Urban ecological problems have hitherto been addressed using one of two major approaches. The first has a social impetus directed at ethnic, economic and family characteristics and their relationships with the spatial distribution of urban residential housing. The second approach emphasizes the influence of the physical environment and the services available to subareas. The sociological method has had much more attention in modeling applications than the physical analytic technique. This study adopts the physical approach with a focus that is emphatic on infrastructural factors and land attributes, and their influence on the differential rates of fringe area residential growth in the Portland metropolitan region. Data were acquired through direct research supplemented by building permit records, jurisdictional estimates, and information from the 1970 and 1980 u.s. Censuses. Growth functional relationships were operationalized using housing starts and residential land conversion as two dependent variables against which the explanatory factors of infrastructure (water and sewer), land characteristics, road network density, accessibility, and social factors were regressed in recursive models over three subperiods in the decade 1970-1980. Five models were derived for the SMSA and the four counties for the decade, and three more subperiodic models for each area, for the categories of housing starts and land conversion. The derived models were tested against a standard econometric technique (Chow test) to verify the consistency of the coefficients (elasticities) over the different subareas in the four time periods. The results showed extremely high levels of significance of the Chow tests, deeming it necessary to examine the behavior of the elasticities in more detail over space and time. The results of the examination verified that the performance of infrastructure variables were highest in Washington County, while accessibility and road network density showed very high performances in Multnomah County. Land attributes were most notable in Clark County, while income elasticities were equally high in Multnomah, Washington, and Clark Counties. The lag effects of residential development in the immediate anteceding period were more important in Multnomah and Washington than in other counties. In Clark County, residential development in the early part of the decade was the only significant lag variable in models of the latter part of the decade. The conducted tests lend adequate support to the postulated hypotheses. In general, there was differential response to the selected attributes in the subareal models. Also, the results and tests confirmed that parameter estimates of attributes varied in different governmental jurisdictions. This implies that the counties placed different emphasis on the tested variables. Where the favorable set of variables was emphasized with one major sewer service district (Washington County), fringe area growth was enhanced. The emphasis of congestion-related variables (Multnomah County) without the desired infrastructure resulted in a relatively reasonable decline in fringe area residential housing.

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Includes bibliographical references (leaves 233-248). Draws on insights of feminist and post-structuralist theorists to question the way in which urban travel is currently reflected upon by urban professionals and the potential effects of these modes of reflection. Argues that in refusing to explicate the counter practices and counter stories of travel, researchers also ignore the potentially disruptive ways of thinking about and intervening in urban travel and urban space. Uses the City of Adelaide in South Australia, as a site through which to examine the way in which the spaces, bodies, and conduct of travel have been objectified and subsequently intervened upon by urban experts.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 233-248). / vi, 248 leaves ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Draws on insights of feminist and post-structuralist theorists to question the way in which urban travel is currently reflected upon by urban professionals and the potential effects of these modes of reflection. Argues that in refusing to explicate the counter practices and counter stories of travel, researchers also ignore the potentially disruptive ways of thinking about and intervening in urban travel and urban space. Uses the City of Adelaide in South Australia, as a site through which to examine the way in which the spaces, bodies, and conduct of travel have been objectified and subsequently intervened upon by urban experts. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Geography & Dept. of Politics, 2002?

This dissertation is an attempt to shed light on the impact that global cultural consumption has had in the transformation of perceptions of material and symbolic consumption in everyday life among urban black African Zulu-English speakers that live in the Durban Metropolitan area. The process of transformation within this group has not occurred without resistance, confrontation and struggle against the hegemonic societal forces. Black Africans have suffered spatial segregation and social exclusion during the history of white colonisation and the apartheid system. Therefore, their socio-economic, cultural and ideological social world has been transformed through multi-cultural relationships, politico-ideological power, socio- economic unequal distribution of wealth and class differentiation. Many events have occurred since the 1980's, the most significant being the triumph of the democratic system on 1994 over apartheid power. This led to South Africa's opening the door to the global economy and to neo-liberal ideologies. These processes have had a powerful effect on the material and symbolic consumption of the social group under investigation and particularly in the area of clothing consumption. Mediations such as the media, western religions, European languages, etc. have been part of this very complex process, which affects and transforms the social practices of black African Zulu-English speakers. The influence of western mediation has transformed the habitus and taste consumption of ordinary black South Africans. Therefore, this study is concerned with the transformed thoughts and perception of the material and symbolic consumption within the popular culture of black Africans Zulu-English speakers who live in the Durban Metropolitan Area. Consumption is a very important concept in our understanding of how taste and habitus organise the social practices of black Africans in everyday live. In addition, consumption in general and clothing consumption in particular serves to define and re-confirm symbolic meanings within popular culture and symbolic distinction between classes. This study has used three different methods: ethnographic, archival historical and statistical. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

