Showing papers in "GeoJournal in 1997"
TL;DR: The manifold influences of tourism on coastal areas are analyzed from three different angles: (1) the development of seaside tourism including the changes of socioeconomic and settlement patterns; (2) its cultural impact on the local population; (3) its environmental aspects as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The manifold influences of tourism on coastal areas are analysed from three different angles: (1) The development of seaside tourism including the changes of socio-economic and settlement patterns; (2) its cultural impact on the local population; (3) its environmental aspects. Point 1 is described with the help of a model showing four peripheries in space and time: (I) the North Sea and Baltic coasts since the 18th century; (II) Southern Europe during the 19th century; (III) the North African shores around 1950; (IV) the tropical oceans after 1965. Within every periphery, several phases (pioneer, domestic, international) can be distinguished according to the origin of tourists, the investment, the know-how etc. While the beginning of every phase is dominated from abroad, later-on national actors play an increasing role. This applies also to point 2, which refers mainly to developing countries. As for point 3, mass tourism may result detrimentally on water supply, sensitive coastal landscapes, socio-cultural identity etc. Among the questions to be raised are: How far are industrial societies responsible for any negative impacts of tourism, and what are the chances for, and a general consciousness on, a sustainable tourism development?
143 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a Pareto model is used for identifying as metropolises one or a few large cities for each national urban system, and two empirical power laws are established, linking the size of the metropoises to their national urban systems.
Abstract: Many controversial questions about the shape and evolution of city size distributions can be solved if reliable, large and comparable set of date are used for several countries. We provide new empirical evidence by using the large data base ‘Geopolis’, which has strictly comparable figures for all towns and cities of the world over 10000 inhabitants between 1950 and 1990. A Pareto model is used for identifying as metropolises one or a few large cities for each national urban system. From those data, two empirical power laws are established, linking the size of the metropolises to the size of their national urban system. The first is a transversal law : for a set of countries at a given date, the share of population concentrated in metropolises tends to decrease when larger countries are considered. The second law, which is longitudinal, shows that metropolises in the past have grown in a systematic way more rapidly than the rest of their urban system, invalidating Gibrat’s urban growth model. Such empirical regularities could help for predicting the future of nowadays observed metropolisation trends.
89 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a multivariate factor-cluster analysis technique is used to produce richer regions and show clear climate variations within this vast country, and the results obtained by the technique are compared with those of some traditional methods.
Abstract: This study is aimed to be a contribution to climatic regionalization of Saudi Arabia. The study applies a multivariate factor -- cluster analysis technique. The data used here have been obtained from 56 meteorological stations. The application of the technique is made into two stages. In the first stage, factor analysis alone is considered and its results in Saudi Arabia are discussed. In the second stage, the resultant factor scores are taken as an input in a cluster analysis process to obtain climatic regions. Thus the regions obtained in the second stage are a result of the integration of factor and cluster techniques. The results obtained by the technique are compared with those of some traditional methods. The factor-cluster analysis technique is found advantageous over many of those methods, as it produces richer regions and shows clear climate variations within this vast country.
65 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that national identities develop and change continually, so that each generation modifies it according to existing socio-cultural situations and that certain critical historical periods and specific natural and cultural elements seem to be crucial in the narration of Finnish identity.
Abstract: National identity has become a catchword in discussions of the relations between culture and nation-states during recent decades. Narratives of nation have become crucial in the definition of the individual, so that other identities are usually understood only as slightly modifying it. The present paper starts from the fact that nation, national identity and nationalism are contextual and co ntested categories, and suggests a critical approach, labelled as the institutionalization of territories, which should evaluate the practices and ideological mechanisms involved in the production and reproduction of territories and their identities. The institutionalization of the Finnish territory and the representations of Finnish national identity are analysed as concrete examples. It is argued that national identities develop and change continually, so that each generation modifies it according to existing socio-cultural situations. Certain critical historical periods and specific natural and cultural elements seem to be crucial in the narration of Finnish identity.
