International regional planning educational experience : learnings from Malaysia, Korea and Turkey study trips

In an era of rapidly changing economic, social and environmental conditions, urban and regional planning education must be resilient, innovative and able to deal with the complex political and socio-economic fabric of post-modern cities. As a consequence, urban and regional planning education plays a fundamental role in educating and forming planning practitioners that will be able to tackle such complexity. However, not many tertiary education institutions provide a trans-cultural engagement opportunity for students, where the need to internationalise planning education has been widely recognised worldwide. The aim of this paper is to communicate the findings of three overseas study trips (Kuala Lumpur-Malaysia, Daejeon-Korea, Istanbul and Gallipoli-Turkey) that students of Queensland University of Technology are taken to where these study trips trailed the provision of an innovative tertiary education experience of teaching regional planning in an international context. The findings of the pedagogic analyses of the study reveal that the exposure of students to different planning processes and practices give them a new outlook on what they knew from their own country and provide them with useful insights on international planning issues and cultural differences and barriers.

From the bottom-up : redesigning the international legal response to anthropogenic climate change

The design of the Kyoto Protocol renders it incapable of effectively responding to the problem of anthropogenic climate change. Therefore, this article explores the opportunity to construct a new, principled legal approach to respond to climate change that is premised on nationally derived legal responses. To do so, this article considers the theoretical foundation of the international legal response to climate change – Hardin's "The Tragedy of the Commons‟ – and the systemic design faults of the Kyoto Protocol. This article also suggests four principles – a judicious mix of legal instruments, flexibility, intrinsic legal coherence, and quantifiable and achievable targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas intensity – that are necessary to guide the creation of a nationally derived legal response to climate change. This approach is intended to provide the catalyst for new bilateral and multilateral arrangements that can, with the passing of time, generate sufficient momentum to drive the creation of a new and effective cooperative international legal framework to mitigate anthropogenic climate change.

Information accountability for online healthcare social networks

Online social networking has become one of the most popular Internet applications in the modern era. They have given the Internet users, access to information that other Internet based applications are unable to. Although many of the popular online social networking web sites are focused towards entertainment purposes, sharing information can benefit the healthcare industry in terms of both efficiency and effectiveness. But the capability to share personal information; the factor which has made online social networks so popular, is itself a major obstacle when considering information security and privacy aspects. Healthcare can benefit from online social networking if they are implemented such that sensitive patient information can be safeguarded from ill exposure. But in an industry such as healthcare where the availability of information is crucial for better decision making, information must be made available to the appropriate parties when they require it. Hence the traditional mechanisms for information security and privacy protection may not be suitable for healthcare. In this paper we propose a solution to privacy enhancement in online healthcare social networks through the use of an information accountability mechanism.

Women and representation in local government : international case studies

Women and Representation in Local Government opens up an opportunity to critique and move beyond suppositions and labels in relation to women in local government. Presenting a wealth of new empirical material, this book brings together international experts to examine and compare the presence of women at this level and features case studies on the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Finland, Uganda, China, Australia and New Zealand. Divided into four main sections, each explores a key theme related to the subject of women and representation in local government and engages with contemporary gender theory and the broader literature on women and politics. The contributors explore local government as a gendered environment; critiquing strategies to address the limited number of elected female members in local government and examine the impact of significant recent changes on local government through a gender lens. Addressing key questions of how gender equality can be achieved in this sector, it will be of strong interest to students and academics working in the fields of gender studies, local government and international politics.

Revitalizing health for all : international Indigenous representative group. Learning from the experience of comprehensive primary health care in Aboriginal Australia — A commentary on three projects

This paper presents a regional commentary (hereafter ‘the commentary’) on the three Australian projects of the Teasdale-Corti Global Health Research Partnership Program. The three Australian projects are: Victorian Aboriginal Health Service Ltd (VAHS), Melbourne, Victoria—Forty Years of Comprehensive Primary Health Care; Central Australian Aboriginal Congress Inc. (Congress), Alice Springs, Northern Territory—Ingkintja, Male Health Program; and Urapuntja Health Service (UHS), Utopia, Northern Territory—Outstation Health Care. It highlights common themes and lessons in respect to the Revitalising Health for All project in the context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health in Australia.

Elasto-plastic stress analysis of an insulated rail joint (IRJ) with a loading below shakedown limit

A finite element numerical simulation is carried out to examine stress distributions on railhead in the vicinity of the endpost of a insulated rail joint. The contact patch and pressure distribution are considered using modified Hertzian formulation. A combined elasto-plastic material modelling available in Abaqus is employed in the simulation. A dynamic load factor of 1.21 is considered in modelling for the wheel load based on a previous study as part of this on going research. Shakedown theorem is employed in this study. A peak pressure load which is above the shakedown limit is determined as input load. As a result, a progressive damage in the railhead has been captured as depicted in the equivalent plastic strain plot.

