Socio-Cultural Appropriateness of the Use of Historic Persian Gardens for Modern Urban Edible Gardens

Historic gardens have the ability to provide several ecosystem services in cities, including provisioning services (i.e., food production). The historic gardens in Iran (known as “Persian Gardens”) have never been considered as places that could be used for food production. As a result, the purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the Iranian historic gardens’ spatial and structural layout is suitable for modern urban food gardening. We conducted field studies in six recognized Persian gardens in four provinces of Iran via qualitative analysis according to socio-cultural guidelines drawn from a literature review. The results suggested that combining the elements of formal landscape design, non-edible decorative plants, and traditional artwork would increase the Persian gardens’ attractiveness. Regarding encouraging users to become involved in urban gardening, we found that separating productive units containing edible plants from public units using a central meeting spot populated by aesthetic plants and items may attract ordinary visitors who are interested in gardening without disturbing anyone’s activities. Furthermore, the Persian gardens’ multifunctionality, aesthetic value, and health-promoting qualities constitute a considerable historic achievement in garden design, making the gardens a suitable model for edible urban gardening. The results of this study can enhance our understanding of the Persian gardens’ spatial and structural design and provide practical implications for sustainable urban planning and landscape architecture.

From Mulan (1998) to Mulan (2020): Disney Conventions, Cross-Cultural Feminist Intervention, and a Compromised Progress

Directed by the feminist filmmaker Niki Caro, Disney’s 2020 live-action remake of Mulan (1998) strove to be a more gender progressive, culturally appropriate, and internationally successful adaptation of the Chinese legend of Mulan than the animated original. Contrary to the film’s intended effect, however, it was a critical and financial letdown. The film was criticized for a wide range of issues, including making unpopular changes to the animated original, misrepresenting Chinese culture and history, perpetuating Orientalist stereotypes, and demonizing Inner Asian steppe nomads. In addition, the film also faced boycott calls amid political controversies surrounding China. It received exceptionally low audience ratings in both the US and China, grossing a total well under its estimated budget. This article argues that Mulan (2020) is not, as many believe, just another Disney film suffering from simple artistic inability, cultural insensitivity, or political injustice, but a window into the tension-ridden intersectionality of the gender, sexual, racial, cultural, and political issues that shape the production and reception of today’s cross-cultural films. It discusses three major problems, the Disney problem, the gender problem, and the cultural problem, that Mulan (2020) tackled with respectful efforts in Caro’s feminist filmmaking pattern. The film made significant compromises between its goals of cultural appropriateness, progressive feminism, and monetary success. Although it eventually failed to satisfactorily resolve these at times conflicting missions, it still achieved important progress in addressing some serious gender and cultural problems in Mulan’s contemporary intertextual metamorphosis, especially those introduced by the Disney animation. By revealing Mulan (2020)’s value and defects, this article intends to flesh out some real-world challenges that feminist movements must overcome to effectively transmit messages and bring about changes at the transcultural level in the arts.