62 citations
TL;DR: The Maltese islands are composed mainly of limestones, the soils are young and are very similar to the parent rocks, and there are no mountains, streams or lakes, but only minor springs; the main geomorphological features are karstic limestone plateaux, hillsides covered with clay taluses, gently rolling limestone plains, valleys which drain runoff during the wet season, steep sea cliff on the south-western coasts, and gently sloping rocky shores to the Northeast as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The Maltese Islands, situated in the central Mediterranean, occupy an area of only some 316 km2. The climate is typically Mediterranean: the average annual rainfall is c. 530 mm of which some 85% falls during the period October to March; the mean monthly temperature range is 12--26 °C, and the islands are very windy and sunny. Although small, the Maltese Islands have a considerable diversity of landscapes and ecosystems which are representative of the range and variety of those of the Mediterranean region. The islands are composed mainly of limestones, the soils are young and are very similar to the parent rocks, and there are no mountains, streams or lakes, but only minor springs; the main geomorphological features are karstic limestone plateaux, hillsides covered with clay taluses, gently rolling limestone plains, valleys which drain runoff during the wet season, steep sea-cliffs on the south-western coasts, and gently sloping rocky shores to the Northeast. The main vegetational assemblages are maquis, garigue and steppe; minor ones include patches of woodland, coastal wetlands, sand dunes, freshwater, and rupestral communities; the latter are the most scientifically important in view of the large number of endemic species they support. Human impact is significant. Some 38% of the land area is cultivated, c. 15% is built up, and the rest is countryside. The present landscape is a result of the interaction of geology and climate, coupled with the intense human exploitation of the environment over many thousands of years, which has altered the original condition of the vegetation cover, principally through the diversion of vast tracts of land to cultivation, the construction of terraces, water catchment devices, irrigation channels and drainage ditches, the grazing of animals on uncultivated land, and the development of land for buildings and industry. The scantiness of the soil, combined with the erratic rainfall and the periodic disturbance of the vegetation cover, has resulted in extensive erosion. As a consequence it is now difficult for the original vegetation to reassert itself, affecting the landscape drastically and permanently. Much of the original native flora has been lost or marginalised and the present day non-urban landscape is now dominated by vegetation consisting mainly of ruderal and introduced species. As the population increases, and human pressure on the environment mounts, such trends are likely to continue and it is only very recently that some important initiatives have been taken to manage the environment and halt the deterioration of the landscape.
50 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the importance of strong organisational structures in the first stages of the production of knowledge that is commercially applicable in order to prevent valuable knowledge from premature dissipation, which makes it difficult to imitate or use the knowledge in other regions.
Abstract: The increasing attention for the economic value of the scientific work produced in universities has resulted in a multitude of concepts concerning the production and transfer of knowledge and possible linkages with the business community. Many universities are engaged in activities aimed at improving the economic development of their respective regions. They often participate in 'Science Parks', 'Techno Parcs', and 'Technopoles'. They attempt to stimulate 'spin-offs' and to promote the further use of the knowledge produced in their departments. The regional economic impact varies with the kind of knowledge involved. Only certain parts can be put to commercial use, more in particular the technological products of the knowledge output. Property rights of knowledge have to be defended, which makes it less easy to imitate or use the knowledge in other regions. The current trend to sell knowledge makes it necessary to build a strong organisational structure, especially in the first stages of the production of knowledge that is commercially applicable. Such an organisation requires huge funds and the establishment of strong teams of experts, to prevent valuable knowledge from premature dissipation. These teams and departments have better prospects in larger urban areas with a strongly differentiated economy, with agglomeration economies and lower transaction costs. In these regions it will be easier to have spin-offs (new firms) and to retain a linkage with entrepreneurs-alumni from the universities. An efficient organisation is an important precondition for successful universities and regions.
47 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the last glacial maximum (LGM) of the Himalaya ice-stream network with a snow-line altitude (ELA) at c. 3400-3600 m in the Nanga Parbat massif.
