Cultures attitude to the environment

15:24 April 0 Comments

Is suture part of the natural environment or is it separate and perhaps superior to nature (anthropogenic)? People living in industrialised countries spend a large portion of their lives mediated by technology. We live, work, drive, shop and do almost every other activity in a built environment. Although this is relatively new as many modern comforts we take for granted were fantasies 100 years ago. An issue with this lifestyle is the the damaging effect on the natural environment. Throughout human history activity has impacted the environment, what has changed is the magnitude of its effects. By the end of the 20th century, it was clear that lifestyles of those in industrial countries were not sustainable. Pollution of air, water and land threaten our own existence.

Issues 
Consumption; the industrial revolution led to demands for coal, oil, wood and metal. The rate at which materials are consumed is unsustainable. We are a throw away society.
-Global warming- greenhouse effect through burning of fossil fuels.
-Loss of ozone layer due to CFCs.
-Climate change and loss of biodiversity due to loss of rainforests through deforestation.
-Unsustainable overfishing.
-Acid rain which damages crops and forests, and kills fish, plants and other organisms.
-Toxic pollution of air and water.
-Genetic damage, hormonal damage and cancer due to exposure to toxins.
Population; more people means more consumption, leading to a higher demand and higher pollution. For 99.9% of human existence less than 10 million people inhabited the planet. In 1830 the population reached 1 billion, by 2000 the population was 6 billion. Environmental issues develop slowly. Research on human perception suggests that sensory changes that are slow are difficult to detect. At the core it is the individuals understanding of their relationship with the environment.

Attitude in the USA
As the severity/extent has become apparent people in the USA have began to notice. A survey on environmental issues showed a slow yet steady increase in recognition and concern for environmental issues. In the 1960s to the 1990s US people expressed increasing levels of concern. There was peak concern in the 1990s. A survey conducted in 1990 revealed that 71% believed the US spent "too little" on "improving and protecting the environment". Only 4% thought "too much" was spent. There was an increase in people believing too little was being done after the oil sludge spillage by Exxon Valdez.

Attitudes in other countries
High level of support around the world. A multi-national study of 1000 people in each of 24 countries  (both developing and industrialised) was carries out. Its findings were:
-When asked what they thought the biggest problem facing their nation was 16 of 24 countries had environmental in their top 3.
-When asked about their personal concern for the environment 50% of 21 of the 24 countries said their concern was a "great deal" or a "fair amount".
-When asked if they would pay more for products in return for increased environmental quality the majority in 17 of the countries said they would.
-The participants were asked about what they felt was more important economic growth or the environment. More than 50% in 21 of 24 countries chose environment.
There is high concern around the world, even in poorer countries, for the environment.

Different attitudes- egotistic versus biospheric.
People were asked to write an essay on "environmental problems that concern them the most and why?". Students in the US, Spain, Peru, Mexico and Nicaragua were asked to write the essay. The responses were then coded. Many said that the greatest issue was pollution. Their reasons varied from concern that air pollution would cause cancer, sickness and poor quality go life, to concern for the death of plants/animals and a disrupted balance of nature. The concerns reflect different underlying values: egotist (concern for self), altruistic (concern for others/future generations) and biospheric (concern for all living things and the biosphere). Researchers asked people close ended questions to look at their values- asking them to score their concern for each question which related to a value and the environment. Data from over 20 countries was complied. It was found that it is not the case that all the people from one country/culture share the same attitude. There are clear differences across cultures, however, in the level of concern. All three of the US samples found that egoism was higher than biospherism, and that they scored lower than the other countries in terms of concern. Most other samples (Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Paraguay and Venezuela) had higher biospheric values. Differences have been found between individualistic and collectivist cultures. Self-enhancing goals (money, power, wealth) are related to egotistic values to the environment. Values that transcend self (honesty and loyalty) have been related to biospheric goals.

Culture and attitude
US study suggests with broad/dispersed issues there is a tendency for people to exert less effort when working collectively. Group size increase leads to people being more likely to 'loaf'. People are less likely to be concerned/to act is it doesn't directly affect the people themselves.
It is different in collectivist cultures, there is a lesser tendency to 'loaf'. They value goals which benefit the group more than goals which benefit themselves.
Women are also though to be more concerned as they're more relationship orientated than men. Research suggests that this is true. 32 studies found that women express more concern over the environment and environmental issues. They report that women engage in more pro-environmental behaviour and activism than men. There were similar findings in children (6-10) across cultures.

Conclusions
US are less concerned than other countries. The US are more focused on local issues relating to the individual. People in other countries develop broader biospheric attitudes. Collectivist cultures are more likely to be biospheric.

Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation

02:23 April 0 Comments

Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is well known as dedicated environmentalist and has received praise from environmental groups for his activism. He owns eco-friendly cars- an electric Tesla Roadster, a Fisker Karma plug-in and a Toyota Puris. He has also installed solar panels on his house. In an interview he cited global warming as "the number-one environmental challenge." While filming The Revenant DiCaprio was quoted as having witnessed global warming in action, while in Alberta, Canada.
"We were in Calgary and the locals were saying, 'This has never happened in out province ever.' We would come and there would be eight feet of snow, and then all of a sudden a warm gust of wind would come... it was scary. I've never experienced something so firsthand that was so dramatic. You see the fragility of nature and how easily things can be completely transformed with just a few degrees difference. It's terrifying, and it's what people are talking about all over the world. And it's simply getting worse".

The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is dedicated to the long-term health and wellbeing of all Earth's inhabitants. Through collaborative partnerships, we support innovative projects that protect vulnerable wildlife from extinction, while restoring balance to threatened ecosystems and communities. The foundation works in four key areas: protecting biodiversity, wildlands conservation, oceans conservation and climate change. The foundation was founded in 1998 with the mission of protecting the world's last wild places. LDF implements solutions that help restore balance to threatened ecosystems, ensuring the long-term health and well-being of all Earth's inhabitants. Through grant making, public campaigns and media initiatives, the foundation hopes to bring attention to protecting biodiversity.
Leonardo DiCaprio's website and social media accounts are dedicated to inspiring the public to take action on key environmental issues.

National Parks Facing Sale

01:31 April 0 Comments

A conflict has arisen between environmentalism and consumer capitalism. An example of this is the struggle of the US state Wyoming to fund maintenance of the Grand Teton national park. The Government of Wyoming has threatened to sell off part of Grand Teton, unless the US administration can come up with more money to pay for eduction in the state. They make as little as $3,000 a year from leasing some of the national park land to cattle ranchers and feels it could make more income to benefit the state and its inhabitants. The part of land they may sell is valued at $125 million. Cultural attitudes towards the environment may favour its preservation or conservation, other social values- especially the need for capital to fund vital social services- can create a conflict of interest. 

Comparing the questions to the pre-releases

13:48 April 0 Comments

Cultures Under Threat: Uganda 1971-1979

02:42 April 0 Comments

Uganda's history between 1971 and 1979 compromises of Idi Amin's military dictatorship over Uganda. The economy of Uganda was devastated by Idi Amin's policies including the expulsion of Asians. Amin, a military leader, overthrew President of Uganda Milton Obote. The people of the Buganda kingdom seemed to welcome Amin and willingly forgot that he used military suppression to become leader. Uganda became a military dictatorship which was governed from a collection of military barracks across the country. Amin recruited followers from his own tribe, the Kakwas, along with Sudanese and Nubians. By 1977, these groups formed 60% of the 22 top generals and 75% of the cabinet. Muslims former 80 and 87.5% of the groups even though they were only 5% of the population. The Ugandan army grew from 10,000 to over 25,000 by 1978, however only 24% of the army were Ugandan. By the mid-1970s only the most trustworthy were allowed ammunition, although this didn't prevent a series of mutinies and murders. An attempt by American journalists, Nicholas Stroh and Robert Siedle, to investigates and of the barracks in 1972 led to their disappearances and later deaths.

In early 1972 he reversed the foreign policy to secure financial and military aid from Gaddafi of Libya. Amin expelled his remaining Israeli advisers and became anti-Israel. To get aid from Saudi Arabia he rediscovered his neglected Islamic heritage. Following his foreign policy reversal in 1972, the Soviet Union became Amin's largest supplier of arms. East Germany helped to build Amin's secret police, during the invasion of Tanzania in 1979 they attempted to remove evidence of their involvement.

In August 1972, he expelled almost all of Uganda's 80,000 Asians and seized their property, homes and businesses. This act proved disastrous for the already declining economy. As the army officers and supporters now ran the economy, all of the local businesses and stores were ran into the ground from mismanagement and abuse of power. The rural African producers turned to smuggling as the economy faltered. Amin became obsessed with stopping smugglers and allowed his adviser, former British citizen Bob Astles, to talk all necessary steps to eliminate the issues. These orders included the Ugandan police and army to shoot smugglers on sight.

In 1973 Idi Amin decreed Swahili was to be the official language of Uganda. 12 of 20 districts chose this but the other 8 wanted Luganda.

Persecution of ethnic and political groups: 
Amin retaliated against the attempted invasion by Ugandan exiles in 1972 by purging the army of Obote supporters, predominantly those from the Acholi and Lango ethnic groups. In July 1971, Lango and Acholi soldiers were massacred in the Jinja and Mbarara barrack, Some 5000 soldiers had been killed by early 1972 and twice as many civilians disappeared. Victims came to include members of other ethnic groups, religious leaders, journalists, artists, artists, judges, lawyers and foreign nationals. Bodies were often dumped in the River Nile.
The killings, motivated by ethnic, political and financial factors, continued through Amin's eight year rule. The death toll is estimated at no fewer than 80,000 and more likely around 300,000. Amnesty International and exile organisations put the number killed at 500,000.

