The thesis proposed to critique the neo-liberal perspective on regional policy in South Africa, and its emphasis on areas of strength and advantage, on two grounds. First, that it neglects processes of economic restructuring, and the possibility of place-specific decline or vulnerability. However, South Africa's increasing exposure to international markets, ongoing economic crisis, and political change, provide a context in which such conditions are likely. Secondly , these concerns are marginalised through the assumption that households can and do move out of areas experiencing restructuring or decline , or from places with weak economic bases. This assumption, however, ignores the limits to mobility in the current conjuncture, and the role of place in survival. The thesis critiques these arguments theoretically, and empirically - through a brief examination of the dynamics of restructuring and migration in KwaZulu-Natal, and a more detailed analysis of the case of Newcastle . The study of KwaZulu-Natal shows broad patterns of restructuring over the century, and points to new forms of instability in the 1990s. The research demonstrates that Newcastle has experienced several rounds of restructuring. While aggregate employment was relatively stable by the end of the 1980s, there had been a significant shift in the nature of economic activity and the composition of employment. Further rounds of restructuring coupled with employment decline - occurred in the 1990s, and key industrial sectors are shown to be vulnerable. The study of migration shows that, while there is a relationship between urbanisation and economic development in KwaZulu-Natal, there are also exceptions to it, with people remaining in, and even moving to places with weak or declining economic bases. The research did not find a complete, disjuncture ' between urbanisation and economic development in Newcastle. However, as, a consequence of past investments in place and limited opportunities elsewhere, low-income households remained in Newcastle despite restructuring. The study therefore shows that restructuring and place-vulnerability are concerns in South Africa, and that migration cannot be relied upon as a corrective. These findings underpin the need for a renewed consideration of social concerns within regional policy, and for moving beyond the 'efficiency' versus 'equity' dichotomy. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 1997.

This thesis investigates five types of informal and self-built settlements in Panama City, Panama. The major part of the thesis focuses on precedents that are related to personal experiences encountered while researching a question developed during an independent study course at Ball State University. These experiences are germane to the place I have resided for virtually, my whole life, at the outskirts of an informal settlement in Panama City -- Barriada Nueve de Enero -- along with my personal relationship with Mrs. Emilia, my family's domestic worker for more than thirteen years. In addition, the study of the five settlements will be accompanied by a set of minor design interventions that address immediate and local needs encountered while investigating each area. In a country where already more than half the population (56%) resides in urban centers, and approximately sixty thousand people live in informal settlements, one might ask: What do rural immigrants bring with them to the informal settlements? And, what are the connections found that relate to their past lives in the rural areas? According to the UN-Habitat report of 2008, in the developing world there are approximately 5 million people making thier trek each month to urban centers, and most of them end up squatting and self-building in some informal settlement, making them, as stated by Robert Neuwirth in Shadow Cities, "the largest builders of the housing world." If it is in fact, the 'precaristas - informal builders' and 'invasores - inavders' of the world who are shaping our current and future cities, should we not be more interested in their knowledge, lifestyles, and building techniques? This thesis does not aim to answer all the questions about informal settlements in Panama, but it does try to expose a reality and hopefully generate an understanding towards one city, and at least one informal settler contributing to the fast-growing informal building phenonmenon of the world. / Department of Architecture

The purpose of this study was to describe the migration of a selected group of church members from their Appalachian counties of origin to Muncie, Indiana, with specific attention being given to religious beliefs, causes for migration, urban residential patterns, the degree of occupational mobility, and the establishment of migrant churches. The sample studied consisted of members of four migrant churches that had been founded between 1936 and 1959. The migrants' Appalachian origins were obtained from the records of transfers of membership from their original church to the one in Muncie. Tabulation of these transfers revealed that 90.1 percent of them came from four counties: McCreary and Wayne in Kentucky, and Fentress and Scott in Tennessee.Data on living conditions in these Appalachian counties were derived from census material, with detailed attention being given to population, birth rates, economy, employment, education, and housing. The impact these factors had on migration was evaluated. Information as to the migrants' residential patterns and occupational mobility was drawn from the censuses and Muncie city directories. The rates of residential and occupational mobility were determined by examining data at five-year intervals beginning with 1940.The role played by religion in the area of the migrants' origin also was explored. Extensive treatment was given to the establishment of migrant churches and their role in the migration process. Church records and interviews were used to describe the founding of churches as well as how they compared with their counterparts in Appalachia.One of the findings of this study is that a decline in coal mining and subsistence farming was not the chief factor accounting for migration from this four-county region. In the 1940s the decline in these two categories of employment only accounted for 18 percent of the out-migration. But in the following decade, they did account for 58 percent of the exodus. Census data before 1950 indicated that more jobs in other categories had lessened the impact of mining and agriculture on migration. However, after 1950 employment in other categories also declined, making migration even more pronounced.The chief factor responsible for migration from this area was the high rate of natural increase. Birth rates were twice as high as the national average and half of these counties' inhabitants were under twenty years old. Population pressure existed because the economy could not absorb the annual increase. Approximately 60 percent of the out-migration resulted from this high rate of natural increase.An investigation of residential patterns did not reveal the clustering of migrants within city blocks. Instead, concentrations of migrants were found within larger housing districts. They tended to move into the central part of the city as well as four other districts with substandard housing. When those areas filled up, they moved over into the southeast side. Significant concentrations were also found in the Black areas.Study of the migrants' occupational patterns revealed only marginal mobility. All of them started as unskilled or semi-skilled laborers, with only 8.4 percent improving their position over the thirty-five year period studied. The latter were upgraded as industrial supervisors or skilled laborers. However, none of the migrants became white-collar employees or managed to move into new or elaborate housing. Overall, these people have preferred the step-by-step marginal advancements that are consistent with their culture.The most significant fact about these migrant churches is that they were established and are maintained by extended family groups which originated and still have deep roots in Appalachia. Urbanization was found to have had some impact in the sense that they eventually had adopted more church programs, more worship services, and full-time ministers like other urban churches. However, in their basic religious practices and beliefs, and in the way they depend upon bonds of kinship these churches still reflect many of the basic characteristics of those back in Appalachia.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Carleton University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 248-274). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.), Australian National University, 1983. / Title from start screen (viewed Sept. 2, 2004). "January 1983.

