Rural Countryside Research Articles

Bygda som postruralt landskap i Marit Eikemos Hardanger (2019)

Abstract This study in literary geography explores the concept of the rural in Marit Eikemo’s short stories Hardanger (2019). In Norwegian culture, the ideas about the rural and the urban have for a long time played a principal role in constituting both different ways of life and people‘s identity. Who you are is to a large degree determined by where you live. The rural way of living has been, and still is, regarded as the hegemonic norm for „quality of life“ in Norwegian society, but today, new migration patterns and lifestyles have changed the rural countryside. There has been a significant influx of urban populations into rural locations. Key attributes of urban living transform its identity, and rural areas have changed from landscapes of production to landscapes of consumption. Eikemo’s Hardanger is comprised of ten short stories from this new „post-rural“ Norway, where identity, lifestyle, and place are more disconnected. Eikemo’s satirical short stories invite the reader to reflect on the changes in rural Norway.

Cauldrons of Bronze Age nomads reveals 2700 year old yak milk and the deep antiquity of food preparation techniques

Cauldrons, vessels that are simultaneously common and enigmatic, offer insights into past cultural and social traditions. While assumed to possess a special function, what these cauldrons contained is still largely mysterious. These vessels, such as those made from bronze or copper alloys, function as reservoirs for ancient organics through the antibacterial qualities provided by the metal surfaces. Here we show, through protein analysis, that cauldrons from the Final Bronze Age (ca. 2700 BP) were primarily used to collect blood from ruminants, primarily caprines, likely for the production of sausages in a manner similar to contemporary practices in Mongolia’s rural countryside. Our findings present a different function from the recent findings of cooked meat in copper-alloy vessels from the northern Caucasus 2000 years earlier, exposing the diversity in food preparation techniques. Our secondary findings of bovine milk within the cauldron, including peptides specific to Bos mutus, pushes back their regional domestication into the Bronze Age.

Beyond hazard-induced migration: Dissecting everyday mobilities in response to air pollution and extreme cold events at multiple spatial and temporal scales

Human mobility can be considered an effective adaptation strategy in response to environmental risks, given that adverse environmental conditions are often temporary and in-situ adaptation may not always be feasible or desirable. Despite its importance, the concept of short-term mobility as a behavioral response to environmental hazards has been understudied in geographies of health and place and behavioral economics. For a comprehensive understanding of how everyday mobilities are used as a risk adaptation strategy, this study avails of a multiscalar approach's ability to examine the influences of air pollution and extreme cold events on origin-destination movements. The modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP) and modifiable temporal unit problem (MTUP) are analyzed. The results suggest that the scale effects of the MAUP and MTUP are evident from the variations in regression coefficients of the differences in air quality and extreme cold events between origin and destination units. It is also found that the prefecture-level units that include both urbanized city proper and rural countryside, are not an ideal spatial analysis scale. Furthermore, this study reveals that the nexus of air quality differences and short-term movements is significantly impacted by changes in temporal scales. Our results offer fresh evidence on the decision-making process underlying mobility as an adaptation strategy to air pollution and cold events.

Rural Tourism In India - Scope And Perspectives

Rural India is a personification of indian culture.About 70% of indian population resides in villages. Indian villages showcase true image of indian custom and traditions which are diverse from one region to another spreading from mountainous region of north to the desert region of west stretching to the hot humid climate of south to the coastal region adjacent to Arabian sea. Tourism in such rural countryside present live demonstration of study indian culture but also act as an open gallery of indian ancient historic past. Each region has their own costume, folk song, folk dances and religious ceremonies which are largely promoted by Tourism Dept to boast national income and development of rural infrastructure. Beside infrastructure development there few challenges also to cope with like environmental degradation, destruction of fragile Ecosystem, flora and fauna a of the place,over carrying capacity, the emphasis should be lead on sustainable tourism with preservation of environment and cultural value and ethos of the places as well. The biggest challenges today is environmental pollution where heap of garbages leftover by visitors which not only mar the beauty of the place but also bring havoc to native flora and fauna which goes on the brink of extinction, like in Uttrakhand and other mountainous tourist destinations where govt. banned plastic to make it plastic free places.Smilarly there is dire need to preserve dwindling culture and tradition of the places which also struggling to thrive due to the negative impact of western culture brought by foreign tourists.

