تحسين الوضع الاقتصادي للمجتمعات عن طريق تعزيز مشاريع إعادة التدوير

 

 تعتبر البلديات و المجالس المحلية المسئول المباشر عن إدارة ملف النفايات الصلبة في المدن حول العالم للحفاظ على المدن نظيفة. ففي الوقت التي تحتل فيه التكنولوجيا المتوفرة (جمع النفايات، النقل، إعادة التدوير، التخزين، المعالجة)، تزداد النداءات الدولية لإعادة النظر إلى مجال إدارة النفايات الصلبة كأداة لحل العديد من المشاكل الاقتصادية، الإجتماعية، و البيئية. و من هذه الأصوات الرئيس الأمريكي السابق "بيل كلينتون" عندما صرح في المؤتمر السنوي لمبادرة كلينتون العالمية عام 2010

" إذا أردتم محاربة التغير المناخي، تحسين الصحة العامة، إيجاد فرص عمل للفقراء و خلق مناخ مناسب للروّاد، فإن أفضل الطرق للوصول لهذا الشيئ هو إغلاق مكبات النفايات"

 

فيجب على السلطات أن تنظر إلى ملف إدارة النفايات الصلبة بمنظور أشمل بحيث يشمل تحسن عام في صحة الناس و البيئة، استخدام أمثل للمصادر (موارد الطاقة) و تحسين الوضع الإقتصادي. لهذا أصبحت إدارة النفايات الصلبة تحد صعب للجهات المختصة، رجال الأعمال، و المواطنين، فإدارة النفايات الصلبة تحتاج إلى "خلطة سحرية" تنمزج فيها السياسة الإدارية، المسئولية الإجتماعية، القطاع التجاري، و المواطنين. 

 

فنجاح تطبيق نظام فعّال لإدارة النفايات الصلبة يعتمد بشكل كبير على عوامل محلية و إقليمية متعددة في المجالات الاقتصادية، الاجتماعية، و السياسية في المجتمع المحلي. فباللإضافة إلى نظام إدارة يشمل جميع الحلول المتوفرة، ففهم جيد للآلية التي تؤثر فيها العوامل السياسية، الاجتماعية، و الاقتصادية مهمة لتطوير استراتيجية فعّالة لإدارة النفايات الصلبة. فعلى الجهات المسئولة النظر إلى هذا الملف كفرصة للنهوض بالوضع الاقتصادي للمجتمع من خلال خلق آلاف فرص العمل و إنشاء مجال جديد للاستثمار.

 

فمن أجل التأثير على الطبقة العامة من الناس تجاه إعادة تدوير المخلفات، يجب عليهم أن يشعروا بصورة مباشرة بالفائدة التي تعود عليهم، لذلك كمرحلى أولى يجب تغيير الصورة السيئة في مخيلاتهم عن هذا المجال عن طريق حملات التوعية و المبادرات و الدراسات التفصيلية لكي يشعروا بحجم الفرصة و فوائدها.

 

الفيديو التالي لمشروع إنشاء وحدة إعادة فرز للنفايات الصلبة في مدينة رفح (فلسطين). تم تنفيذ المشروع عن طريق جمعية أصدقاء البيئة  و بتمويل من الوكالة اليابانية للتنمية، فعلي الرغم من الجدل القائم في هذا المجال حول فاعلية المشروع، فقد خلقت العديد من فرص العمل للنساء و ساعدت على تقليل كميات النفايات المرسلة لمكب صوفا. إنها خطوة جيدة في الاتجاه الصحيح و لكن كان الأولى، قبل إنشاء وحدة الفرز، دراسة الحلول و الخيارات للنفايات المفرزة في نهاية خط الانتاج حيث أن هناك الآلاف الأطنان من النفايات المكدسة بسبب عدم وجود أي طريقة لإعادة تدويرها بعد عملية الفرز.

 

Working of a Modern Biogas Plant

Biogas plants are decentralized energy system that can lead to self-sufficiency in heat and power requirements, and at the same time reduces environmental pollution. A biogas plant stabilizes organic waste through natural biological process in the absence of air and transforms waste into biogas and biofertilizer.

Such facilities are well-suited to wet organic material and are commonly used for treating biodegradable waste materials such as waste paper, grass clippings, leftover food, sewage and animal waste. The components of a modern biogas plant includes manure collection, anaerobic digester, effluent treatment plant, gas storage, and CHP or electricity generating equipment.

Modern-Biogas-Plant

Working of a Biogas Plant

The fresh animal manure is stored in a collection tank before its processing to the homogenization tank which is equipped with a mixer to facilitate homogenization of the waste stream. The uniformly mixed waste is passed through a macerator to obtain uniform particle size of 5-10 mm and pumped into suitable-capacity anaerobic digesters where stabilization of organic waste takes place.

In anaerobic digestion, organic material is converted to biogas by a series of bacteria groups into methane and carbon dioxide. The majority of commercially operating digesters are plug flow and complete-mix reactors operating at mesophilic temperatures. The type of digester used varies with the consistency and solids content of the feedstock, with capital investment factors and with the primary purpose of digestion.

Biogas contain significant amount of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas which needs to be stripped off due to its highly corrosive nature. The removal of H2S takes place in a biological desulphurization unit in which a limited quantity of air is added to biogas in the presence of specialized aerobic bacteria which oxidizes H2S into elemental sulfur.

Biogas_Working-Principle

Gas is dried and vented into a CHP unit to a generator to produce electricity and heat. The size of the CHP system depends on the amount of biogas produced daily. Currently, biogas is also being used as a fuel in boilers.

The digested substrate is passed through screw presses for dewatering and then subjected to solar drying and conditioning to give high-quality organic fertilizer. The press water is treated in an effluent treatment plant based on activated sludge process which consists of an aeration tank and a secondary clarifier.

The treated wastewater is recycled to meet in-house plant requirements. A chemical laboratory is necessary to continuously monitor important environmental parameters such as BOD, COD, VFA, pH, ammonia, C:N ratio at different locations for efficient and proper functioning of the process. The continuous monitoring of the biogas plant is achieved by using a remote monitoring system such as Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system. This remote system facilitates immediate feedback and adjustment, which can result in energy savings.

جائزة عبد الحميد شومان للابتكار

إيماناً من مؤسسة عبد الحميد شومان بأهمية تعزيز الفكر القيادي وجهودها المستمرة لخلق بيئة محفزة للابتكار والإبداع والإنتاجية بهدف تمكين الابتكار العلمي والثقافي كاستجابةً لقضايا المجتمع والاقتصاد المحلي والاقليمي، تطلق المؤسسة جائزة تعنى بالابتكار؛ العلمي والمجتمعي.

