Australia Burning

2003 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
National Level ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Fire Behaviour ◽  
Community Issues ◽  
Indigenous Land ◽  
Key Questions

The phenomenon of fire in the Australian landscape traverses many interests and disciplines. At a national level, there is an urgent need for the integration of both the natural and social sciences in the formulation of public policy. With contributions from 30 leading experts, Australia Burning draws together these issues, under the themes: Ecology and the environment Fire behaviour and fire regime science People and property Policy, institutional arrangements and the legal framework Indigenous land and fire management The book examines some of the key questions that relate to the ecology, prediction and management of fire, urban planning, law, insurance, and community issues, including indigenous and non-indigenous concerns. It looks at what we need to know to inform public policy, given the present risks and uncertainty, and explores the avenues for closer integration between science, policy and the community.

Fire Management of Rangelands in the Kimberley Low-Rainfall Zone: a Review.

1999 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 39 ◽  
Author(s):  
AB Craig
Keyword(s):  
Fire History ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Environmental Research ◽  
Fire Behaviour ◽  
General Management ◽  
Noaa Avhrr ◽  
Local Experience ◽  
Definition Of

This paper examines a range of environmental, research and practical issues affecting fire management of pastoral lands in the southern part of the Kimberley region in Western Australia. Although spinifex grasslands dominate most leases, smaller areas of more productive pastures are crucially important to many enterprises. There is a lack of local documentation of burning practices during traditional Aboriginal occupation; general features of the fire regime at that time can be suggested on the basis of information from other inland areas. Definition of current tire regimes is improving through interpretation of NOAA-AVHRR satellite imagery. Irregular extensive wildfires appear to dominate, although this should be confirmed by further accumulation, validation and analysis of fire history data. While these fires cause ma,jor difficulties. controlled burn~ng is a necessary part of station management. Although general management guidelines have been published. local research into tire-grazing effects has been very limited. For spinifex pastures, reconimendations are generally consistent with those applying elsewhere in northern Australia. They favour periodic burning of mature spinifex late in the year, before or shortly after the arrival of the first rains, with deferment of grazing. At that time. days of high fire danger may still be expected and prediction of fire behaviour is critical to burning decisions. Early dry-season burning is also required for creating protective tire breaks and to prepare for burning later in the year. Further development of tools for predicting fire behaviour, suited to the discontinuous fuels characteristic of the area, would be warranted. A range of questions concerning the timing and spatial pattern of burning, control of post-fire grazing, and the economics of fire management, should be addressed as resources permit. This can be done through a combination of opportunistic studies, modelling and documentation of local experience. The development of an expert system should be considered to assist in planning and conducting burning activities. Key words: Kimberley, fire regimes, fire management, pastoralism, spinifex

Traditional Laws Meet Emerging Biotechnologies: The Impact of Genetic Genealogy on Indigenous Land Title in Australia

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-149
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Watt ◽  
Emma Kowal ◽  
Carmen Cummings
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
Land Ownership ◽  
Indigenous Australians ◽  
Native Title ◽  
Genetic Genealogy ◽  
Land Title ◽  
Genetic Technologies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Indigenous Land ◽  
Key Questions

The increasing popularity and availability of genetic testing has the potential to play into debates surrounding forms of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land ownership known as “native title.” This paper draws on research with applied anthropologists working in native title, and a review of descriptions of native title holders in existing determinations, to address three key questions: Are native title holders and claimants interested in using genetic genealogy for claiming native title or resolving membership disputes? If so, can this biotechnology offer them the kind of information they seek? And finally, does the legal framework allow or support its use for these purposes? Our findings highlight the importance of disseminating current information about genetic genealogy among Indigenous Australians and having frank conversations about the opportunities and limits of genetic technologies in this context.

scholarly journals FIRE REGIME IN THE INDIGENOUS LAND INDIGENOUS LAND, MATO GROSSO, BRAZIL

Mercator ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2020) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Lívia Lima Leite Aguiar ◽  
Patrick Thomaz de Aquino Martins
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Mato Grosso ◽  
Time Patterns ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Territorial Structure ◽  
Agricultural Use ◽  
Brazilian Culture ◽  
Indigenous Land

The Indigenous Land (TI) Pimentel Barbosa, of the Xavante ethnic group, is located in the region with the highest annual burning activity in the world, denoting the need for timely and accurate monitoring of the space-time patterns of fire occurrence. In this sense, the present study aimed to characterize the occurrences of burning in that TI, between the years 1984 to 2018, relating them to the different types of vegetation and land use present in it. Burn scars were identified and mapped, based on images from the Landsat program, and were analyzed for their spatial distribution and recurrence, including the aspect of plant typology and land use. In 34 years, TI burned an area of more than 1,500%, with the record of burning more than half of the area in several years, with no spatial pattern that expresses the practices traditionally used. Savanna vegetable types and agricultural use accounted for more than 90% of the affected area. In all types and use, recurrence classified as medium or high, from 9 to 34 recurrences (i.e., some TI areas were burned every year) predominated. 20 times was the most common recurrence, being at odds with what is recommended in the literature. The change in the territorial structure and the integration with the Brazilian culture pattern are indicated as elementary responsible for the establishment of the identified burning scenario, making some actions necessary, such as, for example, the traditional rescue of fire management, so that the fires can be used as a sustainable tool.