Being Bhil: The politics of becoming indigenous in India and Pakistan

ABSTRACT This article, based on ethnographic fieldwork and archival data, examines the limits of indigeneity and the role of the nation state in unintentionally fostering or discouraging identity formations of certain kinds. It focuses on Bhils, the largest ‘tribal’ group in South Asia with a population of around 17 million, to ask why they are seen as ‘indigenous’ in India though not in Pakistan. It shows how the colonial category of ‘tribes’ for the Bhils has been sustained and strengthened in postcolonial India due to institutional and bureaucratic practices, vernacular publications, upper-caste and transnational activism while a different set of actions by the state of Pakistan have resulted in absence of such ‘regimes of discipline.’ This divergent scenario is contrasted with a field view of the rural countryside by describing the complexity of self-identity and claims-making of the Bhils around the Narmada Valley, India and Tharparkar, Sindh province, Pakistan. The identity claims of the Bhils in both the countries, ranging from Kshatriya (upper-caste warriors) to Dalits (formerly ‘untouchable’ castes) show striking similarities, though also differ at times and is mostly at odds with the global indigeneity discourse and the administrative categories.

Awareness and Confidence of Vietnamese Primary School Teachers towards STEM-Integrated Teaching Approach

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education has been piloted by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training for primary school teachers since 2022. This research aims to evaluate awareness, confidence and the correlation between those variables with the demographic factors of Vietnamese elementary school teachers after nearly a year of implementing integrated STEM teaching. This study used a questionnaire survey method consisting of 30 items on a 5-point Likert scale for 148 elementary school teachers in the Central and Central Highlands of Vietnam. Data was analysed using SPSS software. Descriptive statistics results showed that Vietnamese elementary school teachers have good awareness but lack confidence in STEM-integrated teaching. Correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between teachers’ awareness, confidence, and some demographic factors (educational level, work area). The outcomes of the one-way ANOVA analysis revealed a positive correlation: increased levels of teachers’ education corresponded to heightened awareness and confidence in STEM-integrated teaching. Additionally, teachers located in urban areas demonstrated greater awareness and confidence compared to their counterparts in rural countryside and highland areas.. Some recommendations to increase awareness and improve confidence in teaching STEM integration for Vietnamese elementary school teachers are presented at discuss session.

Mental Healthcare workers' experiences in managing psychiatric patients' aggression in Maseru.

Aggression and violence in psychiatric clinical facilities are a common case, and mental healthcare workers utilise various management strategies to combat it. It is therefore crucial for mental healthcare workers to acquire skills for the management strategies of aggressive behaviour of psychiatric patients. The aim of the study was to describe mental healthcare workers' experiences in the management strategies of aggressive and violent behaviour by psychiatric patients in Maseru district. A psychiatric hospital situated to the south in Maseru in the rural countryside and general hospital located in the western lowlands of Lesotho in the village of Morija were used. This study adopted a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design. There were two focus group interviews conducted per clinical facility, which consisted of six members in each group. There were four participants for individual interviews from psychiatric clinical facility and three individual interviews from general clinical facility. Thematic analysis of the data resulted in themes and sub-themes. These were psychological intervention strategy, physical strategy, chemical strategy, empowerment strategy and policy strategy. Participants viewed various management strategies of aggressive and violent behaviour of psychiatric patients they utilise in clinical facilities as effective. The mental healthcare workers' experiences in managing aggression and violent behaviour of psychiatric patients were expression of psychological, physical, chemical, empowerment and policy strategies. The study will enhance the knowledge, skills and attitudes regarding management strategies that mental healthcare workers can utilise in managing aggressive and violent behaviour of psychiatric patients.

