The Uncertain Future of Australia’s Pacific Solution

The plight of a refugee is one that many of us will never understand. However, the ugly truth is that there is a global rise in the number of displaced persons seeking asylum. By the end of 2015, the number of displaced persons surpassed post World War II numbers, prompting developed nations around the world to enforce, amend, or implement policies targeted at controlling the flood of refugees at their borders. This Comment examines the policies of Australia, a nation that has had strict immigration policies in place for decades. Specifically, it discusses the Australian stance on refugee migration and how such policy reconciles with human rights obligations imposed by international treaties

Contracting the right to roam

In recent decades, the emergence of environmental ethics has added extra dimensions of complexity to the leisure political terrain upon which the right to roam is contested. In this chapter, two very different but influential versions of the social contract will be juxtaposed to bring the key arguments into high relief. On the one hand, Hardin’s eco-Hobbesian Tragedy of the Commons (1968/2000) thesis, and on the other, Rawls’ Kant-inspired A Theory of Justice (1971). It will be argued that Hardin’s pessimistic, exclusionary and potentially authoritarian conclusions are incompatible with the allocation of rights and duties in liberal democratic societies. Hardin should therefore be rejected in favour of an interpretative development of Rawls which designates the right to roam as a primary social good that is compatible with a conception of justice as sustainable fairness—an ideal which can be used to inform an inclusive environmentally sensitive leisure citizenship

An investigation to assess ankle mobility in healthy individuals from the application of multi-component compression bandages and compression hosiery

Background An investigation was undertaken to compare the effect of multi-component compression bandages and compression hosiery kits on individuals’ range of ankle motion whilst wearing typical and medical footwear, and barefoot. Methods A convenience sample of 30 healthy individuals recruited from the staff and student population at the University of Huddersfield, UK. Plantarflexion/dorsiflexion range of ankle motion (ROAM) was measured in participants over 6 steps in every combination of typical, medical and no footwear; and multi-component bandages, compression hosiery and no garments. Results Controlling for age, gender and garments, the use of typical footwear was associated with a mean increase in ROAM of 2.54° at best estimate compared with barefoot; the use of medical footwear was associated with a mean decrease in ROAM of 1.12° at best estimate compared with barefoot. Controlling for age, gender and footwear, the use of bandaging was associated with a mean decrease in ROAM of 2.51° at best estimate compared with no garments. Controlling for age, gender and footwear, the use of hosiery was not associated with a significant change in ROAM compared with no garments. Conclusions Bandages appear to restrict ROAM more than hosiery when used in conjunction with a variety of footwear types

Reimagining Ourselves at Madison (ROAM): An innovative adventure-based peer counseling program for university students demonstrating high risk alcohol-related behaviors

In the United States, heavy drinking appears to be normative behavior for college students, and high-risk drinking is a growing problem on college campuses. This paper introduces Re-imagining Ourselves at Madison (ROAM), an adventure-based peer counseling program for James Madison University students who demonstrate high risk-alcohol-related behaviors. The primary objective of this pilot program is to increase participants’ awareness and acknowledgement of their high risk behavior surrounding alcohol through an experience that is different than traditional alcohol education classes or alcohol counseling. ROAM also provides participants with an experience in which they are introduced to healthy alternatives to their high risk drinking behaviors. The purpose of this project is to present a facilitation training curriculum and the program activities for the student leaders of ROAM. Topics discussed include sensation-seeking and risky behavior, college prevention or alcohol reduction programs, and facilitation skills of effective leaders. Furthermore, the paper addresses the history, theory and practices of wilderness therapy and adventure-based counseling. Finally, I present the methods and procedures of the ROAM program and the ROAM trip leader training. While the training curriculum was specifically designed for the ROAM program at James Madison University, it can be used as a model that can be adapted to meet the needs of other universities and colleges. Furthermore, the program activities of ROAM can also be used as an illustrative example of a specific program that can be tailored to fit the requirements of other institutions of higher education

Enhancing the integration of governance in landscape restoration opportunities assessments

Governance is a crucial factor in the equity, effectiveness and sustainability of forest landscape restoration (FLR). The Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) provides a framework for governments, rights-holders and stakeholders to define and prioritise FLR options. This publication presents lessons learned and offers recommendations on governance aspects of the ROAM framework and process. It aims to reinforce the ability of ROAM to inform effective, equitable and sustainable FLR. The analysis uses the IUCN Natural Resource Governance Framework as its primary lens and also takes into account the FLR principles agreed to by the Global Partnership on FLR

Right 2 Roam

70% of women overall and 97% of women in the 18-24 bracket in the UK have experienced sexual harassment in public (UN Women UK, 2021). One in two women feel unsafe walking alone after dark in a quiet street near their home as well as in a busy public place, and four out of five women feel unsafe walking alone after dark in a park or other open space (ONS, 2022). It is these frightening statistics, alongside the seemingly daily senseless acts of violence against women walking, that led us to create Right 2 Roam.Right 2 Roam is an original tabletop boardgame for 2-4 players based on the gendered lived experiences of walking alone. Through a rigorous process of making, playtesting, and reflection, our research aimed to explore how board game design can be used to prompt discussion around the inequalities of movement and safety in public places. The game is a purposefully imbalanced game of chance to mirror systemic injustices and imbalances of power. Right 2 Roam makes a significant contribution to game design, board games as activism, and games for civic engagement. It demonstrates the power of board games to represent the systemic imbalances and inequalities linked to gendered experience, and how critical play can be used to catalyse discussion around lived experience of- and equitable access to- public space. The game has been deployed in contexts in which players can both i) learn more about the experiences of others, and ii) link play to their local communities and public spaces, with routes to impact on civic engagement and community-driven co-creation of safer and more equitable public spaces.<br/

Right 2 Roam

70% of women overall and 97% of women in the 18-24 bracket in the UK have experienced sexual harassment in public (UN Women UK, 2021). One in two women feel unsafe walking alone after dark in a quiet street near their home as well as in a busy public place, and four out of five women feel unsafe walking alone after dark in a park or other open space (ONS, 2022). It is these frightening statistics, alongside the seemingly daily senseless acts of violence against women walking, that led us to create Right 2 Roam.Right 2 Roam is an original tabletop boardgame for 2-4 players based on the gendered lived experiences of walking alone. Through a rigorous process of making, playtesting, and reflection, our research aimed to explore how board game design can be used to prompt discussion around the inequalities of movement and safety in public places. The game is a purposefully imbalanced game of chance to mirror systemic injustices and imbalances of power. Right 2 Roam makes a significant contribution to game design, board games as activism, and games for civic engagement. It demonstrates the power of board games to represent the systemic imbalances and inequalities linked to gendered experience, and how critical play can be used to catalyse discussion around lived experience of- and equitable access to- public space. The game has been deployed in contexts in which players can both i) learn more about the experiences of others, and ii) link play to their local communities and public spaces, with routes to impact on civic engagement and community-driven co-creation of safer and more equitable public spaces.<br/