Suchergebnisse

Review of: Scenic Playground: The Story behind New Zealand's Mountain Tourism, Peter Alsop, Dave Bamford and Lee Davidson (2018)
Wellington: Te Papa Press, 416 pp.,
ISBN 978 0 99414 602 1 (hbk), NZ$80

Review of: Social Investment: A New Zealand Policy Experiment, Jonathan Boston and Derek Gill (eds) (2018)
Wellington: Bridget Williams Books, 448 pp.,
ISBN 978 1 98853 358 2 (pbk), NZ$69.99

Abstract
Tourist texts, such as brochures or guidebooks, are among the first sources of encounter between tourists and destination people. Indeed, such texts provide tourists with a 'cognitive framework' (Bhattacharya 1997: 372) for interpreting a destination and its cultures, and language in travel writing is paramount for negotiating between different cultures and meanings. Guidebooks should thus be read critically in order to assess the cultural images they construct to promote a specific destination, and the language they use to create them. This article offers a linguistic and discursive analysis of how mainstream travel guidebooks of Aotearoa New Zealand in English (i.e., Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, National Geographic Traveler and the DK Eyewitness Travel Guide) represent Maori culture. Specifically, the sections on the culture of tangata whenua (the people of the land/Maori people) in these guidebooks will be studied to determine which aspects of Maori culture are used to depict the Maori people of Aotearoa New Zealand and how the language of tourism shapes such descriptions. The title of this article refers to the four words in te reo Maori (Maori language) that are most commonly associated with Maori culture in tourist texts. The aim of the article is to determine whether these descriptions offer an exoticized version of Maori culture, or whether they effectively engage with its actuality and complexity. Following a transdisciplinary approach that bridges sociolinguistics and tourism studies, the article seeks to present a case study that demonstrates how fruitfully linguistic analysis can be used in the discussion of the production and dissemination of the tourist image of Maori people in Aotearoa New Zealand from an Indigenous tourism studies perspective.

Abstract
Background
The paper presents an overview of air quality in the 27 member countries of the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (previous EU-28), from 2000 to 2017. We reviewed the progress made towards meeting the air quality standards established by the EU Ambient Air Quality Directives (European Council Directive 2008/50/EC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines by estimating the trends (Mann-Kendal test) in national emissions of main air pollutants, urban population exposure to air pollution, and in mortality related to exposure to ambient fine particles (PM2.5) and tropospheric ozone (O3).

Results
Despite significant reductions of emissions (e.g., sulfur oxides: ~ 80%, nitrogen oxides: ~ 46%, non-methane volatile organic compounds: ~ 44%, particulate matters with a diameter lower than 2.5 µm and 10 µm: ~ 30%), the EU-28 urban population was exposed to PM2.5 and O3 levels widely exceeding the WHO limit values for the protection of human health. Between 2000 and 2017, the annual PM2.5-related number of deaths decreased (- 4.85 per 106 inhabitants) in line with a reduction of PM2.5 levels observed at urban air quality monitoring stations. The rising O3 levels became a major public health issue in the EU-28 cities where the annual O3-related number of premature deaths increased (+ 0.55 deaths per 106 inhabitants).

Conclusions
To achieve the objectives of the Ambient Air Quality Directives and mitigate air pollution impacts, actions need to be urgently taken at all governance levels. In this context, greening and re‐naturing cities and the implementation of fresh air corridors can help meet air quality standards, but also answer to social needs, as recently highlighted by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

BACKGROUND: The paper presents an overview of air quality in the 27 member countries of the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (previous EU-28), from 2000 to 2017. We reviewed the progress made towards meeting the air quality standards established by the EU Ambient Air Quality Directives (European Council Directive 2008/50/EC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines by estimating the trends (Mann-Kendal test) in national emissions of main air pollutants, urban population exposure to air pollution, and in mortality related to exposure to ambient fine particles (PM(2.5)) and tropospheric ozone (O(3)). RESULTS: Despite significant reductions of emissions (e.g., sulfur oxides: ~ 80%, nitrogen oxides: ~ 46%, non-methane volatile organic compounds: ~ 44%, particulate matters with a diameter lower than 2.5 µm and 10 µm: ~ 30%), the EU-28 urban population was exposed to PM(2.5) and O(3) levels widely exceeding the WHO limit values for the protection of human health. Between 2000 and 2017, the annual PM(2.5)-related number of deaths decreased (- 4.85 per 10(6) inhabitants) in line with a reduction of PM(2.5) levels observed at urban air quality monitoring stations. The rising O(3) levels became a major public health issue in the EU-28 cities where the annual O(3)-related number of premature deaths increased (+ 0.55 deaths per 10(6) inhabitants). CONCLUSIONS: To achieve the objectives of the Ambient Air Quality Directives and mitigate air pollution impacts, actions need to be urgently taken at all governance levels. In this context, greening and re‐naturing cities and the implementation of fresh air corridors can help meet air quality standards, but also answer to social needs, as recently highlighted by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

Western diets are characterised by a high intake of meat, dairy products and eggs, causing an intake of saturated fat and red meat in quantities that exceed dietary recommendations. The associated livestock production requires large areas of land and lead to high nitrogen and greenhouse gas emission levels. Although several studies have examined the potential impact of dietary changes on greenhouse gas emissions and land use, those on health, the agricultural system and other environmental aspects (such as nitrogen emissions) have only been studied to a limited extent. By using biophysical models and methods, we examined the large-scale consequences in the European Union of replacing 25–50% of animal-derived foods with plant-based foods on a dietary energy basis, assuming corresponding changes in production. We tested the effects of these alternative diets and found that halving the consumption of meat, dairy products and eggs in the European Union would achieve a 40% reduction in nitrogen emissions, 25–40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and 23% per capita less use of cropland for food production. In addition, the dietary changes would also lower health risks. The European Union would become a net exporter of cereals, while the use of soymeal would be reduced by 75%. The nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) of the food system would increase from the current 18% to between 41% and 47%, depending on choices made regarding land use. As agriculture is the major source of nitrogen pollution, this is expected to result in a significant improvement in both air and water quality in the EU. The resulting 40% reduction in the intake of saturated fat would lead to a reduction in cardiovascular mortality. These diet-led changes in food production patterns would have a large economic impact on livestock farmers and associated supply-chain actors, such as the feed industry and meat-processing sector.