Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Landcare'

Many rural communities in the United States are experiencing a transition away from traditional conceptions of agrarian lifestyles and landscapes, and are increasingly faced with a new set of values, desires, and perspectives being brought in by new residents. This change in land use and land ownership presents opportunities as well as challenges to rural areas. This paper explores the some of the grounds behind some of the changes taking place, specifically in a political economic context, and the effect these changes are having on rural landscapes and the communities they support. In the face of a changing perception of â ruralâ , I argue that it is important to acknowledge and foster respect for a plurality of values and desires for the land, both in how productivity of the land is conceptualized, as well as the approaches taken to manage these changes into a sustainable future. Community Landcare is one approach emerging in the United States, and presents a model to foster a sense of community in a multifunctional landscape, while providing the forum for landowners to maintain their individual values while coming together with a shared interest in â caring for the landâ . A case study of the Catawba Valley and its developing Catawba Landcare group illustrates these connections.
Master of Arts

The Australian landcare movement is considered to be a major success, with an extensive community landcare network developed, raised levels and depth of awareness, and a range of demonstration projects undertaken. It has inspired people across Australia and has been emulated overseas. However, negative trends in environmental conditions continue unabated. If the approach of the Australian landcare movement to date has not addressed the current unsustainable farming practices, what approach will? This Australian study explores the history of the ‘mechanistic’ worldview, its influence on the attitudes to and treatment of landscapes and indigenous knowledge from colonisation, and the ongoing impacts on current social and natural rural landscapes. Increasing tension between the mechanistic worldview and the growing landcare ethic based on relationships is apparent. Through the focus project, Watershed Torbay, a different way of seeing and treating the world is explored by praxis. A worldview based on relationships and connection as the end purpose is proffered. Strengthening connection with one’s own moral framework, and relationships with people and place in community, are seen as the path to achieving sustainability based on ecological and values rationality. It is recognised that there are multiple ways of seeing and experiencing the world, and it is important to give voice to all players with a connection to decision making. This also means that there are different forms of knowledge; these can be grouped under the typology of epistemic or scientific knowledge, techne or technical/practical capability, and the central form of knowledge about values and interests. I have worked with the focus project as a reflective practitioner undertaking action research; this is evident in the movement between theory and practice through the thesis. The thesis concludes in praxis taking the learning from the focus project, and exploration of theory, to answer the question posed at the outset by outlining how the relational worldview can be applied to the regional bodies now delivering major landcare programs.

Environmental governance regimes affect the adaptive capacity of social-ecological systems. By enabling actors with differing knowledge, values and interests to understand complex problems, agree on solutions and integrate their actions, network forms of governance increase adaptive capacity, but are they able to influence the agenda and approach set by higher levels within governance regimes? This research investigated the influence of Landcare Networks within natural resource management (NRM) in Victoria, Australia. Landcare groups are voluntary associations through which private landholders cooperate to improve their local environment, and Landcare Networks are federations of those local groups. In action research over twelve months, peer groups of staff and members of management committees of Landcare Networks met to improve the effectiveness and influence of Networks in landscape change. Participants identified a breakdown in collaboration between government NRM staff and Landcare Networks. Regional NRM bodies, located between state government agencies and Landcare Networks, treated the latter as implementers of government priorities, rather than decision-makers at landscape level. Participants attributed this marginalisation to a policy of targeting public investment to biophysical priorities, and to differences in assumptions of agency. Participants assumed that community action was essential to landscape change; staff in government programs seemed to participants to assume that government initiatives drove change. Analysis of peer group discussion identified a governance practice rooted in a discourse of community action, facilitating action in relationships of mutual responsibility and seeking to maintain the momentum of change across the social-ecological system. The process of inquiry in action led participants to examine and change some of their assumptions, a change theorised as a process of reframing in which doubt leads to examination of failure and a search for more effective action. This suggests that ii communities of practice contribute to reframing within multilevel governance regimes, alongside mechanisms such as shadow networks and bridging organisations. The findings also confirm participatory action research as a methodology for investigating governance regimes while enabling action to improve them.

Youth unemployment and environmental degradation are two critical issues facing Australia today. This action research study concerns learning and teaching with participants in a government labour market program which was established to address these two issues. The study was based on three cycles of action research with six groups of participants. The main objective of the research evolved to consider whether critical thinking and action learning can enhance self-concept and environmental education for unemployed young people. The research provides a positive response to this problem, although certain limitations are noted. Conclusions are drawn in five areas. Three of these are from the first cycle of action research. These relate to environmental attitudes, knowledge and action; approaches to environmental education and learning; and the impact of unemployment, peer pressure and mass culture. Two conclusions are drawn from the second cycle of action research. These relate to the integration of action learning and critical thinking strategies into the learning and teaching; and the individual participants' life history and prior knowledge and experience of environmental issues. Recommendations are made concerning professional development and support for staff working in the area, and the planning and implementation of programs. The major recommendation is for the integration, where appropriate, of integrated critical thinking and action learning strategies, through all aspects of the training and project work. This recommendation draws on evidence from a number of areas where these approaches are shown to be beneficial. These include the potential for emancipation and improved selfconcept, and the contribution to environmental education.

