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The temporal variation in vegetation cover in aeolian sedimentary systems, especially those in arid regions, provides an indication of environmental change. Based on this, the objective of this paper is to design a simple method for classifying the vegetation density of arid aeolian sedimentary systems through the digital processing of aerial images. The green band of a high resolution orthophoto of La Graciosa island (Canary Islands, Spain) is used as an example. The pixels identified as vegetation were vectorized to point geometry, the vegetation density was then calculated, and a digital vegetation density model (DVDM) thereby obtained. Both spatial and statistical analyses were performed to find the optimal procedure to achieve the objective. Speed, objectivity, cost, and the possibility of working with historical records are discussed, and the proposed method is compared with others based on visual analysis or digital remote sensing. The importance of this method for countries with less research funding or low GDP per capita is also discussed. The proposed procedure opens up future lines of research for comparison of results across various environmental and anthropogenic variables. In addition, vegetation density can be used as a variable in computational fluid dynamic modeling of vegetation in arid dune systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article stems from a project examining cultural assets in Wollongong – a medium-sized Australian city with a decentralized and linear suburban pattern that challenges orthodox binaries of inner-city bohemia/outer-suburban domesticity. In Wollongong we documented community perceptions of cultural assets across this unusual setting, through a simple public research method. At the city’s largest annual festival we recruited the general public to nominate the city’s most ‘cool’ and ‘creative’ places, by drawing on a map of Wollongong and telling their stories. Hand-drawn maps from 205 participants were combined in a Geographical Information System and 50 hours of stories transcribed for qualitative analysis. Over 2300 places were identified. Among them were some surprising results: although places known for the arts and bohemian creative industries figured prominently, these were not only in the inner-city but in beachside suburbs with unique cultural histories. Also, a range of affective engagements with place, including unconventional forms of creativity, were described in industrial and blue-collar suburbs. Network topology analysis by place of residence also revealed the extent of localism, as well as specializations and aggrandizements among suburbs. Our conclusions are threefold: first, that ‘creativity’ is relationally situated and linked across all parts of the city; second, that decentralized forms of small-scale cultural infrastructure provision are vital for vernacular cultural pursuits; and, third, that ‘creativity’ is a polysemic and contested category – only ever partially revealing the contours of cultural vitality in the suburbs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]