From Forward: The development of gold mines in the Orange Free State is likely to be to modern East London what Kaffir Wars were to old East London. "The Fighting Port", as it is commonly called, is the nearest harbour to these mines and is linked by good rail, road and air facilities. A wide variety of industry is already established. Development is likely to be rapid. At present the City contains over 80,000 persons, and with the addition of peri-urban suburbs has doubled its population in just over fifteen years. In the past is has claimed to be the healthiest holiday resort in the Union. This year a City-wide campaign has been organised to fight tuberculosis, as the City's statistics indicate that it has one of the highest rates of anywhere in the world. Within twelve years two government sided commissions of enquiry have sat in the City and reported on the administration and living conditions of the city's African populaton. Extremely strong adjectives have been used to describe, and drastic recommendations made to improve the socio-economic and general conditions of the African people. Under the holiday atmosphere of the City lies a very serious, complex, and potentially dangerous human problem.

This research examines how urban agriculture contributes to the sustainable livelihood of migrants’ women living in the inner city of Johannesburg. The study focuses on the Cameroonian women community living in Turffontein. It explores the significant process of migration into the Republic of South Africa and the inspiration behind the choice of urban agriculture in the inner city of Johannesburg by women. The research report assesses the impact of urban agriculture on sustainable livelihood in the life of Cameroonian women living in Turffontein. It also examines the constraints encountered by these Cameroonians women in Turffontein in the practice of urban agriculture for sustainable livelihood. The findings of this study reveal that urban agriculture is used as a strategy for sustainable livelihood to a lot of Cameroonian migrants’ women living in Turffontein. The study has also shown how through urban agriculture these migrants’ women have been able to raise substantial income to support their respective families both in South Africa and in Cameroon. The study is based on a purposeful sample of Cameroonian migrants’ women living in the inner city of Johannesburg practicing urban agriculture. It uses a mixed method of approach with a transect walk to the area where this women practice the urban agriculture. It also included an in-depth face to face interactive interview and written sources such as journals, books and research reports where combined to gather relevant data. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data.

published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This dissertation presents research on three topics relating to how education is linked to economic development in China. The data are obtained from the 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2013 Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS). The first essay examines the consequences of the Cultural Revolution. Using the 2003 and 2006 CGSS, the research is able to identify participants in a specific initiative, the “up to the mountains and down to the villages” movement (referred to as the Sentdown Campaign) and the length of time that they were involved in the initiative. The econometric results--including OLS, Heckit and 2SLS methods--provide evidence of substantial negative and long-lasting effects of the Cultural Revolution on education, labor force participation and personal income. Those who were involved in the Sentdown Campaign were found to be able to recoup some of these losses through the accumulation of education after they came back from rural areas, but these were generally not enough to compensate for the overall disruptions the Cultural Revolution caused on them. Furthermore, those who were sent down and stayed for more than five years in the countryside were not able to recuperate any lost years of schooling and, instead, suffered bigger losses in income than any of the other groups discussed in this essay. The second essay examines the attitudes of urban Chinese citizens towards migrants, as obtained using survey data from the 2005 CGSS. Estimating probit equations of the likelihood that the respondents in the sample had positive attitudes towards migrants, the research shows the connections between a range of explanatory variables and these attitudes. Educational attainment is not found to reduce negative attitudes towards migrants, a result that is different from the literature on the determinants of attitudes towards immigrants in recipient countries. The research also finds that as migrant presence grows in workplaces and neighborhoods, urban residents actually become more positive in their attitudes towards migrants. Gender is also found to have a significant impact on attitudes towards migrants. Men tend to have much more positive attitudes towards migrants, perhaps because social conventions frown against urban women having friendships with migrant men, or because the marriage market in urban China favors urban men marrying rural women. The third essay examines the role played by human capital in accounting for income growth in China between 2003 and 2013. An Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition of the growth in individual hourly income shows that the overall role played by human capital on income growth in China during this decade is significant for men but not for women. For men, human capital accounts for 0.1796 in log-income change between 2003 and 2013, which given the total log-income change in this time period for men was 0.9160, represents close to 20 percent of the growth in income in the country. For women, the impact is small and actually negative, equal to -0.0433 out of the 0.8435 increase in log-income during the decade, a result that is mostly the outcome of declining rates of return to education among females.