تهدف الجائزة إلى تعزيز مجتمع المعرفة، ودفع عجلة الاقتصاد من خلال دعم الثورة الصناعية الرابعة القائمة اليوم على الابتكار لتخطي التحديات المفروضة على العالم، وإيجاد فرص عمل وأنماط تشغيل جديدة تحسّن نوعية الحياة وتُفضي إلى تقدُّم ونهضة المجتمعات.

فروع جائزة عبد الحميد شومان للابتكار

  • الابتكار العلمي:تهدف الجائزة ضمن هذا الفرع إلى تحفيز البحث العلمي التطبيقي والذي يفضي بدوره الى تطوير نماذج وتطبيقات وحلول تكنولوجية جديدة، إضافة إلى تسريع ودعم عملية تتجير النماذج المطورة والمختبرة. ويشمل هذا الفرع المراحل التالية:
    • البحث العلمي التطبيقي: دعم البحوث التطبيقيّة المبنيّة على أسس علميّة.
    • تصميم واختبار النموذج: تطوير النماذج الأوليّة (Prototype) والحلول المُقترحة وتجربتها والتحقُق من مواءمتها لاحتياجات المُستخدم.
    • التطبيق والتتجير: تطوير المُنتج بناءً على النماذج المُختبرة والبدء بمرحلة الإنتاج والتسويق لإيصالها إلى المُستخدمين المُستهدفين.
  • الابتكار المجتمعي:تهدف الجائزة ضمن هذا الفرع إلى تسريع تطبيق وتبني الحلول العملية والمبتكرة للمشكلات المجتمعية التي تعزز الإنتاجية المحلية وتعظم المنافع الاجتماعية وذلك من خلال دعم المبادرات والمشاريع الريادية المبنية على دراسات السوق.

حقول الجائزة

1- التكنولوجيا الخضراء والاستدامة البيئيّة

  • التكنولوجيا الخضراء:تشمل التكنولوجيا المُنافسة اقتصادياً وأنظمة الإدارة التي تقلل من استخدام المواد والطاقة، وتحدّ أيضاً من إنتاج المُخلّفات ويكون أثرُها البيئي أقل من غيرِها من البدائل. تُغطّي التكنولوجيا الخضراء الطاقة المُتجددة بأنواعها وكفاءة استخدام الطاقة والمياه وإدارتهما بالإضافة إلى إدارة النفايات.
  • الاستدامة البيئيّة:تتحقق الاستدامة البيئيّة عندما يتم إدارة الموارد الطبيعيّة بطرق صديقة للبيئة في مُختلف القطاعات التنمويّة والمُجتمعات والصِناعات.

2- الأمن الغذائي والتكنولوجيا الزراعيّة

  • الأمن الغذائييتحقق الأمن الغذائي عندما يكون بإمكان الجميع الحصول على غذاءٍ كافٍ وصِحّي وآمن بتكاليف مَعْقُولة لتحقيق نمط حياة سليم.
  • التكنولوجيا الزراعيّةويُقصد بها تكنولوجيا إنتاج الآليّات والأنظمة، التي مِن شأنِها تحسين الإنتاجيّة الزراعيّة.

3- الرعاية الصحيّة والتكنولوجيا الطبيّة

  • الرعاية الصحيّةوهي عمليّة المُحافظة على الصِحّة وتحسينها عن طريق تشخيص وعِلاج ووِقاية الإنسان من الأمراض والإصابات وأيّة إعاقات عَقليّة وجسديّة.
  • التكنولوجيا الطِبيّةوهي تطبيق المبادئ الهندسيّة والتكنولوجيّة في مجال الأنظمة الحياتيّة والحيويّة.

4- سوق العمل وحلول الإنتاجيّة الاقتصاديّة

حُلول تُساهِم في تعزيز المُشاركة الكَميّة والنوعيّة في سُوق العمل، ويتضمن هذا حُلولاً مُبتكرة قابلة للقياس وذات تكلفة مَعْقُولة، إضافة إلى زيادة التوظيف والوصول إلى سُوق العمل وتعزيز الإنتاجيّة الاقتصاديّة، خاصّةً للِنساء والفِئات المُعْوِزة اقتصادياً.

5- حلول تعلمية

وتشمل تطبيقات تساهم في تطوير طُرق وأدوات حديثة لتحسين نوعيّة التعليم وُصُولاً إلى الشُموليّة والإبداع والابتكار وتطوير تطبيقات العُلوم والتكنولوجيا والهندسة والرِياضيات.

وسيكون باب التقدم للجائزة مفتوحاً خلال العام 2018 وبموازنة تصل لغاية 1,000,000 دينار أردني.

مع إمكانيّة تقديم دعم إضافي للمُرشحين للجائزة، وذلك لتسجيل الملكيّة الفكريّة وتطوير الأعمال وبناء الشراكات بالإضافة إلى الإرشاد والتدريب والتشبيك.

للمزيد من المعلومات

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فرع الابتكار العلمي: sci.innov@shoman.org.jo

فرع الابتكار المجتمعي: soc.innov@shoman.org.jo

Top 10 Veggie-friendly Countries for Students

International scholarship trips and short-term internships have become the new reality. They are connected by a single goal – improving the quality of education, training valuable personnel, and developing international economic relations.

For any young person studying or traveling abroad, comfortable accommodation, an opportunity to lead a familiar lifestyle and eat familiar food are of great importance. That is why it is essential for vegetarian students, and even more so for vegans, to know the gastronomic features of the country they study.

veggie-friendly countries for students

Everyone knows that there are many so-called “meat-eating countries” where people consume a lot of meat and whose cuisine consists mainly of meat dishes. Such countries include, for example, the Czech Republic, Germany, Georgia, the Scandinavian countries, and the countries of South America. Therefore, vegetarians in such countries expect a rather meager selection of delicious dishes and restaurants where you can taste these dishes. In addition, vegetarian and vegan food is usually expensive here.

Do you prefer vegetables and fruits to meat and fish? There is good news for you too! There are many countries where all conditions have been created for a comfortable life for vegetarians and vegans. Vegetarian food there is not only common but also affordable, even for the student budget. Wr1ter.com has gathered the top 10 veggie-friendly countries for students.

1. India

The undisputed leader of the list is India, which holds the record for the lowest level of meat consumption in the world. However, it is no secret that for this reason, many vegetarians and lacto-vegetarians come here from various countries.

In any state of India, delicious and very cheap vegetarian dishes, such as curry mixes, paneer cheese, dal dishes, and various vegetables, are sold everywhere. By the way, fresh fruits, vegetables, spices, and rice are cheap here too!

