Landscape and the philosophy of aesthetics: is landscape quality inherent in the landscape or in the eye of the beholder?

The paper proposes that landscape quality assessment may be approached on the basis of two contrasting paradigms, one which regards quality as inherent in the physical landscape, and the other which regards quality as a product of the mind – eye of the beholder. These are termed, respectively, the objectivist and subjectivist paradigms. These paradigms underlie the surveys of the physical landscape and studies of observer preferences.Examination of these paradigms through the approaches taken by philosophers from Plato to modern times demonstrates the ubiquity of the paradigms in underlying human perception of landscape. Until recent centuries, the objectivist paradigm provided philosophers with the basis for understanding beauty, including landscape beauty. However, the philosophers Locke, Hume, Burke and particularly Immanuel Kant identified beauty as lying in the eyes of the beholder rather than in the object. The parallels between Kant's aesthetic philosophy and contemporary theories of landscape quality based on an evolutionary perspective are examined. Most philosophers over recent centuries have adopted the subjectivist view of aesthetics.The paper concludes by proposing that only the subjectivist model should be used in research of landscape quality.     

Real estate prices in Kenya: is there a bubble?

This study focuses on the determinants of the prices of houses in Nairobi, Kenya. The study finds housing prices to have positive relationships with GDP, diaspora remittances, lending rates, loans to real estate sector and cost of construction. A negative relationship exists between the house prices and inflation. Results of the cointegration tests indicate the existence of stable long-run relationships between house prices and each of GDP and NSE Index, while unstable relationships are reported for diaspora remittances and building costs. Using fractional integration, the results show higher orders of integration for the house price series compared with the other variables, though the study is indifferent about the existence of a house price bubble. Granger causality tests indicate there are no causal relationships between house prices and diaspora remittances. However, there are two way causalities between house prices and each of GDP, building costs and NSE Index. This negates the existence of a house price bubble.     

Green belt in a compact city: A zone for conservation or transition?

The paper examines the evolution, implementation and performance of the green belt in the compact and land-hungry city of Hong Kong. The green belt in Hong Kong comprises over 25% of all the land areas under the statutory land-use zoning plans. Its planning policy declares that there is a presumption against development in this land-use zone. Based upon historical study, cross-sectional examination of 109 statutory zoning plans and quantitative analysis of 1230 planning application cases, this study has evaluated whether the green belt was indeed treated as a non-building area for the purpose of landscape and countryside conservation. The conclusion is that the actual planning intention of the green belt has been ambivalent and flexible and it is a transition zone rather than a zone for conservation in Hong Kong.     

Politics,planning and the protection of nature: Political abuse of early ecological ideas in Germany, 1933–45

This paper has three objectives. First, it illustrates how the theme of rationality, so important for a country's artistic culture and for studies in the positive sciences, is present both in modern Italy and the field of town planning. Second, it examines the ‘limits’ of town planning: a sort of set of ‘commandments’ which establishment culture has formulated in order to test and institutionalize planning projects. Third, it attempts to demonstrate how one of the peculiar and conditioning features of town planning in Italy is the importance attributed to history (the history of the city, the history of planning schemes and procedures) in justifying decisions which result in urban transformation.     

Low Carbon Housing: A ‘Green’ Wolf in Sheep's Clothing?

Ambitious carbon reduction targets are driving a new era of carbon control reflecting the UK, the EU and international commitment to mitigating the predicted impacts of global warming and climate change. Observed as a transition away from the more holistic goals of sustainable development (While et al., 2001), the ‘low carbon’ (LC) agenda is increasingly recognised as problematic in so far as it is pro-technological and promethean, marginalising the importance of social, political, economic and wider environmental issues. With specific implications for housing and householders, the paper explores how the current preoccupation with ‘LC’ presents some potential pitfalls in relation to advancing sustainable housing.     

‘This is not the jungle,this is my barbecho’: semantics of ethnoecological landscape categories in the Bolivian Amazon

Through a case study with Spanish-speaking Takana indigenous people in the Bolivian Amazon, we explored ethnoecological landscape categories, including their ecological underpinnings, cultural significance and hierarchical organisation. Using field walks and interviews with consultants, we elicited 156 ethnoecological landscape categories, 60 of which related to vegetation types. However, sorting exercises with landscape photographs revealed that vegetation was not a guiding organisation principle. Takana consultants organised ethnoecological landscape categories into geographical regions that contained different landscape features, including vegetation units, topographical or hydrological features. Comparing the documented ethnoecological landscape categorisation with a published scientific botanical classification of vegetation units, we observed some important conceptual differences, which in turn have implications for the management of such landscapes.     

Ownership structure and innovation: is there a real link?