The problem of land degradation is something that can not be ignored in this day and age. A food shortage as a result of desertification is a reality in especially, the African continent. One of the factors contributing to the problem of land degradation, is bush thickening. Bush thickening leads to the reduction of the grazing potential of natural rangelands. This has a direct effect on the cattle production and thus on the human livelihoods itself. Bush thickening usually occurs in areas that were exposed to over grazing in the past. The North West Province is the sixth largest province of South Africa. Nine (9) of the 28 magisterial districts of this province are considered to have a severe bush thickening problem. Several programmes have been initiated in South Africa to address the land degradation problem in order to make the land users more aware of the problem and to get involved in more sustainable natural resource management practises. Such an initiative is the LandCare program in South Africa, introduced by the National Department of Agriculture. LandCare has five themes, of which VeldCare is mainly based in the North West Province. This involves, amongst others, bush thinning, clearing or the total eradication of undesirable woody andlor alien plants to improve the grazing potential of rangelands. The clearing of the hush can be achieved by direct or indirect practices. Direct practices are when bush is eradicated by chemical or mechanical methods, whereas indirect practice focus more on the stocking rate and management of livestock, to prevent bush thickening. The indirect rangeland management practices were introduced together with awareness creation programmes in this study. Through this project, communities are given the opportunity to participate and take charge of the degradation problems in their region. LandCare therefore also focuses on education, training and capacity building of the land users in the rural areas. Three magisterial districts in the Western Region of the North West Province namely Ganyesa, Kudumane and Taung were identified by the Provincial Department of Agriculture to be monitored on account of their project development at the time. All three magisterial districts are subdivided into three Agricultural Development Centres (ADC's). These ADC's are again divided into a number of Field Service Units or FSU's. Benchmark sites were selected in certian FSU's for this study. The study sites were chosen to represent both the Morafe Ranches and Communal managed systems. The Morafe Ranch and communal management systems in the Ganyesa magisterial district were Water-Fouch6 and Austrey respectively. In the Kudumane magisterial district, the Morafe Ranch systems were studied at the Heuningvlei study site. No communal managed rangeland system was monitored in this district, as there were no woody species in the vicinity of the exclosure plots used in this study. The Morafe Ranch system in the Taung magisterial district was at the Orange Grove study site and the communal managed rangeland was at the Ipelegeng study site. The data of the Ipelegeng study site however is unpresentable. The reasons are fully discussed in Chapter 4. In the study areas, several benchmark plots were selected that would represent the vegetation and management systems of the region. At the benchmark, an exclosure was erected. The fenced-in area would serve as a control to demonstrate the effect resting would have on a rangeland, while the outside of the exclosure normal grazing practise occurred. The aim was to determine the extent of bush thickening at the selected benchmark study sites, and how it will change both under the current grazing regime (outside the exclosure) and during resting (inside the exclosure) in the two management systems (Morafe Ranch and communal managed system). Quantitative surveys were carried out over a two year period to determine the structure and composition of the woody species. The average percentage of the woody species was calculated for the past three sampling periods (April 2001, December 2001 and May 2002). Although a two year period (three seasons) is much too short to detect any changes in the structure and composition of the woody component, the data and results will serve as good baseline data for long term monitoring and management projects. The benchmark sites are also used as demonstration plots that contribute to the awareness and training of the land users as part of the Landcare initiative. The vegetation sampling methods included the belt transect method, 2 x (4 x 100 m) or 5 x (4 x 40 m), depending on the size and shape of the exclosure. Each woody species rooted in the 4m belt was noted as well as the structure class it occurred in. Five height classes were noted, namely: less than 0.5 m, 0.5 - 1 m, 1 - 2 m, 2 - 3 m, 3 - 4 m and higher than 4 meters. The environmental factor, rainfall, had the most influence on the slight changes that occurred in the species composition and structure of the woody vegetation. The rainfall data of the past five years could be considered as above average. It had a significant impact on the germination of seedlings of woody species, and thus influenced the less than 0.5 m height class the most A major drawback to the data collection was the sampling practises, as different people participated in each sampling event Some of the species such as Grewiaflava, which has a multi stemmed growth form, was noted as one individual during one survey and in other cases as several individual plants. This caused much distortion in especially the density data and contributed to the fact that the results between sampling events and seasons could not be clearly correlated with each other. The data collected is represented as a percentage of the woody species for each benchmark site, inside and outside the exclosure. The species that were present in a more than 5 % abundance, as well as the structure classes, were represented in bar graphs. To give more perspective on the woody species data, the tree equivalents per hectare (TEha) per structure class, as well as the total tree equivalents, were calculated for each study site and survey period. The dominant height class was the less than 0.5 m. The tree equivalent per hectare data show the 1 - 2 meter height class to have more influence on the herbaceous data at the study area. A species that was found in most of the benchmarks was Grewiaflava. The reduction in the grazing area might be significant, due to the growth form and large canopy cover of G. flava. Although Acacia mellifera was present in all the benchmark sites with more deep sandy soils, such as the Water-Fouch6 -, Austrey -, Heuningvlei - and Ipelegeng study sites, the presence of A. hebeclada seems to be greater problem leading to bush thickening. Acacia hebeclada was more abundant than Acacia mellifera in most cases. The attitude towards the LandCare projects in each of the communities improved as the data was analysed and results presented to the land users, agricultural officers and the communities, a task which is often neglected in feedback sessions by scientists. Feedback to the communities therefore forms an integral part of such a long term study. As mentioned, the study period was too short to determine any significant differences in woody species composition, but it has contributed considerably to the awareness and capacity building of all stakeholders. If future data collection is done, it is essential that the surveyors should be thoroughly trained beforehand in the identification of woody species, especially the seedlings of the different Acacia species, as well as the sampling procedures, to avoid problems in the data analysis and results. Woody species should be noted as multi- or single stemmed to eliminate the problem of perception differences of different surveyors. Sampling methods can also be improved on in future. All in all, this LandCare project can be viewed as a success story. Despite some drawbacks, a lot was learned about the different natural resource management systems.
Thesis (M. Environmental Science)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

