• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.53-68
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• 2018

Community-based ecotourism (CBE), if well-developed can be a practical approach for promoting socio-economic well-being and sustaining ecological resources. The growth and its development worldwide especially in developing economies is a welcome development. The study aimed at assessing the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary in Ghana, as an example of traditional conservation system of management that has ensured greater community participation, equity, inclusiveness, and multi-level stakeholder partnership. In-depth interviews with key informants and documentary analysis of relevant peer reviewed and grey literature were the main qualitative data collection used. Results revealed that majority of the interviewees support and value the current system of traditional management. The enforcement of rules and regulations and other cultural and religious practices were discussed by key informants. Opportunities for multiple livelihood strategies as a result of the CBE is seen as critical for increasing local's acceptance and participation. The remarkable growth of the sanctuary, as well as the increase in human population, has created a shortage of land for domestic and other commercial purposes which is identified as posing a major challenge to the sustenance of the sanctuary. The study recommends diversification of livelihood opportunities presented by the presence of the sanctuary like the introduction of homestay concept, craft making- wood carving, painting, artisan shops.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.771-785
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• 2014

As marine desertification and chlorosis in Korean coast have been intensified over time, Korean government is promoting marine afforestation projects. However, marine afforestation location is mainly decided by administrative convenience. Also, there is limited literature on location suitability about the marine afforestation. This study aims to assess location suitability of marine afforestation considering 3 significant criteria: ecological, submarine topographical, and human-social environment. Jeju, the study area of this study, first observed chlorosis in Korean coast at the small fishery town in Seogwipo. Jeju is currently suffering from chlorosis all around the island. Habitat Evaluation Procedure (HEP), 3D kriging, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is applied as analysis methods. Especially, 3D kriging is utilized for modeling 3D ocean space reflecting ocean environment appropriately. The result shows that Jocheon coast has better location suitability than Seogwipo Pyoseon coast. Jocheon coast has the maximum 61% suitability as the habitat of Ecklonia cava Kjellman, and is highly evaluated in other criteria. The results of this study are expected to find optimal marine afforestation location, and to contribute to the restoration of the Jeju coastal ecosystem and the revitalization of Jeju fishing village societies.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.399-416
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• 2016

The main aim of the research attempts to identify value relations appropriated and realized in the coffee frontier of Vietnam by investigating the ways in which it is integrated into coffee global value chains driven by multinational companies, and to provide some implications of the integration of the frontier into sustainable coffee global value chains for creating shared value in Dak Lak, Vietnam. Recently Dak Lak has gone through the transition of value relations from exploitative value chains based upon conventional coffee production into shared value chains relied upon the production of sustainable or certified coffee in Dak Lak. The transition has been expected to result in sustainability in the creation of value by enhancing regional competitive advantages and regional bargaining power in global value chains driven by multinational companies. However, the reality has shown the intensification of hierarchical profits allocation among stakeholders such as farmer, middlemen, and multinational companies in the region. The main reasons for this could be found in two perspectives. Firstly, the formation of exclusive relations among farmers, middlemen, and processors has led to stakeholders to secure market, but resulted in the intensification of hierarchy among them in global value chain, because multinational companies could control indirectly over the farming system through exclusive middlemen. Secondly, social and ecological costs imputed by multinational companies to coffee farmers in the name of creating shared value has deteriorated the economic profits of stakeholders such as farmers and middlemen. As a result, it has led to the configuration of systematically hierarchical and subordinated global value chain in Dak Lak.

• Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-19
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• 2020

A river bed which is submerged in water at high flow and becomes part of the river at low flow, serves as a bridge between the river and the land. The channel bar creates a unique ecosystem with vegetation adapted to the particular environment and the water pool forms a wetland that plays a very important role in the environment. To evaluate anthropogenic impacts on the river bed in the Middle Yeongsangang River, the fluvial landforms in the stream channel were analyzed using multi-temporal remotely-sensed images. In the aerial photograph of 2005 taken before the construction of the large weirs, oxbow lakes, mid-channel bars, point bars, and natural wetlands between the artificial levees were identified. Multiple bars divided the flow of stream water to cause the braided pattern in a particular section. After the construction of the Seungchon weir, aerial photographs of 2013 and 2015 revealed that most of the fluvial landforms disappeared due to the dredging of its riverbed and water level control(maintenance at 7.5El.m). Sentinel-2 images were analyzed to identify differences between before and after the opening of weir gate. Change detection was performed with the near infrared and shortwave infrared spectral bands to effectively distinguish water surfaces from land. As a result, water surface area of the main stream of the Yeongsangang River decreased by 40% from 1.144km² to 0.692km². A large mid-channel bar that has been deposited upstream of the weir was exposed during low water levels, which shows the obvious influence of weir on the river bed. Newly formed unvegetated point bars that were deposited on the inside of a meander bend were identified from the remotely sensed images. As the maintenance period of the weir gate opening was extended, various habitats were created by creating pools and riffles around the channel bars. Considering the ecological and hydrological functions of the river bed, it is expected that the increase in bar areas through weir gate opening will reduce the artificial interference effect of the weir.

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.654-676
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• 2012

This study aims to develop an ecoregion classification using a multi-hierarchy of environmental factors for spatial patterns in the capacities and potentials of ecological systems in mountain regions. To achieve the objectives, we describe the spatial distribution of environmental factors and identify the multi-hierarchy of these factors using spatial statistics. Lastly, we assess ecosystem-units using both a forest type map (yung & kung) and a forest soil map in order to present a ecoregion classification. This study was performed at a $1,168km^2$ area in Gangwon-do, Korea. Sedimentary rocks, particularly limestone (36.6%) exist in high proportions in the research area. While higher mountains are present in the north and central Korean peninsula, plain areas show large proportions along Odae and Pyeongchang river. In a multi-hierarchy, geology and elevation are identified as upper levels and landform classification (surface curvature, upslope area) is considered as a lower level. 'Geology+elevation+landform' shows equally higher ${\chi}^2$ values than that of other classifications and we map ecoregions based on this result. Uniqueness of environmental characteristics in the research area such as high proportions of sedimentary rocks and higher elevations influences our ecoregion classification. We are looking forward to considering this study as an effective approach to integrating various ecological themes for mountain ecosystem management.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.1-14
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• 2020

In fluvial and riparian ecosystems, biogeomorphological research has considered the complex, multi-way relationships between biological and hydro-geomorphological components over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. In this review, we discussed the scope and processes of fluvial biogeomorphology by explaining (1) the multi-lateral interactions between organisms and hydrogeomorphic conditions, (2) the relationships between biodiversity and habitat heterogeneity, and (3) the effects of disturbance on ecosystem patterns. Over time, an organism-landform complex along streams transitions in the sequences of geomorphic, pioneer, biogeomorphic, and ecological stages. Over space, water flow and sediment distributions interact with vegetation to modify channel topography. It is the habitat heterogeneity in streams that enhances riparian biodiversity. However, in the areas downstream of a dam, habitat types and conditions are substantially damaged and biodiversity should be reduced. In South Korea, riparian vegetation flourishes in general and, in particular, invasive species actively colonize in accordance with the changes in the fluvial conditions driven by local disturbances and global climate change. Therefore, the importance of understanding reciprocal relationships between living organisms and hydrogeomorphic conditions will ever increase in this era of rapid climate change and anthropogenic pressure. The fluvial biogeomorphic framework reviewed in this article will contribute to the ecological management and restoration of streams in Korea.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.743-758
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• 2014

It has widely been recognized that the EXPO 2012 Yeosu Korea was a succeeded mega event, according to, at least, the international media's attention and reports. This study analysed and compared the trends of the international media's reports on Yeosu in terms of before, preparing, during, and, after periods of the event, through a semantic network analysis. It was revealed that the images of Yeosu have dramatically been upgraded. The city of Yeosu, before the event, was a small port city of South Korea's southern part of peninsula. The city, after the nomination for the next host city of the exposition, was described to a city who had a full potentiality to host a world exposition, not a southern port city of South Korea. After the event was opened, Yeosu was a city of cutting-edge technology and cultural creativity, who had contributed to solve our humankind's pending ecological problems. Even after the events closed, Yeosu was continuously impressed as a ex-city of world exposition, a hub city of Asia trade, and a center for marine ecological restoration. It was suggested that extended monitoring, differentiated communication strategies, long-term planning, and professionalization of the staffs.

• Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.757-774
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• 2004

This paper is to reclassify systematically the functions of urban river: that is, water supply, land management, transportation and energy source as social and economic function; formation of geomorphic surface, water-side landscape, community constitution and boundary and separation between regions as spatial function; and drainage of waste water, purification, habitation, and weather regulation as ecological function. On the basis of this reclassification, it can be argued that the socio-economic functions (eg. water supply) of the river among the functions of the river have been strongly mobilized in the process of modernization, while the spatial function and ecological function of urban river have been ignored. The Kumho river which flows through Daegu and the adjacent area has made a great contribution to the modem development process of the river basin area, but as a result of a selective development of a specific function of the river, that is the social and economic function, it now suffers from the lack of instream flow and is deprived of its original functions with the water pollution and degradation. Moreover the Daegu region seems no longer possible to develop on the dependence of the river. In order to overcome this kind of social and environmental crisis, this paper is to suggest both some principles and main evaluating indicators to restore the original and comprehensive functions of the river, and important measures to make the co-evolution of the city and the river possible.

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.201-217
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• 2016

We accessed the climate change effects on the distributions of warm-evergreen broad-leaved trees (shorten to warm-evergreens below) in the Korean Peninsula (KP). For this, we first selected nine warm-evergreens with the northern distribution limits at mid-coastal areas of KP and climate variables, coldest month mean temperature and coldest quarter precipitation, known to be important for warm-evergreens growth and survival. Next, species distribution models (SDMs) were constructed with generalized additive model (GAM) algorithm for each warm-evergreen. SDMs projected the potential geographical distributions of warm evergreens under current and future climate conditions in associations with land uses. The nine species were categorized into three groups (mid-coastal, southwest-coastal, and southeast-inland) based on their current spatial patterns. The effects of climate change and land uses on the distributions depend on the current spatial patterns. As considering land uses, the potential current habitats of all warm-evergreens decrease over 60%, showing the highest reduction rate for the Kyungsang-inland group. SDMs forecasted the expansion of potential habitats for all warm-evergreens under climate changes projected for 2050 and 2070. However, the expansion patterns were different among three groups. The spatial patterns of projected coldest quarter precipitation in 2050 and 2070 could account for such differences.

• The Korean Journal of Quaternary Research
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.41-51
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• 2024

The Sincheon wetland shows a remarkable diversity of fluvial landforms, such as river islands, anastomosing channels, braided channels, and sand-gravel bars, which contribute to its rich ecological habitat. The wetland area is characterized by a ecological diversity of herbaceous and woody plants. Significant changes in land cover within the wetlands were observed from 2008 to 2020. Notably, there was a rapid decrease in agricultural area from 18% to 0.04%, while the vegetation area expanded from 45% to 54%. Concurrently, the water area also experienced a notable increase from 34% to 41%. The surface sediment composition in the studied area displays sandy loam characteristics and exhibits acidic soil properties. Sediment acidity tends to increase downstream and in the central part of channels. Variations in acidity are also observed at nearby collection sites due to the tributaries and local discharge. The presence of dense vegetation in river islands and bars has led to a significant transformation of sediments into soil, with this change being more pronounced downstream, particularly near the weirs. The installation of a weir in Sincheon wetland is believed to have a significant impact on altering flow velocities between upstream and downstream sections, as well as influencing erosion and sediment deposition patterns. However, given the formation of landforms in response to weirs, effective administration and management are essential to address potential risks of catastrophic environmental disruptions, such as the removal of weirs and/or the maintenance of river channels.