Literacies in place : teaching environmental communications

Reports on the work of a group of primary educators who participated in the collaborative practitioner inquiry stage of River Literacies, and explores what happened when a group of teachers made a serious commitment to rethink and extend the repertoires ofmulti- modal literacy for use with their students.

Characterization of particle number concentrations and PM2.5 in a school : influence of outdoor air pollution on indoor air

Background, Aim and Scope The impact of air pollution on school children’s health is currently one of the key foci of international and national agencies. Of particular concern are ultrafine particles which are emitted in large quantities, contain large concentrations of toxins and are deposited deeply in the respiratory tract. Materials and methods In this study, an intensive sampling campaign of indoor and outdoor airborne particulate matter was carried out in a primary school in February 2006 to investigate indoor and outdoor particle number (PN) and mass concentrations (PM2.5), and particle size distribution, and to evaluate the influence of outdoor air pollution on the indoor air. Results For outdoor PN and PM2.5, early morning and late afternoon peaks were observed on weekdays, which are consistent with traffic rush hours, indicating the predominant effect of vehicular emissions. However, the temporal variations of outdoor PM2.5 and PN concentrations occasionally showed extremely high peaks, mainly due to human activities such as cigarette smoking and the operation of mower near the sampling site. The indoor PM2.5 level was mainly affected by the outdoor PM2.5 (r = 0.68, p<0.01), whereas the indoor PN concentration had some association with outdoor PN values (r = 0.66, p<0.01) even though the indoor PN concentration was occasionally influenced by indoor sources, such as cooking, cleaning and floor polishing activities. Correlation analysis indicated that the outdoor PM2.5 was inversely correlated with the indoor to outdoor PM2.5 ratio (I/O ratio) (r = -0.49, p<0.01), while the indoor PN had a weak correlation with the I/O ratio for PN (r = 0.34, p<0.01). Discussion and Conclusions The results showed that occupancy did not cause any major changes to the modal structure of particle number and size distribution, even though the I/O ratio was different for different size classes. The I/O curves had a maximum value for particles with diameters of 100 – 400 nm under both occupied and unoccupied scenarios, whereas no significant difference in I/O ratio for PM2.5 was observed between occupied and unoccupied conditions. Inspection of the size-resolved I/O ratios in the preschool centre and the classroom suggested that the I/O ratio in the preschool centre was the highest for accumulation mode particles at 600 nm after school hours, whereas the average I/O ratios of both nucleation mode and accumulation mode particles in the classroom were much lower than those of Aitken mode particles. Recommendations and Perspectives The findings obtained in this study are useful for epidemiological studies to estimate the total personal exposure of children, and to develop appropriate control strategies for minimizing the adverse health effects on school children.

Young children’s active citizenship : storytelling, stories, and social actions

This thesis inquires into possibilities for young children‘s active citizenship as provoked through a practice of social justice storytelling with one Preparatory1 class of children aged five to six years. The inquiry was practitioner-research, through a living educational theory approach cultivating an interrelational view of existing with others in evolving processes of creation. Ideas of young children‘s active citizenship were provoked and explored through storytelling, by a storytelling teacher-researcher, a Prep class of children and their teacher. The three major foci of the study were practice, narrative and action. A series of storytelling workshops with a Prep class was the practice that was investigated. Each workshop began with a story that made issues of social justice visible, followed by critical discussion of the story, and small group activities to further explore the story. The focus on narrative was based on the idea of story as a way knowing. Stories were used to explore social justice issues with young children. Metanarratives of children and citizenship were seen to influence possibilities for young children‘s active citizenship. Stories were purposefully shared to provoke and promote young children‘s active citizenship through social actions. It was these actions that were the third focus of the study. Through action research, a social justice storytelling practice and the children‘s responses to the stories were reflected on both in action and after. These reflections informed and shaped storytelling practice. Learning in a practice of social justice storytelling is explained through living theories of social justice storytelling as pedagogy. Data of the children‘s participation in the study were analysed to identify influences and possibilities for young children‘s active citizenship creating a living theory of possibilities for young children‘s active citizenship.

