Writing Waikato: John Muir's contribution to environmental awareness

John Muir was an experienced and widely published observer of both physical and social environments, Muir kept a record of his time in Waikato that is distinctive. His texts, both journals and correspondence, are of interest precisely because they are science embedded in a social and philosophical discourse. The details of formal observations are recorded: the plant species, the landforms, the heights and distances, and these observations are complemented by drawings. But much more is conveyed by Muir's language of reporting in his journal and correspondence, and the extent to which this language reveals his philosophy of environmental awareness and concern

Mapping and cartography futures in secondary geography

In an era of change such as that induced by the NCEA, questions about the role and relevance of traditional skills tend to be overlooked. In my opinion, an important component in our `bank of skills' Ministry of Education, 1990, 17; New Zealand Geographical Society, 1992, 10-11 are threatened by institutional sidelining and lack of awareness of the potential for their technological resuscitation. With reference to skills, the use of prepared maps and map construction cartography are fundamental geographic skills. Having asserted this, I also want to make it clear that, in my view, these skills should be as broadly applied as possible

Developments in getting GIS technologies into classrooms

The paper maps progress in the adoption of GIS in secondary education over more than 15 years, As it explores the incentives and impediments in the adoption of GlS in secondary schools, it notes the rich technology base in North America, and benefits of national geography curriculum and support structures in Britain

Changes, challenges and responsibilities in geographical education: The International Geography Olympiad

Geography has never been so accessible; new media present documentaries about diverse places, supported by travelogues that ask intriguing questions, with superb imagery of natural and cultural features, all supported by emerging digital cartographies. These geographies reach many more people than the well-cited texts of 19th century geographers such as Humboldt and Ritter, yet the paradox is that contemporary Geography is not identified as a critical part of the educational entitlement of young people. The essay explores this paradox with reference to the changes in education in the last 150 years and a commentary on the scholars and institutional frameworks that share responsibility for the current and future status of the discipline. Since 1996 the International Geographical Union (IGU) has accepted a key challenge faced by Geography; the process of fostering the regeneration of the discipline by engaging young people. The IGU has supported ten International Geography Olympiads since 1996, with the eleventh Olympiad scheduled for Krakow in 2014. The essay outlines the nature of the Olympiad where field trips and cultural activities provide an unparalleled experience for young scholars exhibiting international excellence in Geography. These young people are our future

Residential and support services for older people in the Waikato, 1992-1997: Privatisation and emerging resistance

As disproportionate users of services, older people are more vulnerable to shifts in policy in health care and social support. This paper focuses on older people as a group affected by economic and social restructuring. We summarise the history of support for older New Zealanders in the century prior to 1984, and assess the impacts of the subsequent shifts in social welfare policy up to 1997. Four reference points for appreciating the impacts of these policy changes are suggested: • shifts in general health care and housing policy • the cumulative impacts of restructuring on families and communities • evolving patterns of disability in the older population • the emerging resistance of older people to privatisation. We follow this up with analysis of a case study carried out in the Waikato on the provision of residential and caring services, and describe shifts in the supply of age-targeted housing and community support services. For example, in contrast to the trend towards reduced involvement by the state in residential care (e.g. rest homes), there has been no concerted dis-investment in pensioner housing. Finally we document the emerging resistance of older people to change

Kaupapa Māori and a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand

While geographical education is our focus in this paper, the broader colonial history of education is the backdrop against which we first view the principles of Māori geographies in education. The essay underscores the importance of ‘authenticity’, the participation of local communities and local studies connected to local environments and histories. We use an educational program of the Raglan Area School on Whaingaroa Harbour as an illustrative example. The geographies of Whaingaroa Harbour provide an exemplary context for programs in geographical education and we suggest that the new curriculum in both English and Te Reo Māori (Māori language) can enhance the movement towards bi-cultural education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Our argument is that the 2007 curriculum creates the opportunity; the impediments lie in providing appropriate resources and developing community support for the delivery of the bicultural educational approaches. is an important issue in debates about educational policy and implementing a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This paper explores how the development of the 2007 curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand attempted to address curriculum, teaching and learning options for Māori. Māori are a significant national community with needs and aspirations in education. Māori have tangata whenua status in Aotearoa/New Zealand, where this term acknowledges the arrival and settlement of migrant people of the Pacific centuries prior to significant European colonization in the 19th Century. While progress has been made in Māori education since the significant Treaty of Waitangi Act in 1975, we wish to explore the potential of Kaupapa Māori (Māori practice) in the development of a new curriculum, Te Marautanga o Aotearoa

Shallow heritage and environmental impact; Legacies of dairying in the Waikato, New Zealand

Kenneth Cumberland’s epic television series Landmarks (1981) contains a memorable vista of a productivist pastoral landscape in Waikato. More than 30 years later the nature of the production has changed, but the legacies of less than 150 years of colonial agriculture have only deepened. In this paper, the piecemeal nature of New Zealand’s detailed historical records is reviewed, with a particular focus on records of agricultural production and change. The argument is that digital technologies have the capacity to improve our understanding of our agricultural heritage, but the investment in skilled people and the development of good heritage tools is needed just as much as digital data capture and storage. One obvious issue that would benefit from better heritage knowledge systems is the impact of the change on local environments. This issue is of particular concern in Waikato, where the impact of agricultural intensification, particularly in the dairy sector, has led to serious concerns about the quality of both aquatic and wild-life environments. The nature of environmental impacts and the response of various agencies is noted in the paper, with reference to importance of the clean and green message New Zealand promotes in international food markets. The paper argues that recording heritage and assessing environmental impacts are more closely connected than might paper at first sight; both have a part to play in understanding the long view of regional histories

Seeing farmers' markets: Theoretical and media perspectives on new sites of exchange in New Zealand

In this paper we explore the extent to which a reciprocal relationship exists between contemporary theorisation about farmers' markets in geography and the rapidly expanding public discourse surrounding these sites of exchange in New Zealand. Activities branded as farmers' markets are seen widely as local phenomena of systemic significance for the understanding of evolving geographies of production, consumption and exchange. As something ‘new’ on the landscape, farmers' markets also attract attention in the media. An electronic database of significant print media contributions over the period 1995 to 2007 provides the empirical basis for an assessment of the extent to which theorisation and the public discourse address common themes. Our analysis indicates that, while the economic and social constructions in both the research literature and the media database share common themes, strong contrasts in ways of ‘seeing’ farmers' markets are apparent. We note the predilection in the print media to present the nature and purpose of farmers' markets through the personal experiences and ‘stories’ of participants. There is a tendency to focus on the appeal of markets to the consumers who form the readership base. The theorised alterity of the farmers' market, either in terms of production methods or motivations for consumption, is not reflected strongly in media reports, and this raises questions about ‘over-theorisation’ in the academic literature. Our aim is to promote reflection in both the editorial offices of the media and in the academy by documenting the nature of these contrasting views

Exploring different 'perspectives' in secondary geography: Professional development options

Significant changes have occurred in the worlds of geography since 1973, and a substantial literature has emerged about these changes and their effects on the 'divide' between secondary and tertiary geographers. We suggest that while the divide has not had much effect on the content taught in secondary geography in New Zealand and Britain, exposure to a range of perspectives on this content is a neglected area of professional development. Post-Fordism and deep ecology are described as perspectives that are not widely used in delivering secondary geography content. We argue firstly that effective use of different perspectives needs to be based on professional, personal and social change, and secondly that the Internet is a powerful tool in the engineering of such change