The recent enlargements of the European Union brought about a strategic shift in the EU’s approach to conflict management and security in the eastern neighbourhood. The Partnership and Co-operation Agreements between the EU and Moldova contained no mention of the Transnistrian dispute, while the agreement between the EU and Geor gia included a vague phrase regarding political dialogue which may include the issue of conflict resolution. The addition of new members to the Union, however, expanded the EU into its neighbourhood and brought closer the unresolved territorial disputes. Concerns that were once further away are now right next door. While the former accession states might have served as buffers to these concerns, they can no longer, as members of the Union, be seen as such. Therefore, there is a greater need to address security issues, such as the ‘frozen conflicts’ bordering the EU. This thesis will examine the evolution of the EU’s responses to security chal lenges in the Eastern neighbourhood, and assess the role the EU plays in addressing these ‘frozen conflicts’ through the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy. Fur ther, this thesis will argue that the EU has thus far exerted limited direct pressure towards direct resolution of these conflicts and has instead approached regional stability through a variety of other indirect and long term means, such as the pursuit of economic growth and political stability. In particular, the research will look at the security sector reform (SSR) and will focus on the EU’s impact, or Europeanization, in the rule of law and border management sectors of Moldova and Georgia. It will be shown that these two sectors are related to promoting political stability and economic growth, which is in line with the EU’s effort to support development in Moldova and Georgia, and thus indirectly address ‘frozen conflict’ resolution by. altering the incentive structures. This thesis will conclude that the EU does have an impact on the rule of law and border management sectors and subsequently some impact on the ‘frozen conflict’ in Moldova but less so on the conflicts in Georgia.

The history of Lithuanian rural communities is complicated. It depends on certain political, cultural and economical conditions. Much harm for development of communities was done by the World WAR II and a long occupation. When the independence of the Republic of Lithuania was proclaimed in 1990, the problem of the development of rural communities became very actual. Now it has a direct reference to the main problems of our country – strengthening the democracy, forming civil society, developing of municipalities, intergrating into the EU, raising and bringing up cultural, educational and economical well-being of rural residents in Lithuania. Lithuanian government gives much attention to the restoration and strengthening of the rural communities (new laws, decisions and programmes are adopted ). There is no doubt, that the rural communities and other hon governmental organizations ( NGO ) ought to join the process of quick development themselves. Much help to Lithuania is gives by the EU, Scandinavian and other foreigh countries. On 2004 the first Lithuanian investigatios of the genesis of rural communities on peoples’ needs for them in the regions of Utena and Vilkaviškis were carried out. However, there are not many new actual empiric knowledge on which we may rely while solving the most important problems of the rural neighbourhoods. In 2006 a research in Leliūnai rural Neighbourhood community was carried out. The task of the research was to find out the people’s... [to full text]

This architectural design thesis proposes the adaptive re-use of 82 walk-up apartment blocks located in Shannon Park, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada. The uniform military housing community, abandoned in 2004, is reintegrated back into the surrounding neighbourhood network through a series of interventions at several scales. The new neighbourhood will provide housing for the population influx expected as a result of the acquisition of a significant shipbuilding contract. Because the expected influx is temporary, the development must be able to easily fit into the existing urban fabric. A series of strategic design interventions will transform the monotonous, desolate site into a varied community with strong neighbourhood identity.

The aim of this research is to identify how industrial heritage in redeveloping industrial areas may be used to contribute to a neighbourhood sense of place. This is examined through case studies, semi-structured interviews and first hand observations. Focus is placed on planning processes and results yielded. This project began with the belief that highlighting a community's heritage, when done effectively, and at a comprehensive scale, will foster a distinct neighbourhood character and sense of place. Based on the literature and research collected, an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats associated with incorporating the industrial heritage of South Point Douglas in Winnipeg, Manitoba is provided. Future steps are also recommended. This community was chosen , in part, because of its large supple of underused industrial buildings, its central location, and its historical significance to the development of the City of Winnipeg.

