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      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        April 2009

        The Anglo-Saxon landscape

        The kingdom of the Hwicce

        by Della Hooke

        The landscape of pre-Conquest England can often be reconstructed in minute detail. Yet this is one of the first attempts at such a project. Here the evidence is examined for the West Midlands - the counties of Worcestershire, Warwickshire and Gloucestershire, much of which formed the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the Hwicce. Della Hooke reveals the intimate local landscape through the medium of place names, contemporary documents and archaeological evidence. Her detailed picture brings the Anglo-Saxon countryside very much to life. The patterns which emerge in this period go far to explain the nature of later medieval patterns of settlement and field systems, and provide the key to understanding territorial organisation in the region. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        Technology, Engineering & Agriculture
        August 2023

        Parasitic Plants in African Agriculture

        by Lytton John Musselman, Jonne Rodenburg

        Parasitic Plants in African Agriculture brings together for the first time in a single volume, the ecology, biology, damage, and control of all groups of African parasitic plants including both the relatively few parasites introduced to the continent as well as those native parasites that have spread from within Africa. The book covers the well-known witchweeds and broomrapes but also groups and species that have received less attention including mistletoes, dodders, rice vampire weed, and other species posing threats. The book distinguishes between stem and root parasitic weeds and between holoparasites and (facultative or obligate) hemiparasites. Based on their research and experience collectively spanning six decades, the authors provide an authoritative and state-of-the-art overview of the distribution, biology and impact of these highly specialized weeds and include recommendations for their management. Since parasitic plants in African agriculture primarily affect smallholder farmers, these weeds are explicitly discussed within a context of resource limitations and global changes. Readers are informed on all parasitic plant species relevant to African agriculture and the impact these plants have on crop production and livelihoods of smallholders in a changing world. Current and future management strategies are outlined in terms of their principles and effectiveness as well as their feasibility and affordability for farmers, all of which determine farmer adoption. The final chapter synthesises some of the relevant findings and statistics regarding parasitic weed distribution and their host crops and discusses implications in terms of future crop protection concerns in African agricultural systems. Key features: · Authoritative text based on extensive field and laboratory work. · First comprehensive state-of-the-art overview of parasitic plants and their management in Africa. · Highly illustrated with photos, graphs and species distribution maps. · Reviews previous basic and applied work, with relevance to smallholder farming systems. This book will be a valuable reference for students, researchers, extension workers, development officers, national agriculture researchers, plant pathologists, food security specialists, weed scientists, agronomists and botanists.

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        January 2019

        Postcolonial African cinema

        Ten directors

        by David Murphy, Patrick Williams

        This is the first introduction of its kind to an important cross-section of postcolonial African filmmakers from the 1950s to the present. Building on previous critical work in the field, this volume will bring together ideas from a range of disciplines - film studies, African cultural studies, and, in particular, postcolonial studies - in order to combine the in-depth analysis of individual films and bodies of work by individual directors with a sustained interrogation of these films in relation to important theoretical concepts. Structurally, the book is straightforward, though the aim is to incorporate diversity and complexity of approach within the overall simplicity of format. Chapters provide both an overview of the director's output to date, and the necessary background - personal or national, cultural or political - to enable readers to achieve a better understanding of the director's choice of subject matter, aesthetic or formal strategies, or ideological stance. They also offer a particular reading of one or more films, in which the authors aim to situate African cinema in relation to important critical and theoretical debates. This book thus constitutes a new departure in African film studies, recognising the maturity of the field, and the need for complex yet accessible approaches to it, which move beyond the purely descriptive while refusing to get bogged down in theoretical jargon. Consequently, the volume should be of interest not only to specialists but also to the general reader.