Career Guidance: Living on the Edge of Public Policy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
John McCarthy ◽  
Tibor Bors Borbély-Pecze
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Career Guidance ◽  
Evaluation Studies ◽  
National Level ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Economic Incentives ◽  
Policy Formation ◽  
Education And Employment

Public policy formation and implementation for career guidance provision are complex issues, not least because in most countries career guidance is a peripheral part of legislation for education, employment, and social inclusion. Policy solutions are compromises by nature. Regulations and economic incentives are the main policy instruments for career guidance provision, but there is often incoherence between the intentions of the regulations and the economic incentives provided for policy implementation. The intermediary organizations that serve to implement policy add significant variability to policy effects. International bodies and organizations have shown significant interest in the role of career guidance in education and employment policies through the undertaking of policy reviews, the formulation of recommendations for career guidance, and, in some cases, providing economic incentives to support their implementation. However, there is a dearth of evaluation studies of policy formation and implementation at the national level.

Patient Autonomy, Capacity, and Consent

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Donnelly ◽  
Jessica Berg
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
National Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
National Standard ◽  
Legal Principles ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Human Rights Norms ◽  
Law And Legislation

This chapter explores a number of key issues: the role of competence and capacity, advance directives, and decisions made for others. It analyses the ways these are treated in the United States and in selected European jurisdictions. National-level capacity legislation and human rights norms play a central role in Europe, which means that healthcare decisions in situations of impaired capacity operate in accordance with a national standard. In the United States, the legal framework is more state-based (rather than federal), and the courts have played a significant role, with both common law and legislation varying considerably across jurisdictions. Despite these differences, this chapter identifies some similar legal principles which have developed.

Fire modelling in Tasmanian buttongrass moorlands. III. Dead fuel moisture

2001 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon B. Marsden-Smedley ◽  
Wendy R. Catchpole
Keyword(s):  
Prediction Model ◽  
Regression Model ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Prediction Models ◽  
Dew Point ◽  
Seasonal Effects ◽  
Experimental Program ◽  
Fuel Moisture ◽  
Fire Behaviour ◽  
Fire Modelling

An experimental program was carried out in Tasmanian buttongrass moorlands to develop fire behaviour prediction models for improving fire management. This paper describes the results of the fuel moisture modelling section of this project. A range of previously developed fuel moisture prediction models are examined and three empirical dead fuel moisture prediction models are developed. McArthur’s grassland fuel moisture model gave equally good predictions as a linear regression model using humidity and dew-point temperature. The regression model was preferred as a prediction model as it is inherently more robust. A prediction model based on hazard sticks was found to have strong seasonal effects which need further investigation before hazard sticks can be used operationally.

Mental disorder and homicide: a review of epidemiological research

2000 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 171-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Woodward ◽  
Jean Nursten ◽  
Paul Williams ◽  
Doug Badger
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Mental Disorder ◽  
Epidemiological Research ◽  
Mentally Disordered ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Comprehensive Search ◽  
General Populations ◽  
Key Questions

SummaryObjective – This paper reviews 28 studies on the epidemiology of homicide committed by mentally disordered people, taken from recent international academic literature. Methods – The studies included were identified as part of a wider systematic review of the epidemiology of offending combined with mental disorder. The main databases searched were Embase, Medline, HealthStar, Psyclit, Mental Health Abstracts, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts, and Criminology Penology and Police Science Abstracts. A comprehensive search was made for studies published since 1990, supplemented with key studies from the 1980s identified through citation tracing and personal contacts. Results – A summary is given in tabular form of the content and quality of each study. There is then discussion of the studies in eight categories: descriptive studies, studies of trends, comparative studies amongst homicide offenders, amongst prisoners and including general populations, studies of homicide of relatives, follow-up studies, and studies of recidivism. Conclusions – There is an association of homicide with mental disorder, most particularly with certain manifestations of schizophrenia, antisocial personality disorder and drug or alcohol abuse. However, the quality of epidemiological research in this area is not adequate to answer key questions, and prediction of potential for homicide remains elusive. Further research is needed.

