About the Journal
Human Geographies – Journal of Studies and Research in Human Geography was first published in 2007 to provide an international forum of social, economic and cultural contributions to the fields of human geography. It is a peer-reviewed journal, has both online and print versions and ISSNs. It represents the initiative and effort of the members of the Human Geography Department, Faculty of Geography from University of Bucharest.
Human Geographies – is a biannual publication with a content solely in English which can be viewed at humangeographies.org.ro.
Human Geographies is committed to publish scholarly research and informed commentaries on a wide category of human geography aspects (including urban and rural issues, demography, social, economic and cultural environment), place issues, and space issues. It welcomes contributions from the growing numbers of scholars and practitioners across geography, humanities and social and environmental sciences who are interested in human, economic and cultural geographies. The publication is particularly committed to the development of interpretative approaches to the above mentioned issues. It does not restrict its remit to any particular methodological or theoretical orientation, but publishes both scholarly papers and more speculative pieces designed to further understanding and debate.
Contents include original articles, notes and comments. Regular contributions are drawn from the fields of human geography, economics and economic geography, planning, territorial development, infrastructure development, sociology, population studies and public administration, public policies.
Current Issue
Vol. 16 No. 2 (2022): Journal of Studies and Research in Human Geography Volume 16, Issue 2, November 2022
Published:
2025-05-31
Articles
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Organising for thin places during the COVID-19 pandemic
Abstract
This study aims to investigate some of the socio-spatial aspects of thickness and thinness in large Swedish organisations that arose from working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The questions that this study aimed to answer are 'How do representatives who manage their staff by allowing or restricting WFH in public and private organisations describe how aspects of thickness, in terms of physical proximity and social relations, changed when their staff worked from home during the pandemic? How can organisational thickness and thinness be further developed to understand the detachment of workers from their working places in terms of consequences for the location and size of offices, leadership, control, and management?'. The study shows that organisations have been able to adjust and develop strategies for coping with long periods of absence from offices and that thin places can be created with the help of technology. Finally, the study shows that the pandemic may have future consequences regarding how work is organised, for instance, in terms of how large office spaces are needed and where these offices should be located. -
Cartographic imaginaries of the COVID-19 crisis in Mexico – a typology of disease maps
Abstract
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the news reports on it have been accompanied by maps. Similarly to weather maps, they became part of our daily news feed. The newspapers' maps reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic often use the same or similar data to depict the current state of the spread within a national territory. However, the designs of the maps vary between different news outlets. These differences were analysed using the documentary method introduced by sociologist Ralf Bohnsack, using the case study of six COVID-19 maps published in Mexican national newspapers. The analysis resulted in a typology of maps, which proposed different readings of the infographic itself when it comes to the aspects of (1) the cognitive process it supposedly triggers, (2) the kind of information it contains, (3) the usefulness for the viewer/reader, and (4) whether the author or the reader has the authority over the reading/learning process. -
Pillepallescapes – Journeys to the edges of socially shared landscape constructions
Abstract
In this paper, the construction of landscape is contoured by its negation of non-landscape, making visible a space of meaning that we call pillepallescapes. Pillepallescapes is understood, among other things, as a secondary meaning that can often lead to disputes about its relevance, thus revealing ambiguous polyvalences in the quest to unify the world. We introduce pillepall to the context of landscape studies for elements which, from certain perspectives, appear to be insignificant to these landscape constructions. However, it is at these borderlines of meaningfulness – the pillepallescapes, the object of what oscillates between landscape and non-landscape – that conflicts over landscape interpretive sovereignty seem to spark. When framed neopragmatically, this contribution self-ironically opens up a relevant extension for landscape research, from which methodologicalanalytical, as well as cartographic innovation potentials, can be derived. -
A Deleuzian reading of Hartshorne’s traditional concept of areal differentiation
Abstract