This study addresses the central problem of how the behaviour of individuals may be co-ordinated to manage collective natural resources, and in particular, to what degree this can be achieved through voluntary, community based means under a free market policy regime. This question was explored by researching how local groups known as Landcare, or Care groups, are managing waterways in Waikato, New Zealand, and specifically by examining their effectiveness in controlling non-point source contaminants to water originating from agricultural land.An action research approach was used to investigate research questions regarding what motivates actors to support activity to enhance water quality, the effectiveness of such activity in addressing non-point source discharges to water, and the equity issues which are associated with environmental management through Landcare. This study suggests that neo-liberal philosophies of governance, while favouring voluntary resource management, disregard the conditions which, in practice, underpin effective and equitable examples of this type of activity. A call is therefore made for a more active role for government, in directly supporting local action, in compensating for the impacts of free-market policies on natural resource use, and in facilitating the representation of the diversity of views in environmental management. Action research, participatory planning, and other learning based and communicative processes could be usefully employed to guide and inform such interventions
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This thesis seeks to understand and improve the effectiveness of partnerships formed by industry, community and government members of natural resource management (NRM) groups. The increasing popularity of partnership-based approaches to NRM is reflected in the rise of landcare, catchment management and other social mobilisation approaches throughout Australia and overseas. This thesis uses critical ethnographic methods to identify the characteristics of effective NRM partnerships and the factors influencing their effectiveness. This research also investigates appropriate methods for evaluating the effectiveness of such relationships and for determining when working in partnership with others may be the most appropriate response to a given NRM problem and context. The critical intent of the study means that it sought not only to understand the nature of such issues but also sought to enlighten and empower participants to improve the practice of partnerships in natural resource management. These characteristics and factors are analysed from three perspectives: the coordinators employed to broker and facilitate community-based NRM groups, the groups themselves and individual group members. This was done in order to reflect the importance of the continuous (re)negotiation of power that characterises long-term group relationships. It also enabled theories of power, cultural transformation, citizen participation, social capital and social learning to be used in the analysis of the NRM partnerships investigated in this study. These concepts were used to develop three tools for analysing NRM partnerships: a pendulum of citizen participation, an NRM citizen participation decision tree, and an NRM partnership typology. The study is based upon the analysis of nineteen cases, predominantly in South East Queensland, which were selected as examples of successful and effective NRM partnerships on the basis of referrals from regional managers and coordinators from State and Local Government. The research design was 'T' shaped, with Phase 1 of the study providing breadth through the analysis of fifteen partnerships. Depth was achieved in Phases 2 and 3. Phase 2 was a long-term ethnographic case study of one catchment management group while Phase 3 comprised a detailed analysis of three issue-specific partnerships formed by this group. These three phases concentrated on the viewpoint of coordinators, NRM groups and participants, respectively. Data on each of the nineteen cases were collected through interviews, field observations, workshops, document analyses and a short questionnaire. Data were analysed qualitatively. All data records were systematically coded to reveal themes and concepts relating to the research objectives from the viewpoints of coordinators, NRM groups and participants. Coding also revealed implications for governments seeking to enter into or to facilitate partnerships with others. The coding and interpretation of this data revealed a suite of twelve characteristics typical of effective natural resource management partnerships. These fell into five groups: (i) definitional characteristics (relating to effectiveness and shared power and responsibility) (ii) relationship characteristics (focusing on social capital building processes; communication; processes for knowledge acquisition and social learning; shared values, intent, action and risk-taking) (iii) participant characteristics (high levels of motivation and realistic expectations); (iv) a context characteristic (that the context is appropriate for a partnership) and (v) an 'outsider' perception characteristic (that the partnership is perceive positively by outsiders). A comparative analysis of cases reveals that only one of the nineteen cases exhibited all twelve characteristics. Importantly, three of these characteristics are not mentioned in the literature reviewed for this thesis. Two of these, share values and shared intent are relationship characteristics. Study findings emphasise that effective NRM partnerships are built on good personal relationships, based on shared values and intent. The third new characteristic is that people outside the partnership should perceive the relationship favourably. Since funds and other resources may be under the control of people outside a partnership, it is important that participants are able to effectively communicate their shared values and intent to others. Five factors were found to be significant in the development of effective partnerships (i) the need for participants and those brokering partnerships to realize that effective partnerships are built on positive personal relationships in which (ii) participants have high levels of motivation for being involved, particularly early in the relationship. The study further revealed that such relationships: (iii) need to be supported by a continuity of adequate funding and resources and (iv) the services of skilled, enthusiastic coordinators who (v) enjoy and are skilled at working in 'grey areas', the constantly changing social and organizational environment that is typical of NRM groups. These findings of the study are synthesized through a critical ethnography which depicts three years in the life of a typical, yet hypothetical, NRM group, the Armstrong Narrows-Yarooba Catchment Management Group (ANY Group). Based on the literature review and the analysis of results from this study, this composite story protects the anonymity of those who have participated in this research. Each of the three vignettes that make up this story contains two sections -As it was and As it could be. This 'double take approach' highlights the critical nature of the ethnography, emphasising how the development of collaborations and partnerships among members of NRM groups may be improved and evaluated. Coordinators, NRM group members and agencies supporting their efforts may use this ethnography as a basis for reflection and deliberation on the development of effective partnerships in natural resource management. Recommendations for how different stakeholders in NRM partnerships may develop the effectiveness of the partnerships they form are provided.

