MA (History) / Department of Development Studies / The research investigated the nexus between land reform and human security in Ratombo community. The central argument was that land reform should address human security and development of the community. The security-development nexus was applied to explicate the link between human security and human development. The human security concerns discussed in the research included food security, economic security, individual security, community security, and environmental security. These security matters were discussed within the backdrop of a myriad of challenges facing Ratombo Communal Property Association (CPA) regarding improving production at the farm. The problem under investigation was informed by the failure of the CPA to ensure food security and to create employment for the community members. Within that background, the study sought to explore the feelings of the farm workers, management and members of the CPA. Qualitative methods of data collection and analysis were used to establish the attitudes and feelings of stakeholders on Ratombo CPA’s performance, regarding meeting human security concerns of the community. The outcome of the research was that, as land reforms have dominated the discourse of rural development, there is needed to closely link rural development to human security issues because development and well-being are inseparable to the human security of a community. / NRF

Los suelos blandos son los más comunes en necesitar algún tipo de mejoramiento o refuerzo, y la elección de la técnica dependerá de las características del suelo, costo, tiempo y otros factores importantes. Entre estos métodos, se encuentra la técnica de la columna de grava, la cual permite acelerar la consolidación de los suelos blandos, mejorar la capacidad portante, reducir los asentamientos, y por tanto las características geotécnicas del suelo. La presente tesis consistirá en analizar y estudiar la metodología de columnas de grava como una técnica de mejora para un suelo de tipo arcilloso. Para ello, se aplicará la técnica en un caso de estudio para una obra ubicada en Cajamarca y se analizarán los asentamientos con y sin columna de grava. Se utilizarán los ensayos de laboratorio necesarios para la obtención de los parámetros geotécnicos del suelo en estudio. A partir de estos datos y utilizando el método de Priebe, se determinarán las dimensiones de las columnas de grava y posteriormente se calculará el asentamiento por consolidación primaria. El resultado obtenido permite ver favorablemente la reducción de los asentamientos. / Soft soils are the most common in needing some type of improvement or reinforcement, and the choice of technique will depend on the characteristics of the soil, cost, time and other important factors. Among these methods is the gravel column technique, which allows to accelerate the consolidation of soft soils, reduce settlements, improve bearing capacity and therefore the geotechnical characteristics of the soil. This thesis will consist of analyzing and studying the gravel column methodology as an improvement technique for a clay-type soil. For this, the technique will be applied in a case study for a work located in Cajamarca and settlements with and without a gravel column will be analyzed. The necessary laboratory tests will be used to obtain the geotechnical parameters of the soil under study. From these data and using the Priebe method, the dimensions of the gravel columns will be determined and then the settlement by primary consolidation will be calculated. The result obtained allows a favorable view of the reduction of settlements. / Tesis

The presented report surveys development of settlements and their native inhabitants in area of the Czech Forest Mountains in the West of the Czech Republic. This area was almost inaccessible during the communist era because it belonged to strictly monitored area on the border with the Federal Republic of Germany. Many villages, originally settled by Germans, became extinct. They became ruins in the course of time. The first part of the text is a case study of community called Lísková which is situated about 20 kilometers from Domažlice. The second part of the text describe a very similar village, which was not destroyed in 1956 unlike the village of Lísková. This village has survived up to this day. The aim of this dissertation is to find out what factors lead to the process of the extinction of the village and what were the reasons for other settlements having survived the ordered demolition in the borderland. Key words: border locality, human settlements, expulsion, extinct villages, borderline, fluctuation of population, social construction of reality, "take root", nations

Problems in the public policy decision-making environments are typically complex and continuously evolve. In a resource-constrained environment, several alternatives, criteria, and conflicting objectives must be considered. As a result, solutions to these types of problems cannot be modelled solely using single-criteria techniques. It has been observed that most techniques used to shape energy policy and planning either produce sub-optimal solutions or use strong assumptions about the preferences of decision-maker(s). This difficulty creates a compelling need to develop novel techniques that can handle several alternatives, multiple criteria and conflicting objectives to support public sector decision-making processes. First, the study presents a novel scenario-based multi-objective optimisation framework based on the augmented Chebychev goal programming (GP) technique linked to a value function for analysing a decision environment underlying energy choice among low-income households in isolated rural areas and informal urban settlements in South Africa. The framework developed includes a multi-objective optimisation technique that produced an approximation of a Pareto front linked to an a priori aggregation function and a value function to select the best alternatives. Second, the study used this model to demonstrate the benefits of applying the framework to a previously unknown subject in public policy: a dynamic multi-technology decision problem under uncertainty involving multiple stakeholders and conflicting objectives. The results obtained suggest that while it is cost-optimal to pursue electrification in conjunction with other short-term augmentation solutions to meet South Africa's universal electrification target, sustainable energy access rates among low-income households can be achieved by increasing the share of clean energy generation technologies in the energy mix. This study, therefore, challenges the South African government's position on pro-poor energy policies and an emphasis on grid-based electrification to increase energy access. Instead, the study calls for a portfolio-based intervention. The study advances interventions based on micro-grid electrification made up of solar photovoltaics (PV), solar with storage, combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) and wind technologies combined with either bioethanol fuel or liquid petroleum gas (LPG). The study has demonstrated that the framework developed can benefit public sector decision-makers in providing a balanced regime of technical, financial, social, environmental, public health, political and economic aspects in the decision-making process for planning energy supply interventions for low-income households. The framework can be adapted to a wide range of energy access combinatorial problems and in countries grappling with similar energy access challenges.

