Browsing by discipline "Regional Studies"
Now showing items 21-40 of 145
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(2017)Tourism is one of the main contributors in the fight against poverty, as it has become one of the strongest drivers of trade and prosperity in the global south. Protected area tourism is an especially quickly growing segment of the industry, having an important role in regional development on many rural areas of global south. However, territories labelled as protected areas represent a great variety of spaces. This research aims at unifying the holistic picture of protected area tourism governance by analysing, how protected areas with divergent landownership arrangements, management objectives and associated regulations influence tourism development and its local socio-economic impacts at the grass roots. This comparative case-study survey scrutinizes local-level tourism governance and territorial regulations on three neighbouring protected areas in Taita Taveta County, Kenya. The Tsavo National Parks are state-owned conservancies focusing on conserving biodiversity. LUMO community wildlife sanctuary is a nature tourism project owned and orchestrated by a local community, which aims to advance local socio-economic development via tourism while preserving the environment at the same time. The third area, Sarova, is a private-owned conservancy harnessed solely for nature tourism and profit-making. The areas are liable to same legislative framework and international phenomena have similar influence on them, which makes comparison on their divergent management objectives and local-level regulations expedient. By giving voice to local-level tourism stakeholders, it is possible to point out how the category (i.e. public, private or community) of the land owner and the areas’ respective management objectives influence tourism operations and impact the socio-economic outcomes from both conservation and tourism. The comparative analyses focus first on spatial socially constructed preconditions for tourism development and second, on its developmental outcomes that will primarily be analysed by reflecting the livelihood changes generated by protected area tourism and protection regulations in place. The data-set was gathered during field research in February–March 2016, and it is mainly based on semi-structured interviews with tourism employees, employers and regional experts. The principal method of interviewing is supplemented by observation and statistics, and the data is analysed by thematic and qualitative content analyses. The protected areas’ management objectives and associated regulations have drastic impacts on tourism development within their respective borders. The local administrations of the protected areas were identified as the primary institutions to explain the stark spatial differences in the case-study areas tourist numbers. Instead of the mere ”type” of the landowner, the areas’ respective management objectives and associated regulations determined whether protected area tourism generated livelihoods or other positive socio-economic outcomes. Altogether, similar preconditions for tourism development and similar socio-economic outcomes cannot be expected from all territories labelled as protected areas.
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(2013)East Usambara Mountains situated in North-Eastern Tanzania, are globally recognized tropical forests that have a high biodiversity value. The Amani Nature Reserve encloses a high concentration of endemic species within versatile biodiversity. The aim of this study is to measure the ecotourism possibilities and potential of the Amani Nature Reserve and to provide sustainable areal development and livelihood option and outline the regional characteristic important in terms of ecotourism. The data for this study was gathered during a field trip in Tanzania, in January-March 2012, as part of an internship for WWF Finland, Coastal East Africa Initiative. The qualitative methods used included a structured questionnaire, semi-structured and in-depth interviews, field observation and literature analysis. Also, several discussions between different regional stakeholders were carried out. Six villages in the East Usambara Mountains are studied. The study concludes that the Amani Nature Reserve has high potential for ecotourism development and the area offers diverse nature related activities albeit the current visitor statistics are low. The overall results indicate the high value and possibilities with regional biodiversity, the locals' positive attitudes towards tourism but also the areal weaknesses; poor infrastructure, lack of facilities and services. The locals' willingness to cooperate and participate in ecotourism functions and existing cultural assets were also recognized. The Amani Nature Reserve's location, uniqueness and existing facilities strongly support the future ecotourism development. However the locals' knowledge on tourism impacts and conservation issues should be reinforced because there are currently multiple threats towards these tropical forests such as population growth and forest fragmentation. Ecotourism could reinforce forest conservation, local empowerment and sustainable livelihoods. In order to safeguard the ecotourism resource base, the environment, the ecotourism actions need to follow the ecotourism objectives and principles and consider different spatial environmental, social and economic characteristics. According to these principles the locals must be integrated in actions and decision-making processes at all levels and careful ecotourism planning, management and monitoring must take place. The ecotourism network development in Tanzania is highly possible because of the country's spectacular natural beauty and political stability. In order to safeguard the remaining life supporting wildlife also different stakeholders and locals should be engaged to work in cooperation seeking sustainable conservation means, such as ecotourism.
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(2016)In the past few years the role of green space as part of the condensing urban structure has increased significantly. As a result of habitat fragmentation and environmental change, the value of green areas is emphasized, for example in managing future uncertainty and adapting to changing conditions. A comprehensive approach based on ecosystem services and green space functionality has become the norm of several strategic land use plans, which are targeted at maintaining connectivity, multifunctionality and ecosystem production in urban green space. The national and international aims to restore biodiversity, increase energy efficiency and enhance well-being of the citizens have set new quality requirements for urban green space planning. Along with this change the practices and criteria of traditional land use planning system have turned out to be insufficient in sustaining the quality of green infrastructure. An update to the green area and landscape based plan symbols, set by the Ministry of the Environment in 2000, has been strongly demanded by the planners and professionals of land use. This thesis is based on the examinations of MAMA -working group (Considering landscape as a part of land use planning), aimed at strengthening the role of green space and landscape in nationwide legislation and planning system. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the deficiencies and the needs for improvement related to present green area symbols, from the viewpoint of comprehensive green infrastructure and ecosystem services. By comparing the plan symbols and provisions between different Finnish cities and by interviewing the professionals of land use, I am pursuing a well-rounded knowledge of the functionality of the existing master plan and detailed plan symbols and practices behind them. Based on the needs and problems discovered within the research material and through the interviews, the final part of my thesis aims at gathering an understanding of how plan symbols could be developed in the future. According to research, the green area and landscape based plan symbols vary significantly between different Finnish cities, a result of inadequacy related to the planning practices and instructions applicable for today's expectations and needs. Even though green infrastructure comes up in land use plans, the functionality and continuity of urban green space is not fully taken into account in the plan symbols. In addition to utilizing green infrastructure more diversely, the practices of green space planning should deal better with the changing conditions of the environment and be based more on the efficient use of different assessment and planning tools.