Terrorism and suppression: 
Amin has been suspected to use state terrorism. One act of state terrorism was when High Court Judge Benedicto Kiwanuka, was seized directly from his courtroom. Like many other victims he was forced to remove his shoes and bundled into the boot of a car and never seen alive again. The shoes were left on the side of the roadside to mark the passing of human life. They do this to deter others from going against the state.
In June 1976 Amin attempted to establish ties with an international terrorist group, when he offered the Palestinian hijackers of an Air France flight protected base at the old airport at Entebbe as a place to press their demands in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages. After the hostages held by the group were rescued, Amin was left humiliated. He retaliated by having an elderly hostage kidnapped from hospital and killed. He also ordered all the civilian staff at Entebbe airport.

Environment: 
During the eight years under the rule of Amin the environment and ecological system were subjected to abuse and destruction by widespread poaching and deforesting committed by both smugglers and Ugandan army soldiers. It's reported that Uganda lost 75% of its elephants, 98% of its Rhinos, 90% of its crocodiles, 80% of its lions and leopards, as well as numerous species of bird.

Link to the world of cultural diversity: 
This case study shows how cultures can be threatened by political and military powers. It shows how the government/leader of a country can try to suppress culture in their own culture. Idi Amin went against many human rights during his time in power. He tried to silence foreign journalists from reporting the truth and had anyone who went against him killed.
The case study also shows the effects of culture on the environment and how the environment can be exploited.

Sources of further information: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_King_of_Scotland
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/jan/12/thriller.jamesmcavoy

Narborough Road in Leicester

15:32 April 1 Comments

Narborough Road in the late 40s

Narborough Road in Leicester was named the most diverse street in Britain by academics. The shooting street has shop owners from 23 different countries including Zambia, Uganda and Tanzania. There are also shopkeepers from eastern European counties, a fish and chip shop boss from Hong Kong and a bookmakers ran by a Canadian couple. Researchers have named it the most diverse street in the UK after discovering the owners of its 220 shop units come from 23 different counties. Members of the Braunstone History Group have spoken about how the area has changed over the years. Helen Caterwell said: 'Narborough has changed from being aa residential area to lots of shops over the years. We've seen different communities come in from different nationalities and I think it's actually quite and interesting area to be in because of the diversity of people.'

Academics at London School of Economics (LSE) admitted they were amazed at the number of nationalities when they visited the road in a suburb of south west Leicester. Dr Suzanne Hall, lead researcher, said 'What is interesting is about Narborough Road is that it's not a Little Italy or Chinatown'. 'It is the world in a microcosm, all these people, from all these different place, different cultures, living cheek by jowl, working wth each other and living in harmony. It is really an incredible array of nationalities in one place.'

Narborough Road as it is today

The countries represented on the steer are Britain, Uganda, Lithuania, Canada, Zimbabwe, Somalia, Iran, China, Tanzania, Poland, India, Cameroon, Turkey, Afghanistan, Kenya, Pakistan, Zambia, Jamaica, Kurdistan, Iraq, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Malawi.

Tajinder Reehal, 55, who was born in Nairobi, Kenya and runs Scorpion smoking shop said: 'I've seen the street change in the past 16 years. It's come alive. More bars, more restaurants. It's much more vibrant. I've seen the different nationalities come and go, too. Lots of Polish and Eastern Europeans now, but before that, it seemed to be mainly Turkish and Spanish.'
'I like it. It gives the area its identity. It feels cosmopolitan. You don't have to go into Leicester if you live here. It's all on your doorstep.'

Researchers found that shopkeepers on the street also trade skills with each other. The Canadian couple who run the bookmakers get a free haircut or free meal at a restaurant because they help other owner fill in the forms.

Lloyd Wright, who is half English and half Polish and runs a music shop said: 'There are people here from all over the world, but there's no tension. It's a very relaxed atmosphere. I'm proud to tell people this is wheel I'm from.'

I think that Narborough Road is the perfect example of an ethnoscape. The road shows the effects that migration of people across cultures and borders has led to. This is a cultural landscape that you can read from the shops and the different people who work on the street. It is a mini community of people from a variety of cultures working in harmony.

Why is Leicester so diverse? 
The city became four times lager as people moved to Leicester during the industrial revolution to find work in the shoe and textile mills. After Indian population grew in the post-war years, the authorities took out adverts to discourage Ugandan Asians from moving there in 1972 during Idi Amin's dictatorship. But the adverts have been heavily criticised by community leaders and they actually had the opposite effect encouraging the group to come to the city.
The 2011 census showed that less than half of Leicester's population described themselves as White British. The census reported: 'Of the 110,843 born abroad, 36% arrived since 2004.'