Obesity is becoming a worldwide concern, with more than 300 million individuals who are obese and a further 750 million who are overweight. This increase is important as obesity has been linked to an increased incidence of cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes mellitus, stroke and some cancers. One factor receiving increasing attention to explain variation in obesity prevalence is the role of the built environment. This involves examining how features of the built environment such as green space or food premises vary by neighbourhood area. The presence of such resources within a neighbourhood can influence obesity through encouraging a healthy or unhealthy environment. It is important to understand how neighbourhoods influence obesity. This will allow the creation of effective public policy and urban design initiatives to reduce the obesity prevalence. Little research has examined how the quality of these resources varies between neighbourhoods and their effect on the prevalence of obesity. This thesis addresses this using a systematic site survey tool to investigate how the quality of built environment resources varies by neighbourhood deprivation. It also employs a questionnaire to examine residents’ perception of their neighbourhood as these can influence obesity through the utilisation of healthy resources. Three key findings were identified: there is a significant relationship between deprivation and the number of neighbourhood resources; the quality of these resources increases as deprivation increases; and residents in a high deprivation neighbourhood had a more positive perception of the neighbourhood. As a result, high deprivation neighbourhoods may be less likely to promote obesity as they have higher quality resources and residents have a more positive perception of the environment. These findings suggest that the influence of the built environment is context specific and that it may not be as influential on obesity in Christchurch. It highlights the need to consider both individual and environmental factors in explaining the geographic variation of obesity.

INTRODUCTION: Canada’s Aboriginal population is growing at a faster rate than the rest of Canada. While Aboriginal health has improved in the last few decades, life expectancy of First Nations, Inuit and Métis continues to be lower compared to the rest of the Canadian population. Furthermore, current Aboriginal health research tends to focus on those living onreserves while more than half of the Aboriginal population currently resides in urban areas. Despite the importance of neighbourhood factors for understanding health in urban areas, the importance of neighbourhood characteristic for urban Aboriginal health has yet to be examined. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the research was, to determine both individual-level predictors and neighbourhood-level predictors of self-rated health and diagnosis of chronic conditions, amongst Aboriginal populations living in the City of Toronto; and to determine whether and how neighbourhood-level predictors influence individual-level predictors of self-rated health and diagnosis of a chronic conditions in Toronto neighbourhoods with Aboriginal populations living in them. METHODS: This study was a secondary analysis of two samples from the 2006 Aboriginal people Survey, consisting of 1080 and 500 Aboriginal individuals in the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area. A series of logistic regressions models were created to identify individual and neighbourhood predictors of “poor” self-rated health and having one or more diagnosed chronic condition(s). RESULTS: A best fitting model was derived from the individual-level variables to include the demographic variables age, gender and Aboriginal status; and the socio-economic variables average household income, education level and employment status. While neighbourhood-level variables had no significant influence in predicting either health outcome, there was some evidence to suggest influence over individual-level predictors. To further examine this relation, neighbourhoods were stratified based on income inequality, average household income and availability of Aboriginal specific services. This analysis yielded some different effects of individual-level variables for different neighbourhood types, suggesting that some effects of neighbourhood characteristics may interact with individual characteristics to influence health. CONCLUSION: While contextual factors have some effect on self-rated health, individual factors serve as stronger predictors of individual health. However, more neighbourhood level studies should be considered in order to better understand the growing urban Aboriginal population and potential ecological effects on health.

The Neighbourhood Centres (NCs) in Sydney, Australia, were established to encourage forms of local control and resident participation and to provide a range of activities to build, strengthen and support local communities and marginalised groups. This thesis is concerned with exploring the personal conceptions, passions and frameworks, as well as the political and professional identities, of activists and community workers in these NCs. It also explores stories of practice and of how these subjective experiences have been shaped through the discourses around the NCs, some of which include feminism, environmentalism, multiculturalism and social justice. The following key research questions encouraged stories of community practice: What do the terms empowerment, participation, community service and citizenship mean for community organisation? What did community workers and organisers wish for when they became involved in these community organisations? What happened to the oppositional knowledges and dissent that are part of the organisational histories? Foucault’s concept of governmentality is used to explore the possibility that these NCs are also sites of ‘government through community’. This theoretical proposition questions taken-for-granted assumptions about community development and empowerment approaches. It draws on a willingness of the research participants to take up postmodern and poststructuralist theories. ‘Practising place’ emerges in the research as a description of a particular form of activism and community work associated with these inner city Sydney NCs. The central dimensions of ‘practising place’ include: a commitment to identity work; an openness to exploring diverse and fluid citizenship and identity formations; and the use of local knowledges to develop a critique of social processes. Another feature of ‘practising place’ is that it involves an analysis of the operation of power that extends beyond structuralist explanations of how to bring about social change and transform social relations. The research has deconstructed assumptions about empowerment, community participation, community organisations and community development, consequently another way of talking about the work of small locally based community organisations emerges. This new way of talking builds upon research participants’ understandings of power and demonstrates the utility of applying a poststructural analysis to activist and community work practices. Overall the research suggests that if activists and community workers are to work with new understandings of the operation of power, then the languages and social practices associated with activist and community work traditions need to be constantly and reflexively analysed and questioned.

