The Geography of Slovenia


Book Description

This book is the first to give a comprehensive and detailed overview of the complete geography of Slovenia in English. Only very few countries, even considerably larger ones, can boast the landscape diversity found in Slovenia since the Alps, the Pannonian Basin, the Dinaric Alps, and the Mediterranean meet and interweave in this small corner of Central Europe, as do Germanic, Hungarian, Slavic, and Romance cultural influences. The book provides a systematical overview of physical and human geographical elements of Slovenia from landforms to cultural characteristics. Special attention is given to landscape diversity, to the presentation of Slovene landscape types and regions, to some particularities and interesting facts of Slovenia, and to the position of Slovenia in the World. The book also illustrates some other important geographical phenomena, processes and interactions between nature and society in nowadays Slovenia. This volume appeals to researchers as well as students in the field of regional geography. It can also serve as a source for complete background information as well as a field guide for Slovenia.







Kartografski zakladi slovenskega ozemlja


Book Description

Monografija predstavlja bogastvo zgodovinskih kartografskih upodobitev slovenskega ozemlja. V grobem je razdeljena v dva dela. V besedilnem delu so predstavljeni zgodovina evropske kartografije do konca 19. stoletja, kartografski prikazi slovenskega ozemlja do začetka 20. stoletja ter zemljevidi kot kulturna dediščina. Kartografski del monografije pa prinaša kronološki prikaz pomembnejših starih zemljevidov slovenskega ozemlja. Predstavljeni so zemljevidi od srede 16. stoletja, ko so nastala prva samostojna kartografska dela današnjega slovenskega ozemlja, do začetka 20. stoletja, ko se kartografija razvije v sodobno vedo. Namen monografije ni obsežna predstavitev posameznih zemljevidov, temveč predstavitev slovenske kartografske dediščine.




Nature, Tourism and Ethnicity as Drivers of (De)Marginalization


Book Description

This book considers de-marginalization attesting that marginal regions have the potential for de-marginalization and are anchored in developmental terms on the following core themes: nature; tourism; ethnicity and general factors including migration. Adding to the discussion on marginality and sustainability this book contributes a number of case studies on a diverse selection of topics and regions in which these crucial issues connect. It delivers a reflection of (de)marginalizing processes in today’s globalized world where an increasing number of people, groups, societies and regions are marginalized and vulnerable not only from social and economic factors, but also from natural causes such as natural hazards. This book addresses the unsustainable practices in the past that have often generated difficult conditions for sustainable development in the future. Marginal regions that have not been developed are given much needed consideration as they may now enjoy the benefits of having not been exploited in the past to their present-day developmental advantage. The overview offered by this book is significant in that marginal regions with relatively unspoiled and attractive natural (and cultural) landscapes have a great potential for sustainable tourism. Contributions include the (de)marginalization of ethnic groups, the role of education and migration in the process, and different economic and political perspectives. Considering the topics covered, the book should be appreciated by all those involved in creation of social policies, urban and regional planning – coordinating economic with spatial and social development and by those studying in the fields were competencies for such activities are important part of the study program.




Landscape as Heritage


Book Description

This edited book provides a broad collection of current critical reflections on heritage-making processes involving landscapes, positioning itself at the intersection of landscape and heritage studies. Featuring an international range of contributions from researchers, academics, activists, and professionals, the book aims to bridge the gap between research and practice and to nourish an interdisciplinary debate spanning the fields of geography, anthropology, landscape and heritage studies, planning, conservation, and ecology. It provokes critical enquiry about the challenges between heritage-making processes and global issues, such as sustainability, economic inequalities, social cohesion, and conflict, involving voices and perspectives from different regions of the world. Case studies in Italy, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Turkey, the UK, Columbia, Brazil, New Zealand, and Afghanistan highlight different approaches, values, and models of governance. This interdisciplinary book will appeal to researchers, academics, practitioners, and every landscape citizen interested in heritage studies, cultural landscapes, conservation, geography, and planning.




The A to Z of Slovenia


Book Description

For more than 1,300 years Slovenes had lived in Eastern Europe without having a separate Slovene state, but in December of 1990, they voted for independence, or, put more appropriately, for "disassociation" from Yugoslavia. Unfortunately, Slovenia had to fight for its independence, which it did not fully achieve until 1995 after its bloody disintegration with Yugoslavia was over. Since independence, however, Slovenia has prospered; its economy is far ahead of other former communist states and in 2004 Slovenia acceded to both NATO and the European Union, the only republic of former Yugoslavia to do so. The A to Z of Slovenia covers the history of Slovenia and its struggle to gain independence from communism. This is done through a detailed chronology, an introduction, appendixes, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on some of the more significant persons, places, and events; institutions and organizations; and political, economic, social, cultural, and religious facets.




