Tourism as heritage: uncovering Hubert Bebb’s tourist vernacular in Gatlinburg.

According to Park visitor statistics Gatlinburg, Tennessee rates as the most heavily visited national park in the United States; as a gateway community and the official entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, its downtown landscape remains cemented in the minds of many across the nation. Through a context based visual analysis utilizing Maxwell’s two-way stretch theory, the researcher traced the origins and defining characteristics of this Gatlinburg aesthetic – the Tourist Vernacular – that evolved primarily through the work of one architect: Hubert Bebb. Through visual analysis, Bebb emerged as the key architect who, over the course of fifty years, not only created hybrids informed by the existing built environment of Gatlinburg, but inserted a new prototype and subsequent hybrids that came to define much of the downtown landscape. Bebb’s early work sits as a response to the buildings of the settlement school era, established in 1912. With precedents from this development, he augmented materials and forms to buildings in a time when government officials conceptualized and developed the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, authorized in 1926 and formally dedicated in 1940, an era characterized by a boom in construction as a result of increased tourism. His work is most particularly influential in the third quarter of the twentieth century when businesses and community leaders, including Bebb himself, shaped a place image consistent with visitor expectations. Utilizing Bebb’s Tourist Vernacular, designers and business leaders have transformed the built environment in the last several decades. Correspondingly, the aesthetic forms serve as the basis for such visionary changes as “The Greening of Gatlinburg” and the Gatlinburg Vision Statement, alongside the completion of studies and guidelines that affect the physical characteristics and visual aspects of the downtown, calling for authenticity in the evolved Tourist Vernacular. Touching on historical influences, this analysis speaks to a series of stylistic genre in Gatlinburg’s mid-twentieth century commercial buildings, while also linking to work that continues the aesthetics and philosophies of Bebb’s architectural endeavors. The study shows readers glimpses of one community’s evolving architectural lexicon shaped largely by tourist needs and expectations, thus providing a useful approach to other recreational landscapes throughout the nation

Ecotourism in Appalachia: Marketing the Mountains

Tourism is the world’s largest industry, and ecotourism is rapidly emerging as its fastest growing segment. As interest in nature travel increases, so does concern for conservation of the environment and the well-being of local peoples and cultures. Appalachia seems an ideal destination for ecotourists, with its rugged mountains, uniquely diverse forests, wild rivers, and lively arts culture. And ecotourism promises much for the region: protecting the environment while bringing income to disadvantaged communities. But can these promises be kept? Ecotourism in Appalachia examines both the potential and the threats that tourism holds for Central Appalachia. The authors draw lessons from destinations that have suffered from the “tourist trap syndrome,” including Nepal and Hawaii. They conclude that only carefully regulated and locally controlled tourism can play a positive role in Appalachia’s economic development. Winner of the 2004 Harry Caudill Award (given by Bookworm & Silverfish) recognizing outstanding contributions to reporting Appalachian life and values. This well-written book contributes to the active debate about the sustainability of tourism/ecotourism and will serve well as assigned reading or a case study in advanced-level undergraduate or graduate courses in tourism, ecotourism, or regional planning and development fields. . . . Highly recommended. —Choice The authors of this important book not only provide a positive vision, they also supply a telling critique of tourism as it is promoted currently, and they do all this with a profound international consciousness and helpful comparisons from all over the world. —Appalachian Heritage The authors argue that tourism can help the economy and preserve the environment only when local communities control the development and government regulates business practices. —Idaho Falls (ID) Post Register , Topeka (KS) Capital-Journal , Lexington Her Suggests many ways in which real ecotourist activities can provide meaningful and enjoyable engagement with the natural world, while making vacations, for both travelers and host communities alike, the regenerative, enriching experiences they should have been all along. —Modern Mountain Magazine Encompassing history, economics and culture, and using examples of other tourism areas such as Hawaii and Alaska, Fritsch and Johannsen lay out a comprehensive . . . treatise of the importance of fostering green tourism. —Publishers Weekly An argument for taking advantage of the possibilities offered by tourism to invigorate the economy of Appalachia and preserve the unrivaled environment. —Berea College Appalachian Center Newsletter A useful book. . . . Its overall tone almost echoes that of a how-to book for tourism developers to promote sound tourism activities and for tourists to correct their tourism behavior and choices. —Appalachian Journal \u27Ecotourism\u27 conjures exotic images of beautiful places in the world, but as this book forcefully points out, it also brings up a slew of questions about the preservation of nature and of culture, and the inherent conflicts between economic development and community rights. The book brings these questions home to the highlands of Appalachia. Beautifully written, filled with anecdotes and illustrations, Ecotourism in Appalachia engages the reader in a search for \u27green tourism\u27 in America’s own backyard. The book makes an important contribution to our understanding of tourism in Appalachia and beyond, and will be invaluable to people who study or practice tourism. —David Zurick, Eastern Kentucky University Thoughtful, packed with enthusiasm and ideas. It is refreshingly readable, genuinely useful work, and offes recommendations to shape ecotourism in the 21st century. . . . It is a fundamental first step for tourism planners, environmentalists, academics and policy makers. —P.P. Karan, University of Kentucky, editor of Japan in the Bluegrass An important contribution to tourism studies, largely because this is the first attempt to examine tourism development (past, present, and future) within the Central Appalachian region. The authors provide both positive and negative scenarios for future tourism development in the study area that are well reasoned and thought provoking. —Richard Alan Sambrook, Eastern Kentucky University Does not disappoint. The authors usefully maintain a tension between the salutary potentials of \u27eco\u27 and the damaging consequences of tourism, now the world’s largest industry. [It is] written in clear, accessible prose. —Journal of Appalachian Studieshttps://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_appalachian_studies/1019/thumbnail.jp

