चालित, केंद्रीकृत और सर्विलांस केंद्रित नगरीय व्यवस्थाओं से लेकर कंपनियों, उपभोक्ताओं और शहर के सरकारों द्वारा व्यवस्थित ‘मितव्ययी नवाचार’ शामिल हैं। मगर यह बात याद रखना ज़रूरी है कि डेटा ईकोसिस्टम लिंग आधारित और सामाजिक-राजनीति भेदभावों से अप्रभावित नहीं रहते हैं एवं प्रौद्योगिकी आधारित हस्तक्षेपों के कारण मौजूदा असमानताओं की हालत और भी खराब हो सकती है, ख़ास तौर पर आपात परिस्थितियों में। अतः प्रौद्योगिकी चालित सार्वजनिक स्वास्थ्य (पब्लिक हेल्थ) (PH) हस्तक्षेपों में इन विषयों से संबंधित चिंता के मुद्दे उठाए गए हैं 1) कौनसी प्रकार की प्रौद्योगिकी उचित है, 2) क्या वे आर्थिक एवं सामाजिक तौर पर वंचित नगरीय निवासियों के लिए समावेशी परिणाम प्रदान करते हैं एवं 3) एक हाथ पर सर्विलांस और नियंत्रण के बीच संतुलन और दूसरे हाथ पर गोपनीयता एवं नागरिक का स्वत्व आधार।

As in many Southeast Asian countries, the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and policies to limit its spread greatly disrupted Cambodia’s economy. Workers in Cambodia overwhelmingly operate in the informal sector and remittances from migrant workers abroad constitute a significant portion of the country’s overall gross domestic product. This briefing examines Cambodia’s Covid-19 response to highlight how knock-on effects have disproportionately impacted vulnerable migrants and informal domestic workers, including human-trafficking survivors. The government should provide social support to these vulnerable groups. Future efforts to manage Covid-19 must consider how they will affect the most vulnerable.

Our research shows how Vietnam’s Covid-19 policy response has influenced Vietnamese migrant workers and counter-trafficking work, particularly in border areas. Vietnam is a major labour exporter and is in the top ten countries that receive international remittances. Examining the impact of the pandemic means taking into account the livelihoods and wellbeing of hundreds of thousands of overseas migrant workers. This briefing considers the impact of Vietnam’s policy response to the Covid-19 pandemic on such workers and supports adjustments in policy planning.

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption globally. Measures to stop the spread of the virus have been necessary, but their knock-on effects have disproportionately affected the most vulnerable. This briefing examines how this dynamic has played out in Myanmar and suggests how to better support these people. The coup in February 2021 caused discontinuity in Covid-19 policy, with disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable. As well as working towards a peaceful settlement, national and international stakeholders should prioritise supporting migrant workers and victims of trafficking.

While the worst forms of child labour (WFCL) is not only an urban phenomenon, evidence suggests that WFCL emerges in cities in unique ways due to the complex structures and dynamics of urban systems. This report, therefore, develops a conceptual framework for WFCL in cities that integrates key understandings of urban systems and evidence about urban WFCL. This report reviews current literature on the complex systemic nature of cities – drawing on literature on the urban land nexus, urban complexity, informality, and inclusive urbanisation. It also reviews studies of child labour (focusing on the worst forms, where possible) in urban contexts. In this way, the report offers an innovative way of understanding the challenge of WFCL, and outlines the premises of a research agenda for responding to WFCL in cities. These contributions are made with the specific cities and neighbourhoods in mind where the CLARISSA programme is being implemented; however, they should be useful more generally.

This paper presents an analysis of the role of decentralised institutions to understand the learning and challenges of the grass-roots-led pandemic response of Kerala. The study is based on interviews with experts and frontline workers to ensure the representation of all stakeholders dealing with the outbreak, from the state level to the household level, and a review of published government orders, health guidelines, and news articles. The outcome of the study shows that along with the decentralised system of governance, the strong grass-roots-level network of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) workers, volunteer groups, and Kudumbashree members played a pivotal role in pandemic management in the state. The efficient functioning of local bodies in the state, experience gained from successive disasters, and the Nipah outbreak naturally aided grass-roots-level actions. The lessons others can draw from Kerala are the importance of public expenditure on health, investment for building social capital, and developing the local self-delivery system.

