Voice,power, and history: ensuring social justice for all stakeholders in water decision-making

Public participation in water decision-making is an accepted and expected practice. It is expected to lead to better decisions and ensure fairness by satisfying peoples' understanding of democracy and their “right” to participate in decisions that affect them. However, despite years of experience and “best practices”, governing bodies at all levels struggle to implement successful, genuine participation that leads to fair decisions. Ultimately, decision-making about natural resources such as water is a process that takes place in a wider power context where some groups have greater access to sources of power and entitlements. This research applies a “Social Justice Framework” (SJF) to examine the experiences of different stakeholder groups in making their voices heard during water reform processes in the Murray–Darling Basin in Australia. The experiences of croppers and graziers in two different floodplains show how historical advantages and disadvantages affect the power balance between different stakeholder groups and their ability to participate in and influence water decision-making. Applying the three components of the SJF, distributive, procedural and interactive justice, in water decision-making should lead to greater equity in distribution and underline the importance of good governance in decision-making processes.     

Some happy,others sad: exploring environmental justice in solid waste management in Kinshasa,The Democratic Republic of Congo

This paper explores the concept of environmental justice (EJ) in solid waste management (SWM) in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It evaluates the extent to which EJ occurs in SWM and discusses the factors accounting for this state of affairs. The paper examines the relevant theoretical framework(s) and mechanisms that would facilitate the attainment of EJ in Kinshasa. It is argued that solid waste (SW) often ends up in the poorest and least powerful communities in the cities of the DRC. A qualitative research methodology, which includes exhaustive critical review of the literature, system analysis, reflections from best practices through case studies and discussion with stakeholders, was used for this study. Findings revealed that SWM in Kinshasa is a duty entrusted to publicly-funded municipal authorities. There are evidences of a clear divide between the rich and poor neighbourhoods in the manner SW is managed. This is an inequality that has only recently begun to be recognised as injustice practices in SWM. It is argued that a politico-cultural mechanism on remedying SWM inequities could enable changes that will address EJ in Kinshasa. Such a solution will go directly against the prevailing notion “some happy, others sad”.     

Testing The Pearl Hypothesis: Natural resources and trust

Do natural resources reduce social trust? This paper reviews the literature on natural resources and on trust. The existing theoretical and empirical literature suggests that natural resources can reduce trust through several indirect mechanisms. Notably, studies show that natural resources lead to institutional degradation, corruption, inequality, and civil war, all of which have been associated with reduced trust. In addition, game theoretical work on windfall gains suggests that there may be direct effect of natural resources on trust. This paper tests empirically whether there is a direct effect of natural resources on trust (The Pearl Hypothesis), using cross-country data. The results indicate that no such direct effect exists, but we find a significant effect on trust of intermediate variables affected by natural resources, such as institutions, corruption, inequality and/or civil war. Importantly, the relationship between corruption and trust turns out to be non-linear, indicating that the effect of natural resources on trust depends on the initial corruption level of a country. In highly corrupt societies, institutional improvements that reduce corruption may also undermine trust, which poses difficult challenges for anti-corruption policy.     

基于轴-辐理论的皖江城市带物流网络空间构建

大力发展现代物流业和皖江城市带承接产业转移示范区建设是两大重要国家级战略。首先对轴-辐理论的国内外研究现状进行了总结和归纳,分析了轴-辐网络的结构及其优劣势。其次,设计了物流中心性指数的评价指标体系,运用主成分分析法对皖江城市带的9个地级城市进行物流节点等级划分,根据分析结果的总得分和区位特征确定合肥、芜湖、安庆3个一级物流节点,形成轴三角。分析了各级物流节点间的干线及支线物流通道,构建了皖江城市带轴-辐物流网络空间。     

基于多中心理论的辽宁沿海经济带环境治理模式研究

辽宁沿海经济带是我国沿海地区生态环境较为脆弱的地区之一,环境污染和破坏问题较突出。而环境治理直接关系到经济与社会的持续发展,环境治理模式则是决定环境治理绩效的重要因素之一。运用多中心模式分析辽宁沿海经济带环境治理存在的问题及其原因,构建该区域的多中心治理模式,并在此基础上提出相应的策略措施,为辽宁省沿海经济带发展规划的实施提供参考。     

基于排队论的城市垃圾箱最佳间距研究

针对城市垃圾箱最佳间距的研究不够精细的现状,本文通过建立排队论模型得到了可供不同城市参考的城市垃圾箱最佳间距参数表。通过对部分城市街道的垃圾箱摆放间距情况进行实地调查,运用层次分析法将影响垃圾箱间距分布的多重因素转化为单因素;建立了基于指数分布的数学模型,利用排队论分析单因素状态下的垃圾箱间距分布,得到了求解城市垃圾箱最佳间距的一般方法。     

城市旅游的一个研究剖面：国内外城市旅游产品研究述评

在回顾国内外城市旅游已有文献的基础上,对国外城市旅游产品这一专项内容进行了文献述评,内容集中于城市旅游产品类型包括城市文化旅游产品、城市遗产旅游产品、城市事件旅游产品、城市夜间旅游产品和城市旅游产品,要素包括城市旅游吸引物、城市旅游设施、城市旅游服务、城市可进人性。     

Towards a developmental theory of place attachment

Place theory offers no explanation of the developmental processes by which place attachment arises. Drawing on recent findings in human attachment theory, this study offers a developmental model of the process by which place attachment emerges from a childhood place experience. A pattern of positively affected experiences of place in childhood are generalised into an unconscious internal working model of place which manifests subjectively as a long-term positively affected bond to place known as place attachment. Qualitative analysis of adult remembrance of childhood place experience provides support for this model and finds important parallels in the developmental processes underpinning place attachment and human attachment as well as some differences.     

An information–motivation–behavioral skills assessment of curbside recycling behavior

Despite annual increases in the amount of material solid waste (MSW) that is recycled in the United States, the overall amount of MSW generated continues to increase. In an effort to identify and test specific predictors of curbside recycling behavior, the current study adapted the empirically validated Information–Motivation–Behavioral Skills model (IMB), traditionally used to predict personal health behavior, to explain curbside recycling behavior. Using structured computer assisted telephone surveys with two random community samples; structural equation models indicated that the IMB model significantly predicted curbside recycling. Data from the current study provides specific information about critical psychosocial determinants of curbside recycling behavior and public policy implications.     

基于复合生态系统理论的长沙湘江滨水区景观资源评价与优化

近年来,随着我国经济的飞速发展、社会经济的转型,以及人们环境意识的提高,滨水区开发已成为我国城市开发建设的热点。城市滨水区景观规划设计研究对于合理、充分利用城市滨水区景观资源,塑造特色鲜明的城市形象,提高城市生态环境质量,促进城市滨水区开发有着重要意义。从复合生态系统理论的角度,在湘江滨水区景观资源调查、景观资源分类的基础上,运用灰色聚类法对湘江滨水区景观资源进行定量评价,提出景观资源优化思路,探讨滨水区景观规划设计的途径。认为现代城市大规模滨水区更新改造和开发大背景下的城市滨水区景观规划设计,应尊重城市地域性特点、文化内涵和风土人情,并与传统的滨水活动有机结合,保护和突出城市历史格局和风貌特色。