Quality, imagery and marketing: producer perspectives on quality products and services in the lagging rural regions of the European Union

A range of factors, including consumer concerns about food safety, the growing popularity of rural tourism and policy initiatives to promote endogenous rural development, is converging to promote a relocalization of food production and service provision, especially in those regions marginalized by the globalization of the food supply system. The recent outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the UK has starkly illustrated the fragility of localized systems which depend heavily on consumers travelling to them. Within such a context, the importance of successful marketing strategies has become even more apparent. This paper reports on a questionnaire survey which investigated promotional and marketing strategies among a diverse range of producers and service providers in marginal agricultural areas of the EU. The findings suggest that many producers are situated towards the "formal" end of a marketing continuum, whereby ability to promote quality products and services (QPS) lies with a range of intermediaries. This raises doubts about the future economic benefits of QPS, should current marketing structures persist. The discussion offers critical reflections on interdisciplinary and international research of this nature, and advocates further theoretical and methodological development in order to explore in more depth many of the aspects raised in this exploratory investigation.     

Characteristics of Raised Cobble Ridges in the Terrace Bay Area of the North Shore of Lake Superior

Cobble features near Terrace Bay, Ontario, traditionally described as 'raised beach ridges,' are investigated to establish the extent to which they exhibit characteristics substantiating the assumption of a wave-formed origin. Detailed examination of their plan orientation, profile, and pattern does indicate a wave-formed origin, with little evidence of shore ice activity during their formation or of sub-aerial modification since. Localized angular materials and topographic discontinuities suggest that surface morphology represents the compound effect of rare high magnitude storm wave events over the last three thousand years.
L'auteur étudie les formations de galets près de Terrace Bay, Ontario - ce qu'on désigne généralement comme des «cretes de plage soulevée≫ - afin d'établir dans quelle mesure elles présentent des caractéristiques qui permettent de justifier l'hypothèse selon laquelle elles seraient le résultat de Faction des vagues. De l'examen approfondi du plan vertical, du profil, et de la disposition des formations, on peut en effet conclure à une origine due à l'action des vagues; peu d'indices de l'action de la glace de rive durant la formation, ou de modifications subaériennes par la suite, ont été relevées. La présence de matériaux anguleux dans les environs et les discontinuités topographiques suggèrent que la morphologie de surface est le résultat de l'effet combiné, lors des derniers trois mille ans, de vagues de tempêtes exceptionnelles et d'une très grande puissance.     

The Advocacy Coalition Framework and Implementation of the Endangered Species Act: A Case Study in Western Water Politics

Theories about subsystem activity typically focus on policy formulation processes. One causal model of public policymaking, the advocacy coalition framework, offers a potentially useful way to bridge the gap between policy formulation and implementation in examining subsystem activity. The purpose of this paper is to assess the analytical utility of the advocacy coalition framework by examining the stability of policy-producing coalitions over time in the face of implementation complexities. An analysis of the policy changes that occurred during the implementation of the Endangered Species Act vis-à-vis planning for the construction of the Bureau of Reclamation's Animas-La Plata water project is conducted. The analysis reveals how coalitions protect their policy core beliefs during technical disputes through the acquiescence of secondary aspects of belief systems.     

Satellite footprint to cultural lifelines: Sirius XM and the circulation of Canadian content

Satellite radio posed a new question for Canadian policy-makers: How to take advantage of a transnational radio service while ensuring cultural identity was not lost within channel offerings that are predominately American. Comparing the initial licensing of satellite radio in Canada (2005) to the merger of the services (2011) and the post-merger license renewal (2012) highlights a shift in the spatial understanding of satellite radio, from being determined by a satellite’s footprint to that of what I call ‘cultural lifelines,’ the various mobile devices and services that enable one to maintain connection to cultural content. Alongside shifting spatial considerations of satellite radio, Canadian content has increasingly been packaged as a brand or genre, catering to fragmented taste preferences and individual, mobile listening practices.