Conflict and Coalitions: An Examination of Outdoor Recreation Magazines

We examined whether value differences between various recreation interest/activity groups are created and sustained by the textual information presented to their readers in magazines. Using a two-stage qualitative approach, our research sought to explore the exact nature of the dialogue in the magazines. We sought detailed, intimate information on a selected number of magazines to assess how the popular press socially constructs knowledge about recreation groups, and we sought to better understand how various recreation group members assign meaning to their activities and interpret the interests of other groups. Findings revealed limited negativity of activity users towards one another; most of the conflict found in the text of the articles in recreational magazines was characterized as macrodispositional. Accordingly, in the articles most of the antipathy was directed towards government because of stricter regulation of activity or towards commercial consumers whose exploitation of resources is perceived to threaten groups' activities. Moreover, such conflict crosscuts various groups whose issues and concerns are often similar. Since environmental battles are no longer any one group's issue, many have coalesced and engaged in conflict with lawmakers and commercial consumers. It is clear that the recreational magazines do play a role in shaping readers' attitudes.     

建设生态强市 共享生态文明

本文通过分析仪征市创建国家生态市在实践过程中所采取的措施、取得的成效、获得的经验和面临的困难,提出相关思路和对策,为该市生态文明建设打下基础。     

Finding Common Ground: How Advocacy Coalitions Succeed in Protecting Environmental Flows1

Abstract: This paper reviews several recent case studies in which states or countries have strengthened their protection of environmental flows to explore the key policy, stakeholder, and scientific elements that contributed to these advances in water management. A conceptual framework is developed to describe the actions of interest groups and individuals, how environmental flow issues get onto the formal agenda of decision makers, the events and conditions which precipitate this attention, the role of science and scientific uncertainty, and how interactions and dialog among individuals and groups with different interests lead to changes in state and national statutes. In general, the review found that changing policies is a result of actions of informed groups of interested parties using science and information to inform both the public and decision makers about the need for action and about the specific action needed. In almost all cases, environmental flow issues make it onto the formal agenda of institutions through one or more precipitating events, often legal challenges that call into question the existing legal framework for water management. Significantly, in almost all cases the engagement between advocacy coalitions with different and often opposing views results in reframing the issues to provide a common approach or solution upon which the competing coalitions can agree.     

苏州市沧浪区生态文明创建工作的思考

从生态文明视角来解读政府环保工作,并结合沧浪区生态的特点,分析其生态文明建设现状,以科学发展观为指导,总结沧浪区的生态文明建设经验,并对加强沧浪区生态文明的创建工作提出了"三着力"和"三提升"的对策建议。     

A study of total beta specification through symmetric regression: the case of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange

A topic of recent interest is risk management in equity investments from emerging markets. One traditional measure for systematic risk of an asset is beta, which is constructed through ordinary least squares (OLS) regression between historical returns on an individual asset and an index representing the overall market. OLS regression assumes all the error lies within the asset returns. Tofallis (Eur J Oper Res 187(3):1358–1367, 2008) made the case for constructing a systematic risk measure through symmetric regression, where error is assumed to be present in the returns of both the asset and the index. In this paper, we construct a systematic risk measure using symmetric regression for the case of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). This paper makes the case that the so-called ‘total beta’ parameter provides a more realistic and stable estimator for market-related risk and return. The total beta estimate, explicitly allowing for error in both variables, is less likely to underestimate the magnitude of the beta parameter.     

Even International Summits Must Be Localised: A youth perspective on the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development

Max-Neef's theory of human-scale development (HSD) directs attention to an issues-based, locality specific agenda through self-identification of community issues by local people. This paper reports on a two-day HSD workshop run on the Gold Coast where an eclectic group of 20 participants worked through Max-Neef's framework to diagnose their communities' current reality, visualise what their community could be and discuss how to 'build bridges' between the current reality and their Utopian community. This work is part of a broader research programme looking at participatory community development.     

Desertification: The time for action

Summary Following the severe droughts in the Sahel and Ethiopia in the late 1960s and early 1970s, which focused the world’s attention on drought and desertification, the United Nations system organized and held the UN Conference on Desertification (UNCOD) in Nairobi in 1977. The principal outcome of the Conference was a Plan of Action to Combat Desertification (PACD), containing 28 major recommendations. The follow-up and coordination of implementation of the PACD was entrusted to UNEP, which created a Desertification Branch in 1978 to undertake the task. Desertification Branch UNEP     

The Tucson Mineral Show and the market for collector minerals: The potential for artisanal and small scale miners