2. Italy

In Italian cuisine, meat is not so much a must but an optional ingredient in most dishes. Pasta of all kinds, lasagna, salads, cheese dishes, and casseroles – in Italy, all this is widely prepared with and without meat.

You can truly enjoy delicious and varied vegetarian food here without overpaying for it. According to statistics, about 10% of the Italian population are vegetarians; this is the highest rate among the EU countries.

3. Thailand

If you are not only a vegetarian but also a lover of the exotic, you will enjoy life in Thailand. Just think, the local cuisine is more than 90% vegetarian!

Traditional noodles with vegetables and savory sauces, salads, nuts, vegetable soups, and desserts made from the healthiest and healthiest ingredients are everywhere. But, there is one more advantage – whether you cook at home or eat in cafes and restaurants, food in Thailand will be quite cheap.

4. The USA

The main gastronomic advantage of America is diversity. Of course, vegetarianism is not developed here in the same way as in many other countries, but all conditions have been created for vegetarians and vegans. Every state and city has many vegetarian shops and restaurants offering dishes of different cuisines and an abundance of fresh vegetables and fruits.

At the same time, there are both expensive and quite budgetary vegetarian places. In a word, for every pocket. By the way, in the canteens of the vast majority of US universities, students are now offered a special vegetarian menu.

5. Israel

Israeli national dishes hummus, mujadara, and falafel are loved by vegetarians worldwide. At the same time, vegetarianism in Israel is developing rapidly. About 10% of the country’s inhabitants do not eat meat or limit its consumption.

Today, more vegetarian restaurants and fast-food outlets are springing up in Israel, and locals are discovering vegetarian and vegan options for familiar dishes, including burgers, pizza, and lasagna. Whether you prefer European or Israeli cuisine, here you will find a varied vegetarian and healthy diet and a wide and year-round selection of fruits and vegetables.

6. Switzerland

Switzerland is another European country with a high percentage of vegetarians. It even has an official vegetarian community, Swissveg, which has more and more people joining yearly.

The gastronomic selection of cheese-chocolate Switzerland will please any vegetarian. Firstly, there are many vegetarian dishes in the local cuisine – all kinds of potato dishes, vegetarian cheese fondue with vegetables, sweet chocolate fondue with fruits, delicious rosti, and raclette. Secondly, Switzerland is trying to create comfortable conditions for all its inhabitants, there are many vegetarian cafes and restaurants throughout the country, and vegetarian and vegan dishes are marked with a special icon in grocery stores.

7. Canada

Like the United States, Canada is known for its various cuisines and catering establishments. Canada is one of the countries that support ecology and environmental protection programs. Vegetarianism and raw food are developing rapidly here. Moreover, vegetarian festivals are regularly held in the country. Tens of thousands of people visit the festival in Toronto every year.

Vancouver leads the list of Canadian cities with the most vegetarian restaurants, followed by Toronto and Montreal. In addition, there are many vegetarian recipes in Canadian national cuisine. Quebec cuisine has even adopted several vegetarian French dishes.

8. Singapore

The vegetarian cuisine of Singapore is very diverse. It has incorporated all the best from the gastronomic traditions of Asian and Mediterranean cuisines. Plenty of noodles and rice dishes, hot and cold vegetable salads for every taste, exotic coconut milk soups – vegetarian food in Singapore can be very rich and not at all expensive.

veganism-mena

The availability of fresh vegetables and fruits, spices, nuts, and grains also allows vegetarians to cook at home, learning new recipes. In addition, there are more than 500 vegetarian shops and markets in the country and more than 300 vegetarian restaurants! By the way, it is in Singapore that the head office of the world’s first vegetarian fast-food chain VeganBurg is located.

9. Belgium

Few people know, but it was Belgium that became the first country in the world in which a weekly vegetarian day was legally approved. The Belgian city of Ghent was a pioneer in this direction, and now vegetarian days are held throughout the country. These days, restaurants and eateries offer exclusively vegetarian dishes.

The local catering boasts both world-class vegetarian dishes and traditional Belgian delicacies. Among them are the vegetarian version of the sulfur-potato witloof casserole, croquettes, stump puree, speculoos cookies, waffles, and all kinds of pastries.

10. England

England is one of the most vegetarian countries, and the number of meat-eaters here is decreasing with every generation. The British have been fond of vegetable dishes for a long time – since the days of the imperial colonies when vegetarian recipes were brought into the country from India. Today, England boasts the highest density of vegetarian restaurants in Europe.

Vegetarian food in England is available everywhere – in restaurants, pubs, cafes, hotels, and university canteens. England is not only fish and chips; Indian and Pakistani eateries and vegetarian shops are popular here, as well as national meat-free dishes, such as potato soup with leeks, pea soup, pies, baked cauliflower cabbage, crumble, baked stuffed potatoes, and more.

التنمية المستدامة .. فاقد الشيء لا يعطيه

ظهر مفهوم التنمية المستدامة في السبعينات متلازماً مع إدراك العالم لمشكلة الموارد المحدودة ونشوء مشاكل بيئية في العالم المتقدم صناعياً بسبب استنزاف الموارد الطبيعية غير المتجددة. ويتجاوز مفهوم التنمية المستدامة مجرد المحافظة على المكونات البيئية المحيطة بنا، لتشمل أيضاً الجوانب الصحية والاجتماعية والثقافية والاقتصادية وغيرها. فكل البرامج التي تنظر بوعي إلى المستقبل وتراعي الآخرين وتهتم بإيجاد آليات تنمية ذاتية يمكن أن نطلق عليها برامج مستدامة. غير أن تطبيق التنمية المستدامة على البيئة من الأمور الواضحة خاصة حينما يتعلق الموضوع بالأشجار والغابات أو بالهواء أو بالمياه، باعتبارها مكونات ملموسة واضحة.

sustainable-development

ويعد العالم الثالث حديث العهد بمصطلح التنمية المستدامة، ولكن ما يدعو للغرابة هو أن العالم المتقدم أمضى عقوداً طويلة قبل أن يتمكن من وضع تصورات حلول المشاكل البيئية وفقاً لمبدأ التنمية المستدامة، إذ بدأت هذه الحركة لوضع الحلول منذ تنبهت الدول المصنعة إلى نتائج الاستخدام المفرط للموارد، حيث تنادت هذه الدول إلى عقد أول اجتماع يختص بحماية البيئة في مدينة بيرن بسويسرا عام 1913، وحينما تبلور مفهوم محدودية الموارد بعد أن نشر نادي روما سنة 1970 تقريره الذي دق جرس الخطر في المجتمع الدولي داعياً إلى اتخاذ خطوات صارمة تتعلق بإدخال تعديلات مهمة على أساليب وخطط التنمية الاقتصادية لهذه الدول، ثم صدور تقرير اللجنة العالمية للبيئة والتنمية عام 1987 الذي أكد على أهمية المحافظة على الموارد والحفاظ على البيئة وفق منظور التنمية المستدامة، وانتهاءً بما كرسه مؤتمر ريو سنة 1992 حيث أوصى بتبني ما اصطلح عليه بالتنمية المستدامة، التي تقضي بإعادة النظر في أساليب التنمية اللا محدودة التي يعتمد عليها الاقتصاد المعاصر والتي تنهك البيئة وتؤثر سلباً على مصادر الحياة فيها.