This thesis seeks to understand and improve the effectiveness of partnerships formed by industry, community and government members of natural resource management (NRM) groups. The increasing popularity of partnership-based approaches to NRM is reflected in the rise of landcare, catchment management and other social mobilisation approaches throughout Australia and overseas. This thesis uses critical ethnographic methods to identify the characteristics of effective NRM partnerships and the factors influencing their effectiveness. This research also investigates appropriate methods for evaluating the effectiveness of such relationships and for determining when working in partnership with others may be the most appropriate response to a given NRM problem and context. The critical intent of the study means that it sought not only to understand the nature of such issues but also sought to enlighten and empower participants to improve the practice of partnerships in natural resource management. These characteristics and factors are analysed from three perspectives: the coordinators employed to broker and facilitate community-based NRM groups, the groups themselves and individual group members. This was done in order to reflect the importance of the continuous (re)negotiation of power that characterises long-term group relationships. It also enabled theories of power, cultural transformation, citizen participation, social capital and social learning to be used in the analysis of the NRM partnerships investigated in this study. These concepts were used to develop three tools for analysing NRM partnerships: a pendulum of citizen participation, an NRM citizen participation decision tree, and an NRM partnership typology. The study is based upon the analysis of nineteen cases, predominantly in South East Queensland, which were selected as examples of successful and effective NRM partnerships on the basis of referrals from regional managers and coordinators from State and Local Government. The research design was 'T' shaped, with Phase 1 of the study providing breadth through the analysis of fifteen partnerships. Depth was achieved in Phases 2 and 3. Phase 2 was a long-term ethnographic case study of one catchment management group while Phase 3 comprised a detailed analysis of three issue-specific partnerships formed by this group. These three phases concentrated on the viewpoint of coordinators, NRM groups and participants, respectively. Data on each of the nineteen cases were collected through interviews, field observations, workshops, document analyses and a short questionnaire. Data were analysed qualitatively. All data records were systematically coded to reveal themes and concepts relating to the research objectives from the viewpoints of coordinators, NRM groups and participants. Coding also revealed implications for governments seeking to enter into or to facilitate partnerships with others. The coding and interpretation of this data revealed a suite of twelve characteristics typical of effective natural resource management partnerships. These fell into five groups: (i) definitional characteristics (relating to effectiveness and shared power and responsibility) (ii) relationship characteristics (focusing on social capital building processes; communication; processes for knowledge acquisition and social learning; shared values, intent, action and risk-taking) (iii) participant characteristics (high levels of motivation and realistic expectations); (iv) a context characteristic (that the context is appropriate for a partnership) and (v) an 'outsider' perception characteristic (that the partnership is perceive positively by outsiders). A comparative analysis of cases reveals that only one of the nineteen cases exhibited all twelve characteristics. Importantly, three of these characteristics are not mentioned in the literature reviewed for this thesis. Two of these, share values and shared intent are relationship characteristics. Study findings emphasise that effective NRM partnerships are built on good personal relationships, based on shared values and intent. The third new characteristic is that people outside the partnership should perceive the relationship favourably. Since funds and other resources may be under the control of people outside a partnership, it is important that participants are able to effectively communicate their shared values and intent to others. Five factors were found to be significant in the development of effective partnerships (i) the need for participants and those brokering partnerships to realize that effective partnerships are built on positive personal relationships in which (ii) participants have high levels of motivation for being involved, particularly early in the relationship. The study further revealed that such relationships: (iii) need to be supported by a continuity of adequate funding and resources and (iv) the services of skilled, enthusiastic coordinators who (v) enjoy and are skilled at working in 'grey areas', the constantly changing social and organizational environment that is typical of NRM groups. These findings of the study are synthesized through a critical ethnography which depicts three years in the life of a typical, yet hypothetical, NRM group, the Armstrong Narrows-Yarooba Catchment Management Group (ANY Group). Based on the literature review and the analysis of results from this study, this composite story protects the anonymity of those who have participated in this research. Each of the three vignettes that make up this story contains two sections -As it was and As it could be. This 'double take approach' highlights the critical nature of the ethnography, emphasising how the development of collaborations and partnerships among members of NRM groups may be improved and evaluated. Coordinators, NRM group members and agencies supporting their efforts may use this ethnography as a basis for reflection and deliberation on the development of effective partnerships in natural resource management. Recommendations for how different stakeholders in NRM partnerships may develop the effectiveness of the partnerships they form are provided.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Australian Environmental Studies
Full Text

Research was undertaken for this thesis to uncover characteristics of resilient volunteers and stewardship groups, both of which are a major element of the social mobilisation strategy used in Australia to manage natural resources. The ability of volunteers and groups to overcome problems, deal with new issues as they arise, and keep going under pressure is termed 'resilience'. A 'resilience management' approach to natural resource management uses the idea of 'adaptive change' or panarchy to understand the development of resilience and thus, sustainability in human communities. According to this theory, sustainable communities are both changeable and stable, adapting to new situations as they arise. The research approach used in the study is called 'phenomenography'. It is an interpretive approach, based on the central assumption that there is variation in the ways in which people experience the same phenomenon. Phenomenography was used to see if lessons about resilience and sustainability could be learnt from catchment volunteers. All participants were 'catchment volunteers' working along the east coast of Queensland. They were drawn from a variety of organisations and programs including Landcare; Coastcare; Bushcare; Greening Australia; Waterwatch; treeplanting groups; and Integrated Catchment Management Committees. A total of 26 personal and group interviews involving 85 participants were conducted. Interviews comprised a series of semi-structured questions that were tape-recorded, then transcribed verbatim. Through a process of comparing and contrasting themes in the transcriptions, six conceptions emerged. These were: catchment volunteering was experienced as seeking and maintaining balance; developing/maintaining an identity; empowerment; learning; networking; and sustainable. Analysis of these themes was used to develop a model of catchment volunteer experiences depicting relationships between conceptions (termed the 'Outcome Space' in phenomenography). In this study the Outcome Space emerged as a set of scales, signifying the importance of keeping a balanced perspective on volunteering - a balance between things such as personal goals and organisational goals; between dedication to an unpaid vocation and family life; and between social benefits and environmental benefits. From the Outcome Space, several conceptual and practical outcomes were developed. These included: a typology of participation based on volunteer experiences; a table describing forms of empowerment in catchment volunteering; a table listing drivers for catchment volunteers; an illustration of Holling and Gunderson's adaptive cycle as it applies to stewardship groups; a table of factors that enhance the resilience and sustainability of stewardship groups; a model of the relationship between external pressures and resilient, sustainable stewardship groups; and guidelines for developing resilient sustainable stewardship groups. These outcomes contribute to an understanding of individual, group and community level responses to environmental issues; and how resilience can be developed in volunteers and stewardship groups and programs.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Australian School of Environmental Studies
Full Text

