The Effects of Informal Settlement on Suburban Property Values in Cape Town,South Africa

During the late 1980s some informal settlements were established within or near affluent Cape Town suburbs. Despite objections by suburban residents that these settlements would lead to a rapid escalation in crime and a dramatic fall in the value of properties, the authorities allowed the settlements to remain. Using data on property transfers, which are then mapped using GIS, the paper examines the effects that the informal settlement of Marconi Beam had on house prices and housing turnover within the adjacent suburb of Milnerton. The results show that most of the objections regarding Marconi Beam's effect on property values were groundless as the settlement had only a negligible effect on property values in the adjacent suburb.     

The Effects of Informal Settlement on Suburban Property Values in Cape Town,South Africa

During the late 1980s some informal settlements were established within or near affluent Cape Town suburbs. Despite objections by suburban residents that these settlements would lead to a rapid escalation in crime and a dramatic fall in the value of properties, the authorities allowed the settlements to remain. Using data on property transfers, which are then mapped using GIS, the paper examines the effects that the informal settlement of Marconi Beam had on house prices and housing turnover within the adjacent suburb of Milnerton. The results show that most of the objections regarding Marconi Beam's effect on property values were groundless as the settlement had only a negligible effect on property values in the adjacent suburb.     

The Knysna Basin, South Africa: geomorphology, landscape sensitivity and sustainability

The Knysna Basin, a southern Cape catchment, drains into the Knysna estuary. The landscape characteristics are the product of a long geomorphic evolution resulting in high sensitivity to change. Consideration of the geomorphology is followed by examples of impacts on the estuary and adjacent areas. The need for sustainability in the context of development is argued. The paper is a southern African contribution to the landscape sensitivity issue.     

Land degradation and climate change in South Africa

This paper considers the potential impact of future climate change on the nature and extent of land degradation in South Africa. The basis of the assessment is the comprehensive review published by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T) as a contribution to the South African effort in respect of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. The DEA&T report is founded on information collated from 34 workshops, one in each of the agricultural regions of South Africa, involving some 453 participants consisting mainly of agricultural extension officers and soil conservation technicians. This analysis reveals that land degradation is underpinned by poverty and its structural roots in colonial and apartheid political planning. Nevertheless, future climate change represents a key challenge to the developing economies of countries like South Africa. Regionally downscaled models predicting the nature and degree of rainfall changes in the future are used to assess the possible impact of future change on the South African land degradation situation. It is concluded that the most severely degraded areas of the country, including large areas of the former 'homeland' states, are likely to become even more susceptible under predicted climate change scenarios.     

Between a rock and a hard place: contested livelihoods in Qwaqwa National Park, South Africa

This paper examines rural livelihoods and the prospects for participatory conservation through a case study of Qwaqwa National Park (QNP) in South Africa. The park was established in 1992 in the context of South Africa's transition to democracy, growing ecotourism in the country and global movements towards conservation involving and benefiting local people. The paper argues that the protracted conflict between park residents and management led to new patterns of livelihood activities and household formation, and resulted in material and social differentiation amongst park households. The goals of park management, with a commitment to nature conservation and ecotourism, were at odds with the livelihood practices of park residents. Conflicts arose over stocking levels, overgrazing, wood-cutting and deforestation and over the use of other natural resources, including water and medicinal plants. The park was the site of a Rand Water project that employed many residents. Residents found themselves between a rock and a hard place as they resisted attempts by the management to reduce stocking levels and yet relied on management to gain access to sources of paid employment.     

Resilient geographies: land, boundaries and the consolidation of the former bantustans in post-1994 South Africa

This paper focuses on the spatial impact of land reform and the redrawing of internal boundaries on South Africa's former bantustans. It argues that, in contrast to the democratic government's intention to use land reform and boundary demarcation to effectively change the spatial legacy of apartheid, these processes tend to cement the geography of the former bantustans. Though earlier research correctly projected that post-apartheid policies could result in the enlargement of the areas of the former bantustans, the ways in which this could happen were still unclear. This paper draws on experiences of land reform and boundary demarcation to demonstrate how and why the areas of the former bantustans have been enlarged over the 12 years of democracy in South Africa.     

The nature, extent and causes of land degradation in South Africa: legacy of the past, lessons for the future?

The aim of this paper is to reassess the land degradation and desertification problem in South Africa. The country has a wide range of interrelated environmental and development challenges existing in a socio–political context recently subject to substantial change. The paper outlines the fundamental environmental constraints and opportunities that underlie degradation phenomena and illustrates the nature, extent and geographical distribution of the major forms of soil and vegetation degradation in the country. The principal causes of degradation are identified and some important land use and land tenure questions that need to be addressed in the near future are posited.     