The Urban Origins of Rebellion

The emphasis in recent decades on weak state capacity as an explanation of civil war detracts from an important fact: some of the deadliest and most protracted rebellions since WWII arose not where the state was weak, but rather in areas of significant state power. This study challenges the predominance-of-peripheral-conflict paradigm by disentangling rebel formation from civil war onset and emphasizing the urban origins of numerous rebel groups. Quantitative analyses show that three group types—military-, social interest-, and political party-based groups—are far more likely to form in large cities, especially the capital, and far less likely to form in the rural countryside. Case studies then illustrate the constraints and opportunities nascent rebel groups of each type face. This study advances the field’s understanding of a surprisingly large number of violent rebellions that current mainstream approaches and the emphasis on weak states and conflict opportunities cannot effectively explain.

노인을 위한 기능성(교육용) 음악 보드게임 콘텐츠 개발 연구

This study aims to develop functional (educational) music board games for the quality of life and cognitive ability of the elderly in the aging society. To this end, this study conducted basic data surveys centered on literature research and music board games from February to August 2022. In advice from one game development expert and one of the music specialists clinical therapists, music functionality (educational) board The development direction and educational goals of the game were set, and the functional music board game for the elderly was developed to improve the cognitive ability of the elderly and basic learning of music. In particular, in this study, the design was made to reminiscent of the rural countryside, so that the elderly recalled their memories as a child and gained emotional effects. In this study, we focused on the development of functional (educational) music board game that acquired basic learning of music and combined the fun and interesting elements of the game. Based on this, many studies are expected to complement the problems, and the music board game research for the elderly who can contribute to the life of the elderly as well as the emotional effects of the elderly, as well as the educational effects, and to contribute to the improvement of cognitive abilities.

The Art of Analogy in The Woodlanders and Other Novels: Hardy’s Eco-Writing

Hardy’s lifetime spanned a time of intense technological, societal and sociological change. Pushed away from pollution-saturated urban centres, the wealthiest classes sought to create an idealistic version of the countryside. A novelist like Thomas Hardy contributed, albeit unwittingly, to this myth-making; he also, in what one might call a counter-text, fiercely criticised the system producing a commodification of the countryside. It is the counter-text of one of his novels that I propose to examine in this paper; more specifically, I will focus on a rhetorical device recurring in Hardy’s prose works which is instrumental in the elaboration of this counter-text: the analogy between the human and the non-human. The likening of the former to the latter is what contributes to the creation of a timeless rural countryside and also what underlies the capitalistic, hierarchical relationships within the human community and also of men with Nature. This naturalisation of the human is completed by its opposite, namely the anthropomorphic treatment of Nature: it undoes the commodification of Nature and the human as enforced in Wessex but also in the real rural areas of England. Complementary to this process, the interrelatedness of the living world as a whole is also evidenced by the ethical dimension developed by the counter-text which posits that man’s stewardship of Nature is not only morally justified but also strongly recommended if human survival is to be secured. Eventually, Hardy’s text emerges as eco-conscious and resonates with our contemporary preoccupations and the solutions that are put forward.

P468 Aspergillosis in a colony of Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti) under managed care: a clinical and environmental investigation in a French zoological park