Abstract: The results presented on the glacio-geomorphological reconstruction of a maximum Ice Age (LGM = Last Glacial Maximum) glaciation in High-Asia concern five test-areas in and around Tibet (Figure 1, Nos. 14, 6, 17, 2, 9, 18, 16). For the E-Pamir plateau and its mountains a covering ice cap is proved; a snow-line (ELA)-depression of 820–1250 m in relation to the present relief has been calculated. The Ice Age snow-line ran at 3750–3950 m asl. In the Nanga Parbat-massif a glacial (LGM) ice-stream network with a snow-line altitude (ELA) at c. 3400– 3600 m has been reconstructed. This corresponds to an ELA-depression of at least 1200 m. The lowest ice margin site of the connected 1800–1900 m-thick Indus glacier flowed down to c. 800 m asl. From N-Tibet the author introduces further observations of ground moraines and erratics from a high plateau area he had already investigated in 1981. They provide evidence of a complete inland ice sheet in Tibet. From the S edge of Tibet six large outlet glacier systems i.e. lowest High Glacial ice margin sites of the Himalaya ice-stream network are reconstructed. This is a continuation of the investigations in 1977, 1978, 1982, 1984, 1988 and 1989 between Kangchendzonga in the E and Nanda Devi in the W. In this place probably the lowest glacial glacier end of the Himalaya-S-slope was found at c. 460 m asl at the Dumre settlement, S of the Manaslu. C14-datings from the Tsangpo valley on the S edge of Central Tibet classify the reconstructed Tibetan ice as being from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) between older than 48580 ± 4660–2930 and 9820 ± 350 YBP. From this empirical findings and inductive results on the Ice Age Tibetan glaciation are derived deductive conclusions on the interaction of the relief and the snow-line altitude with concern to the ice cover. Modelling by means of those snow-line depressions and estimations of the precipitation provide ideas about surface heights, ice thicknesses and flow behaviour of the ice sheet. The hypothesis of a global triggering of the ice age by the uplift of the subtropical Tibet up to above the snow-line motivates the investigations presented here.
45 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared estimated wood production in West African bush and forest formations based on an available equation using rainfall data with own collected data on local wood consumption in a village in southern Mali.
Abstract: The study takes a conventional supply and demand approach to the study of fuelwood use. It compares estimated wood production in West African bush and forest formations based on an available equation using rainfall data with own collected data on local wood consumption in a village in southern Mali. To allow comparison, data from 49 other villages in the same area are analysed. This study, toget her with an earlier study in northern Mali, indicates that locally induced deforestation caused by fuelwood use does not represent an immediate problem in rural Mali. Local use of fuelwood does not seem to be exceeding forest regeneration. However, where there is external pressure on the forest represented by commercial exploitation of wood for sale in the urban centres, fuelwood depletion might occur.
43 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a computerized aid to the land use planning process is demonstrated on the urban edge of Cape Town, South Africa using IDRISI GIS package to evaluate development suitability for four land use categories according to appropriately measured and weighted criteria.
Abstract: A computerised aid to the land use planning process is demonstrated on the urban edge of Cape Town, South Africa. Multi-criteria analysis is performed in the IDRISI GIS package to evaluate development suitability for four land use categories according to appropriately measured and weighted criteria. The four suitability images are then subjected to multi-objective land allocation to demarcate optimum locations for each land use type. The decision-making process entails execution of seven consecutive steps which are discussed in detail and applied in the case study. Technical decisions are rationalised and results displayed. The paper concludes with a call for the development of applications which can incorporate public participation in this type of decision-making process to ensure the wider acceptance of advanced GIS technology as ‘appropriate technology’.
43 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss two economic functions of the University of Wales Cardiff (Cardiff University) in relation to local and regional economic development, including its direct and indirect impact as an economic force in its own rights in the locality and the wider city-region of South East Wales.