Export decisions within Taiwanese electrical and electronic SMEs : the role of management characteristics and attitudes

In this globalized environment, Taiwanese firms have been very successful in achieving growth via international market expansion. In particular, the Taiwanese electronics industry has shown a dynamism lacking in comparable industries around the world. However, in recent years there has been a move by many of the larger Taiwanese manufacturing firms to outsource their manufacturing to low-cost producers such as China in order to remain competitive. Conversely, most Taiwanese small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have retained their production facilities in Taiwan. These SMEs seek to expand their sales beyond the domestic market by employing an export strategy, making a significant socioeconomic contribution to the domestic and regional economies. This paper highlights the key dimensions such as enhancing factors (benefits/advantages), inhibiting factors (barriers/costs), and managerial factors (characteristics/commitment) that play an important role in the internationalization of SMEs located within the Taiwanese electronics industry. A logistic regression model is used to predict the probability of a firm being an exporter.

Australian consumers' attitudes about sports sponsorship during an economic downturn

This paper provides an overview of the prevailing attitudes held by Australian residents as they relate to sports sponsorship during a global financial downturn. A survey of 1,158 Australians assessed changes in attitudes from 2008 to 2009; then it addressed issues specific to the economic conditions of 2009. In general, Australians view sports sponsorship favourably.

Reduction of environmental effects of civil aircraft through multi-objective flight plan optimisation

With rising environmental alarm, the reduction of critical aircraft emissions including carbon dioxides (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) is one of most important aeronautical problems. There can be many possible attempts to solve such problem by designing new wing/aircraft shape, new efficient engine, etc. The paper rather provides a set of acceptable flight plans as a first step besides replacing current aircrafts. The paper investigates a green aircraft design optimisation in terms of aircraft range, mission fuel weight (CO2) and NOx using advanced Evolutionary Algorithms coupled to flight optimisation system software. Two multi-objective design optimisations are conducted to find the best set of flight plans for current aircrafts considering discretised altitude and Mach numbers without designing aircraft shape and engine types. The objectives of first optimisation are to maximise range of aircraft while minimising NOx with constant mission fuel weight. The second optimisation considers minimisation of mission fuel weight and NOx with fixed aircraft range. Numerical results show that the method is able to capture a set of useful trade-offs that reduce NOx and CO2 (minimum mission fuel weight).

Ecological sustainable development: a study of the obstacles in Australia's construction industry

Ecological sustainable development (ESD), defined as that which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, has much to offer in enhancing the quality of life of people and maintaining the environment for future generations by reducing the pollution of water, air and land, minimizing the destruction of irreplaceable ecosystems and cutting down the amount of toxic materials released. However, there is still much to do to achieve full implementation world-wide. This paper reports on three factors-design, attitudes and financial constraints - that are likely barriers to the implementation of ESD within the built environment in Australian industry. A postal questionnaire survey is described aimed at soliciting views on detailed aspects of the factors. This shows that ESD in the Australian built environment has also not been successfully implemented. The main reason is found to be due to the perceived costs involved - the cost of using environmental materials being a predominant factor. The design of ESD, being more sophisticated, also is perceived as involving stakeholders in more expense. There also appears to be a lack of knowledge and a lack of specialised and interdisciplinary design teams available in the Australian context.

Vulnerability of eco-environmental health to climate change : the views of government stakeholders and other specialists in Queensland, Australia