Poster session 3, September 23, 2022, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM ObjectivesAspergillosis is an opportunistic fungal infection due to Aspergillus spp., and primarily A. fumigatus. The disease is pervasive in avian populations, especially those under managed care. The incidence and the management of avian aspergillosis can be critically impacted by exposure to high levels of spores via environmental contamination and by strains resistant to azole drugs. The present study aimed at assessing the impact of environmental contamination on the clinical incidence of aspergillosis in penguins managed under human care. ZooParc de Beauval was chosen for the investigations, because this zoological facility hosts a large colony of Humboldt penguin (Spheniscus humboldti) and it is geographically located in the rural countryside of the Loir-et-Cher district, France, surrounded by numerous large crop fieldsMaterial and methodsThe fungal contamination in the environment was assessed through three serial sessions of surface sampling in bird nests: all isolates were counted, identified by DNA sequencing, and then systematically screened for resistance mutations and MICs (minimal inhibitory concentrations) elevation for the A. fumigatus strains. In addition, the clinical incidence of aspergillosis was evaluated in the penguin population over a 3-year period. A microsatellite-based analysis tracked A. fumigatus isolates circulation.ResultsEnvironmental investigations highlighted a substantial increase in the fungal load during the Autumn season (>12-fold vs. the other timepoints) and a large overrepresentation of species belonging to the Aspergillus section Fumigati (ranging from 22.7 to 94.6%) (Fig. 1). Only one cryptic species (A. nishimurae) and one isolate exhibiting resistance mutation (G138S in the cyp51A gene; MIC itraconazole >4 μg/ml) were detected. The overall incidence of aspergillosis was measured at ∼3.4% case-years and was observed mostly in juvenile penguins (Fig. 1). The analysis of microsatellite polymorphism revealed a high level of genetic diversity among A. fumigatus isolates, except for one strain that was largely over-represented during the Autumn sampling session. A limited number of isolate genotypes was collected from clinical cases and from the environment.ConclusionsFungal environmental contamination and incidence of aspergillosis in penguins appeared variable depending on seasons, but the rural location of the penguin habitat did not seem to influence the emergence of resistant strains.

Rural development and countryside diversification: Study on Rural Tourism practices in the brazilian Pampa biome region

This study analyzed practices of tourism in rural properties in the Brazilian Pampa biome region, taking into account the sustainability element, and analyzing how these actions can promote rural development in the region. It is a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive research, carried out using the multiple case study method, the data being collected through interviews, and visits/observations, and analyzed through with a categorical content analysis and interpretative analysis. This study concluded that tourism in rural properties is still going to be a planned and structured practice that seeks to meet the visitors’ desires to know the countryside and to experience what the place has to offer, such as fauna, flora, habits, costumes, traditions, and typical gastronomy. In fact, it was found that rural tourism is a viable activity, and an income complement with a development potential to the region. With regard to sustainability, yet some practices still disregard the theme, it was observed that there is a concern related to the maintenance of green areas, to the preservation of fauna and flora, and of water resources. The pluriactivity of rural households can be observed, but, when it comes to thinking about sustainability, a greater synergy stills lacks.

AB040. Urbanisation, relocation and mental health of elderly farmers and the changes during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic

Background: Rapid urbanisation has caused a considerable elderly population to relocate from rural countryside to urban neighbourhoods. This study examines the impact of built environment change on their health and the inequality aggravated by living density and built environment configuration.

HeathcliffWalks

Heathcliff<i>Walks</i>

Assessing Land Use Planning Tools to Mitigate Odour and Lighting Nuisance Related to Cannabis Production

Cannabis production has expanded significantly across southern Ontario with the legalisation of theindustry. Much of this expansion has occurred within the rural countryside, through the utilisation of existinggreenhouse infrastructure. While the growth of this sector provides economic benefits to rural communities, complaints from adjacent residents related to lighting and odour issues are common and mitigation of such issues is complex. Land use planning policies have been established across southern Ontario to manage the development of cannabis greenhouses; however, policies vary by region and countyand the appropriateness of these policies have not been tested. This study seeks to analyse municipalplanning policies that regulate cannabis production and understand the impacts of these policies on sector,adjacent land owners and rural communities. Planning policies will be analysed at the municipal, regional orcounty level, with the creation of a database to highlight consistency and differences between communities. Case studies will be utilised to gain better insights into the challenges and opportunities related to cannabis production and planning mitigation. This presentation will provide a summary of current research findings, including highlights of a municipal scan of zoning by-law policies and informalinsights into policy appeals in southern Ontario.