Abstract: This paper discusses two economic functions of the University of Wales Cardiff (Cardiff University) in relation to local and regional economic development. The first concerns its direct and indirect impact as an economic force in its own rights in the locality and the wider city-region of South East Wales. Through the application of impact analysis it shown that the University is responsible for generating a gross local output of approximately £100 million a year and sustaining over 3,000 jobs. The second aspect of the paper concerns the knowledge impact of the University and its contribution to the development of regional industrial clusters in the automotive and electronics industries, and enhancing the ‘learning capacity’ of the locality.
36 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined, analyzed and assessed the indigenous soil knowledge among the Fulani subsistence farmers in two villages of northern Burkina Faso with the aim of evaluating its adequacy for sustaining soil fertility and for the appropriateness of tapping indigenous knowledge in development programs.
Abstract: The indigenous soil knowledge among the Fulani subsistence farmers in two villages of northern Burkina Faso is examined, analysed and assessed with the aim of evaluating its adequacy for sustaining soil fertility and for the appropriateness of tapping indigenous knowledge in development programmes. The analytical framework is a multidisciplinary approach combining soil science and anthropology. The results show a high degree of consistency between the science-based western soil classification and the Fulani soil classification although the routes of generation are different. The farmers are aware of and active in management of soil fertility based on their experience, but express no thorough understanding of the mechanisms of plant growth. The soil knowledge is applied in the farming strategies which, as a primary aim, seek to minimize the risk of harvest failure. However, the analysis also suggests that the knowledge is no part of a ‘free-standing’ knowledge body which can be separated from the actual agricultural performance. The farmers express a general concern about the present state of the environment and degradation processes; however, there is no motivation to take active control of and manage the bush area. This is in contrast with the way millet cultivators actively manage their fields. An explanation of this is suggested by the division between the two Fulani ethnic subgroups, the FulBe who are the former masters and the RimayBe, the former slaves.
TL;DR: The outstanding cases of university-industrial synergy are all American: Highway 128 around Boston, Silicon Valley in the San Francisco bay Area, and Los Angeles’ Aerospace Alley as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Universities were originally urban institutions with a vocational mission, though later some of them lost these categories. The outstanding cases of university-industrial synergy are all American: Highway 128 around Boston, Silicon Valley in the San Francisco bay Area, and Los Angeles’ Aerospace Alley. They display common features, notably their dependence on defence contracts during the Cold war, but there are differences in the subsequent history. Europe and Japan provide more negative examples: the English M4 corridor west of London, the French Cite Scientifique Ile-de-France Sud and the Japanese science town of Tsukuba have all been less successful than their American counterparts, though Cambridge seems to have been an exception; interestingly, its origins were different.
TL;DR: In this article, the main conclusions from an in-depth study of the local economic, social and environmental impacts of Lancaster University in 1991/92 are presented, and the likely impacts of further expansion at the University through to the year 2001 are explored.
Abstract: The paper presents the main conclusions from an in-depth study of the local economic, social and environmental impacts of Lancaster University in 1991/92. The likely impacts of further expansion at the University through to the year 2001 are explored. Lancaster University is revealed as having major environmental and social impacts as well as the more widely researched employment and income multiplier effects. Lessons are drawn from the Lancaster University experience which are likely to be of a general nature and can assist other universities seeking to maximise their local benefits and minimise their local cost impacts. The local impacts of universities are likely to need much more careful management than has occurred in the past if detrimental effects are to be avoided.
TL;DR: In this paper, major trends of social restructuring of Moscow population and processes of intra-urban segregation are discussed, and a conclusion is drawn about the variation of the character of urban population differentiation and its transition to a stage of property based spatial segregation.
Abstract: Major trends of social restructuring of Moscow population and processes of intra-urban segregation are discussed. The article comprises two main parts. The first part deals with differences between the population of Moscow and that of Russia based on the main socio-economic indicators. In the second part, emphasis is placed on the urban processes of social stratification of the population on the basis of analysis of the demographic and employment patterns of the population and peculiarities of the functioning housing market. The merging of top government officials and new business elites is stressed. A conclusion is drawn about the variation of the character of urban population differentiation and its transition to a stage of property-based spatial segregation.