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(2015)Ecosystem services are benefits people obtain from ecosystems. Ecosystem services can be classified to provisioning, supporting/regulating and cultural services. The target of ecosystem services framework is sustainable management of nature. By applying the ecosystem services framework we can identify ecosystem services and understand the way in which nature benefits people. Ecosystem service approach can be applied for example in landscape planning. This research focuses on urban ecosystem services. Urban landscape is constantly developing. Therefore, decisions that strongly affect ecosystem services are required in landscape planning process. Especially, green areas are decreasing due to new urban structure. Via the concept of green infrastructure, green infra can be designed particularly to produce ecosystem services that support thewhole city structure. Before this is possible, ecosystem services and structures that creates them must be identified. Ecosystem services mapping produce background information for planning. There is no single mapping method as we can map ecosystem services for example by demand, supply or production potential. The objective of this case study was to examine the ecosystem services potential in Kivenlahti by using GIS data. Research was carried out producing two mappings both based on same method but different datasets. First dataset, the green infrastructure map, is based on aerial photos and field surveys. The other dataset is 'Corine Land cover'. Hypothesis was that using different data would create different results. Both green infra and Corine land cover data were compared to ecosystem services in order to find out different land cover types' capacities to provide the individual service. The relation between land cover classes and ecosystem services was valued on a scale 0-3. 0 stands for no potential to produce ecosystem service and 3 that potential is high. Based on these results and using GIS, it was possible to survey single ecosystem services, ecosystem service sectors and to find out where ecosystem hot-spots and blind spots are located. There are five ecosystem hotspots recognized in the area. Blind spots include densely built areas. Both forests and ocean have high potential to produce major of provisioning, supporting/regulating and cultural services. The meaning of provisioning services is least important whereas cultural services are significant. The variance of supporting and regulating services is wide. The most significant difference between the two mapping methods is that the grid size in Corine land cover is 25 meters whereas the green infra data is very detailed. On the other hand, Corine data covers the whole Finland therefore it is possible to conduct the research in other areas. The findings in the research can be used as a background information in upcoming planning process. Ecosystem hot-spots should be included into planning of green infrastructure. Functional ecosystem service network supports in various ways city structure. In addition, well-planned and functional green infrastructure ensures sustainability of ecosystem services in the future.
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(2013)Microfinance has been introduced to poor people as a means for economic and social development. The movement has received significant support worldwide and as a result microfinance is considered an essential part of the current development discourse. Microfinance as a self help strategy depicts the microborrower as an active actor who helps oneself. Yet it is still unclear how and when microfinancing promotes development. Although microborrowers are considered responsible for 'climbing out of poverty' themselves, only little theoretical understanding of the perspective of the customer exists. Against this backgroud the purpose of this study is to research the attributions that microborrowers give to explain the success or failure of microlending. Additionally, this research examines the influence microborrowers have on the success of the microlending process, as seen through the given attributions. The research is based on fieldwork which was conducted in three rural villages in Cambodia. Thirty members of a local non-governmental organisation's Village Bank programme who had been granted a microloan were used as informants in this study. The aim of this research is to give voice to the borrowers themselves, thus the data was gathered by using the method of empathy based stories. The borrowers were asked to tell stories on the success or failure of microlending based on two short frame stories. The data was then analysed using qualitative content analysis that was guided by the attribution theory, which describes how individuals develop causal explanations for behaviours and outcomes. Attributions given to the success or failure of microlending were planning and effort, motivation, devotion, ability and features of personality, influence of other people or the lack of it, as well as chance, conditions and the model used in lending. Attributions found in the stories were distributed in dimensions of control, stability and controllability according to the attribution theory. Attributions given to success as well as failure of microlending were distributed evenly in the locus of control, but in the locus of stability, stable attributions were somewhat emphasised. Also, in the locus of controllability, uncontrollable attributions were told more often, especially in stories on the failure of microlending. The results of the research implicate that borrowers have limited possibilities to change the course of the microlending process. On the other hand, other actors than borrowers themselves can have an influence on many of the given attributions. The depiction of a borrower that helps oneself seems idealised and romanticized according to these results. In reality, the possibilities and limitations of ones' action always form in relation to the local institutional, social, cultural and historical context of microfinance. Also the various attributions given to the success and failure of microlending were seen through local context. Since local aspects define the possibilities of the microlending process, the question of wether microfinancing can perform to further development should always be examined and resolved locally.