Research was undertaken for this thesis to uncover characteristics of resilient volunteers and stewardship groups, both of which are a major element of the social mobilisation strategy used in Australia to manage natural resources. The ability of volunteers and groups to overcome problems, deal with new issues as they arise, and keep going under pressure is termed 'resilience'. A 'resilience management' approach to natural resource management uses the idea of 'adaptive change' or panarchy to understand the development of resilience and thus, sustainability in human communities. According to this theory, sustainable communities are both changeable and stable, adapting to new situations as they arise. The research approach used in the study is called 'phenomenography'. It is an interpretive approach, based on the central assumption that there is variation in the ways in which people experience the same phenomenon. Phenomenography was used to see if lessons about resilience and sustainability could be learnt from catchment volunteers. All participants were 'catchment volunteers' working along the east coast of Queensland. They were drawn from a variety of organisations and programs including Landcare; Coastcare; Bushcare; Greening Australia; Waterwatch; treeplanting groups; and Integrated Catchment Management Committees. A total of 26 personal and group interviews involving 85 participants were conducted. Interviews comprised a series of semi-structured questions that were tape-recorded, then transcribed verbatim. Through a process of comparing and contrasting themes in the transcriptions, six conceptions emerged. These were: catchment volunteering was experienced as seeking and maintaining balance; developing/maintaining an identity; empowerment; learning; networking; and sustainable. Analysis of these themes was used to develop a model of catchment volunteer experiences depicting relationships between conceptions (termed the 'Outcome Space' in phenomenography). In this study the Outcome Space emerged as a set of scales, signifying the importance of keeping a balanced perspective on volunteering - a balance between things such as personal goals and organisational goals; between dedication to an unpaid vocation and family life; and between social benefits and environmental benefits. From the Outcome Space, several conceptual and practical outcomes were developed. These included: a typology of participation based on volunteer experiences; a table describing forms of empowerment in catchment volunteering; a table listing drivers for catchment volunteers; an illustration of Holling and Gunderson's adaptive cycle as it applies to stewardship groups; a table of factors that enhance the resilience and sustainability of stewardship groups; a model of the relationship between external pressures and resilient, sustainable stewardship groups; and guidelines for developing resilient sustainable stewardship groups. These outcomes contribute to an understanding of individual, group and community level responses to environmental issues; and how resilience can be developed in volunteers and stewardship groups and programs.

This thesis examines the responses of non-indigenous pastoralists in Central Australian rangelands to two social movements that profoundly challenge their occupancy, use and management of land. Contemporary environmentalism and Aboriginal land rights have both challenged the status of pastoralists as valued primary producers and bearers of a worthy pioneer heritage. Instead, pastoralists have become associated with land degradation, biodiversity loss, and Aboriginal dispossession. Such pressure has intensified in the 1990s in the wake of the native Title debate, and various conservation campaigns in the arid and semi-arid rangelands. The pressure on pastoralists occur in the context of wider reassessment of the social and economic values or rangelands in which pastoralism is seen as having declined in value compared to ???post-production??? land uses. Reassessments of rangelands in turn are part of the global changes in the status of rural areas, and of the growing flexibility in the very meaning of ???rural???. Through ethnographic fieldwork among largely non-indigenous pastoralists in Central Australia, this thesis investigates the nature and foundations of pastoralists??? responses to these changes and critiques. Through memory, history, labour and experience of land, non-indigenous pastoralists construct a narrative of land, themselves and others in which the presence of pastoralism in Central Australia is naturalised, and Central Australia is narrated as an inherently pastoral landscape. Particular types of environmental knowledge and experience, based in actual environmental events and processes form the foundation for a discourse of pastoral property rights. Pastoralists accommodate environmental concerns, through advocating environmental stewardship. They do this in such a way that Central Australia is maintained as a singularly pastoral landscape, and one in which a European, or ???white???, frame of reference continues to dominate. In this way the domesticated pastoral landscapes of colonialism and nationalism are reproduced. The thesis also examines Aboriginal pastoralism as a distinctive form of pastoralism, which fulfils distinctly Aboriginal land use and cultural aspirations, and undermines the conventional meaning of ???pastoralism??? itself. The thesis ends by suggesting that improved dialogue over rangelands futures depends on greater understanding of the details and complexities of local relationships between groups of people, and between people and land.