TL;DR: In this paper, the locational pattern of business services in Moscow is analyzed in the context of established concepts of BS location in the largest cities of the world and existing views on urban change in transitional economies.
Abstract: The locational pattern of business services in Moscow is analyzed in the context of established concepts of BS location in the largest cities of the world and existing views on urban change in transitional economies. The typically post-Soviet elements of this pattern are emphasized as well as the way they affect urban change generally. The empirical part of the paper comprises a detailed analysis of BS locations in Moscow and an attempt to explain the geography of business districts in a broad historical and political context. The theoretical discussion is focused on similarities and differences of BS spatial structures in Moscow with those of other world capitals.
TL;DR: It is revealed that the recent eastward migration reverses patterns of migration under Mao and it is found that investment variables are more important than the conventional variables of income and job opportunities in determining China's recent interregional migration.
Abstract: "This paper analyzes changing interregional migration in China and reveals that the recent eastward migration reverses patterns of migration under Mao. It finds that investment variables are more important than the conventional variables of income and job opportunities in determining China's recent interregional migration. It suggests that both state policy and the global force influence interregional migration, challenging the popular view that the socialist state is the only critical determinant. This paper also criticizes Mao's approach to interregional migration and discusses the impact of migration on development."
TL;DR: In this paper, examples of typical Mediterranean Quaternary lithofacies, including tufa and slope, fluvial, coastal, aeolian and cave deposits are described from the Maltese Islands.
Abstract: The Quaternary deposits of the Mediterranean countries provide clear evidence of past environments, and of environmental change. Modern work enables the reinterpretation of these deposits and shows arid glacial stages and humid interglacial stages, with the Holocene characterised by considerable human impact, mostly resulting from agricultural activity. In this paper, examples of typical Mediterranean Quaternary lithofacies, including tufa and slope, fluvial, coastal, aeolian and cave deposits are described from the Maltese Islands. The deposits are correlated and their climatic signal is interpreted to provide a first modern assessment of Quaternary environmental change in the Maltese Islands.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present observations on the natural hazard potential for permanent and seasonal mountain settlements and infrastructure such as routeways and irrigation canals in the North-West Karakorum.
Abstract: This article presents observations on the natural hazard potential for permanent and seasonal mountain settlements and infrastructure such as routeways and irrigation canals in the North-West Karakorum. The remote high mountain settlement Shimshal (3080 m), located in the upper Shimshal valley and surrounded by three potential natural glacier dams, is of particular interest. The permanent settlement of Shimshal and its seasonal pasture settlements in the Shimshal Pamir at heights of 3200 and 4600 m respectively, reach the upper limits for permanent and temporary settlement. The choice of location for settlement and agricultural activities is already dictated by relief conditions. Primary settlement areas are the sediment accumulations in the valley floors. The wide distribution of unconsolidated screes in particular prevents settlement expansion upwards along the valley slopes. Glacial outburst floods as well as seasonal flooding events further reduce the scanty settlement area, as well as being among the most devastating sources of danger. The production of debris and the supply of loose material deposits induced in connection with the glaciation history of the area becomes a permanent source of danger for human settlement through resedimentation in the form of rockfall or mudflow. Furthermore, canal systems essential for the survival of oasis settlements suffer annual destruction through mass movements on the slopes, induced by the glacially pre-formed relief. Thus the adaptation of settlement locations to a glacially formed mountain relief will be examined in this study, with particular reference to the geomorphological landscape situation. What makes the Shimshal settlement particularly interesting is its very isolated location at a distance of 80 km from the Hunza valley which contains the main settlement concentration of the North-West Karakorum. Traditional ways of life can be expected to be well protected from outside influences. In the North-West Karakorum we find a debris landscape which differs greatly in its development and distribution from that of the Himalayas, influenced particularly in the lower valley locations between 1000 and 3000 m by the different climatic situation, and where therefore in comparison with the Himalayas a completely different pattern of natural hazards arises.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine women's perceptions of fear and their consequent impact on women's experience and use of public space in Singapore and conclude that women experience greater levels of fear of crime and this fear is qualitatively different from men's as it is largely centred on a fear of rape.
