Urban land policy in Australia
Australia is very sparsely settled, with a population of only 14 millions in an area of 7.7 million square kilometres. The main reason is the low rainfall over most of the country: nearly two-thirds of the area has a median annual rainfall of less than 400 mm. The dry inland areas and the wet tropical fringe in the north are both thinly settled. The population is concentrated in a narrow coastal crescent around the south-eastern part of the continent and a much smaller area in the south-western corner.
Making developers pay - British versus American experience in the 1980's.
During the 1980's, governments in both Britain and the U.S. were increasingly inclined to shift costs and obligations onto developers. In the U.S., a variety of methods were experimented with, but the predominant technique which emerged was to impose mandatory, fixed exactions and "impact fees." In Britain, local authorities negotiated legal agreements which frequently involved "contributions." This thesis evaluates the negotiation of agreements in Britain in light of contrasting U.S. experience with developer finance. The thesis begins by setting developer finance in historical context, describing how and why different methods of developer finance emerged in the two countries. Planning research and literature in Britain and the U.S. are analysed and compared to identify important research questions regarding the attitudes of planners and developers, the rationale for obtaining developer payments, the process for obtaining payments, factors affecting local government success in extracting payments, the incidence of developer payments, and the presumed effects of developer finance on planning and development control. The core of the thesis describes empirical research conducted in England, analysing how local authorities in a high-growth region used agreements between 1985 and 1990. An important feature of the research is that it examines local authority use of agreements in a specific geographic and planning context. This research calls into question many widely held assumptions about how planning agreements have been used, and suggests that, in the British context, negotiated agreements have significant planning advantages. The thesis argues that an important criteria for evaluating developer finance is how it functions in relation to regional planning and growth management objectives, and that additional geographically-based research is needed in both countries to evaluate the effects of developer finance on patterns of development, and on the achievement of planning policies.
Indian Fig Cactus (Opuntia Ficus-Indica (L.) Miller) in the Americas: an Uncertain History
Abstract: 
 Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Miller is a globally important cactus species with a long history of human use. In addition to the importance of O. ficus-indica as a food for humans and livestock, it also has long served a role in the production of cochineal, a once important textile dye. This cactus also is intimately interwoven into the story of Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg) (South American cactus moth), one of the best-known examples of biological weed control. In this regard, O. ficus-indica has been a target weed as well as an unintended host in C. cactorum invasion. Although the distribution and human-assisted movement of this cactus throughout much of the world is well documented, surprisingly little has been written about its history and movement within the Americas. Literature associated with Opuntia and their phytophagous pests in North and South America was examined in an attempt to determine the history of O. ficus-indica in the Americas. Available information suggests with some certainty that O. ficus-indica originated in present-day Mexico, but the timing of its introduction to South America is much less clear. Taxonomic difficulties associated with distinguishing among Opuntia species and the long pre-Columbian history of exchange between South American and Mesoamerican cultures are two primary complicating factors associated with dating the dispersal of this species to South America. Additionally, previous evidence in support of a pre-Columbian introduction to South America relied on questionable identification of insect-based textile dyes. These uncertainties are significant because clearer knowledge of the history of O. ficus-indica introduction to South America could provide a more complete biological and ecological context to efforts at managing this species in its native and introduced ranges, particularly with respect to the threat posed by C. cactorum in North American and Argentinean plantations.