      • Trusted Partner
        Conservation of the environment
        October 2006

        Conservation of Cultural Landscape

        by Edited by Mauro Agnoletti

        Landscape today is no longer just a cultural aspect, intended as an elitist phenomenon, but emerges as an essential element in the definition and the application of a modern approach in sustainable development. Historical locally adapted distinctive and ingenious combinations of management practices have contributed and continue to contribute tremendously to the biodiversity of the world, resulting not only in outstanding aesthetic beauty, but, in the sustained provision of multiple goods and services, food and livelihood security and quality of life. The development of policies to preserve and manage landscape resources, has to face both the degradation of cultural landscape due to socio-economic development and the need to develop appropriate methods and approaches. This book presents different methodologies developed to analyse, manage and plan landscape resources. It reports recent research findings and case studies from Europe and North America, suggesting also the revision of some orientations and views of the current policies concerning forestry, rural development and nature conservation, often contributing to degrade cultural landscapes.

      • Trusted Partner
        Horticulture
        November 2006

        Landscape Trees and Shrubs

        Selection, Use and Management

        by Mary Forrest

        This book presents a horticultural overview of the main plant families of trees and shrubs from temperate regions that are cultivated in urban and rural landscape schemes. Most of the plants used come from a limited number of plant families and within these families, certain genera contribute very significantly.The largest chapter in the book describes 37 plant families according to their identification, functional use and management in landscape schemes. With this information readers will be able to assess the suitability of species and prepare planting designs for prevailing sites.

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        March 2021

        African cities and collaborative futures

        Urban platforms and metropolitan logistics

        by Michael Keith, Andreza Aruska de Souza Santos, Susan Parnell

        This groundbreaking volume brings together scholars from across the globe to discuss the infrastructure, energy, housing, safety and sustainability of African cities, as seen through local narratives of residents. Drawing on a variety of fields and extensive first-hand research, the contributions offer a fresh perspective on some of the most pressing issues confronting urban Africa in the twenty-first century. At a time when the future of the region as a whole will be determined in large part by its cities, the implications of these developments are profound. With case studies from cities in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa and Tanzania, this volume explores how the rapid growth of African cities is reconfiguring the relationship between urban social life and its built forms. While the most visible transformations in cities today can be seen as infrastructural, these manifestations are cultural as well as material, reflecting the different ways in which the city is rationalised, economised and governed. How can we 'see like a city' in twenty-first-century Africa, understanding the urban present to shape its future? This is the central question posed throughout this volume, with a practical focus on how academics, local decision makers and international practitioners can collaborate to meet the challenge of rapid growth, environmental pressures and resource gaps.

      • Trusted Partner
        September 2024

        Arthropod Management and Landscape Considerations in Large-Scale Agroecosystems

        by Michael J Brewer, Gary L. Hein, Kristen Baum, Mahendra Bhandari, Haley Butler, Hannalene du Plessis, Norman C. Elliott, Peter C Ellsworth, Sarah Elzay, Isaac L. Esquivel, Ashleigh M. Faris, Aaron J. Gassmann, Kristopher L Giles, Maura Hall, Louis S. Hesler, Anders S. Huseth, William D. Hutchison, Ian MacRae, Robert L. Meagher, Jr, Lance J. Meinke, Steven E. Naranjo, Matthew O'Neal, Shannon L. Osborne, Pankaj Pal, Katherine A. Parys, Dominic Reisig, Tom A Royer, Nina Rudin, Thomas W. Sappington, Gregory A. Sword, Ashley E. Tessnow, Paul A. Umina, Johnnie van den Berg

        For large-scale agroecosystems, patterns of pest population increases (graded increases or abrupt outbreaks) and declines (graded suppression or abrupt crashes) vary considerably and are influenced by factors within crop fields and across broader landscape scales. Better understanding of pest population dynamics and the implications of spatial interactions on the function and development of pest management approaches are the main themes of this important book. The book builds from a 60+ year history of field-based pest management by focusing on the drivers of pest management in large-scale agroecosystems and the landscape-scale processes that affect these drivers and contribute to variation in pest outbreaks and suppression. These drivers include abiotic and biotic influences such as weather, spatial composition and arrangement of landscape elements, and widely applied managed inputs such as planting and crop rotation schedules, crop varietal selection, and land and soil conservation efforts. The book introduces general concepts, opportunities, and challenges of arthropod management in large-scale agroecosystems. Case studies from major field crop-based agroecosystems are used to present research approaches and improve understanding and management of pest and beneficial insects in large-scale agroecosystems. Specific research findings are provided on multi-trophic interactions within the system as influenced by climate, landscape, and other ecological, agricultural, and social/economic components of the agroecosystem. The book concludes with a synthesis of these concepts and prospectus for future research and developments in arthropod management in large-scale, plant-based agroecosystems. The book is essential reading for researchers in applied entomology and ecology and for pest management practitioners.