Frente ao intenso processo de fragmentação florestal sofrido no Brasil, este trabalho avaliou o efeito da fragmentação de Florestas Estacionais Semideciduais no Estado de São Paulo sobre a interação Ficus eximia e vespas (polinizadoras e não-polinizadoras). A abordagem foi realizada em duas escalas, (1) Na paisagem, com comparações entre os dados encontrados nas regiões de Teodoro Sampaio (menos fragmentada); Gália (intermediária) e Ribeirão Preto (mais fragmentada); e (2) Na escala local, considerando as características da paisagem no entorno das plantas amostradas. As questões investigadas foram: (a) Existe limitação de pólen em paisagens muito degradadas? (b) A estrutura da comunidade de vespas varia de acordo com o nível de fragmentação e distúrbio dos hábitats? (c) Possíveis limitações de pólen ou parasitismo por vespas não-polinizadoras comprometem os componentes primários de fecundidade das figueiras nas paisagens mais fragmentadas? Para responder tais questões, coletamos figos na fase interfloral (após a entrada da polinizadora e antes da maturação das sementes e prole) e figos em fase próxima à emergência das vespas. Os resultados mostraram que não houve indícios de limitação de vespas polinizadoras em nenhuma das paisagens estudadas. As comunidades apresentaram padrão aninhado, ou seja, a comunidade mais pobre em espécies Teodoro Sampaio representou uma subamostra das comunidades mais ricas Ribeirão Preto e Gália. A disponibilidade de vespas polinizadoras parece ser maior na paisagem mais fragmentada. As vespas parasitas inquilinas afetaram negativamente as produções de sementes e polinizadores em Ribeirão Preto; as vespas galhadoras também afetaram negativamente a produção de sementes em Gália e a produção de sementes e polinizadores em Teodoro Sampaio. No entanto, não foram detectadas, em geral, relações significativas entre as variáveis relacionadas ao potencial reprodutivo das figueiras e as características das paisagens estudadas. O presente estudo mostrou que o mutualismo Ficus-vespas de figo parece ser robusto às alterações da paisagem em escala subcontinental. O sistema reprodutivo alógamo das figueiras, com polinização biótica aprimorada pelo vento torna esse sistema biológico bastante insensível às modificações ambientais em pequena escala.
Brazilian forests, especially in the central and southeast regions, have been subject to intense habitat fragmentation. This study evaluated the fragmentation effects of semideciduous seasonal forests in São Paulo on the interaction between Ficus eximia and associated wasps (pollinating and non-pollinating). Our approach comprised two scales: (1) landscape scale, for which we compared data from the studied regions, namely Teodoro Sampaio (less fragmented), Gália (intermediate) and Ribeirão Preto (more fragmented) and (2) local scale, for which we considered the characteristics of the surrounding landscape of the sampled plant. The investigated issues were the following: (a) Is there pollen limitation in greatly degraded landscapes? (b) Does wasp community structure vary with fragmentation level and habitat disturbance? (c) Is it possible that limitations of pollen or parasitism by nonpollinating wasps compromise the primary fertility components of fig trees in the more fragmented landscape? To answer these questions, we collected figs at interfloral phase (after the pollinator had entered the fig and before offspring and seeds had completed their development) and figs close to wasp emergence phase. The results showed no evidence of pollination limitation in any studied landscape. The communities had a nested pattern, i.e., the species-poorest community Teodoro Sampaio is a subsample of the richer communities Ribeirão Preto and Gália. The availability of pollinating wasps appears to be greater in more fragmented landscapes. Inquiline fig wasps negatively affected seed and pollinator production in Ribeirão Preto; galler wasps also negatively affected seed production in Gália and seed and pollinator production in Teodoro Sampaio. However, significant relationships between variables related to fig reproductive potential and landscape characteristics were generally not detected. This study showed that Ficus-fig wasp mutualism appears to be resistant to landscape changes on a subcontinental scale. The reproductive system of fig biotic pollination enhanced by the wind makes this biological system rather insensitive to small-scale environmental changes.

L’utilisation croissante du vocable de la transition dans le débat public contribue à l’émergence de nouvelles méthodes de recherche dont les géographes commencent à se saisir. La transition invite à réfléchir dans un cadre d’action nouveau. Appliquée au domaine des énergies, elle rencontre le géographe dans ses interprétations des dynamiques spatiales. Ce cadre spatio-temporel inédit, où sont introduites les notions de territorialisation de l’énergie et de réversibilité, constitue une opportunité pour le géographe de penser ces enjeux nouveaux selon des approches du couple espace-temps réinterprétées. Dans ce contexte, la thèse vise à comprendre et à analyser les mécanismes socio-spatiaux mis à l’épreuve par le développement des énergies renouvelables, et plus particulièrement des éoliennes. La spécificité de la démarche réside dans une traduction géographique de l’Analyse de Cycle de Vie. Pour ce faire, la thèse réinvestit le concept de paysage dans son interprétation dynamique. Cependant, l’analyse de cycle de vie nous invite à repenser la dynamique paysagère selon la notion d’événement. La thèse interroge l’arrivée d’un projet éolien comme un événement et s’intéresse à ses modes de surgissement, les déstabilisations socio-spatiales induites et les mécanismes de régulation entrepris par les individus. L’objectif de la recherche est d’expérimenter la conduite d’une Analyse sociale de Cycle de Vie des représentations paysagères de l’éolien. L’ambition se voit confrontée à une contrainte majeure, celle du temps. Le temps imparti de la thèse rencontre les temps politiques et les temps de l’expérience. Événements construits ou événement subis, ils impactent différemment les représentations socio-spatiales selon des échelles de temps variables. L’intention d’une recherche diachronique nous enjoint à réfléchir aux enjeux épistémologiques et méthodologiques stimulants de l’élaboration d‘un corpus particulier où peuvent être analysées conjointement des données de natures et de sources diverses. L’analyse est menée sur les discours et particulièrement sur les références spatiales et les sensibilités des individus face à l’arrivée d’éoliennes sur un territoire. La thèse retrace les étapes des cycles de vie de l’événement-éolien traduites et interprétées selon les contextes de terrains
The increasing use of the transition terms in the public debate contributes to the emergence of new research methods whom geographers begin to apprehend. Transition invites to consider a new action framework. In the matter of energy domain, the transition concept involves geographers in their socio-spatial interpretations. This new spatiotemporal frame, where are introduced the notions of territorialisation of the energy and the reversibility, provides an opportunity to consider these issues from a reinterpretation of the space-time couple. In this context, the thesis aims in understanding and analyzing of socio-spatial mechanisms tested by the renewable energies development, especially wind turbines. The specificity of this approach may be a geographical rendition of the Life Cycle Assessment method. For this purpose, the thesis requires the concept of landscape in its dynamic meaning. However, the life cycle assessment invites us to reshape the idea of landscape dynamics according to the notion of event. The thesis explores the arrival of a wind turbines project as an event and it focus on its sudden emergence, the induced socio-spatial destabilizations and the individual and social adaptations. The purpose of this research is to investigate a Social Life Cycle Assessment of the landscape representations of the wind energy. This ambition faces a time constraint. The allowed time of a PhD thesis faces political times and the times of the experience. Created events or suffered events impact the socio-spatial representations differently and over various timescales. Considering a diachronic study brings about rethinking the epistemological and methodological issues raised by a corpus which gathers several types of data, from different sources and which would be analyzed together. The analysis is led on discourses and especially on spatial textual references along with the individual sensibilities revealed when a wind turbines project is initiated on territory. The thesis tracks the life cycle steps of windpower-events that we interpret according to the socio-spatial context of the study terrains

"The purpose of this project was to explore how effectively the term 'biodiversity' was communicated to rural landholders in Tasmania in the last years of the 1990s. More specifically the project was designed to establish whether the principles and meaning of biodiversity were communicated to Landcare groups, as intended by national and state agencies, through Landcare advisory bodies, the media and other sources." -- abstract.

