LifePlace Thayer, Robert L
2003, 2003., 20030323, 2003-04-22
eBook, Book
Robert Thayer brings the concepts and promises of the growing bioregional movement to a wide audience in a book that passionately urges us to discover "where we are" as an antidote to our rootless, ...stressful modern lives. LifePlace is a provocative meditation on bioregionalism and what it means to live, work, eat, and play in relation to naturally, rather than politically, defined areas. In it, Thayer gives a richly textured portrait of his own home, the Putah-Cache watershed in California's Sacramento Valley, demonstrating how bioregionalism can be practiced in everyday life. Written in a lively anecdotal style and expressing a profound love of place, this book is a guide to the personal rewards and the social benefits of reinhabiting the natural world on a local scale.
Regional trade in South America since independence has long been much smaller than would be expected if geography were the only constraint on trade. Several potential explanations exist, including ...low technological and demand complementarities; low productivity; and high natural and policy barriers to trade. Focusing on the latter explanations, policy makers have long advocated a South American/Southern Cone Free Trade Area—proposed as early as 1889. Would reductions in trade costs have been sufficient to raise trade significantly, or was trade low for other reasons? We study bilateral trade between 1910 and 1950, when large external shocks altered global supply and demand. These shocks help us show that intra-regional trade could have been boosted by reductions in trade costs. Trade among Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, and Peru could have benefited from more benign trade policies or better infrastructure. Regional trade in textiles, which took off from the 1930s, supports our argument that trade improved when trade costs fell.
This study presents a socio - educational and community diagnosis from the Leonor de Ferna?ndez Educational Unit, Mara municipality, Zulia - Venezuela state 2014-2015, it is derived from a research ...project, attached to CONDES - LUZ. In order to determine the characteristics of the study area, the community diagnosis was applied as axes that allow addressing, under the category of time and space, current situations, looking in the past for elements that define the spatial structure; then return to the present and analyze and interpret, through cartographic replicas, notions and geohistorical concepts of the man - Middle relationship. Methodologically, the research is exploratory, descriptive and of Field, supported in quantifications; taking a sample of 67 elementary school students and 15 key informants. In the data collection process, the technique was applied: direct observation, the methods: geographical, set and cartographic. The following instruments were used: geographical guides, surveys, and interviews. The importance of the study lies in proposing these results, as an integrating element of the learning process in educational centers of primary education. It should be noted that the knowledge of information by the teacher and student, favor the relationship school - community and the formulation of alternatives that improve the quality of life in the geographical context.
Este estudo apresenta um diagnóstico sócio – educativo e comunitário desde a Unidade Educativa Leonor de Fernández, município Mara, estado Zulia-Venezuela 2014-2015, o mesmo se origina de um projeto de pesquisa adscrito al CONDES-LUZ. Para determinar as características da área de estudo se aplicou um diagnóstico de comunidade como eixos que permitem abordar, sob a categoria tempo e espaço, situações atuais, buscando no passado elementos que definem a estrutura espacial; logo retornar ao presente e analisar e interpretar, diante reproduções cartográficas, noções e conceitos geo-históricos da relação homem –Meio. Metodologicamente, a pesquisa é exploratória, descritiva, e de campo, apoiada nas quantificações, tomando uma amostra de 67 estudantes de educação primária e 15 informantes-chave. No processo de coleta de dados se aplicou a técnica: observação direta, os métodos: geográfico, de conjuntos e cartográficos. Como instrumentos se utilizaram: guias geográficas, questionários e entrevistas. A importância do estudo radica em propor esses resultados como elemento integrador do processo de aprendizagem em centros educativos de educação primária. Cabe destacar que o conhecimento da informação por parte do docente e estudante favorece a relação escola-comunidade, e a formulação de alternativas que melhorem a qualidade de vida no contexto geográfico.
