Performance of community-based coastal resource management (CBCRM) programs in the Philippines: A meta-analysis

Community-based coastal resource management (CBCRM) is a major conservation and fisheries management strategy in the tropics. In this study, the performance of 16 CBCRM programs in the Philippines was assessed using a meta-analysis of eight indicators that represented the perceptions of local resource users. Overall, the CBCRM programs in the Philippines were perceived to have a significant positive impact. However, the performance of each of the indicators was mixed. Although the CBCRM programs were perceived to be effective in empowering the local fishing communities, their perceived impact on improving the state of the local fisheries resources remained limited. This highlights the importance of incorporating ecological and socio-economic considerations in setting fisheries management regimes.     

A Vulnerability Interpretation of the Geography of HIV/AIDS in Ghana, 1986–1995

Ten years after the human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV) was first reported in Ghana, it continues to spread throughout the country following patterns that are rare in other African countries. HIV is seen in twice as many females as males, more frequently in rural than urban regions, and regions with high rates of polygamy have significantly lower rates. The evidence presented in this paper shows that HIV diffusion patterns probably reflect the spatial distribution and social networks of vulnerable social groups. While information-based campaigns are still necessary in the fight against HIV/AIDS, they fail to enable or empower vulnerable people to protect themselves against infection.     

The GeoCitizen-approach: community-based spatial planning – an Ecuadorian case study

Over the last years, geospatial web platforms, social media, and volunteered geographic information (VGI) have opened a window of opportunity for traditional Public Participatory GIS (PPGIS) to usher in a new era. Taking advantage of these technological achievements, this paper presents a new approach for a citizen-orientated framework of spatial planning that aims at integrating participatory community work into existing decision-making structures. One major cornerstone of the presented approach is the application of a social geoweb platform (the GeoCitizen platform) that combines geo-web technologies and social media in one single tool allowing citizens to collaboratively report observations, discuss ideas, solve, and monitor problems in their living environment at a local level. This paper gives an account of an ongoing participatory land-zoning process in the Capital District of Quito, Ecuador, where the GeoCitizen platform is applied in a long-term study.     

Women's economic empowerment and formal income: Sri Lankan Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and their impact on gender perceptions of empowerment

Women workers in Export Processing Zones (EPZs) in Sri Lanka are often exposed to harsh working conditions and a range of negative social experiences due to their perceived low social status. Research has demonstrated that they experience both empowerment and disempowerment as a result of formal employment. The authors explore the differences between female Sri Lankan EPZ workers who felt empowered (n = 2196) and those who did not (n = 107), and investigate factors that contribute to empowerment. The analysis reveals a significant difference between the two groups of workers: empowered women had a longer history of employment service, saved significantly more money, and contributed much less to their family than non-empowered women. There were no significant differences in social experiences between the groups. However, the work-related variables used to investigate reported influential factors in empowerment demonstrated that as savings increased so too did the likelihood of empowerment. Conversely, as the proportion of the contribution to the family income increased, the odds of reporting empowerment decreased. The findings suggest that work factors may not be the most important in the establishment of and/or reporting empowerment but rather earnings management and contribution to household appear to be a more significant determining factor.     

Sensors,empowerment, and accountability: a Digital Earth view from East Africa

Abstract

Several innovative ‘participatory sensing’ initiatives are under way in East Africa. They can be seen as local manifestations of the global notion of Digital Earth. The initiatives aim to amplify the voice of ordinary citizens, improve citizens' capacity to directly influence public service delivery and hold local government accountable. The popularity of these innovations is, among other things, a local reaction to the partial failure of the millennium development goals (MDGs) to deliver accurate statistics on public services in Africa. Empowered citizens, with access to standard mobile phones, can ‘sense’ via text messages and report failures in the delivery of local government services. The public disclosure of these reports on the web and other mass media may pressure local authorities to take remedial action. In this paper, we outline the potential and research challenges of a ‘participatory sensing’ platform, which we call a ‘human sensor web.’ Digital Africa's first priority could be to harness continent-wide and national data as well as local information resources, collected by citizens, in order to monitor, measure and forecast MDGs.     

Listening to Others’ Voices (LOV) Project: An Empowering Strategy Incorporating Marginalized Perspectives

This study introduces the Listening to Others’ Voices (LOV) project, an empowering strategy in geography education. This research aims to create a dataset detailing the perspectives of negatively stereotyped countries with respect to how their countries are portrayed in geography textbooks and to investigate the pedagogical effects of the LOV project. Preservice teachers in South Korea selected so-called marginalized countries from world regional geography textbooks at the secondary education level and interviewed an ambassador or similar person. It was found that the interviewees hoped to emphasize positive images, such as economic development and a unique culture. In addition, some issues relevant to the classification of current world regions were explored. The participants indicated that they felt empowered in leading the completion of the project and that they understood that geographic knowledge is a social construct.     

Fostering women's participation in development through non-governmental efforts in Cameroon

Women constitute 52 per cent of the population of Cameroon and play a very crucial role in the development of society at all levels. Unfortunately, they function from a subordinate position inherent in both traditional and state institutions. Women's empowerment is currently an issue of national concern and both state and international efforts at mainstreaming women in development have so far produced mixed results. The 'grassroots' approach of NGOs has been effective in reaching women at all levels. Activities of NGOs have had far reaching but mixed effects in meeting both practical and strategic gender needs. This paper examines case studies of NGOs and women's empowerment in Cameroon, and highlights their successes, with regard to improved access and welfare and their limitations, with regard to conscientisation, participation and control.     

“A world in a grain of sand”: towards a reconceptualisation of geographical scale

Difficulties in relating local scale change to broader dynamics of social and economic restructuring continue to be reflected in much geographical research. This paper argues that inadequate conceptualisations of geographical scale restrict the relevance of much research to the agenda of an applied peoples' geography. A framework which conceptualises geographical scale as dialectically and internally related to the totality of social relations, is proposed and discussed with examples from remote mining regions in Australia.     

赋权视角下的乡村规划社区参与及其影响分析——以陈庄为例

面向乡村振兴的规划需要真正的社区参与,已有研究多聚焦于规划技术改进,对村民参与主动性关注不足,更受制于村民较弱的参与能力。本文从赋权理论激发弱势群体权能的新视角出发,以江苏省句容市陈庄的社区参与乡村规划试验为例,结合社区心理学行为分析的“认知-情感-互动”逻辑,构建乡村规划赋权作用于社区参与行为的分析框架,并从模拟参与选择、活动参与度和组织化程度三方面测度社区参与行为及其变化。研究通过三年半共计84次跟踪调研的参与式观察、访谈和问卷调查,收集村民、规划团队、政府言行的全过程资料,分析得出：针对不同规划阶段社区参与的特定目的,规划采用差异化的赋权策略,对社区进行了很高程度的信息、教育和制度赋权。尽管规划中后期的实际参与率稍低于初期模拟的参与意愿,但赋权仍维持了较高的社区参与广度,且显著提升了社区参与深度,包括村民参与动机的转变以及个体学习、集体行动等参与能力的提高。赋权的作用,通过增加村民的信息与知识、增强村民的信心和责任,进而改变村民对规划、社区发展和自身的认知、情感以及互动能力这一传导路径得以实现。研究深化对乡村规划社区参与行为的认识,并对激发村民参与积极性与能力具有借鉴意义。