Religion on the Fringe: the representation of space and minority religious facilities in the rural–urban fringe of metropolitan Sydney,Australia

This article examines land-use development applications for minority religious facilities in two local government areas on the rural–urban fringe of metropolitan Sydney, Australia. Using critical discourse analysis and underpinned by Lefebvre's (1991) conceptual triad of space, the work interrogates the way in which place identity is generated and codified both by land-use planners and local residents through spatial representation. This representation is revealed in discourses around the compatibility of minority religious facilities for particular zones, lack of a sufficient minority population and social disruption. These discourses reveal a construction of peri-urban space that is aligned with particular elite Anglo-Australian activities (horse riding and gentleman farms) and land uses (rural residential, small-scale agriculture and the ‘bush-church’). These case studies illustrate the potential for the creation of exclusionary, abstract space by urban planners but also the ways in which local residents use discoursive strategies to ensure the stability of their position as elites in rapidly changing spatial situations.     

Seeds for Change? Attaining the benefits of community gardens through council policies in Sydney,Australia

Modern industrial systems of food production cause a wide range of detrimental impacts to the environment, human health and society. Integrating community gardens into local food systems is one way to counteract some of those impacts. This research looks at the elements that community garden policies should contain in order to best promote community gardens and attain their benefits. Focusing on Sydney, the research evaluates and compares the quality of the community garden policies with the distribution of community gardens in local councils and across broader geographic regions. Councils or regions that might benefit from greater access to community gardens are identified and ways in which councils, and the Sydney Region as a whole, might improve their community garden policies are discussed.     

Sustainable for whom? Green urban development,environmental gentrification,and the Atlanta Beltline

Large-scale, sustainable urban development projects can transform surrounding neighborhoods. Without precautionary policies, environmental amenities produced by these projects, such as parks, trails, walkability, and higher-density development, tend to result in higher land and housing costs. This will make it harder for a low- and moderate-income households to live near the projects, and neighborhoods are likely to become increasingly affluent. The Atlanta Beltline will ultimately connect 45 Atlanta neighborhoods via a 22-mile loop of trails, parks, and eventually a streetcar, all of which follow abandoned railroad tracks. This paper examines the effect of the Beltline on housing values within one half mile. From 2011 to 2015, depending on the segment of the Beltline, values rose between 17.9 percent and 26.6 percent more for homes within a half-mile of the Beltline than elsewhere. The implications for housing affordability and neighborhood change of projects like the Beltline, and associated policy questions, are addressed.     

Left out? Observations on the RGS-IBG conference on social exclusion and the city

Summary On 29 October 1998, the RGS-IBG invited delegates to a conference entitled 'Social exclusion and the city', with Geoff Mulgan (founder of the think-tank Demos and a policy advisor to Prime Minister Blair) as the keynote speaker. The event was well attended, providing much useful insight into the government policies of the 'Social Exclusion Unit' and ongoing academic research into the processes and problems of 'social exclusion'. Here we provide some general observations on the conference and some suggestions regarding the possible directions of the debate on social exclusion and inclusion.     

Do perceptions of the Red‐tailed Hawk indicate a human‐wildlife conflict on the island of La Gonave,Haiti?

The Caribbean subspecies of the Red‐tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis solitudinus or B.j. jamaicensis) is the largest native carnivore on the island of La Gonave, Haiti, and the island's apex predator. On other Caribbean islands, raptors have been persecuted by local people typically because of their depredation of livestock. In addition to possible persecution from humans, Red‐tailed Hawks on La Gonave face challenges from island‐wide timber overharvest and rapid land‐cover changes. To better understand the human‐apex predator relationship on La Gonave, we surveyed islanders about their perceptions of, and interactions with, the Red‐tailed Hawk. According to 121 respondents from 10 villages, La Gonavans do not hunt, kill, or consume Red‐tailed Hawks. Our study revealed a notable absence of negative perceptions of the hawk by respondents despite intense hawk depredation of domestic chickens. While the chicken depredation may lead outside observers to consider the human‐hawk relationship on La Gonave as representative of a human‐wildlife conflict, our interview data do not support that conception. Our findings reflect an important conversation in related contemporary scientific literature about what constitutes human‐wildlife conflicts across various cultures. Despite tolerance by residents, Red‐tailed Hawks on La Gonave remain threatened by habitat degradation.     

Urbanizing the nation-state? Notes on the geopolitical growth of cities and city-regions

This article suggests that the developments during the past few decades indicate a qualitative shift in the city/state relation, and conceptualizes this shift as the geopolitical growth of cities and city-regions. Originally a state-orchestrated process, today this is manifested in the attempts of major cities and city-regions, in particular, to demand a stronger national and international political role even as claims are made for urban separatism. This process is connected to a geopolitical reasoning of the heightened role of cities in inter-state competition during the age of post-Fordist capitalism. Furthermore, the geopolitical growth of cities and city-regions is partly constituted in academic theories and expert knowledges that combine certain type of urbanism, economic growth, and political success, and which in so doing destabilize state-centered geopolitical imaginations.     

