The population turnaround: A case study of the Shire of Toodyay

During the 1970\u27s a number of Australia\u27s rural municipalities began to counter the long term pattern of population decline. This thesis provides empirical evidence of these changes within Western Australia and investigates the reasons for the turnaround. To develop this, a case-study examination has been made of the Shire of Toodyay in an effort to ascertain the circumstances surrounding households decisions to migrate into rural districts. This study reveals that the newcomer households exhibit a diverse range of characteristics and conform to no clear stereotypical groupings. Rather1 it appears that those who have made the transition have done so in response to individual circumstances and the way in which these relate to broad based societal forces. None the least of these, is the ability to blend a preferred rural residential setting with the economic and social advantages of large urban centres. A set of circumstances which have considerable implications for the host agricultural communities

Regional workforce futures: an analysis of the Great Southern, South West and Wheatbelt regions

The overall aim of the report is to provide an assessment of regional employment dynamics and future labour demand in the Great Southern, South West, and Wheatbelt regions. More specifically, the report: Examines the demographic and economic dynamics driving regional labour markets; Analyses the changing structure of regional labour markets in terms of sector and occupation; Identifies the major challenges facing employers in the regions; Develops projections of labour for demand to 2015 for sectors and occupations within the regions

A prototype framework for models of socio-hydrology: identification of key feedback loops and parameterisation approach

It is increasingly acknowledged that, in order to sustainably manage global freshwater resources, it is critical that we better understand the nature of human–hydrology interactions at the broader catchment system scale. Yet to date, a generic conceptual framework for building models of catchment systems that include adequate representation of socioeconomic systems – and the dynamic feedbacks between human and natural systems – has remained elusive. In an attempt to work towards such a model, this paper outlines a generic framework for models of socio-hydrology applicable to agricultural catchments, made up of six key components that combine to form the coupled system dynamics: namely, catchment hydrology, population, economics, environment, socioeconomic sensitivity and collective response. The conceptual framework posits two novel constructs: (i) a composite socioeconomic driving variable, termed the Community Sensitivity state variable, which seeks to capture the perceived level of threat to a community's quality of life, and acts as a key link tying together one of the fundamental feedback loops of the coupled system, and (ii) a Behavioural Response variable as the observable feedback mechanism, which reflects land and water management decisions relevant to the hydrological context. The framework makes a further contribution through the introduction of three macro-scale parameters that enable it to normalise for differences in climate, socioeconomic and political gradients across study sites. In this way, the framework provides for both macro-scale contextual parameters, which allow for comparative studies to be undertaken, and catchment-specific conditions, by way of tailored "closure relationships", in order to ensure that site-specific and application-specific contexts of socio-hydrologic problems can be accommodated. To demonstrate how such a framework would be applied, two socio-hydrological case studies, taken from the Australian experience, are presented and the parameterisation approach that would be taken in each case is discussed. Preliminary findings in the case studies lend support to the conceptual theories outlined in the framework. It is envisioned that the application of this framework across study sites and gradients will aid in developing our understanding of the fundamental interactions and feedbacks in such complex human–hydrology systems, and allow hydrologists to improve social–ecological systems modelling through better representation of human feedbacks on hydrological processes

Capturing the sporting heroes of our past by extracting 3D movements from legacy video content

Sports are a key part of cultural identity, and it is necessary to preserve them as important intangible Cultural Heritage, especially the human motion techniques specific to individual sports. In this paper we present a method for extracting 3D athlete motion from video broadcast sources, providing an important tool for preserving the heritage represented by these movements. Broadcast videos include camera motion, multiple player interaction, occlusions and noise, presenting significant challenges to solve the reconstruction. The approach requires initial definition of some key-frames and setting of 2D key-points in those frames manually. Thereafter an automatic process estimates the poses and positions of the players in the key-frames, and in the frames between key-frames, taking into account collisions with the environment and human kinematic constraints. Initial results are extremely promising and this data could be used to analyze the sport's evolution over time, or even to generate animations for interactive applications

