Optimizing for Equity: Sensor Coverage, Networks, and the Responsive City

Robinson, Caitlin; Franklin, Rachel S.; Roberts, J. C.

doi:10.1080/24694452.2022.2077169

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…In other words, even though PWS offer an unprecedented opportunity to study urban heat in places that are deprived of official sensors, they may well be unequally distributed among the variety of urban environments that exist in towns and cities. This phenomenon, named the "sensor desert", has already been highlighted for other types of sensors, such as for air pollution 18,19 . Because sensor deserts prevent the acquisition of weather data in a representative way (e.g., covering all communities existing in the country),the generalization of urban heat impact studies is limited.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Brousse

Simpson

Poorthuis

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Personal weather stations (PWS) can provide useful data on urban climates by densifying the number of weather measurements across major cities. They do so at a lower cost than official weather stations by national meteorological services. Despite the increasing use of PWS data, little attention has yet been paid to the underlying socio-economic and environmental inequalities in PWS coverage. Using social deprivation, demographic, and environmental indicators in England and Wales, we characterize existing inequalities in the current coverage of PWS. We find that there are fewer PWS in more deprived areas which also observe higher proportions of ethnic minorities, lower vegetation coverage, higher building height and building surface fraction, and lower proportions of inhabitants under 65 years old. This implies that data on urban climate may be of lower quality or more uncertain in particular areas, which may limit the potential for climate adaptation and empowerment in those communities.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 83%

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Brousse

Simpson

Poorthuis

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In other words, even though PWS offer an unprecedented opportunity to study urban heat in places that are deprived of official sensors, they may well be unequally distributed among the variety of urban environments that exist in towns and cities. This phenomenon, named the "sensor desert", has already been highlighted for other types of sensors, such as for air pollution 26,27 . Because sensor deserts prevent the acquisition of weather data in a representative way (e.g., covering all communities existing in the country), the generalization of urban heat impact studies is limited.…”

mentioning

confidence: 83%

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Brousse,

Simpson,

Poorthuis

et al. 2024

Nat Commun

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Personal weather stations (PWS) can provide useful data on urban climates by densifying the number of weather measurements across major cities. They do so at a lower cost than official weather stations by national meteorological services. Despite the increasing use of PWS data, little attention has yet been paid to the underlying socio-economic and environmental inequalities in PWS coverage. Using social deprivation, demographic, and environmental indicators in England and Wales, we characterize existing inequalities in the current coverage of PWS. We find that there are fewer PWS in more deprived areas which also observe higher proportions of ethnic minorities, lower vegetation coverage, higher building height and building surface fraction, and lower proportions of inhabitants under 65 years old. This implies that data on urban climate may be less reliable or more uncertain in particular areas, which may limit the potential for climate adaptation and empowerment in those communities.

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“…For example, Robinson et al (2019) employ local methods to conceptualize and measure household energy vulnerability, leveraging the strength of local statistics for understanding a phenomenon that is highly spatially variable. Employing a spatial optimization approach, Robinson et al (2022) evaluate equity of coverage in smart city infrastructures. Looking at neighbourhood change, Delmelle (2022) emphasizes the importance of underlying processes and the need for methods that can adequately measure the nature and scope of these processes.…”

Section: Big Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantitative methods II: Big theory

Franklin

2022

Progress in Human Geography

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In this second report on quantitative methods, I consider the foundational triumvirate that underpins the sub-discipline: data, methods, and theory. I argue that, although ‘big data’ and, more recently, ‘big code’ may have captured the limelight, theory is invaluable and should not be disregarded. Showcasing the integral role of theory in quantitative human geography, I identify three kinds of useful theory (old school, enduring and conceptual) and, along the way, highlight beneficial ways in which they contribute to our thinking about data and methods. Throughout, I emphasize that theory is a crucial component of contemporary and future quantitative methods development.

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Optimizing for Equity: Sensor Coverage, Networks, and the Responsive City

Cited by 8 publications

References 63 publications

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Unequal distributions of crowdsourced weather data in England and Wales

Quantitative methods II: Big theory

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