This study examines the relationship between the ownership and control structures of a company and its innovative activity. It seeks to analyse the effect of the internal features of a company’s ownership structure on decisions to initiate research and development activities and on the actual output of this innovative process. Specifically, we examine company ownership, the distribution of decision-making powers, the nature of these powers and the extent to which ownership is concentrated, among others. The analysis is performed on a representative sample of Spanish manufacturing industries for the year 2001. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that internal factors are significant for the undertaking of R&D activities. In particular, we report that a high degree of ownership concentration and the use of debt financing serve to dissuade a firm from incurring R&D expenditure and do not favour R&D output.

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Strengthening relationships in clusters: How effective is an indirect policy measure carried out in a peripheral technology district?

Studies of the effects of specific policy measures for innovation have focused mainly on actions based on direct R&D support. However, the innovation studies literature sees innovation as an interactive process, emphasising the role of knowledge exchange for successful innovation. Furthermore, it is increasingly accepted that co-location is not sufficient for knowledge exchange to occur. Consequently, there is also a need to assess the effectiveness of policy measures to promote knowledge exchange between co-located actors. The objective of this paper is to narrow this gap by exploring the outcome of an indirect policy in stimulating coordination and networking. The paper analyses policies for increased networking in a mechatronics district located in the peripheral and less innovative region Apulia (Southern Italy). The success of the coordination and networking action is examined by adopting a longitudinal approach. In order to assess the association of the policy with the overall network structure, social network analysis is used to analyse the data. We compare characteristics of the network in the early and later phase of the district across five dimensions of knowledge exchange, identifying a large increase in the use of partnerships as the main effect of the policy.     

Foreigners versus natives in Spain: different migration patterns? Any changes in the aftermath of the crisis?

The main aim of this study, which takes Spanish provinces over the periods 2004–2007 and 2008–2013 as case study, is threefold: first, to test whether labor factors affect to a greater extent foreigners than natives when it comes to migrating; second, to detect changes in migration patterns over the crisis period; third, to unveil nonlinearities in the relationship between migration and wages. To do so, an extended gravity model, combined with a methodology that identifies endogenous thresholds to nonlinear effects, is estimated. The results support that the role played by labor factors is more important for foreigners than natives, especially before the outbreak of the economic crisis. The results also indicate that the relative size of the service sector and, to a lesser extent, climate conditions have gained importance as attraction factors for natives over the crisis, while the opposite happens for foreigners. Therefore, evidence clearly supports the idea that business cycle modifies the decision making of migrants. Finally, some nonlinearities in the effect of expected wages on migration are found regardless of the group and/or time frame considered.     

Invisible city: a Jerusalem in the forest?

The Bielski partisans are perhaps the most famous of the ‘Forest Jews’ of Belarus, Jews who engaged in active resistance to the Germans in the years between 1941 and 1944 from their hide-outs in the forest. When they escaped to ‘partisan country’ Jews had to adjust to an entirely new physical and social environment. Persecuted by one of the most technologically advanced armies in the world, and forced by circumstances to join the Soviet-led, communist, anti-religious partisan movement, the Bielski group faced numerous social and cultural dilemmas in establishing the living conditions that ensured their survival. The extreme cold of the Russian winter made circumstances extremely harsh, ‘living like animals’ according to one partisan, although in time life improved sufficiently for many in the Bielski detachment to believe that their final camp had acquired the status of a small town or shtetl. If, however, such military camps have often recalled more established urban settlements, this question requires clarification in the Bielski case, and is the principal focus of this paper. In its examination of the dwellings and settlements constructed by the Bielski group, and how they evolved over time, the study underlines the minimum dimensions of culture that arise in near-survival conditions.     

Homelessness in the UK: who is most at risk?

Is the common pressure group and media refrain that ‘we are all two pay cheques away from homelessness’ justified by the evidence? Drawing on multivariate analysis of two cross-sectional datasets (the ‘Scottish Household Survey’ and the UK-wide ‘Poverty and Social Exclusion’) Survey and one longitudinal data-set (the ‘British Cohort Study 1970’), this paper provides a systematic account of the social distribution of homelessness in the UK. Informed by a critical realist explanatory framework, our analysis underlines the centrality of poverty, especially childhood poverty, to the generation of homelessness, while also demonstrating the impact of broader labour and housing market contexts, and certain demographic, personal and social support characteristics. These findings reinforce the moral imperative for policy action on homelessness, while at the same time signalling opportunities to target preventative interventions on high risk groups.     

Infrastructure Planning: in a State of Panic?

Abstract

Infrastructure is routinely framed in contemporary urban policy as a vehicle to grow the economy through the creation of jobs. In periods of economic downturn and when ongoing fiscal uncertainty ensues, governments may look to the construction and maintenance of social and public infrastructure such as social housing and public transport. Cities and communities that have endured infrastructure deficits in the past may become the beneficiaries of adjusted national and state-level policy to support economic prosperity through expedient infrastructure implementation programs. Yet in the post-GFC policy environment urban infrastructure has recentred the role of infrastructure in driving urban economic recovery in terms of economic prosperity. Drawing from the state of exception literature, I call on the notion of urgency to explore infrastructure planning as it manifests at the juncture between strategic planning and implementation. This paper will contribute to the critical urban planning literature by examining how infrastructure prioritisation and implementation is shaped through a characterisation of urgency which subverts the relationship between urban infrastructure planning, implementation and planning process.     