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(2014)New transportation links tend to have a major impact on the location decisions of businesses. Although the decision-making process of the location of businesses is too complex to fully open up with a theoretical framework, accessibility in all of its different forms seems to be one of the key factors for all industries. Globalization and the development of ICT were believed to diminish the importance physical location for businesses. However, the impact has been the opposite. In the new urban form, it is possible to find relational economic spaces, which do not depend on borders or predefined areas. Still the predefined area remains a key factor in the coordination and identification of the business. With Kehärata, a commuter railway link set to open in 2015, a new horizontal transportation rail-link and several highly accessible locations will emerge in Vantaa and in the Helsinki region. The purpose of this thesis was to research how Kehärata will affect the locations of workplaces and businesses in Vantaa. The research methods were thematic interviews and GIS analyses. 10 thematic interviews were conducted with real estate investors, businesspeople, construction company representatives and local politicians. The GIS analysis showed that already in the current state, the workplaces in Vantaa form various regional patters in different industries. During the last decades, the workplaces in the Helsinki Metropolitan Region have moved strongly towards a polycentric form and so-called Metapolis structure. This kind of urban form has also been in the core of the new paradigm of urban geography research. The thematic interviews showed that Kehärata is a welcomed improvement to the horizontal transportation network in Vantaa and in the whole region. The urban form in Vantaa is already now polycentric, but Kehärata will increase the number of sub-centers even further with areas like Vehkala, Leinelä and Kivistö, which are highly dependent on the railway. From the point of view of firms, all stations cannot be equally appealing. In this situation the new polycentric urban form should be seen as a resource, where the locations with highest accessibility are developed within the city. However these locations should not be homogenous, but rather be differentiated through branding and urban planning. Differentiated areas within the city enable high level of specialization and make it possible for firms to gain agglomeration benefits. For instance the development and future prospects of Aviapolis area was highlighted in the interviews as very positive. According to the GIS analysis, the amount of workplaces accessible by train in Vantaa, will increase approximately by half after the railway is operational (From one third, to almost half of all workplaces in Vantaa). Additionally new railway connections have the tendency to concentrate workplaces near the stations, so the workplace accessibility by rail is probably even higher in the future. However car transport has had a major impact on the current urban form of Vantaa. The accessibility by car and by train are very different in nature and with Kehärata, two overlapping transportation networks are formed to the city. Despite of the negative environmental impacts of private cars, the city has to be still strongly planned also form the point of view of car owners. Interviewees were hoping that the new station areas would be built as compact urban environments, but contradictory they also saw that good logistical accessibility (with trucks) was one of the key benefits of the current economic environment in Vantaa and it should be supported also in the future. The somewhat poor imago of Vantaa was not seen as an obstacle when firms located to Vantaa, but it was seen as a problem when attracting new residents to the city. In the post-industrial society, the importance of employees to firm location is higher than ever and through tax income it is also a key factor in the public finance of cities.
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(2014)This research concentrates on microfinance and microcredit and the empowerment of women. This particular method of financing is targeted towards people who are the poorest and who cannot use normal channels of financing. Policymakers, development agencies and politicians promote microfinance as an effective anti-poverty intervention. Nevertheless there is no consensus yet whether microcredit is the right and most effective tool for empowering women. Another key concept in this thesis is empowerment. Empowerment is a process of change by which individuals or groups with little or no power gain the ability to make choices that affect their lives. Women`s empowerment in particular refers to a process by which women redefine gender roles and have the capacity to increase their own self-reliance and internal strength. The aim of this research is to discover what kind of impact microcredit has on poor rural women in the village of Devichaur In Nepal. The role of women`s groups is essential in the context of microfinance in Devichaur. The research question of this thesis is whether microcredit is a valuable tool in empowering poor women. Another important question is what kinds of changes that can be said to associate with the increased access to credit can be discovered in poor women`s situation. This research concentrates on the experiences of local women in Devichaur. The empirical data was collected via personal interviews with twenty-three women. The empirical research findings are compared with the theories concerning the empowering effect of microfinance and microcredit for poor women. The research was conducted using a descriptive, qualitative method. Qualitative research emphasizes processes and meanings not measured in quantity, amount or frequency. Instead it stresses socially constructed reality and it seeks to find out the quality of phenomena. Semi-structured theme interviews were carried out to get insights into the genuine feelings and thoughts of the interviewees. Content analysis was used in analyzing the research material collected from the field. The units of analysis derive from the main themes of the interview questions. The results of this research show clear improvements in the status and self-esteem of women within their households and the whole community. Women in Devichaur felt empowered as individuals as well as a group in comparison to the situation before microcredits and women's groups. Women are more independent economically and also more independent in their decisions about the use of money. Although microfinance has a great potential and ability to empower women, the connection is neither straightforward nor automatic. Lending money to women and giving them access to financial assets can create new challenges and extra burdens for women. Microfinance operations should also include well-planned and long lasting non-credit aspects such as training on literacy to have long lasting positive impacts on empowerment. It is important also to make sure that evaluation and monitoring of the loan cycles occurs, in order to channel microfinance systems into more profitable use.
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(2015)This thesis explores territorial stigma in the Helsinki capital region from residents' perspective. The aim of the study is to find out, whether there are stigmatised neighbourhoods in the region. Another purpose is to analyse what kind of neighbourhoods are stigmatised and what kind of people experience the stigma. In this study people are considered to experience the stigma if they are unwilling to tell where they live. The analysis focuses on the socioeconomic structure of the neighbourhoods and the socioeconomic status and the cultural orientation of the residents. The primary research data is a survey about the wellbeing of residents in the Helsinki metropolitan region conducted in 2012. The experience of the territorial stigma is determined based on the agreement with a statement 'I don't like telling where I live'. Statistical data about the structure of neighbourhoods is provided by Statistics Finland. The study is quantitative, and the main research methods include descriptive analysis, comparison of means and factor analysis. In addition, GIS methods are used to combine and visualise the data. The results show that territorial stigma is an existing phenomenon in the Helsinki capital region. There are mainly two types of stigmatised neighbourhoods: areas with either a very low or high socioeconomic profile. However, the stigma is not very strong since even in the most stigmatised neighbourhoods only a clear minority experiences it. On the individual level the stigma does not seem to be related to respondents' socioeconomic status but rather to their cultural orientation. The respondents who don't like telling where they live find challenges, success and personal development less important than the other respondents. Not all low and high-profile neighbourhoods are stigmatised, however. It seems that the stigma is a problem mainly in those neighbourhoods that have a significantly bad or an elite reputation. In the light of international research the stigmatisation of low-profile neighbourhoods is not a surprise. What makes the Helsinki region an interesting and special case is the stigma attached to living in elite neighbourhoods. The reason for this phenomenon might lie in the 'Finnish mentality' that stresses normality and modesty. This study focuses solely on the existence of the territorial stigma. Previous international research shows that living in a stigmatised neighbourhood may have a negative impact on many aspects of life including social relationships and employment. Therefore it would be important to study the consequences of the stigma and the possible ways to prevent them in the Helsinki capital region as well.
