Securing hipster leisure: park policy in gentrifying neighbourhoods

In this research note, we situate the policy response of park circles enacted by the City of Toronto at Trinity Bellwoods Park in the context of urban gentrification. Rather than a public health measure, we argue that the enactment of park circles as a response to park crowding during the COVID-19 pandemic is reflective of broader processes of gentrification and operates to secure the park as a space for ‘hipster leisure.’ In so doing, park circles represent an extension of neo-liberal policy rhetoric whereby the privatization of public space and the displacement of certain populations are naturalized. Our analysis invites future critical scholarship on parks, leisure, public health, and gentrification as well as the transformations occurring within these intersections. © 2022 Australia and New Zealand Association of Leisure Studies.

Initial assessment report of the Gambian livestock sector: a report to the small ruminant production enhancement project (SRPEP) by the international livestock research institute in support of the the Gambia's livestock master plan

The livestock sector in The Gambia comprises an important part of the economy, creating employment and livelihoods activities for a significant segment of society. COVID-19 has profoundly shocked the country's economy, particularly its tourism sector which provides both jobs and backward linkages to the agricultural sector, of which livestock is an increasingly important beneficiary given the growing demand for animal-source foods. An important recovery strategy will be both rebuilding those linkages but also diversifying the livestock sector in a manner that is more resilient to future economic shocks. One of the critical constraints in the Gambian livestock sector, as noted by the PROGEBE project, is the fragmentation of local value chains, with marketing by producers not following market signals but the livelihoods needs of farmers to meet family or social obligations. This behaviour, while following a rational livelihoods logic, makes it difficult to create robust value chains, particularly limiting investments by downstream actors in needed infrastructure (processing, feed, hygiene, packaging, animal health) to create the conditions necessary for adding value to the sector. While past studies (Touray 2016;Loum 2019) have noted the low productivity of the N'Dama traditional breed, there is a potential niche market that exists for such indigenous breeds should marketing constraints be overcome (IDELE-CIRAD-CA17 2012). A related constraint to those on the marketing side include credit constraints, with financial products for producers and small-scale enterprises often not readily available or accessible at profitable levels of interest. While we have noted the potential for the livestock sector to meet increased demand for meat products from the domestic tourism sector, opportunities also exist in meeting demand for regional markets in West and North Africa that has been historically met from European, American or Brazilian sources. There is growing interest amongst the donor community and national governments in the Sahel to find ways to add value to local production through the export of meat products rather than traditional live animals. These trends have important implications on the volumes of Sahelian animals that arrive in The Gambia and how new imports of Sahelian meat products may compete with local production, as well as potential impacts on local employment. On the other hand, developing a local niche market through indigenous breeds coupled with The Gambia's beneficial location for regional trade may provide unique value-adding prospects in the beef sector. Likewise, in poultry, finding ways to improve competitiveness against imports and leveraging the growing interest of youth and women in the sector will be crucial. Quantifying these opportunities and scenarios for success will be an important contribution of The Gambia livestock master plan.

Current and future trade in livestock products.

Rising per capita consumption, economic growth, and urbanisation, particularly in developing countries, have been driving an increased global demand for food. These changing socio-economic trends, which have greatly influenced changes in dietary patterns globally and, more specifically, have increased consumption of livestock products in developing countries, are expected to endure and to place new pressures on livestock-sector infrastructure and the delivery of veterinary services. This paper summarises current trade in meat and presents plausible projections for the future. It highlights the impact of animal disease on trade and considers the effect of ongoing disease outbreaks, particularly the outbreaks of African swine fever and COVID-19, on current and future trade dynamics. The authors analysed published statistics on the demand for, and international trade in, livestock products at national and regional levels and made projections of the same up to 2050, generated from an integrated model of the global agricultural and food system. The resulting analyses identified patterns of trade consistent with growing populations, increasing incomes and changing diets in developing countries. The analyses also pointed to slow expansion of livestock production, and the impacts of countries' disease status on livestock trade. For most of the livestock products analysed, economic model projections indicate increased consolidation of production and exports among a few countries. Marked increases in the trade in livestock products suggest a changing role for Veterinary Services in facilitating trade and extension in the years to come.