محلياً تولي دولة قطر اهتماماً كبيراً ببرامج التنمية المستدامة، فقد اعتمد سمو أمير البلاد المفدى الرؤية الوطنية للتنمية الشاملة والتي تهدف إلى تحويل قطر إلى دولة متقدمة قادرة على تحقيق التنمية المستدامة، وذلك بالارتكاز على التنمية البشرية والاجتماعية والاقتصادية والبيئية. ومن الواضح أن هذه الخطوة على رغم أهميتها لا تكفي ما لم يتحمل كل منا مسؤوليته في سبيل تحقيق ذلك، إذ نعتقد أننا أمام مسؤولية كبيرة في تعزيز مفهوم التنمية المستدامة للوطن من خلال ثلاثة مسارات:

الأول: تعميق مفهوم التنمية المستدامة من خلال المناهج التعليمية بدءاً من المراحل المبكرة.

الثاني: وضع تشريعات وضوابط صارمة للحد من التعديات على البيئة.

الثالث: تشجيع البحث العلمي والابتكار في مجال التنمية المستدامة وتبني الدولة لمحفزات مشجعة في هذا الصدد.

ورغم أن موضوع التنمية المستدامة يتجاوز الفهم الديني إلى ما هو أبعد باعتباره قضية إنسانية من الدرجة الأولى، ولكن يمكن الإشارة إلى ما طرحه الإسلام من اهتمام بهذا الموضوع حيث تجلى في إسباغ صفة المشاركة على كل ما يحيط بنا، فحينما يتحدث القرآن عن الأرض يتحدث عنها باعتبارها مكاناً مشتركاً للجميع، فقال عز من قائل {هو الذي خلق لكم ما في الأرض جميعاً}، كما توحي الآيات القرآنية بارتباط مكونات هذه الأرض وتناسقها ضمن نظام بيئي دقيق {والأرضَ مدَدْنَاها وأَلْقَيْنَا فيها َرَواسِي وأنْبَتْنَا فيها من كلِّ شيءٍ موزونٍ } وقال { إن في خلق السمواتِ والأرضِ واختلافِ الليلِ والنهارِ والفلكِ التي تجري في البحر بما ينفعُ الناسَ وما أنزل الله من السماء من ماءٍ فأحْيا به الأرضَ بعد موتِها وبثَّ فيها من كل دابةٍ وتصريفِ الرياحِ والسحابِ المسخَّر بين السماءِ والأرضِ لآيات لقومٍ يعقِلون } ، ودعا الإنسان إلى الاعتدال في التعامل مع الموارد فقال: {كُلُـوا واشـرَبوا مـن رزق اللـه و لا تَعْثَوا في الأرض مُفسِدين}، وجعل الإسلام للحيوان أيضاً نصيباً من الموارد حيث قال { مَتاعًا لكم ولأنعامكم }.

الطموح المتقدم الذي نأمل أن يتحقق يوماً ما هو أن نبحث عن أفكار يمكن معها أن نهيئ لأجيالنا القادمة أسباب الحياة الرغيدة من خلال ابتكار موارد جديدة أو تطوير أفكار لزيادة الموارد الحالية، وهذا لا يمكن أن يتحقق مالم نجتز مرحلة الحفاظ على الموارد القائمة والتقليل من الاستخدامات السلبية لهذه الموارد، وقديما قيل فاقد الشيء لا يعطيه.

Is Kiribati The First To Go – How Climate Change Is Threatening Life On The Small Island Nations

Life on an island in the South Pacific has long been considered an idyllic location. But that once reality is becoming a daunting nightmare for the people of Kiribati (pronounced Ke-ree-bas). This nation consists of three archipelagos in the centre of the Pacific Ocean. The total land mass is approximately 811km2 and is spread across 3.5 million kmof ocean. Of the 33 island and atolls, two-thirds of these land masses are inhabited. The total population of 120,000 people predominantly live on the main island, Tarawa.

how climate change is impacting Kiribati

With the growing trends in the changing global climate, this small Pacific community is subjected to an ever increasing number of storms and cyclones of increasing ferocity (intensity). The rising sea waters mean these is life threatening salt water intrusion of the lands. The available fresh water has diminished to such an extent that fresh water needs to brought into the region and the only edible plants are those grown in containers. Other climatic factors are being impacted such as increase temperatures and decreasing precipitation in the region. These factors enhance the salinity of the local waters.

There is the looming threat of total inundation of these islands with rising sea level. Many of these islands will all be inundated by 2050  because of the changes in the climate across the globe. The changes are already visible and real , impacting the lives and wellbeing of the people. Their health is impacted, their ability to grow their own foods, and the severe shortage of fresh water are all very real.

As well as losing their meagre land resources, their coral reefs, their fishing grounds are also subjected to increasing seawater temperatures. It is not just the physical and climatological impacts, but the health of the people is also targeted. The non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and the associated high rate of obesity is a tragic picture. Then with crowded living conditions and the scarcity of fresh water, communicable diseases are a greater threat. Such diseases as TB,  Hepatitis B and leprosy are all on the rise among the island community.

There is also a major shift from traditional foods in the diet, so malnutrition is very real, especially among the children. The life expectancy is dropping while the child mortality rate is increasing. The statistics are the worst of all the 20 Oceanic nations.

climate change impacts in Kiribati

The people of Kiribati are stretched to their limit with the drought persisting through June and July this year (2022)  over this island nation. The lack of fresh rainwater, means that their limited local water supplies are becoming brackish and extremely unacceptable for the community. Lack of fresh drinkable water threatens the people with poor hygiene which results in poor health throughout the island communities.

The scarcity of water, means the people have to forfeit basic hygiene  from simple hand washing to poor food preparation. The immediate impact is on the children with increasing occurrence of diarrhoea, as well as skin infections, and even malnutrition. This is again, a situation of those who have contributed the least to causes of climate change are experiencing the more extreme impacts of this phenomena.

