Minn, M., Brady, S., Cidell, J., Ratner, K., & Goetz, A. (2021). Shared-use rail corridors: A comparison of institutional perspectives in the United States and the European Union. Transport Reviews, 42(3), 384–407. https://doi.org/10.1080/01441647.2021.2003473
Abstract
This paper reviews existing literature to identify issues, challenges, and best practices associated with shared-use freight and passenger rail corridors. Specifically, this paper will compare and contrast shared-corridor practices from an institutional perspective in the United States and the European Union. These two regions were chosen because of their shared social, political, technological, and economic ties, their historical mixes of private and state railroad operations, and because of the significant contemporary differences in the role of rail in these two regions. That mix of similarities and differences clarifies important commonalities specific to freight and passenger railroads that may be applicable in other times and places. Best practices include planning for: capital investment, long-term time horizons, measurable incremental improvements, regional multi-modality, and mutual benefits between freight and passenger operations.
Silvern, S.E., & Davis, E.H. (Eds.). (2021). Religion, sustainability, and place: Moral geographies of the anthropocene. Palgrave Macmillan.
Abstract
Nyussupova, G., Aidarkhanova, G., & Young, S.S. (2021). The impact of the transformation of the economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the reproduction of human capital: Socio-Economic Aspect. Studies of the Industrial Geography Commission of the Polish Geographical Society, 35(2), 38–52. https://doi.org/10.24917/20801653.352.3
Abstract
In the context of the transition of the national economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan to an innovative type of development, the issues of the formation and development of human capital are becoming increasingly important. Increasing labor productivity, developing high-tech production, creating innovative products in the republic is impossible without providing the branches of the national economy with personnel who have the necessary professional and personal competencies. In turn, social and economic factors affect the formation and quality of human capital, while there is an uneven spatial distribution of human resources. Accordingly, the priorities of the socio-economic development of the territories require coordination with the tasks of increasing human capital. The basis of this study is the analysis of the reproduction processes of human capital in the regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan, taking into account the socio-economic component. The object of the research is the human capital of the regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the subject of the research is the socio-economic aspect of the development of human capital. The method of the integral index for assessing human capital was taken as the main model for calculating human capital. We identified not only socio-economic factors affecting the effective use of human capital in the regions, but also demographic, environmental components and calculated indices based on these factors. The analysis showed that one of the key factors affecting the differentiation of the level of accumulated human capital is socio-economic. According to the results, the regions were identified as leaders and outsiders in terms of the level of accumulated human capital, regions with a post-industrial warehouse of the economy have high indicators of the human capital index, regions with agricultural specialization are low.
Wang, L., Ren, G., Hua, F., Young, S.S., Wang, W., Yang, C., & Zhu, J. (2021). Integrating habitat availability into restoration efforts for biodiversity conservation: Evaluating effectiveness and setting priorities. Biological Conservation, 257. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109127
Abstract
Numerous restoration programs have been launched worldwide in recent years, but the effectiveness of such programs for biodiversity conservation remains unclear. Additionally, priority areas of restoration need to be identified in a region where resources are limited. Habitat availability combines habitat amounts with interpatch connectivity, governing whether a landscape can shelter biological populations in the long term. Consequently, restoration efforts should focus on enhancing habitat availability to promote biological flows. In this study, we proposed a multi-scale approach to evaluate the effectiveness of restoration program and to set priority areas for forest restoration. The evaluations of effectiveness highlighted the contributions of forest cover change to habitat availability. The restoration priorities of landscapes were ranked by three indicators which are also tightly associated with habitat availability: relative urgency of intervention, efficiency of restoration, and connectivity importance for broader-scale biotic flows. We applied the approach in the Eastern Himalaya region of China, a global biodiversity conservation hotspot. Forest cover has been increasing by 3.4% in this region since 2000 due to the implementation of the Grain-for-Green Program, but not all the new forest areas were available as species habitat and/or stepping stones. By the method we developed, 14% of the areas are ranked as the high restoration priorities aiming to enhance available habitat for multiple species with different dispersal abilities. Our approach can significantly improve the outcome of a restoration program. It is flexible and can aid policy makers in optimizing restoration efforts given the biodiversity conservation goals and available resources.
Young, S.S., Rao, S., & Dorey, K. (2021). Monitoring the erosion and accretion of a human-built living shoreline with drone technology. Environmental Challenges, 5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envc.2021.100383
Abstract
Climate change is forcing coastal communities to adapt to rising sea levels and increased storm activity. Living shorelines are a new adaptation to reduce the resulting erosion and inundation. Living shorelines use a variety of salt-tolerant plants and other natural material to absorb the increased wave energy and sea levels along the coast while supporting an enlarged coastal habitat for a variety of plants and animals, improving coastal resiliency. In 2019 the coastal city of Salem Massachusetts (USA) received a grant of $216,550 to build a living shoreline (approximately 240 by 11.75 m) in a barren cove along its coastline. Drone technology was used to monitor the erosion and accretion of the new living shoreline. A dji Phantom 4 Pro with a normal color camera was flown in 2018 (before the living shoreline was established), 2019 (just after the living shoreline was created) and in 2020 (after almost 18 months of wave and tidal activity to the living shoreline). Each drone flight created three products: an orthographic mosaic, a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and a Digital Surface Model (DSM). A ground survey was used to georeference the 2020 image and then the 2020 image was used to georeference the 2019 and 2018 images. The 2019 DTM minus the 2018 DTM accurately estimated the amount of fill used for the living shoreline within 3% of the actual amount of fill used. The 2020 DTM minus the 2019 DTM showed that 14.7% of the surface area of the living shoreline experienced erosion (24.35 m3) and 52.0% of the surface area experienced accretion (117.74 m3). Living shorelines can be widely used to protect coastal biodiversity and to adapt to rising seas and storm activity, providing a soft barrier instead of a hard barrier like sea walls.
Young, S.S., & Young, J.S. (2021). Overall warming with reduced seasonality: Temperature change in New England, USA, 1900–2020. Climate, 9(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/cli9120176
Abstract
The ecology, economy, and cultural heritage of New England is grounded in its seasonal climate, and this seasonality is now changing as the world warms due to human activity. This research uses temperature data from the U.S. Historical Climatology Network (USHCN) to analyze annual and seasonal temperature changes in the New England region of the United States from 1900 to 2020 at the regional and state levels. Results show four broad trends: (1) New England and each of the states (annually and seasonally) have warmed considerably between 1900 and 2020; (2) all of the states and the region as a whole show three general periods of change (warming, cooling, and then warming again); (3) the winter season is experiencing the greatest warming; and (4) the minimum temperatures are generally warming more than the average and maximum temperatures, especially since the 1980s. The average annual temperature (analyzed at the 10-year and the five-year average levels) for every state, and New England as a whole, has increased greater than 1.5 °C from 1900 to 2020. This warming is diminishing the distinctive four-season climate of New England, resulting in changes to the region’s ecology and threatening the rural economies throughout the region.