Regions and sustainable development: regional planning matters

This paper looks at how the term 'sustainable development' has been used in the process of regional plan making over the past decade. It emphasizes the differing geographies of these debates within England, in terms of how sustainable development has been used to justify different types of approach in different parts of the country. Both drawing on and challenging recent work on state theory, the paper argues the need to see regional planning as a part of a multi-scalar governance system, whose importance should not be underestimated.     

Transfer of Taiwanese ideas and technology to The Gambia, West Africa: a viable approach to rural development?

The development of Taiwan's agricultural sector contributed significantly to the country's transformation from virtual poverty after World War II to a modern industrial nation. Success resulted from the use of appropriate technologies, developed through an exceptionally close working relationship between government, research and development institutions, extension services and farmers in Taiwan. As part of their overseas development aid programme, the Republic of China on Taiwan has established Technical Missions in those developing countries where it receives political recognition. Among these is The Gambia, West Africa, where one focus of Taiwan's current Technical Mission is the development of women's market gardens. Although the gardens have proved successful, there is doubt as to whether their achievements will be sustained once Taiwan's Technical Mission in The Gambia has ended. Field research in Taiwan and in The Gambia, based largely on participatory techniques, has revealed that the low-tech methods introduced from Taiwan are appropriate for the Gambian environment. However, much depends on whether women participating in the schemes can commit sufficient time and energy to the gardens, as at present this is a limiting factor. The potential of the gardens may also be constrained by a lack of appropriate institutional infrastructure, particularly the scope for profitable disposal of garden produce. A major conclusion of the article is that successful transfer of appropriate technology to The Gambia is likely to be impeded by poorly developed coordination between groups that proved to be key 'players' in the development of agriculture in Taiwan: government, research and development institutions, extension services and producers.     

RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN EL HATILLO, NICARAGUA: GENDER, NEOLIBERALISM AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK

El Hatillo is a rural community in the Sébaco valley in Nicaragua, which suffers from an eroding resource base, high levels of poverty and malnutrition, and a high susceptibility to hazards. Structural adjustment policies have been devastating for small and subsistence farmers and have increased the level of economic, social and environmental marginalisation in rural Nicaragua. This paper explores initiatives to promote sustainable development in Nicaragua in the context of structural adjustment and environmental degradation. Drawing on qualitative research conducted in El Hatillo, it outlines the ways in which women in this community are attempting to address the multiple challenges of rural poverty and environmental risk and considers the potential of these strategies for gender equality.     

美国"阳光带"的崛起对中国西部城市化战略的启示

美国西部开发以城市化为先导，中国西部大开发本质上也是西部城市化。西部大开发战略应以城市为中心组织与落实。本文通过透视美国“阳光带”城市崛起的历史，尤其是产业集群的成功经验，提出中国西部城市化战略实施中应将培育地方产业集群作为推动城市化的重要战略方式和地方重要的公共政策工具。     

外商在华投资的地域差异对我国经济发展格局的影响

本文从对外资企业调查的角度出发，力图分析影响外商在华投资地域差异性的主要因素。在探讨外商投资地域特征的基础上，从三个层次研究了外资在华分布的不平衡性对我国经济发展格局起了再次塑造作用。以优化经济发展软环境为契机，对我国未来利用外资发展区域经济提供了科学的政策和建议。     

一种利用测井资料预测岩石可钻性的计算机方法

介绍了一种利用测井资料快速求得岩石可钻性级值的计算机方法。该方法能够比较准确地预测岩石可钻性，快速做出连续的地层可钻性剖面图。室内微钻头可钻性试验和江汉油田现场应用验证表明：该系统具有比较高的可靠性，是可以投入油田现场应用的。     

数字摄影测量与计算机视觉

从摄影测量的角度出发，在回顾摄影测量的发展历程及其最新进展的基础上，系统分析了数字摄影测量与计算机视觉的共同点及其本质差异，指出数字摄影测量的下一步发展必须与计算机视觉的理论和最新发展相结合。     

MODIS 1B影像几何纠正方法研究及软件实现

MODIS影像是一种新型和重要的数据。对MODIS 1B影像几何畸变原因进行了深入分析，选择了一种合适的纠正方法。对于1km分辨率MODIS 1B影像，直接采用1km分辨率的空间坐标进行几何纠正；对于250m和500m分辨率的MODIS 1B影像，先用三次样条曲线对坐标进行插值生成同分辨率的坐标，然后利用坐标插值结果对其进行几何纠正。由于MODIS影像在空问分布上的特殊性，采用前向和后向映射相结合的方式确定纠正后某一像素点在原始影像中的位置。根据该位置的条带重叠度，可以确定参与计算像素个数、搜索窗口的大小以及窗口的精确位置；采用归一化反距离加权插值法计算纠正后像素点的属性值。上述优化算法不仅保证了纠正后影像的质量，而且提高了数据处理速度。作者在Visual C 6．0环境下开发实现了上述算法。从坐标插值和几何纠正结果分析，无论是数据处理速度还是纠正后的影像质量和精度均达到要求。     

Geographical distribution of ecological footprint and sustainability analysis for Liaoning Province

This paper presents the detailed results and analyses on the ecological footprints and bio-capacities of the individual cities and the province as a whole for the year 2001, providing a clear picture of sustainability for the province. Results show that the ecological footprints of most cities in Liaoning exceeded their respective bio-capacities, incurring high ecological deficits. The ecological deficit of the province as a whole was 1.31 ha/cap. Those cities with resources extraction and/or primary material-making as their major industries constitute the "ecologically black band", whose ecological deficits ranged from 2.45 to 5.23 ha/cap, the highest of all cities in the province. Fossil energy consumption was the major source of footprint amounting to 1.63 ha/cap at the provincial level, taking up 67.3% of the total. For cropland, modest ecological surpluses occurred in Jinzhou, Tieling, Huludao, and Panjin while modest ecological deficits in Dalian, Benxi, Fushun, and Dandong, resulting in an overall surplus for the province. Liaoning had a certain level of surplus in fishing ground (water area), mainly distributed in the coastal cities of Dalian, Panjin, Huludao, Yingkou, Jinzhou, and Dandong. Most cities had a small ecological deficit in pasture and all had a small ecological surplus in forest. The eco-efficiency, expressed as GDP value per hectare of footprint, exhibits high variations among the cities, with the highest (Shenyang) more than 10 times the lowest (Fuxin). Cities with manufacture, high-tech, and better developed service industries had high eco-efficiency, while those with resources extraction, primary material-making, and less developed service industries had low eco-efficiency. Based on the components and geographical distribution of ecological footprint, strategic policy implications are outlined for Liaoning's development toward a sustainable future.     

A relationship between red tide outbreaks and urban development along the coasts of Guangdong Province

Red tides are one of the main coastal catastrophic events in Guangdong Province of southern China. The comparison between the number of red tide events and the development indexes of cities along the coasts of the province shows that the regional differences in red tide outbreaks has close relations with the coastal urban developments. The cause for an initiation of red tide blooms may be natural factors, while wastewater caused by the fast development of population, industry and aquiculture of the coastal cities enhanced the blooms. It may explain why the two periods of frequent outbreaks of the red tides over the last two decades matched the urban developments in the coastal areas of Guangdong not only spatially but also temporally. The red tides in the first period were restricted only to the coasts of middle Guangdong, where urbanization process was at a higher speed than the other coastal areas of the province. In the second period, fast development of the coastal cities in eastern Guangdong led to an increase in the occurrence of red tides in local sea areas of the same coasts.