Panate Manomaivibool

This research focuses on the development of an island recycle waste management system to address challenges in managing waste transportation and recycling data on islands in Thailand. The system was designed to support digital data recording, including waste types and quantities, transportation costs, and the real-time uploading of verification evidence to a centralized database. The study applies a mixed-methods approach that integrates a TAM-based quantitative analysis with a qualitative user. The study applied the technology acceptance model (TAM) to analyze user satisfaction regarding perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU). Data collected from participating shops on target islands were analyzed to evaluate system acceptance, which was found to be moderate to high. The system shows indications of reducing errors; however, objective error-rate comparisons were not collected and are now acknowledged as a limitation. The system streamlined processes and enhanced data management efficiency, although some users encountered issues such as menu complexity and unfamiliarity with technology. Proposed enhancements include adding features tailored to elderly shop owners, integrating image processing technology to support document scanning, developing multimedia user guides, and organizing hands-on training sessions as part of the intervention rather than recommendations alone. This study aims to promote sustainable waste management on islands and to refine the system to better suit diverse user contexts. It also serves as a prototype for future system development.

This study investigated the differences in household energy consumption between urban and rural households in northern Thailand, with a particular focus on air-conditioner ownership and use. In-depth visits to 32 households in Chiang Rai were undertaken in 2016 and 2017. The data collection covered six aspects: household attributes, ownership of electric appliances, use of air conditioners (ACs), intentions to conserve electricity, desire to purchase electric appliances in the future, and prospects for a future lifestyle. Traditional stilt houses can still be found in rural areas, but ACs have been introduced as rural houses have modernized. The typical period of AC use in rural areas was 2 to 4 months during summer. In urban households, ACs were used for a longer period, from 3 to 12 months each year. In addition, rural households usually used ACs for only a few hours each day before sleeping, whereas urban households often used them while they slept and some used them throughout the day. Households with children and grandchildren tended to use the AC for longer periods. These results suggest that promotion of environmentally friendly lifestyles for younger adults to control overuse of ACs would be key to reducing energy consumption in the future.

Co-management which was founded on common-pool resource design principles has been popularized in solving sustainability challenges of nat ional parks. Co-management was im-posed on all national parks in Malawi under the 2000 Wildlife Policy. However, such a top-down approach might neglect the local contexts that influenced policy implementation. The objective of this study was to examine the implementation of co-management and determine the extent of conformity to Ostrom’s eight design principles. The Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework was engaged through a qualitative case study of Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve. Based on co-management documentations and key informant interviews, the research found varied extents of conformity in the two cases despitea unified national policy framework. Majete was more supportive to the design principles than Liwonde because of resource, user and institutional attributes. The study proposed fine tuningthe implementation process towards contextualizing these attributes for long term delivery of perceivable biodiversity and livelihoods benefits.

This study measured the impact of an awareness campaign to reduce food waste on campus. Information cues were installed at strategic locations in a canteen to engage university students in food waste prevention. Stickers with food ordering tips were placed in front of the food vendors. Information cards about resource use in food production were placed on dining tables to remind students to finish what they had ordered. Other materials of the save food campaign such as pos-ters and banners carried messages and images to elicit a pro-environmental norm. Students were also encouraged to share their support through social media in order to increase the visibility of the actions. The analysis showed that carefully designed information was effective in changing be-haviors. Based on the visual analysis of returned food containers, the share of those who finished all their food nearly doubled after the campaign. The types of food waste on the information cardswere also significantly reduced. However, the results showed that voluntary behavior changes are limited to actions requiring little additional effort. Other types of interventions such as rule-based measures, economic incentives and changes in physical settings and how food is served should be considered to further food waste prevention. In addition, reuse and recycling options are needed for fluid and other unavoidable food waste.

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has been high on the environmental policy agenda of many countries due to its rapidly increasing volume and concerns over its toxicity and the critical metals it holds. To date, 59 countries have passed laws for WEEE management (ex-cluding State level legislation in the USA and Canada). Most of these laws are based on the principle of extended producer responsibility (EPR) but their treatment of allocation of respon-sibility and system operation differ considerably. This study reviews the implementation models of EPR which are classified into two broad groups: producer compliance schemes and governmental funds. The advantages and disadvan-tages of each model are analyzed and a synthesis proposed for Thailand in the form of a step-wise hybrid model, considering local conditions. A new draft law, the Act on the Management of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment and Other End-of-Life Products, differs from earlier drafts solely based on the governmental-fund model. Under the proposed system, producers of designated products would have an opportunity to develop their compliance plans individually or collectively. This would allow them to channel their experiences of working with EPR in other countries to the implementation of Thai WEEE management schemes. The compliance plans have to outline how they intend to support the free take-back obligations stipulated in the draft law. Collection targets can be added to improve system performance in the later years. Unlike a typical producer-led system, the government retains the power to levy product fees into the National Environmental Fund. This ensures the leverage in the case that the producer’s plans fail to function in a developing country context. Revenues would then be earmarked to support investments and campaigns to achieve the objectives of this law.