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(2018)One of the most important purposes of urban planning is to create good living environments for city residents. However, there are several conflicting interests that city planners should be able to reconcile in urban planning. For example, city planners should be able to accommodate a variety of functions and modes of transport in a limited street area. In addition to the different modes of transport, accessibility should also be taken into account in urban planning. Urban planning can have a strong influence on the accessibility of physical urban space, and to create accessible urban areas special focus has to be given to accessibility. In this master's thesis, urban planning is researched from the point of view of accessibility. The aim in this thesis is to find out how to coordinate accessibility and different modes of transport (pedestrian, cycling and trams) in urban planning. The thesis sought answers to the following research questions: How accessibility of urban space appeared in planning legislation, guidelines and regulations? What are the biggest challenges of combining accessibility and different modes of transport in same street areas? And how can these challenges be solved? The methods used in this thesis are literature analysis and interview surveys. The aim of literature analysis was to find out, what accessibility is and what is the relationship between accessibility and different modes of transport. Expert interviews were performed to find out, what are the challenges of combining accessibility and different modes of transport in street areas. City of Helsinki was used as a case example in this thesis. Based on this study, it seems that accessibility is taken quite well into consideration in urban planning of Helsinki. The challenges of combining accessibility and different modes of transport in same street, are caused by the lack of available street space, and the conflicts of interest related to the division of street space. These challenges can be avoided if accessibility is taken into account at the beginning of the planning process. However, best results require that accessibility is taken into account in all stages of urban planning.
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(2015)This thesis examines the concepts of accessibility in the process of urban planning. Conducted thesis emphasises the political aspect of the planning and is focused on the use of power. The objective of this thesis is to develop a new approach to accessibility debate. By examining the use of power, this thesis highlights the notion of accessibility as a process, its ongoing nature and the importance of local-historical context. The adapted conceptual framework consists of intertwined theoretical concepts which are related through their connection to the political aspect of urban planning and marginalization. The main perspective is the power analytics by Michel Foucault. Research questions, developed based on literature, are examined with the help of the project of Matkakeskustunneli in Tampere, Finland. Data obtained from this project consists of eight interviews of the key project actors during the beginning of the project of Matkakeskustunneli. Early stages are analyzed with narrative method. The results are presented as local stories on micro level and as research findings on macro level. According to the results, the planning concept of accessibility is dynamic and projects are custom-made. The key in accessibility research is to understand actual political and administrative behavior in each case because of the unique nature of the planning processes. The conducted brings forth that the accessibility should be understood as a part of process of urban planning and special attention should be paid to the local-historical planning context. The empirical results from the project of Matkakeskustunneli indicated that the forming the subject of accessibility requires more attention. This will expand the understanding of those (hidden) starting points which affect to the procedures and planning policies. Moreover, this study argues how the planning of accessibility should be understood as a two-part planning process where each actor has a different position and emphasis and the key points of planning of accessibility are formed in both actor arenas. Results of this thesis also demonstrates how power relations and the use of power affects to accessibility planning in a positive way allthought it requires favorable context.
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(2016)The conventional understanding and model of development is based on economic growth. This dominant way of creating development has consequences to natural, cultural and social environments, which cannot be overlooked. The transformations within these environments are increasingly connected to the prevailing socio-economic model of neoliberalism, but are often not considered in its contextualization at a local scale. The processes of production of space and nature under the neoliberal doctrine have led to economic restructuration and to conformation of geographies of neoliberal environment, which together transform localities. There is an increasing need to investigate how the local inhabitants understand and experience these processes and their outcomes. In this research, place is introduced as an insight to observe these problematics. Place in this research is understood as a changing and dynamic terrain, which articulates experiences of development. This research is qualitative case study which investigates the consequences of production of space and nature in Curepto, Chile. Curepto is one of the localities where the implementation of a normative framework for economic growth has resulted in extensive areas of foreign tree species monoculture and important physical and socio-spatial transformations related to them. The primary aim of this research is to investigate the local inhabitants' accounts of these transformations. The thesis investigates how the locality has changed, but focuses on what these changes have meant for the local community and their sense of place. Physical, sociocultural and emotive dimensions of place as well as their transformations were investigated using qualitative methods, mainly semi-structured interviews. Residents were interviewed both in urban and rural districts. The findings of this research indicate that the forest industry and tree plantations have been important drivers behind the physical and socio-spatial transformations. The extensive plantations of pine and eucalyptus have changed the physical environment and these transformations are reflected in the social and cultural geography. Environmental degradation, changed circumstances of land property, loss of native forests and drought constitute transformations that affect livelihoods negatively especially in the rural districts, and come in parallel with a loss of local tradition and culture. The meaningful space the inhabitants experience diminishes and is made more one-sided, as access to the natural environment becomes more difficult and the interaction with it is lost. Although transformations within place are considered negative, the meaningful relation inhabitants have with place remains positive. Participants redetermine their practices and livelihoods, and re-articulate the relation with their surroundings in order to stay in their place. The local community lives in a space that is both familiar and foreign to them, loved and hated at the same time.
