Thesis (D.C.A.)--University of Western Sydney, 2008. / A thesis submitted to the University of Western Sydney, College of Arts, School of Communication Arts, in fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Creative Arts. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Sydney, 2008. / A thesis presented to the University of Western Sydney, College of Arts, School of Humanities and Languages, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Includes bibliographies.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Sydney, 2009. / A thesis presented to the University of Western Sydney, College of Arts, Centre for Cultural Research, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Includes bibliographies.

M. Phil. thesis, University of Hong Kong, 1976. / Photocopy from typescript.

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Coastal erosion, population decline, and economic deterioration, in the rural coastal community of Sydney Mines, Cape Breton, are concerns upon which the provincial government is focused. This thesis explores how ideas of permanence, adaptation, and sacrifice can engage the prevailing erosion of both the coastline and community, in terms of the physical cliff face, population, and economy. Articulating methods of responding to the various conditions of erosion enables an evolving and didactic architecture, which can become a catalyst to stimulate the economy and create stability for the town. Strategies of site placement, as well as technologies of geological formation, historic mining practices, and adaptation approaches, explored in this thesis, provide examples of how prototypical architecture and programmatic insertions can create a viable solution to erosion in this coastal town.

No description available.

Since the great Iranian revolution of 1978-79, there has been a significant increase in Islamic consciousness and activity in Muslim communities across the globe. As a phenomenon it has become known as ???Islamic revivalism???. Its hallmark is a return to Islamic origins, the fundamentals of the faith embodied in the Qur???an and the sunnah (sayings and practices of Prophet Muhammad). Contemporary Islamic revivalism has its roots in Muslim responses to European colonialism and imperialism at the turn of the twentieth century, when the darker sides of modernity began to reveal themselves in what was perceived as less than desirable social, cultural, economic, and political conditions of many Muslim communities and societies. Islamic revivalism has constantly featured in Islamic history and is by no means a new phenomenon. What distinguishes contemporary Islamic revivalism from earlier revivalisms is its complex multifacetedness as a defensive reaction to a new epoch of modernity described in revivalist circles as jahiliyah (ignorance). This thesis argues there is a central relationship between modernity and Islamic revivalism. Using in-depth interviews and participant observation techniques this study is an ethnography of the Tablighi Jamaat (Preaching Party), a transnational Islamic revivalist movement active in Sydney. It also seeks to locate the Tablighi Jamaat in the spectrum of Australian Islam. The principal argument of the thesis is that contemporary Islamic revivalism is a defensive reaction to modernity. Contrary to popular belief it neither constitutes an antimodernity nor does it seek to destroy modernity. Rather, it highlights that Muslims as adherents to a revealed tradition - Islam - are in a serious state of crisis. They are confronted with both material crisis and the threat of losing their faith and identity in modernity. Through a study of the Tablighi Jamaat the thesis argues that contemporary Islamic revivalism is, therefore, an attempt to rescue Muslims from their modern malaise through selective use of modern ideological and technical means.

The vegetation of the Sydney Basin, Australia, is highly flammable and subject to a wide range of fire regimes. Sclerophyllous shrubs and sedges are common and in some vegetation types up to 70 % of fuel consumed during a fire can be live. Research into fire behaviour and fuel dynamics has been minimal. To address this issue this thesis investigated the principal factor affecting the ease of ignition and rate of combustion of individual fuel particles and fuel beds in bushfires: dead fine fuel moisture (FFM). Two common Sydney Basin vegetation types, eucalypt woodland and heathland, each with a history of problematic fire management, were measured in the field for diurnal fluctuations in FFM following rain, under conditions similar to when prescribed burns are conducted. The FFM components of current operational fire behaviour models were found to be inadequate for predictions of FFM and fire behaviour under these conditions. The equilibrium moisture content (EMC) of five fuel types from the field site was investigated in a laboratory study. An existing function describing EMC as a function of temperature and relative humidity was evaluated and found to be very accurate for these fuels. Two FFM predictive models incorporating this function were evaluated on the field data and the laboratory results were shown to be applicable to the estimation of FFM in the field. One model gave very accurate predictions of FFM below fibre saturation point, but its accuracy was reduced when screen level conditions were used instead of those measured at fuel level. A recent process-based model that accounts for rainfall showed promise for predicting when fuel is < 25 % FFM. Systematic problems with the radiation budget of this model reduced the accuracy of predictions and further refinement is required. Live fine fuel moisture content (LFMC) of common heathland shrubs and sedge was investigated over two years and found to be both seasonal and influenced by phenology. LFMC minima occurred in late winter and spring (August to October), and maxima were in summer (December to February) when new growth was recorded. The dominant near-surface fuel in mature heath was sedge. It was found to have little seasonal variation in its??? percentage dead but the percentage dead maxima occured at the same time as the LFMC minima of shrubs and sedge in both years. Simple instantaneous models for duff moisture content in woodland and heathland and LFMC and the percentage dead sedge in heathland were developed. The information gained by this study will form the basis for future development of fuel moisture models for prescribed burning guidelines and fire spread models specific to the vegetation communities of the Sydney Basin.

THE PROFESSIONAL LIFE-CYCLES AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF ADULT TEACHERS OF ENGLISH TO SPEAKERS OF OTHER LANGUAGES (TESOL) This thesis focuses on the findings of a research study conducted in Geneva and Sydney to examine the career cycles of TESOLs. It explores many of the issues investigated in Huberman???s study of 160 secondary school teachers in Geneva (1989, 1993). Seventy-three in-depth interviews were conducted with teachers and trainers / administrators in adult TESOL, and professional development issues were examined in greater detail than in the Huberman study. The central purpose of the study was to test the universality of the Huberman model of career phases. TESOLs were found to have far more variations during their career cycles than school teachers, who were in a more stable and predictable situation. The study focused on particular moments in the career cycle, exploring TESOLs??? levels of satisfaction. TESOLs in the present study were found to have similar intrinsic satisfactions and concerns about working conditions as the findings of other TESOL studies. Although the occupation was reportedly becoming increasingly more professional, its unpredictable nature made it stimulating and rewarding. In spite of the instability of the TESOL career, TESOLs appeared to have more positive career experiences overall than many school teachers with more stable career paths. The study also examined professional development issues by comparing the perceptions of TESOLs and their trainers / administrators. They had many divergent opinions as to the professional development requirements of TESOLs. While there was no conclusive evidence that professional development could be linked to stages, TESOLs in a phase of diversification were found to have different professional development requirements from other phases. Personal, professional and environmental factors also affect the professional development requirements of TESOLs at any stage. In summary, it appears that the traditional career phase model is inappropriate when applied to TESOLs, and perhaps for other similarly unstable careers. With the recent changes in people???s professional lives, requiring increasing mobility and adaptability in the changing job market, other career path models to guide counselling, professional development and other staff management programs will need to be explored.