农地城市流转:途径、方式及特征

农地城市流转是乡村城市化和土地利用竞争的必然结果。当前需要对流转农地的数量、质量和区位作出可操作性的规划和合理决策。该文分析农地城市流转的途径、方式 ,并总结农地城市流转的特征。阐述农地城市流转有市场和非市场两种途径 ,有蛙跳式侵占、轴式扩展、环状蔓延、条块分割与吞没和指状填充五种方式 ,具有优质性、地域性、同步性、不可逆性、非市场性和多重权属转移性等特性。     

Apartheid spatial engineering and land use change in Mankweng, South Africa: 1963–2001

Land use change studies permeate the geographic literature. While these studies have helped researchers understand the dynamics and importance of such changes, they have less often taken a deeper historical approach in combination with their traditional strengths of geographic information analysis. In this study, we explore historical land use changes in one of South Africa's former bantustans, Lebowa, from 1963 to 2001. We argue that changes in land use arise from both current socioeconomic dynamics but also from historical precedent established by the apartheid regime. Our methods couple historical aerial photography to recent household surveys to elucidate the national, regional and local influences over land use change. We conducted extensive field research in the study site between 2003 and 2006. Our findings show a high degree of urbanization, a loss of grassland and agricultural land and a dramatic pattern of increasing spatial concentration near growth points. We outline three recommendations for policymakers planning post-apartheid rural spaces and conclude with future research needs.     

Land,Labor, and Rural Development: Analyzing Participation in India's Village Dairy Cooperatives

Livestock-based livelihoods are currently being promoted by international development agencies as part of global efforts to combat poverty. India's dairy development program, organized around village cooperatives, has become an important model for such efforts. This article aims to identify household characteristics that influence membership in India's rural dairy cooperatives by comparing two villages representing different degrees of success. Utilizing logistic regression methods, data collected through a comprehensive survey of all households in the two villages are analyzed to examine (1) how variables describing animal ownership, agricultural attributes, and household labor availability contribute to explaining membership in the dairy cooperative; and (2) whether factors influencing membership differ across the two villages. Our results indicate that although agricultural property ownership influences cooperative membership in both villages, the kind of dairy animal used and labor utilized for dairying work also have a significant and context-specific effect on household participation.     

新郑农村经济发展与土地使用制度的关系

考察了新郑农村经济变革的历程后，发现农村经济的发展变化与土地使用制度有密切关系。研究认为这种关系的内在机制是土地收益的分配方式；当前土地使用中存在的主要问题是土地浪费和利用粗放；原因仍是土地制度中存在着弊端。文章最后提出了完善土地使用制度的对策是搞活土地使用权，试行农用土地租赁制。     

The concentration of urban crime in space by race: evidence from South Africa

Crime inequality in neighborhoods by race is blamed on social inequalities borne out of segregation and economic discrimination. South Africa is a country synonymous with racial-spatial segregation and discrimination as a result of legislatively enforced policies of the former apartheid government. This study examines whether urban crime inequalities by race exist in the city of Tshwane, South Africa and identifies the empirical causes of these crime inequalities. Violent and sexual crime was found to concentrate in Black African neighborhoods, while property crime was concentrated in neighborhoods classified as “Mixed”. The causes of crime in neighborhoods were found to vary across racial groups with results suggesting non-uniformity in the extent to which the various constructs impact crime based on race. The results challenge the notion that segregation and economic discrimination uniformly impacts affected communities. Explanations for the findings are provided in the context of an increasingly eclectic post-apartheid South African city.     

北方农牧交错带农村居民点分布特征及其对土地利用的影响——以科尔沁左翼中旗为例

选取农牧交错带的典型地区--科尔沁左翼中旗作为研究区,对不同海拔、坡度、坡向等要素上农村居民点的分布特征进行了研究,分析农村居民点对农牧交错带内土地利用格局的影响。结果表明:① 居民点主要分布在海拔200 m以下,坡度小于6°的地区以及阴坡上;② 农村居民点对土地利用格局有着直接影响,居民点密度越高的地区,耕地所占比重越大,草地越少;反之,则草地所占比重越大,耕地越少;③ 在牧业区,距离居民点越远,草地比例越小,耕地比例越大,农业区和农牧区则相反。     

开发区土地利用的可持续性评价-以江苏昆山经济技术开发区为例

开发区土地利用的可持续性涉及到各土地利用单元自身的可持续性和整个区域土地利用结构的可持续性两个方面。运用景观生态分类法,对昆山经济技术开发区进行了土地利用分类,随后针对不同类型而采取不同的评价方法,进行了土地利用的可持续性评价。结果表明：昆山经济技术开发区有较多的土地其利用方式是不可持续的,土地利用结构上也存在一些问题。     

Perceptions of Land Tenure Security in Rural China: The Impact of Land Reallocations and Certification

Abstract

Tenure security is commonly recognized as an important factor in stimulating long-term investments in land. Recent studies suggest that a distinction between legal, actual and perceived tenure security needs to be made in analyzing tenure security. This study discusses the relationships between legal, actual and perceived land tenure security in rural China, and empirically examines the impact of actual on perceived land tenure security by applying Probit models to household and village survey data collected in four provinces. Using household expectations about the absence of land reallocations within the next five years as the dependent variable, we find that tenure security is positively affected by the possession of land certificates in villages that periodically reallocated land but not in villages that did not do so. The estimated impact is larger for land certificates issued in the new round of land certification than for land certificates that were issued earlier.     