An Adaptive Refugee Camp Model for the Middle East

Natural disasters and wars are two main reasons that force populations to leave their homes, which consequently push for an urgent need to provide temporary shelters or settlements as a disaster management plan. For many years, governments and aid agencies have worked on offering emergency relief camps. Solutions have ranged from short term to long-term shelters. Tents are the most common shelter structure used. However, studies show that the majority of current tent shelters do not satisfy comfort conditions for occupants and hardly satisfy privacy, hygiene and other social needs. They are also expensive to fabricate and deteriorate quickly.

Several countries in the Middle East have experienced a lot of the aforementioned challenges in accommodating Syrian refugees since the uprising began in March of 2011. Many quick shelter camps have been erected to safeguard thousands of refugees in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. Observing shelters in these three different contexts showed similar problems, especially with social inconvenience and thermo-hygrometric comfort conditions. Another major issue is energy support. As the Arab world has suffered recently from energy poverty, fuel intake in refugee camps appeared not only to be a problem in terms of availability and cost but a problem of logistics as well.

The rapid increase of death rates and conflicts between occupants inside camps is an alarm that signals the urgency to find a solution. In our study, we have tried to address problems from an urban and architectural perspective and to offer an understanding of the correlation between socio-cultural aspects and energy efficiency in emergency shelters.

Built on the study of traditional Bedouin tents in the Middle East region, the proposal explored how to achieve both indoor and outdoor comfort together with a decent private social life for refugees. The results revealed that we can derive practical lessons for contemporary emergency shelters from understanding the thermal performance as well as the social implications of Bedouin tents.

Bedouin tent as an alternative

The Bedouin tent relies on a tensile lightweight and transportable method of construction. The Bedouins call it (beit sha’r) as the tent cloth is woven from goat hair or a mixture of sheep wool and camel hair. The use of a flexible membrane as a skin for a habitable space distinguishes it from the rest of the methods of construction. From our site investigation, we deduced that in the Bedouin culture, the tent is constructed in relation to the natural topography and the sun. Bedouin families pack up their tents and move towards the sun in autumn and winter and then away from it in summer. The orientation of the tent changes during summer and winter as well.

An adaptive refugee camp proposal

Through defining local Bedouin inhabitants’ social and thermal comfort adaptation measures inside and outside their tents and adaptation to the extreme weather conditions in summer and winter, we tried to draw applicable, hands-on, and low-tech solutions for current low-cost temporary shelters.

From our site investigations, we realised that intervention in refugee camps walks the line between ‘permanentization’ of the camps and the improvement of living conditions while maintaining the temporality of these settlements. The lifespan of Bedouin tent cloth is usually from five to six years which is an adequate time for a temporary shelter.

On the social and humanitarian level, the internal organization of the tent should always reflect the social needs of its occupants. Tents do not have clear boundaries between the inside and the outside. The interior of the tent can be extended using internal mats to create a porch (fina’). The space outside the tent should occupy practical functions. Some of these functions are more related to women, e.g., where they gather for cleaning, washing or cooking, while other intermediate zones should accommodate shared facilities like toilets and showers, while still assuring privacy in both cases.

The plot for setting up a camp is proposed as a division into a basic grid of approximately 6 x 3 meters to be assigned to refugee families according to the number of persons in each family. A preliminary network of passages and corridors is set between the basic parcels. Each family gets a sheet of wool fabric and a set of poles to divide up the internal space of the tent according to their needs. The straight corridors and passages between the tents create in-between spaces that differ in size, providing a greater potential for a variation in social activities such as receiving guests while still preserving privacy.

The environmental aspects of the new grid proposal offer intermediate spaces that regulate the outdoor temperature between tents. The shaded zones can serve as fields, storing cool air, while the unshaded zones serve as containers for hot air. The difference in air pressure in both zones enhances air circulation in-between the tents, offering cold air breezes.  In winter, all the open spaces will be unshaded and directly exposed to the sun, and the irregular shapes of the street network will act as windbreaks, helping to reduce wind speed and velocity.

For the tent material, we propose using natural wool because of its thermal properties and durability. The roof will be a double skin, making use of the tensile flexible properties of the wool allowing for stretching this double skin structure. In summer, an air gap is created between the two layers to allow for air movement and to reduce heat gain while in winter the two layers create a thick thermal insulation. The internal height of the tent in summertime is higher to allow for hot air with a lower density to escape from the top opening of the tent. In winter, the height is reduced to keep the internal heat gain with closed sides to assure air tightness and reduce infiltration. In addition, the top surface can be stretched in an inclined form in winter for rain and snowfall.

Proposed solution for thermal adaptation in summer and winter.

Conclusion

This study concludes that the Bedouin tent still remains a resilient tensile structure with several environmental potentials that can be quickly erected or dismantled. We hope this study can be developed further as tested prototypes for adaptive solutions to climate challenges while providing decent shelters for poor urban refugees.

 

Authors: Marwa Dabaieh and Ahmad Borham

Marwa Dabaieh is an architect and BioGeometry® practitioner. She had several publications and lectures in the fields of energy efficient buildings, passive design, low carbon communities, sustainable conservation, vernacular architecture and BioGeometry®. She mainly applies transdisciplinary approaches in her research work through participatory action research methods. She received the Swedish Elna Bengtssons foundation prize for scientific research in 2012 for her PhD project. Currently Marwa is a post-doc researcher at Lund University in Sweden. Her current research focus is vernacular passive low-tech methods and their adaptation for contemporary energy efficient and affordable carbon neutral building practice.

Ahmad Borham is an independent urban researcher, practicing design architect and teaching in the Arab Academy for Science and Technology as well as the American University in Cairo. He holds a Masters of Science with a thesis is titled Resilient Rules: Culture and Computation in Traditional Built Environments. He is co-founder of Cairo from Below and Madd initiatives which share the aim to encourage inclusive urbanization in Cairo. He also maintains the Drawing Parallels blog where he draws comparisons between urban conditions in Cairo and other cities in search for emergent patterns.

