The Archaeology of the Kelp Industry in the Northern Islands of Ireland

The manufacture of kelp in Ireland from the 17th to early 20th centuries provided soda and later iodine for contemporary industries. It was an immensely important element of coastal economies, and notably for island communities, often impoverished and with limited agricultural means. This paper traces the origins and development of the industry in Ireland and examines the evidence for production in the islands off the northern coast. The results of a recent survey of surviving kelp monuments are presented. The form of the monuments, in particular kilns, is considered as well as the role of the industry in island economies.
© 2006 The Author     

Placing GIS in sustainability education

As public awareness about sustainability grows and as higher education advances sustainability more comprehensively, geographers have an opportunity to take a role in sustainability education. This article examines (1) what constitutes sustainability education, (2) how geographic concepts and Geographic Information System (GIS) are relevant to sustainability education, and (3) how geospatial thinking can be incorporated into the sustainability curriculum using GIS. This research proposes five geospatial inquiries that students can make to explore sustainability issues using GIS, which are spatial distribution, spatial interactions, spatial relationships, spatial comparisons, and temporal relationships. Definition, examples, and uses of these five geospatial inquiries supported by GIS are provided.     

Reflective Journals as a Tool for Auto-Ethnographic Learning: A Case Study of Student Experiences With Individualized Sustainability

This paper critically evaluates the use of journals as a pedagogic tool to encourage reflection, critique and self-analysis by students. Based within a postgraduate teaching module that has operated annually since 2008 and was awarded the Royal Town Planning Institute's Award for Teaching Excellence in 2009, reflexive journals were employed as a method of assessment which, supplemented by conventional lectures and student focus groups, sought to explore the relations, opportunities and obstacles for sustainable development at the individual level.     

Improbable Art: The Creative Economy and Sustainable Cluster Development in a Hong Kong Industrial District

A noted Singapore-based cultural geographer and specialist on Asia analyzes the emergence and functioning of a unique artistic cluster in Hong Kong's Fotan light industrial district. The objective of the research is to understand how artistic work in the cluster, despite some challenges, has thus far proven sustainable in cultural, social, and economic terms. The findings of this case study permit further clarification of several dimensions of an emerging theory of cultural/creative clusters, which should be considered as distinct from business and industrial clusters. Selective comparisons between the Fotan cluster and the Moganshan Lu cluster in Shanghai demonstrate that cultural/creative clusters do not face uniform challenges in striking a balance between economic and cultural sustainability.     

Ecosystem Management Research: Clarifying the Concept of Interdisciplinary Work

Abstract

Ecosystem management (EM) is a process for addressing environmental problems. It draws on research from multiple disciplines in order to ensure long-term maintenance of socio-ecological systems. The present study evaluates the definition of interdisciplinary work among researchers involved in generating data use (EM). The goal is twofold: to generate further discussions in research supporting EM, and to better situate this research in the broader context of interdisciplinary science. Using an online questionnaire, data was collected from 119 researchers. A cluster analysis identified both distinct and shared understandings of the concept. A logistic regression analysis identified the extent to which personal characteristics and researchers’ understandings of interdisciplinary theory determine definitions of interdisciplinary work. Researchers differ on the terminology but share an understanding about what it is: both a ‘way to do research’ and a ‘way of thinking about research’. Differences between researchers suggest a growing interest in developing deeper engagements with theoretical discussions of interdisciplinarity. Results are discussed in the context of the current state of development of research for EM and its contributions to sustainability.     

Free Trade Agreements and the Neo-Liberal Economic Paradigm: Economic,Ecological, and Moral Consequences

Abstract

Since signing and implementing the North American Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in the early 1990s, the United States has pursued other free trade agreements with nations in Latin America and Asia. The premise undergirding FTAs is that trade liberalization within the neo-liberal global economy produces economic growth and development among all parties, and reduces poverty in poor nations. We examine arguments of proponents of free trade and the neo-liberal economy— particularly those of Martin Wolf, author of Why Globalization Works— to test these claims. We explore alternatives that center on norms of ecological sustainability and social justice, holding these two as inseparable. The central moral question of how to achieve needed socioeconomic development in the Global South in ways that are both ecologically sustainable and socially just frames our analysis. We conclude by proposing five principles for an alternative, more sustainable and equitable economic paradigm.     