See the article written by the Daily Mail here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3432300/How-things-used-Evocative-pictures-street-named-diverse-Britain-looked-years-ago.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3429838/Most-multi-national-high-street-Britain-boasts-business-owners-23-different-countries.html

Dr Suzanne Hall (LSE): http://www.lse.ac.uk/researchAndExpertise/Experts/profile.aspx?KeyValue=s.m.hall@lse.ac.uk

Channel 4- Preserving Diversity

14:44 April 0 Comments

Disney Glocalisation

01:44 April 0 Comments

Disney adapt and target their films at specific countries. As you can see from the map Disney has targeted films at countries all around the world.
For some examples on how Disney is inspired by places and cultures see this blog: http://grown-up-disney-kid.tumblr.com/post/113217162521/real-world-places-that-have-inspired-disney-movies
Below is a scene from the film Tangled which was inspired by festivals in Thailand and Germany. The style of the city was based off of places in Germany.


I found these videos where they show Disney princesses singing in their actual languages.

Globalisation and Glocalisation

01:35 April 0 Comments

Undeniably, the world is becoming more global. In this homogenous global culture all cultural differences are disregarded. What may be considered offensive in Middle Eastern cultures does not exist anymore and typical Western advertising is no longer the norm for global brands. Homogeneity promotes an ever-increasing world economy because anyone/everyone can be targeted through the same advertisements and marketing campaigns. A successful example of glocalisation (when a brand roles out a product which appeals globally) is when Disney opened a theme park in Europe, then called Euro Disney (Disneyland Paris). The theme park struggled to make a profit in the first few years and appeared to be a huge mistake for the American company. The mistake was to force the US concept of the park to Europeans, who were everything but receptive. When changing the name Euro Disney to Disneyland Paris, the Walt Disney Company started to implement glocalisation practices. The main changes were "cutting the price; turning shows and settings into a French style; change the food menus and eating habits; and change of employees customs and labour policies." These changes turned out to be a smart move.


The Disney Company
Revenue (2014): US$ 48.813 billion
Number of employees (2014): 180,000
The Disney Company was established in 1923 by Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney. The company rapidly began to expand and in the years to come has grown exponentially. Steamboat Willie was released in 1928, introducing the world to Mickey and Minnie Mouse. It established the image that the Disney Company now relies upon. Disney stepped into the movie realm in 1937 with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The company then began to expand beyond film and television by opening a theme park. Disneyland opened in 1955, and then in 1971 Walt Disneyland Resort opened in Orlando, Florida. In the 1980s the company began to expand internationally due to its success in the US. The first international park, Tokyo Disneyland, opened win 1983, a decade later they agreed to build Euro Disneyland- later renamed Disneyland Paris.
In 1995 they purchased ABC and a fourth of the California Angels Baseball team. They continued to expand through opening their own radio station: Radio Disney. To increase their audience to include sports fans, they launched the ESPN magazine and opened their wide world of sports.
Disney launched their first ship from the cruise line in 1998, to grow in the industry of tourism. In 2001 the acquired Fox Family and renamed it ABC family. They also acquired rights to The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House.
Hong Kong Disneyland officially opened in 2005. 2006 saw Disney acquire Pixar Animation Studios and 2009 saw them acquire Marvel Entertainment. Marvel cost Walt Disney $4 billion (£2.5 billion). Disney planned to use the franchises characters in film, TV, video games and theme parks. The acquisition of Marvel brought Disney a new audience. Disney's Chief Executive Bob Iger, said "Marvel has a treasure trove" of property that "transcends gender, age, culture and geographical barriers". David Joyce, a media analyst and stockbroker Miller Taback, said "this helps give Disney more important exposure to the young male demographic that the have sort of lost some ground with in recent years". (Andrew Clark, The Guardian [April 2009])
2012 Marvel Studios film The Avengers became one of the highest grossing films of all time after grossing $1.520 billion at the worldwide box office.
More recently in 2012, Disney completed its acquisition of Lucas Film Ltd. and gained the rights to the Star Wars Franchise. The company says the transaction included a cash payment of $2.21 billion and just under 37.1 million Disney Shares. The Star Wars franchise is estimated to be worth over $30 billion. Star Wars Episode VII was released in December 2015 and has become the highest grossing film of all time at the domestic (US) box office. Episode VIII is currently moving into production for a December 2017 release [as of Feb 2016] and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (due for release in December 2016) is moving into post-production. Other films including Episode IX and a Han Solo anthology are also planned. (LA Times).