Bringing protection home : healing the schism between international obligations and national safeguards created by extraterritorial processing

Extraterritorial processing schemes are designed to prevent and deter access to statutory and judicial safeguards in the country responsible for the interception and transfer of asylum seekers to a third country. In line with this objective, they incorporate interdiction, transfer and processing practices and standards that are deliberately isolated from the national legal and institutional protections within either the intercepting state or the third country where processing occurs. Australia's recent disbandment of its extraterritorial processing centres in third countries highlights the fact that extraterritorial processing schemes have proven unworkable as a matter of international law, as they negate the national safeguards fundamental to the satisfaction of a state's protection obligations.

Removing barriers to protection at the exported border : visas, carrier sanctions, and international obligation

Asylum is being gradually denuded of the national institutional mechanisms (judicial, legislative and administrative) that provide the framework for a fair and effective asylum hearing. In this sense, there is an ongoing ‘denationalization’ or ‘deformalization’ of the asylum process. This chapter critically examines one of the linchpins of this trend: the erection of pre-entry measures at ports of embarkation in order to prevent asylum seekers from physically accessing the territory of the state. Pre-entry measures comprise the core requirement that foreigners possess an entry visa granting permission to enter the state of destination. Visa requirements are increasingly implemented by immigration officials posted abroad or by officials of transit countries pursuant to bilateral agreements (so-called ‘juxtaposed’ immigration controls). Private carriers, which are subject to sanctions if they bring persons to a country who do not have permission to enter, also engage in a form of de facto immigration control on behalf of states. These measures constitute a type of ‘externalized’ or ‘exported’ border that pushes the immigration boundaries of the state as far from its physical boundaries as possible. Pre-entry measures have a crippling impact on the ability of asylum seekers to access the territory of states to claim asylum. In effect, states have ‘externalized’ asylum by replacing the legal obligation on states to protect refugees arriving at ports of entry with what are perceived to be no more than moral obligations towards asylum seekers arriving at the external border of the state.

Assessing the awareness and importance of housing sustainability in Queensland

Sustainability has been a major factor and determinant of commercial property design, construction, retro-fitting and landlord and tenant requirements over the last decade, supported by the introduction of rating tools such as NABERS and GreenStar and the recently mandated Building Energy Efficiency Certificate (BEEC). However, the movement to sustainable and energy efficient housing has not been established for the same period, and although mandatory building regulations have been in place for new residential housing construction since 2004, the requirement to improve the sustainability and energy efficiency of housing constructed prior to 2004 has not been mandatory. Residential dwelling energy efficiency and rating schemes introduced in Australia over the past decade have included rating schemes such as BASIX, NatHERS, First rate, ACTHERS, and Building Code of Australia and these have applied to new dwelling construction. At both National and State level the use of energy efficiency schemes for existing residential dwellings has been voluntary and despite significant cash incentives have not always been successful or achieved widespread take-up. In 2010, the Queensland Government regulated that all homes offered for sale, whether a new or existing dwellings require the seller to provide a ―sustainability declaration‖ that provides details of the sustainability measures associated with the dwelling being sold. The purpose of this declaration being to inform buyers and increase community awareness of home sustainability features. This paper uses an extensive review of real estate marketing material, together with a comprehensive survey of real estate agents to analyse the current market compliance, awareness and acceptance of existing green housing regulations and the importance that residential property owners and purchasers place on energy efficient and sustainable housing. The findings indicate that there is still little community awareness or concern of sustainable housing features when making home purchase decisions.

Legal ethics in a post-Westphalian world : building the international rule of law and otehr tasks

The emergence of strong sovereign states after the Treaty of Westphalia turned two of the most cosmopolitan professions (law and arms) into two of the least cosmopolitan. Sovereign states determined the content of the law within their borders – including which, if any, ecclesiastical law was to be applied; what form of economic regulation was adopted; and what, if any, international law applied. Similarly, states sought to ensure that all military force was at their disposal in national armies. The erosion of sovereignty in a post-Westphalian world may significantly reverse these processes. The erosion of sovereignty is likely to have profound consequences for the legal profession and the ethics of how, and for what ends, it is practised. Lawyers have played a major role in the civilization of sovereign states through the articulation and institutionalisation of key governance values – starting with the rule of law. An increasingly global profession must take on similar tasks. The same could be said of the military. This essay will review the concept of an international rule of law and its relationship to domestic conceptions and outline the task of building the international rule of law and the role that lawyers can and should play in it.

From Deep North to international governance exemplar : Fitzgerald's impact on the international anti-corruption movement

In pre-Fitzgerald Queensland, the existence of corruption was widely known but its extent and modes of operation were not fully evident. The Fitzgerald Report identified the need for reform of the structure, procedures and efficiency in public administration in Queensland. What was most striking in the Queensland reform process was that a new model for combatting corruption had been developed. Rather than rely upon a single law and a single institution, existing institutions were strengthened and new institutions were introduced to create a set of mutually supporting and mutually checking institutions, agencies and laws that jointly sought to improve governmental standards and combat corruption. Some of the reforms were either unique to Queensland or very rare. One of the strengths of this approach was that it avoided creating a single over-arching institution to fight corruption. There are many powerful opponents of reform. Influential institutions and individuals resist any interference with their privileges. In order to cause a mass exodus from an entrenched corruption system, a seminal event or defining process is needed to alter expectations and incentives that are sufficient to encourage significant numbers of individuals to desert the corruption system and assist the integrity system in exposing and destroying it. The Fitzgerald Inquiry was such an event. This article also briefly addresses methods for destroying national corruption systems where they emerge and exist.

