Contemporary Geographical Research Research Articles

UNLOCKING THE TOURISM POTENTIAL OF BORDERING REGIONS: A CASE STUDY OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN FOČA (BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA) AND PLUŽINE (MONTENEGRO)

Revitalizing border areas, which in the scientific discourse are most often considered peripheral, deprived, and less developed, is the focus of contemporary geographical research. Borders, acting as demarcation lines or points of convergence, possess a dual role, offering both positive and negative contexts. This duality adds complexity to the observation, diagnosis, and action required to stimulate economic activities. Tourism emerges as an alternative solution predominantly acknowledged by local communities, which would make it easier to achieve the inclusion of geographically isolated areas in regional development policies, ultimately achieving harmonization of economic growth at the national level. The paper deals with the analysis of the state and possibilities of the development of crossborder tourism in the Bosnian-Herzegovinian-Montenegro border sector, namely in the area of the municipalities of Foča, home to Bosnia and Herzegovina's oldest national park, and Plužine, housing the Piva Nature Park. Based on a qualitative methodology (questionnaires conducted among different tourism stakeholders), the research aims to determine whether tourism as the basis of crossborder cooperation can be considered an alternative for overcoming the marginalization of the observed areas, taking into account that these are demographically and economically weakened municipalities in the context of contemporary circumstances belonging countries and what are its future perspectives. The respondents are representatives of local stakeholders who possess valuable insights and knowledge about the unique social, cultural, economic, and ecological factors in their area. The research results can serve as a significant insight into the plans and priorities of tourism development.

Writing

This intervention poses a question about the practice of writing in contemporary geographical research, namely, in what ways might post‐humanist thinking reconfigure geography's relationship with writing? I explore the idea that academic writing remains thoroughly entangled with the excessive force of nonhuman matters. My intervention is inspired by the work of Brian Massumi and Erin Manning and their call to approach writing as a process of research creation, one that cannot be reduced to the communication of information generated by other means. Post‐humanist thinking thus requires not only that we situate writing in the world, but that we, as practitioners of human geography, approach our relationship with words as a post‐human practice in its own right.

Bridging the Divide: The Potential Role of Contemporary Geographical Research in Schools

This article examines the implementation and impacts of a program intended to improve research-led teaching in schools. Little consideration is given to the role of research-led teaching in schools; the argument is that this is a consequence of fractures between schools and universities. A program was developed to bring contemporary geographical research of university scholars into schools. Examining this program, the finding is that being exposed to research: improves access to up-to-date knowledge; heightens student enthusiasm; and informs choices students make about their learning. This article calls for bridges to be built between universities and schools upon the nexus of teaching and research.

Editorial

This editorial introduces some recent editorial changes to the journal, including the appointment of a new Physical and Environmental Geography Editor. It outlines the new editorial team's vision for Area before noting some recent and forthcoming highlights, including the 2015 Area prize winner, Classics Revisited and Virtual Special Issues. Finally, the editorial introduces a new, regular feature of the journal – ‘Ethics in/of Geographical Research’ – which we hope will lead to a wide‐ranging series of articles, commentaries and debates that span the breadth of contemporary geographical research.

Wielokulturowość we współczesnych polskich badaniach geograficznych i edukacji geograficznej – zarys problematyki

Poland is a peculiar example of country which had a very rich tradition of being one of Europe’s most multicultural societies, and at the same time most tolerant and open to “others”, notwithstanding a contemporary history characterised by a notable degree of national and religious homogeneity, as well as the aversion of a large part of society (and some political parties) to immigrants, especially those from beyond European culture. This is also visible in any attempt to outline contemporary geographical research in multiculturalism, as well as its presence in geographical education. The following general conclusions could be formulated on the basis of the analysis carried out: – The vast majority of research topics taken up concern relics of the former Polish multiculturalism – small and strongly integrated national, ethnic and religious minorities, cultural heritage attesting to the rich and proud history of Poland, and the presence of Polish culture and tradition in eastern borderland regions that lives on through centres of Polish minorities. Overall, it is what might be described as “sentimental multiculturalism” (internal, historical, traditional and indigenous); – The same relationship can be seen in school-level geographical education, which shows Polish multiculturalism through the lens of centuries-old, but currently scarce national and religious diversity, as well as the migration of Poles to the United Kingdom. At the same time, societies with different skin colours and non-Christian religions are located in far-away, exotic countries. – Despite the latest censuses showing a dynamic increase in numbers of the so-called regional minorities (especially Silesian and Kashubian) that dominate the contemporary ethnic structure of Poland, as well as their intensified social, cultural and political aspirations, there has been no proportionate upsurge of interest on the part of geographers; – Geographical research marginalises the issue of “immigrant multiculturalism” (external, modern and immigrant), despite this being an important research, journalistic, economic and political issue in the European Union for decades, and especially now. This perception of, and research on multiculturalism, in Polish geography is to a large extent understandable, in line with the historical and cultural importance of the so-called traditional minorities on the one hand, and – on the other – the lack of attractiveness of our country as a destination for settlement among economic migrants and refugees from the Middle East and North Africa. Despite all of that, Poland will ultimately not differ from Western Europe, in that it will not avoid a further increase in multiculturalism, given that no minority will either fully emigrate or fully integrate. Sooner or later, the influx of immigrants from nonEuropean cultures will increase, and the waves of legal and illegal immigration will not omit Poland. The substantive and mental preparation of Polish society for this “immigrant multiculturalism” – in a manner that is free of both populism and political correctness – represents a huge challenge for geographers, but also for sociologists, political scientists and historians.

