مهین نسترن

INTRODUCTION: The network of relief centers, which is a connected set of relief centers, rescue points, and rescue routes, is of utmost importance during an earthquake. This study aimed to model this network to identify the aid-receiving points and rescue routes, followed by the development of plans to improve the aid-giving process during an earthquake. METHODS: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted based on an applied research method and a quantitative approach. The required data were obtained through the library method (documents). The data used in this study included location information of relief centers (hospitals, crisis management centers, Red Crescent centers) and the transportation routes among them. These pieces of information were collected from related plans and documents. The obtained data related to the location of relief centers were analyzed using Spatial Analysis, and Network Analysis tools were utilized to analyze the transportation routes among the relief centers. FINDINGS: The findings in this study revealed the right places for receiving aid and the rescue routes that deliver aid from the aid-giving to the aid-receiving centers in the central zone of Tehran in the shortest time. Moreover, the relief centers were ranked based on their importance during a crisis. CONCLUSION: The results of this study show the number of required aid-receiving points in the central zone of Tehran through which the aid needed during a crisis can be delivered from rescue centers. The findings revealed which relief centers played a more significant role during an earthquake. The identification of these points and routes makes the provision of special planning possible during an earthquake.

INTRODUCTION: Environmental hazards caused by climate change and urban life prevailing practices have had a much greater impact in recent years than in the past. Aquatic ecosystems are not immune to such threats and their consequences, such as droughts and the emergence of interconnected crises. Since crisis studies are interdisciplinary, the organizational capacity of decision-making entities in urban areas plays a vital role in controlling these complex environmental changes. Therefore, this study aims to investigate organizational resilience as a guiding perspective in the crisis management process emphasizing organizational learning from crisis experience. The objective is to assess the organizational resilience capacity of public and official organizations in Isfahan, Iran, regarding the risks of the drought crisis. METHODS: This study proposes applying the Delphi method, the Bulls-eye method, and Gray relational analysis based on previous theoretical studies. The analysis begins by entering the initial weight of the Delphi method into the algorithm of this integrated method of weighing the values of uncertain indicators, followed by Gray relational analysis to describe the classification of official and public organizations in Isfahan, Iran. The statistical population consists of experts and professionals active in crisis management in the municipalities of Isfahan. The data of the Gray relational analysis decision matrix were obtained from a valid and structured questionnaire (Cronbach’s alpha=0.79) administered to a sample of 70 individuals with the Delphi method examining the quality of decisions by municipal experts from the 15 districts of Isfahan, who were purposefully selected for sampling. The municipalities were prioritized based on relative organizational resilience capacity. FINDINGS: The three indicators of investment, specification of roles, and organizational stability showed the highest weight, while the indicators of learning from previous crisis experiences, reconstruction planning, emergency services, and risk insurance coverage had in order the lowest weights. Organizational resilience of studied districts can be defined in three levels: 1) municipalities of districts 6, 5, 8, and 12 had the highest capacity; districts 2, 11, 9, 14, 15, and 4 showed weaknesses in their organizational indicators; and 3) districts 1, 3, 7, 10, and 13 were intermediate between the previous two levels. CONCLUSION: Considering that a larger number of areas in Isfahan showed low levels of organizational resilience, the status of organizational resilience in public and formal organizations in Isfahan does not report favorable conditions among the research indicators. Therefore, more attention is required to improve the aforementioned organizational indicators to achieve organizational learning from crisis conditions. Awareness of the level of organizational resilience helps to promote organizational learning, improves the crisis management process, and helps planners and managers to perform better in critical situations

The purpose of this study was to determine the potential power of teaching using urban simulation software such as the SimCity computer game for educating master’s students at Iranian Universities. This quasi-experimental study was conducted considering two groups: one control group and one experimental group, including a pre-test and a post-test design. The sample of the study consisted of 60 students of three public universities of Art (Tehran, Isfahan, and Yazd) in 2017-2018. Thirty master’s students in urban planning and urban design were selected from the population using a random sampling method and were randomly divided into two groups: one experimental group and one control group (30 participants in each). The pre-test and the post-test included the Torrance test in creativity with Abedi's questionnaire and the open-ended and close-ended "workshop course learning skills" questionnaires were distributed in both groups. The experimental group was trained by the SimCity computer game, while the control group received normal classroom training. The pre-test and post-test results were analyzed using the IBM SPSS, and the inferential statistics in the form of the Pearson correlation, the Analysis of Covariance, and independent samples t-test were investigated. Findings showed that the SimCity positively improved the participants’ skills of learning workshop courses in the aforesaid fields, and increased their overall scores. Regarding the components of the learning skills in this course, it improved problem-solving and the planning skills of the students. However, the status of these components did not considerably improve the creativity and systems thinking of postgraduate students.