Batik Kampong in Semarang: A Study of Traditional Urban Settlement Resiliency

Kampung Batik Semarang is a common name of a specific yet traditional urban settlement located in northern city center of Semarang because of its leading economic in batik making. It has a strong root of resiliency based on its history in recovering the community’s economic and neighbourhood. The aim of this study is to identify the resiliency of kampong batik after certain disaster in the past and the rise and fall of its development. The study is using qualitative approach and descriptive analysis to get depth discussion of efforts of stakeholders and the development of the settlement that leads to the sustainability of this kampong. The result shows that the sustainability of Batik Kampong is related to three factors; there are the historical background, spatial location of the kampung, and the efforts of local government and the community.

Caring for Caregivers: Italian Health Care Workers’ Needs during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Aim: An online survey was proposed to the health workers of a public hospital of an Italian northern city. This was done with the aim of assessing the unmet needs of a special population under strain (the health carers) due to the fight against the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). Results: By answering the survey, five hundred and nine people provided their observations, complaints and suggestions. This qualitative material was organised into three main areas: (1) relationship with the health organization management; (2) needs of the health workers; and (3) perceived consequences of the pandemic. Discussion: Overall, respondents expressed dissatisfaction for the unpreparedness of their health units and the confusion created by frequent changes in operational guidelines. Many participants felt abandoned, unheard and unprotected by the health organization, whilst the psychological support service formally set up by the hospital for its health workers was grossly under-utilised. Instead, support from colleagues and family constituted the main protective factor to counteract negative emotions. Restrictions in social contacts and recreational opportunities were frequently mentioned. Several respondents reported a sense of pride for their work and commitment; many others saw in the pandemic an opportunity for personal growth and better focus on important life values, like family and solidarity.

Identifying seasonal spatial patterns of crime in a small northern city

Objectives To explore spatial patterns of crime in a small northern city, and assess the degree of similarity in these patterns across seasons. Methods Calls for police service frequently associated with crime (theft, break and enter, domestic dispute, assault, and neighbor disputes) were acquired for a five year time span (2015–2019) for the city of North Bay, Ontario, Canada (population 50,396). Exploratory data analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics and a kernel density mapping technique. Andresen’s spatial point pattern test (SPPT) was then used to assess the degree of similarity between the seasonal patterns (spring, summer, autumn, winter) for each call type at two different spatial scales (dissemination area and census tract). Results Exploratory data analysis of crime concentration at street segments showed that calls are generally more dispersed through the city in the warmer seasons of spring and summer. Kernel density mapping also shows increases in the intensity of hotspots at these times, but little overall change in pattern. The SPPT does find some evidence for seasonal differences in crime pattern across the city as a whole, specifically for thefts and break and enters. These differences are focused on the downtown core, as well as the outlying rural areas of the city. Conclusions For the various crime types examined, preliminary analysis, kernel density mapping, and the SPPT found differences in crime pattern consistent with the routine activities theory.

Professionals as Collaborative Mentors in Early Childhood Family Education

Early childhood education (ECE) in China has become complex and multi-dimensional. Chinese parents/caregivers are actively involved in ECE. This qualitative study provides insights into how three ECE-related professionals, namely, a family education professional, an ECE enrichment teacher, and a founder/administrator of an ECE centre, worked collaboratively in a transdisciplinary early childhood family education (ECFE) program in a northern city of China. Qualitative data was collected via three rounds of interviews with each of the three ECE professionals and several sources of documents. The findings are generally in line with existing literature regarding the factors that influence effective transdisciplinary collaboration among ECFE team members. The ECE professionals claimed the program was a success was due to their willingness to become ergonomists, daily collaborative practice with team members, interaction with both the caregivers and their children, and non-judgmental sharing among colleagues. These positive outcomes occurred due to the continued support and instruction from other ECFE team members, especially when applying approaches outside one’s respective fields. The findings illuminate several insights relating to ECFE and offer several implications regarding hands-on practices for effective ECFE.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the snow cover of the northern city agglomeration

Sixteen priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were qualitatively and quantitatively assessed by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection in snow samples collected at 46 sites of Arkhangelsk as a world’s largest city above 64 degrees north latitude. The average, maximum and minimum PAH concentrations in snow were 168, 665, and 16 ng/kg, respectively. The average toxic equivalent value in benzo(a)pyrene units was 3.6 ng/kg, which is three-fold lower than the established maximum permissible concentration and considered an evidence of a low/moderate level of snow pollution with PAHs. The pollution origin was assessed using specific markers based on PAHs ratios in the studied samples. The pyrogenic sources of PAH emission were predominate, whereas the significant contributions from both transport and solid fuel combustion were observed. Benzo(a)pyrene concentrations are highly correlated with the levels of other PAHs with higher molecular weights.

This Liberal City

In July of 1820, Isaac Lopez Brandon and his mother landed in Philadelphia, where they joined the growing community of wealthy free people of color who flocked to the northern city from the South and the Caribbean. As in New York, in Philadelphia gradual emancipation led to new opportunities and instigated a racial backlash. While some Jewish Philadelphians worked on behalf of abolition, others owned the print shops and newspapers that published articles fomenting anti-Black ire. Money would ease the Brandons’ path. Philadelphia would be the first place that Isaac’s mother positioned herself not as Lopez or Gill, but as Mrs. Brandon, despite the fact there is no evidence she married Abraham Rodrigues Brandon. Behind the scenes, Abraham helped his niece’s husband secure a job as hazan (religious leader) of the congregation. As in New York, Sarah’s in-laws helped smooth their transition into Jewish life.

Thunder Bay: Local news is important for conversations on reconciliation

[Paragraphs 1 to 3] The Ontario city of Thunder Bay is in the headlines these days for all the wrong reasons. Canada’s highest rates of murder and violent crime. The highest number of hate crimes per capita. Systemic racism embedded in shoddy police investigations. The deaths — many unexplained — of Indigenous students who come to the city for education not available in their remote northern communities. For years these troubles and the inequitable relationship between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations in the city festered. Then in the spring of 2011, the Toronto Star began publishing reporter Tanya Talaga’s stories about the deaths of seven young Indigenous students over the previous decade. What had been a local story vaulted into national headlines. Talaga’s reporting became the basis for her 2017 award-winning book Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death and Hard Truths in a Northern City.

Thunder Bay: Local news is important for conversations on reconciliation

[Paragraphs 1 to 3] The Ontario city of Thunder Bay is in the headlines these days for all the wrong reasons. Canada’s highest rates of murder and violent crime. The highest number of hate crimes per capita. Systemic racism embedded in shoddy police investigations. The deaths — many unexplained — of Indigenous students who come to the city for education not available in their remote northern communities. For years these troubles and the inequitable relationship between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations in the city festered. Then in the spring of 2011, the Toronto Star began publishing reporter Tanya Talaga’s stories about the deaths of seven young Indigenous students over the previous decade. What had been a local story vaulted into national headlines. Talaga’s reporting became the basis for her 2017 award-winning book Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death and Hard Truths in a Northern City.