Page 39 - Pelc, Stanko, and Miha Koderman, eds., 2016. Regional development, sustainability, and marginalization. Koper: University of Primorska Press.
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aphic marginalization. The research is based on a mixed meth- 2016 conference of igu commission 37
odology, combining remote sensing analysis of satellite imagery, re-
gression analysis, and a household questionnaire survey. The results
have shown that the processes of population aging, changes in ed-
ucation structure, population density and employment have affect-
ed settlement patterns and agricultural land use differently in differ-
ent parts of the region. Areas further away from Zagreb or other
main market centres, further away from major traffic junctions, in
higher altitudes or close to a (newly formed) international border
with Slovenia have demonstrated mostly negative socio-econom-
ic trends, while urbanized areas in lowlands, further away from the
international border and with better traffic connections to Zagreb
have shown comparatively more positive socio-economic trends.
Key words: post-socialism, marginalization, land use, settlements,
borderline, periphery
Marginality and sustainability
Stanko Pelc
University of Primorska, Faculty of Humanities,
Department of Geography, Titov trg 5, SI-6000 Koper, Slovenia
The concept of the marginality of nature and the environment is
rarely discussed in geography. The reason is simple. When we com-
pare it with a geometrical understanding of marginality from a so-
cio-economic point of view, we are faced with the upside-down
picture of marginal areas. What we used to consider central from
an economic point of view is marginal from an environmental point
of view. The most modern Central Business Districts (CBDs) of to-
day may be considered to be the peak of economic development
and success. However, to be built, the natural environment had to
vanish, the surface has been covered with concrete and asphalt.
The vegetation is now decorative and placed on the roofs or at the
edges of transportation infrastructure. In contrast, the best-pre-
served areas of the planet are those that are far away from human
greed and from any development. In this paper, we intend to dis-
cuss the relation between unsustainable development and margin-
alization of the environment as well as about the marginalization of
society living in the areas with unsustainable development.
odology, combining remote sensing analysis of satellite imagery, re-
gression analysis, and a household questionnaire survey. The results
have shown that the processes of population aging, changes in ed-
ucation structure, population density and employment have affect-
ed settlement patterns and agricultural land use differently in differ-
ent parts of the region. Areas further away from Zagreb or other
main market centres, further away from major traffic junctions, in
higher altitudes or close to a (newly formed) international border
with Slovenia have demonstrated mostly negative socio-econom-
ic trends, while urbanized areas in lowlands, further away from the
international border and with better traffic connections to Zagreb
have shown comparatively more positive socio-economic trends.
Key words: post-socialism, marginalization, land use, settlements,
borderline, periphery
Marginality and sustainability
Stanko Pelc
University of Primorska, Faculty of Humanities,
Department of Geography, Titov trg 5, SI-6000 Koper, Slovenia
The concept of the marginality of nature and the environment is
rarely discussed in geography. The reason is simple. When we com-
pare it with a geometrical understanding of marginality from a so-
cio-economic point of view, we are faced with the upside-down
picture of marginal areas. What we used to consider central from
an economic point of view is marginal from an environmental point
of view. The most modern Central Business Districts (CBDs) of to-
day may be considered to be the peak of economic development
and success. However, to be built, the natural environment had to
vanish, the surface has been covered with concrete and asphalt.
The vegetation is now decorative and placed on the roofs or at the
edges of transportation infrastructure. In contrast, the best-pre-
served areas of the planet are those that are far away from human
greed and from any development. In this paper, we intend to dis-
cuss the relation between unsustainable development and margin-
alization of the environment as well as about the marginalization of
society living in the areas with unsustainable development.