scholarly journals Representation of Slovak Research Information (A Case Study)

Information ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
Danica Zendulková ◽  
Boris Rysuľa ◽  
Andrea Putalová
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
National Level ◽  
Research Data ◽  
Research Information ◽  
Social Sciences And Humanities ◽  
Central Register ◽  
The World ◽  
Mutual Relations ◽  
Analytical Tools ◽  
The Eu

In the light of the increasing importance of the societal impact of research, this article attempts to address the question as to how social sciences and humanities (SSH) research outputs from 2019 are represented in Slovak research portfolios in comparison with those of the EU-28 and the world. The data used for the analysis originate from the R&D SK CRIS and bibliographic Central Register of Publication Activities (CREPČ) national databases, and WoS Core Collection/InCites. The research data were appropriate for the analysis at the time they were structured, on the national level; of high quality and consistency; and covering as many components as possible and in mutual relations. The data resources should enable the research outputs to be assigned to research categories. The analysis prompts the conclusion that social sciences and humanities research outputs in Slovakia in 2019 are appropriately represented and in general show an increasing trend. This can be documented by the proportion represented by the SSH research projects and other entities involved in the overall Slovak research outputs, and even the higher ratio of SSH research publications in comparison with the EU-28 and the world. Recommendations of a technical character include research data management, data quality, and the integration of individual systems and available analytical tools.

scholarly journals A reconstruction of the recent fire regimes of Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi, using remote sensing

Fire Ecology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Willem A. Nieman ◽  
Brian W. van Wilgen ◽  
Alison J. Leslie
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Vegetation Types ◽  
Local Evidence ◽  
Hot Dry Season ◽  
Wildlife Reserve

Abstract Background Fire is an important process that shapes the structure and functioning of African savanna ecosystems, and managers of savanna protected areas use fire to achieve ecosystem goals. Developing appropriate fire management policies should be based on an understanding of the determinants, features, and effects of prevailing fire regimes, but this information is rarely available. In this study, we report on the use of remote sensing to develop a spatially explicit dataset on past fire regimes in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi, between 2001 and 2019. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images were used to evaluate the recent fire regime for two distinct vegetation types in Majete Wildlife Reserve, namely savanna and miombo. Additionally, a comparison was made between MODIS and Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) images by separately evaluating selected aspects of the fire regime between 2012 and 2019. Results Mean fire return intervals were four and six years for miombo and savanna vegetation, respectively, but the distribution of fire return intervals was skewed, with a large proportion of the area burning annually or biennially, and a smaller proportion experiencing much longer fire return intervals. Variation in inter-annual rainfall also resulted in longer fire return intervals during cycles of below-average rainfall. Fires were concentrated in the hot-dry season despite a management intent to restrict burning to the cool-dry season. Mean fire intensities were generally low, but many individual fires had intensities of 14 to 18 times higher than the mean, especially in the hot-dry season. The VIIRS sensors detected many fires that were overlooked by the MODIS sensors, as images were collected at a finer scale. Conclusions Remote sensing has provided a useful basis for reconstructing the recent fire regime of Majete Wildlife Reserve, and has highlighted a current mismatch between intended fire management goals and actual trends. Managers should re-evaluate fire policies based on our findings, setting clearly defined targets for the different vegetation types and introducing flexibility to accommodate natural variation in rainfall cycles. Local evidence of the links between fires and ecological outcomes will require further research to improve fire planning.

A Note on “Public Policy”

1973 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 661-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Vaison
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Public Policy ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Studies ◽  
Policy Analysts ◽  
Government Body

Normally in political studies the term public policy is construed to encompass the societally binding directives issued by a society's legitimate government. We usually consider government, and only government, as being able to “authoritatively allocate values.” This common conception pervades the literature on government policy-making, so much so that it is hardly questioned by students and practitioners of political science. As this note attempts to demonstrate, some re-thinking seems to be in order. For purposes of analysis in the social sciences, this conceptualization of public policy tends to obscure important realities of modern corporate society and to restrict unnecessarily the study of policy-making. Public policy is held to be public simply and solely because it originates from a duly legitimated government, which in turn is held to have the authority (within specified limits) of formulating and implementing such policy. Public policy is public then, our usual thinking goes, because it is made by a body defined somewhat arbitrarily as “public”: a government or some branch of government. All other policy-making is seen as private; it is not public (and hence to lie essentially beyond the scope of the disciplines of poliitcal science and public administration) because it is duly arrived at by non-governmental bodies. Thus policy analysts lead us to believe that public policy is made only when a government body acts to consider some subject of concern, and that other organizations are not relevant to the study of public policy.

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