Since the 19th century, the processes of modernization, industrialization and urbanization have fundamentally impacted the spatial organization and the actual contents of social ties. In particular, the role of place of residence in everyday life has significantly changed. Compared to the past, the spatial distance is less relevant for maintenance of interpersonal ties and non-local social relations are of growing importance. This process has been recently enhanced by development of communication technologies and the Internet in particular. The Internet has transferred many social ties into virtual communities without any spatial reference. The dissertation deals with the consequences of the above indicated changes for the social environments in urban, suburban and rural localities and it is built on the geographic perspective of social network research. The theoretical framework of the research is based on combination of the concepts of social environment and the concept of local community. Further, the conceptualization of the study of local social environment is presented. In addition, the factors undermining the differentiated social environment and the character of community ties in various types of geographical contexts are discussed. The attention is also paid to the importance of population...

Klimpfjäll is a mountain village in the south of Lappland. In the middle of the 1970's a mine was set up in Stekenjokk about 20 km west of Klimpfjäll. A new housing estate was built, as an extension of Klimpfjäll, to accommodate the miners (about 170 people) and their families. This new part of Klimpfjäll was named, by the local inhabitants, Nybyn (The New Village), and the original village became known as Gammelbyn (The Old Village). For many of the people, the move to Nybyn was not just a case of being provided with the opportunity to earn a living. It was part of a life-objective. However, this way of life had an obstacle; the mine had a limited lifespan. A number of Nybyn's inhabitants could possibly remain in the village, even after the closing of the mine, but for the majority this was an impossibility. Nevertheless, the people still believed in the possibility of "saving" Nybyn as a whole, despite the unreasonableness of that belief. This was also the belief held by the local council, the state and the mining company. I have named this phenomenon "mystification". The future of Klimpfjäll became a mystery. The people would rather not discuss the future of Klimpfjäll because they know that it does not exist, they, nevertheless, want to believe in it. It is this mystification that made the establishment of the mine possible, and which holds Nybyn together socially. The Social Welfare Service in Vilhelmina had, for a long time, regarded Klimpfjäll as a social problem. The problem was defined as being traditional social problems, due partly to addiction and partly to loneliness. For this reason an action research project was started. But the real problem for the people of Nybyn was the uncertainty of the future. The project was doomed to fail. Why should the people of Nybyn "go to evening classes" when their village was being threatened with closure? The project became just one element in the continuing mystification. It was not possible to redefine the project as a "survival project", since everyone wanted to believe in a continue future for the mine. In this study I have attempted to understand why it was impossible for the action research project to succeed. In understanding its failure I believe that we can also understand the people of Klimpfjäll. / digitalisering@umu

The goals of museum collaboration are several, as are its intended beneficiaries. Assuming the success of the practice, local communities can gain the opportunity for self-representation and self-determination, museums can contribute to the creation and dissemination of new kinds of knowledge, and visitors can take home better understandings of cultural difference. While these are the ideals of collaboration, they frequently go unrealized, in large part because, as research indicates, the visiting public fails to recognize the active involvement of communities at museums. This raises the question as to whether, in the absence of this audience awareness, museum collaboration can fully contribute to the realization of the tolerant society that it purports to support. The purpose of this research is to examine the role of museum visitors in achieving the goals of museum collaboration, as well as to consider why this public has difficulty recognizing community involvement at museums and how this may be remedied. “A Partnership of Peoples” is an extensive renewal project underway at the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) at the University of British Columbia (UBC), designed to facilitate collaborative research at the museum. It also serves as a case study for my consideration of the relationship between museums and the visiting public as a part of the collaborative process. By speaking with both MOA staff and visitors, I gained insight into the intended goals of the renewal project with respect to the museum’s relationship with communities and the general public, as well as visitor understandings of collaboration. With this fieldwork, in addition to a literature review, I found that the significance of collaboration rests in the personal interactions that occur between individuals. As the majority of visitors do not benefit from these interactions during their time at the museum, they are at a disadvantage when it comes to recognizing the engagement of others in the creation of displays or the facilitation of research. The task for museums, then, is to make contemporary peoples visible and audible, connecting objects to communities and increasing opportunities for visitors to experience these personal meanings.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

The purpose of this study was to examine traditionally aged developmental mathematics college students’ experiences of mathematical practices, in a 4-week summer learning community, using a qualitative explanatory single case study approach (Yin, 2009). This study used the methodological framework of Local Communities of Mathematical Practices (Winbourne & Watson, 1998), the conceptual theory of situated cognition (Brown & Duguid, 1988), and the theories of communities of practice (Lave & Wenger, 1991), and learning communities (Tinto, 1997). The objectives were to highlight contextual factors that allowed participants to be academically successful as evidenced by their mathematical practices (Ball, 2003). The research question was: How does participating in a 4-week summer learning community shape developmental mathematics college students’ experiences of mathematical practices? The participants of this case study were one group of four women. Data were collected in the form of video and audio tape of classroom interactions, observations and reflections, diagnostic pretest, and participant interviews. Findings revealed that participants’ mathematical practices were shaped in part by: a) the way students identified with mathematics reflected their ‘success’ or ‘failure’ in the mathematics course; b) the students level of participation within the community; c) the students collaboration with purpose, discussion, and reflection; d) the students shared repertoire confirmed the consensus of knowledge; e) the students mutual engagement played a large part in their motivation, and f) the students joint enterprise within the learning community led to a self supporting system verifying that learning is the intersection of activity, concept, and the classroom.