The aim of this master thesis project is to investigate how cities strive to be globally competitive affect local residents in informal settlements, generically called slum dwellers. This question is approached trough a case study of one of Rio de Janeiro’s informal settlements ‘favela’ Santa Marta. The favela’s public spaces have been studied in order to reveal how Rio’s search for increased global status has affected the management of the spaces and consequently the favela dwellers. Rio de Janeiro is using a well-acknowledged strategy towards global competitiveness, the hosting of international mega-events. Within the near future the city is presenting two of the world’s most well-known events: the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games. The games are being used as a tool to attract tourists and foreign investments, which are expected to help the city to Compete Globally. However, our findings show that this is happening at the expense of the city’s vulnerable slum dwellers and that Rio to some extent is Losing Locally. For example, slum areas that can contribute to presenting Rio as an attractive city, or have an unexploited economic potential, are increasingly integrated to the formal city. The residents of these areas are affected in several ways, for example through being evicted on behalf of more economically beneficial establishments. Remote slums with no interest for investments are however still separated from the formal city and left without support for its residents. Trough our research we have found that when a city set out to be globally competitive, it uses neoliberal market strategies, like hosting mega-events, since that is apprehended as the only trajectory towards development. Although, we suggest that the known strategy for development should be revised in order to not violate human rights. / Målet med detta examensarbete är att undersöka hur städers strävan efter global konkurrenskraft påverkar de lokala invånarna som bor i informella bostadsområden, så kallade sluminvånare. För att besvara frågeställningen har vi utfört en fallstudie av det informella bostadsområdet ‘favela’ Santa Marta i Rio de Janeiro. Santa Martas allmänna platser har studerats för att få en förståelse för hur Rios strävan efter global status har påverkat hanteringen av favelans allmänna platser och följaktligen dess sluminvånare. Rio de Janeiro använder sig av en internationellt erkänd strategi för att bli globalt konkurrenskraftig, nämligen att anordna internationella mega-event. Inom en snar framtid kommer Rio vara en av värdstäderna för fotbolls VM, och två år senare ska staden vara värd för de Olympiska sommarspelen. Sportevenemangen används som ett politiskt verktyg för att attrahera turister och internationella investeringar som ett steg mot ökad global konkurrenskraft. Resultatet av vår studie visar dock att detta sker på bekostnad av stadens utsatta sluminvånare och att strävan efter global uppmärksamhet kan ha negativ inverkan på lokal nivå. De slumområden i Rio som kan tänkas bidra till en attraktiv bild av staden, alternativt innehar outnyttjad ekonomisk potential, blir integrerade i den formella staden. Invånarna i dessa områden blir negativt drabbade på en rad olika sätt. Exempelvis har ett flertal människor blivit vräkta då området de bor på kan användas till mer ekonomiskt lönsamma ändamål. Avlägsna slumområden utan ekonomiskt intresse blir dock ignorerade. Resultat från vår studie visar att när städer planerar för en ökad global konkurrenskraft använder de sig av neoliberala marknadsstrategier, som mega-event, eftersom detta anses vara det enda tillvägagångssättet för ekonomisk utveckling. Vi föreslår dock att denna rådande strategi behöver utvecklas, uppdateras och få sällskap av alternativa vägar mot utveckling då den i dagsläget leder till att mänskliga rättigheter bryts.

For a long time, the human bones that were found outside the classical graves/grave context during the late Bronze Age were severely overlooked in research. It was first during the 1990’s that research took place and archaeologist like Anders Kaliff och Joanna Brück started studying this severely overlooked phenomena. This paper aims at analyzing and discussing why human bones were used outside the classical graves/grave context. As well as what the human bones were used for and how the human bones were treated. In this study the grave concept will be discussed to understand the late Bronze Age human’s definition of grave and burial rites more fully. The distinction between what is sacred and what is profane in the handling and using of the human bones in non-classical graves/grave contexts will also be overseen. The study in this paper is focused on the East part of central Sweden and will be analyzed and supplemented by both national and international archaeological sites of similar character. The primal sites for the study are Broby in Börje parish, Apalle in Övergran parish, Ryssgärdet in Tensta parish and Ringeby in Kvillinge parish. The study is set in the late Bronze Age in Sweden (1100–500 BC). This paper is meant as an analytical research where former research and archaeologist interpretations will be compared and work as a discussion with the writer’s own interpretations of the late Bronze Age human’s use of human bones. With the writer’s own interpretation and with the help of former research, the human bones found in non-classical graves/grave contexts have been assessed with both sacred and profane contexts. The result shows that the distinction between the sacred and the profane are better left outside the context of handling and using human bones.

