Public values for energy system change

In this paper we discuss the importance of framing the question of public acceptance of sustainable energy transitions in terms of values and a ‘whole-system’ lens. This assertion is based on findings arising from a major research project examining public values, attitudes and acceptability with regards to whole energy system change using a mixed-method (six deliberative workshops, n = 68, and a nationally representative survey, n = 2441), interdisciplinary approach. Through the research we identify a set of social values associated with desirable energy futures in the UK, where the values represent identifiable cultural resources people draw on to guide their preference formation about particular aspects of energy system change. As such, we characterise public perspectives as being underpinned by six value clusters relating to efficiency and wastefulness, environment and nature, security and stability, social justice and fairness, autonomy and power, and processes and change. We argue that this ‘value system’ provides a basis for understanding core reasons for public acceptance or rejection of different energy system aspects and processes. We conclude that a focus on values that underpin more specific preferences for energy system change brings insights that could provide a basis for improved dialogue, more robust decision-making, and for anticipating likely points of conflict in energy transitions.     

The role of social norms in climate adaptation: Mediating risk perception and flood insurance purchase

Flood insurance plays an important role in climate adaptation by recovering insured losses in the event of catastrophic flooding. Voluntary adoption of flood insurance has been seen as a function of risk perception that is shaped by social norms. This paper attempts to clarify the relationship between these factors. It is based on a household survey conducted in the eastern cities of Australia and involving a total of 501 randomly selected residents. Results of a path analysis show that the likelihood of having flood insurance cover was associated with perceived social norms, but not perceived flood risk. In addition, perceived norms and risk were statistically related to each other. It is concluded that social norms played a mediating role between insuring decision and risk perception. Risk perception might influence the insuring decision indirectly through shaping perception of social norms. This implies that adaptive behaviour is not necessarily a function of risk perception, but an outcome of its impacts upon the ways in which the individuals situate themselves in their social circles or the society. There is a feedback process in which individual perceptions of risk manifest as both a cause and effect, shaping and being shaped by the socio-cultural context.     

Effects of economic recession and local weather on climate change attitudes

How are large companies responding to the challenges of reducing their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions? An analysis of the published climate change policies and performance of 125 large European companies is presented. The results suggest that most large European companies have now developed the management systems and processes necessary for them to effectively manage their GHG emissions and related business risks. However, there is a significant disconnect between the targets that companies set for themselves and the more ambitious targets being set by the European Union (which has committed to a 20% reduction in its emissions by 2020 against a 1990 baseline). Of the companies surveyed, just over one-third had stabilized or reduced their total GHG emissions over the period 2002–2007, and fewer than one-third expected their emissions to stabilize or reduce in the coming years. The relationship between the quality of corporate policies and performance outcomes (in terms of GHG emissions) suggests that while companies with stronger policies are likely to have relatively better performance, only a minority of those companies with the highest-quality policies are committing to absolute reductions in their GHG emissions.     

Achieving additional emission reductions under a cap-and-trade scheme

Over the last decade, cap-and-trade emissions schemes have emerged as one of the favoured policy instruments for reducing GHG emissions. An inherent design feature of cap-and-trade schemes is that, once the cap on emissions has been set, no additional reductions beyond this level can be provided by the actions of those individuals, organizations and governments within the covered sectors. Thus, the emissions cap constitutes an emissions floor. This feature has been claimed by some to have undesirable implications, in that it discourages ethically motivated mitigation actions and preempts the possibility that local, state and national governments can take additional mitigation action in the context of weak national or regional targets. These criticisms have become prominent in Australia and the US within the public debate regarding the adoption of an emissions trading scheme (ETS). These criticisms and their potential solutions are reviewed. A set-aside reserve is proposed to automatically retire ETS permits, which would correspond to verified and additional emissions reductions. This minimizes the possibility that ethically motivated mitigation actions are discouraged, allows for additional action by other levels of government, while providing transparency to other market participants on the level of permit retirements.     

