This paper is guided by the question: How do illicit practices of organized groups contribute to the formation and reproduction of disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Czechia? By asking this question we ...depart from the dominant understanding of disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the study of organized crime. Instead of seeing them as “breeding grounds of organized crime”, it is explored how regular neighbourhoods can decline as a result of illicit practices carried out by certain organized groups. The context of the paper is the so-called “poverty business”, which refers to the renting of overpriced, substandard housing, financed considerably using housing benefits and thus exploiting the housing need of vulnerable social groups, namely Roma. Using the literature on Roma marginalization and illicit housing practices, an analytical framework that consists of the concepts of speculation, exploitation and liquidation is created and applied to two cases of disadvantaged neighbourhoods: “the Hostel” in Brno and “the Neighbourhood” in Litvínov. In conclusion, the adequacy of the organized crime perspective is critically discussed and the need for further research articulated.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, PRFLJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Recenzní úvod disertační práce Ing. arch. Kristýny Staré, obhájené na Fakultě architektury ČVUT, Praha, v roce 2019.
Stávající kurikulum umožňuje začlenění tématu krajiny s využitím poznatků oboru ...architektura a urbanismus do výuky na základních školách s cílem podpořit vzdělávání vedoucí k uvědomělé a občansky angažované společnosti. Obvykle se však tyto vstupy omezují spíše na mimořádné projekty a programy nabízené externími odborníky, především z nestátních neziskových organizací.
Disertační práce Kristýny Staré prověřuje možnosti, jak podpořit a rozvíjet vztah dětí raně školního věku ke krajině prostřednictvím integrace témat oboru architektura a urbanismus do kurikula primárního vzdělávání. Zaměřuje se na české prostředí s přihlédnutím k zahraničním modelům jako volné inspiraci.
Ve vlastním výzkumu jsou využity kvalitativní i kvantitativní metody aplikovaného společenskovědního výzkumu. Stěžejní zdroj dat představují polostrukturované rozhovory s tzv. ohniskovou skupinou, která průřezově pokrývá odborníky napříč profesemi a institucionální hierarchií, a pedagogy, kteří se účastnili experimentální fáze výzkumu. Data z rozhovorů jsou analyzovaná a interpretována podle principů zakotvené teorie.
Výsledkem komparace a evaluace získaných dat jsou tyto výstupy: (1) návrh opatření potřebných pro zvyšování povědomí neodborné veřejnosti o tématu a jejich systematické začleňování do školního vzdělávání; (2) přínosy výsledků výzkumu pro představitele oboru architektura – urbanismus a oborů příbuzných a pro pedagogy, kteří se dosud tématem krajiny blíže nezabývali, i pro zainteresovanou odbornou veřejnost; (3) v neposlední řadě jsou pojmenovány limity realizovaného výzkumu a nastíněny výzvy pro výzkumy navazující.
Czech agriculture is dealing with the consequences of climate change. Agroforestry cultures are being discursively reintroduced for better adaptability and resilience, with the first practical ...explorations seen in the field. Scholars have been working with farmers and regional stakeholders to establish a baseline for making agroforestry policy viable and sustainable. In a research effort that lasted three years, a large group of Czech farmers was interviewed via questionnaire surveys, standardized focus groups and in-depth personal interviews regarding their knowledge of agroforestry systems, their willingness to participate in these systems, and their concerns and expectations therewith. The information obtained helped the researchers gain better understanding of issues related to implementation of these systems. It was found that although trees are present on Czech farms and farmers appreciate their aesthetic and ecological landscape functions, knowledge about possible local synergies with crops and animals is lacking. This local knowledge gap, together with lack of market opportunities for the output of agroforestry systems and undeveloped administrative processes, have been identified as the greatest obstacles to the establishment of agroforestry systems. The researchers argue that the discovered cognitive and technological “lock-in” of the farmers may represent a risk to climate change adaptability and resilience. For the development of complex and localised land use (e.g., agroforestry) in such a context, the researchers suggest participative on-farm research, which would broaden the local knowledge base related to ecology and entrepreneurship.
This study explores the relationship between social exclusion and housing tenure. It seeks to identify the factors that increase the chance that inhabitants of socially excluded localities (SELs) in ...Czechia will live in a hostel (a single room occupancy hotel). Do these factors indicate a higher intensity of social exclusion among people who live in hostels? Do hostels house the more disadvantaged segment of the disadvantaged population, such as the inhabitants of SELs? Our aim is to produce a more nuanced understanding of the different needs of the heterogeneous population of socially excluded localities, which can be used to implement socially inclusive measures. We analyse data obtained in a survey of the population of SELs. We apply binary logistic regression using socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics of respondents and their households and variables measuring victimisation and respondents’ risk behaviour as predictors. Along with descriptive statistics we present the results of the simple and multiple binary logistic regressions. The multiple model revealed the following predictors to be statistically significant: the share of rent in household income, household size, residential mobility, citizenship, labour status, criminal activity not punished by imprisonment, nationality/ethnicity, and property victimisation of the household. Except for the last two, these factors increase the chance of socially disadvantaged persons living in a hostel. Future research directions and the political implications of our findings are discussed in the conclusion.
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CEKLJ, NUK, ODKLJ, UL, UM, UPUK
Poverty business has become an important metaphor in the current debate regarding security in socially excluded localities. The term poverty business covers a range of business practices aimed at the ...poorest and most vulnerable populations. The goal of this study is to examine media representations of the phenomenon using content analysis of quantitative and qualitative data. First, characteristics of Czech media messages including the term “poverty business” are analysed. Next, key events are identified which have shaped the way poverty business is reported on in the analysed corpus. Finally, topics, groups and key actors are analysed based on the development of their quantitative representation in the corpus over time.
In the present article, we reflect on the victimization survey conducted as part of the research project BRIZOLIT (Security Risks in Socially Excluded Localities). Our main focus is on the ...methodological, epistemological and ethical problems which appeared during the survey among inhabitants ofthe so-called socially excluded localities in April — August 2016. More specifically, we will deal withthe issues related to the construction of our research object, interviewing strategies, as well as problems of validity of survey data with regard to the complex processes of victimization in socially excluded localities. In other words, we will try to answer three rather basic questions: „Who did weresearch? How did we do it? How did we record our findings?“ and hope to provide clues for futureresearchers facing similar problems.
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