Vertical Occupations in the City Center of São Paulo has been prepared as part of the Degree Project for the Master in Urbanism Studies course at The Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.This Degree Project deals with social housing challenges in the central urban environment of São Paulo, Brazil, narrowing down to an important part of these urban challenges: the occupations of vacant buildings in the city center of São Paulo by social housing movements. Although the theme is part of a wider context, focusing on social occupations is critical to understand how the right to proper housing, and to the city itself, is a paradoxal universe. / Vertical Occupations in the City Center of São Paulo é um projeto de Mestrado (MSc) em Urbanismo preparado para Kungliga Tekninska Högskoloan (KTH) em Estocolmo. O trabalho lida com os desafios contemporâneos em habitação social, focando nas ocupações verticais no centro de São Paulo. Embora este tema seja bastante abrangente, ao focar em ocupações no centro da cidade, o projeto critica o direito à cidade e à habitação digna, focando na esfera mais carente da cidade, este expõe um universo um tanto quanto paradoxal.

The demographic trend of Sub-Saharan African shows rapid population growth, which is expected to stay. Parallel to that, urbanization has been accelerating in the region. This has increased the prevalence of informal settlements, which are seen as problematic and unsustainable as they often provide lower quality of life. The households in informal settlements often lack accessibility to housing finance, which lower their economic opportunities. One of the largest informal settlements in Africa is Kibera, located in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. This paper aims to examine what housing finance models that are accessible for the residents in Kibera, as well as to investigate what can be done to increase accessibility and affordability to housing finance.  The methods included usage of the insights from the literature review, analysis of publicly available information and semi-structured interviews. The results showed that informal housing finance sources still dominate the capital supply in Kibera, including self-finance, family and friends, remittances and chamas (local savings and credit groups). However, there are formal alternatives such as SACCOs, microfinance banks, government initiatives and mobile lending. Besides those, some data indicated that banks have become more flexible and accessible, starting from low levels. Conclusions were made on potential measures taken to increase accessibility and affordability. These include increasing the quantity of subsidized community-based schemes and formalization projects, fostering flexibility in the formal banking system, promoting community-led initiatives, lowering interest rates through enhanced public management, streamlining the legal property system, reducing bureaucratic hurdles in housing transactions, lowering heavy taxes and fees in construction, and combating corruption. / Den demografiska trenden i Subsahariska Afrika visar på en snabb befolkningstillväxt som förväntas bestå. Parallellt med detta har urbaniseringen accelererat i regionen. Detta har ökat förekomsten av informella bostadsområden, vilka ses som problematiska och ohållbara eftersom de ofta innebär lägre livskvalitet. Hushållen i informella bostadsområden saknar ofta tillgång till bostadsfinansiering, vilket minskar deras ekonomiska möjligheter. Ett av de största informella bostadsområdena i Afrika är Kibera, beläget i den Kenyanska huvudstaden Nairobi. Denna uppsats syftar till att undersöka vilka bostadsfinansieringsmodeller som är tillgängliga för invånarna i Kibera, samt att undersöka vad som kan göras för att öka tillgängligheten och den ekonomiska överkomligheten till bostadsfinansiering.  Metoderna inkluderade användning av insikter från litteraturöversikten, analys av offentligt tillgänglig information och semistrukturerade intervjuer. Resultaten visade att informella källor för bostadsfinansiering fortfarande dominerar kapitalförsörjningen i Kibera, inklusive självfinansiering, familj och vänner, remitteringar och chamas (lokala spar- och kreditgrupper). Det finns dock formella alternativ såsom SACCOs, mikrokreditbanker, statliga initiativ och mobil utlåning. Förutom dessa indikerade vissa data att banker har blivit mer flexibla och tillgängliga, med start från låga nivåer. Slutsatser drogs om potentiella åtgärder för att öka tillgängligheten och den ekonomiska överkomligheten. Dessa inkluderar att öka subventionerade samhällsbaserade program och formaliseringsprojekt, främja flexibilitet i det formella banksystemet, uppmuntra lokalt ledda initiativ, sänka räntorna genom förbättrad offentlig förvaltning, effektivisera det juridiska fastighetssystemet, minska byråkratiska hinder vid bostadstransaktioner, sänka höga skatter och avgifter vid nybyggnation samt bekämpa korruption.

After South Africa’s democratisation in 1994, the areas which had been deemed “only for whites” within the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality (CoJ) were opened to all citizens. These changes attracted a high in-migration of people seeking better living in the CoJ. This influx not only challenged the provision of employment but also impacted negatively on the availability of land and housing and on the maintenance of safety and security by the police. Lack of accommodation forced immigrants to squat in the open spaces (including in the greenbelts) within the CoJ. A literature review provided an understanding of this problem locally and internationally. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with the affected stakeholders. The findings showed that the measures needed to combat the causes of illegal squatting are beyond police control. The involvement of departments such as Human Development, Labour, Home Affairs and Environmental Management is needed for a successful solution to the problem. / Police Practice / M. Tech.(Policing)

Thesis (Ph.D.) - James Cook University, 2004. / Thesis submitted by Sally Marie Babidge, BA (Hons) UWA June 2004, for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Anthropology, Archaeology and Sociology, James Cook University. Bibliography: leaves 283-303.