This paper will examine developments in parenting by lesbians and gay men. It will draw on available research evidence to address fundamental questions posed about the impact of parenting by this particular group of parents on the children whom they raise. The paper will also explore motivation and routes to parenthood and the specific arrangements lesbians and gay men have evolved to make parenting a viable option in their lives. Dilemmas and challenges faced by lesbian and gay parents will be explored, and the implications for practice are considered.

No abstract

Issues concerning sexual identity are not uncommon in therapy with adolescents, although they may manifest in a variety of ways. For young people who have experienced same‐gender attractions or sexual experiences there is the question of how to absorb these experiences within the construction of a coherent sexual identity. In many cases the family context plays an important role in sexual identity formation and acceptance. Therapists too may play an important role in terms of two key aspects of sexual identity formation: self‐definition and disclosure. Family therapists in particular occupy a unique position with respect to the adolescent and his or her family, opening up not only potential opportunities but also potential risks in practice. Practice issues are identified and explored in this paper.

This paper addresses questions such as: can couples troubled by violence in their relationship make use of couple therapy? Are particular types of violence amenable to such work, and others that are not? If we do work with violent couples, how can they be helped to understand what is going on between them, so as to stop being violent, and to keep them safe? Drawing on two case examples, we seek to demonstrate the benefits of couple psychoanalytic psychotherapy in promoting couples' understanding of the roots of their behaviour patterns as well as their impact on one another. This understanding can lead to reductions in mutual tension and hostility, and a consequent discontinuance of violence.

Optimizing the utility of constructed waterways as residential development with water-frontage, along with a productive and functional habitat for wildlife is of considerable interest to managers. This study examines Lake Hugh Muntz, a large (17 ha) freshwater lake built in Gold Coast City, Australia. A ten year water quality monitoring programme shows that the lake has increasing nutrient concentrations, and together with summer algal blooms, the lake amenity as a popular recreational swimming and triathlon training location is at risk. A survey of fish and aquatic plant communities showed that the lake supports a sub-set of species found in adjacent natural wetlands. Sediment contaminants were below the lower Australian trigger values, except As, Hg, Pb and Zn, probably a function of untreated and uncontrolled stormwater runoff from nearby urban roads. Sediment biogeochemistry showed early signs of oxygen depletion, and an increase in benthic organic matter decomposition and oxygen consumption will result in more nitrogen recycled to the water column as NH4(+) (increasing the intensity of summer algal blooms) and less nitrogen lost to the atmosphere as N2 gas via denitrification. A series of catchment restoration initiatives were modeled and the optimal stormwater runoff restoration effort needed for lake protection will be costly, particularly retrospective, as is the case here. Overall, balancing the lifestyles and livelihoods of residents along with ecosystem protection are possible, but require considerable trade-offs between ecosystem services and human use.