电子地图的色彩配合实验

在地图的色彩设计中,设计人员不仅要考虑色彩单独使用的效果,而且要考虑地图上各要素的色彩配合,即各种色彩在图面上的整体感受效果。电子地图由于有极大的色彩选择空间,背景色也不局限于白色,因而选色、配色比纸质地图更加复杂。用哪种颜色作为背景色视觉效果较好?图面上各要素的色彩如何配合?针对这两个问题,作者设计了电子地图的一个色彩感受实验——色彩配合实验,利用自编的电子地图视觉感受测试软件(TEVP)进行了实验,文中介绍了该实验的方法和思路。     

基于移动GIS的生态环境智能感知方法

随着全球范围移动互联网的高速发展,人们作为"传感器"行走在真实社会中制造实时的、实地环境的、大范围的地理信息,特别是具有互动性和实时性的区域环境状况的地理信息。这类数据具有交互性、实时性、丰富性、社会性等特点,成为数据科学家眼中的金矿。基于"互联网+"时代背景,随着移动互联网、移动GIS技术和LBS技术日趋成熟,本文提出了基于移动GIS的生态环境智能感知方法,开发基于Android平台的APP,实现查询环境质量指数、查看环境污染地图、污染一键分享和解决等功能,从大众的视角感知和获取生态环境信息,为大众提供实时动态环境信息查询方式,引导鼓励公众参与环境保护,提供治理环境污染和地理信息资源获取的新思路。     

The dynamics in the distribution of mangrove forests in Pichavaram,South India – perception by user community and remote sensing

This study aims to monitor the forest cover of Pichavaram mangroves, South India over a period of 40 years using remote sensing, and to record the status of mangroves as perceived by the local community. Out of 1471 ha of total reserved forest area, mangroves occupy 906 ha. The remote sensing maps show that there was a loss of 471 ha from 1970 to 1991 and a gain of 531 ha in 2011. Nearby 20 hamlets depend on mangroves for their livelihood. A village survey conducted at Pichavaram shows that more than 90% of the local community is well aware of the prevailing species, their importance especially after the 2004 tsunami and the impact of management practices, increased rainfall and contribution of local community in the recent increased area of mangroves. The same can be noticed from the high-resolution IKONOS image showing the artificial canal network in the restored region and from rainfall records.     

利用地形正规化校正反立体现象

影像目视判读常会遇到山脊与沟谷的凹凸感与现实相反的反立体现象。消除反立体现象,能有效提高非专业人员对遥感影像的正确使用。立足于反立体现象的成因,本文采用地形正规化模型来校正影像的反立体现象,推导出Lambertian、Cosine-Civco、c校正、b校正这4种地形正规化模型的反立体校正式;对这4种地形正规化模型的反立体校正效果进行了对比,并且与其他5种校正法也进行了对比。通过3个实验区的校正发现,这4种地形正规化模型均能校正反立体现象,但校正影像存在色调偏差;Lambertian、Cosine-Civco的反立体校正影像立体感较强,但影像色调改变较大,视觉效果偏差;c校正、b校正的校正影像在视觉效果和定量指标上都比较接近,基本保持地物光谱信息,校正效果相对较好。从定量指标来看,b校正的反立体校正影像的各指标值整体最小,一定程度代表b校正能取得相对较好的反立体校正效果。与其他方法的对比表明,c校正和b校正的反立体校正不局限于波段个数,在有效消除反立体现象的同时,能相对较好的保留地物光谱信息,有利于影像的定量应用。     

Measured and perceived visual complexity: a comparative study among three online map providers

We present a study on human perception of map complexity, with the objective of better understanding design decisions that may lead to undesirable levels of complexity in web maps. We compare three complexity metrics to human ratings of complexity obtained through a user survey. Specifically, we use two algorithmic approaches published by others, which measure feature congestion (FC) and subband entropy (SE), as well as our own approach of counting object types rather than individual objects. We compare these metrics with each other as well as with human complexity ratings for three maps of the same area from map providers Google Maps, Bing Maps, and OpenStreetMap. Each map design is assessed at three different scales (levels of detail). We find that (1) the FC and SE metrics appear to be adequate predictors of what humans consider complex; (2) object-type counts are slightly less successful at predicting human-rated complexity, implying that clutter is more important in perceived complexity than diversity of symbology; and (3) generalization choices do impact human complexity ratings. These findings contribute to our understanding of what makes a map complex, with implications for designing maps that are easy to use.