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Addressing equity issue in multi-actor policymaking via a system-of-systems approach: Aviation emissions reduction case study

Abstract

Finding equitable policy solutions is critical for developing sustainable energy use. This paper presents a system-of-systems (SoS) formalism for addressing the equity issue in multi-actor policymaking. In a SoS, the control of the overall system performance is shared among a network of actors. In contrast to a single optimal solution that aggregates objectives of actors, the solution concept of iso-performance is formulated and employed to illuminate multiple solutions and hence the ‘space’ for actors to compromise. By specifically accounting for the equity issue, the level of sacrifice each actor makes for each iso-performance solution is computed. To demonstrate the approach, a case study is presented about policymaking to reduce fuel life cycle aviation emissions in the United States based on the year 2020 reduction target, involving government, airlines, jet fuel refinery companies, and aircraft and engine manufacturers. A resource allocation mixed integer programming model is employed to calculate carbon emissions resulting from airlines’ deployment of aircraft fleet to meet changing air transport demand. The paper discusses three iso-performance solutions; each of them requires a different level of sacrifice from each actor. Such an insight can inform policymaking in determining the magnitude of compensation required when a particular solution is pursued.

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Correspondence to D. Buyung Agusdinata.

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Portions of this work have been supported through a Cooperative Agreement with the NASA Glenn Research Center (NNX07013A).

D. Buyung Agusdinata received a B.S. degree in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering in 1991 from the Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia, a M.S. degree in Aerospace Industrial Engineering (Cum Laude) in 1999 and a Ph.D. degree in Systems Engineering and Policy Analysis in 2008, both from the Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands. Dr. Agusdinata is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the System-of-Systems Laboratory, College of Engineering, and Purdue University. He was previously a Research Engineer in the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology. He previously also worked for the KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and the Aircraft Design and Systems Engineering (ADSE) Company. His main research interests cover system modeling and analysis to support sustainable transportation and energy policy. He is a member of AIAA, INFORMS, and IEEE.

Daniel A. DeLaurentis is an Associate Professor in Purdue’s School of Aeronautics & Astronautics in West Lafayette, IN. Dr. DeLaurentis leads the System-of-Systems Laboratory (SoSL) which includes graduate and undergraduate students as well as professional research staff. His primary research interests are in the areas of problem formulation, modeling and system analysis methods for aerospace systems and systems-of-systems (SoS), with particular focus on air transportation. His research is conducted under grants from NASA, FAA, Navy, and the Missile Defense Agency. Dr. DeLaurentis is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, served as Chairman of the AIAA’s Air Transportation Systems (ATS) Technical Committee from 2008–2010, and is Associated Editor for the IEEE Systems Journal. He earned a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, GA) in 1998.

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Agusdinata, D.B., Delaurentis, D.A. Addressing equity issue in multi-actor policymaking via a system-of-systems approach: Aviation emissions reduction case study. J. Syst. Sci. Syst. Eng. 20, 1–24 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11518-011-5156-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11518-011-5156-z

Keywords

  • System-of-systems
  • equity
  • multi-actor policymaking
  • iso-performance solutions
  • aviation emissions