The twentieth century has forced Australians to finally recognize the disastrous effects that various forms of land degradation are having on their country's soil and environment. Two centuries of poor government policies based on conflicting support for both local initiatives trying to halt land degradation and international goals of trying to compete within a competitive global market economy drove Australians to focus on management practices that maximized short-term production with little regard for, or understanding of the damage being done to the biophysical make-up of the land. As global support for the concept of sustainable development grew throughout the 1980s, the concept of Landcare was established in Australia. Landcare was conceived as a bottom-up, grassroots movement dedicated to developing social cohesion among individual farmers, landholders and individuals, all of whom had a common concern for the environment. Landcare's objective was to help create sustainable land management initiatives that would be based on both government policy and public support. Has Landcare's objective been achieved, or has it yielded to the forces of economics and misunderstanding? Landcare's importance in creating awareness and providing education and training about land degradation and how to combat its resulting effects has been very effective. Its ability to move beyond simply being an information movement has yet to be decided. Landcare's ability to become active in policy discourse and to become a political issue holds the key to its future success

The present context of community based natural resource management is characterized by multiple stakeholder involvement, a situation that presents challenges in aligning vision for common action. A 'systemic intervention' involved the staff and stakeholders of the Farmer Support Group, a non-profit rural development organization based in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The 'creative design of methods' guided inquiry in aligning vision of a Landcare ethos amongst the organization and their stakeholders, and in directing action toward the vision. Critical Systems Thinking is outlined as the framework in which the intervention methodology is encompassed. The importance of applying a broad range of environmental education methods to Landcare is established through drawing from present debates and contexts in environmental education and community based natural resource management. The 'organization as community' approach to organizational learning and development is highlighted as a means of creating synergy of purpose across staff and stakeholder boundaries. The intervention's methodology consisted of three phases: drawing out perspectives, forming a common vision in a mission statement, and developing action plans based on the mission statement. Outcomes included: identification of three schools of thought that drove perspectives on the role of environmental education in natural resource management strategies, formation of the FSG Landcare Ethos Mission Statement, which was inclusive of all stakeholder perspectives, and integration of the mission statement into FSG projects through action plans. The intervention found that aligning staff members and stakeholders in common vision and action towards developing a Landcare ethos could be accomplished through a blend of environmental education approaches that facilitate sustainable decision making by building capacity in individuals and communities in a participatory and locally relevant manner that is attentive to predominant perspectives and adaptive to change.
Thesis (M.Agric.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

Land and water degradations are serious environmental concerns facing South Africa. One of the major causes is human-induced soil erosion due to intensified land uses and environmental degradation caused by bad agricultural practices and inappropriate land uses. Soil erosion is a typical and important example of land degradation that the LandCare program intends to address. In order to evaluate the success of LandCare project in addressing soil erosion evaluation tools which can be applied during the project monitoring and evaluation process. Several soil loss models and field assessment methods were theoretically evaluated on criteria such as the scientific principles, availability and the impact of data requirements of the models. Soil loss models, SLEMSA (Soil Loss Estimation for Southern Africa) and RUSLE (Revised Universal Soil Loss Estimation) and the ACED (Assessment of Current Erosion Damage) method were selected to be tested in a study area that is naturally susceptible to erosion. The soil loss as predicted by RUSLE and SLEMSA and that resulting from visible damage as accounted by ACED method is not comparable. The SLEMSA and RUSLE models vary considerably in extent and approach compared with the field assessment method, ACED. ACED can be used as a participatory learning erosion tool and to identify critical areas on hillslopes. SLEMSA and RUSLE had predictive advantage over ACED and could predict soil loss before and after the LandCare project. Therefore, the models were considered valuable tools to guide decision-making based on the management and use of the natural resources on farmland or by the community. Soil loss models that require readily available input data, such as RUSLE and SLEMSA, are suitable evaluation tools for monitoring and evaluation of soil erosion in LandCare project. Based on the results of the scenario prediction study, it was found that RUSLE could simulate the impact of different agricultural practices much better than SLEMSA. However, the reliability of SLEMSA and RUSLE should be verified with measured data from erosion plots as RUSLE also underestimate the erodibility of the Escourt soil.
Dissertation (MSc (Agriculture))--University of Pretoria, 2006.
Plant Production and Soil Science
unrestricted

Inadequate rehabilitation over the life of the historic Mount Morgan mine (1882-1981), and since tailings retreatment ceased in 1990, has led to the continued impact of acid mine drainage on the Dee River.

The water quality along the Dee River, for 18 km downstream of the mine site to its junction with Fletcher Creek, is characterised by low pH, consistently below 3.5 (Howse, 2003). The concentration of metals in surface water is generally elevated adjacent to the mine (Al 191 mg/L, Cd 0.06 mg/L, Cu 16.7 mg/L, Pb 0.10 mg/L and Zn 6.4 mg/L) and is acceptable for irrigation/stock water downstream of Fletcher Creek (Al <0.5 mg/L, Cd <0.005 mg/L, Cu <0.05 mg/L, Pb <0.05 mg/L and Zn <0.05 mg/L). 

This study investigated the chemical impacts of acid mine drainage from the mine; in particular the concentration of metals was measured in surface water, groundwater, sediment, soil and agricultural produce.

The Dee River Research Project was initiated by the Wowan Dululu Landcare Group (Central Queensland) - a community group with common interests in sustainable farming, grazing and other environmental and community issues. Determining whether acid mine drainage had impacted on agricultural produce was of particular interest to the rural community of Wowan and Dululu.