La demande mondiale en denrées alimentaires connaît une hausse continue sous l'effet conjugué de la progression de la consommation par habitant, de la croissance économique et de l'urbanisation, en particulier dans les pays en développement. Ces tendances socio-économiques ont modifié les structures des régimes alimentaires dans le monde, plus spécifiquement dans les pays en développement où la consommation de denrées alimentaires d'origine animale s'est accrue, et elles vont très certainement perdurer et exercer de nouvelles pressions sur les infrastructures du secteur de l'élevage comme sur les prestations de services vétérinaires. Les auteurs font une synthèse de l'état actuel des échanges internationaux de viande et présentent quelques projections plausibles concernant l'avenir. Ils soulignent l'impact des maladies animales sur les échanges et examinent les répercussions que les foyers actuels de maladies peuvent avoir sur les dynamiques actuelles et futures des échanges, en citant la peste porcine africaine et l'épidémie de COVID-19 à titre d'illustrations. Les auteurs analysent ensuite les statistiques publiées relatives à la demande en produits issus de l'élevage et aux échanges internationaux de ces produits à l'échelle nationale et régionale, et présentent leurs propres projections de ces tendances jusqu'en 2050, élaborées à partir d'un modèle intégré du système agricole et alimentaire mondial. Les analyses qui en résultent font apparaître que les structures des échanges évolueront parallèlement à la croissance démographique, à l'augmentation des revenus et aux modifications des régimes alimentaires dans les pays en développement. Les analyses relèvent également une croissance lente de l'élevage, ainsi que les conséquences du statut sanitaire des pays sur les échanges commerciaux. Pour la plupart des produits issus de l'élevage pris en compte dans cette analyse, les projections du modèle économique prévoient une concentration accrue de la production et des exportations, dans un nombre limité de pays. Une augmentation marquée des échanges de produits issus de l'élevage devra s'accompagner d'une évolution du rôle des Services vétérinaires afin de faciliter les échanges et de soutenir leur extension dans les années à venir.

El aumento del consumo per cápita, el crecimiento económico y los procesos de urbanización, especialmente en los países en desarrollo, han venido induciendo una mayor demanda mundial de alimentos. Estas tendencias socioeconómicas han influido sobremanera en la evolución de los regímenes alimentarios en todo el mundo y, más concretamente, han llevado a un mayor consumo de productos ganaderos en los países en desarrollo. Según apuntan las previsiones, esta evolución se prolongará en el tiempo y ejercerá nuevas presiones sobre la infraestructura del sector pecuario y la prestación de servicios veterinarios. Los autores resumen la situación actual del comercio de productos cárnicos y presentan proyecciones plausibles de lo que puede deparar el futuro. Tras destacar el peso que tienen las enfermedades animales en el comercio, examinan los efectos de brotes infecciosos hoy en curso, en particular de peste porcina africana y COVID-19, sobre la dinámica actual y futura del comercio. Los autores analizaron las estadísticas publicadas sobre la demanda y el comercio internacional de productos procedentes de la ganadería, por países y regiones, tras lo cual hicieron proyecciones del curso de estas tendencias hasta 2050, generadas a partir de un modelo integrado del sistema agrícola y alimentario mundial. Los análisis resultantes depararon una configuración del comercio coherente con poblaciones cada vez más numerosas, un creciente nivel de ingresos y cambios en el régimen alimentario en los países en desarrollo. Los análisis también apuntaban a una lenta expansión de la producción pecuaria y ponían de relieve la influencia de la situación sanitaria de los países en el comercio de ganado. Para la mayoría de los productos ganaderos analizados, las proyecciones de los modelos económicos apuntaban a una mayor concentración en unos pocos países de la actividad de producción y exportación. La marcada intensificación del comercio de productos ganaderos lleva a pensar en una evolución del papel de los Servicios Veterinarios para facilitar el comercio y su extensión en los próximos años.

Rural-urban interdependencies: thinking through the implications of space, leisure, politics and health. (Special Issue: Leisure in the time of Covid-19.)

The collective experience of social distancing will undoubtedly have implications for our social, cultural, and political practices. In this critical commentary, I consider the implications of these experiences by focusing on rural-urban relationships in Canada. Drawing from accounts published in online newspapers, I reflect on how social distancing highlights the interdependencies of urban and rural Canada and the role of space and leisure in shaping our broader social and political discourse. Reflecting on issues related to class, space, mobility, and freedom of choice, I suggest that rural-urban interdependencies is a productive framework for considering these relationships and how we might re-think them moving forward. In conclusion, I offer hopeful speculations on how social distancing may indeed bring us closer together.

Conducting Quantitative Research with Hard-To-Reach-Online Populations: Using Prime Panels to Rapidly Survey Older Adults During a Pandemic

Vulnerable populations (e.g., older adults) can be hard to reach online. During a pandemic like COVID-19 when much research data collection must be conducted online only, these populations risk being further underrepresented. This paper explores methodological strategies for rigorous, efficient survey research with a large number of older adults online, focusing on (1) the design of a survey instrument both comprehensible and usable by older adults, (2) rapid collection (within hours) of data from a large number of older adults, and (3) validation of data using attention checks, independent validation of age, and detection of careless responses to ensure data quality. These methodological strategies have important implications for the inclusion of older adults in online research. © 2021, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.