Analysis of the labour force composition on cruisers: The Danube through Central and Southeast Europe

The aim of this paper is to contribute to the knowledge of the river cruise labour structure. It presents the crew demographics and structure on-board the cruisers along Danube throughout Central and South Eastern Europe. Its goal is to answer the following questions: What are the gender and ages of the ships’ crews? Are they structured according to the country of origin? Is there interdependence between the employment rank of the crew members and the degree of the economic development of the country they come from?The data has been collected from the manifests of the cruise vessels which docked in Serbia over the 9 month research period during the 2007 cruise season. Firstly, data from the 2218 employees on-board the 54 cruisers was collected. Secondly, in-depth interviews with a small sample of cruisers officers, staff and crews (2007–2010) were conducted. The findings of the study have several theoretical and practical implications. Namely, previous related studies have been mainly focused on the ocean cruisers and neglect the rising importance of the river cruisers, especially for the European region. The study also discusses the possibilities for improvement of the human resources management and strategic development management of the European countries, which already have and those which have not yet positioned themselves on the river cruising market.Finally, key demographic employment data and characteristics (e.g. gender, average age, occupational groups, etc.) are important factors to consider when conducting a comprehensive labour force analysis, for they provide the organization a chance to build on its strengths and to minimize challenges and risks.     

‘We make more money now,but we don’t talk to each other anymore’: on new tourism and capitalism in the Danube Delta

ABSTRACT

In 1991, the Danube Delta (Romania), famous for its biodiversity, became a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Tourists have been a constant presence in this area for more than 50 years, being accommodated exclusively, informally, in the local fishing households. Relying on extended participant observation and semi-structured interviews as the main research methods, this study presents how locals from a fishing village relate to tourism and how this process leaves a significant imprint on their social organization, use of natural resources, household economy, norms and values. Exposed to new ideas, opportunities and challenges brought in by tourism, locals are not being swept away, as many of the studies in anthropology of fishing and tourism suggest, but rather act like ‘individuals with agency’, actually empowered by tourism; local fishing and women’s traditional role as ‘the manager of the household’ are reinforced by tourists’ demands for ‘home-cooked fish dish’ and local accommodation. On the other hand, the new tourism has launched local families into a constant competition for natural resources, eroding social cohesion while leading to a commodification of family relationships.     

The model of risk assessment of greywater discharges from the Danube River ships

Having in mind the immense value of the Danube River and knowing that risk assessment of its pollution is one of the key elements for ecology and the health of people in its region, in this paper we emphasized the importance of risk assessment of ship-generated wastewater – particularly in the case of greywater discharges. Although, a number of methods for measuring and analysing different environmental risks have been developed, previous research shows that the failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) method is applicable in solving environmental issues. Therefore, we conducted our research with the main purpose to develop a model of FMEA method application for assessing the risks of ship-generated greywater discharges based on estimated data for total quantity of greywater, the size of the exposed population to the pollution of greywater and the possibilities of this pollution detection. Risk analysis was performed on official data for nine ports on the Danube River on inland waterways of the Republic of Serbia. Based on the obtained results, we concluded that measures, recommendations and risk prevention strategies for ship-generated greywater discharges should go into two major directions: (1) decreasing the pollution caused by greywater discharges; (2) increasing the number of water quality monitoring stations.     

流域水污染管理体制的多要素比较和可借鉴性评估——以长江流域和多瑙河流域为例

结合水污染治理目标,对多瑙河与长江流域进行了多要素比较和可借鉴性评估。在总结多瑙河流域案例的基础上,对比了两者在污染水平、经济水平、政治体制、社会基础4个方面的异同;分别从介入与干预机制、监督与协调机制、公众参与机制3个方面,评价多瑙河流域管理经验对长江管理体制的可借鉴性。结果表明：在多瑙河流域众多的管理经验中,第三方介入和完善的监测-监督体系最值得长江流域借鉴。