This article examines cymdeithasiaeth, a set of political ideas developed by Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (the Welsh Language Society) arising from the Society’s campaigning experience. The article’s main aim is to evaluate ‘cymdeithasiaeth’, and to consider the ideation and the relationship between the theory and political practice. Community is an integral part of the philosophy of ‘cymdeithasiaeth’, and the article attempts to answer the question; ‘what is the role of community and the political relevance of ‘cymdeithasiaeth’ today?’ The discussion begins by examining the ideation of ‘cymdeithasiaeth’ as it developed alongside Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg’s experience of direct action. The role of community in the political tradition of Wales in the modern period is discussed, and a critical look is taken at the role of community and community development in today’s politics. Finally, a discussion on the evaluation of ‘cymdeithasiaeth’ takes place.

Government statistics illustrate that by 2050 there will be a shortage of meat and milk due to globalpopulationgrowth and the increaseddemand from the Far East. Ensuring food security in terms of availability and nutritionalsafety is, therefore, important for our future existence. Central to achieving milk and meat security are ruminants. Ruminants have a four chambered stomach composed of the reticulum, rumen, abomasum and omasum with microbial fermentation of forage occurring in the rumen. Rumen microbial fermentation is largely responsible for animal production, ruminant product quality and much of greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, when forage reaches the rumen, the rumen microbes degrade the plant cell wall and subsequently metabolise plant cell content, including plant amino acids and proteins which they convert into proteins that they can utilise. In order to ensure availability of milk and meat of the best possible quality (with the least greenhouse gas emissions) for the future, we must increase our understanding of the plant-microbe interactome using the principles of systems biology and 'omic' technology.

This article examines a Welsh choir’s visit to Franco’s Spain at the invitation of the Francoist organisation Educación y Descans (Education and Leisure). At first the invitation sparked a debate in the local press on the principles of travelling to a country that was at the time shunned by the international community. The choir itself came from an area which had provided volunteers for the international brigades, but which was also co-incidentally involved with the establishment of an international music festival in the name of peace and understanding. The article examines the account of the choir’s journey to Spain, and discusses how the image of the Franco regime is portrayed in that account. The article also analyses to what extent the choir’s visit was used as propaganda by Franco as his foreign policy shifted with the advent of the Cold War.

The development of Welsh medium early years education has been a story of singular success over the last century. With the establishment of the National Assembly in 2000, Wales further forged its own vision for its young children. One of its first priorities, for example, was the Foundation Phase with its radical approach. This paper offers an overview of the historic development of nursery education in Wales, before and post devolution. Welsh language and Wales policies are set in the context of wider influences, both research and pedagogic, on early childhood care and education, for example the evidence on good practice from the EPPE (The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education Project) study. Focus will be on Welsh language provision, highlighting the role and contribution of Mudiad Meithrin. The paper will consider issues, research and theoretic, relating to early bilingualism. It concludes with a critical analysis of the challenges facing the field of early childhood services in Welsh in light of current political and policy developments.

For the purposes of this paper, addysg feithrin (nursery education) is defined as the care and education provision for children 3–5+ years, and the term blynyddoedd cynnar (early years) is used for the same group.

The renewable energy sector is growing as states aim to curtail their carbon emissions and establish a more sustainable strategy to generate energy. Despite this, there are arguments that large-scale renewable energy developments do not contribute towards community sustainability and local economies. According to recent research, community energy projects – renewable energy projects that are part or fully owned by a geographically distinct community – are seen as a means of generating energy in a way that is more sympathetic, equitable and sustainable. This article reviews the current literature that debates the benefits and obstacles facing the community energy sector.

This article considers the out-migration of young people from the Welsh-speaking heartlands in terms of their aspirations and hopes for the future. The original doctoral research (2014), is based on Hywel Jones’ (2010) work, which argues that young people born outside of Wales are four times more likely to migrate from Wales than young people born here. The research attempts to establish the main factors that affect rates of out-migration among young people born outside of Wales and those born into non-native families. The article concludes that the main drivers of rates of out-migration among this group are factors such as sense of belonging and the extent of community integration, rather than solely economic factors. In particular, it examines how culture, nationality, and considerations pertaining to the Welsh language have an impact on this trend, which has important implications in terms of the linguistic retention of the ‘traditional’ Welsh speaking areas.

