The new politics of pastoralism: Identity,justice and global activism

Concerns with the politics and practices of resource rights and access are integral to contemporary debates over environmental justice. Struggles over identity politics, especially the strategic articulation and deployment of particular identities at diverse geographical scales, have recently emerged as important mediators of justice claims in respect of resources rights, but also of recognition and procedural justice. To date, critical, multi-scalar analyses of identity-based claims for environmental justice have focused largely on the indigenous peoples’ movement. In doing so, they have failed to embrace an emergent dimension of identity-based, trans-scalar justice, namely the fledgling global pastoralists’ movement, the empirical focus for this paper. In the early years of the 21st century mobile pastoralists have begun to carve out new global spaces, through which diverse groups have attempted to negotiate common ground and forge common identities in their struggles for justice. In particular, mobile pastoralists have become increasingly visible in conservation politics and contests over land rights as they lay claim to both discursive and material ground as ‘custodians of the commons’ in an era of global climatic change. This paper draws on empirical work amongst pastoralists, NGOs and activists from Kenya, Mongolia and Spain to explore these identities, their implications for resource rights and access and the multi-scalar chains of accountability and legitimacy between global activists and their local constituents.     

环境同位素法在西北地区地下水资源评价中的应用

应用环境同位素方法测定了不同类型地下水的年龄，识别了西北干旱、半干旱地区地下水的补给源，进行了补给量的计算，建立了地下水流系统，并取得了新的成果。     

Effects of detailed soil spatial information on watershed modeling across different model scales

Hydro-ecological modelers often use spatial variation of soil information derived from conventional soil surveys in simulation of hydro-ecological processes over watersheds at mesoscale (10–100 km²). Conventional soil surveys are not designed to provide the same level of spatial detail as terrain and vegetation inputs derived from digital terrain analysis and remote sensing techniques. Soil property layers derived from conventional soil surveys are often incompatible with detailed terrain and remotely sensed data due to their difference in scales. The objective of this research is to examine the effect of scale incompatibility between soil information and the detailed digital terrain data and remotely sensed information by comparing simulations of watershed processes based on the conventional soil map and those simulations based on detailed soil information across different simulation scales. The detailed soil spatial information was derived using a GIS (geographical information system), expert knowledge, and fuzzy logic based predictive mapping approach (Soil Land Inference Model, SoLIM). The Regional Hydro-Ecological Simulation System (RHESSys) is used to simulate two watershed processes: net photosynthesis and stream flow. The difference between simulation based on the conventional soil map and that based on the detailed predictive soil map at a given simulation scale is perceived to be the effect of scale incompatibility between conventional soil data and the rest of the (more detailed) data layers at that scale. Two modeling approaches were taken in this study: the lumped parameter approach and the distributed parameter approach. The results over two small watersheds indicate that the effect does not necessarily always increase or decrease as the simulation scale becomes finer or coarser. For a given watershed there seems to be a fixed scale at which the effect is consistently low for the simulated processes with both the lumped parameter approach and the distributed parameter approach.     

Seasonal and spatial distribution of the microbenthic communities of the Rio de la Plata estuary (Argentina) and possible environmental controls

The relationship between microbenthic communities, the habitat characteristics, and physical and chemical gradients was studied in the Rio de la Plata estuary. Five replicates of the surface layer were collected seasonally, in 10 sampling sites influenced by different land uses. The distribution of microbenthic communities was governed by two gradients, the first one determined by anthropic factors, related to pollution, and the second one to conductivity and turbidity. The higher densities of producers were observed in sites characterized by fine sediments. During winter, spring, and summer cyanophytes were abundant, while in autumn the diatoms, particularly birraphideans, dominated. The ciliates were the most abundant group among consumers, particularly in winter, and their spatial distribution was influenced by the turbidity. The whole study area has an eutrophic condition. Turbidity and the enrichment with nutrients and organic matter explained 50% of the variability in the species’ distribution.     

Sustainability schizophrenia or “actually existing sustainabilities?” toward a broader understanding of the politics and promise of local sustainability in the US

As an approach to development, many see capitalism as reaching across an enormous range of scholarly domains and political interests. For some time geographers and others have begun to conceptualize capitalism as less of a system of intrinsic economic logic and more a collection of social and discursive relationships. By bringing capitalism into the “discursive world” these commentators and others have provided the theoretical ground for an exploration of alternative economic forms, especially those that are more socially and ecologically just. This paper makes an argument for putting sustainable development through the same theoretical scrutiny. Drawing on examples from the US we recruit the concept of “actually existing sustainabilities” from Altvater’s concept “actually existing socialisms” as an entry point to this conversation. Our purpose is to show that the potential for sustainability in the US exists in current local policies and practices if we rethink how we frame it.     

