Gardens of Gold Halvaksz, Jamon Alex; Sivaramakrishnan, K
08/2020
eBook
Since the start of colonial gold mining in the early 1920s, the
Biangai villagers of Elauru and Winima in Papua New Guinea have
moved away from planting yams and other subsistence foods to
instead ...cultivating coffee and other cash crops and dishing for
tradable flakes of gold. Decades of industrial gold mining, land
development, conservation efforts, and biological research have
wrought transformations in the landscape and entwined traditional
Biangai gardening practices with Western capital, disrupting the
relationship between place and person and the social reproduction
of a community.
Drawing from extensive ethnographic research, Jamon Halvaksz
examines the role of place in informing indigenous relationships
with conservation and development. How do Biangai make meaning with
the physical world? Collapsing Western distinctions between self
and an earthly other, Halvaksz shows us it is a sense of
place-grounded in productive relationships between nature and
culture-that connects Biangai to one another as "placepersons" and
enables them to navigate global forces amid changing local and
regional economies. Centering local responses along the frontiers
of resource extraction, Gardens of Gold contributes to our
understanding of how neoliberal economic practices intervene in
place-based economies and identities.
Yellowstone holds a special place in America's heart. As the world's first national park, it is globally recognized as the crown jewel of modern environmental preservation. But the park and its ...surrounding regions have recently become a lightning rod for environmental conflict, plagued by intense and intractable political struggles among the federal government, National Park Service, environmentalists, industry, local residents, and elected officials.The Battle for Yellowstoneasks why it is that, with the flood of expert scientific, economic, and legal efforts to resolve disagreements over Yellowstone, there is no improvement? Why do even seemingly minor issues erupt into impassioned disputes? What can Yellowstone teach us about the worsening environmental conflicts worldwide?
Justin Farrell argues that the battle for Yellowstone has deep moral, cultural, and spiritual roots that until now have been obscured by the supposedly rational and technical nature of the conflict. Tracing in unprecedented detail the moral causes and consequences of large-scale social change in the American West, he describes how a "new-west" social order has emerged that has devalued traditional American beliefs about manifest destiny and rugged individualism, and how morality and spirituality have influenced the most polarizing and techno-centric conflicts in Yellowstone's history.
This groundbreaking book shows how the unprecedented conflict over Yellowstone is not all about science, law, or economic interests, but more surprisingly, is about cultural upheaval and the construction of new moral and spiritual boundaries in the American West.
We have seen longstanding research interest in diverse nature–society relations, including contentious debates regarding what nature is, the role of humans within or apart from it, and how varied ...types of non‐human nature shape different societies and individuals within society. Within this work, relatively little attention has been paid to an important aspect of nature experienced everyday: people's “weather‐worlds.” These encompass the qualities of sensory experience that are shaped by fluxes in the medium – the air – in which we routinely live and breathe. Such currents, forces and pressure gradients underwrite our capacities to act and interact with both the animate and inanimate materials and beings we encounter as we negotiate our everyday lives. We focus on these weather worlds here, drawing on the findings of an in‐depth qualitative study exploring how people with varying forms and severities of sight impairment describe their nature experiences, with the weather emerging as an immediate and often highly visceral form of everyday nature encounter among all participants. We reflect on the ephemeral qualities of people's weather‐worlds, highlighting their potential to comfort, invigorate and connect, but also to disorientate, threaten and isolate, at times supporting moments of well‐being or exacerbating experiences of impairment and disability. In doing so, we highlight how attending to the weather is essential if we are to fully understand people's emplaced experiences of well‐being, impairment and disability with(in) diverse forms of multi‐elemental, assembled nature.
This paper attends to the somewhat “absent presence” of the weather in contemporary scholarship pertaining to emergent geographies of well‐being and disability with(in) more‐than‐human nature. It highlights the potential for different flows and, importantly, intensities of wind, light and precipitation to soothe and invigorate, but also to disorientate and isolate, in the everyday lives of people living with sight impairment. The paper demonstrates how living well with the weather relies on enduring, improvising and “making do,” weaving together various material arrangements with supportive relations, and, where necessary, rescheduling practices and tasks around the vagaries of the weather.
In this paper, we operationalize the concept of Societal Relationships with Nature (SRN) as a framework for understanding nature‐related conflicts and multiple values.
Based on three dimensions ...knowledgescape, interactions and identity, we propose a set of questions for the empirical analysis of conflict situations.
We use two case studies—designation of a biosphere reserve in southern Chile and the return of the wolf in Germany—to illustrate how the SRN framework can reveal and structure the complexity of human–nature relationships.
From the conceptual advances and the academic debate on multiple values of nature, we derive four requirements for approaches to analyse nature‐related conflicts and how different stakeholders attribute importance to nature.
These should (a) cover the relevant aspects and reveal the critical issues underlying a conflict, (b) enable an understanding of differences and commonalities in people’s perspectives and positions, (c) be comprehensive enough to uncover important issues in complex situations without losing empirical practicability and (d) take power relations into account.
We discuss whether and how the SRN framework meets these requirements.