Homogenous and Heterogenous

15:23 April 0 Comments

Positive impacts of a heterogenous culture
Many people focus on the negative impacts of immigration such as the dilution of domestic culture. However, there are many positive impacts- immigration creates a more diverse society. Cultures collide and create something new. Immigration enriches domestic collide to create something new. Immigration enriches domestic culture. Culture itself is not static; it is ever-changing. Traditions may be preserved but the culture continues to evolve and change. The UK can be described as being diverse and multicultural due to the immigration which has occurred. The World Values Survey mapped the most and least radically tolerant countries. People were asked to identify the types of people wouldn't want as a neighbour. Anglo and Latin countries were most tolerant, whilst India and Jordan were by far the least tolerant. More than 40% said they wouldn't want a neighbour of a different race.

Variations in cultural diversity 
A 2011 paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research, "Cultural Diversity, Geographical Isolation and the Origins of the Wealth of Nations', looks at the development and how/why it differs across countries/societies. It was carried out to better understand the relationship between cultural diversity and economic growth. The findings of the study were...
- A greater degree of diversity increased standards of living in the industrial era.
- Cultural homogeneity had a positive impact on economic development before the industrial revolution, but is associated with a decrease in per capita income in 1960.


Examples of a homogenous culture: Iceland
93% of Iceland's residents are Icelandic. The Icelandic population today is remarkably homogenous. There has been little significant immigration since Norsemen first settled in Iceland in the 9th century. Iceland genetic isolation has created is of significant interest to scientists investigation the human genome. A genetic experiment began in an attempt to find the root causes of, and potential cures for, some of the worlds worst diseases (Time Magazine).
Iceland is an island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It was founded more than 1000 years ago during the viking age of exploration and settles by a mixed Norse and Celtic population. It is physically isolated- 500 miles from its closest neighbour Scotland. Although it is increasingly integrated into the European mainstream. Icelanders take care to preserve their traditions, customs and language. Many Icelanders still believe in elves, trolls and other mythical creatures. Iceland has a rugged 3000 mile coastline. Iceland economy is mostly generated through the primary sector (fishing) but also contains manufacturing. Icelanders are proof that a small and homogenous population can develop a rich and varied cultural life. Iceland character reflects both it homogeneity and its isolation, and its people take care to preserve their traditions and language by using native terms for introduced objects.
Twice in the 15th century the plague visited Iceland and killed around half of the population each time.


Japanese Culture
The culture of Japan has evolved greatly go the millennia. The inhabitants of Japan experienced a long period of relative isolation from the outside world during to Tokugawa Shogunate. The roots of Japan's culture lie in this period of time. After establishing authority of Japan in 1603, the Tokugawa rulers froze the social order by dividing into roughly 4 different classes: Samurai, peasants, artisans and merchants. The hierarchy prevented social ability(the ability to move social class) and into status marriage. Another group was created outside the classes-outcasts (people do menial work). A 'we' and 'them' mindset was created between Japanese samurais and common people. During the Tokugawa period the state policy of seclusion, Sakoku, was creases to isolate Japan from rest of the world. After this period of egalitarian (equal) citizenship was introduced. However, internal distinctions between classes continued. The idea of 'we' and 'them' was apply to Japan and the rest of the world. Benedict Anderson created the 'imagined community' theory. This is the idea that's nation and race are limited because of it members perceived boundaries- beyond which the rest of the world lies. 'We' (the Japanese race/nation) is the imagined community, 'them' are the nations beyond the perceived boundary. The shared Japanese identity can be said to be reinforced by the fact that Japan is an isolated island nation made up of series of small islands. This creates awareness of their geographical location making it easier for them to maintain the 'we' 'them' mentality. Nowadays the use of the 'we' and 'them' mentality mostly applies to foreigners such as migrant workers. The foreigners present, in the minds of many Japanese, are threat to the stability of their homogenous Japanese society.

The World Values Survey (WVS)-Inglehart-Welzel Cultural Map
This is a global research project explores peoples values and beliefs. Analysis of WVS data made by political scientists Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel asserts that there are two major dimensions of cross-cultural variation in the world:
1. traditional values versus secular-rational values and
2. survival values versus self-expression values.

Traditional values emphasise the importance of religion, parent-child ties, deference to authority and traditional family values. People who embrace the values also rejected divorce, euthanasia, abortion and suicide. These societies have high-levels of national pride and a nationalistic outlook. Secular-rational values have the opposite preference to the traditional values.
Survival values place emphasis on economic and physical security. It is linked to a relatively ethnocentric outlook and low levels of trust and tolerance.
Self-expression values give high priority to environmental protection, growing tolerance of foreigners, gays and lesbians and gender equality, and the rising demands for participation in decision-making in economic and political life.
The countries can be divided into nine clusters based on location, language, etc. They can also be clustered by wealth. WVS is currently preparing data from way six with surveys conducted from 2010 to 2014.