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(2017)The aim of this study is to find out about away trips that Finnish ice hockey supporters make within Finland. The idea is also to find out if destination cities of the trips could better benefit from traveling hockey fans. The study aims at finding the basic frame by which the fan organizations choose their destinations, the motives of those who participate and visitors' perceptions of services available at the destination ice halls. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are used. Not many earlier studies about the topic exist. Literature about sport tourism concentrates mostly on people doing the sports themselves. Academic literature about sport fans, in turn, is usually about the psychological side of fandom. Several studies of Finnish ice hockey fans exist though. Also their point of view is often psychological. Many of Finnish studies are also only thesis-level works. Because of lack of earlier research about the topic, this work can be seen as a baseline research. Fan organizations choose their travel destinations mostly based on game schedule. Trips are mainly made to games played on Saturdays. On other days of the week the destination should be within a short distance. Distance to destination isn't very important on Saturdays unless the destination is very far away. Visiting fans don't spend much time at the destination city on a regular trip. Usually the fans enter the ice hall straight after stepping out of the bus and return soon after the game. However, overnight trips might interest the fans especially if the destination is far away. Previous experience about destinations also affects the choices fan organizations make. Most important reasons for participating in a trip are especially seeing the favorite team play and supporting the team. Traveling itself as a process isn't an important factor while making the decision to travel yet there could be interest to go on overnight trips more often than fans currently do. Also company affects travel decisions as people prefer going to games with friends or acquaintances. SM-Liiga ice halls seem to have all the different service types away trippers need. There's not much demand on a variety of services as visiting fans mostly buy just drinks of food. Supply of these services is good but visitors are less happy with quality, variety and price of the products sold. An important factor for game experience are the seating arrangements at the ice hall. They were found to correlate with happiness with overall game experience. Ice halls are considered safe and security works well. All in all visiting fans are happier with the service they receive at the ice halls than with the services itself. To improve their service in the eyes of visiting fans, the hosts should pay attention to variety of food and drinks and offer visitors seats that are suitable for their needs. Host organizations and local stakeholders could benefit from offering visiting fans moderately priced packages that could include for example transportation, game ticket, a meal and accommodation or some of these services. This way they could get visitors spend more money at the destination city and at the same time income would spread to a larger number of stakeholders.
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(2014)The term 'Third World women' has its connotations back in the history reflecting both the juxtaposition of developed and developing world, and the dichotomy based on sex. It is still a widely used concept in current everyday life. The women of developing countries are portrayed under one category as Third World women in news, journalism and textbooks. As a term Third World women is understood in context of certain geographical locations and stagnant representations of people. In core are also their victim roles in relation for example to religion, culture or men. The aim of this master's thesis is to examine representations of the Third World women in Finnish development journal. Temporal changes in representations are discovered by observing the forty-year long publishing history of Kehitys -journal (former Kehitysyhteistyö). The main premise of this thesis is the idea of social constructionism. In social constructionism actions and thoughts are seen creating the social reality and language used both reflecting and creating it. The thesis questions media's representational power to name, illustrate and portray women in developing countries. This is done by utilizing theories of feminism, postcolonialism and development studies. Caroline Moser's and Janet Momsen's listings about the policy approaches on Third World women can be held as the frame work of this thesis. They have categorized global trends in development discourses relating to women. By comparing these approaches, trends in feminist and development theories, with the Finnish development journals, linkages between context and place specific representations of the Third World were found. Even though Finnish trends in Third World women's representations were less varying, still universal relations were able to be discovered. By conducting critical discourse analysis and content analysis of the women related articles in Kehitysyhteistyö and Kehitys -journals during the publications period from 1969 to 2009, it was possible to find five different kinds of discourses: women in development discourse, welfare discourse, efficiency discourse, misery discourse and life story discourse. Within these discourses main changes were in the ways to write and position women. Changes occurred for example in the themes relating to women and in their subjective narration. During forty years, the representations of the Third World women have changed back and forth, but it seems that the current trend in development journalism in Finland is highlighting the subjectivity and expertise of women. Women's own interests and thoughts are getting more exposure and the representational top-down dictation is decreasing while giving the floor to personal depictions.