We present the SRN framework in particular to the academic community working at the interface with policy and practice on multiple values of nature and nature‐related conflicts.
SRN analysis can also be applied to complement valuation approaches by specifying and explaining differences in people’s attributions of value to nature.
Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Zusammenfassung
Auf Grundlage des Konzepts der Gesellschaftlichen Naturverhältnisse (Societal Relationships with Nature, SRN) entwickelt dieser Artikel einen Analyserahmen zur Untersuchung von naturbezogenen Konflikten und Wertvorstellungen.
Die empirische Analyse von Konfliktsituationen erfolgt anhand von Leitfragen für die drei sich ergänzenden Dimensionen Wissenserwerb (knowledgescape), Interaktionen und Identität.
Zwei Fallstudien, zur Etablierung eines Biosphärenreservats in Südchile und zur Rückkehr des Wolfs nach Deutschland, illustrieren, wie mit Hilfe des SRN‐Rahmens die Komplexität von Mensch‐Natur‐Verhältnissen offengelegt und strukturiert werden kann.
Aus der konzeptionellen Debatte über die multidimensionale Bewertung der Natur leiten wir vier Anforderungen für Analyseansätze zu naturbezogenen Konflikten und divergenten Wertvorstellungen ab.
Solche Ansätze sollten (i) alle relevanten und potenziell den Konflikten zugrundeliegenden Aspekte einbeziehen, (ii) die Unterschiede ebenso wie die Gemeinsamkeiten in den Positionen beteiligter Akteursgruppen aufdecken, (iii) trotz der für die Erfassung komplexer Situationen notwendigen Breite der Analyse die praktische Anwendbarkeit gewährleisten, und (iv) Machtgefüge angemessen berücksichtigen.
Wir erörtern, inwieweit der SRN‐Rahmen diese Anforderungen erfüllt.
Der SRN‐Analyserahmen dürfte insbesondere für Wissenschaftler interessant sein, die an der Schnittstelle zu Politik und Anwendungspraxis zu naturbezogenen Konflikten und Wertvorstellungen arbeiten.
SRN Analyse kann beispielsweise Bewertungsansätze ergänzen, um die Gründe für unterschiedliche naturbezogene Wertvorstellungen zu erklären.
Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Hydrogeology Hölting, Bernward; Coldewey, Wilhelm G
2018, 20180626, 2018-06-25
eBook
This textbook provides a complete introduction to Hydrogeology. It is a comprehensive reference for earth science professionals involved in groundwater exploitation as well as for geotechnical ...engineers. This English translation of the German textbook "Hydrogeologie" by Hölting & Coldewey, which has been published in its 8th edition, provides insights into the sources and reservoirs of groundwater, the dynamics of fluid flow, and the physical and chemical composition of groundwater. It also gives an overview about the economic value of groundwater and its exploitation and use. A consistent use of the internationally accepted SI units as well as the formula symbols in the text contributes to the understandability.
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are prevalent in many western populations. Large studies have put the likelihood of having at least one ACE above 50% of the general population. ACEs and the ...associated experience of chronic stress, moreover, have been consistently linked with a variety of negative physical and psychological health outcomes across the lifespan from behavioral problems and cognitive difficulties early on, to greater chance of suffering from a mental health disorder and engaging in self destructing behaviors. The literature puts forward several protective factors, such as mother-child relations, parental health, and community engagement. In this perspective paper we put forward the potential of regular nature engagement as a possible additional protective factor. Nature's therapeutic potential has been well documented, for many psychopathologies and mental health difficulties. Yet studies looking at the protective and therapeutic potential of nature with people with ACEs are remarkably limited in numbers. In this perspective piece we conduct a search of the literature to find previous applications of nature as a protective or therapeutic intervention for people with ACEs. We highlight the gap in the current literature, and put forward various mechanisms of action that justify a closer exploration of this area in further research.
In the first book-length treatise on historical ecology of the West Indies, Island Historical Ecology addresses Caribbean island ecologies from the perspective of social and cultural interventions ...over approximately eight millennia of human occupations. Environmental coring carried out in carefully selected wetlands allowed for the reconstruction of pre-colonial and colonial landscapes on islands between Venezuela and Puerto Rico. Comparisons with well-documented patterns in the Mediterranean and Pacific islands place this case study into a larger context of island historical ecology.
Uncontrollable dendrite growth and sluggish ion‐transport kinetics are considered as the main obstacles for the further development of high‐performance aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs). Here, a ...nature‐inspired separator (ZnHAP/BC) is developed to tackle these issues via the hybridization of the biomass‐derived bacterial cellulose (BC) network and nano‐hydroxyapatite particles (HAP). The as‐prepared ZnHAP/BC separator not only regulates the desolvation process of the hydrated Zn2+ ions (Zn(H2O)62+) by suppressing the water reactivity through the surface functional groups, alleviating the water‐induced side‐reactions, but also boosts the ion‐transport kinetics and homogenize the Zn2+ flux, resulting in a fast and uniform Zn deposition. Remarkably, the Zn|Zn symmetric cell with ZnHAP/BC separator harvests a long‐term stability over 1600 h at 1 mA cm−2, 1 mAh cm−2 and endures stable cycling over 1025 and 611 h even at a high depth of discharge (DOD) of 50% and 80%, respectively. The Zn|V2O5 full cell with a low negative/positive (N/P) capacity ratio of 2.7 achieves a superior capacity retention of 82% after 2500 cycles at 10 A g−1. Furthermore, the Zn/HAP separator can be totally degraded within 2 weeks. This work develops a novel nature‐derived separator and provides insights in constructing functional separators toward sustainable and advanced AZIBs.
