Metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) providing funding for local land use planning is part of a growing trend which has so far received very little attention. This study surveyed a stratified sample of 30 U.S. MPOs weighted toward larger metropolitan areas. Of the 30 MPOs, about half were funding smart growth-oriented local land use planning through transportation and land use connection (TLC) programs. From them, 10 MPOs with TLC programs were selected and written up as case studies. Across the case studies it was found that the funding and support provided differs greatly by region. The ultimate goal of these programs was similar, however—to reduce suburban sprawl and the associated need for highway building, and instead to create more livable, sustainable, walkable, bikeable, and transit-accessible communities within the region. These gaols were achieved by promoting infill and development in and around urban centers, and encouraging concentration of activity around transit stations. With the exception of one program, funding portfolios have grown year by year. While project funding selection criteria differ across MPOs, how well they align with the region’s transportation plan seems to be of paramount importance.
The Arma Christi, the instruments of the Passion of Christ, are a fascinating collection of symbols evident throughout the history of Christian art. This article considers the striking re-emergence of visual depictions of the Arma Christi in the contemporary spiritual practice of Bible Journaling. How have these symbols of the Passion made their way back into the popular Christian imaginary and creative expression of Bible readers today? The creative, devotional practice of Bible Journaling is gaining popularity in many countries, notably the US. Almost exclusively practiced by women, Bible Journaling involves making artistic interventions directly in the material artefact of the printed Bible, with different creative media. In considering the value of this practice for women’s spirituality, this article employs a social semiotic approach, multimodal analysis, to survey their visual representations and to analyse in detail one specific creative intervention, “I AM THE NAIL”, as a reception of a contemporary understanding of salvation through the suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross. Also considered are intertextual readings of the Hebrew Bible (Isaiah 53: 3–5) and the NT. The semiotic influence of popular cultural products such as The Passion of the Christ movie on the visual idiom embraced by the journalers forms part of this analysis.
Bible Journaling is a trend of the past decade whereby readers make creative, visual interventions in their Bibles, using coloured pens and pencils, watercolours, stickers and stencils, highlighting texts of particular resonance. Journaling, in its more conventional written forms, has long been recognised as a pathway to spiritual development. Significantly, Bible journaling is almost exclusively practiced by women and has a high level of interpersonal interaction attached to it, through open and mutual sharing of these creations, through various online social media fora. Gleaned from the sharing of women who journal for spiritual support, this article examines the role Bible journaling plays in aiding recovery from drug addiction. Multimodal analysis is a methodological approach that provides a structured semiotic framework in which to closely examine every feature of a creation such as a journaled page of a Bible, to examine how the journaler has made meaning of a text through their interventions on the page. Appreciating every mark, choice and placement of image, colour, typography as a motivated sign revealing the interest of the creator, the sign-maker, a detailed multimodal analysis is conducted of one page of a recovered drug-user’s journaled Bible. As shall be demonstrated, profound insights into the appropriation of sacred texts for the spiritual life of a recovering addict can be gleaned in this process. Bible journaling reveals itself to be a highly valuable spiritual practice for those in addiction recovery. This interdisciplinary paper uniquely brings a methodological approach from the field of semiotics to the field of spirituality. Both the methodological approach and the subject of sacred text journaling may be of particular interest to spiritual directors, across many religions with a foundational sacred text, as a means whereby adherents can engage with a text in a deep, contemplative and creative practice that is personally, spiritually sustaining and motivating during a difficult phase of life.
Odonates are the charismatic megafauna of the insect world. This makes them ideal candidates for interaction with the public. These interactions engage communities not only with odonates themselves but the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems they inhabit. These interactions can have many benefits both for odonates and their ecosystems as well as the global community. Public engagement via odonates, for example, can increase scientific literacy, increase capacity for scientific data collection through community science, and/or encourage environmental advocacy and conservation. Our chapter provides examples of how odonates are used as tools for interaction with the public and how that can be turned into active participation in science and conservation. We conclude by describing existing barriers to making odonate science globally accessible and steps to address these issues.
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