РЕЛІГІЙНІ ТЕРМІНИ В ПЕРЕКЛАДІ ТУРИСТИЧНИХ ТЕКСТІВ: МІЖКУЛЬТУРНІ ВИМІРИ

The purpose of the study is to indicate the translation strategies and techniques that could be opted for while translating religion-related tourist promotional texts so that the target audience would get interested in the tourist objects.Methods. The analysis is based on the linguacultural approach which presupposes equal attention to linguistic presentation of the translation and its cross-cultural appropriateness. Specifically, we scrutinized the relevance of the equivalents on the textual level (lexical and grammatical correctness), the discourse level (conformity to the tourist discourse standards) and communicative level (maintenance of interactive relationship with the target audience). The method applied in the study is comparative analysis of the Ukrainian-English translation pairs.The results of the study testify to the strong tendency of translation adaptation which seems reasonable while the promotion of the destination is on the agenda. The data show that translation of religion-bound units in tourism promotional materials is predominantly based on the domestication approach, such as cultural adaptation of the religious terms through neutralization, generalization, reduction/compression, etc., and adaptation with explanation, particularly when dealing with specific theological concepts or historical church personalities. The foreignization approach which is implemented in literal translation of some religious terms without explanation is aimed at emphasizing the cultural singularity of the tourist object.Conclusions. Since the translation of religion-related tourist promotional texts is mostly expected to be tar-get-recipient-oriented and transparent, it is cultural adaptation that should be opted for as the dominant strategy whereas the local strategy of preservation (literal or loan translation of religious terms) should be employed in a very sensitive and sensible manner after considering the extra-linguistic and linguistic factors, otherwise the overuse of literal translation will impede effective cross-cultural communication.Key words: strategy, promotional text, source text, target recipient, religion. Мета роботи – визначити перекладацькі стратегії і техніки, якими доцільно послуговуватись під час перекладу туристичних промоційних текстів релігійного спрямування задля того, щоб викликати інтерес цільової аудиторії до туристичних об’єктів.Методи. Лінгвокультурний підхід, на якому ґрунтується аналіз, передбачає рівноцінне урахування як мовного оформлення перекладу, так і його міжкультурної відповідності. Зокрема, досліджено релевантність еквівалентів на текстовому рівні (лексико-граматична коректність), дискурсивному рівні (відповідність стандартам туристичного дискурсу) та комунікативному рівні (підтримка інтерактивного зв’язку з цільовою аудиторією). У роботі застосовано порівняльний аналіз українсько-англійських пар перекладу.Результати роботи засвідчують стійку тенденцію адаптації перекладу, що і є досить очікуваним у туристичному дискурсі. Отримані дані вказують, що переклад релігійно-специфічних одиниць у туристичних промоційних текстах загалом ґрунтується на одомашнювальному підході, зокрема культурній адаптації релігійних термінів шляхом нейтралізації, генералізації, редукції/компресії, тощо, а також адаптації з поясненням, якщо йдеться про специфічні теологічні поняття та історичні церковні особистості. Очужувальний підхід, який реалізується при буквальному перекладі окремих релігійних термінів без пояснення, спрямований на підкреслення культурної унікальності туристичного об’єкта.Висновки. Оскільки переклад туристичних промоційних текстів релігійного спрямування має бути насамперед орієнтованим на цільового реципієнта та зрозумілим, слід послуговуватись саме культурною адаптацією як домінуючою перекладацькою стратегією, в той час як локальну стратегію збереження форми оригіналу (буквальний переклад чи калькування релігійних термінів) варто застосовувати з особливою обережністю, беручи до уваги усі лінгвістичні та екстралінгвістичні фактори, інакше надмірне використання літературного перекладу перешкоджатиме ефективній міжкультурній комунікації.Ключові слова: стратегія, промоційний текст, вихідний текст, цільовий реципієнт, релігія.

Cultural Appropriateness of an Intervention to Promote Functional Recovery From Hospitalization: Caregiver Views

The Fam-FFC model includes caregiver education and care pathway to promote physical function, wellbeing, and cognition. The Ecological Model (EM) provided a framework to assess the cultural appropriateness of the Fam-FFC intervention, through interviews with family caregivers, patients, and nurse champions, and focus groups with staff. Findings are described within the eight dimensions of the EM: 1 ) language: perceptions of the dyads’ comfort level with intervention information; (2) persons: representation of dyads’ ethnic /racial group within the nurse champions’ ethnicity/race; (3) metaphors: use of cultural terms equivalent to those used by participants; (4) content: integration of participants’ values, customs, and traditions in the intervention; (5) concepts: congruence of caregiving concepts with cultural norms; (6) goals: congruence of the intervention goals with participants’ cultural norms and goals; 7) Methods: the culturally appropriateness of the delivery of the intervention; and (8) context: alignment of the intervention with the participant’s socio-community context.

Suitability of a Post-Operative Bariatric Nutrition Education Tool

Objectives While bariatric surgery is an effective treatment for individuals living with severe obesity, adhering to dietary requirements, especially protein requirements, can be a challenge. This study aims to examine the suitability of a nutrition-based education tool called “Protein Cards” that is focused on recipes high in protein to support individuals who have completed the surgery. Methods An online survey (23 questions) was developed using an adapted version of the Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM) instrument along with two additional questions about the participants’ overall impression of the Protein Cards. Sample recipe cards were shown on each page of the survey. Participants were asked to rate the Protein Cards (“Not Suitable”, “Adequate”, or “Superior”) on: Content, Literacy Demand, Graphic Illustrations, Layout & Typography, Learning Stimulation & Motivation, and Cultural Appropriateness. Additionally, participants rated Overall Impression on a scale of 0 to 100. The survey was distributed over email to Canadian bariatric patients (adolescents and adults), dietitians, healthcare workers, and caregivers. Results Twenty participants registered to participate in the survey (Sept 2020-Jan 2021) but only fifteen participants completed the entire survey. Preliminary results revealed “Superior” scores for Content (83%), Learning & Stimulation (81%), Layout & Typography (89%), Literacy Demand (76%), and Cultural Appropriateness (78%). Overall, the recipe cards obtained an average score of 81%, which is considered as a “Superior” evaluation. Participants expressed that they were more likely to use the education tool during the “purée" (82%) and “soft diet” (78%) phases of the post-surgical diet and would prefer if the tool took on the form of a mobile application (85%). Conclusions The Protein Cards are considered a superior education tool that could be helpful when teaching and learning about foods high in protein for the post-operative stages of bariatric surgery. Future work will involve testing the tool in practice with both adolescent and adult patients as a means to increase adherence to post-operative nutrition requirements. Funding Sources University of British Columbia, Faculty of Land and Food Systems.