A nature‐inspired separator (ZnHAP/BC) is developed to achieve sustainable and high‐performance aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs) by suppressing the water activity and regulating the ion‐transport behavior for the first time. The as‐fabricated ZnHAP/BC separator renders a state‐of‐the‐art deep‐cycling performance of Zn anodes, and long‐term stability with a limited Zn supply in Zn|V2O5 battery.
Human behavior is a key driver of the biodiversity crisis, and addressing it requires changing individual choices and actions. Yet, the same processes that imperil biodiversity (e.g., urbanization) ...also alienate people from the experience of nature, eroding care for the natural world. Although averting this extinction of experience is increasingly recognized as a major contemporary conservation challenge, understanding of what constitutes nature experience remains elusive and few empirical studies have explored it directly. Most researchers have used nature interactions as a stand‐in for experience, even though experience extends beyond interactions. We aimed to determine what constitutes the experience of nature and to propose a holistic, empirically derived framework that incorporates the multiple dimensions and components of the experience of nature. Using a mixed‐method approach across 3 countries (the United States, Switzerland, and Israel), we conducted a multistage, conceptual content, cognitive mapping (3CM) exercise with 106 participants. This methodology included developing a prompt to capture participants’ perceptions of nature experiences and subsequently refining and organizing their input into distinct components and underlying dimensions through an iterative engagement process. Beyond multisensory interactions with nature, experience of nature consisted of 2 dimensions: the circumstances in which interactions occur and the internal responses that encompass various cognitive, affective, and restorative benefits associated with nature interactions. These 3 dimensions had 33 components that occurred consistently across participants in the 3 countries. Frequently mentioned components included seeing animals, landscapes, or scenery; lack of human influence; weather conditions; relaxing, recharging; feeling good; and awe for nature. Fear and nature experienced at home were the least mentioned components. Together, our results showed that nature experience is a combination of nature interactions, circumstances, and internal responses. The emphasized components underscore the significance of offering access to extensive, less human‐influenced natural spaces. This in turn can foster a profound nature experience, cultivating feelings of connectedness and care for nature.
Un marco de trabajo para entender la experiencia humana de la naturaleza a través del mapeo cognitivo
Resumen
El comportamiento humano es un factor clave en la crisis de la biodiversidad, por lo que abordarlo requiere cambios en las acciones y elecciones individuales. Aun así, los mismos procesos que ponen en peligro la biodiversidad (p. ej.: la urbanización) también alejan a las personas de experimentar la naturaleza, lo que disminuye el cuidado por la naturaleza. Aunque cada vez se reconoce más que evitar la extinción de las experiencias es un reto importante para la conservación, todavía no está claro qué constituye una experiencia de la naturaleza y pocos estudios empíricos lo han estudiado directamente. La mayoría de los investigadores ha usado las interacciones con la naturaleza como un sustituto para las experiencias, aunque éstas van más allá de las interacciones. Buscamos determinar qué constituye a las experiencias de la naturaleza y proponer un marco holístico y empírico que incorpore las múltiples dimensiones y componentes de la experiencia de la naturaleza. Usamos una estrategia de método mixto en tres países (EUA, Suiza e Israel) para realizar un ejercicio de un mapeo cognitivo de contenido conceptual en varias fases (3CM) con 106 participantes. Esta metodología incluyó el desarrollo de una entrada para capturar la percepción de los participantes con respecto a las experiencias de la naturaleza y con ello refinar y organizar sus contribuciones en diferentes componentes y dimensiones subyacentes por medio de un proceso iterativo de participación. Más allá de las interacciones multisensoriales con la naturaleza, las vivencias de la naturaleza consistieron en dos dimensiones: las circunstancias en las que ocurren las interacciones y las respuestas internas que engloban varios beneficios cognitivos, afectivos y restauradores asociados con las interacciones con la naturaleza. Estas dos dimensiones contaron con 33 componentes que aparecieron constantemente entre los participantes de los tres países. Con frecuencia mencionaron componentes que incluían avistamiento de animales o paisajes; la ausencia de influencia humana; las condiciones del clima; relajarse, recargarse; sentirse bien; y asombro por la naturaleza. El miedo y la naturaleza vivida en casa fueron los componentes menos mencionados. En conjunto, nuestros resultados mostraron que las vivencias de la naturaleza son una combinación de interacciones con la naturaleza, circunstancias y respuestas internas. Los componentes enfatizados resaltan la importancia de ofrecer acceso a los espacios naturales extensos con menos influencia humana. Esto a la vez puede promover una experiencia profunda de la naturaleza, lo que genera sentimientos de conexión y cuidado de la naturaleza.
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