Polarization reversal in the development of Brazilian metropolises? An analysis based on demographic indicators,using the example of Sao Paulo

"Using the example of Sao Paulo, this paper addresses itself to the question of how far the decrease in growth rates one observes in large Brazilian metropolises can be interpreted as a process of polarization reversal. The analysis is carried out on the basis of demographic data from small area units, which include the results from the most recent 1991 census. Although it had already been possible in the 1970s to discern first indications of such a process setting in, in the decade 1981-91 indicators of population growth and migration balances agree in pointing to a polarization reversal." (SUMMARY IN ENG)     

Back to the Future? Planning for environmental outcomes and the new Caring for our Country program

The Australian government Caring for our Country (CfoC) program, first announced in 2008, has sought to build on and enhance previous experience with Australian natural resource management policy. This paper critically examines the initial design, planned delivery, and first round of competitive funding outcomes of the new program. This analysis shows that the initial design and delivery of the CfoC model was ad hoc, politicised, and lacking in transparency. The paper concludes that a more systematic and transparent approach for achieving sustainable environmental outcomes is required in order for this new program to achieve its intended objectives. These implications are of interest to Australian and international geographers, natural resource planners, scientists and policy makers concerned with the design, delivery and outcomes of large natural resource and environmental management programs.     

What's on top for geography teachers? National Certificate of Educational Achievement and the prioritization of professional development

Geography teachers' work is influenced by multiple education policy initiatives. Professional development opportunities emerge to support these policy changes and associated compliance issues. This paper reports the results of a survey in which geography teachers self‐reported their knowledge and prioritized professional development needs. The data indicate that some compliance issues associated with assessment policy reform have largely been resolved, while more substantive assessment and course design issues continue to be prioritized for professional development. However, professional development that continues to focus on assessment reform may marginalize geography teachers' engagement with concurrent curriculum and pedagogical policy initiatives.     

Variations and trends of the freezing and thaw- ing index along the Qinghai-Xizang Railway for 1966?2004

Annual freezing and thawing index of 7 meteorological stations along the Qing-hai-Xizang Railway were calculated based on daily maximum and minimum temperature records for 1966?2004. Trends of annual freezing and thawing index were analyzed using the Mann-Kendall test and a simple linear regression method. The results show that: 1) The mean annual freezing indices range from 95 to 2300℃·d and the mean annual thawing indi-ces range from 630 to 3250℃·d. The mean annual freezing index of the 7 stations exhibited decreasing trends with decreasing rate of ?16.6– ?59.1℃·d /10a. The mean annual thawing index of these 7 stations showed increasing trends with the related decreasing rate is 19.83–45.6℃·d /10a. 2) The MK trend test indicated the significant decreasing trends (sig-nificant at < 0.05 significant level) in the annual freezing index for most stations except for Golmud. The significant increasing trends can be observed in the annual thawing index for 4 stations except Golmud and Tuotuohe. Golmud was the only station with no trends in both annual freezing and annual thawing index.     

Evaluation of suitability,adaptability, and reserve potential of construction land on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Construction land is the leading carrier of human activities such as production and living. Evaluating the construction land suitability(CLS) on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau(QTP) holds significant implications for harmonizing the relationship between ecological protection and human activity and promoting population and industry layout optimization. However, no relevant studies provide a complete CLS assessment of the QTP. In this study, we developed a model-based CLS evaluation framework coupling o...     

Mechanism and effects of the increase in winter temperatures in the Arctic region on cold winters in Heilongjiang Province,Northeast China for the period 1961–2018

With the advent of climate change,winter temperatures have been steadily in-creasing in the middle-to-high latitudes of the world.However,we have not found a corre-sponding decrease in the number of extremely cold winters.This paper,based on Climatic Research Unit (CRU) re-analysis data,and methods of trend analysis,mutation analysis,correlation analysis,reports on the effects of Arctic warming on winter temperatures in Hei-longjiang Province,Northeast China.The results show that:(1) during the period 1961-2018,winter temperatures in the Arctic increased considerably,that is,3.5 times those of the Equator,which has led to an increasing temperature gradient between the Arctic and the Equator.An abrupt change in winter temperatures in the Arctic was observed in 2000.(2) Due to the global warming,an extremely significant warming occurred in Heilongjiang in winter,in particular,after the Arctic mutation in 2000,although there were two warm winters,more cold winters were observed and the interannual variability of winter temperature also increased.(3)Affected by the warming trend in the Arctic,the Siberian High has intensified,and both the Arctic Vortex and the Eurasian Zonal Circulation Index has weakened.This explains the de-crease in winter temperatures in Heilongjiang,and why cold winters still dominate.Moreover,the increase in temperature difference between the Arctic and the Equator is another reason for the decrease in winter temperatures in Heilongjiang.     

Rural homes and urban dwellings? Gender,migration and the importance of tenure in Gaborone,Botswana

"The issue of return migration has been widely debated in African migration literature in view of strong rural-urban ties and urban growth based largely on in-migration. On the basis of fieldwork in Botswana, it is argued that there are important gender differences in terms of the commitment to rural and urban areas. It has been postulated in past studies that the decision to remain in towns depends in part upon urban tenure and it is argued that home owners are more likely than tenants to be permanent urban dwellers. Again, there are important gender differences and women appear to be more committed to the urban dwelling than men."     

Monitoring and simulation of water, heat,and CO2 fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems based on the APEIS-FLUX system

1IntroductionInJune1992,theworldsummitorganizedbytheUnitedNations,withparticipantsincludingnationalleadersfromaroundtheworld,concludedwithAgenda21(UnitedNations,1992),theRioDeclarationonEnvironmentandDevelopment,inRiodeJaneiro.Thedeclarationpromptedcountr…