Risky business: Covering slow‐onset hazards as rapidly developing news

The emerging field of risk communication has yet to thoroughly grapple with how the mass media report risk. Through a content analysis of five newspapers noted for their science reporting, newspaper coverage of four environmental hazards is compared to media coverage of more traditional risky events. In general, these slow‐to‐develop stories are reported in much the same way as more traditional disaster stories. News accounts emphasized an event orientation, framed risks in terms of human activity rather than social and political contexts, described risk in terms of harms and benefits, and relied on traditional sources. The authors then explore how this version of mass‐mediated risk might change current definitions of risk communication and how a mediated construction of risk may influence public perception of the political choices these issues raise.     

Decomposition and Arthropod Succession in Whitehorse,Yukon Territory,Canada

Forensic arthropod succession patterns are known to vary between regions. However, the northern habitats of the globe have been largely left unstudied. Three pig carcasses were studied outdoors in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. Adult and immature insects were collected for identification and comparison. The dominant Diptera and Coleoptera species at all carcasses were Protophormia terraneovae (R‐D) (Fam: Calliphoridae) and Thanatophilus lapponicus (Herbst) (Fam: Silphidae), respectively. Rate of decomposition, patterns of Diptera and Coleoptera succession, and species dominance were shown to differ from previous studies in temperate regions, particularly as P. terraenovae showed complete dominance among blowfly species. Rate of decomposition through the first four stages was generally slow, and the last stage of decomposition was not observed at any carcass due to time constraints. It is concluded that biogeoclimatic range has a significant effect on insect presence and rate of decomposition, making it an important factor to consider when calculating a postmortem interval.     

The Australian Environmental Policy Agenda

This paper seeks to identify major shifts in the Australian environmental policy agenda over the past fifty years, and discusses the possible causes of and variables affecting agenda change. The issue of what comprises ‘environment’ policy is discussed, with reference to overlaps and intersections with other policy sectors such as agriculture, public health, energy and regional affairs. While the diversity of the environment policy domain complicates any analysis of trends, there have been two persistent trends of (i) an expansion from a more narrowly to a more broadly defined suite of issue (from environment to sustainable development) and incorporation of environment into natural resource management, and (ii) an increasing diversity of policy instruments being used. Consistent with the wide variety of issues confronted, pragmatism and convenience are often as influential as political ideology or underlying trajectories. The drivers of policy change are diverse, including biophysical factors such as drought, political leaders and international policy developments, and punctuations are often better interpreted as intensification or redirections of past policy trajectories.     

The Arab Spring and the European Response

Europeans enthusiastically embraced the Arab Spring. However, the EU and its member states have lacked significant influence in a neighbouring region in turmoil. The EU has not devised new and more appropriate approaches towards the region, but rather relied on its traditional tools and frameworks. The Eurozone’s financial crisis and threat perceptions have quickly underminded the readiness of EU member states to contribute meaningfully to Arab transformations with money, market access and mobility. In addition, European support has not been equally welcomed across the region, and delays in terms of building empowered governments have prevented a quick impact. Moreover, the violent power struggles triggered by the Arab Spring have revealed the EU’s weakness with regard to effective conflict prevention and timely crisis management – and thus created an environment averse to democratic transformation and regional stabilisation.     

Button-less on the information superhighway: Issues of ideological horizons in environmental communication amongst communities at fish-landing sites along Lake Victoria in Uganda

Abstract

The article addresses issues of ideological horizons in relation to the information superhighway, as they affect environmental communication, with a special focus on grassroots communities at fish-landing sites along Lake Victoria, in Uganda. While in the ‘button society’ a great deal of information is accessible at the push of a button, the most that button-less grassroots societies have to contend with, is a simple radio switch. Given this continuum of ideological horizons, both communities cannot interpret environmental management concerns in the same way. Conceptually, the article is guided by Hall's encoding and decoding framework, whereby due to a failure to share ‘meaning’ (between the two parties) miscommunication arises. The discussion is based on findings of a survey for a research project that sought to find behavioural change communication strategies that can be used to empower grassroots communities to participate more in managing their local environment in a sustainable way. The research looked at the communication of environmental issues pertaining to solid waste management and sanitation. The major question of interest to the discussion is why there is continued environmental degradation at Lake Victoria fish-landing sites, despite the available environmental information and existing frameworks for ensuring proper environmental management.     

加大农村生态环境综合整治力度 改善农村人居环境

该文通过对辽宁省农村生态环境现状、综合整治情况等进行的实地调查,找出了目前辽宁农村生态环境建设中存在的问题和主客观原因,提出了解决问题的建议和对策。     

Going green: Explaining issue competition on the environment

This study addresses the dynamics of the issue space in multiparty systems by examining to what extent, and under what conditions, parties respond to the issue ownership of other parties on the green issue. To understand why some issues become part and parcel of the political agenda in multiparty systems, it is crucial not only to examine the strategies of issue entrepreneurs, but also the responses of other parties. It is argued that the extent to which other parties respond to, rather than ignore, the issue mobilisation of green parties depends on two factors: how much of an electoral threat the green party poses to a specific party; and the extent to which the political and economic context makes the green issue a potential vote winner. To analyse the evolution of the green issue, a time‐series cross‐section analysis is conducted using data from the Comparative Manifestos Project for 19 West European countries from 1980–2010. The findings have important implications for understanding issue evolution in multiparty systems and how and why the dynamics of party competition on the green issue vary across time and space.     

论环境税收法律制度: 理论支撑、国外实践和启示简

环境税收法律制度以外部性理论、公共物（产）品理论和可持续发展理论为理论支撑;发达国家通过开征多种环境税、对原有税种进行有利于环境保护的调整等约束性的环境税收措施和通过对环保产品、环保技术、环保投资以及环保行为等方面进行税收优惠的激励性的环境税收措施,不仅有效地利用和保护了资源和环境,还为完善环境税收法律制度提供了如下经验与启示：进行环境税收立法,开征环境税要循序渐进,逐步实施;设计适合本国国情的具有可操作性的环境税收法律制度;多种环境保护手段协调配合,建立混合制度;在绿化现有税收的同时开征多种环境保护税;中央和地方的环境税收征管权限应清晰明确;税款应专款专用;税务部门应与其他部门进行合作;履行国际义务等。     

网络环境中公民参与的时代价值及路径选择

以互联网为核心的信息网络技术革命更加凸显了公民参与的时代价值,同时也给公民参与带来了许多困境。全面分析网络环境中公民参与的尴尬局面,寻求摆脱这些困境的路径选择,对于引导中国公民理性地进行参与活动,促进中国公民参与的有序化发展具有重要的理论和现实意义。     

环境利益的民事立法保护与救济

民法能够有效地发挥其维护主体民事权益的功能,就是因为其拥有一整套完备的民事权益体系,并针对民事权益进行全面的保护与救济。现如今,处在环境问题以及其带来危机的大背景之下,应将"环境利益"纳入民事立法之中,促使主体利用自然环境的权利得到民事法律的保护与救济。通过确认环境物权、引入环境人格权,以及对《侵权责任法》相关内容的完善,进一步加强环境利益在民事立法中的保护与救济。