Abstract: This paper examines women's perceptions of fear and their consequent impact on women's experience and use of public space in Singapore. It argues that even in a city ranked as one of the safest in the world, women experience greater levels of fear of crime and that this fear is qualitatively different from men's as it is largely centred on a fear of rape. It identifies the various sources of ‘fear’ information which play a part in the construction of images of danger, including personal victimisation experiences, socialisation, the mass media and interpersonal communication. It argues that fear is place- and time-specific and that women's feelings of personal vulnerability is manifested within an environmental context. In examining the consequences of fear on women's lives, the study concludes that risk management behaviour was more prevalent than avoidance tactics. It argues that while many restrictions appear self-imposed by women themselves, the fear of crime in public places ultimately contributes to the perpetuation of what has been termed a ‘spatial expression of patriarchy’.
TL;DR: In this article, an analysis of the physical characteristics of an established wine region in eastern California, USA was undertaken to determine if a unique combination of environmental parameters in Zinfandel vineyards could be quantitatively identified.
Abstract: An analysis of the physical characteristics of an established wine region in eastern California, USA was undertaken to discern if a unique combination of environmental parameters in Zinfandel vineyards could be quantitatively identified. Development of a geographic information system (GIS) method to assess land suitability for current and potential viticultural regions in a Mediterranean-type climate is the primary focus. The assessment is based on spatial frequency distributions of measurable environmental criteria derived from characteristics of existing vineyards. In fact, statistically significant differences were found at the 95% confidence interval for 6 variables, and at the 85% confidence interval for an additional 3 variables. Thus 9 of the 15 variables analyzed (53%) were discriminated statistically between the vineyard and non-vineyard areas. The findings of this study illustrate the potential of GIS techniques for viticultural land suitability analysis, while supporting and contributing to the literature on the significance of soil and topographic characteristics in viticulture.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored the knowledge capacity of cities in a theoretical and empirical sense, and various planning tools aimed at knowledge-based economic growth were considered, with a focus on differences between the actors involved, and opportunities and constraints for success.
Abstract: Knowledge about new technology is a main determinant of the competitiveness of cities and regions nowadays. It reduces the amount of uncertainty of companies in their daily operations. In addition, it is a basis for the establishment of new companies and the restructuring of old ones. The availability and use of knowledge has thus a major influence on the development of urban and regional economies. An amazingly small amount of research has been done on the knowledge capacity of cities to date, i.e. urban potentials to generate, store, transfer and use knowledge. This article explores therefore, the urban knowledge capacity in a theoretical and empirical sense. Attention will be given to essential urban knowledge activities, and to the comprehensive and complex nature of the phenomena involved. In addition, various planning tools aimed at knowledge-based economic growth will be considered, with a focus on differences between the actors involved, and opportunities and constraints for success. In the empirical part, the city of Delft in the Netherlands will serve as an example, particularly regarding local policies for knowledge-based growth. Delft is an interesting case given the abundant availability of new technology and the relatively low level of local new firm formation.
TL;DR: The history of South Africa shows that different approaches have been employed to develop South African national identities as mentioned in this paper, however, these approaches could not produce a single national identity, and when the Government of National Unity (GNU) came to power after the first democratic national elections in April 1994, a new chapter was opened for the country to search for a new South Africanism.
Abstract: The history of South Africa shows that different approaches have been employed to develop South African national identities. These approaches, however, could not produce a single national identity. When the Government of National Unity (GNU) came to power after the first democratic national elections in April 1994, a new chapter was opened for the country to search for a new South Africanism. This paper attempts to give an overview of the nationalisms which dominated the politics of the Union and the Republic of South Africa. The overview is intended to provide the reader with the background for understanding the efforts by the GNU to build a new post-apartheid national identity. The central focus of the paper is the changing bases on which a South African nationhood was/is built.
