German geographical research on Japan

--Japan,German geographical reseach on Japan,regional geography,geopolitics,cultural landscape,physical geography,geography of economics and traffic,settlement and urban geography,city and regional planning,regional development,regional policy,population geography,geography of education and educational behaviour,geography of tourism and recreational behaviour,environmental protection,research perspectives,research cooperation,references on the geography of Japan,Japan,deutsche geographische Japanforschung,geographische Länderkunde,Geopolitik,Kulturlandschaft,Physische Geographie,Wirtschafts- und Verkehrsgeographie,Siedlungs- und Stadtgeographie,Stadt- und Regionalplanung,Regionalentwicklung,Raumordnung,Bevölkerungsgeographie,Geographie des Bildungswesens und Bildungsverhaltens,Geographie des Freizeitwesens und Freizeitverhaltens,Umweltprobleme,Umweltschutz,Forschungsperspektiven,Forschungskooperation,Literatur zur Geographie Japans

Convening Publics: The parasitical spaces of public action

About the book: Political Geography is a core subdiscipline of Human Geography, the Handbook of Political Geography will provide a highly contextualised and systematic overview of the latest thinking and research. Edited by key scholars, with international contributions from acknowledged authorities on the relevant research, the Handbook of Political Geography is divided into six sections: - Scope and Development of Political Geography - key debates; the geography of knowledge; conceptualisations of power; and conceptualisations of scale - Geographies of the State - state theory; territory and central local relations; legal and judicial geographies; borders; and states and nature - Participation and representation - citizenship; space; electoral geography; place; media public space; and social movements - Political Geographies of Difference - class; nationalism; gender, sexuality ; and culture - Geography Policy and Governance - regulation; welfare; urban space; planning, environment - Global Political Geographies - geographies of imperialism; post-colonialism; globalization; environmental politics; international relations; war; and migration The Handbook of Political Geography will be the standard work, widely used and highly-cited, by all scholars with an interest in politics and space

Modern planning in Ireland - an overview

Many aspects of geography studied by second level students involve change and development in Ireland. The planning system is a crucial aspect of the process of guiding and controlling the geography of environmental change. In many respects, planning is a form of applied geography as it seeks to shape the geography of the future. This article gives an overview of modern planning. As such, it is concerned to convey the logic that underpins the planning process by describing its purpose and function as a government activity. Later articles will describe the evolution of the planning system and examine how it operates in practice in contemporary Ireland

Modern planning in Ireland - an overview

Many aspects of geography studied by second level students involve change and development in Ireland. The planning system is a crucial aspect of the process of guiding and controlling the geography of environmental change. In many respects, planning is a form of applied geography as it seeks to shape the geography of the future. This article gives an overview of modern planning. As such, it is concerned to convey the logic that underpins the planning process by describing its purpose and function as a government activity. Later articles will describe the evolution of the planning system and examine how it operates in practice in contemporary Ireland

Urban Land Use Planning

Published in: Origin Spatial Development of Contemporary Poland in Łódź University Geographical Research, edited by T.MarszałUrban land-use planning is still one of the key questions in research conducted by the Faculty of Geography at the University of Łódź. The particular character of works conducted in Łódź derives from the strong emphasis which is put on their practical application; the basis of many publications is the need to solve emerging practical problems. It also means constant cooperation with local administration, urban planners and other people involved in the practical activity, which is easier thanks to the fact that many members of the local administration staff are graduates from the Faculty of Geography in Łódź. A serious difficulty in preparing this chapter laid in choosing appropriate publications which, due to the limited capacity, were chosen subjectively and selectively, and were classified ambiguously. An indisputable gap was left in reference to the data and research results that had never been published. Nevertheless, they constitute a great number of works created by staff members of the Faculty of Geography, adding up to over 30%. 1 It is also worth mentioning that many studies have been carried out as responses to particular needs of certain organizations, or ordered by local or national administration, as well as state institutions involved in land-use planning in Poland. The cooperation is usually temporary, based on handling particular works and achieving specific goals. They result in preparing e.g. development strategies (e.g. in towns of Inowrocław and Uniejów), projects of new administrative division (dividing Łódź into local units, delimitation of the Łódź Voivodship), land use inventory (e.g. in Aleksandrów Łódzki), city revitalisation conceptions (e.g. Pabianice), experts’ reports on changing administrative borders (Szadek, Skierniewice), cooperation of metropolitan areas (Łódź and Warsaw) and many more. Undoubtedly, the above proves the great value of the competences of the Faculty of Geography staff members