哈拉湖岩芯XRF扫描元素统计分析及其环境意义

青藏高原东北缘高山湖泊哈拉湖是位于季风与西风影响的交汇带的封闭深水湖泊,是区域环境和气候变化的良好记录载体。目前对该湖的研究还较少,缺乏对沉积物中元素环境意义的系统认识。通过高分辨率XRF岩芯扫描,用相关、聚类和因子分析的方法对哈拉湖沉积岩芯地球化学元素进行分析。结果显示Ti、K、Si、Al、Fe、Mn等元素变化一致,相关性高,归为同一类,即径流输入的陆源碎屑组分,反映了流域水文状况如径流量的变化。Sr、Zr元素相关性高,为赋存在粗颗粒沉积物中的元素,根据哈拉湖实际,应为冬季湖泊冰面风力搬运,反映了湖区冬季风力强度的变化。Ca元素既与径流输入元素总体变化一致,也与Sr、Zr元素显著相关,且在第一和第二主成分(径流和风力)上的载荷相当,表明哈拉湖沉积物中的碳酸盐既有粗颗粒的外源碎屑,也有湖泊自生的组分,这在利用碳酸盐进行地球化学研究时应重视,注意去除外源碎屑碳酸盐的影响。可溶元素S和Cl可能反映了入湖水量与蒸发对比情况,与湖泊盐度有关。     

现代侵蚀作用核素示踪研究新进展

利用放射性核素示踪环境地球化学过程是国际地球科学的前缘课题。介绍了利用宇宙线成因的短寿命散落核素⁷Be示踪土壤季节性侵蚀及其与湖泊沉积耦合关系的最新研究进展;证实了利用核爆炸散落核素¹³⁷Cs示踪累计性土壤侵蚀和沉积计年的可靠性;阐述了²²⁶Ra和²²⁸Ra在土壤中比活度的形态变化分异具有很好的侵蚀－堆积示踪价值;揭示了在不同生物化学条件下,²¹⁰Pb的行为特征和影响因素,并将²¹⁰Pb_ex示踪碳酸盐岩区域土壤侵蚀速率结果与湖泊沉积速率相耦合,证明了利用²¹⁰Pb示踪土壤侵蚀的可行性。     

Probing the (in)compatibilities of social theory and policy relevance in Piers Blaikie’s political ecology

One of Piers Blaikie’s most important contributions to the development of political ecology is his critique of land and resource conservation policy in the global South. In this paper I trace the development of Blaikie’s ideas about the policy relevance of political ecology, focusing particularly on the challenges posed by the introduction of poststructural social theory into the field. I begin by revisiting Blaikie’s earlier critiques of environment and development policy. This will provide the departure point to explore how his thinking on the relationship of theory and policy and of academic and development practices has evolved in subsequent writings. I have invented two personas, “early Blaikie” and “late Blaikie”, to facilitate this task. Second, I want to probe some of the challenges that late Blaikie presents for doing political ecology research, to some extent by pitting early Blaikie against late Blaikie and letting them hash it out. Third, I turn to my own and others’ research and consultation experiences as a way to examine the possibilities for reconciling theoretically driven critiques with policy relevant research.     

华北地区强震前的信号震及其预测意义

根据对华北地区1970年以来M_S≥6地震以前中小地震活动空间图像变化特征的分析, 研究了“信号震”发生的时空特征及其地震活动背景, 由“场-源”关系特征对一般地震进行严格的筛选识别, 从而得出信号震的有关预测指标。 信号震一般发生在强震前的2年之内, 多数发生在15个月内; 信号震与强震的距离不超过200 km, 多数在100 km之内; 震级强度一般为M_L4.0～5.3。 信号震一般发生在局部的M_L≥4.0地震平静区内, 一般发生在中小地震条带上或条带附近, 在其周围或附近存在中小地震空区。 检验结果表明, 信号震发生后的9个月之内, 其预测概率P_t即超过0.5, R_t值达到0.27; 预测区域半径在距信号震震中100 km之内时, 其发生概率P_d可以达到0.73; 预测强震震级一般为M_S≥6.0。 研究表明, 信号震的环境应力值τ₀明显高于其他地震, 显示了高应力背景的异常显著性, 它所辐射的地震波中很可能含有未来强震孕震区的大量的本质性信息。