Este estudio presenta un diagnóstico socio – educativo y comunitario desde la Unidad Educativa Leonor de Fernández, municipio Mara, estado Zulia-Venezuela 2014-2015, el mismo se deriva de un proyecto investigativo, adscrito al CONDES-LUZ. Para determinar las características del área de estudio, se aplicó el diagnóstico de comunidad como ejes que permite abordar, bajo la categoría tiempo y espacio, situaciones actuales, buscando en el pasado elementos que definen la estructura espacial; luego retornar al presente y analizar e interpretar, mediante réplicas cartográficas nociones y conceptos geohistóricos de la relación hombre - Medio. Metodológicamente, la investigación es exploratoria, descriptiva y de Campo, apoyada en cuantificaciones; tomando una muestra de 67 estudiantes de educación primaria y 15 informantes claves. En el proceso de recolección de datos, se aplicó la técnica: observación directa, los métodos: geográfico, de conjuntos y cartográfico. Como instrumentos se utilizaron: guías geográficas, encuestas y entrevistas. La importancia del estudio radica en proponer éstos resultados, como elemento integrador del proceso de aprendizaje en centros educativos de educación primaria. Cabe destacar que el conocimiento de la información por parte del docente y estudiante, favorecen la relación escuela – comunidad y la formulación de alternativas que mejoren la calidad de vida en el contexto geográfico.
The northwest border city of Tijuana is Mexico's fifth largest and is experiencing burgeoning drug use and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemics. Because local geography influences disease ...risk, we explored the spatial distribution of HIV among injection drug users (IDUs). From 2006-2007, 1,056 IDUs were recruited using respondent-driven sampling and then followed for eighteen months. Participants underwent semiannual surveys, mapping, and testing for HIV, tuberculosis, and syphilis. Using average nearest neighbor and Getis-Ord Gi* statistics, locations where participants lived, worked, bought drugs, and injected drugs were compared with HIV status and environmental and behavioral factors. Median age was thirty-seven years; 85 percent were male. Females had higher HIV prevalence than males (10.2 percent vs. 3.4 percent; p = 0.001). HIV cases at baseline (n = 47) most strongly clustered by drug injection sites (Z score = -6.173, p < 0.001), with a 16-km
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hotspot near the Mexico-U.S. border, encompassing the red-light district. Spatial correlates of HIV included syphilis infection, female gender, younger age, increased hours on the street per day, and higher number of injection partners. Almost all HIV seroconverters injected within a 2.5-block radius of each other immediately prior to seroconversion. Only history of syphilis infection and female gender were strongly associated with HIV in the area where incident cases injected. Directional trends suggested a largely static epidemic until July through December 2008, when HIV spread to the southeast, possibly related to intensified violence and policing that spiked in the latter half of 2008. Although clustering allows for targeting interventions, the dynamic nature of epidemics suggests the importance of mobile treatment and harm reduction programs.
In this introduction to the Special Issue ‘Practising a New Regional Geography in Northland’, we call for a new regional geography. We use the experience of a field course to reflect upon the ...opportunities and challenges associated with doing ‘regional geography’ in the regions, a subdiscipline that has in recent decades been pushed into the backwaters of the discipline. We reinterpret the maxim ‘geography is what geographers do’ in a new way that emphasises pedagogy and research practice. The case of Northland and helping our students to learn experientially about community and environment under the rubric of sustainability allows us to argue the case for a reinterpretation of regional geography in these terms. We position the contributions in this Special Issue in terms of our call.