地球评分:一种环保绩效考核的量化可持续性指标体系

我国当前正在蓬勃开展生态省、生态城市、……直至生态村、绿色居住小区和绿色学校、环境友好企业等等创建活动。澳大利亚可持续旅游合作研究中心（STCRC）自主开发的、拥有完整知识产权的“地球评分”指标体系则可以帮助上述各类绿色创建活动达到量化、规范化和制度化的目的,使之更具有公信力和持久的生命力。各级政府和部门都可以采用“地球评分”的量化指标体系,每年对辖区和下属机构及企事业单位进行一次“环保绩效”考核,由专业的审计单位实施,并最终得出量化的、可采信的各级干部“环保政绩”分值。     

Editorial

Colleges and universities in the USA and many other countries find themselves in a deepening financial challenge that is significantly influencing operating decisions as well as student access to higher education. These trends are attributed to the weakened finances of governments, competition from non-discretionary public spending, the nature of education as a service industry and the fraying of the social contract between higher education and the public. This paper argues that Geography as a discipline can both survive in and benefit from this changing educational landscape. There are several themes that will strongly influence higher education in the years ahead, including competition, technology, globalization and sustainability. The nature of such forces over space and time continues to be ripe for geographic inquiry, but they will require the field to be more analytical, more connected to other disciplines and more international in its teaching and research.     

乡村社区可持续性研究进展与展望

伴随着全球气候变化和粮食危机出现,乡村地区成为可持续性转型研究的新焦点。乡村社区可持续性是可持续发展研究的重要领域,对促进我国乡村振兴、城乡融合和可持续发展具有重大意义。根据世界可持续发展历程,结合国内外研究文献分析,乡村社区可持续研究可以划分为起步、拓展和逐步深化三大阶段。可持续性、脆弱性、韧性是可持续发展理念下演变的不同研究主题,是当前城乡发展研究的三大热点议题。乡村发展多功能、多维度、多主体等趋势下,乡村社区可持续性包含社区生态、社区产业、社区空间、社区规划、社区治理等多维度实施路径。未来的乡村社区可持续性研究,要重视多维度综合的乡村社区可持续性评定、乡村社区风险识别与监测、乡村社区可持续性转型、乡村社区生活质量与乡村吸引力提升和现代化治理等问题的深入探讨。实现中国乡村社区可持续性,应综合考虑较优越的政治背景、较大的地域环境差异等基本特征与现实问题。     

Quo vadis,Delhi? Urban heritage and gender: towards a sustainable urban future

Historic architectural heritage is important to sustainable urban planning policy, particularly in cities that have heritage sites and/or themselves have ancient archaeological value. Delhi is one of the oldest living cities in the world. However, the vision of its planning policy is limited to valuing heritage for itself and for its economic value instead of also exploring the ways in the city’s heritage might contribute to the social organisation and utilisation of the urban public space. Particularly, like most national policy documents on heritage, it ignores the heritage/gender nexus, which has implications for the identity and status of women in Delhi, community development and ecological preservation. But twenty women practioners and scholars of development in Delhi referred to heritage as a challenge as well as opportunity for gender and urban sustainability when asked for their perspectives on the most important sustainability issues in the city. I argue that Delhi’s urban planning strategies must acknowledge the gender/heritage nexus to enable holistic and gender-inclusive urban development for the present and future generations of its citizens, which is an important thrust of the sustainability agenda.     

宁夏南部回族社区人地关系及可持续发展研究

本文运用区域可持续发展基本理论,全面分析了宁夏南部回族社区人地关系由掠夺式向互为报复式演进的过程、原由及危害,剖析了回族社区可持续发展的四大制约因子,即:生活贫困及生产方式的落后性,人类自身生产及人口素质的低层次性,区域文化的封闭性,生态环境的逆展性。并针对上述因子,提出了改善人地关系,实现可持续发展的举措是:加快区域经济建设,深化生态环境建设,加强地域文化建设,积极进行社区建设。     

中国内地女性主义地理学研究进展和展望

女性主义地理学主要研究女性与空间、地方的互动和重构,西方女性主义地理学发展源于20世纪70年代,我国相关研究进展相对缓慢。文章通过关键词搜索,利用主题分析法将研究文献分为女性与城乡空间、就业空间、家庭空间、女性人才与地理、文学艺术空间、旅游六个主题,归纳和分析目前研究进展,并提出相关建议,以期引起国内学者更多关注。总起来说,国内女性主义地理学的研究问题紧密地与国家和社会的重大问题相关联,体现了很强的现实关怀,结论对中国未来的政策有借鉴作用。但研究中主要借鉴了西方理论,缺少自己发展的基本概念和理论。未来学者们应继续以现实问题为导向,关注本土情境和中国经验,从性别、空间、可持续的交叉领域切入,生产本土女性主义地理学知识。     

A Response to Tomás Halík

Abstract

The Churches were significant players in the debate surrounding what has been called Britain's "lost opportunity" in the 1940s and 50s to play a leading role in building a united Europe. This article focuses on Christian theological and historical assumptions about humanity as a universal community, the nation and the Church. It examines Christian discourse about the political dimension of these communities and the part that Christianity as a belief system should ideally play between them. It then outlines the "Christendom" narrative, which represented medieval Europe as a model for the future of Europe, as a partial realization of the ideal alignment of power and culture, which in its decay was the cause of international crisis. Finally, some of the points of tension between Christendom, British national identity, and a united Europe among Christians are discussed.