The goals of museum collaboration are several, as are its intended beneficiaries. Assuming the success of the practice, local communities can gain the opportunity for self-representation and self-determination, museums can contribute to the creation and dissemination of new kinds of knowledge, and visitors can take home better understandings of cultural difference. While these are the ideals of collaboration, they frequently go unrealized, in large part because, as research indicates, the visiting public fails to recognize the active involvement of communities at museums. This raises the question as to whether, in the absence of this audience awareness, museum collaboration can fully contribute to the realization of the tolerant society that it purports to support. The purpose of this research is to examine the role of museum visitors in achieving the goals of museum collaboration, as well as to consider why this public has difficulty recognizing community involvement at museums and how this may be remedied. “A Partnership of Peoples” is an extensive renewal project underway at the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) at the University of British Columbia (UBC), designed to facilitate collaborative research at the museum. It also serves as a case study for my consideration of the relationship between museums and the visiting public as a part of the collaborative process. By speaking with both MOA staff and visitors, I gained insight into the intended goals of the renewal project with respect to the museum’s relationship with communities and the general public, as well as visitor understandings of collaboration. With this fieldwork, in addition to a literature review, I found that the significance of collaboration rests in the personal interactions that occur between individuals. As the majority of visitors do not benefit from these interactions during their time at the museum, they are at a disadvantage when it comes to recognizing the engagement of others in the creation of displays or the facilitation of research. The task for museums, then, is to make contemporary peoples visible and audible, connecting objects to communities and increasing opportunities for visitors to experience these personal meanings.

This study investigates the corporate social responsibility (CSR) exercised by the multinational oil companies (MNOCs) operating in the Niger Delta, and its impact on sustainable development (SD) in this important region of Nigeria. Particular focus is given to sustainable improvement in well-being and enhancement of socio-economic development for the local communities. To investigate these, archival from newspapers, magazines documents on CSR in Niger Delta from NGOs, documents from oil company’s websites and interview data from forty participants from the local communities, stakeholders and senior managers from the MNOCs were obtained. The MNOCs’ CSR and SD policies and practices were also inspected from the company’s website and photographs of the local environment around the MNOCs extraction suites and plant were also collected. These data were then analysed using: photo voice, document analysis, constructivist grounded theory, website-based content analysis, and covert participant observation. The study identified discrepancies between the MNOCs declared online CSR and SD policies and practices and those in operation in the Niger Delta region. Our findings also show that local communities are marginalised. To address this, it is argued that Ruggie’s frameworks, Sen’s capability approach for a full life, and Bowen’s list of social goals should be used as guiding principles by the MNOCs in the Niger Delta region. The study offers theoretical, empirical and methodological contributions to the studies of business ethics, international management and international business by offering new insights into CSR and SD.

Orientador: Sandra Elisa Contri Pitton / Banca: Sílvia Aparecida Guarnieri Ortigoza / Banca: Antonio Carlos Sarti / Resumo: A presente pesquisa investigou a percepção ambiental dos residentes do entorno do Parque Ambiental, situado na zona norte da cidade de Teresina/PI. A área natural, em questão, é protegida e encontra-se localizada no meio urbano. Portanto, está presente na vida dessas pessoas que, por sua vez, determinam a qualidade desse ambiente. A abordagem qualitativa, pautada na fenomenologia, revelou aspectos importantes do cotidiano dos moradores, que foram apresentados como a percepção da coletividade. Foram definidos três grupos ao longo da circunvizinhança do Parque, com conseqüente aplicação de questionários para analisar a percepção destes acerca da importância dada ao Parque e do reconhecimento das distintas funções exercidas por esta área natural protegida, em função dos diferentes espaços por eles ocupados em seu entorno. Os dados levantados foram analisados e apresentados em forma de tabela. Assim, a principal contribuição deste estudo está relacionada à geração de conhecimento que poderá subsidiar futuros projetos ambientais para esta Unidade, e que envolvam especialmente as comunidades circunvizinhas, com vistas à garantia da manutenção e da conservação do Parque Ambiental / Abstract: The present research investigated the environmental perception of the surrounding residents from Parque Ambiental, located at the north zone of the city of Teresina/PI. The protected natural area in case is located in an urban place, hence, it is present in the life of these people, who determine the quality of this environment. The qualitative approach, based on phenomenology, revealed important aspects of the residents' quotidian, that were presented with a collective perception. Three groups were defined among the surrounding neighborhood of the Park, with a consequent application of questionnaries, in order to analyse their perception about the importance given to the Park and the recognition of the distinct functions exercised by this protected natural area, in function of the different spaces occupied by them in its surrounding neighborhood. The collected data were analysed and presented in a table form. So, the mainly contribution of this study is related to the production of knowledge that can subsidize future environmental projects for this unit, involving specially the neighbor communities, in order to guarantee the maintenance and the conservation of Parque Ambiental / Mestre