The article is a study of forming the local geography competence in Ukraine’s physical geography classes. The objectives of scientific research are to analyze the features of forming the local ...geography competence in Ukraine’s physical geography classes. The role of studying local geography in forming students’ learning competences is defined. The methods and techniques, which are optimal for forming the local geography competence in Ukraine’s physical geography classes, the personal-activity approach, the problem approach in theory of education, the application of innovative technologies, including interactive, communication, design and research activities are singled out. Psychological and pedagogical methodological conditions are created which activate the creative students’ potential that contributes to improving the quality of geographical education. These conditions are the following: 1) application of technology of problem learning, allowed to implement logical thinking and to form a stable interest in the study of Geography; 2) the widespread use of information and communication technologies in teaching geography provided a condition for the development of the student’s individual creative abilities and his/her orientation in the information space; conducting design and research activities in combination with information technologies allows to develop the students’ cognitive interest, to show initiative and independence to each student, to demonstrate individual qualities; 3) innovative local geography approach to the study of Geography allows to form a positive image of the territory, contributes to the development of critical and creative thinking, raising love for their native land; 4) the use of innovative means of teaching suggests students a funny and exciting way of learning, creates the conditions for creativity. The obtained results of the conducted study can be used in further study of this problem at a high scientific level. In the future, it is worth paying attention to the use of modern methods and tools while forming the students’ local geography competence in Ukraine’s physical geography classes. Generalized materials can be used by Geography teacher while planning activities for forming the students’ local geography competence in Ukraine’s physical geography lessons.
The study aimed to investigate how social studies teachers give information about the immediate environment in lessons and determine course objectives through non-formal school activities. The study ...sample consisted of 38 social studies teachers working in Kırıkkale province in the 2018-2019 academic year. The data were analyzed with content analysis methods. The data were collected with a semi-structured interview form, were processed in SPSS 17 and Microsoft Excel software and interpreted in relation to the relevant the literature. In the interview form, the teachers were grouped by certain variables: gender, professional experience, and settlement type of school. The study concluded that social studies teachers did not have adequate knowledge about the immediate environment and thus they could not transfer it to students. Although participant social studies teachers claimed to give information and examples during the course, their students expressed that their teachers did not give any examples. The study results also indicated that teachers did not sufficiently organize non-formal school activities to teach the immediate environment. Thusly, it is suggested that social studies teachers should be assisted in learning the immediate environment and should participate in training on non-formal teaching methods.
As excessive motorization proceeds in local cities, there is serious mobility gap caused by owning car. In such areas, daily and social activity of people who cannot hold car may be restricted. In ...this study, we implemented questionnaire survey for residents and students and examine the psychological effects of the mobility gap. As a result, it was indicated that the degree of place attachment, subjective well-being and sense of local geography is higher for the students who hold car than students who do not hold car. On the other hand, place attachment of residents show opposite tendency and higher than students. This result indicate that mobility gap in local city have negative psychological influence on passive- non-owner of car.
The aim of the proposed 360-degree virtual reality (VR) documentary explores questions of identity in the multiethnic environment of Taiwan, the connection to perception, tradition, and ...globalization, as well as how these in turn characterize culture in Taiwan as distinct in the region. The VR framework presented here was conceived by Richard Cornelisse for providing an installation of multi-dimensional experiences of a diverse Taiwanese milieu, that captivates and transports the viewer to a subtle, yet heightened, awareness of local nuances between people, location, and religious rituals. These experiences are meant to re-contextualize how one can understand Taiwan in terms of the people, culture, diversity, and landscape of as both viewer and participant. Our interactive platform activates viewer participation and allows them to engage the subject matter in a unique individualized experience of people and place: one that not only questions how one can understand issues of identity and traditions in a rapidly changing globalized cultural landscape, but also how one can experience local culture and geography through a malleable, immersive, non-linear narrative.
This article presents the domain reduction method, a two-step finite element methodology for modeling earthquake ground motion in highly heterogeneous localized regions, and its application to hill ...topography. Four hill models, considering a surface weathered soft layer and layered system under the hill, are excited by a point source and plane waves. The amplification of seismic ground motion on and around 3-dimensional hills are compared to those of 2-dimensional hills and simple 1-dimensional amplification. The complicated pattern of amplification generated by collaboration of hill topography with layers are illustrated and quantified. The peak values and peak frequencies of amplification factor around the top of 3-D hills are larger than those of 2-D hills and 1-D amplification. It suggests that 1-D approximation of subsurface structure under a hill is inadequate when 3-D effect is significant.
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