Local air quality management and health impacts of air pollution in Thailand

Air quality in urban areas of Chiang Mai Province, Thailand has seriously deteriorated as a consequence of population growth and urbanization and due to a lack of effective air quality management (AQM). As a result, respiratory diseases among Chiang Mai residents have increased in these affected areas. The health status and experiences of air pollution of both children and adults in Chiang Mai was assessed and improvements recommended to the developing AQM scheme. Air quality modelling, using ADMS-Urban was used to identify probable air polluted and control sites for further study. The polluted sites were found to be located along major roads in the city. However, ADMS-Urban was unable to predict air pollutant concentrations accurately because it could not cope with the very low wind speeds and complex topography of Chiang Mai. As a result, the utility of other air pollution modelling programmes should be investigated. The results of a questionnaire survey conducted with adults showed that urban respondents had a higher percentage of respiratory diseases than suburban respondents. However, later investigations were unable to establish a statistical linkage between air pollution concentrations and respiratory diseases. An ISAAC study was conducted among children attending schools located in the selected sites to assess the potential impacts of air pollution on health. The results showed that the prevalence of asthma was similar in all of the schools (approximately 5%) but that the prevalence of rhinitis (24.3% vs. 15.7%) and atopic dermatitis (12.5% vs. 7.2%) was higher in the urban schools which were considered to be more polluted. Logistic regression analysis identified other factors which may be involved in addition to pollution, including some components of the diet and contact with animals. In order to investigate the adequacy of the AQM system in Thailand, a comparative study was conducted between Hong Kong and Thailand. Both countries were investigated with respect to conformance to Good Urban Governance. The comparison showed that there are significant differences between the two countries and the AQM system in Hong Kong was more highly developed. For example, in contrast to the system in Hong Kong, it was found that there was insufficient involvement of the population in the development and implementation of AQM systems in Thailand. In order to better understand the reasons why the AQM system in Thailand is poor at both the provincial and local levels in Chiang Mai, prioritisation of AQM was assessed for major national environmental policies and plans; at the provincial level, fund allocations to development projects were reviewed; and at the sub-district level; a questionnaire survey was conducted among local government officials. It was concluded that AQM was not given sufficiently high priority in national plans and was generally ineffective and that, due to the non-specific nature of guidelines and frameworks in these plans, it was difficult for government organizations at the lower levels to establish AQM action plans for effective implementation. A range of appropriate measures to improve air quality in Chiang Mai were recommended. These included a more effective management of air pollution, an identified need for training and major changes in the transport system in the city