Cultural diversity in cities
London: London is one of the most ethnically diverse cities on earth. In 2007 there were over 300 languages spoken in it and more than 50 non-indigenous communities with a population of over 10,000. At the 2011 Census London had a population of 8,179,941, of this 44.9% were White British, 37% were born outside the UK and 24.5% were born outside Europe.

One significant group/ ethnic minority is Bangladeshi. A major wave of immigration began in the 1970s as people fled from poverty and the Bangladesh liberation War. Many settled around Brick Lane. The history of Chinese in London is long and complex, the first Chinese people arrived in the 19th century as sailors. The largest ethnic minority London is Indian. People from India has settled in Great Britain since the East Indian company (EIC) recruited lascars to replace vacancies in their crews. During the 19th century, the EIC bought over thousands of Indian lascars, scholars and workers to Britain- many of whom settled down and took local British wives. Following World War II and the breakup of the British Empire, Indian migration to the UK increased through the 50s and 60s.

"Many free festivals are held across London to celebrate the cultural contribution of London's diverse community. These festivals build the cohesion in integration of the city, making the citizens feel recognised, breaking down barriers and creating momentum as the city learns about and continues to experience new cultures."-The Guardian April 2008.



Leicester Diwali- 
In 2015 thousands gathered on November 11th to celebrate Diwali: a five day festival celebrating light, knowledge and good nature. Leicester's Divali celebrations are said to be the biggest outside India and the cities "Golden mile" is decked with garlands featuring more than 6500 lights. It attracts over 35,000 visitors of all faiths come across Britain, Europe, the US and Canada, to enjoy the spectacle.
Diwali is just one example of how Asian festivals have become bigger, flashier and more visible across multicultural Britain over the last two decades. Amazon in India already offers a special Diwali sale for native customers, the global giant also has plans to spread its wings by opening a "Diwali store" for US and UK customers. It is becoming a more commercial festival. "I think there is nothing wrong with commercialisation. It's different with Diwali..." "we haven't last the cultural aspect of it by any means. But at the same time we have to keep up with modern times, this is just an evolved way of celebrating now."- Harps.
The festival is now appealing to non-Asians. In summer 2015 Sainsbury's, Tesco and Asda offered specials. "It's very lucrative. It's a growing market because the country is becoming more diverse- and if the supermarket want to win customers, they have to cater to every taste."
The commercialisation of such festivals has brought out many varied opinions about the necessity of families celebrating through superficial means.

Culture Under Threat: Greenland's Inuit Community

04:44 April 0 Comments

Young people are beginning to leave the small hunting villages where the Inuits live. The culture has had to adapt and change over the centuries to cope with the changing climate, however it seems that it is the migration of people looking for better opportunities that will lead to the loss of culture. There is now a town along the Uummannaq Fjord where 2200 people live- the town ha a steep narrow road for motor vehicle access. The town also has stores, bars and a hospital. This is also where children from the villages are schooled and where some come to work and shop. Previously villagers would work by hunting and fishing. They eat and use the by-products of whales and seals but this is not longer a product which can be exported due to hunting bans. The main export is now halibut. For this reason many settlements now have factories ran by Royal Greenland.

Culture Under Threat: Kiribati

04:03 April 0 Comments

Kiribati's culture is centred around family, the church and the sea. The islands isolation has allowed traditional values and skills to be maintained. Some of the traditions have led to some social problems. Drinking alcohol and consuming Todi (locally fermented coconut juice) is part of the culture. This has has led to alcoholism becoming an issue on the island, this could be an explanation for the high levels of domestic violence. Pubusi is a cultural practice on the island, this is where you can ask a neighbour for any material possession, many people agree. This may explain their low GDP when measured against other countries. Kiribati is known for its traditional martial arts, the essence of which is the magical power of ancestral warrior spirits. Kiribati has folk music based around chanting and body percussion. They often put on public performances of their music. They also stick dance, they use this to accompany the telling of legends and semi-historical stories. The form of dancing is called tirere and is only performed during major festivals. It is a major part of culture and is what makes it so unique. Dancers dance with their arms outstretched and use of sudden bird like movements of the head. The Frigate Bird on the flag refers to the bird-like style of dance. Smiling whilst dancing is considered vulgar in Kiribati dancing. This is because they do not view dancing as a form of entertainment but as a form of storytelling and showing skill, beauty and endurance.

The Kiribati culture is under threat, largely due to the sinking of the islands. Climate change is causing sea levels to rise, Kiribati is only around 8m above sea level- each year more and more of the island is being lost. The government blames western countries, who emit greenhouse gases, for their situation.
An example of the loss of Kiribati's culture is the loss of Bwabwai- a prestige food of the culture. Rising sea levels are causing the water on the island to become more saline. Bwabwai is a swamp taro which takes around 5 years to grow and is sensitive to salt water intrusion. It can now not be grown in many areas of the island and is at risk of eventually being lost from the islands cuisine.