Terraced Landscapes


Book Description

Terraced landscapes with agricultural terraces are cultural landscapes with a special value. They provide food and also have priceless scientific, cultural, historical. ecological, aesthetic, and even psychological, philosophical, and religious value. They form a unique agricultural and ecological system that can be found throughout the world. In some developed civilizations they were created in an organized manner over millennia, and in others they arose completely spontaneously as people adapted to natural conditions and improved their opportunities to make a living. They therefore reflect a harmony between man and nature, and in many cases also between people themselves. This volume presents them in pictures and words in all their diversity and attractiveness. After discussing the global and European dimensions of terraced landscapes and their agricultural terraces, the volume focuses on Slovenian terraced landscapes; they are discussed separately by landscape types and sample cases in the territory of selected settlements (pilot areas). The conclusion also draws attention to the exceptional value and appeal of non-agricultural terraced landscapes that have been shaped by nature and man. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Terasirane pokrajine, sestavljene iz kmetijskih teras, so kulturne pokrajine s posebno vrednostjo. Zagotavljajo hrano, imajo pa tudi neprecenljivo znanstveno, kulturno, zgodovinsko, ekološko, estetsko, celo psihološko, filozofsko in religiozno vrednost. So svojstven kmetijski in ekološki sistem po celem svetu. Ponekod so v razvitih civilizacijah organizirano nastajale skozi tisočletja, drugje pa povsem spontano, ko se je človek prilagajal naravnim razmeram in izboljševal svoje možnosti za preživetje. Zato se v njih zrcali sožitje med človekom in naravo, marsikje pa tudi med ljudmi. Knjiga jih v sliki in besedi predstavlja v vsej njihovi pestrosti in privlačnosti. Najprej so izpostavljene svetovne in evropske razsežnosti terasiranih pokrajin in njihovih kmetijskih teras, precej prostora pa namenja tudi slovenskim terasiranim pokrajinam, in sicer ločeno po pokrajinskih tipih in po vzorčnih primerih, ki obsegajo območja izbranih naselij. V sklepnem delu opozarja tudi na izjemnost in privlačnost nekmetijskih terasiranih pokrajin, ki sta jih oblikovala narava in človek.




Historical Dictionary of Slovenia


Book Description

The expanded third edition of the Historical Dictionary of Slovenia covers personalities and events that have made a mark on Slovenia in the more than a decade since the last edition. This includes new entries related to Slovenia’s first 13 years as a member of NATO and the EU, changing diplomatic relations with its neighbors and other global states and institutions, a new crop of politicians who have upended the political status quo, entries related to Slovenia’s worst 21st century recession (2008-2013), nationwide protests against corruption, and many other developments. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of Slovenia contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 500 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Slovenia.




Environmental Problems in East-Central Europe


Book Description

In this new edition, the progress made in the last decade to solve the environmental problems described in the first edition is assessed. The attempts to bring environmental legislation into line with West European norms is also described. Environmental Problems of East-Central Europe looks at air and water pollution, modern farming, water supplies, waste management and landscape protection. These topics are placed within economic, social and political profiles, as spending on a clean environment must be reconciled with welfare spending and the safeguarding of jobs, European Union assistance, civil society and the work of environmental NGOs are also discussed. All of these matters are considered within the context of the wider geographical area and then by each individual country, including the previously communist states lying to the west of the Soviet Union (now with the former federal states of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia broken up into seven different entities) and a review of the former Soviet Union with particular reference to the Baltic States. Environmental Problems in East-Central Europe provides a wealth of up-to-date reference material, with a vast amount of supporting literature on environmental conditions and the functioning of civil society and a map of each country. The environment is being taken seriously by them all, such is the influence of the Rio sustainability agenda in general and the EU environmental 'acquis' in particular. The book reveals that Eastern Europe is not a blighted area, but in some respects has a higher biodiversity than Western Europe. Although there is enormous waste and inefficiency in energy use, people actually consume relatively little and the East therefore has some lessons for the West in terms of managing on the bases of 'fair share' of the earth's resources.




Mobilities in Socialist and Post-Socialist States


Book Description

This interdisciplinary collection explores what mobility meant, and still means, in the specific contexts of Soviet and East European socialist and post-socialist societies. Together the chapters consider diverse practices of mobility and their different contexts of power, resistance and inequality.