In a report in 2013, the Welsh Government suggested that raising the status of Physical Education (PE) to become a core subject, similar to Welsh and Mathematics, is an essential element in tackling the current obesity epidemic. However, PE lessons must be of a high quality in order to have a positive effect on pupils. PE teachers play a crucial role in delivering high-quality PE lessons; therefore, gaining an understanding of their perceptions about high-quality PE is essential. Interviews were held with ten PE teachers (seven males and three females) from Welsh-medium schools across south Wales. Similarities between the theory and teachers’ perceptions were evident, for example the importance of creating a positive learning environment. However, there were differences between the theory and practice, including lack of clarity about the term physical literacy. One implication of the study is the need to consult with PE teachers to design policies for high-quality PE. In the future, action research should be undertaken to promote the term physical literacy.

Forty years of research into reading has elucidated many of the psychological processes underpinning the reading process, but until recently, the cognitive underpinnings of fluency have been relatively unknown. In this review, a description is provided of reading fluency as a cognitive and neurobiological phenomenon, including the research that has gone into understanding this process. My own and my colleagues’ work has focused heavily on this area, and I outline our main findings to date. I end by outlining the implications of this work for our understanding of reading fluency in normally developed and dyslexic adults.

This article compares the renowned letters of Kate Roberts and Saunders Lewis with the correspondence of two leading nineteenth-century French authors, Gustave Flaubert and George Sand, considering the value and purpose of letters between authors. In addition to widening our understanding of Roberts and Lewis’s works, the article also places the Sand-Flaubert correspondence in a new context, and considers the development of authorial correspondence over the decades. It draws original conclusions by revealing that literary letters continue to play a key role for writers in the twentieth century: offering encouragement and advice, a means of escape from current circumstances, and an important tool in the struggle against the emptiness of modern society.

This paper analyses the Welsh periodical press during the First World War, with an emphasis on the way an important aspect of the Welsh war culture was constructed. As an integral part of civil society, the press represented a powerful platform from where audiences could be influenced, as contributors of prominent social standing presented, interpreted, and framed the war in particular ways and in accordance with personal beliefs and cultural traditions. This paper argues that a powerful religious discourse was constructed by commentators in the Welsh press with regards to the meaning and purpose of the war, with thoughtful consideration given to prophecy, salvation, and the coming of a new age where Christianity would play a central role.

‘D.J. a fi’ draws on aspects of the work of Welsh author D.J. Williams and examines their potential to inspire the creation and inform the analysis of contemporary site-specific performance. Williams’s memoir, The Old Farmhouse, provides unique insights into the landscape of childhood, the located nature of memory, the dramaturgy of storytelling and the role of the teller. The author employs these insights to develop and suggest a number of practical and theoretical approaches to the use of biography, family history, domestic architecture and local knowledge in devised performance.

Referring extensively to his own work, ‘Bubbling Tom’ (2000), a peripatetic solo performance staged in the village of his own upbringing in rural Lincolnshire: a guided tour of the places he knew at the age of seven – he discusses the importance of Williams’s work in inspiring dramatic forms that seek to reveal the grain of experience by addressing the intimate and familiar, the details of everyday life and its fabric.

The Foundation Phase (FP) is a statutory curriculum in each state school in Wales since 2008. The curriculum follows a developmentally appropriate pedagogy, and encourages children to engage by learning through experiences. The paper that follows is taken from a wider evaluation of the FP, commissioned by Welsh Government in 2012 and considers one of the seven areas of learning; Welsh language development. Results indicated no significant difference between how the Foundation Phase was implemented in Welsh and English medium schools. But, Welsh language development usually took place in whole-class morning activities (e.g. circle time) which doesn’t pair with the Welsh Government’s vision of intertwining the language in every aspect of the FP. The paper considers how schools and settings go about developing bilingual individuals, according to Welsh Government policy aspirations.