Pathways to sustainable and resilient infrastructure: Collaboratively strengthening systems
Abstract: Dr. Javernick-Will’s research integrates civil engineering and social/organizational science and theory, employing multi- or mixed-method approaches to study pathways to disaster resiliency and recovery, sustainable infrastructure service delivery, knowledge mobilization, and engineering education. Her research group, Global Projects and Organizations, studies pathways to sustainable and resilient communities and infrastructure systems in resource-limited and multi-hazard contexts. Dr. Javernick-Will will discuss her primary research themes (disaster risk reduction and recovery and water and sanitation service delivery), and how organization science influences her work in engineering. By employing fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis, she will discuss the context-specific pathways found to enable desired outcomes for infrastructure service delivery and community recovery. As part of this, she will focus on work that studied collaborative approaches to strengthen water and sanitation service delivery systems in Eastern Africa. Often, service delivery exceeds the mandates and capabilities of any single entity, and collaborative approaches are seen as a solution to solve these complex challenges. However, collaborative approaches in low-income contexts are understudied. This cross-case study revealed core elements and pathways that enabled collectives to make progress, including local government uptake of recommendations, facilitation of collective problem identification or establishing a hub with convening power, and having external funds for activities or members who consistently attend and feel accountable for actions. She will end by discussing how this work influences her current post-disaster recovery and resiliency studies.
Date: 20 November 2023, 16:00 (Monday, 7th week, Michaelmas 2023)
Venue: Boardroom East Wing
Speaker: Dr. Amy Javernick-Will (University of Colorado Boulder)
Organiser: Said Business School, Oxford Water Network
Organiser contact email address: Anna.Szigeti@sbs.ox.ac.uk
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pathways-to-sustainable-and-resilient-infrastructure-tickets-739645518657?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=
Cost: Free
Audience: Public
Editors: Chris White, Donna Palfreman