The metal concentrations in lucerne, lucerne hay and citrus suggested that acid mine drainage from the Mount Morgan mine did not significantly impact on the quality of these produce. The concentrations of Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn and S in lucerne hay were acceptable for dietary intake by cattle. The concentrations of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in all mandarin samples were below the maximum permitted concentration set in the Australian Food Standards Code. 

Four acid flow events and fish kills occurred in the Dee River between November 2000 and February 2001 as a result of acid mine drainage from the historic Mount Morgan mine. Measurements of pH along the Dee River clearly demonstrated the movement of a slug of acidic water down the river during each of the four flow events (pH 3.0 at 3 km (Kenbula weir), pH 4.8 at 60 km and pH 6.1 at 80 km downstream of the mine site). Laboratory analysis of water samples indicated Al, Cu and Zn concentration orders of magnitude above ANZECC guidelines. Fish kills occurred with each flow event and killed an estimated total of 26,000 fish.

From November 2000 to February 2001 over 33,500 ML of acidic water (pH <5) flowed along the Dee River and transported over 50 tonnes of Al, 5 tonnes of Cu, 3.5 tonnes of Zn and over 1,500 tonnes of SO4.

Sediments downstream of the Mount Morgan mine site were contaminated with Cd, and Zn and particularly Cu where concentrations of 1,700 mg/kg were 25 times greater than the ANZECC (2000a) interim sediment quality guidelines. Soil on the Dee River floodplain (60 km downstream of the mine) was contaminated with Cu; the maximum concentration of 2,510 mg/kg exceeded the NEPC (1999) Ecological Investigation Level (100 mg/kg) and Health Investigation Level (1,000 mg/kg).

A large proportion (> 50%) of Cu, Cd, Mn and Zn in sediment and soil was found to be associated with the most mobile fractions; metal concentrations in these fractions alone mostly exceeded the ANZECC (2000a) interim sediment quality guidelines/ NEPC (1999) guidelines. The significance of these results is discussed with respect to potential bioavailability of metals to cattle. 

Peak metal concentration in groundwater coincided with high metal levels of acid surface water of the Dee River at two sites (6 km and 38 km downstream of the mine site). Results presented herein support the premise that metal -rich water originating from the Mt Morgan mine site could infiltrate groundwater, particularly during acid flow events in the Dee River when preceding groundwater levels are low. 

The fate of the metals from the Mount Morgan mine site was inferred from the results and the contaminants pathway depicted in a conceptual model.

Приходна Г. С. Жанрова природа книги Є. Гуцала «Співуча колиска з верболозу» : кваліфікаційна робота магістра спеціальності 035 «Філологія» / наук. керівник Н. В. Горбач. Запоріжжя : ЗНУ, 2020. 61 с.
UA : Кваліфікаційна робота магістра «Жанрова природа книги Є. Гуцала «Співуча колиска з верболозу» містить 61 сторінки. Для виконання кваліфікаційної роботи магістра опрацьовано 53 джерела. Об’єкт дослідження: книга Є. Гуцала «Співуча колиска з верболозу». Предмет дослідження: жанрова природа та стильові особливості книги «Співуча колиска з верболозу». Мета роботи – визначити жанрово-стильову специфіку малої прози митця, що ввійшла в книгу «Співуча колиска з верболозу». У ході роботи виконано такі завдання: 1) проаналізовано значення шістдесятників для українського літературного процесу другої половини ХХ ст.; 2) визначено внесок Є. Гуцала в розвиток руху шістдесятників та домінанти його творчості; 3) досліджено жанрові особливості книги «Співуча колиска з верболозу»; 4) охарактеризовано систему образів, поетику, проблематику. Методи дослідження – описовий (із прийомами спостереження та інтерпретації), історико-літературний, критичний методи аналізу художнього твору. Також були застосовані прийоми аналізу та синтезу. Наукова новизна пов’язана з тим, що це – перша ґрунтовна спроба аналізу жанрової специфіки книги «Співуча колиска з верболозу» як цілісної естетичної єдності. Робиться акцент на структурно-композиційний та стильовій самобутності «окупаційних фресок», що складають основу книги. Практичне значення: отримані результати можна використовувати під час підготовки до уроків української літератури в середній та старшій школа, а також до лекційних і практичних занять з історії української літератури у вищих навчальних закладах. Крім того, подана розвідка може стати цінним доповненням для поглибленого вивчення жанрових експериментів Є. Гуцала.
EN : The qualification paper for a master’s degree «The Genre Specific of the Book «The Singing Cradle of Willow» by Ye. Hutsalo» consists of 61 pages. 53 scientific sources were tackled in order to write the graduation thesis. The object of investigation: the anthology «The Singing Cradle of Willow» by Ye. Hutsalo. The subject of investigation: the genre origin and peculiarities of style of the book «The Singing Cradle of Willow». The aim of investigation is to discover the genre and style features of a small prose by the author which is organized in the book «The Singing Cradle of Willow». The following objectives were realized: 1) to analyze the influence of the Sixtiers on the Ukrainian literary process of the late XX ct.; 2) to define the artistic dominants in Ye. Hutsalo’s artworks and his influence in the Sixtiers movement; 3) to discover the genre peculiarities of the book «The Singing Cradle of Willow»; 4) to characterize the system of characters, poetics, problematics of the book. The methods of analysis are: descriptive (with observation and interpretation), historic-literary, critical; also analysis and synthesis have been used. The scientific novelty means that this is the first attempt to create an essential and deep analysis of the book «The Singing Cradle of Willow» as a completed aesthetic combination. The main accent is made on the structural, compositional and stylish authenticity of the «occupational frescos» which complete the book. The sphere of application. The following research can be used in learning the subject at lessons of Ukrainian literature, in special courses and seminars at the high education establishments. It’s also can be used in further investigations over Ye. Hutsalo’s heritage.