      • Trusted Partner
        Economics
        February 1998

        Economics of Landscape and Wildlife Conservation

        by Edited by S Dabbert, A Dubgaard, Martin Whitby

        In recent years landscape and wildlife conservation has attracted increased attention from environmentalists and policy-makers. There have been policies within the European Union aimed at conserving wildlife and landscape in Europe for more than a decade and appraisal of these policies is opportune. A workshop was therefore held at the University of Hohenheim in September 1996 to examine critical issues associated with these policies. This workshop was one of a series, each focusing on a key theme as part of the EU Concerted Action, “Policy measures to control environmental impacts from agriculture”. This book presents a selection of revised papers from this workshop. The overall perspective is an economic one, with several chapters reviewing analytical methods, economic valuation of the benefits of agricultural landscapes and the costs and benefits of wildlife conservation. These are set in the context of the Common Agricultural Policy and environmental policies in the EU. The book represents important reading for agricultural and environmental economists, as well as those concerned with ecology and conservation.

      • Trusted Partner
        Children's & YA
        2018

        The Chalk Giraffe

        by Kirsty Paxton

        What if your drawings magically came to life, only to prove rather demanding art critics? Oh, the hassle! In The Chalk Giraffe we follow an artistic child who finds herself drawing a giraffe with chalk… but she is surprised when her creation comes alive and demands changes to his surrounding landscape. What follows is a quirky and humorous tale of creativity and perspective, with the beautiful African landscape as a backdrop to this new and unlikely friendship.

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        March 2021

        The Pan-African Pantheon

        by Adekeye Adebajo

      • Trusted Partner

        LANDSCAPES OF ISRAEL

        by Moshe Kaufman

        These thirty three drawings by Moshe Kaufman, selected from hundreds of drawings, are the fruition of his sketching trips to the historic and picturesque landscapes of the Holy Land. They reflect the artist’s admiration of the majestic sceneries he has witnessed while touring the various regions of the country. Kaufman's formative years were spent in Jerusalem, where the urban landscapes of the holy city were first absorbed. As a young architecture student in Haifa, he enjoyed many trips to the mountains of the Carmel and the Galilee. In later years, being involved in the planning of the town of Eilat, he had the opportunity to be in close contact with the mountainous desert views of the Negev and the Arava. Moshe Kaufman is a painter and retired architect. His landscapes, in black and white, as well as in color, were exhibited in several successful one-man shows in Israel, Florida, and New York.   “...Moshe Kaufman, with only pen and ink on paper, he paints the simple country scenes, and the intensity with which they are felt, make them rise off the page as from the page of the Old Testament. The simple jagged desert tree, with a few bushes and a hill behind them is the stuff with which Moshe Kaufman can make magic.”                           Bruno Pulmer Poroner                          “ARTSPEAK” New York  “...Kaufman does not copy nature in a realistic style. He rather adopts the impressionist tinge with a personal touch. His drawings consist of mysticism and imagination combined with realism. His expressive landscapes reveal a concealed force of the artist, as well as his inner truth that characterizes him.”                     “WORLD OF ART” Tel Aviv

      • Trusted Partner
      • Trusted Partner
      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        January 2021