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(2015)Involuntary displacements are more common than ever, and the reasons vary from natural disasters, wars and conflicts to environmental degradation and development-induced displacement. Typically, the victims of these phenomena inhabit the Global South, and are further impoverished due to the lack of having a say where and how to live. The lack of social justice and recognition of social development is typical in large-scale involuntary displacements, and also affects to the abilities of people to reconstruct and recover after resettlement. The linkage between forced migration and risk to impoverishment has been widely acknowledged especially in cases that lack participatory measures and proper compensation for the victims. When the impacts are recognized, it is understood that forced resettlement has effects in the economic, social, and physical spheres of life, and can be a major burden for the urban poor. However, involuntary displacement also disrupts the attachments and constructions of sense of place, which have further impacts on social cohesion. The question of community reorganization is crucial in the context where resettlement is simultaneous and combines various heterogeneous groups. The aim of this research is to examine the extent and quality of rehabilitation after involuntary displacement in an urban environment in Sri Lanka. The focus in this research is given to women, as gender is a significant factor in resettlement outcomes, yet it is often ignored in planning and implementation. Gender roles and norms in Sri Lanka are still fixed and conventional, making it an interesting approach to study resettlement and rehabilitation and the daily interactions and perceptions on them. A case study for this research took place in four resettlement sites in the outskirts of Colombo Metro Region, Sri Lanka, which is in the midst of significant urban development plans that aim to relocate tens of thousands of slum dwellers in the need to release prime lands for investments, simultaneously beautifying the city and fighting frequent flooding. The methodological approach applied in this study addresses feminist geography while it looks at rehabilitation measures in the everyday life point of view. It utilized semi-structured interviews of resettled women as a key research method. The case study took place in upgraded underserved settlements that inhabit tsunami-displaced people and development-induced displaced people. Also local experts were interviewed in order to gain a broader understanding of the dynamics and urban policies in the Colombo Metro Region. The case evidences that rehabilitation is a slow process of adaptation, and that physical assets alone cannot improve the livelihoods of slum dwellers. More emphasis should be put into the social relations and community dynamics if participatory measures and development-from-within are to fully deliver. Also full tenure is needed in order to the people to adapt to the mainstream society. For women the question of belonging and reconstructing the sense of place is essential as they spend a lot of their time at home and the immediate environment, and are traditionally in charge of homemaking. Therefore the sense of place and community are essential in the creation of social cohesion and management of the new neighborhood, and along with gender sensitive approaches should not be overlooked if sustainable resettlement is to be pursued as a consequence of ever more crowded cities of the South.
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(2016)China's identity in climate politics can be argued to be in a dilemma of being a responsible leader or a developing country that still requires time for its emissions to peak. In 2015 in COP21 in Paris, China was negotiating with the BASIC countries and bilaterally with the US. The objective of research was to recognize China's geopolitical identity in climate politics in the BASIC and US-China frames and to discuss the possible similarities and differences. The hypothesis was that China identifies itself geopolitically differently in the two frames. The analysis was conducted on the basis of two questions in geopolitical identity: who is China and where is China? China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), as the most important body of China's climate politics, has published news releases of the meetings with the BASIC countries and the United States. These documents were analyzed with a critical discourse analysis frame. Discourses of who is China -question were discussed under four themes emerged from the data: climate change, the principle of CBDRC, leadership and Paris Agreement. Where is China -question was considered based on places that most frequently appeared in the documents: developing countries, the US-China coalition, BASIC countries, developed countries, Convention, Parties, Climate Change Working Group, Green Climate Fund, G-77 and China, and Annex B -countries. The results were applied by evaluating the BASIC and the US-China frames as discourse-practice regimes, recognizing the climate change framings of the these two and then, suggesting a geopolitical climate mapping of the frames. The conclusion confronted the hypothesis as China tolerably considered itself as a representative of developing countries in both frames, while instead the discourse of climate change was different between the two. Thus, China is not negotiating in the two frames because of different identities but has distinguished goals for them. The worldviews of the two frames are different. The BASIC one is strongly based on confronting the developed nations and building on the dichotomy. The worldview of the US-China frame is a more postmodern one and thus, questions the 'norm' of being a developing country in international climate politics. The BASIC frame is a one-question coalition, whereas the US-China frame includes more diverse cooperation and is slightly closer to China's own climate policy like its INDC document.
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(2018)Due to increasing population in cities transportation is facing a major challenge. Passenger car traffic cannot increase at the same rate as urban population increases. Negative externalities like carbon dioxide emissions and congestion are becoming more and more significant issues in urban areas. Only possible way to reduce these negative issues are offering sustainable transportation modes and making them as attractive as possible. Especially leisure trips have increased in past years which means that cities have become more mobile. Active and sustainable mobility like walking and cycling play key roles in transportations strategies. City of Helsinki has started to support cycling over the last few years by investing cycling infrastructure for example. In the context in which cycling has become important in urban areas several cities have opened bike sharing systems. In addition to upswing of cycling, technological development of bike sharing systems have made it possible for them to succeed. In Helsinki, the bike sharing system was launched in 2016 and in 2017 it was expanded threefold compared to the first year of operation. Understanding how recently opened system works requires a proper analysis which is made possible by the travel data produced by the system. Study design consists of revealing spatiotemporal patterns of bike share usages in Helsinki. The aim of the study is to produce important information to support operational planning of the system. On the other hand, the aim is to express the mobility and the rhythm of Helsinki by a novel data source. According to previous international studies, data mining of travel data produced by bike sharing systems has revealed clear activity patterns of bike share usage. The results show that the use of bike sharing system in Helsinki has been a success compared to other European cities for example. According to the results, bike share trips have been short which is typical to bike sharing systems. Temporally, the usage was most active during summer and spatially in the city center as well as near subway stations. The usage was found to vary considerably between weekdays and weekends. On weekdays, the usage peaked at morning rush hour and again at afternoon rush hour. At weekday morning, the rhythm of the city seems to be routine, whereas at weekday afternoon and evening mobility patterns are more complex. Spatiotemporal activity patterns revealed imbalances between departures and arrivals in few bike sharing stations. Cluster analysis revealed eight different activity patterns among bike sharing station usage. The bike sharing system has been a great success in Helsinki. City bikes are used as a part of multimodal travel chain, moving from one place to another and for leisure trips. Understanding the spatiotemporal patterns of bike share usage supports planning of bike share station network. It also tells a story of the mobility and rhythm of Helsinki by a novel data source.