TL;DR: The most successful cases of recent urban development in Italy are associated with the formation of metropolitan networked regions in which a major metropolitan centre is linked with cities of a lower level by hierarchical, complementary and synergetic relations as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: A recent study on the European integration of the Italian urban system shows that globalisation processes do not necessarily separate cities from their regional networks. The most successful cases of recent urban development in Italy are associated with the formation of metropolitan networked regions in which a major metropolitan centre is linked with cities of a lower level by hierarchical, complementary and synergetic relations. The paper examines the result of an analysis carried out on 148 major Italian daily urban systems. It takes into account two sets of indicators: one referring to the supraregional network interactions, measuring the degree of globalisation, and one referring to the proximity interactions inside the regional networks, measuring the degree of regional cohesion. They allow the definition of typologies of urban systems founded on a (normally positive) correlation between supraregional functional openness and regional integration.
TL;DR: The annual conference of the Royal Geographical Society/Institute of British Geographers, held in Exeter in January 1997, offered wide coverage of issues relating to urban and regional restructuring in Eastern Europe as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The annual conference of the Royal Geographical Society/Institute of British Geographers, held in Exeter in January 1997, offered wide coverage of issues relating to urban and regional restructuring in Eastern Europe. This paper attempts to summarise the main arguments to emerge from the seminars and to provide a coherent view of the discussions. In the urban context, there was consideration of ownership change and the growth of the tertiary sector, but with significant tension between planners and local residents. Enterprise in cities showed wide spatial variations according to the quality of the infrastructure and status in the urban hierarchy. Regional restructuring was also shown to be uneven, given the global scale of the competition for investment. But substantial progress was reported in some regions, despite a tendency to exaggerate the impact of foreign investment in the early years of the transition.
TL;DR: In the city of Moscow, the city government's policies contribute to an increasing exclusiveness of the city centre by marketing the centre's historic character, subsidising private investment, and a new residential segregation based on capital as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Reconstruction of the historic centre of Moscow and the construction of apartment blocks on the city's outskirts are the city's two main programmes within what must be regarded as its urban policy. With these priorities, the strategy of relying on a mixture of city and private investments, the city government's policies contribute to an increasing exclusiveness of the city centre. This process, which includes a process of gentrification, reflects the impact of the transition to a free-market economy. City planning and reconstruction projects are subject to the new, still chaotic, market opportunities and constraints while the soviet planning principles and organizations have not yet been replaced by efficient new ones. There is a lack of control and regulation, as well as a concentration of power in the mayoral cabinet on the one hand, but on the other hand, the finance strategies make large-scale regeneration possible. With entering the global economy, post-soviet Moscow is acquiring more traits of western, capitalist cities. These include marketing the centre's historic character, subsidising private investment, and a new residential segregation based on capital.
TL;DR: This article explored the complex relationships between land cover, environmental change and forced migration in the middle valley of the Senegal River, attempting both to identify the nature of environmental impacts of forced displacement with specific reference to land cover and examine the social, political and economic circumstances in which these are exacerbated or reduced.
Abstract: This paper seeks to explore the complex relationships between land cover, environmental change and forced migration in the middle valley of the Senegal River, attempting both to identify the nature of environmental impacts of forced displacement with specific reference to land cover, and to examine the social, political and economic circumstances in which these are exacerbated or reduced. The study concludes that change in land cover caused by the presence of refugees is not a major cause for concern in this area, despite the vulnerability of the natural environment. Significant factors in reducing negative impacts include the dispersal of the refugee population, and cultural and social proximity of the refugee and local populations surveyed. At the same time, observed changes in land cover need to be treated with caution, given the often cyclical nature of environmental change, and the range of factors associated with it.