Térbeli-társadalmi átalakulás, szociális válság és válságkezelés Miskolc és Ózd gettósodó városrészeiben

In spite of the great multitude of regional and urban development interventions, urban ghettos as particular spaces of social and/or ethnic segregation have remained integral segments of socio-spatial structures of the rural hinterland of Northern Hungary since the regime change. Different social, economic, environmental, political and cultural factors have contributed to one of the deepest and most complex socio-structural crises in Hungary. Over the past quarter century, despite significant public and even EU financial support, the Roma and the extreme poor have experienced very little development in terms of their living standards. This improvement is still far from the average quality of life concerning low and low-middle strata people. Even though local governments have made steps towards mitigating the seriousness and extreme homogeneity of ethnic and/or poverty ghettos in recent decades. This could have been achieved due to urban regeneration projects, including de- and anti-segregation. These have involved the demolition of ghettos and the displacement of a large proportion of the extreme poor living in misery. The ‘spectacular’ results that might be observed in these areas have been overshadowed by the fact that ethnic-based ghettoization has not decreased significantly in the region for more than three decades. Instead, only its patterns have changed. Segregation, in fact, still persists, though in a modified form. Some of the notorious urban ghettos located in the vicinity of the city center have disappeared, and thus poverty has been ‘swept away’ from these areas. They were replaced by larger number of spatially fragmented, ethnically similar homogeneous neighborhoods. In the end, the conflicts still exist in different intra-regional and intra-urban contexts, mostly in some secluded spots of the rural countryside – far from social scientific observation and media attention. The emergence of these ‘islands of extreme poverty’ provide evidence of not one, but rather several parallel social realities in Hungary. These ghetto spaces are so different from mainstream ones that they might accurately be called ‘Another Hungary’.

“The Spirit of Our Rural Countryside”: Toward an Extracurricular Pedagogy of Place

While place-based pedagogies and place-conscious education have received a great deal of attention in community literacy, these studies have often focused on classroom efforts at engaging students in their communities. This article articulates an extracurricular pedagogy of place through a historical study of a network of creative writing groups in mid-century rural Wisconsin. Rather than thinking of place-conscious education as something that emerges from the classroom, the work of these writers suggests that scholars and educators in community literacy look instead for place-based literacies already at work in our communities.

Upgrading the Rural Countryside Streetscape in Urban context, as Sustainable Future Vision, Emphasis on 13 Villages in BELBIS

Upgrading the Rural Countryside Streetscape in Urban context, as Sustainable Future Vision, Emphasis on 13 Villages in BELBIS

Revisiting the Plague in the Age of Galileo

Revisiting the Plague in the Age of Galileo

Unraveling Causes and Consequences of International Retirement Migration to Coastal and Rural Areas in Mediterranean Europe

In a context of aging, low fertility, and progressive slowdown of both internal population mobility and international migration at working age, residential mobility at older ages was regarded as an emerging phenomenon in Mediterranean Europe, a region with increasingly attractive retirement places. The present work discusses the socioeconomic processes (and the environmental impacts) associated with an increasing flow of retirees, which decide to settle from ‘Northern’ countries to Southern Europe, concentrating in coastal districts and in rural countryside. Understanding lifestyle preferences and territorial patterns of residential mobility at older ages allows a refined analysis of short- and medium-term impacts of International Retirement Migration (IRM) on population dynamics in economically growing and declining regions. A refined analysis reveals that destinations of IRM are progressively enlarging from strictly coastal places to a broader set of locations in the rural countryside. Mobility choices among retirees may jeopardize the role of spatial planning, which is increasingly asked to provide specific services for an international, elder population, e.g., stimulating re-use of abandoned rural buildings. Taken as an effective option for rural development, an improved planning and management of local districts attracting and hosting intense flows of residential mobility at older ages is urgent in the present socioeconomic context. A convenient set of policies and a refined taxation system may contribute to reconcile demographic shrinkage with local competitiveness and social cohesion.