Background: There is overwhelming scientific evidence that human activities have changed and will continue to change the climate of the Earth. Eco-environmental health, which refers to the interdependencies between ecological systems and population health and well-being, is likely to be significantly influenced by climate change. The aim of this study was to examine perceptions from government stakeholders and other relevant specialists about the threat of climate change, their capacity to deal with it, and how to develop and implement a framework for assessing vulnerability of eco-environmental health to climate change.---------- Methods: Two focus groups were conducted in Brisbane, Australia with representatives from relevant government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and the industry sector (n = 15) involved in the discussions. The participants were specialists on climate change and public health from governmental agencies, industry, and nongovernmental organisations in South-East Queensland.---------- Results: The specialists perceived climate change to be a threat to eco-environmental health and had substantial knowledge about possible implications and impacts. A range of different methods for assessing vulnerability were suggested by the participants and the complexity of assessment when dealing with multiple hazards was acknowledged. Identified factors influencing vulnerability were perceived to be of a social, physical and/or economic nature. They included population growth, the ageing population with associated declines in general health and changes in the vulnerability of particular geographical areas due to for example, increased coastal development, and financial stress. Education, inter-sectoral collaboration, emergency management (e.g. development of early warning systems), and social networks were all emphasised as a basis for adapting to climate change. To develop a framework, different approaches were discussed for assessing eco-environmental health vulnerability, including literature reviews to examine the components of vulnerability such as natural hazard risk and exposure and to investigate already existing frameworks for assessing vulnerability.---------- Conclusion: The study has addressed some important questions in regard to government stakeholders and other specialists’ views on the threat of climate change and its potential impacts on eco-environmental health. These findings may have implications in climate change and public health decision-making.

Attitudes towards consumer transgressions in the marketplace

A sample of 815 adults drawn from the general American population provided their perception of the appropriateness of 12 questionable consumer actions in the marketplace. The scenarios investigated ranged from illegal actions such as inflating one’s losses when filing an insurance claim to actions that while not illegal, may raise questions of ethics. The 12 scenarios exhibited a wide range of mean responses on the six-point scale thereby supporting an often stated premise that consumer ethics is situational in nature. An array of commonly employed demographic questions was also included on the Internet-based survey, and differences of opinion were documented across the various demographic segments.

Environmental health risk assessment of dioxin exposure through foods in a Dioxin hot spot—Bien Hoa City, Vietnam

This study used the Australian Environmental Health Risk Assessment Framework to assess the human health risk of dioxin exposure through foods for local residents in two wards of Bien Hoa City, Vietnam. These wards are known hot-spots for dioxin and a range of stakeholders from central government to local levels were involved in this process. Publications on dioxin characteristics and toxicity were reviewed and dioxin concentrations in local soil, mud, foods, milk and blood samples were used as data for this risk assessment. A food frequency survey of 400 randomly selected households in these wards was conducted to provide data for exposure assessment. Results showed that local residents who had consumed locally cultivated foods, especially fresh water fish and bottom-feeding fish, free-ranging chicken, duck, and beef were at a very high risk, with their daily dioxin intake far exceeding the tolerable daily intake recommended by the WHO. Based on the results of this assessment, a multifaceted risk management program was developed and has been recognized as the first public health program ever to have been implemented in Vietnam to reduce the risks of dioxin exposure at dioxin hot-spots.

Environmental aspects and challenges of oilseed produced biodiesel in Southeast Asia

Research on alternative fuel for the vehemently growing number of automotivesis intensified due to environmental reasons rather than turmoil in energy price and supply. From the policy and steps to emphasis the use of biofuel by governments all around the world, this can be comprehended that biofuel have placed itself as a number one substitute for fossil fuels. These phenomena made Southeast Asia a prominent exporter of biodiesel. But thrust in biodiesel production from oilseeds of palm and Jatropha curcas in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand is seriously threatening environmental harmony. This paper focuses on this critical issue of biodiesels environmental impacts, policy, standardization of this region as well as on the emission of biodiesel in automotive uses. To draw a bottom line on feasibilities of different feedstock of biodiesel, a critical analysis on oilseed yield rate, land use, engine emissions and oxidation stability is reviewed. Palm oil based biodiesel is clearly ahead in all these aspects of feasibility, except in the case of NOx where it lags from conventional petro diesel.