The north shore of the North Arm of the Fraser River represents the Southern boundary of the City of Vancouver. This boundary has been crucial to the development of Vancouver as a city that strives on natural resource processing and shipping. This industrial heritage along the North Fraser has provided Vancouver with a substantial portion of its revenue and tax base since the 1800's, but is currently under threat by land developers and residential pressures. With this development pressure comes the increased lure of immediate revenue, increased public use of the waterfront, and an increase in market housing within the city limits. However, this pressure will also result in a loss of economic sustainability and long-term revenue dollars. This is a trend that is occurring throughout the lower mainland, encouraging a commuter environment and a dissociation between place of work and place of residence. This thesis seeks to combat this issue and will illustrate that it is not only desirable, but necessary to sustain urban resource-based industry along the North Fraser. Through the implementation of a Greenway design, the thesis will prove that the portion of the North Fraser that lies between the Knight Street Bridge and the Oak Street Bridge can retain its industrial character, while becoming more inclusive of the cultural/social needs of a growing population and recognizing environmental concerns. The implementation of a public recreational Greenway will enhance the quality of the area, thereby drawing users both within and beyond the surrounding community to take advantage of a great resource that is often forgotten or hidden by intensive industrial frontage. At the same time, the Greenway will provide opportunities for education and awareness that will highlight the values and benefits of an industrial infrastructure along the North Fraser. Finally, the thesis will prove that such an endeavour is not only sustainable in a cultural and economic sense, but that a Greenway has the capacity to provide a rehabilitated ecological condition that will sustain a valuable and fragile ecosystem.

Most low cost housing beneficiaries either work in the informal sector with little income to meet all their basic needs, or do not work at all. They live in poverty because many of them are unskilled, unemployed, poorly represented economically, politically and socially. Hence the new South African Housing Policy is said to be enabling the housing environment to play a more meaningful role in job creation and employment sustainability. This is said to be achieved through skills transfer and giving support to small businesses which are geared towards more labour intensive opportunities. Job creation, in the context of this study, means training ,and the use of housing beneficiaries in housing construction. The provision of skills enhances beneficiaries to engage in self-employment programmes. Sustainability, on the other hand, looks at the use of dwelling units for small business purposes, the proximity of housing projects in relation to areas of employment, and the transfer of skills from place to place when required. After conducting a survey of 98 beneficiaries, the study revealed a lack of an effective mechanism for job creation and employment sustainability within greenfields housing projects. In order to provide both guidelines and recommendations for the effective implementation of housing projects, this dissertation assesses the extent to which greenfields housing projects have been able to create and sustain employment opportunities for housing beneficiaries. Case studies used to assess this aspect are Wiggins uMkhumbane in Cato Manor and Westrich in Newlands West. This study outlines failures and successes in the manner in which the above mentioned housing projects were implemented in relation to the creation and sustainability of income generating activities. This dissertation is structured as follows: The first chapter introduces the research problem, research question hypothesis, and the research method used to conduct the study. The second chapter provides both the conceptual framework and the literature review for the topic being investigated. International, national and local case studies are used to support the flow of the argument. Chapter three introduces the geographical and historical background of case studies in which the study was conducted. This historical background is linked to the topic of study to help to understand the phenomenon of employment. Chapter four deals with the presentation and analysis of data collected. The conclusion drawn from the findings and recommendations are found in chapter five. / Thesis (M.T.R.P.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2005.