Changing conceptions of South African coal-based pollution, with special reference to the Witbank coalfield, 1906-1978

Abstract This thesis provides an historical analysis of changing ideas around coal and its environmental impact. Special reference to the Witbank coalfield between 1906 and 1978 provides a unique representation of how South African coal mining was perceived in the early twentieth century, particularly in revealing how these ideas were shaped by the appearance of different manifestations of coal-based pollution in the region. Each chapter provides a thematic representation of different aspects of coal-based pollution as they manifested over the course of the twentieth century. The first chapter highlights how early signs of environmental change were easily ignored by State and industry, owing to limited understanding of the broader impact of pollution, as well as the localized impact of early signs of pollution. The introduction of electricity by the early 1920s enabled the growth of the Witbank coal industry. The impact of this development is assessed in the second chapter, which explores how local industry was stimulated by the needs of the Second World War. This resulted in greater signs of pollution, and signaled a shift in the way pollution was understood in the region. National responses to intensified atmospheric pollution between the late 1940s and the mid-1960s resulted in the development of South Africa's first legislation related directly to the growing problem of pollution, the Atmospheric Pollution Prevention Act (APPA) of 1965. The third chapter provides insights into the way pollution was understood during this time by assessing the ideas that influenced the nature of the Act. The final chapter of the thesis reviews responses to the APPA by the Witbank coal industry. It also explores the way in which water pollution was understood in light of the appearance of severe mine water pollution. The central concern of this study is to demonstrate an evolution of the ideas that shaped the way in which South African coal-based pollution has been conceived. The study thus reflects how and why these ideas have changed over time

Recreation, tourism and nature in a changing world : proceedings of the fifth international conference on monitoring and management of visitor flows in recreational and protected areas : Wageningen, the Netherlands, May 30-June 3, 2010

Proceedings of the fifth international conference on monitoring and management of visitor flows in recreational and protected areas : Wageningen, the Netherlands, May 30-June 3, 201

Clarifying the air: Finnish air pollution experts and the international quest for safe air, 1940s-1970s

