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Suggests that trends are beginning to emerge in regard to the reasonable accommodation of disabilities, particularly those which help us deal with the accommodations. Provides information regarding recent court decisions which further defined interpretation and given guidelines. Looks at some of the creative ways in which assistance is provided. Concludes that the Act is opening many more doors to those previously denied employment, and recent cases have soothed the fears of employers by their fair and just resolutions.

The effects of environmental change are becoming more noticeable in the Lower Mekong Basin, where there is growing pressure on the agriculture-based livelihoods of communities living along the mainstream of the Mekong River. This chapter presents an investigation of temporal seasonal variability in four communities of Kratie Province, Cambodia, including identification of locally developed strategies to adapt to temporal changes in weather patterns. A mixed-methods approach was adopted, combining historical hydrometeorological data with participatory seasonal calendars and daily routine diaries. Seasonal calendars were compiled from nine workshops across four villages in Kratie Province, and daily diaries were collected from seven individuals across three villages. The results indicate that patterns in rainfall, flooding and drought have become more variable due to the impacts of environmental change; a phenomenon that will likely continue into the future. Without effective, locally appropriate adaptation measures, changing weather patterns will likely continue to have adverse impacts on communities in the region due to their reliance on reliable seasonal rainfall and flooding events for crop cultivation. Households and communities in the study region have already developed a number of approaches to mitigate the adverse impacts of environmental change. This research also reiterated the importance of incorporating both local knowledge and scientific data to gain the most accurate understanding of the impacts of environmental change in a given region.

Climate change, deforestation and hydropower dams are contributing to environmental change in the Lower Mekong River region, the combined effects of which are felt by many rural Cambodians. How people perceive and manage the effects of environmental change will influence future adaptation strategies. The objective of this research was to investigate whether the use of a low-cost, explicitly spatial method (participatory mapping) can help identify locally relevant opportunities and challenges to climate change adaptation in small, flood-prone communities. Four villages along the banks of the Mekong River in Kratie Province, Cambodia, were the subject of this research. To identify perceived environmental hazards and adaptive responses, eight workshops were conducted using focus-group interviews and participatory mapping. The communities’ responses highlight the evolving nature of environmental hazards, as droughts increase in perceived importance while the patterns of wet season flooding were also perceived to be changing. The attribution of the drivers of these hazards was strongly skewed towards local factors such as deforestation and less towards regional or global drivers affecting the hydrology of the Mekong and climate patterns. Combining participatory mapping with focus-group interviews allowed a greater depth of understanding of the vulnerabilities and opportunities available to communities than reliance on a single qualitative method. The study highlights the potential for a bottom-up transfer of information to strengthen existing climate change policies and tailor adaptation plans to local conditions.

Introduction Hastily, I beat the editor to it by writing “These are the personal views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor of this journal.” Indeed, I take it further. The article does not necessarily, in general manner or particular phrase, represent the views of the National Committee of National Library Week. It's a great disappointment to me that to date neither the National Committee nor myself has had to disown the other. Our opinions, to date, coincide on all salient points. No blows have been exchanged between Committee and Organiser. Since concord should often be more rightly spelt “c‐o‐m‐p‐l‐a‐c‐e‐n‐c‐y”, I regret this. All, however, may yet be well. My full views as Organiser of NLW 1969 follow: I shall state them with the most forthright candour and the most furious conviction; and the fisticuffs may well follow, as sure as Library fines. If the editor considers this preamble, too … well, too ambling … I proffer one excuse. As organiser, I'm as over‐worked and time‐pressed as any librarian, and my defence is therefore borrowed from Flaubert: “Forgive a long letter—I had no time to write a short one.” (Reference librarians, please check this quotation. I'm too busy.) Finally, there are those who write very lightly when they wish to state their most serious belief. Into this maladjusted and misjudged fraternity, I was myself born.