Global geographies of innovation diffusion: the case of the Australian cattle industry

The geographies and histories of the introduction of cattle breeds to Australia in the period since white settlement are documented as an example of the diffusion of agricultural innovations. Three phases of development are identified: a colonial expansion phase from the late eighteenth to the early twentieth century during which a number of primarily British cattle breeds were imported by the colonial settlers; an innovative phase in the mid twentieth century when both governments and private interests sought to produce or import new breeds deemed to be better adapted to Australian environments; and a multifunctional phase in recent decades. In this final phase, government deregulation and new technologies, such as the long distance transport of genetic packages, have facilitated the importation and development of many new cattle breeds in Australia.While this has produced a significant rise in the total number of breeds represented nationally, many recent and historic breeds currently exhibit extremely small numbers and a few generally well-established breeds such as Holstein, Hereford and Angus still dominate the national herd. This study of changing breed types and introductions provides some evidence of post-productivism and of a multifunctional transition in that several cattle breeds favoured by hobby farmers and boutique breeders are now represented, but the aggregate numbers for these breeds remain small and the numbers for several of the traditional (or colonial) breeds are currently in decline. Overall, it is apparent that Australia's cattle industry retains a strongly productivist ethos and that, particularly given the country's very great environmental variation, its levels of breed diversity remain low

Eureka and beyond: mining's impact on African urbanisation

This collection brings separate literatures on mining and urbanisation together at a time when both artisanal and large-scale mining are expanding in many African economies. While much has been written about contestation over land and mineral rights, the impact of mining on settlement, notably its catalytic and fluctuating effects on migration and urban growth, has been largely ignored. African nation-states’ urbanisation trends have shown considerable variation over the past half century. The current surge in ‘new’ mining countries and the slow-down in ‘old’ mining countries are generating some remarkable settlement patterns and welfare outcomes. Presently, the African continent is a laboratory of national mining experiences. This special issue on African mining and urbanisation encompasses a wide cross-section of country case studies: beginning with the historical experiences of mining in Southern Africa (South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe), followed by more recent mineralizing trends in comparatively new mineral-producing countries (Tanzania) and an established West African gold producer (Ghana), before turning to the influence of conflict minerals (Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone)

Age profiles of sport participants.

Background: Participation in sport has many health benefits, and is popular amongst children. However participation decreases with age. While the membership records of peak sports organisations have improved markedly in recent years, there has been little research into sport participation trends across the lifespan. This study investigates age profiles of participation in sport and compares these trends between genders and residential locations. Methods: De-identified 2011 participant registration data for seven popular Australian sports (Australian Football, Basketball, Cricket, Hockey, Lawn Bowls, Netball and Tennis) were obtained and analysed according to age, gender and geographical location (metropolitan v non-metropolitan) within the state of Victoria, Australia. All data were integrated and sports were analysed collectively to produce broadly based participation profiles while maintaining confidentiality of membership data for individual sports. Results: The total number of registered participants included in the data set for 2011 was 520,102. Most participants (64.1 %) were aged less than 20 years. Nearly one third (27.6 %) of all participants were aged 10–14 years, followed by the 5–9 year age group (19.9 %). Participation declined rapidly during adolescence. A higher proportion of males than female participants were young children (4–7 years) or young adults 18–29 years; this pattern was reversed among 8–17 year-olds. A higher proportion of metropolitan participants were engaged between the ages of 4–13 and 19–29, whereas a higher proportion of non-metropolitan participants played during adolescence (14–18 years) and throughout mature adulthood (30+ years). Conclusions: Increasing participation in sport is an objective for both government and sporting organisations. In order to have both mass population-based participation, from a health policy and elite performance perspective, we need to further explore the findings arising from the analysis of this extensive data set. Such an examination will lead to better understand of the reasons for attrition during adolescence to inform program and policy developments to retain people participating in sport, for a healthy and sport performing nation