Climate Change: The Global Effect On Environment Collapse

Global warming seriously threatens the existence of half of all plant and animal species in the regions of the planet with particularly diverse flora and fauna. If greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere remain at the current level, by 2080 50% of plant and animal species may disappear, in particular in Lake Baikal and in the Amazon. Endangered elephants and large pandas, as well as tens of thousands of plants, insects, and other living organisms that form the basis of life on the planet, are threatened with extinction in a number of regions.

no-planet-b

The study was conducted by the British University of East Anglia and the James Cook University of Australia. Scientists have studied the influence of climatic conditions on 80 thousand species of plants and animals in 33 regions of the planet, characterized by unique and diverse flora and fauna. Among them, in addition to Baikal and the Amazon, are the desert of Namibia, the Himalayas, Madagascar, and the south of Chile. You can read more about this and other problems in this climate change essay. This free essays source will help you learn more about serious environmental changes and issues. Only by learning more about climate change can you understand how to deal with it.

What would be the effects of climate change on the quality of life of future generations? And how is global warming affecting children’s health today?

Environmental fears such as climate change are seriously affecting health, especially elderly people, infants, patients with chronic diseases, as well as those whose profession is associated with hard physical work in the open air, suffer from the effects of global warming. But children are especially affected because their bodies and immune systems develop in adverse conditions. Deterioration of mental health is yet another consequence of environmental problems prevalent in the 21st century.

Based on 41 key indicators of immediate and long-term health threats from climate change, college experts identified the 4 most serious for the child’s body.

1. Infectious diseases

Bacteria, pathogens that cause diarrhea, develop especially well in humid and warm climates. Warming is already being felt in the Baltic countries and in the northeastern United States. The most dangerous bacteria are Vibrio cholerae: climate change increases the likelihood of outbreaks of the disease in those countries in which it has not previously occurred.

The same applies to viruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes, such as the causative agent of dengue fever. Global warming allows mosquitoes to spread north. According to the report, almost half of the world’s population is currently forced to live with the risk of developing dengue.

2. Malnutrition

An increase in temperature affects yield. The research paper shows that around the world, 4% less corn is harvested, 6% less winter wheat, 3% less soy, and 4% less rice compared to 1989. The consequences of malnutrition for children are stunted growth, weakened immune systems, and developmental disabilities.

3. Allergies

The most common chronic disease. Due to climate change, flowering periods of plants are lengthening, which increases the amount of pollen.

4. Air pollution and rising temperatures

People will breathe “poisoned” air, which will affect lung function and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Extreme heat is another factor in increasing mortality. According to statistics, the number of victims in hot seasons is comparable to the number of deaths from the annual influenza epidemic. The year 2018 set a record when “220 million people over the age of 65 years around the world were exposed to particularly high temperatures for a long period of time.”

climate-change-health

Conclusion

Those who were wondering is climate change real should know that it is affecting our lives right now. At the same time, the hypothesis was taken that climate warming will be 4.5 degrees compared with the pre-industrial era. Assuming that this indicator can be kept at two degrees, as laid down in the Paris Climate Agreement, the risk of extinction of plants and animals will still be very high. In this case, about 25% of plant and animal species in the studied regions will be threatened with extinction.

What to Know About Sustainable Software Development

As climate change concerns continue to increase, it is becoming mandatory to minimize carbon emissions and adopt sustainable practices to save the planet. The Information Technology field has the potential to cut carbon emissions and contribute to alleviating the current climate crisis. Since software plays a significant role in energy consumption, software engineers are going green and adopting sustainable ways of developing technologies with minimal negative environmental impact using closed and open-source databases.

Here is everything you need to know about sustainable software development and tips for building efficient and eco-friendly green software.

Tips for Creating Green Software

What is Sustainable Software Development?

Sustainable software development (also known as sustainable software engineering) is an approach that focuses on energy efficiency and environmental sustainability in all stages of software development, starting from software design to implementation and software development. It aims to minimize the adverse effects of applications and hosting infrastructure on the environment. Besides helping save the planet, sustainable software development is excellent for businesses as it reduces overall costs and osts the business’s bottom line.

Tips for Creating Green Software

Just like computer hardware, software can cause environmental harm. It affects hardware’s energy consumption by influencing its operations and impacting carbon emissions. On the same note, the software development process can be highly energy-intensive, which calls for optimization of energy consumption when creating and using the software.

Below are a few tips for developing green/sustainable software without compromising functionality.

1. Reduce Data Usage

More data necessary to run an application means more energy for recalling, accessing, and storing data. To realize sustainability, minimize the data to be exchanged and place expiration data on stored data. Creating a streamlined cache policy reduces the data needed and retained in the background. Similarly, use smaller images and media whenever possible as they require less energy to maintain than larger media forms with higher resolutions.

2. Select Ideal Coding Language

According to a 2018 study, the type of coding language used to write software can affect the software’s energy usage in development. The programming language dictates how fast a program responds and how much memory it needs to carry out tasks or recall information. The two factors can impact the amount of energy necessary to run the program, influencing carbon emissions.

While the research has unclear findings, you need to be up to date with recent studies in this field to understand better whether creating software with a specific language can lower the software’s environmental impact.

3. Remove Unused Features and Loops

Unused features litter the software, make it more challenging to use, and utilizes unnecessary energy, lowering the software’s lifespan. Removing these features improves energy efficiency and makes the software useful for longer.

Developers should also look for loops that eat up energy without achieving specific goals successfully. For example, a dead website link that tries to reach a site no longer accessible causes energy waste. Removing unnecessary loops reduces the amount of energy the software draws and makes the program process more efficient.

benefits of common data environment

4. Monitor Software Energy Usage

Tracking the software’s energy consumption in real-time allows you to identify areas you can optimize to lower energy consumption and produce fewer emissions. You can be more specific, monitor energy usage of particular tasks and applications, and adjust for sustainability accordingly. By monitoring and charting energy consumption, you can measure the progress of your efforts and energy efficiency as you improve your designs.

The first step towards sustainable software development is prioritizing energy efficiency alongside software functionality, scalability, security, and accessibility during development. With the above information and an open source database, software engineers can make a difference by building green software which provides businesses with a competitive advantage while promoting environmental sustainability.

Medical Wastes in GCC

There has been a growing awareness of the need for safe management of medical waste all over the world. Medical Waste are generated by all health sectors including hospitals, laboratories, diagnostic and research centers, dental and medical clinics, blood banks, mortuaries and autopsy centres, veterinary hospitals, industrial laboratories etc. Medical wastes which pose the greatest risk to human health are infectious waste (or hazardous medical waste) which constitutes 15 – 25 percent of total healthcare waste.

Infectious wastes may include all waste items that are contaminated with or suspected of being contaminated with body fluids such as blood and blood products, used catheters and gloves, cultures and stocks of infectious agents, wound dressings, nappies, discarded diagnostic samples, contaminated materials (swabs, bandages, and gauze), disposal medical devices, contaminated laboratory animals etc.