Many people find it deeply unfair that their climate issues are not of their own doing. Since the 1980s the leaders have tried to get the attention of major carbon-polluting countries. Although due to the islands size this has been difficult. It has however attracted the attention of many journalists and photographers which has helped to publicise their case. The island and peoples futures are unclear. People of Kiribati has begun considering migration, but as of yet no countries have said that they will accept the climate refugees. Many of the people don't want to leave their lives on the island, they would only leave if they had to. One way in which they are trying to prevent sinking is to plant mangroves- this will not solve the issue though it will only buy them more time.

Cultures Under Threat: Tibet

14:58 April 0 Comments

The Death of Tibet
Tibet has a distinct culture due to its geographical location and climatic conditions. The culture is influenced by neighbouring countries such as Nepal, India and China, but due to the remoteness of the country (in the Himalaya's) and inaccessibility  the culture has preserved local influences and has led to the distinct culture. Buddhism was introduced in the 7th century and has had a strong influence on culture. Buddhists introduced arts and customs to the areas from India and China. The art, literature an music all have elements of Buddhist beliefs in them. Tibet has a unique cuisine compared to other countries, this is because the crops must be able to grow at high altitudes. Barley is the key crop- it is used to make butter tea. They work on a lunisolar calendar- the Tibetan year is 12-13 lunisolar months. The 13th month is added around every three years so the calendar equals the solar calendar.

Tibetan culture has come under threat from China. Tibet was invaded in 1950 by China (battle of Chamdo). The invasion led to over a million Tibetan deaths between 1950 and 1970. Ancient monasteries and temples were on the verge of destruction and Tibetan culture was being disintegrated. In 1951 the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government was forced to accept the Seventeen Point Agreement for the peaceful liberation of Tibet, incorporating it into the peoples republic of China. In 1959 an uprising in Tibet began, armed conflict between Tibetan rebels and the Chinese arms began in 1951, due to China failing to honour the Seventeen Point Agreement. In 1959 the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India, after a failed attempt anti-China uprising, where he still lives as a refugee. Around 80,000 Tibetan refugees fled with him. To preserve Tibetan culture he created a Tibetan educational system to teach Tibetan children the language, history, religion and culture. He travels the world teaching Tibetan Buddhism and talking about the importance of compassion as the source of a happy life.

in 1995, Dalai Lama named a 6 year old Gedhun Choekyi Nyiima as the true reincarnation of Panchen Lama (the 2nd most important figure in Tibetan Buddhism). Chinese authorities placed him under house arrest and designated another child as Panchen Lama.

Around the world, institutions face pressure from China not to accept Dalai Lama. China froze all high-level contact with the UK when David Cameron met with the Dalai Lama. Relations between China and the UK thawed when Mr Cameron announced he had no intention to meet with him again.

It is dangerous for monks to talk about Dalai Lama, they would be taken away if the government found out they had spoken to him or about him. In a BBC News article I watched, the monks faces had to be blurred out so that they were unrecognisable. Their religious freedom is restricted, they have to worship in secret. To them the Dalai Lama is the sun, "he is the only master" in their "hearts". David Cameron has had to cut ties with Dalai Lama to make connections with China. The more foreign governments who comply, critics say, the more abuse of human rights there will be. Tibet will slowly slip away from international view and the fearful monks will become more isolated. Similarly, in 2014 when Obama held talks with the Dalai Lama in Washington, China summoned the US embassy official in Beijing in protest.

Tibets culture has been affected by the liberation by China in the 1950s. Tibetan language is separate from Chinese, although inside Tibet Chinese has become the official language of education, business and government. Primary and secondary education is predominantly taught in Mandarin, with Tibetan as a second language. Many people work preserve the Tibetan culture, such as by running local language classes. However, organisers risk being arrested.

Cultural Landscape and the 4 -Scapes

13:22 April 0 Comments

A cultural landscape can range from thousands of acres of rural tracks to a small house with a front garden. Like historic buildings and districts, thesis locations reveal aspects of our country's origins and development. Cultural landscapes revel a lot about our evolving relationship with the natural world. It is defined as "a geographical area, including both cultural and natural resources and the wildlife or domestic animals therein, associated with a historic event, activity, person(s) or exhibiting other cultural or aesthetic values". There are four main types of cultural landscapes:
1. Historic Designed Landscape: a landscape which was consciously designed by a landscape architect or horticulturalist. The landscape may be associated with a significant person(s), trend or event landscape architecture. Aesthetic values play a significant role.
2. Historic Vernacular Landscape: a landscape which has evolved through use by people whose activities or occupancy shaped that landscape. Through social/cultural attitudes of an individual, family or community, the landscape reflects the physical, biological and cultural character if those everyday lives.
3. Historic Sites: a landscape significant for its association with a historic event,  activity or person.
4. Ethnographic Landscape: a landscape containing a variety of natural and cultural resources that associated people defines as heritage resources.