Networked robotic sensor platform deployments for use in coastal environmental assessment in southern California

Mobile sensor platforms such as Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and robotic surface vessels, combined with static moored sensors compose a diverse sensor network that is able to provide macroscopic environmental analysis tool for ocean researchers. Working as a cohesive networked unit, the static buoys are always online, and provide insight as to the time and locations where a federated, mobile robot team should be deployed to effectively perform large scale spatiotemporal sampling on demand. Such a system can provide pertinent in situ measurements to marine biologists whom can then advise policy makers on critical environmental issues. This poster presents recent field deployment activity of AUVs demonstrating the effectiveness of our embedded communication network infrastructure throughout southern California coastal waters. We also report on progress towards real-time, web-streaming data from the multiple sampling locations and mobile sensor platforms. Static monitoring sites included in this presentation detail the network nodes positioned at Redondo Beach and Marina Del Ray. One of the deployed mobile sensors highlighted here are autonomous Slocum gliders. These nodes operate in the open ocean for periods as long as one month. The gliders are connected to the network via a Freewave radio modem network composed of multiple coastal base-stations. This increases the efficiency of deployment missions by reducing operational expenses via reduced reliability on satellite phones for communication, as well as increasing the rate and amount of data that can be transferred. Another mobile sensor platform presented in this study are the autonomous robotic boats. These platforms are utilized for harbor and littoral zone studies, and are capable of performing multi-robot coordination while observing known communication constraints. All of these pieces fit together to present an overview of ongoing collaborative work to develop an autonomous, region-wide, coastal environmental observation and monitoring sensor network.

Book review : Kellett, M (2010) Rethinking children and research : attitudes in contemporary society

Rethinking Children and Research characterizes Mary Kellett’s vision as campaigner and sociologist actively working for and with children for many years. The book itself is not only visionary; it is informative, thought provoking and pragmatic. From a contemporary standpoint, the manuscript presents a detailed synopsis of the shifts in thinking about research with children and provides an appraisal of the theoretical movements that have driven a participatory research agenda. A strong theoretical approach of the combined lenses of sociologies of childhood and rights discourse is introduced early in the book. From the outset, the reader receives loud and clear, the key message of the book: that children in research should and can be included as competent members who lead research in the study of their everyday lives. The argument for a more mutual research approach is shaped throughout the book using research examples and practical suggestions on how this might be achieved. Overall, the reader is left feeling compelled to adopt such an approach.

Methods to achieve net environmental gain in the course of development in Queensland

To achieve best environmental management practice in Queensland, effort needs to be extended into the private sector. A Regional Landscape Strategy compiled for any substantial new proposal must identify the most promising technique(s) (from an available tool kit of 13) by which a developer (of any type) is more likely to sustain on-site resources while assisting government deliver its future plans in any region of the State. Offsetting may prove to be one of the most effective of these tools. However, policy must address‘offset land mitigation’, whereby the necessary financial incentives are introduced. Practicable methods by which offset sites can be selected, and measurement of their consequent environmental benefit, have now been devised and tested to assist this process.

A site selection process for environmental offsetting purposes in Queensland

A method of selecting land in any region of Queensland for offsetting purposes is devised, employing uniform standards. The procedure first requires that any core natural asset lands, Crown environmental lands, prime urban and agricultural lands, and highly contentious sites in the region be eliminated from consideration. Other land is then sought that is located between existing large reservations and the centre of greatest potential regional development/disturbance. Using the criteria of rehabilitation (rather than preservation) plus proximity to those officially defined Regional Ecosystems that are most threatened, adjacent sites that are described as ‘Cleared’ are identified in terms of agricultural land capability. Class IV lands – defined as those ‘which may be safely used for occasional cultivation with careful management’,2 ‘where it is favourably located for special usage’,3 and where it is ‘helpful to those who are interested in industry or regional planning or in reconstruction’4 – are examined for their appropriate area, for current tenure and for any conditions such as Mining Leases that may exist. The positive impacts from offsets on adjoining lands can then be designed to be significant; examples are also offered in respect of riparian areas and of Marine Parks. Criteria against which to measure performance for trading purposes include functional lift, with other case studies about this matter reported separately in this issue. The procedure takes no account of demand side economics (financial additionality), which requires commercial rather than environmental analysis.