Got it! Tsunami site

I've found a good site for my research. This one will fulfill my research goal/research questions which is to demonstrate factors contributing to the effectiveness of protected landscape as a model in achieving sustainable development.

District of Kuala Muda, Kedah. Employing a survey method this way. To demonstrate qualities that are desirable in protected landscape, this tsunami district is selected:
1.The residents must believe about their area.
2.There must be an agreed description as to what is sense of place.
3.Survey their socio-economic profile, perception of their area using Likert method.
4.Will not indicate about designating this area as protected landscape
5.Will not explicitly associate tsunami with protected area.
6.Focus group discussion.

One variable from protected landscape is "the sense of place". This vulnerable quality of life is about how people (residents and visitors) perceive the area. How would I know that the residents know about their landscape?

Sample of population for the district will be identified from three geographical areas: coastal villages, town areas and the interiors/ remote to get a representative of the residents/sub-landscape areas of the district. Enumerators will go around surveying the areas.

My Birthday Today?

Well, yah..Today is my birthday. I don't want to highlight it but my wife had sent me an electronic birthday card from Malaysia! Thanks love! I know you would not miss sending one.

There's nothing special about today....As it is Sunday I stayed home...doing some reading, updating literature and going to the grocery.

Cheers.

Choosing a site for a case study

As I was thinking yesterday about my site/case study, after discussion with Ian and after reading the guidelines on cat v, it seems that i need to take a second look on how to designate area worthy of protection. Because from there i should be able to get the variables neeeded to measure in my research.It must meet the criteria of Cat V as set out by IUCN guidelines.

IUCN guideline states that the best is for the Govt itself to designate an area. It can also come from the NGO or from the residents themself. To be effective, the area must get the blessings and "endorsement" from the residents occupying the area. They must be made to understand that Cat V. is beneficial to them and the community.

The meaning of landscape

“Landscape” is a difficult word. It has many meanings and is interpreted differently by different people. Some societies have no word for it. However, the European Landscape Convention (ELC), the first international agreement to focus exclusively on the topic,defines it as “an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interaction of natural and/or human factors” (Council of Europe, 2000). In this, and in much of the literature, is the idea that landscape arises from the interaction of people with their environment over time (Lennon (ed.), in print; and ICOMOS-UK,2002).

It follows that landscape is much more than scenery,or even a set of purely physical attributes: the visual aspect of landscape is only the outward face of complex human/ nature interactions. Also, landscape often has important associative and spiritual values to communities in many parts of the world. Compared therefore to the thinking behind the establishment and management of many protected areas, where the emphasis is on protecting what is seen as ‘natural’, the protection of landscape puts people at the heart of the operation – and indeed requires them to be there.

(This passage is taken directly from:)

Phillips, Adrian, 2002, Management guidelines for IUCN category V
protected areas: protected landscapes/seascapes. IUCN Gland, Switzerland
and Cambridge, UK. ( xv + 122pp)

"Learning how to manage natural areas for nature has a long history but still an ongoing topic for research; learning how to manage natural areas for people as well as nature is a fairly new area of inquiry, with a lot of room for expansion of knowledge” (Hamin, 2002, p. 356)

International housemates

Hi...I'd like to introduce you my sharehouse mates. Left to right, Routian from China, Chinonso from Nigeria, me from Malaysia and John (not in pic), from Australia.

Feedback from Dr. Fleur

I've received a written feedback on my draft proposal from Dr. Fleur on 6/04/05. She is my lecturer for Thesis Writing 1 class. She said that I've done a "well-written, engaging proposal". Thank you Fleur. But there are a few corrections though.

Areas for improvement:

1. tendency to place in-text citation at the end of sentence/ paragraph,
2. all statements needed academic support,
3. ethics clearance for human subjects after approval of proposal,
4. some clarification required for methods esp. questionaires and focus group, and
5. the use of font (serif) required for UniSA proposals and theses.

Triple-S seminar

Attended Mark Bishop's Triple-S seminar on 5/04/05 entitled, Exploring Earth, Understanding Mars: The adventures of a plenatary geographer from 1:00-2pm in Building P.

Feedback from supervisors

As mentioned earlier, I've submitted my draft on 30 Mac 2005. Today, we met and below are their feedback (Items to be deliberated include method, budget, case study/studies, examples of Cat. V in South Aust to visit, questionaires and samples).

In attendance: Dr. Ian Clark (Principal Supervisor) Dr. Barbara Koth (Associate Supervisor) Kamarul B. Shuib (PhD Candidate)

Dr.Ian:
It is a researchable topic.
Communicate landscape language that are understandable to all.
Method proposed is acceptable for qualitative type of research.
Need to explain use of Delphi(refer from those whom have done this before),questionaires and case study selection.
Better to investigate one case study than to compare two sites(need depth for PhD type of research).
Focus on variables that answers research question.
Background data on PA's and Cat. V in Malaysia needed to justify case selection.

Dr. Barb:
Generally ok.
Read Michael Hall's thought(U. of Otago, NZ) about landscape change and geography.
Use present tense in text.
Need to look at cultural landscapes and national parks.
Gaps in research in those areas.
Look at Mid-East literatures on PA's, esp. Egypt and Jordan. Good examples of landscape protection there because of sacred and ancient areas.
Grass root participation, kampongs chiefs, Govt officials, professionals play important roles in this research.
Look also at other countries eg.USA and see how they designate PA's.
Other areas that were discussed included budget, time table (esp. in conducting the survey), the case study area, frequency of meeting, and possible site visit to Cat. V in South Australia.