Refugees come from diverse backgrounds and the issues they face depend on their particular circumstances. Some of the issues refugees face include cultural shock, language difficulties, lack of established networks and often discrimination. Christchurch has a growing refugee community with their own social needs. The survey detailed in this dissertation was undertaken in response to the Canterbury Refugee Council identifying the lack of comprehensive data available for refugee resettlement outcomes in Christchurch. The aim was to gain a better understanding of the living conditions experienced by the refugee community in Christchurch. The participants were from the four main refugee groups resettled over the past decade, namely people coming from Afghanistan, Kurdistan area, Ethiopian, Somalia and Eritrea. This survey was undertaken at a time when international literature concludes that refugees are one of the most vulnerable groups in society and emphasises the vital role that housing alongside other factors have on positive resettlement outcomes. A quantitative approach was adopted to gather information rather than test hypotheses; it was designed to investigate housing, neighbourhood and sources of income. It also included what, if any, social support is available from the wider community, and explored some of the main current problems faced by the refugee families. The survey concludes that despite good intentions and some successes, there are still many obstacles for refugees resettling into their new environment. Refugees continue to experience chronic unemployment and struggle to access suitable housing for their families. The issues raised in this survey highlight the importance of acknowledging and responding to refugee diversity.

Obesity is becoming a worldwide concern, with more than 300 million individuals who are obese and a further 750 million who are overweight. This increase is important as obesity has been linked to an increased incidence of cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes mellitus, stroke and some cancers. One factor receiving increasing attention to explain variation in obesity prevalence is the role of the built environment. This involves examining how features of the built environment such as green space or food premises vary by neighbourhood area. The presence of such resources within a neighbourhood can influence obesity through encouraging a healthy or unhealthy environment. It is important to understand how neighbourhoods influence obesity. This will allow the creation of effective public policy and urban design initiatives to reduce the obesity prevalence. Little research has examined how the quality of these resources varies between neighbourhoods and their effect on the prevalence of obesity. This thesis addresses this using a systematic site survey tool to investigate how the quality of built environment resources varies by neighbourhood deprivation. It also employs a questionnaire to examine residents’ perception of their neighbourhood as these can influence obesity through the utilisation of healthy resources. Three key findings were identified: there is a significant relationship between deprivation and the number of neighbourhood resources; the quality of these resources increases as deprivation increases; and residents in a high deprivation neighbourhood had a more positive perception of the neighbourhood. As a result, high deprivation neighbourhoods may be less likely to promote obesity as they have higher quality resources and residents have a more positive perception of the environment. These findings suggest that the influence of the built environment is context specific and that it may not be as influential on obesity in Christchurch. It highlights the need to consider both individual and environmental factors in explaining the geographic variation of obesity.

In practice, neighbourhood policing adopts a view of information set out by Wilmer (1970), where community intelligence is a product that is produced by the police, owned by the police, for consumption by the police, in a ‘battle for information’ that seeks criminal ‘signals’ from ‘noise’. This thesis proposes that this industrial age police centric view of intelligence is redundant in the information age and that the growth of social media provides opportunities for the police and citizens to use information from events in new ways to co-produce community safety. The work draws on the work of Granovetter (1973) who theorised that new information rests with weak ties, Shirky (2009) who argued that collaborative technologies lower the transaction cost of citizen participation to enable the flow of latent information, and Ericson & Haggerty (1997) who envisaged a role for the police as communicators of risk. Utilising a new framework of information, developed for the thesis, to describe an information market, its mixed-methodology approach incorporated qualitative methods such as focus groups and survey, quantitative methods such as secondary analysis of Twitter data. A randomised controlled trial was also used to field test the hypothesis that information about crime proactively published by the police on social media would generate more information flowing from citizens to the police than reactive policing methods. Taken together the research found that citizens were either active or passive consumers of information who expected the police to provide an information bridge with and between citizens. In doing so they expected the police to filter signals about risk from noise for citizens, and amplify that signal so that it is heard by citizens above other background noise. The results did not support the hypothesis that social media would obtain more new pieces of information than traditional approaches. Rather it was found that PCSO inquiries received more information than email requests for information or alerts posted on social media. The research also acted as a catalyst for operational change and resulted in greater use of social media by the police force and a move towards a style of tweeting that was more likely to generate engagement in neighbourhood policing.