Spaces of change: tribal authorities in the former KaNgwane homeland, South Africa

South Africa's democratic transition has had a significant impact upon localized governance systems in mediating development opportunities within the former apartheid homelands. This paper uses a case study from the former KaNgwane homeland to evaluate the role of the Matsamo Tribal Authority in shaping livelihoods and access to environmental resources. It is argued that although the colonial and apartheid empowerment of the tribal authorities continues to have symbolic and material meaning for rural populations, newly created democratic structures are challenging traditional governance systems in the post-apartheid era. The intersection between these contrasting, and historically situated, systems suggests a dynamic renegotiation is occurring that will continue to impact rural households within the former places of apartheid.     

中国土地发展权的经济分析与配置设计--以北京市平谷区为例

采用综合分析法从土地规划干预的视角对土地发展权进行了经济分析,在此基础上以北京市平谷区为例进行土地发展权的定量配置设计,研究结果表明：（1）在政府有效干预下,土地用途转换所带来在农业用途基础上的价值增值即为土地发展权价值;（2）平谷区土地发展权初始配置为每公顷非基本农田土地发展权数量为0．35个,每公顷基本农田土地发展权数量则为1个,二者均有10％属于国家所有;（3）政府对土地利用干预是土地发展权存在的前提,显现了土地发展权的价值,土地发展权制度的设立又是政府干预的补充;（4）土地发展权在土地所有者和国家之间分配,国家的份额比例相对较小。     

Land reform in Namaqualand, 1994–2005: A review

With the transition to democracy in 1994, South Africa was faced with an enormous challenge in redressing the highly unequal and racialized pattern of land rights inherited from the colonial and apartheid past. In Namaqualand, a history of land dispossession and racial segregation presented the new government with a complex set of problems, which led to a series of distinct policy responses within the context of the wider national land reform programme. Land reform in Namaqualand aims to impact positively on local people's access to land, improve livelihood opportunities and develop the local economy. Unique features of the land reform process in Namaqualand include the reform of tenure in the former Coloured Rural Areas, the prominent role played by local municipalities and the heavy reliance on municipal commonage as a form of landholding. This study provides and overview of the process of land reform in Namaqualand since 1994, considering the three elements of tenure reform, land redistribution and restitution of historical land rights. It concludes that, while considerable progress has been made in provision of additional land to historically disadvantaged communities, obstacles remain in the area of post-transfer support to new and emerging farmers.     

快速城市化地区农村居住用地布局变化及其影响因素研究——以深圳市龙岗区为例

基于深圳市龙岗区1996年与2006年土地利用数据,应用GIS技术和基于公里格网的多元统计方法定量探讨了龙岗区农村居住用地的布局特征、变化态势及影响因素。研究结果显示:在城镇空间快速扩张的同时,龙岗区农居用地减少有限,且用地地块逐渐破碎与分散化;农居变化是一个大量新建与消失并存的过程,在1996年农居用地消失42%的同时,亦有相近规模的农居新建而成;城镇化对龙岗区农居用地影响显著,消失农居多布局于邻近深圳主城、城镇化进程显著的西南地区;新建农居倾向避开高速城镇化区域,同时在租金利益下集聚于原有城镇空间附近地域;空间要素对农居布局的影响符合一般规律,其中坡度影响最为显著,陡坡地区农居用地显著减少,而交通干线与水系附近则明显增加。     

A Comparative Assessment of Land Use Functions Based on Perceptions of Policy Makers and Local Farmers in Guyuan,Western China

The land use function (LUF) concept is a useful tool in assessing sustainable development. With the goal of exploring the conceptive difference of policy makers and local farmer on LUFs and understanding the capacity of different land use types to provide LUFs, we used a participatory method to assess LUFs in Guyuan, which included four phases: literature review and field surveys; specification of the LUF context; ranking of priorities and weighting of LUFs; and visualization and discussion of the results. It was found that policy makers perceived regional problems and critical LUFs well, whereas farmers had a clearer perception of local issues that affect their livelihood. For policy makers, environmental functions had a higher priority than economic and social functions; in contrast, farmers prioritized economic and social functions. However, based on the perception of both groups, the result was the same whereby environmental functions had the highest LUF value and economic functions had the lowest. Participatory assessment methods enhanced our understanding of causal linkages between land use and LUFs, and may help stakeholders improve future land use decisions and management for regional sustainable development.