The quantity of waste produced in a hospital depends on the level of national income and the type of facility concerned. A university hospital in a high-income country can produce up to 10 kg of waste per bed per day, all categories combined.

Medical Waste in the GCC

Healthcare sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council continues to grow at a very rapid pace, which in turn has led to big increase in the quantity of waste generated by hospitals, clinics and other establishments. According to conservative estimates, more than 150 tons of medical waste is generated in GCC countries every day.

Saudi Arabia leads the pack with daily healthcare waste generation of more than 80 tons. As far as UAE is concerned, approximately 21.5 tons per day of medical waste are generated in the UAE, out of which 12 tons per day is produced by Abu Dhabi alone. Kuwait produces around 12 tons while Bahrain generates 7 tons of hazardous medical waste daily.

These figures are indicative of the magnitude of the problem faced by municipal authorities in dealing with medical waste disposal problem across GCC. The growing amount of medical wastes is posing significant public health and environmental challenges in major cities of the region. The situation is worsened by improper disposal methods, insufficient physical resources, and lack of research on medical waste management.

Medical Waste Generation in Some GCC Countries

Country Medical Wastes (tons per day)
Saudi Arabia 80
UAE 21.5
Kuwait 12
Bahrain 7

Need for Medical Waste Management Strategy

Improper management of healthcare wastes from hospitals, clinics and other facilities in GCC countries pose occupational and public health risks to patients, health workers, waste handlers, haulers and general public. It may also lead to contamination of air, water and soil which may affect all forms of life. In addition, if waste is not disposed of properly, members of the community may have an opportunity to collect disposable medical equipment (particularly syringes) and to resell these materials which may cause dangerous diseases.

According to World Health Organization, hospital-associated infections (HAI) affect approximately 5% of hospitalized patients.The complexity of infectious healthcare waste problems and the recent rise in the incidence of diseases such as AIDS, SARS and Hepatitis B open up greater risk of contamination through mishandling and unsafe disposal practices.

Inadequate waste management can cause environmental pollution, growth and multiplication of vectors like insects, rodents and worms and may lead to the transmission of diseases like typhoid, cholera, hepatitis and AIDS through injuries from syringes and needles contaminated with human. In addition to health risks associated with poor management of medical waste, consideration must also be given to the impact on environment, especially to the risks of pollution of water, air and soil.

The situation is further complicated by the extreme climatic and environmental conditions of the region, which makes medical waste disposal in developing countries more challenging. Since medical waste is more dangerous than ordinary trash, it is imperative on governments and private companies in GCC countries to devise a successful hospital waste management program and make use of modern medical waste treatment technologies to avoid the spread of diseases and to protect the environment.

الإسلام – في انسجام مع الطبيعة

تعد الازمه الايكولوجيه (البيئيه) في العالم واحده من اكبرالتحديات في عصرنا الحالي. انزل الله الكتب المقدسه من خلال الانبياء و المرسليين و التي جاءت  بالبشرى والتحذيرات في ان معا, وفي ضوء ذلك يتصرف الناس بطريقة الصلاح والعدل.يتحدث الله  في القرأن الكريم عن خلق كل شيئ في ميزان ويحذر من اي عبث في هذا التوازن يؤدي الى عواقب وخيمه. هذا لا ينطبق فقط على العالم من حولنا وانما على انفسنا وارواحنا حيث لا يفرق الاسلام  عالم الانسان من عالم الطبيعه.

impact of environment on mental health

هنالك اكثر من 6000 ايه في القرأن الكريم  منها اكثرمن  500 ايه تتعامل مع الظواهر الطبيعيه. يدعو  الله تبارك وتعالى , البشر مرارا وتكرارا للتفكر باياته والتي تشمل كل جانب من جوانب الطبيعه كالاشجار و الجبال والبحار و الحيوانات والطيور و النجوم والشمس والقمر و قلوبنا. يحتوي الفقه الاسلامي على لوائح متعلقه بالحفاظ على موارد المياه الشحيحه , تنص هذه التشريعات على الحفاظ على الارض, ولديها قوانين خاصه لانشاء المراعي و الاراضي الرطبه و الاحزمه الخضراء وقوانين لحمايه الحياه البريه والحفاظ عليها.

تعتبر زراعة شجره صدقة جاريه, وعملا مرغوبا حيث يكافئ زارع الشجره ما دامت  المخلوقات بكافه اشكالها تستفيد منها. وكان النبي محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم قدحدد 30  كلم حول مدينته المدينه المنوره بالمنطقة محميه والتي يحظر فيها قطع الاشجار ضمن حدودها.  وقد وصف الرسول اماطه الاذى عن الطريق بالصدقة وهي نوع من انواع الايمان. كما و نهى الرسول عن قطع اشجار الارز  في الصحراء حيث تقدم الظل والمأوى للحيوانات. هناك عدد لايحصى من اقوال النبي محمدصلى الله عليه وسلم و التي تحض  على الحفاظ عى الموارد الطبيعيه وخاصه الماء. انه يدعونا الى ما اراد الله لنا ان نكون و هو التناغم و الوئام مع الطبيعه.

لدى البشر القدره على تدمير العالم اكثر بكثيرمن اي نوع اخر من انواع الكائنات الحيه.  لدينا ايضا القدره على التمسك بالعالم المادي . يؤمن الاسلام بان جميع النفوس البشريه تاتي من الجنه و في نهايه الوقت  كل نفس سوف تدخل إما الجنه وإما النار. ويمكننا أن نحول العالم الى ما هو اكثر سخونه و تدميرا  او يمكننا ان نحوله الى شيئ اكثر هدوءا و يشبه الجنه ويعكس الغرض الالهي لوجودنا في هذا الكون.

مع حديث عظيم من أحاديثه صلى الله عليه وسلم (إن قامت الساعة وبيد أحدكم فسيلة فإن استطاع أن لا يقوم حتى يغرسها فليفعل) يتوضح لدينا مدى اهميه  مواصله مجهود  المرء وتمسكه بالامل ليكون بسلام مع الارض حتى النهايه.

ترجمة

سلام عبدالكريم عبابنه

مهندسه مدنية في شركة المسار المتحده للمقاولات – مهتمه في مجال البيئه و الطاقة المتجدده

How Easy Can Be To Store Data With A Data Environment

The term data environment means an environment where data is collected, stored, and analyzed using computer technology. This is quite different to a traditional office environment where people are hired to use their brains, rather than their fingers, to achieve results. In today’s information age, organizations increasingly need to find ways of collecting, storing and analyzing vast amounts of data.

benefits of common data environment

This environment can be created by setting up a specialized room, or space, in your company, such as a data center or an IT department. In addition to this, you should ensure that the appropriate software and hardware are available for the tasks you have been asked to perform. You should also set up policies and procedures so that employees follow the correct processes.