Areal differentiation is one of the critical and traditional concepts in geographical studies, reconsidered through the philosophy of Deleuze in the present article. It has been argued that geographical areas should be conceptualised as virtual entities whose source of differentiation rises from their internal force. The paper argues that geographers have access to the virtual entities only in the public words and ideas, tending to naturalise one image while excluding others and advocating particular power relations between different human/non-human elements in an area. Finally, it has been discussed that one of the main tasks of human geographers is to uncover naturalised images about the process of areal differentiation. It entails considering human geography as an artistic practice instead of scientific activity. When geographers-artists select an image of areal differentiation, they should be open to replacing it with new alternative images. -
Relocations of the households affected by the development of the New Yogyakarta International Airport, Indonesia: problems and livelihood prospects
Abstract
Land acquisition for infrastructure development in Indonesia, including Yogyakarta International Airport, has adopted a new principle of profitable compensation. Two options were created: voluntary self-relocation and government-assisted relocation. People whose farms were only partially appropriated by the project did not need to join the relocation. This paper compares problems faced by the three groups and their livelihood prospects, especially their employment four years after receiving financial compensation. Data available from 2018 would be referred to as a complement to our household survey data from 2021. Although by implementing profitable land compensation in land procurement, the YIA (Yogyakarta International Airport) project has been considered an example of successful land appropriation, many problems are reported by the affected population four years later. There are typical problems related to the early stage of settlement development, such as unemployment, environmental issues, dismissal of neighbourhoods and households, and conflictual events recorded between neighbours. On the other hand, the expenditure patterns indicate that the affected population have spent their compensation money more wisely. Thus, the prospect of their livelihood would be improved when measures in the original village and in cases of voluntary self-relocation areas but not in the government relocation areas. From various variables of financial management, there is a consistent pattern that the population from the original settlement and those who self-relocated would be able to maintain their financial resources and thus improve their future livelihood. -
Criteria for Romanian geniuses’ selection as source for a new heritage tourism product
Abstract
Cultural heritage constantly evolves, contributes fundamentally to human development, and increases collective life's quality. Cultural assets are considered a treasure that must be protected accordingly and passed on to future generations. Among tourism resources, material and immaterial assets belonging to famous people are essential for this industry and for promoting Romanian cultural values. In this framework, the purpose of the study is to identify criteria for selecting Romanian personalities of genius whose valuable works and achievements may augment the country's cultural tourist heritage. The research method is based on the survey, which targeted the Romanian Academy members (RAMs) and the resident population (RP). Data analysis has been performed through qualitativequantitative methods. The results show that identified definitions, criteria and nominalizations of Romanian genius personalities by the two groups of respondents have many similarities. For a specific tourism product built on the core of the Romanian personalities of genius, the study reveals four clusters: highly recognized people; averagely known people of genius, which includes contemporaries; remarkable people with landmarks developed in the last two centuries; and another, internationally visible, and known by specialists in a domain. These identified personalities may be reconsidered to expand the cultural heritage for tourism strategy, to develop a tourist package dedicated to the Romanian geniuses based on the capitalization of their achievements. -
Spatial distribution of human capital in Romania
Abstract
Human capital reflects the knowledge, competencies, and health people invest in and accumulate throughout their lives. Therefore, investing in people's health, education, and skills is essential to developing human capital. The evaluation of human capital is very important for understanding the premises for future development at a territorial level and the impact that different development trajectories may have on economic performance and population wellbeing. Thus, identifying those areas with lower human capital is crucial for future economic and social prospects allowing authorities to elaborate targeted strategies to protect and invest in people in these areas. This paper aims to evaluate human capital at the national level, focusing on three main components: education, health and workforce. The research methodology is based on statistical analysis using available data on education, employment and health and spatial analysis using GIS. This study's findings show that areas with higher human capital overlap with the most important Romanian cities and their surroundings (Bucharest, Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca, Iași, etc.), while lower human capital indices characterise extended rural areas located in the eastern part of the country and central, south and south-east, thus having different development premises. The present study contributes to a better evaluation and representation of human capital at the spatial level, pointing out the vulnerable areas from the point of view of education, workforce and health. Measures for uniformising and improving human capital will ensure the communities' sustained economic and social development.