This brief distils best data practice recommendations through consideration of key issues involved in the use of technology for surveillance, fact-checking and coordinated control during crisis or emergency response in resource constrained urban contexts. We draw lessons from how data enabled technologies were used in urban COVID-19 response, as well as how standard implementation procedures were affected by the pandemic. Disease control is a long-standing consideration in building smart city architecture, while humanitarian actions are increasingly digitised. However, there are competing city visions being employed in COVID-19 response. This is symptomatic of a broader range of tech-based responses in other humanitarian contexts. These visions range from aspirations for technology driven, centralised and surveillance oriented urban regimes, to ‘frugal innovations’ by firms, consumers and city governments. Data ecosystems are not immune from gendered- and socio-political discrimination, and technology-based interventions can worsen existing inequalities, particularly in emergencies. Technology driven public health (PH) interventions thus raise concerns about 1) what types of technologies are appropriate, 2) whether they produce inclusive outcomes for economically and socially disadvantaged urban residents and 3) the balance between surveillance and control on one hand, and privacy and citizen autonomy on the other.

This brief distils best data practice recommendations through consideration of key issues involved in the use of technology for surveillance, fact-checking and coordinated control during crisis or emergency response in resource constrained urban contexts. We draw lessons from how data enabled technologies were used in urban COVID-19 response, as well as how standard implementation procedures were affected by the pandemic. Disease control is a long-standing consideration in building smart city architecture, while humanitarian actions are increasingly digitised. However, there are competing city visions being employed in COVID-19 response. This is symptomatic of a broader range of tech-based responses in other humanitarian contexts. These visions range from aspirations for technology driven, centralised and surveillance oriented urban regimes, to ‘frugal innovations’ by firms, consumers and city governments. Data ecosystems are not immune from gendered- and socio-political discrimination, and technology-based interventions can worsen existing inequalities, particularly in emergencies. Technology driven public health (PH) interventions thus raise concerns about 1) what types of technologies are appropriate, 2) whether they produce inclusive outcomes for economically and socially disadvantaged urban residents and 3) the balance between surveillance and control on one hand, and privacy and citizen autonomy on the other.

সংস্থান দুর্লভ শহুরে প্রেক্ষাপটে সঙ্কট কালে বা জরুরী প্রতিক্রিয়া চলাকালীন সময়ে নজরদারি, তথ্যের সত্যতা প্রতিপাদিত করা এবং সমন্বিত নিয়ন্ত্রণের জন্য প্রযুক্তি ব্যবহারে জড়িত মূল সমস্যাগুলো নিয়ে ভালোভাবে বিবেচনা করার পর এই বিষয় সংক্ষেপ সেরা ডেটা অনুশীলনগুলোকে উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে। শহুরে কোভিড-19 প্রতিক্রিয়াতে ডেটা সক্ষম প্রযুক্তিগুলোকে কিভাবে ব্যবহার করা হয়েছিল এবং তার পাশাপাশি মহামারীর সাপেক্ষে সাধারণত ব্যবহৃত বাস্তবায়নের পদ্ধতিগুলো কিভাবে প্রভাবিত হয়ে ছিল এই সমস্ত কিছু পরীক্ষা করে আমরা অনেক অভিজ্ঞতা অর্জন করেছি। স্মার্ট সিটি অর্থাৎ আধুনিক শহর আর্কিটেকচার গোড়ে তোলার সময় রোগ নিয়ন্ত্রণ হচ্ছে একটি দীর্ঘকাল স্থায়ী বিবেচ্য বিষয়, এবং তার সাথে মানবিক কর্মকাণ্ডগুলো ক্রমশ ডিজিটাইজড রুপে পরিণত হয়ে চলেছে। তবে কোভিড-19 সাপেক্ষে গৃহীত প্রতিক্রিয়া দরুণ শহরের কাঠামো ঠিক কেমন হওয়া উচিত তা নিয়ে অনেক পরস্পর প্রতিদ্বন্দ্বী বিচারধারা ও মতামত সামনে এসেছে। যদি অন্যান্য মানবিক প্রসঙ্গে ব্যবহৃত বিস্তৃত ধরণের প্রযুক্তি-ভিত্তিক প্রতিক্রিয়াগুলোকে গণ্য করা হয় তাহলে এটা তার খুবই স্বাভাবিক পরিণতি। এই কল্পনাগুলোর এক হাতে রয়েছে প্রযুক্তি চালিত, কেন্দ্রীভূত ও নজরদারিমুখী নগর শাসন ব্যবস্থার বাস্তবায়ন করার আকাঙ্খা এবং অপর হাতে রয়েছে সংস্থা, ভোক্তাদের ও শহরের সরকারদের কর্তৃক প্রস্তাবিত আরও ‘মিতব্যয়ী উদ্ভাবন’। তবে এটা মনে রাখা কিন্তু অত্যন্ত গুরুত্বপূর্ণ যে ডেটা ইকোসিস্টেমগুলো কিন্তু প্রাক বিদ্যমান লিঙ্গ-ভিত্তি এবং আর্থ-রাজনৈতিক বৈষম্য থেকে অনাক্রম্য নয় এবং প্রযুক্ত-ভিত্তিক হস্তক্ষেপের ফলে প্রাক বিদ্যমান বৈষম্যগুলোর অবস্থা আরও খারাপ হয়ে যেতে পারে, বিশেষভাবে জরুরী অবস্থার ক্ষেত্রে। সুতরাং প্রযুক্তি চালিত জনস্বাস্থ্য (PH) হস্তক্ষেপ দরুণ এগুলোর বিষয়ে উদ্বেগের সৃষ্টি হতে পারে 1) কোন ধরণের প্রযুক্তিগুলোকে উপযুক্ত বলে গণ্য করা হয়, 2) তাদের বাস্তবায়নের ফলে কি অর্থনৈতিক ও সামাজিকভাবে সুবিধাবঞ্চিত নগরবাসীদের জন্য অন্তর্ভুক্তিমূলক ফলাফলের সৃষ্টি হয় এবং 3) এক হাতে নজরদারি এবং নিয়ন্ত্রণ এবং অপর হাতে নাগরিকদের স্বায়ত্তশাসনের মধ্যে ভারসম্য বজায় রাখা।