Minerals that are sold to collectors are often produced by artisanal and small scale miners in many developing countries. The market for collector minerals is not well understood by most government agencies or NGOs but has a large impact on the artisanal and small miners that have the opportunity to produce these minerals because of the high prices that can be realized. This paper describes the collector mineral market that is held annually in Tucson, Arizona, that analyzes the competitive forces that affect the profitability of the mineral dealers at the show and describes potential methods for artisanal and small scale miners to participate successfully in the show. Most collector minerals produced by artisanal and small-scale miners are valued for their aesthetic qualities instead of mineral content. The 43 shows that operate during the first two weeks in February make up the largest gem and mineral show in the world, the Tucson Show. The Tucson Mineral Show is a subgroup of six shows that specialize primarily in collector minerals.There are several competitive forces at the Tucson Mineral Show that can affect the profit potential of dealers that participate in the show. These forces include potential entrants, suppliers, buyers, substitutes, and rivalry among existing competitors. New entrants face several barriers to entering the market place including the supply side economies of scale, demand side benefits of scale, and capital requirements. Because of these barriers, the cost of doing business and the way that promoters organize and manage the shows, it is difficult for artisanal and small scale miners to enter the show and compete with established dealers. However, with support from entities such as local governments, non-profit organizations, and international organizations the artisanal and small scale miners have the potential to have their minerals sold at the Tucson Shows for prices that would be greater than what can be achieved in the local market. Methods to help the artisanal and small scale miners compete include direct sales or consignments to retail dealers, tailgating, development of sales co-operatives, and the creation of an artisanal/small scale mineral show.     

Training for benchmarking: The alliedsignal experience

Integration of TQM principles and tools into environmental management decisions is essential to the ultimate success of businesses. Benchmarking is one of the most powerful TQM tools for quickly and effectively improving processes. To realize the maximum benefit from benchmarking, it—like any other TQM tool—must be used appropriately and properly. In this article training techniques are presented that will help companies realize the full potential of their benchmarking efforts.     

Non-ferrous metals and economic growth: The future demand for lead

As national economies grow, requirements for physical resources increase. This paper attempts to forecast future world demand for lead, by deriving a relationship between the amount consumed per capita and the level of economic development, and then using this to generate world demand figures based on some predictions of future economic growth. Although the rate of increase in demand for lead may decline as high levels of GDP are reached, it is nevertheless predicted that world annual demand could continue rising exponentially over the next 50 or 60 years, in the absence of constraints due to lack of physical resources or very high differential prices. This is essentially because large areas of the world will still be increasing their GDP per capita over the range where the rate of increase in demand for lead is increasing steeply.     

Environmental planning and management: The need for an integrative perspective

Effective integration and implementation of environmental policies is directly related to the effectiveness of environmental management. Developing more effective environmental policy and programs requires coordinating the many factors related to environmental quality. The purpose of this paper is to point out the differences in perceptions and attributes of two operating groups in society: the technologists and the ecologists. Furthermore, an attempt is made to explain the need for effective environmental management and to suggest that only when such a role is fully institutionalized will decision makers have the impetus to take both the present and the future into consideration. Only by developing an understanding of the tools used by all groups working in the environmental arena will the environmental manager be able to provide both short- and longrange perspectives. By using these perspectives, the environmental manager will be able to mold environmental factors into operational policies and objectives.In conclusion, the systems analysis approach presented is the set of tools that can be used by the environmental manager to aid in bringing the two points of view closer together. The technologist, as well as the ecologist, will be required to work within a management system to more effectively and accurately define states of nature and assess alternatives in terms of primary, secondary, and higher-order consequences over both the short and long term.     

Marine Conservation and Accession: The Future for the Croatian Adriatic

The European Union (EU) is the world’s largest trading bloc and the most influential supra-national organisation in the region. The EU has been the goal for many eastern European States, for Croatia accession remains a priority and underpins many of its national policies. However, entry into the EU requires certain commitments and concessions. In October 2003 the Croatian parliament declared an ecological and fisheries protection zone in the Adriatic. Under pressure the zone was suspended, finally entering into force in March 2008 exempting EU States. There are other marine conflicts between Croatia and the EU, particularly the contested maritime border with Slovenia, and the development of the Croatian fishing fleet in opposition to the Common Fisheries Policy. Conversely, attempts to harmonise Croatian Nature Protection with the EU Habitats Directive, facilitated by pre-accession funding, has galvanised conservation policy. Since 2005 two marine protected areas have been declared, significantly increasing the marine ecosystem under protection. Finally, the development of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive is the latest EU attempt to integrate environmental policy in the maritime realm. This will have an effect not only on member States but neighbouring countries. For marine nature protection to be effective in the region the Adriatic Sea needs to be viewed as a mutually important shared and limited resource not a bargaining chip. Negotiations of the EU and Croatia have been watched closely by the other Balkan States and precedents set in this case have the potential to affect EU expansion to the East.