Peri-Fusion: An integrated agriculture and densified housing model for New Zealand’s peri-urban zones.

<p>Peri-Fusion housing is an integrated densified housing and agricultural model, that this thesis proposes as an alternative to the current problematic suburban model prevalent in New Zealand’s peri-urban zones. Suburban sprawl driven by the single storey housing model, New Zealander’s desire towards standalone housing, and the loss of fertile agricultural land are all driving issues behind this proposed PeriFusion housing. This research defines the periurban zones as areas of unknown development surrounding New Zealand’s towns and cities, addressing the increasing rigid, concreteclad, urban perimeter invading further into agricultural fertile land. Peri Fusion design strategies are established to test and develop a new integrated housing model, aiming to achieve attractive densified living, that is integrated with preserved agricultural land. This proposed housing development model could achieve a resilient flexible system of land use, where housing is integrated into a natural agricultural and horticultural resource cycle. This thesis includes typological research and a design-led research methodology. Literature and case studies were reviewed initially to define common traits of successful low-rise high-density housing, spatial agricultural landscaping typologies, agricultural integration and agricultural ownership. From these reviews, Peri-Fusion design tactics were derived to form a basis for testing in the design-led research methodological step. These tactics included the adaptive iterations and application of the ha-ha wall as an agricultural boundary, layered pathways between humans, vehicles and animals, and level change within landscapes. Alongside these main strategies, the integrated operational model was addressed, which included extensive grazing, intensive horticulture dedicated to housing and the inclusion of agricultural education. Also, a basic circular natural resource model was developed to address the operation of water, waste and food production management. In order to measure the success of PeriFusion tactics, Blenheim was established as a case study site for the design-led research. Conceptual and developed design was undertaken, which was reviewed against the Peri-Fusion framework, resulting in a final proposed integrated and densified housing model for the Blenheim case study site. Findings were then tested against the adjacent plot to the site with the same site coverage. This successfully revealed an increase of 131 housing units, decreased average gross floor area from 175m2 to 80.5m2, and an increase of unsealed preserved fertile land by 20%. This resulted in 38% of final model dedicated to agricultural and horticultural food production.</p>

Peri-Fusion: An integrated agriculture and densified housing model for New Zealand’s peri-urban zones.

<p>Peri-Fusion housing is an integrated densified housing and agricultural model, that this thesis proposes as an alternative to the current problematic suburban model prevalent in New Zealand’s peri-urban zones. Suburban sprawl driven by the single storey housing model, New Zealander’s desire towards standalone housing, and the loss of fertile agricultural land are all driving issues behind this proposed PeriFusion housing. This research defines the periurban zones as areas of unknown development surrounding New Zealand’s towns and cities, addressing the increasing rigid, concreteclad, urban perimeter invading further into agricultural fertile land. Peri Fusion design strategies are established to test and develop a new integrated housing model, aiming to achieve attractive densified living, that is integrated with preserved agricultural land. This proposed housing development model could achieve a resilient flexible system of land use, where housing is integrated into a natural agricultural and horticultural resource cycle. This thesis includes typological research and a design-led research methodology. Literature and case studies were reviewed initially to define common traits of successful low-rise high-density housing, spatial agricultural landscaping typologies, agricultural integration and agricultural ownership. From these reviews, Peri-Fusion design tactics were derived to form a basis for testing in the design-led research methodological step. These tactics included the adaptive iterations and application of the ha-ha wall as an agricultural boundary, layered pathways between humans, vehicles and animals, and level change within landscapes. Alongside these main strategies, the integrated operational model was addressed, which included extensive grazing, intensive horticulture dedicated to housing and the inclusion of agricultural education. Also, a basic circular natural resource model was developed to address the operation of water, waste and food production management. In order to measure the success of PeriFusion tactics, Blenheim was established as a case study site for the design-led research. Conceptual and developed design was undertaken, which was reviewed against the Peri-Fusion framework, resulting in a final proposed integrated and densified housing model for the Blenheim case study site. Findings were then tested against the adjacent plot to the site with the same site coverage. This successfully revealed an increase of 131 housing units, decreased average gross floor area from 175m2 to 80.5m2, and an increase of unsealed preserved fertile land by 20%. This resulted in 38% of final model dedicated to agricultural and horticultural food production.</p>

Attention to Land Reclamation in the Years of Stagnation in the Republic of Uzbekistan

The “Farkhod Hydroelectric Power Station” which was built in Syrdarya region has irrigated 700,000 hectares of fertile land in Dalvarzin and Mirzachul districts of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. “Andijan water reservoir” was built in the Karadarya River of Fergana Valley, and a hydroelectric power plant with a capacity of 140,000,000 kilowatt-hours was commissioned. Due to the commissioning of “Tuyamuyin” waterworks in the lower reaches of the Amudarya River, it was possible to irrigate 300,000 hectares of land in the Republic of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as 200,000 hectares of new land for rice and cotton growing. In addition, this water facility has protected the land from erosion and provided with 150,000 kilowatts of electricity.