TL;DR: The emergence of the Newly Independent States at the end of 1991, although due to the coincidence of historical events, was a logical outcome of the political crisis within the USSR as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The emergence of the Newly Independent States at the end of 1991, although due to the coincidence of historical events, was a logical outcome of the political crisis within the USSR The nations had been actively formed during the Soviet period and they considered their homeland the territory which bore the name of a definite nationality Since all the Union republics were multi-ethnic entities it is rather hard for them to form the nation-states up to present Citizenship is just being formed and in many areas the ‘state-idea’ is still to emerge Georgia, a NIS in the Transcaucasus, bears most of the common features of the post-Soviet political space But it has distinct peculiarities in state-building due to its location and historical legacy The national self-identity of the Georgians was formed quite a long time ago, but some geopolitical problems may temporarily hinder the formation of stable boundaries of this NIS
TL;DR: In this article, the historical to post-glacial glacier positions have been reconstructed from the recent glaciation history of selected examples by calculating the snow-line depression after taking the relief factor into account.
Abstract: The historical to post-glacial glacier positions have beenreconstructed from the recent glaciation history of selectedexamples. The chronological sequence of the ice margin positionscan be deduced from the increasing ages of the structures, whichare proportional to the distance from the recent terminus of theglacial tongue, or to the difference between the elevation of theice surface and that of the crest of the lateral moraine. Achronological classification of the glacial events in `phases'can be defined by calculating the snow-line depression aftertaking the relief factor into account. On a small scale, theyoungest glacial positions may vary depending on the localrelief. In both areas under investigation, the post-glacial iceextents are similar in so far as they are not more than 6 km fromthe Recent ice margin, and the historical and Neoglacial phasesare spatially close to one another. A decrease in the elevationof the glacial surface is a more important factor, compared tothe oscillations of the glacial tongue, influencing thedevelopment of the multiphase, lateral moraines that characterisethe Holocene glacial fluctuations.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the main changes in the metropolitan labor markets associated with economic restructuring in Mexico during the late 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, looking for common characteristics in their emergent employment structures now strongly differentiated in terms of rewards, stability in employment relations and conditions of access to jobs.
Abstract: The objective of this paper is to examine the main changes in the metropolitan labor markets associated with economic restructuring in Mexico during the late 1980s and beginning of the 1990s. The analysis refers particularly to the four largest metropoles of the country, Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey and Puebla, looking for common characteristics in their emergent employment structures now strongly differentiated in terms of rewards, stability in employment relations and conditions of access to jobs. The analysis reveals that largest metropolitan areas have been the most profoundly affected by the economic restructuring resulting from globalization, through a rapid de-industrialization and the expansion of the tertiary sector. Metropolitan labor markets in Mexico, at the time that show signs of social polarization in the formal sector, put in evidence a general process of precarization – less labor stability, replacement of permanent by part-time jobs, and increasing subcontracting –, segmentation of the labor force, and an increasing informal conditions of economic activities with small businesses and unskilled, temporarly and poorly paid jobs. The labor force segmentation and its more precarious and casual conditions are mostly explained by the impact of recent neoliberal policies, and recurrent economic crisis during the 1980s and 1990s which highly contributes to social inequality.
TL;DR: The authors examines some of the contradictory assertions in the research literature regarding the on-going reorganization of urban systems through a detailed empirical analysis of the changing properties of the Canadian urban system, and demonstrates not only the diversity and rapidity of change, with its intensely uneven geography, but the often indeterminant and contadictory nature of many of the relationships underlying that change.
Abstract: The Canadian urban system, like most other national urban systems, has been subjected to intense pressures for change over the last two decades, emanating from both external and internal sources. The combined outcomes of these changes for the urban system, however, remain ambiguous.This paper examines some of the contradictory assertions in the research literature regarding the on-going reorganization of urban systems through a detailed empirical analysis of the changing properties of the Canadian urban system. The analysis begins with a conceptual framework that recognizes alternative logics and trajectories of change in urban systems, the latter expressed for analytical purposes as simple polarities. The paper then demonstrates not only the diversity and rapidity of change, with its intensely uneven geography, but the often indeterminant and contadictory nature of many of the relationships underlying that change.