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) mark the first time a global body has attempted to manage the planet’s future in its entirety, linking together urgent, over- lapping and contradictory existential threats. If we treat the world as an interlinked system, it becomes clear that all answers to how we live are provisional and evolving. We need more than new knowledge or policies; we need to consider how our different efforts combine, take on life of their own, and nurture new configurations in a dynamic system. This reframing of Development discourse invites a rethink using design theory and approaches to complexity. This essay seeks to contribute by proposing tools to manage the new uncertainties this introduces into the design of experts’ research work. Using ideas of “unfinishedness”, we focus on the incommensurability and contingency to be found in knowledge-making and problem-solving for the evolving goal of socio-environmental renewal.

In this introduction, we discuss some of the common issues and experiences expressed in the seven articles of this IDS Bulletin . This issue is a platform for IDS PhD researchers to reflect on their fieldwork experiences, including research‐related challenges, as well as cultural and personal encounters along the way. The authors also develop theoretically‐informed arguments about their research findings. As editors, we offer further reflections on the importance of fieldwork as part of the transformative experience of ‘doing a PhD’ in Development Studies. We suggest that the collection of articles in this IDS Bulletin represents a vision for the future of Development Studies research in which the human, relational and public work elements of research are emphasised throughout the contested process of working for change.

The polyacrylamide-methylene blue-oxygen system reveals a variety of complex concentration patterns. Chevron and white-eye patterns develop from simple hexagons in a slow, continuous transition process. A third type of structure (honeycombs) forms from either white-eye patterns or hexagons. This transition occurs rapidly along propagating fronts. Two-dimensional Fourier analyses reveal that the complex patterns have a simple structure and that the wave vectors of the initial hexagons are conserved in all transitions. Quantitative data on surface undulations of the gel are presented. The surface structure resembles the structure of the observed methylene blue patterns. A schematic phase diagram is presented that characterizes the pattern geometry in terms of reaction time and initial sulfide concentration.