Green buildings : a framework for social sustainability

Despite the ongoing debate surrounding climate change, sustainability is increasingly a key consideration for building owners and tenants with the ‘triple bottom line’ as desired outcomes. The triangulated social, economic and environmental goals of sustainability are now the mantra of many businesses. While much has been written of the benefits of green buildings to its occupants, comparatively fewer studies have been devoted to investigating the perceived drawbacks and measures to improve the social sustainability factor, i.e., user satisfaction. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to consider the impacts of green buildings on its occupants by drawing together past empirical findings and summarizing the results. In addition, the paper will also present a case study of the Institute of Sustainable Development and Architecture, which is Australia’s first 6-green star, rated educational building. Through these methods, the paper will identify gaps between green building performance and user satisfaction. Thereafter, it will introduce a social sustainability framework that seeks to improve the social performance of green buildings. The 6-P model is a holistic framework targeting the following factors that can influence user satisfaction of green buildings. These factors are: public perception, price, policies, psychological, physical and personal.

Development and evaluation of an integrated clinical learning model to inform continuing education for acute care nurses

Background Significant ongoing learning needs for nurses have occurred as a direct result of the continuous introduction of technological innovations and research developments in the healthcare environment. Despite an increased worldwide emphasis on the importance of continuing education, there continues to be an absence of empirical evidence of program and session effectiveness. Few studies determine whether continuing education enhances or develops practice and the relative cost benefits of health professionals’ participation in professional development. The implications for future clinical practice and associated educational approaches to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse multigenerational and multicultural workforce are also not well documented. There is minimal research confirming that continuing education programs contribute to improved patient outcomes, nurses’ earlier detection of patient deterioration or that standards of continuing competence are maintained. Crucially, evidence-based practice is demonstrated and international quality and safety benchmarks are adhered to. An integrated clinical learning model was developed to inform ongoing education for acute care nurses. Educational strategies included the use of integrated learning approaches, interactive teaching concepts and learner-centred pedagogies. A Respiratory Skills Update education (ReSKU) program was used as the content for the educational intervention to inform surgical nurses’ clinical practice in the area of respiratory assessment. The aim of the research was to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing the ReSKU program using teaching and learning strategies, in the context of organisational utility, on improving surgical nurses’ practice in the area of respiratory assessment. The education program aimed to facilitate better awareness, knowledge and understanding of respiratory dysfunction in the postoperative clinical environment. This research was guided by the work of Forneris (2004), who developed a theoretical framework to operationalise a critical thinking process incorporating the complexities of the clinical context. The framework used educational strategies that are learner-centred and participatory. These strategies aimed to engage the clinician in dynamic thinking processes in clinical practice situations guided by coaches and educators. Methods A quasi experimental pre test, post test non–equivalent control group design was used to evaluate the impact of the ReSKU program on the clinical practice of surgical nurses. The research tested the hypothesis that participation in the ReSKU program improves the reported beliefs and attitudes of surgical nurses, increases their knowledge and reported use of respiratory assessment skills. The study was conducted in a 400 bed regional referral public hospital, the central hub of three smaller hospitals, in a health district servicing the coastal and hinterland areas north of Brisbane. The sample included 90 nurses working in the three surgical wards eligible for inclusion in the study. The experimental group consisted of 36 surgical nurses who had chosen to attend the ReSKU program and consented to be part of the study intervention group. The comparison group included the 39 surgical nurses who elected not to attend the ReSKU program, but agreed to participate in the study. Findings One of the most notable findings was that nurses choosing not to participate were older, more experienced and less well educated. The data demonstrated that there was a barrier for training which impacted on educational strategies as this mature aged cohort was less likely to take up educational opportunities. The study demonstrated statistically significant differences between groups regarding reported use of respiratory skills, three months after ReSKU program attendance. Between group data analysis indicated that the intervention group’s reported beliefs and attitudes pertaining to subscale descriptors showed statistically significant differences in three of the six subscales following attendance at the ReSKU program. These subscales included influence on nursing care, educational preparation and clinical development. Findings suggest that the use of an integrated educational model underpinned by a robust theoretical framework is a strong factor in some perceptions of the ReSKU program relating to attitudes and behaviour. There were minimal differences in knowledge between groups across time. Conclusions This study was consistent with contemporary educational approaches using multi-modal, interactive teaching strategies and a robust overarching theoretical framework to support study concepts. The construct of critical thinking in the clinical context, combined with clinical reasoning and purposeful and collective reflection, was a powerful educational strategy to enhance competency and capability in clinicians.