To ensure the data environment is working effectively, you must monitor how it is being used and how it affects the overall performance of your organization. You can do this by reviewing statistics, for example, or by monitoring the productivity of each individual who works in the data environment.

Data Environment can benefit a company

A data environment such as Delphix enables you to collect, store and analyze data. As data volumes grow, so does the need to store and manage it. The ability to analyze data gives you an insight into how your organization is performing. When you know exactly what you are doing wrong and how you can improve, you will be able to fix problems and implement solutions that will help the business.

You can also use data to identify patterns in customer buying behavior. You can then adapt the products or services you offer to meet customer needs and increase sales.

Does the data environment cost a lot of money?

In most cases, setting up a data environment is fairly straightforward. Once you have designed your environment, you can purchase the necessary equipment and hire the people you require.

However, there are many factors that affect the total cost of running a data environment. These include the size of your organization, the volume of data you wish to manage and the complexity of the analysis you are conducting. A good data environment consultant will be able to provide you with a detailed cost estimate.

Types of data environments

There are five main types of data environment: central data environments, decentralized data environments, public data environment, private data environment and hybrid data environment.

  • Central data environments: Used when there is a single location where the majority of the data is stored. An example of this is a centralized data center.
  • Decentralized data environments: Typically used when the data needs to be accessed from a number of different locations. For example, a business might collect data from employees’ personal computers and store it on a network file server.
  • Public Data Environment: Data environment used by a business for public access. These data environments are commonly associated with consumer-facing web sites such as retail sites, search engines, etc.
  • Private Data Environment: Data environment used by a business for internal or secure access. The most common example is the enterprise database that stores sensitive business information.
  • Hybrid Data Environment: Data environment that allows for both public and private access. An example of this type of data environment is a web application that is accessible to the public via a public URL but has limited functionality that requires authentication.

Role of security in Data Environments

There are two main goals that data environments must serve. These are:

  • to protect against loss or damage to data, and
  • to provide assurance to business partners that the data is properly secured.

In addition, data environments must be resilient and must be able to support the business’s growth and expansion plans.

To achieve these goals, data environments should meet certain minimum requirements. For instance, they need to be able to store a reasonable amount of data in a reasonable amount of time. Data environments also need to be capable of performing basic functions such as indexing, searching, sorting, and retrieving data. Finally, data environments should be able to provide audit logs and audit trails for historical analysis.

Data environments play an integral role in ensuring the integrity of business data and protecting it from unauthorized users. To this end, the following features are required of data environments.

  • Data Security: Ensuring that data is encrypted while in transit and at rest and limiting the exposure of data.
  • Data Protection: Ensuring that data is backed up and stored in a safe location.
  • Compliance: Maintaining compliance with laws and regulations governing privacy and security.
  • Resilience: Ensuring that data can be accessed and used in the event of an outage.
  • Backup: Ensuring that backups are performed as frequently as possible.
  • Integrity: Ensuring that data is accurate, complete, and reliable.
  • Availability: Ensuring that data is available to users at all times.

Types of data security

The different types of data security include:

  1. Physical Data Security: The process of securing a physical location where data is stored. This includes such things as restricting access to the physical building, restricting access to the physical storage facility, and enforcing access controls.
  2. Logical Data Security: The process of securing data within the confines of a computer system. Logical security can be implemented using both hardware and software.

Data Security impacts the design of Data Environment

In a data environment, there are two main concerns:

  • Security: Ensuring that data is properly secured and protected from unauthorized access.
  • Data Privacy: Ensuring that users’ personal data remains private.

Because the two goals are related to each other, it is critical that the data environment address both of these issues. To this end, the data environment needs to have the following components.

  • Authentication and Authorization: Ensuring that only authorized users can access data.
  • Encryption: Ensuring that data is properly secured while in transit and at rest.
  • Auditing: Ensuring that access to data is properly monitored and recorded.
  • Backup: Ensuring that data is properly backed up and stored in a safe location.
  • Compliance: Ensuring that data is accurate, complete, and reliable.
  • Integrity: Ensuring that data is available to users at all times.
  • Availability: Ensuring that data is available to users at all times.
  • Security-by-Design: Ensuring that security is built in to the data environment.

Common Data Environment

We use ‘common data environment’ (CDE) for referring to a single, common data store across multiple data sources, such as CRM, eCRM, business applications and data warehouses. CDE offers a common data base, and this allows integration between different applications. In addition, it allows multiple applications to share and synchronize data efficiently.

big-data

CDE should not be confused with other commonly used terms such as “data warehouse” or “data mart.” The term data warehouse usually refers to a complete data solution that provides the capability to perform complex queries across several databases. Data marts are usually a subset of information that is extracted from large data stores. A data mart is generally used to provide a specific set of data for a particular application. A CDE is designed to support the requirements of various applications within a specific organizational structure.

The main advantage of a CDE is that it provides a centralized database to hold the customer information, which is accessed by many applications. This reduces the requirement to store and maintain multiple copies of the same customer information across different applications. As customers often use multiple channels to interact with a company, having a single point of reference to record interactions helps reduce duplication of effort and data entry.

Types of CDE

A CDE can be a standalone data repository, or a part of the core business applications. It can also be a separate data warehouse or a subset of information contained in the data warehouse.

There are four types of CDEs based on their structure and the underlying technology they are implemented on:

  1. Common Data Access Layer (CDAL): It provides a common interface and enables the applications to access the data from the data source.
  2. Common Data Repository (CDR): It is a logical data repository.
  3. Common Data Store (CDS): It is a physical data store and is a layer of abstraction that hides the differences in the underlying storage media.
  4. Common Business Application Infrastructure (CBAPI): It is a framework that supports the development of the business applications.

Benefits of using CDE

  • Data is managed at the highest level, in a consistent manner.
  • Data is easily shared and synchronized among the applications.
  • Centralized, updated information is always available.
  • Changes to the data in a CDE are propagated to all the applications.
  • Data is stored in one location for quick retrieval.
  • There is no need to duplicate or replicate data.
  • It is easy to expand the CDE by adding new applications, or by adding more data sources.

Disadvantages of using CDE

  • CDEs are expensive, requiring specialized skills and tools.
  • They may require significant changes to the existing business systems.
  • They may be difficult to implement.
  • It may be difficult to manage and control data within the CDE.

CDE is a powerful tool, and it has tremendous benefits for any organization. However, implementing a CDE requires a lot of planning and careful planning.