The Irish Carnegie Community Engagement Classification Pilot: A critical analysis on culture and context from a community of practice approach

This article provides a reflective critique of the process undertaken to pilot the Carnegie Community Engagement Framework in Ireland between 2015 and 2016. Of particular interest to the authors is the cultural specificity of employing a US-centric self-assessment data capturing tool in a heterogeneous Irish context. Taking the reader through from conception of the idea to its execution and post-pilot reflections, we examine the cultural appropriateness and translatability of the tool to Irish higher education. To frame the discussion of the process, we employ the concept of a community of practice, as defined by Wenger (1998). This was adopted to promote a culture of collaboration in an ever-growing neoliberal system that promotes competition between institutions, rather than facilitating their co-construction of knowledge. In the analysis, we demonstrate how forming this community of practice allowed for a cohesive assessment of the challenges and opportunities that arose through the pilot process. This was particularly important since each participating institution had different motivations for engaging with the pilot. Reflecting with some distance, we consider the value that comes from operating as a community of practice, as well as some shortcomings that we identified as specific to this pilot.

“You Sorta Listen with Your Eyes”

What might investigation of audience responses to films reveal about the role that music plays in responses, understandings, and evaluations? Peter Larsen’s excellent Film Music (2005) examines the “paradox” that audiences sense the importance of music to their experience of films—but often can’t recall it. While Larsen’s critical remarks are sharp and apposite, his discussion is limited by a tendency to talk of “the audience” in the singular. That actual audience research doesn’t figure in his account is not surprising, given how little such research has yet been done. This chapter draws on materials from a major audience research project to help formulate provisional findings and proposals for future research. What these suggest is that audiences use “music” (only sometimes distinguished from other sound-sources) for a range of purposes, from emotional heightening to cueing of understanding, knowledge of narrative developments to more complex determinations of cultural appropriateness.

Heart to Heart Cards: A Novel, Culturally Tailored, Community-Based Advance Care Planning Tool for Chinese Americans

Context: A paucity of literature describes the growing Chinese American community’s end-of-life (EOL) priorities and preferences. Objective: Develop a culturally-tailored advance care planning (ACP) tool to understand the EOL preferences of this underserved minority group. Methods: Informed by the Cultural Appropriateness Theory, the Chinese American Coalition for Compassionate Care (CACCC) developed Heart to Heart (HTH) Cards using a 3-step approach. First, CACCC created and refined a list of bilingual, culturally relevant EOL issues. Next, CACCC organized the EOL issues into a card deck. Finally, CACCC developed a unique playstyle of the cards—the HTH Café. From 2014-2019, CACCC recruited Chinese American volunteers and participants for HTH Cafés. Following each Café, participants completed an anonymous survey describing their sociodemographics, top 3 cards, and café evaluation. Results: The 54 HTH Cards were organized into 4 suits (spiritual, physical, financial/legal, and social). Each card displayed a culturally-tailored EOL issue in English and Chinese. Playstyles included one-on-one and group formats (ie. HTH Café). CACCC volunteers conducted 316 HTH Cafés for 2,267 Chinese American adults. Most participants were female (61.6%), between 18-50 years old (56.7%), lived in California (80.2%) and born in Asia (74.3%). The top priority (25.5%) was “If I’m going to die anyway, I don’t want to be kept alive by machines.” Participants thought the session was pleasant (99.5%) and expressed intent to complete advance directives (86.5%). Conclusion: HTH Cards represents the first, theory-driven, culturally-tailored ACP tool for Chinese Americans. More research is needed to establish its impact on ACP conversations and outcomes.

Montessori, Waldorf, and Reggio Emilia: A Comparative Analysis of Alternative Models of Early Childhood Education

Montessori, Waldorf, and Reggio Emilia education remain three of the most popular models for alternative early childhood education. Each of these approaches has developed globally, with a rich history of supporting children’s educational freedom. This narrative analysis provides a means for early childhood educators and scholars to understand the aims, philosophical and theoretical frameworks, historical development, benefits, and challenges in these models and their methods of practice. As early childhood education evolves with technology and as re-conceptualizations about early education occur, an understanding of these alternatives to traditional education models is important. While adaptive options of these models may emerge in education systems across national contexts, this review allows educators to consider their applications and cultural appropriateness in specific local and community contexts.