This study documents the emergence of an Indian cultural enclave located on the periphery of the colonial town of Durban, its subsequent rise to a flourishing communal space by the mid twentieth century, and its decline in the apartheid era. The focus on change and transformation locates the research question within the broad ambit of historical geography. Clairwood and District grew into a densely-populated informal living space with all facilities and institutions built by the community. Based on a cultural inheritance in the form of language, the extended family system and religious beliefs , the Indian settlers and their descendants developed an elaborate network of kinship and communal relationships which formed the moral and social framework for the process of communal space construction. Entering the colony of Natal predominantly as indentured labour, the Indians were from the outset ostracized and subjugated by the white settlers and perceived as an alien temporary group. This identity was henceforth embodied in discriminatory legislation which marginalized the Indians in South Africa and resulted in their neglect and spatial containment. Parallel to the organic process of Indian communal space construction occurring in southern Durban was the sustained policy of land-use transformation embarked upon by the Durban municipality. The goal of this policy was to create a 'productive zone' south of Durban within an explicit racial zoning plan. The application of this goal resulted in a clash between the dominant white culture and the subordinate Indian culture as each.sought to retain control of the southern corridor and define its land-use and identity. After a protracted struggle the Durban municipality succeeded in imposing a formal industrial landscape upon the communal living space with the exception of the small node in Clairwood itself which has remained a residential enclave. This vestige of the former flourishing residential area of Clairwood and District suffers from industrial penetration and a physically degraded environment. However, it retains a sense of place of the former vibrant community. Clairwood is currently undergoing a process of revitalization under the auspices of the Durban municipality with a subsequent redefinition of identity. The study documents the cultural meanings that have been produced in a unique urban landscape in a South African city revealing the need to uncover the historical geographies of minority groups as a source of identity and a resource for future urban reconstruction. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, 1994.

When the Government of National Unity (GNU) came to power in South Africa in 1994, it inherited a housing sector with severe abnormalities as a result of the policies and political turbulence of the apartheid era (Department of Housing/DOH, 2000a). One of the main problems was and is still the enormous housing backlog facing large sections of the country's population both in rural and urban areas. The housing crisis in South Africa has received extensive attention by the South African government, non-profit organizations and international actors such as research and aid organisations since the demise of apartheid. This shows the historical and present interest on the SUbject. The most significant development in housing policy in 1990 was the creation of the Independent Development Trust (lOT). The lOT, was a parastatal, a government created institution in 1991, which was to address the housing needs of the country's poor. As one form of housing subsidisation, housing consolidation subsidies have been used in housing projects for households to build new houses or improve existing structures on the serviced sites that were previously subsidized through the Independent Development Trust (lOT) in the 1990's. The realisation that between 20%-30% of beneficiaries do not take occupancy at the end of a specific project, has brought a serious concern to the Housing Department, local community structures and Project Managers. This study, focuses on the Durban Metropolitan Area; it intend to increase one's understanding of why consolidation housing projects only reach 70%-80% of intended beneficiaries on closure of the projects. The housing consolidation projects in Luganda and Savannah Park, Southern Pinetown, Durban, which are the sUbject of the present stUdy, were initiated in 1996 and 2000 respectively with the intent to deliver over 2000 houses in both study areas. These are being investigated. The study takes a form of a wholes tick approach and tries to make a link between the absent beneficiaries and those who informally transfer their property to new owners. The reason is simply that the 20-30% originally intended beneficiaries are not benefiting from the Consolidation Housing Subsidy. The study aims to look at alternative, cheaper and affordable ways of obtaining title deeds for people who have bought sites informally from the authentic officially recognised beneficiaries. Lastly, the study will contribute by data gathering and analysis, to the understanding of the phenomenon of low-occupancy and informal or de facto transfer of property. / Thesis (M.Housing)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

The north shore of the North Arm of the Fraser River represents the Southern boundary of the City of Vancouver. This boundary has been crucial to the development of Vancouver as a city that strives on natural resource processing and shipping. This industrial heritage along the North Fraser has provided Vancouver with a substantial portion of its revenue and tax base since the 1800's, but is currently under threat by land developers and residential pressures. With this development pressure comes the increased lure of immediate revenue, increased public use of the waterfront, and an increase in market housing within the city limits. However, this pressure will also result in a loss of economic sustainability and long-term revenue dollars. This is a trend that is occurring throughout the lower mainland, encouraging a commuter environment and a dissociation between place of work and place of residence. This thesis seeks to combat this issue and will illustrate that it is not only desirable, but necessary to sustain urban resource-based industry along the North Fraser. Through the implementation of a Greenway design, the thesis will prove that the portion of the North Fraser that lies between the Knight Street Bridge and the Oak Street Bridge can retain its industrial character, while becoming more inclusive of the cultural/social needs of a growing population and recognizing environmental concerns. The implementation of a public recreational Greenway will enhance the quality of the area, thereby drawing users both within and beyond the surrounding community to take advantage of a great resource that is often forgotten or hidden by intensive industrial frontage. At the same time, the Greenway will provide opportunities for education and awareness that will highlight the values and benefits of an industrial infrastructure along the North Fraser. Finally, the thesis will prove that such an endeavour is not only sustainable in a cultural and economic sense, but that a Greenway has the capacity to provide a rehabilitated ecological condition that will sustain a valuable and fragile ecosystem. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of / Graduate