Seven Factors that Influence the Effectiveness of International Development

This literature review analyzes the global issue of poverty and the various factors that are influencing the ability of nations to effectively achieve development. The many interpretations of what development is, as well as the categories and forms of poverty, are examined to show the scope of the issue. Seven factors: politics, economics, institutions, culture, geography, aid, and globalization are explored as to their impact on the effectiveness of development around the world. The review of the literature found that effective development is influenced by each one of these factors and it is necessary to consider them when planning and implementing development efforts internationally

Conceptions of geographic information systems (GIS) held by senior geography students in Queensland

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) represent one of the major contributions to spatial analysis and planning of the new technologies. While teachers and others have viewed its potential contribution to geographical education as considerable, it has not been known with any certainty whether they present a valuable educational tool that aids geographical education. The value of GIS to geographical education is viewed as depending on a geographical education being, in itself, valuable. Within this context, synergetic focus groups are employed to explore the conceptions of GIS held by 109 secondary school students studying Senior Geography in metropolitan and regional Queensland, Australia. A phenomenographic approach is adopted to identify the six qualitatively different ways, or conceptions, in which the participating students experience GIS as: 1. Maps and a source of maps in geography. 2. Mapping in geography: a way to use and create maps. 3. A professional mapping tool: exceeding the needs of senior geography. 4. Frustrating geography: irksome and presenting many challenges to the student-user. 5. Relevant geography: within and beyond the school experience. 6. A better geography: offering a superior curriculum, and broader geographical education, when contrasted to a senior geography that omits its use. The structural and referential elements of each of these conceptions are elucidated within corresponding Categories of Description. The qualitatively different ways in which the conceptions may be experienced are illustrated through an Outcome Space, comprising a metaphoric island landscape. This structural framework reveals that for the Senior Geography students who participated in this investigation, the extent to which GIS may augment the curriculum is influenced by the nature of students' individual understandings of how GIS manages spatial data. This research project is a response to repeated calls in the literature for teachers of geography themselves to become researchers and for a better understanding of GIS within geography education. It reviews the salient literature with respect to geography and geography education generally, and GIS within geographical education specifically. The investigation has confirmed that qualitatively different conceptions of GIS exist amongst students and that these are not consistently aligned with assumptions about its use and benefits as presented by current literature. The findings of the study contribute to knowledge of the potential educational outcomes associated with the use of GIS in geography education and decisions related to current and potential geography curricula. It provides guidance for future curriculum development involving GIS and argues for additional research to inform educators and the spatial sciences industry about the actual and perceived role of GIS within geography education

Finding the pulse of the welfare landscape: reframing green space provision in modernist planning

Contemporary planning for urban densification permits the exploitation of the spacious green areas developed for recreation during the welfare planning of the 1960s-70s. Historical studies of welfare planning are needed to better understand the potential values under threat. Answering Colin McFarlane's call for relational studies of density, this paper offers a complementary examination of the relational geography of green space provision in the 1970s, to reveal what the development of the compact city both silences and (literally) replaces. This relational approach departs from the flat ontology of Actor-network theory. The study captures how ideals of recreation, nature, welfare, planning and the rhythms of life assembled into a geography for recreation in the early 1970s, and how this topology crumbles a decade later. While the green spaces of the 1970s linger on today, their reinterpretation as green structure in the 1980s and 1990s partly veils their former role and potential. The paper interprets the legacy of welfare planning, and provides a base for further examination of the geography of green space provision

Westfield Downtown Plan Final Report

This project, a collaboration between the city of Westfield, the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, UMass Amherst Center for Design Engagement, and Westfield State College Department of Geography and Regional Planning is aimed at developing a comprehensive downtown housing and economic development action plan for Westfield, MA