Franco Vaccarino

Pathway to rehabilitation - prisoners’ use of a public library

There has been a long, though often little explored, relationship between prisons and libraries. In the 19th century, in-prison libraries were introduced for evangelical purpose. Now they are seen as a key element in raising literacy levels and supporting prisoner education programmes which are ultimately aimed at rehabilitation and reintegration. Many public libraries have strong links with prison libraries and provide support. However, in Whanganui, New Zealand, the district library has entered an unusual partnership with the local prison where prisoners from the self-care unit regularly visit the library. This case study explores perceptions of both prisoners and district librarians about the project. It reports on prisoners’ perceptions of and use of the library. Librarians give their views on how the system works and what could make it even better.

Post-earthquake community capacity and vulnerability reduction at the small-scale local level: collective narratives from Greece, Japan, and New Zealand

Communities are often overlooked in the course of disaster recovery planning, particularly in the area of social capital resources that can help increase the collectives resilience to risks and hazards. This research explores what collective narratives from the victims of localised earthquake events reveal about community capacity and vulnerability reduction at the small-scale local level. Study participants were recruited from populations living in three earthquake-affected areas in Japan, Greece, and New Zealand. The findings showed varied community and governmental capacity to reduce vulnerability and respond to earthquake events, differing levels of government and community capacity to provide for civil needs, and varied levels of community assistance to residents following the disasters. The implications are that planning and effort within a community can spur development of small-scale capacity to augment government efforts or mitigate government failures. Further research is required to determine applicability to other cultural paradigms and types of disasters.

Chinese female immigrant entrepreneurs in New Zealand: two brief case studies

With an increasing mobility of populations, particularly through globalisation and international migration, there has been a growth of immigrant entrepreneurs in host countries, including a minority group of female immigrant entrepreneurs. This latter group has not been adequately investigated, even though these female immigrant entrepreneurs contribute significantly to the economy of the host country. This article explores female immigrant entrepreneurship in Aotearoa New Zealand and provides two brief case studies of Chinese immigrant women who have set up their own businesses.