Sustainable territorial development and concepts of polycentricity in Slovak territorial development
This paper presents the situation and potentials for the development of polycentric structures within the Slovak settlement system in the context of spatial development in Central Europe. The trajectories in the development of the morphological and relational features of settlement structures are compared with official conceptual documents at the national and regional levels. The limits and potentials concerning the development of spatial structures at different hierarchical levels, resulting from the specific situation in Slovakia, are examined with a particular focus on trans-border development perspectives, including the appearance of new spatial–temporal patterns. The concepts brought forward in the ESPON analyses are critically discussed with an attempt to provide a more contextualized view of the nature of polycentric organization in the current phase of development of integration and transformation processes in Slovakia.
Desenvolvimento Policêntrico na Europa : Uma reflexao critica sobre um conceito de politicas normativas
Durante a ultima decada, o desenvolvimento policentrico tornou-se um conceito-chave no desenvolvimento territorial europeu. Em muitos aspectos, e um conceito difuso que significa diferentes coisas para diferentes pessoas em diferentes escalas espaciais. Neste artigo, analisamos as variadas interpretacoes do conceito de desenvolvimento policentrico que podem ser encontradas nas politicas relacionadas a diferentes escalas espaciais: a escala continental (europeia), a escala nacional e a escala metropolitana. E dada especial atencao aos supostos beneficios, nos circulos de politicas, da policentralidade e do desenvolvimento policentrico. Esses sao confrontados com resultados de pesquisas empiricas encontradas na literatura sobre a relacao entre policentralidade e desempenho. Conclui-se que essa relacao nao e tao evidente como os formuladores de politicas parecem admitir. Somente na escala metropolitana, uma forma urbana policentrica pode ser transformada em um ativo e isso requer um processo de metropolizacao que conduza a uma maior integracao das cidades que constituem regioes urbanas policentricas.
The contribution of charcoal production to rural livelihoods in a semi-arid area in Kenya
Forest incomes in the form of both timber and non-timber forest products are an important source of livelihood for many communities in Africa. A major forest resource is charcoal, which contributes to the livelihoods of millions across the region. While incomes from charcoal are used to meet a wide spectrum of needs within rural livelihoods, the role of charcoal production on livelihoods of small-scale producers is not well understood. Therefore, we provide an example on the importance of charcoal on livelihoods in an agropastoralist community in a semi-arid region in Kenya. Based on a household questionnaire targeting 150 charcoal and 150 non-charcoal makers, as well as focus group discussions, we assessed the determinants for participation in charcoal production and developed a household typology based on charcoal income dependence. We also determined the role of charcoal in income equalization and poverty reduction. Our study shows that charcoal contributes about 20% of the household income in the study area. Gender, land size and the number of food-scarce months are the key determinants of participation in charcoal production. Based on the poverty analysis, we conclude that even though charcoal income does not lift the producers out of poverty, it can mitigate the impacts of poverty by reducing the poverty gap and poverty severity. Based on our findings, we recommend a multipronged approach to address sustainable rural livelihoods including a more explicit acknowledgement of charcoal production as a source of rural income. We also recommend broadening of the local livelihood base and a more active management of the woodland to ensure the sustainability of the income.