Negotiations with the Animate Forest: Hunting Shrines in the Guatemalan Highlands

Ethnoarchaeological research at highland Maya hunting shrines documents the material remains of interactions between two types of animate beings: humans and the forest. When either active agent enters the others’ domain there are accompanying ceremonial activities to assuage the inherent danger, often leaving physical traces in the material record. These traces, if found in the archaeological record, might reveal similar ancient interactions. Using the material correlates of modern hunting rituals, we explore the utility of ethnoarchaeological research in identifying negotiations with non-human agents associated with the animate forest – an active agent in many societies.     

Enhancing spatial learning and mobility training of visually impaired people—a technical paper on the Internet-based tactile and audio-tactile mapping

Thanks to advances in technology such as Internet-based mapping and the development of special inks, papers and global positioning systems, map making for vision impaired people can provide a range of products (e.g., tactile, haptic and audio-tactile maps) that can improve their independence, self-confidence and everyday life. The applications of tactile maps include learning spatial concepts and geography; audio-tactile maps combined with access to geospatial information can enhance mobility and independence. In 1998, the Mapping Services Branch (MSB) of the Earth Sciences Sector of Natural Resources Canada initiated a tactile mapping program. Now referred to as the Government on Line—Mapping for the Visually Impaired Project (Natural Resources Canada 2003a), it aims to serve the community with special needs, with emphasis on those who are blind or visually impaired, their teachers and mobility instructors. This technical paper discusses the various types of tactile and audio-tactile maps of Canada developed by the MSB in cooperation with its partners and describe the current research and development activities carried out within the project. It also leads the reader to further information on audio-tactile maps and touch- and sound-based computer interfaces.     

A Question of Access: Education Needs of Undocumented Children in Malaysia

In 2002, the Government of Malaysia amended the Education Act of 1996 (Act 550) to, in effect, limit access to free education to Malaysian citizens. This means that children of foreigners who do not have proper documentation but reside in Malaysia cannot attend government schools. Those affected are the children of foreign workers, asylum seekers and refugees. This paper attempts to outline the background to the education needs of Filipino children and map out existing initiatives by non-government organisations to mitigate the problems of illiteracy and poverty. It also attempts to describe the aspirations of these children in terms of education. The first section discusses the circumstances behind being undocumented in East Malaysia, while the second section describes existing local non-government organisation initiatives and the challenges such organisations face in providing free education to undocumented children. The findings are drawn from two fieldwork sessions, conducted in 2006–07 and 2013–14. Both research sessions used observation, semi-structured interviews and focus-group discussions (FGD) with children aged 7–17 years in Sabah, Malaysia. This study finds that children are in a desperate situation as a result of being denied an education. While there are non-formal learning centres available in their communities, these local initiatives are insufficient to provide a clear path to education in towns and rural villages.     

Agricultural policy in Australia: deregulation,bipartisanship and agrarian sentiment

This paper provides an overview of the development of agricultural policy in Australia from a complex web of government intervention in the sector in the first half of the 20th century to the deregulation of the past 40 years. It highlights the close interrelationship between agricultural policy and manufacturing policy as well as the areas in which agricultural policy has been distinctive, namely the largely bipartisan nature of agricultural policy development and the strong cultural attachment across the community to farmers in general and family farming in particular. Recent policy debates suggest that agricultural policy will remain a sector apart in terms of the broadly bipartisan nature of policy and the ongoing influence of non-economic considerations. Australia will retain its comparative advantage in agricultural exports into the future and policymakers will need to continue to balance policies that support the economic performance of the sector with those that reflect community expectations of support for the farming community more broadly.