Assessing the effects of land use and land cover patterns on thermal conditions using landscape metrics in city of Indianapolis,United States

Direct applications of remote sensing thermal infrared (TIR) data in landscape ecological research are rare due to limitations in the sensors, calibration, and difficulty in interpretation. Currently there is a general lack of methodology for examining the relationship between land surface temperatures (LST) derived from TIR data and landscape patterns extracted from optical sensors. A separation of landscapes into values directly related to their scale and signature is a key step. In this study, a Landsat ETM+ image of Indianapolis, Unites States, acquired on June 22, 2000, was spectrally unmixed (using spectral mixture analysis, SMA) into fraction endmembers of green vegetation, soil, high albedo, and low albedo. Impervious surface was then computed from the high and low albedo images. A hybrid classification procedure was developed to classify the fraction images into seven land use and land cover (LULC) classes. Using the fractional images, the landscape composition and pattern were examined. Next, pixel-based LST measurements were correlated with the landscape fractional components to investigate LULC based relationships between LST and impervious surface and green vegetation fractions. An examination of the relationship between the LULC and LST maps with landscape metrics was finally conducted to deepen understanding of their interactions. Results indicate that SMA-derived fraction images were effective for quantifying the urban morphology and for providing reliable measurements of biophysical variables. LST was found to be positively correlated with impervious surface fraction but negatively correlated with green vegetation fraction. Each temperature zone was associated with a dominant LULC category. Further research should be directed to the theoretical and applied implications of describing such relationships between LULC patterns and urban thermal conditions.

Bridging the divide in urban sustainability: from human exemptionalism to the new ecological paradigm

This paper reviews the main bodies of contemporary urban sustainability theory. From this analysis, two underpinning paradigms of urban sustainability are identified: (1) The ‘Human Exemptionalism Paradigm’ (HEP), which emphasizes the ability of humans to overcome environmental problems—see Urban Sociology, Urban Ecology, Urban Geography, Urban Psychology and Political Economy; and (2) The ‘New Ecological Paradigm’ (NEP), which emphasizes the criticality of ecological limits to human progress—see Urban Metabolism, Energy/Emergy Analysis and Ecological Footprinting. Each of these approaches is critically reviewed, highlighting their main assumptions, theoretical and practical foci. It is argued in the paper that if the related issues of urban sustainability and development are to be progressed, there needs to be: (1) a greater maturation of the NEP approaches, which are ‘relative newcomers’ to the area of urban theory; and (2) greater integration and dialogue between the HEP and NEP approaches to urban sustainability than has hitherto been the case.

Contribution analysis to analyze the effects of the health impact assessment at the local level: A case of urban revitalization

The health impact assessment (HIA) is a tool used to estimate the potential impact on health of non-health-related proposals prior to implementation. While it is increasingly used in Quebec, Canada, studies have not analyzed its medium-term impacts and potential long-term impacts. We conducted a contribution analysis using in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, as well as documents, observation and images related to HIA in order to analyze its impacts on the revitalization of road infrastructure, parks and green spaces, and residential housing. Our analysis not only reflects on the decision-making process through the adoption and implementation of HIA recommendations, but also on the link between actions implemented in the field and health outcomes.     

Urban community as resource: Evaluation of the mentors in Toledo schools program

We report findings from an evaluation of the Mentors in Toledo Schools program (MITS), which pairs adult community volunteers with elementary school students in need of reading support. Begun in 2012, MITS now operates in five elementary schools in Toledo Public Schools. A quasi-experimental study of 379 students (n = 128 mentored, n = 251 comparison) tested the effectiveness of MITS, using changes (fall to spring) in students’ scores on STAR Reading. Multilevel models demonstrate students who participated in MITS made statistically significant, and educationally meaningful, reading gains compared to students who did not participate. Further, an investigation of the importance of dosage revealed that number of mentoring sessions is related to students’ outcomes; students who participated in reading mentoring at least once per week showed the most educationally meaningful improvements. We also report qualitative feedback from adult program participants, including teachers, mentors, and site coordinators, to help contextualize the STAR Reading results. These findings speak to the opportunity for community volunteers to act as low-cost and effective supports for urban elementary school students who are at-risk for reading failure.     

晚清民国时期蔗糖业视野下的广西城镇经济网络

晚清民国时期,广西蔗糖业经历了繁荣、衰落再发展的轨迹,通过商人的经营活动促进了城镇经济网络和蔗糖业的楔合,蔗糖业的发展推动了城镇经济网络的发展。蔗糖业和城镇经济网络的楔合促进了民族经济融合。     

广西北部湾经济区文化发展研究

广西北部湾经济区文化发展是作为国家战略的<广西北部湾经济区发展规划>不可缺少的有机部分.根据文化发展理论与区域文化现状,探索适合北部湾城市群文化发展模式,目标是建设一个经济发达、社会文明、文化繁荣的文化城市群.其核心是,共建文化服务体系、共建文化市场体系、共建文化企业体系、共同配置文化资源、共同制定文化政策、共同实行文化体制改革,为国内中西部地区的文化发展起到示范与引领作用.     

城乡统筹发展机理及其战略选择

城乡统筹意味着投资于工业和农业的相同资源所得到的收益之间无显著差异.一个关于投资决策的规划模型显示出:城乡协同发展的条件由市场交易价格、工业产品和农业产品的劳动生产率、工业产品和农业产品生产的投资水平、不同产品生产的专业化程度等参数共同进行刻画和描述,并由此揭示出城乡统筹发展的战略选择.     

城镇居民家庭财产性收入研究

 近几年来,我国城镇居民家庭的财产性收入增长迅速,但其占家庭总收入比重还是很低。为实现“让更多群众拥有财产性收入”,提高居民的整体收入水平,本文对城镇居民家庭财产性收入进行系统深入的研究,提出收入——财产（生活型和投资型）——财产性收入三者相联关系的观点,分析近几年我国城镇居民家庭财产和财产性收入的现状和值得关注问题,并发现财产性收入增长受家庭财产、居民个人因素、经济发展、制度安排和投资市场的影响,最后有针对性提出增加城镇居民家庭财产性收入的对策建议。     

Conflicts in urban fringe in the transformation era: An examination of performance of the metropolitan growth management in Beijing

The performances of urban growth management are often criticized because their original objectives are frequently inconsistent with local development facts. Underlying the many reasons for this are the political and institutional contexts that influence policy-making and development activities. The urban fringe, a zone is managed to against urban sprawl in many countries, represents the conflicts between urban management system and local development resulting from political transformation. This study examines the case of decentralised-concentration strategy, one of the most important metropolitan growth management in Beijing since the 1990s, and sheds some lights on the performance of the growth management in the transformation context. The results suggest that the aims of municipal growth management to concentrate developments in urban fringe have partly been achieved through actual local developments; however, some unexpected and illegal local developments outside the planned areas are counterproductive from the perspective of municipal growth management. The performance of the present growth management is being challenged by new trends towards political decentralisation and locally fiscal responsibilities. In the interest of future policymaking, the dominant central planning system in Beijing should take these decentralisation trends into growth management account, compared with the great progress in decentralisation in economy system. The urban policy needs to shift from the dictatorial manner and put more efforts into creating a harmonious relationship between municipal growth management and actual local demands on development.