Workers working on a crane in front of the Arts Centre.
Two workers taking photographs while standing in the middle of Bealey Avenue.
Workers working on a crane in front of the Arts Centre. Road cones have been placed around the area to divert the traffic.
A photograph of workers from the Residential Access Project walking down Tuam Street. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers loading a trailer with items salvaged from people's homes during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers in fluorescent vests outside Alice in Videoland. The photograph was taken on 29 April 2011 during the Residential Access Project which gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of two workers beginning the clean-up and evacuation of a flat on Poplar Street during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers from HireQuip loading a trailer with items from people's homes during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of a worker examining the contents of a flat on Poplar Street during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes. The wall has crumbled leaving the room exposed.
A photograph of Danica Nel and other workers standing in line with their authorization forms for the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of workers loading a trailer with items salvaged from people's homes during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of two workers loading a truck with items from people's homes during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers from the Residential Access Project standing on High Street near the intersection with Tuam Street. In the background, a trailer is being loaded with items salvaged from people's homes during the project which gave residents temporary access to the cordon to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers from the Residential Access Project sitting outside the Alice in Videoland Building on the corner of Tuam and High Streets. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of workers loading a trailer with items salvaged from people's homes during the Residential Access Project. The project gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes.
A photograph of two workers standing in the site of a demolished building on Tuam Street which is being used as a car park. The photograph was taken during the Residential Access Project which gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of workers in fluorescent vests standing in front of the earthquake damaged McKenzie and Willis Building. The photograph was taken on 29 April 2011 during the Residential Access Project which gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
A photograph of an Urban Search and Rescue team member walking past workers from HireQuip outside Alice in Videoland. The photograph was taken on 29 April 2011 during the Residential Access Project which gave residents temporary access within the red-zone cordon in order to retrieve items from their homes after the 22 February 2011 earthquake.
Today there is interest in building resilient communities. Identifying and managing the risks of natural hazards with communities who face compounding hazards is challenging. Alpine ski areas provide a unique context to study this challenging and complex process. The traditional approach taken to manage natural hazards is discipline-centric and focuses on common (e.g. high probability low consequence) natural hazards such as avalanches. While this thesis acknowledges that the common approach is rational, it argues that we can extend our communities of practice to include rare (e.g. low probability / high consequence) natural hazards such as earthquakes. The dynamically complex nature of these ‘rare’ hazards limits our understanding about them, but by seeking and using the lived experiences of people in mountain communities some knowledge can be gained to help improve our understanding of how to adapt. This study focuses on such an approach in the context of alpine ski areas prone to earthquakes as a first step toward identifying key policy opportunities for hazard mitigation in general. The contributions can be broken down into methodological, contextual, and theoretical pursuits, as well as opportunities for improving future research. A development mixed method triangulated approach was justified because the research problem (i.e. earthquakes in ski areas) has had little consideration. The context provided the opportunity to test the integration of methods while dealing with the challenges of research in a novel context. Advancement to fuzzy cognitive mapping was achieved through the use of unsupervised neural networks (Self-organizing Maps or Kohonen Maps). The framework applied in the multi-site case study required a synthesis of current approaches, advances to methods and a functional use of cultural theory. Different approaches to participatory policy development were reviewed to develop a research protocol that was accessible. Cultural theory was selected as a foundation for the thesis because of its’ preference for plural rationalities from five ways of organizing. Moreover, the study undertook a shift away from the dichotomy of ‘methodological individualism’ and ‘methodological collectivism’ and instead chose the dividual (i.e. social solidarities that consist of culural biases, behavioral strategies and social relations) as a consistent unit of analysis despite three different methodologies including: field studies, qualitative interviews, and fuzzy cognitive maps. In this sense, the thesis sought to move away from ‘elegant solutions’ from singular solidarities or methods toward a research philosophy that sustains requisite variety and clumsy solutions. Overall the approach was a trandisciplinary framework that is a step toward sustainable hazards mitigation. The results indicate that the selections of risks and adaptation strategies associated with the in-situ hazards are driven by roles that managers, workers, and riders play in the context. Additionally, fuzzy cognitive maps were used as an extension of qualitative interviews and demonstrated the potential for power struggles that may arise between participant groups when considering strategies for preparation, response and recovery. Moreover, the results stress that prolonged engagement with stakeholders is necessary to improve the policy development process. Some comments are made on the compatibility condition of congruence between cultural biases, behavioural strategies, and social relations. As well, inclusion of the hermit/autonomous solidarities is stressed as a necessary component of future applications of cultural theory. The transdisciplinary mixed-method framework is an approach that can be transferred to many other vital areas of research where integration is desirable.
Questions to Ministers 1. Hon PHIL GOFF to the Prime Minister: In stating that "this Government introduced a balanced package of tax cuts" was he saying that his tax changes and the tax system are fair to all New Zealanders? 2. LOUISE UPSTON to the Minister of Finance: What will be the main objectives of Budget 2011 tomorrow? 3. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Prime Minister: When he said "in most cases the tax switch more than compensated people for the increase in GST", in which cases hadn't people been fully compensated? 4. JOHN BOSCAWEN to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by the statement he made in his post-Cabinet press conference on Monday that "Everyone needs to understand that what Don Brash is talking about is hardcore"; if so why? 5. Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE to the Minister of Finance: What is the total impact on the operating balance, over the forecast period, of the fiscal impact of the tax changes in Budget 2010 according to page 70 of the 2010 Budget and Economic Fiscal Update, and how does he reconcile that with the Prime Minister's statement in the House yesterday that "National's tax plan 2010…was fiscally neutral"? 6. ALLAN PEACHEY to the Minister of Corrections: What reports has she received about the first year of container units being used in New Zealand prisons? 7. RAHUI KATENE to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What was the motivation behind the decision to remove regulatory forbearance from the Telecommunications (TSO, Broadband, and Other Matters) Amendment Bill? 8. JACINDA ARDERN to the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery: Does he stand by the Prime Minister's statement in relation to Christchurch that "it looks like the residential rebuild alone will require up to 12,500 full-time workers", if not, how many full-time workers does he believe will now be needed? 9. Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What recent announcements has she made to support community social services? 10. CLARE CURRAN to the Minister for Communications and Information Technology: What is the best estimate of the additional cost to the Crown of the change he announced to the ultrafast broadband network this morning? 11. TIM MACINDOE to the Minister of Housing: What recent announcements has he made regarding the Government's Housing Innovation Fund? 12. GARETH HUGHES to the Acting Minister of Energy and Resources: What is her response to the statement of leading scientist and NASA director Dr James Hansen, currently touring New Zealand, that "coal is the single greatest threat to civilisation and all life on our planet" and we should leave it in the ground?