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-05-21Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:27:50Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 martins_ltr_me_rcla.pdf: 7646338 bytes, checksum: 4c5a07c6add851529c509d2c0ed4989b (MD5) / A presente pesquisa investigou a percepção ambiental dos residentes do entorno do Parque Ambiental, situado na zona norte da cidade de Teresina/PI. A área natural, em questão, é protegida e encontra-se localizada no meio urbano. Portanto, está presente na vida dessas pessoas que, por sua vez, determinam a qualidade desse ambiente. A abordagem qualitativa, pautada na fenomenologia, revelou aspectos importantes do cotidiano dos moradores, que foram apresentados como a percepção da coletividade. Foram definidos três grupos ao longo da circunvizinhança do Parque, com conseqüente aplicação de questionários para analisar a percepção destes acerca da importância dada ao Parque e do reconhecimento das distintas funções exercidas por esta área natural protegida, em função dos diferentes espaços por eles ocupados em seu entorno. Os dados levantados foram analisados e apresentados em forma de tabela. Assim, a principal contribuição deste estudo está relacionada à geração de conhecimento que poderá subsidiar futuros projetos ambientais para esta Unidade, e que envolvam especialmente as comunidades circunvizinhas, com vistas à garantia da manutenção e da conservação do Parque Ambiental / The present research investigated the environmental perception of the surrounding residents from Parque Ambiental, located at the north zone of the city of Teresina/PI. The protected natural area in case is located in an urban place, hence, it is present in the life of these people, who determine the quality of this environment. The qualitative approach, based on phenomenology, revealed important aspects of the residents’ quotidian, that were presented with a collective perception. Three groups were defined among the surrounding neighborhood of the Park, with a consequent application of questionnaries, in order to analyse their perception about the importance given to the Park and the recognition of the distinct functions exercised by this protected natural area, in function of the different spaces occupied by them in its surrounding neighborhood. The collected data were analysed and presented in a table form. So, the mainly contribution of this study is related to the production of knowledge that can subsidize future environmental projects for this unit, involving specially the neighbor communities, in order to guarantee the maintenance and the conservation of Parque Ambiental

Stakeholder management relates to how business organisations manage their relationships not only with their market stakeholders, but also with their nonmarket stakeholders. It requires firms and business managers to identify and develop effective strategies to balance the interests of many diverse groups or constituents. This requirement has of course been judged to be impractical by those who uphold narrow traditional views about how a firm operates; and is unsupported by those who believe that asking managers to focus on the interests or concerns of groups of constituents that do not directly contribute to the economic achievements or strategic objectives of a firm, is a distraction and an attempt to derail corporate objectives. However, in spite of the criticisms levelled against the notion of stakeholder management, firms can no longer ignore the fact that there are constituents who can affect, and are affected by their business objectives. The aim of this research is to illustrate the practical implications of stakeholder management by exploring how multinational oil corporations operating in the Nigerian oil and gas industry manage their relationships with nonmarket stakeholders; such as the local communities who are affected by their operations. In order to achieve the aims of this research, a case study approach has been adopted; the case study companies include Shell Petroleum Development Company (Shell), Total Exploration and Production (Total), and the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (AGIP). Furthermore, to achieve a balanced perspective regarding the stakeholder management practices of the oil companies, the research incorporates the views of stakeholders from local communities, and those from non-governmental organisations (NGOs). A mixed methods research strategy is employed in the data collection and analysis process to achieve not just triangulation, but also to assist in the comprehension of the research findings. The research established that each of the companies being studied has employed different stakeholder management strategies in order to manage their relationships with the local communities. The strategies employed by the companies, however, appear not to address the issue of environmental impact; the concern which triggered the breakdown in the relationship between the oil companies and the local stakeholders in the first place. They have instead mostly focused on ameliorating the socio-economic issues resulting from oil exploration and production activities, in part as a consequence of pressure from the local communities themselves. Additionally, the findings indicate that the companies have employed hostile and controlling engagement strategies such as intimidation, appeasement, and manipulation, when dealing with local community stakeholders. These strategies are believed to have undermined the quality of their relationship with the local communities. The most notable consequence of these engagement practices is damaged trust amongst community members, as well as between the communities and the oil companies. The findings of this research have strong implications for stakeholder theory, as well as future research into stakeholder management practices, particularly in relation to non-contractual or nonmarket stakeholders; they also shed light on several important practical issues in business management.