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(2018)Liikunnan väheneminen on nykymaailmassa valtava terveysongelma, jonka vaikutukset näkyvät jo lisääntyneinä terveydenhoidon kuluina. Aiempi tutkimus on antanut viitteitä siitä, että liikuntamahdollisuuksien hyvä saavutettavuus lisää liikunnan määrää. Laajalla ja hyvin saavutettavalla liikuntapaikkatarjonnalla voikin olla tärkeä rooli väestön säännöllisen liikuntaharrastuksen tukemisessa. Jos liikuntapaikalle matkustamiseen menee liikaa aikaa, saattavat muut arjen toiminnot mennä liikunnan harrastamisen edelle. Erityistä huomiota tulisi kiinnittää lasten ja nuorten liikuntamahdollisuuksiin, sillä lapsuusajan liikunnallisuudella saavutettuja terveyshyötyjä ei täysin voi korvata aikuisena omaksutulla aktiivisella elämäntavalla. Tutkimuksen toimeksiantajana toimi Helsingin kaupungin liikuntavirasto, joka nykyään on osa kulttuurin ja vapaa-ajan toimialaa. Tutkimusasetelmassa korostuukin palveluntuottajan näkökulma ja se, että julkisten palveluiden olisi oltava oikeudenmukaisella tavalla sijoitettuja. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan Helsingin liikuntapalveluverkon saavutettavuuden nykytilaa monen eri liikuntapaikkatyypin osalta eri oikeudenmukaisuuden näkökulmista. Tutkimusasetelman avulla on mahdollista arvioida erilaisten tarkastelutapojen soveltuvuutta kunnalliseen palvelusuunnitteluun. Tutkimusmenetelmänä olivat matka-aikoihin perustuvat saavutettavuuslaskennat liikuntapaikoille asutuista 250 x 250 metrin ruuduista. Laskennoissa huomioitiin yksityisautoilu, joukkoliikenne ja kävely riippuen kyseessä olevasta liikuntapaikkatyypistä ja sen palveluprofiilista. Analyyseja oli kolmenlaisia: 1) matka-aikalaskennat koko väestön osalta arkena kello 17.30–18.30, 2) matka-aikalaskennat samaan aikaan ruuduista, joissa asuu paljon 7-20-vuotiaita ja 3) matka-aikojen ja kokonaismatkaketjujen vertailu, kun harjoitusaika ja -paikka on ennalta määrätty. Hyväksyttävänä enimmäismatkustusaikana pidettiin kirjallisuuteen perustuen 30 minuuttia. Tulosten perusteella voidaan liikuntapalveluverkon todeta olevan Helsingissä pääasiassa hyvin saavutettavissa myös joukkoliikenteellä ja jopa kävellen, vaikka henkilöautosaavutettavuus onkin edelleen omaa luokkaansa. Tulokset osoittavat lisäksi, että saavutettavuus on väestön painopistealueet huomioiden parempi, kuin vain alueellisessa tarkastelussa. Myös 7-20-vuotiaat ovat sijoittuneet enimmäkseen hyvän saavutettavuuden alueille. Kolmas analyysi puolestaan todistaa, että erot autoilun ja joukkoliikenteen välillä ovat temporaalisessa tarkastelussa merkittäviä. Kokonaisuutena tutkimus osoittaa, että palvelusuunnittelua varten on tarkasteltava saavutettavuutta moni eri asia huomioon ottaen, jotta oikeudenmukaista palveluiden sijoittelua koskevat päätökset voidaan tehdä tietoperustaisesti. Saavutettavuusanalyysien avulla voidaan arvioida uusien liikuntapaikkojen sijainteja siten, että ne tukisivat väestön säännöllistä liikuntaharrastusta ja aktiivista elämäntapaa.
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(2016)Helsinki is a densely built and populated Finnish city, which faces special land use management needs due to its capital status. The expected population growth causes pressure to the amount, quality and regionally equal distribution of the city´s recreation areas. The Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) method was developed to solve recreation areas´ management problems caused by a rapid increase of recreation areas´ users in United States. The ROS method developers believed that by offering diverse recreation possibilities the injurious environmental and recreational impacts caused by the increase of the users would be minimized. The method is based on an idea whereby a high quality recreation experience is best ensured by offering diverse recreation possibilities. According to the method´s theory, a recreation area´s physical features determine the recreation activities and experience possible. The purpose of the thesis is to explore the diversity of summertime outdoor recreation possibilities in Helsinki by using the ROS method. By examining the recreation conditions´ state of development or naturalness I will form a spectrum representing different recreation opportunities in Helsinki. I will also explore the main arguments for promoting diverse recreation possibilities according to the research literature. The materials of the analyzes consisted of open spatial data determining recreation areas´ physical environment, social and managerial settings. Variables of recreation areas´ physical environment consisted of the size of the area and the impacts of the surrounding land use. The social conditions of recreation areas were examined through their theoretical population pressure. The impression of naturalness, access to the recreation areas and their service facilities determined the managerial conditions. The variables were analyzed by GIS methods, most importantly by distance analyzes. The importance of diverse recreation possibilities is rationalized by three main arguments in the research literature. The diversity of recreation possibilities is justified most importantly by the high diversity of recreationists. Also the so called “problem of relying on averages” and the realization of environmental justice in recreation are key arguments to promote diverse recreation possibilities. The actual diversity of Helsinki´s recreation possibilities is low on a city level since most of the recreation areas´ land area has both natural and urban features according to the different variables. The edges of the ROS scale are strongly represented in the study area. The most natural recreation areas of Helsinki are located in Östersundom, Isosaari and Pikku Niinisaari. The most urban recreation possibilities of the city can be found from the southern parts of Central Park and from small and fragmented recreation areas typically close to the main roads and railway line. It is to be expected that the most developed recreation areas in Helsinki will face increasing population pressure in the near future. It is also likely that a considerable part of the current environments offering most natural recreation possibilities will develop more urban, when the remaining natural possibilities will centralize in to the archipelago. The decrease of environments offering natural recreation possibilities may increase the recreation use of surrounding cities´ natural recreation areas. There are already some references of the trend in Helsinki.