The World Heritage Committee define a cultural landscape as the "cultural properties [that] represent the combined works of nature and of man". A cultural landscape can be...
1. "a landscape designed and created intentionally by man"
2. an "organic evolved landscape" which may be a "relic (or fossil) landscape" or a "continuing landscape".
3. an "associative cultural landscape" which may be valued because of the "religious artistic or cultural associations of the natural element".

St Kilda in the United Kingdom is an example of a traditional cultural landscape. St Kilda is a volcanic archipelago. It has some of the highest cliffs in Europe, which are home to large colonies of rare and endangered species of birds such as Puffins. Uninhabited since 1930 St Kilda bears the evidence of more than 2000 years of human occupation in the extreme conditions prevalent in the Hebrides. The island is preserved from when the last occupants left the island, and is a cultural attribute.

Arjun Appadurai looked at models of cultural flows and came with the 4 -scapes, these are ethnoscape, technoscape, finanscape and mediascape.
Ethnoscape:
He defined an ethnoscape as a "landscape(s) of a persons who constitute the shifting world in which we live in;""tourists, immigrants, refugees, exiles, guest workers and other moving groups". In its simplest form an ethnoscape is the migration of people across cultures and borders. Examples of this are tourists, immigrants and refugees.
Technoscape:
A technoscape is the "global configuration of technology" which now moves quickly across previously imperious boundaries". Simply it is cultural interactions due to advancing technology.
Finanscape:
A finanscape describes the movements of capital across different borders. It  describes how money moves around the world.
Mediascape:
A mediascape looks at the use of the media that shapes the way in which we interpret out imagined world. This can be through digital media such as TV or film, or through other forms of media such as print-based media like newspapers and magazines. These different "-scapes" can come together and interact to create an ideascape. The definition of an ideascape is ideas formed through the combination of the other 4 "-scapes". How they interact can be shown through the cultural web. Appadurai's idea of the different -scapes present culture and globalisation as flowing and being interactive instead of being static.

Landscapes can be 'read'- we can deduce the landscapes meaning by interpreting symbols and features used in their creation. Symbols could include the placement of monuments/religious structures; relationships between the buildings; the architecture, symbols and art used; and the relationship between natural and man made features.

What is Culture?

12:35 April 0 Comments

Culture;
Culture is a complex concept, with multiple meanings but universal importance to human populations. In many parts of the world consumption is the dominant, but not only, culture. Culture varies spatially and has a distinct geography, with some areas being relatively homogenous while others offer greater diversity. Large urban areas often produce diversity, which is reflected in the population, services and built environment of cities. Attitudes to cultural diversity differ, both personal and political/national.

Cultural Patterns;
Globalisation is seen by some as a key process in driving culture towards a global model, and media TNCs and communications technology aid this process. However, the pattern is complex and localised cultures do survive and new cultures can be generated. Culture, to some extent, determines our attitude to the wider environment in terms of consumption, conservation, exploitation and protection. Attitudes to the environment differ between cultures; however the dominance of today's consumer capitalism is difficult to resolve with pressing global environmental concerns.

The Oxford Advanced Learners dictionary defines culture as "the ideas, customs and social behaviour  of a particular peoples or society". It also defines culture as "the attitudes and behaviour characteristic of a particular social group." This shows that culture can exist on a variety of scales from global beliefs to isolated tribes of less than 100 people. Culture is everything that humans do; it includes an endless range of thing. "It includes aspects of society, politics and the economy, and can be categorised by a range of different (and sometimes overlapping) groups". Cultures can take a variety of forms and can be considered mainstream, sub- or counter-. Culture has its own strand of geography called cultural geography which explores context and culture, looking at how cultural activities and contexts interact with each other and why cultural activities occur in particular ways.
Culture is all around us, we are all part of different cultures and live in a world where traces of past and current cultures surround us. Take Nelsons column for example this is a cultural trace, it represents the military and power of the British Empire. The Column is supposed to inspire pride and patriotism for the country. Even though is was built over 200 years ago. Trafalgar Square and Nelsons Column are still places where many national events and celebrations are held. However, it is also a place where anarchy occurs and protests take place, such as the 1990 poll tax riots. Political artist Banksy recognised this by stencilling "designated riot area" on the plinth, intentionally playing with the notions of power and authority. This shows that Trafalgar Square is not simply a place of patriotism, but a place of composite cultural ideas, activities and histories.