'Management theory': is it of any practical use? or how does a fadbecome a paradigm?

The business of management produces an estimated 2000 books per annum. So how does the busy manager filter out the useful ideas from the verbiage which surrounds this subject? With great difficulty, usually, and unfortunately this is an area of his thinking which cannot be delegated. Nevertheless careful scrutiny suggests there are clues as to which fads may transform into working paradigms. Here we consider how the outputs of gurus, consultants, academics and practising managers may be integrated to provide the necessary proof and confidence in the ideas on offer. The approach is illustrated via the Time Compression Paradigm, which has found wide applicability for a range of business processes, in many market sectors, and in many countries     

Can a landscape be a work of art?: an examination of Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe's theory of aesthetics.

The article focuses on the theory of landscape design put forward by Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe. Central to this is the extent to which a designed landscape can be considered a ‘work of art’. Jellicoe makes connections between landscape design and the projection of the psyche into its natural environment, and thus it seems appropriate to relate his exploration of the subconscious to Jung's ‘psychological system’. The theories of Tolstoy and Langer are also used as critical reference points for the analysis of Jellicoe's theories. Although Jellicoe's theories appear to be flawed, it is concluded that he is right to maintain that landscape architecture can produce works of art, and that his limitations as a philosopher do not diminish his design achievements.     

What is achieved and lost in living in a mixed-income neighborhood? Findings from South Korea

The concept of social mix is perceived as an attempt to minimize social exclusion by enhancing individual social capital. Related policies have been implemented in many countries to prevent isolation of certain groups and achieve social integration. However, few studies have examined their impacts on various income groups. This study uses data from the National Social Capital Survey in South Korea to empirically investigate the impact of the social mix policy on trust, networks, and norms, which are the three types of social capital that promote social integration. Multiple regression models present that the income mix is negatively associated with neighborly trust and networks, while being positively associated with norms. These models also suggest that mixing of income groups improves the norms of low-income groups but reduces the trust of high-income groups. Thus, this study argues for the need to establish specific goals and targets when promoting a social mix policy and understanding the side effects of introducing such a policy.     

Valley landscape management: the context of a ‘river contract’ in the Semois valley,Belgium

A trans‐boundary and multi‐disciplinary approach to the river contract project for the Semois valley in Wallonia (Belgium) is described that provided the opportunity for a landscape‐scale focus during actions to restore the watercourses and the associated valley area. A trans‐boundary landscape survey was carried out under the context of the Interreg III European programme. This resulted in the rediscovery of lost views and viewpoints within the landscape and in the implementation of actions leading to the opening up of the valley, which provided opportunities to re‐establish lost landscape features, such as hay meadows. The gathering of many partners in the negotiation process of this project can be seen as an example of ‘landscape democratization’ or participative management of landscapes in a trans‐boundary and trans‐disciplinary context and as such this project is a concrete realization of the aims of the European Landscape Convention (ELC).     

Utility regulation in Africa: How relevant is the British model?

This article considers whether African utility regulators can draw useful lessons from the British experience over the past thirty years. We focus on three features that are considered key properties of the British regulatory model: price-cap incentive regulation, independent regulatory agencies and an emphasis on introducing competition where possible. For each property, we ask how relevant the model is for most African countries. Overall, we argue that although the British model probably has some lessons which can help improve utility performance in Africa, the problems that they help to solve are generally second-order. Ultimately, institutional weaknesses are the main root of regulatory failure in many African countries, and these weaknesses call for a model of regulation designed specifically to address them.     

Cyclical versus Structural Sustainability of Homeownership: Is Counter-cyclical Intervention in Housing Markets Enough?

The economic and housing market difficulties that emerged as a result of the recent global financial crisis (GFC) have encouraged a focus on the cyclical sustainability of homeownership. As a result, there has been inadequate attention paid to the impact of increased real household incomes and wealth on the structural sustainability of a housing system built on homeownership as the dominant tenure. This paper argues that, where housing supply is relatively inelastic in the long run, underlying demand pressures may keep house prices on a path which continues to diverge from household incomes. This will add to borrowing constraints already faced by aspiring first homeowners with low and moderate incomes and with limited wealth. If financial institutions tighten lending standards in response to the GFC, households with limited equity and limited capacity to pay will find it even more difficult to gain access to finance than has been the case in the past. This raises the question of whether homeownership can be sustained at its current levels. The paper uses outcomes in Australia to illustrate the points made and suggests that other countries, such as the UK, may well be about to follow the same path.