The purpose of this study is to examine how and why the measurement and research of air pollution became established in Finland between the 1940s and the early 1970s. The study is concerned with the fundamental question of how our knowledge about environmental problems has been formed. The growing concern for urban air quality in the mid-twentieth century gave rise to scientific expertise on air pollution that would have a vital influence on how the problem of urban air quality was framed. By focusing on Finland and its nascent environmental health expertise this study offers a different viewpoint to the more customary focus on great industrial centres and pioneering scientific establishments. Rather than inventions, scientific breakthroughs, or disastrous pollution incidents this study examines the transnational formation of air pollution expertise and its appropriation into a country with limited resources to tackle the problems that come with being an urban industrialized society. The focus of the examination is on the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH). More specifically this study examines the FIOH’s transnational networks and pioneering role in Finnish environmental expertise, which has hitherto received little historical scrutiny. The research is conducted by examining correspondence, publications, textbooks and other material produced by researchers in Finland and in other countries. The purpose is to analyse the ways of knowing about urban air quality by examining how knowledge about the environment and health is produced, framed and communicated. The results of this study show how the issue of urban air quality changed due to new scientific expertise on air pollution. The complex societal problem was effectively transformed into a scientific puzzle that could be solved through the accumulation of a certain kind of knowledge. Beginning from occupational environments and industrial hygiene, the idea of managing air quality through safe levels became the cornerstone of the new air pollution research. Although originating from the United States, this idea proliferated through the novel international institutions and the transnational networks of experts. The study shows how increased scientific scrutiny of air pollution did not merely produce more knowledge, but also determined what kind of knowledge would be needed to solve the problem. The case of the FIOH shows how the ways of knowing about air pollution and the questions in need of answering were co-produced transnationally by medical and scientific disciplines, alongside the concerns of the public and the regulatory needs of a modern administration.Väitöskirjassani tutkin, miksi ilmansaasteista tuli systemaattisen tieteellisen tutkimuksen kohde Suomessa 1940-luvun ja 1970-luvun välisellä ajanjaksolla. Tutkimukseni tarkoituksena on käsitellä ympäristöhistorian keskeistä kysymystä siitä, miten tietomme ympäristöongelmista muodostuu. Toisen maailmansodan jälkeen huoli ilmansaasteiden haitoista nousi sekä Euroopassa että Yhdysvalloissa uudelle tasolle. Samalla ongelmaa ratkaisemaan muodostui tieteellinen asiantuntijuus, jolla oli keskeinen merkitys ongelman määrittelyssä. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on tuoda uudenlainen näkökulma ilmansaasteiden historiaan tarkastelemalla suurten teollisuusmaiden sijaan ilmansaastetutkimuksen ylirajaista muodostumista ja leviämistä Suomeen. Verrattain myöhään teollistuneena ja resursseiltaan rajoittuneena maana Suomi tarjoaa paremmin yleistettävän näkökulman urbaanin teollisuusyhteiskunnan ympäristöongelmien ja niiden ratkaisemiseen historiaan. Tutkimuksen painopiste on Työterveyslaitoksen ja sen avainhenkilöiden toiminnassa sekä kotimaassa, että kansainvälisesti. Työterveyslaitos on merkittävä, joskin vähän tunnettu toimija Suomen ympäristöhistoriassa. Se on myös modernin ilmansaastetutkimuksen pioneeri Suomessa. Tutkimus toteutetaan analysoimalla ilmansaastetutkijoiden tuottamaa aineistoa kuten julkaisuja, kirjeenvaihtoa ja oppikirjoja. Tarkoituksena on tarkastella tiedon tuottamisen proseseja ja niitä tietämisen tapoja, joilla kaupukien ilmansaasteita pyrittiin ymmärtämään. Tutkimus osoittaa, miten ongelma kaupunki-ilman saastumisesta muuttui monitahoisesta yhteiskunnallisesta kysymyksestä tieteelliseksi arvoitukseksi, joka voitaisiin ratkaista tuottamalla tarpeeksi tietyn tyyppistä tietoa. Ilmansaasteiden tutkimus Suomessa Työterveyslaitoksen toimesta oli osa tätä ylirajaista kehitystä, jossa uusi tieteellinen asiantuntijuus nostettiin ongelman ratkaisun keskiöön. Alkaen työpaikkojen sisäilmasta 1940-luvulla, vanha epämääräinen idea puhtaan ilman terveellisestä vaikutuksesta korvattiiin idealla turvallisesta ilmasta, jota voitiin hallita tieteellisesti määritetyillä turvarajoilla. Tutkimukseni osoittaa, miten ilmansaasteiden tutkimus ei pelkästään lisännyt tietoa niiden vaikutuksista, vaan myös määritti uudelleen sen, mitä on tiedettävä, jotta ongelma voidaan ratkaista

Francis Brett Young’s Birmingham: North Bromwich – City of Iron

In this thesis I investigate Francis Brett Young’s Birmingham portrait in his North Bromwich novels, showing it to be a valid interpretation, though biased to suit the anti-urban prejudices of its author. Chapter One sets Young in his biographical and literary context. Birmingham during the North Bromwich era (c1870-1939) is examined and the role of novels as historical source established. In Chapter Two I define and explore Young’s North Bromwich canon, one exemplar among many historical realities, and show that the name and soubriquets of North Bromwich interpret Birmingham. Chapter Three investigates North Bromwich’s climate and topography, commercial, political and civic life, indicating clear Birmingham parallels. Chapter Four describes North Bromwich suburbs, housing and transport, each of which accurately replicates Birmingham originals. In Chapter Five I show North Bromwich’s recreational and religious life reflecting Young’s own Birmingham experience. Chapter Six traces North Bromwich’s interpretation of Birmingham’s educational provision, particularly concentrating upon its university’s evolution. Chapter Seven establishes links between North Bromwich and Birmingham medicine, revealing thinly-disguised fictional characters as key Birmingham practioners. Summarizing the above, Chapter Eight confirms the integrity of Young’s North Bromwich portrait and his seminal role in the on-going literary interpretation of Birmingham