Veteran’s estate as a category of roman land surveying

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how did form veterans landowning in the Roman land surveying. The main sources on the problem are the treatises of Roman land surveyers (1-2 centuries AD). They contain information about the principles of surveying of land plots for Roman retirees and about right guarantees the veterans had. The task of this article is reconstruction of the process of civic assignations in Ancient Rome and highlighting of features of this action when land was granted to the veterans. At the end of 2nd century BC the limitatio has become the most common way of land division thank to activities of brothers Gracchi. The limitatio assumed the creation of dividers that organized space: Decumanus maximus and Cardo maximus . Their intersection created four parts of the future Ager Colonicus for veterans. The limits parallel to the main ones turned the colony field into a clearly organized boundary grid with a square unit of area - centuria, within which the land plots (intended for tillage, horticulture, viticulture) were formed for veterans. Since the time of Caesar and Augustus, the question of adding grazing land to the arable land was decided in the Roman land surveying art. The most desired types of non-arable land was not only forests, pastureland and relicta but also subseciva - remainders from land division. Those vacant centuriae were a good arable land which the state temporarily allocated to new settlers on a lease basis. In the cadastre, a special right of remainders (ius subsecivorum) was created, unifying the lease relations. Thus, the farm of the Roman veteran consisted of fertile land suitable for all types of agricultural activities, as well as different categories of land, which contributed to the development of property and ownership relations.

KIEU THANH QUE AND HIS MONOGRAPH “LITERARY CRITICISM”

The literary legacy of the writer Kiều Thanh Quế can be considered a “fertile land” and an “opening structure” which suggest/require numerous interpretations and judgments. Understanding Kieu Thanh Que’s essential contributions to the formation of theoretical fundamentals of literary criticism helps re-evaluate his role and position in Vietnamese literature of the first half 20th century, especially in literary criticism - Kieu Thanh Que’s most dynamic and productive area of work. This article aims to: 1, introduce his monograph Literary Criticism; 2, point out several features of Kieu Thanh Que’s reasoning and critical thinking; and then 3. highlight his contributions to literary criticism of Vietnamese literature over the period 1932-1945. Contextualizing his book Literary Criticism in such early stage of literary criticism allows us to see clearly how he contributed with his ability to recognize and represent some theoretical and current issues in the field of literary criticism.

Matter Nature “Matters” Ultimately: A Material Ecological Reflection on Psalm 65

Modern insights in philosophy, anthropology, psychology, communication studies, religion studies and art history (to name but a few), exemplify the so-called material turn in the study of religion, of how matter “matters,” even ultimately. Contributions in the recently founded journal, Material Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art and Belief, highlight these insights. Humans animate material “things” (e.g., land, nature, temples, shrines) with meaning, and they in turn become “agents” to mediate the meaningful world they stand for. Humans and matter become co-constitutive in this dynamic. Our senses and sensibilities play a crucial role in this “world making” endeavour, when interacting with the material world around us. Ecological hermeneutics concurs, regarding Earth as a “subject” in her own right. This study found that an ancient poem, Psalm 65, resonates with these modern insights. The psalm expresses a skilful interconnectedness in its composition, but moreover, it interconnects temple(-goers; vv. 2–5), the orderly cosmos (vv. 6–9) and the fertile land (vv. 10–14) in unified and thankful song towards their creator and sustainer. The sensual experience of the “goodness” in the temple in Zion, the awe-inspiring cosmos, and the “goodness” of the fertile land, realises this “world of bliss.”

Paulownia tomentosa (paulownia).

P. tomentosa is one of the most important tree species in China. It is a fast-growing tree with high-quality wood, and produces approximately 0.4 cubic metres of timber after 10 years' growth. Currently there are about 1.1 billion Paulownia trees planted throughout China and about 3.0 million cubic metres of Paulownia timber worth US$55 million is exported overseas each year; P. tomentosa represents a substantial proportion of this. The wood is used in furniture, decorative products and musical instruments. P. tomentosa is also suitable for use in agroforestry systems in semi-humid temperate areas. A disadvantage is that this species grows well only on fertile land. More research is needed in order to improve its wood properties and stress tolerance, and increase its use in plantations.

Observing Digital Marketplaces of Agricultural Products in Indonesia

Indonesia has a large population and its increasing degree of internet penetration accessed through smartphones, which recently has reached 63.5% or more than 170 million people connected to the internet, has made Indonesia a fertile land for digital marketplace platforms to flourish. We witnessed the blossoming of digital marketplace platforms in this decade; many start-ups have been born, and some of them have reached the unicorn status in a relatively short time, such as Go-Jek, Traveloka, Tokopedia, and Bukalapak. Although most of these digital marketplaces have never been physically involved with any types of agriculture, there are more than a dozen start-ups of the digital marketplace that are directly involved with farming, and the number of them has grown recently. This chapter will discuss small-scale farming problems in Indonesia and how the digital marketplace offers solutions to the problems. Related theories such as transaction cost economy and the multi-sided market will be discussed. Some cases of a digital marketplace for agriculture in Indonesia will be explored.