        African peace

        by Kathryn Nash

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        May 2010

        Representing Africa

        Landscape, exploration and empire in Southern Africa, 1780–1870

        by John McAleer, Andrew Thompson, John Mackenzie

        Southern Africa played a varied but vital role in Britain's maritime and imperial stories: it was one of the most intricate pieces in the British imperial strategic jigsaw, and representations of southern African landscape and maritime spaces reflect its multifaceted position. Representing Africa examines the ways in which British travellers, explorers and artists viewed southern Africa in a period of evolving and expanding British interest in the region. Drawing on a wide range of archival sources, contemporary travelogues and visual images, many of which have not previously been published in this context, this book posits landscape as a useful prism through which to view changing British attitudes towards Africa. Richly illustrated, this book will be essential reading for scholars and students interested in British, African, imperial and exploration history, art history, and landscape and environment studies. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        January 1998

        The Ideal Landscapes: The Meaning of Feng-shui

        by YU Kongjian

        It is a valuable work written by YU Kongjian on landscape design and the meaning of Feng-shui. It analyzes the structural characteristics of Feng-shui and landscape patterns, as well as the profound relationship between the two notions. The book follows the experience of human evolution and cultural ecology and provides abundant field research material, revealing the common patterns between an ideal Feng-shui design, other ideal landscape designs in Chinese culture, as well as ideal landscape design in the psychology and statistic sense. The work demonstrates China’s Feng-shui theory with cultural, geographical, biological and philosophical significance. The author, with amply practical experience in urban design and landscape design, reveals the cultural significance of Feng-shui with respect and understanding towards culture, belief, local development, as well as an objective attitude towards this theory.

      • Trusted Partner
        The Arts
        April 2011

        Postnationalist African Cinemas

        by Alexie Tcheuyap

        Postnationalist African cinemas convincingly interrogates the ways in which African narratives locate postcolonial identities and forms beyond essentially nationalist frameworks. It investigates how the emergence of new genres, discourses and representations, all unrelated to an overtly nationalist project, influences the formal choices made by contemporary directors. By foregrounding the narrative, generic, discursive, representational and aesthetic structures of films, this book shows how directors are beginning to regard film as a popular form of entertainment rather than political praxis. Tcheuyap investigates filmic genres such as comedy, dance, crime and epic alongside cultural aspects including witchcraft, sexuality, pornography and oracles. ;

      • Trusted Partner
        July 2024

        The Untold Stories of African Agriculture

        Lessons from Ethiopia

        by Tsedeke Abate

        This landmark volume presents the results of a comprehensive and coherent in-depth assessment of Ethiopian agriculture and draws lessons from it to generate actionable recommendations that will inform policy decisions and priority setting for agricultural transformation across Africa. Policy makers in Africa are faced with the challenges of ensuring food and nutrition security and the economic wellbeing of their rapidly growing populations while at the same time maintaining the integrity of their natural resource base. Between 2000 and 2021, 74% of the growth in overall crop production on the continent was derived from increases in land area expansion, while increases in yield contributed only 26% of the growth. This unchecked expansion of land use puts the sustainability of the natural resource base under severe pressure. Even though some countries have made substantial increases in their farm productivity over the last two decades, the overall performance for Africa is far behind other regions. For the most part, in Africa, agriculture is not fulfilling its expected functions of food and nutrition security, increased export earnings, import substitution, and raw material supply for local industries. Attempts have been made to transform African agriculture over the years, but few countries have succeeded in achieving sustainable change. Using examples from Ethiopia this book identifies the major factors for success and the root causes of underperformance, and offers evidence-based recommendations for future decision making, policy change and the creation of growth. This book: · Draws on a unique set of case studies from Ethiopia described and told from a truly African perspective. · Emphasises to policy makers in Africa that development cannot be outsourced and there are no shortcuts; it is only through consistent effort and sustained support for their agricultural research and development that positive change can be brought about. · States that past agricultural development efforts by the international community have not properly included a strong African voice, and that therefore, all future academic research, policies and strategies dealing with the continent's agriculture and food security should be formulated by Africa's own leading thinkers and experts. · Is not a polemic; its arguments are knowledge and evidence based, building a compelling picture of how agricultural development can be sustained for the future.

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