Postnonclassical geography in Russia

We examine the new period of advancement of geography in the 21st century corresponding to the postnonclassical stage of advancement of science. The tendency toward interdisciplinary and problem-oriented research in contemporary geography is highlighted. The theoretical and practical significance of the evolution of geography at the postnonclassical period is demonstrated. Examples of contemporary geographical research corresponding to this period are given.

Imizamo Yethu: a Case Study of Community Resilience to Fire Hazard in an Informal Settlement Cape Town, South Africa

AbstractImizamo Yethu, in Cape Town, is one of the many informal settlements in South Africa's post‐Apartheid urban landscape. Residents live in abject poverty and are potentially vulnerable to a range of environmental hazards, of which fire hazard is one of the most common. A major fire, on the 8 February 2004, caused significant damage to housing and infrastructure, resulting in widespread homelessness and loss of personal possessions. Despite this, there was minimal loss of life and few major injuries. The community re‐grouped after the fire and Imizamo Yethu has remained viable as a community to the present day. Contemporary geographical research on hazards emphasises aspects of community vulnerability and resilience. The present paper identifies and examines factors that enhance community resilience in the informal settlement of Imizamo Yethu, particularly in response and recovery to fire events. A survey completed in the aftermath of the 2004 fire found that social networks, some formal community institutions that foster community participation and the resourcefulness of individuals were the most important factors underpinning resilience.

Cultural Geography, Consumption and the City

ABSTRACTThis article has three main aims. The first is to highlight the importance of culture and consumption to contemporary geographical inquiry. The second is to show some of the ways in which culture and consumption have been theorised, especially in the context of the city. The third aim is to explore how consumption and culture have been incorporated into the schemes used by cities as they promote themselves in a ‘new urban order’ marked by increased competitiveness. This discussion underscores the centrality of studies of urban cultures and consumption to contemporary geographical research.

Geography and Migration

This paper reviews and evaluates the contribution of contemporary geographical research to our understanding of internal and international migration. Four main conclusions are reached: (i) that geography is absolutely central to the study of migration (and vice versa); (ii) that, throughout the recent period, geographers have contributed greatly to migration research through their empirical studies of migration flows and net migration patterns (often using quantitative methods); (iii) that these analyses have tended, however, to understate the significance of the cultural, political and social aspects of migration, and have been biased towards certain advanced capitalist countries; and (iv) that future research should redress these imbalances.

Crime and Policing in the British Countryside: Some Agendas for Contemporary Geographical Research

The study of crime has emerged as a rich and diverse area of human geography. However, the majority of research has been conducted in an urban environment and rural places have been neglected by comparison. Emphasizing the British countryside, this paper draws upon current thinking in rural geography to suggest a research agenda to fill this gap. Initial attention is given to advances in environmental criminology and how these may be applied to rural areas. Following a critique of this approach, emphasis is given to the fear of crime in rural areas and how this is influenced by constructions of rurality and criminality. Questions are raised about the nature of criminal threat in the countryside, the extend to which it is culturally constructed and whether it is leading to the exclusion of particular groups from rural space. In the final sections of the paper, the changing geographies of rural policing are reviewed in light of these issues. Attention is given to recent policing initiatives in the countryside and the implications these have for the governance of rural areas.

Authors, Editors and Authority in the Postmodern Academy

Textbooks are presented, by their authors and publishers, as authoritative statements regarding the nature of a scientific discipline or sub‐discipline: in Kuhn's words, they are the “vehicles for the perpetuation of normal science.” One of the main contributions of postmodern and poststructuralist thought, however, has been to challenge the nature of power and authority in the academy, a challenge that has been widely taken up in contemporary geographical research. There has been much less impact on textbook production and other teaching resources, however, where the “authority of the disembodied scholar” still holds sway. This is illustrated with respect to readers, collections of both original and reprinted pieces (the latter often in abridged form) where editorial authority (“this is what I think you should read”) is frequently as firm as its predecessor, authorial authority. The reasons for this are sought in contemporary developments in higher education.

Geography matters? Whiteness and contemporary geography

Summary The critique of whiteness furthers important critiques of static notions of ethnicity and identity. Interesting work on ‘white-blind’ geographers working on race and ethnicity has recently been initiated, yet a more systematic and wide ranging critique of the norms and assumptions of contemporary geographical research has yet to be fully established. After reviewing the recent White Studies literature, this paper examines an influential piece of contemporary geographical writing and suggests that if geography really is to matter, geographers need to consider more self-consciously how they themselves might be (unwittingly) complicit in such constructions.

CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY IN THE CHINESE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC

)RESENT-day research in physical geography in the Chinese People's Republic differs considerably, both in scope and dimensions, from the work conducted in China prior to 1949. Contemporary geographical research in China is organized to implement state economic plans in well-defined directions determined by the main economic objectives of the state. Of course, this kind of generalization constitutes a certain simplification, for it is not always possible to identify a direct connection between a scientific investigation conducted at a given moment and the broad economic plan. Nevertheless, the general assumption is that such research ought to be useful for the economic tasks of the state, whether already in execution or merely planned for the future. Frequently, however, the number of trained professionals available in a given branch of science decides the scope and dimensions of the work undertaken. In China, owing to the tremendous number of problems connected with economic planning, the number of physical geographers engaged in scientific research is inadequate to deal with the multiplicity of problems resulting from the state's plans, although about five hundred young people graduate every year in physical geography. Therefore, there is a marked tendency to concentrate geographers' efforts on selected sectors, those most important from the point of view of practical needs, although the ever-increasing number of qualified workers makes it posible to widen the tasks entrusted to geography. Both Leszczycki and Wiens have written on the general development of geography in China.1 The national program of geographical research, as pursued not only in the institutions