For the weakly coupled heterotic string (WCHS) there is a well-known factor of twenty conflict between the minimum string coupling unification scale, Lambda_H ~5x10^(17) GeV, and the projected MSSM unification scale, Lambda_U ~ 2.5x10^(16) GeV, assuming an intermediate scale desert (ISD). Renormalization effects of intermediate scale MSSM-charged exotics (ISME) (endemic to quasi-realistic string models) can resolve this issue, pushing the MSSM scale up to the string scale. However, for a generic string model, this implies that the projected Lambda_U unification under ISD is accidental. If the true unification scale is 5.0x10^(17) GeV, is it possible that illusionary unification at 2.5x10^(17) GeV in the ISD scenario is not accidental? If it is not, then under what conditions would the assumption of ISME in a WCHS model imply apparent unification at Lambda_U when ISD is falsely assumed? Geidt's "optical unification" suggests that Lambda_U is not accidental, by offering a mechanism whereby a generic MSSM scale Lambda_U < Lambda_H is guaranteed. A WCHS model was constructed that offers the possibility of optical unification, depending on the availability of anomaly-cancelling flat directions meeting certain requirements. This paper reports on the systematic investigation of the optical unification properties of the set of stringent flat directions of this model. Stringent flat directions can be guaranteed to be F-flat to all finite order (or to at least a given finite order consistent with electroweak scale supersymmetry breaking) and can be viewed as the likely roots of more general flat directions. Analysis of the phenomenology of stringent flat directions gives an indication of the remaining optical unification phenomenology that must be garnered by flat directions developed from them., standard latex, 18 pages of text

The lower limit to string coupling unification in weakly coupled heterotic strings was shown by Kaplunovsky to be around Lambda_H ~ 5 x 10^{17} GeV. In contrast, under the scenario of an intermediate scale desert, the SU(3)_C x SU(2)_L x U(1)_Y ([321]) Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) unification scale is Lambda_U ~ 2.5 x 10^{16} GeV. Optical unification was proposed by Giedt as a robust mechanism for relating these two scales. In this mechanism, intermediate scale MSSM-charged exotic particles effect running couplings like a diverging lens, always producing a ``virtual'' image of the string unification point between the string scale and the exotic particle mass scale. A heterotic string model that offers the potential to realize optical unification was recently constructed. This paper reports the initial results of an investigation into the possibility of optical unification realization in this model. This paper is a product of the NSF REU program at Baylor University and is based on a talk presented at the Second International Conference on String Phenomenology, Durham, England, 29 July - 4 August, 2003., standard latex, 13 pages, based on talk presented at String Phenomenology '03, additonal references added

Die ‚reine’ Hierarchie kennzeichnet sich in erster Linie durch einen zentralen Entscheider (oder Gremium), der Art und Umfang der zu erstellenden Leistungen festlegt und entsprechend das Budget und die notwendigen Ressourcen zuteilt. Der hierarchische Allokationsprozess beinhaltet verschiedene Schritte, wie beispielsweise die Generierung neuer Ideen in Form von Projekten, die Beschaffung und Analyse der relevanten Informationen, die Projektauswahl aufgrund unterschiedlicher Kriterien, die Allokation von Ressourcen bzw. falls notwendig die Reallokation von Ressourcen, sowie die Entwicklung marktreifer Produkte und schlieslich die Markteinfuhrung. Der nachfolgend dargestellte Innovationsprozess von Syngenta illustriert exemplarisch den Ablauf hierarchischer Entscheide.

Im Rahmen unserer exploratorischen Studien haben wir Fallstudien in 9 multidivi- sionalen, F&E-intensiven456 Groskonzernen durchgefuhrt. Wie sich zeigte, verwenden die Unternehmen trotz unterschiedlicher Branchenzugehorigkeit ahnliche Projektkategorisierungen. Ebenso zeigte sich, dass sich die einzelnen Typen hinsichtlich bestimmter Charakteristika unterscheiden.

Im Folgenden sollen grundlegende Begriffe und Zusammenhange dargestellt werden, die fur das Verstandnis der vorliegenden Arbeit von zentraler Bedeutung sind. Die theoretischen Ausfuhrungen werden zusatzlich durch einige empirische Erkenntnisse aus den Fallstudien erganzt. Dieser Vorgriff auf unsere empirischen Ergebnisse dient insbesondere der Veranschaulichung sowie zum besseren Verstandnis der Problemstellung.

We report experimental results on the formation of macroscopic concentration patterns in the polyacrylamide-methylene blue-oxygen-sulfide (PA-MBO) reaction. The patterns have the geometry of stripes or hexagons. The latter transform to more complicated structures within the gelled medium. For the case of hexagons, the pattern wavelength (here 1-5 mm) shows a nearly proportional dependence on the height of the reaction layer. The system generates colloidal particles (average diameter 30 µm) that we use to monitor the physical changes within the medium. Our results reveal three distinct phases of particle movement. The first one is caused by hydrodynamic flows within the pre-gel solution, whereas the third, and possibly the second, phase arises from localized volume changes within the gel matrix.