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(2017)The Helsinki City Plan Vision 2050 perceives urban parks as its citizens’ living rooms that offer a setting for diverse urban life. The definition of a living room highlights the notion of “hanging out”, sharing space and possibilities for social encounters. In a densifying future urban environment, the significance of urban parks as multifunctional centres of urban life and high quality recreation areas continue to grow. The aim of this thesis was to discover what characterizes Helsinki’s urban parks as public spaces, and to investigate the role they can have in enhancing the lively city. Based on human geography, this thesis hoped to examine the place meanings that urban dwellers attach to urban parks. This research emphasizes the importance of residents’ experiences in knowledge production and is especially interested in the world of experiences that evolve from urban parks as social environments. The thesis was written as part of a European Union funded project GREEN SURGE which in Finland is coordinated by the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Helsinki. As a research group, we collected interview and observation field data based on the project guidelines in 12 urban parks in Helsinki in summer 2015. In total, we received 596 interviews. The most popular motivations to use urban parks included relaxing, hanging out, recreation and enjoying the sunny weather, whereas the significance of nature in user motivations was lower. Activities mentioned as social (being together, having a picnic etc.) covered about one fourth of all motivations to use the parks. Park users who arrived for social reasons tended to stay in parks longer and enjoyed the human environment - company and atmosphere - more often. Otto-Iivari Meurman Park in Käpylä turned out to be superior from the point of view of community spirit and lively social atmosphere, which was mainly due to the little café inside the park. In total, 65 % of park users stated the park as very important. The sources of importance were versatile, but close location and physical green environment were highlighted. On the parks’ level, results showed that a park can be a social public space stimulating the lively city without a deep sense of place from park users. It seems that a park can be important to its user only because the space offers the right opportunities of use and pleasant human environment or atmosphere. The result in part challenges the traditional visions of human geographers over the differences in the meaning of space and place. This research concluded that the urban parks of Helsinki cannot be defined as one type that fulfills same functions in urban space. As social public spaces, other parks are successful and “work” - others unsuccessful and do not work. The parks that were defined as quality social spaces were successful e.g. due to their location, design, multifunctionality, services and identity formation, and they attracted users to stay in the park. In the light of this research, successful urban parks have the potential to enhance the lively city and support the Helsinki City Plan Vision to create a good living environment for all.
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(2017)To date, Turkey has one of the highest refugee populations in the world. The Syrian conflict has played a major role in this as over 2,5 million Syrians have taken refuge in Turkey. Most of Syrian refugees are residing in the largest city of Turkey, Istanbul. Turkey is a signatory member of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, however has an exception for permanent residency granted only for European refugees. Thus, under Turkish refugee policy, Syrians are merely granted temporary protection that guarantees them a temporary residency permit. However, the policy does not cover; at the time of this research; the right to work. Syrian refugees, undocumented Syrians and Syrian Palestinians are especially vulnerable in Turkish society due to the lack of permanent residency and legal work. This research identifies how Syrian refugees create home as well as the factors that influence their home-making process in Istanbul. The factors are evaluated through the conditions under which Syrian refugees are residing in Istanbul including the right to work, housing and residency. The research also evaluates the refugees home-making in retrospective to their living conditions, feeling of home, legal position, access to a dwelling place as well as cultural identification. Although, this research focuses on the individual experience of home-making for Syrian refugees, it considers and examines Syrian refugees in a context of politicised bodies. As international refugees, Syrian refugees are highly politicized bodies, whose lives are affected by international politics as well as the domopolitics of the country in which they reside. Subsequently, their home and their home-making processes are also politicised. Beyond politics, refugeeness alters one's relationship to home and place, making home a complex concept attached with emotions and potential pain and loss. Literacy identifies that refugees displace their home through space and time. Hence, this research treats home as a socially and culturally produced metaphor that describes a person's belonging within socio-spatial narratives, but of which content is individually chosen to describe or to support a person's identity and psychological environment. The method of this research was a combination of two field trips to Istanbul, Turkey, fourteen in-depth interviews and qualitative analysis. The main reference of the research are the fourteen in-depth interviews that included ten men and four women; aged from 20 to 40 years old; Syrians residing in Istanbul. The interviewees were selected through social media online connections and face-to-face acquaintances during the field trips. The interviewees time of residence in Istanbul varied from two months to over four years. The eleven influencing factors identified in this research can be more commonly divided into two categories: the common factors and the personal factors. Common factors related to the responder's habitation environment; such as the city of Istanbul and the Turkish society. These common factors included: the city itself, the Turkish culture and society, the legislation, working life, housing, discrimination and relationships with their family and friends as well as with the Turkish people. The interviewees considered these factors as the ones that impacted everyday life and which they could not 'escape'. Personal factors that were identified are related to interviewees personality, world views and emotions. The interviewees could be divided into four main categories of personal factor denominators: their relationship to Syria, sense of belonging, definition of home and views of the future. This research concludes that displacement has an impact on how home is perceived and reflected by the interviewees. Its findings are in accordance to previous research literature on home-making among refugees, but it questions refugee policies that emphasis on repatriation as the most favourable long term solution for refugees as well as the position of housing as a most influential factor in refugees' home-making, by stating that other factors such as relationship to family and friends and earning a living, are higher in importance for those who have arrived into a new country less than two years ago.
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