The Fairtrade movement: Six lessons for the organics sector

Fairtrade retail sales increased by 12.1% in the UK while organics sales decreased by 12.9% in 2009. This paper examines the lessons that the organics sector might usefully draw from the successful experiences of the Fairtrade movement. Three lessons of exposition and three lessons of engagement are identified. Fairtrade has a common logo across markets, typically there is a narrative, and the provenance of the ingredients is stated. Fairtrade has successfully extended its branding to engage with places and educational and faith communities, and to publicly acknowledge such engagements. There are 500 Fairtrade Towns in the UK, along with 118 Fairtrade universities, a diversity of faith communities including over 6000 Fairtrade churches, and over 4000 UK schools are registered in the Fairtrade Schools Scheme

Growth and suitability of some tree species selected for planting in adverse environments in Eritrea and Ethiopia

The thesis addresses some important silvicultural issues raised in Eritrea and Ethiopia and the objective was to evaluate various tree species in terms of growth in adverse environments. Three field and two greenhouse studies were performed using the main species Eucalyptus globulus, Cordia africana, Casuarina cunninghamiana, and Acacia tortilis, A. nilotica and Leucaena leucocephala. Growth of E. globulus tree was influenced by altitude and stand density when assessed in a planted stand in Ethiopia. Decreasing altitude increased growth only up to the middle of the valley hillside. Increasing density increased growth. Soil depth had no impact on growth of E. globulus and this shows that the species is suitable for planting on shallow soils. Data from a C. africana spacing trial in Eritrea were analysed to improve the management of C. africana plantations established on degraded dry lands by evaluating the response of the species to various initial spacings. Planting C. africana trees at wider spacing can be advantageous in terms of growth, but not stem quality. Different provenances of C. cunninghamiana were tested in two field trials in Eritrea to identify the provenance matching marginal lands of the Eritrean highlands. For firewood and small pole production, the use of the fast growing provenances ‘Coonabarabran’ (CN), ‘Flag stone’ (FS), and ‘Rollingstone’ (RS) is recommended. However, the use and wide spread of the three provenances must be taken with caution due to the risks involved in the use of exotic tree species. Two greenhouse experiments investigated the suitability of A. tortilis for manure production and rehabilitating salt affected marginal lands. The species has a greater potential to produce mulch rich in nitrogen and phosphorus compared to L. leucocephala. Nevertheless, further research under field conditions would be needed to confirm the results and the sustainability of such a practice. A. tortilis and A. nilotica seem to be sensitive to salinity. However, because the two acacias have a wide distribution covering a large salinity gradient, there could be other provenances or ecotypes of both species that are more tolerant to salinity. Therefore, screening tests involving various genotypes of both species could be promising to find suitable trees for afforestation on salt affected soils in arid and semiarid Africa

Cultural and rural tourism: potential synergies for a new economic development pattern. The Italian case.

Thanks to its important naturalistic, historical, cultural and artistic heritage, Italy is one of the Countries with the greatest touristic vocation in the world. As consequence, tourism is the most important productive sector in Italian economy, with an impact just below 12% on GDP. During the long period of economic crisis that affected the major world economies, between 2008 and 2014, some parts of the Italian tourism, including seaside for example, declined. This decline, at an aggregate level, has been however balanced by the development of cultural tourism. This also thanks to the increase of external demand: the number of foreign visits went from 140 million in 2000 to more than 190 million in 2016, without any decline also over the hardest period of the above mentioned economic crisis. About 37% of external demand is attributed to expenditures for holidays in art heritage cities and they represent the most dynamic part of Italian tourism. Although with more modest absolute values, agritourism and food and wine tourism are dynamic parts of Italian tourism too and, sometimes, they are linked with cultural tourism. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate that the development of cultural tourism, agritourism and food and wine tourism can be a single goal of economic policy aimed at creating new growth strategies in order to overcome the effects of the economic crisis. Organizing as a single economic system the different parts of Italian tourism can be the most coherent action in order to cope with the different development needs and potentialities of Italy whose economic system is traditionally linked to the territorial values

The Potential Use of Organically Grown Dye Plants in the Organic Textile Industry: Experiences and Results on Cultivation and Yields of Dyers Chamomile (Anthemis tinctoria L.), Dyers Knotweed (Polygonum tinctorium Ait.) and Weld (Reseda luteola L.)

The organic cultivation of dye plants for the certified natural textiles industry is an emerging and promising sector of organic farming. In 1999 a field trial was done with different provenances of Dyer’s Chamomile (Anthemis tinctoria L.), Dyer’s Knotweed Polygonum tinctorium Ait.), and Weld (Reseda luteola L.) on two organic farms in Lower Austria. Yields, dyestuff content, and quality parameters were analyzed. Dry matter yields of Weld ranged between 0.7 and 2.7 t ha-1, of Dyer’s Chamomile (flower heads) between 1.1 and 1.8 t ha-1. Significant differences were found between seed Weld provenances as well as between those of Dyer’s Chamomile. The total leaf dry matter of Dyer’s Knotweed (2 cuts) ranged at both sites on average 3.1 t ha-1. Seed provenances did not show differences. The total flavonoid content of Weld ranged between 1.53 and 4.00%, of Dyer’s Chamomile between 0.84 and 1.5%. The content of indican in Dyer’s Knotweed ranged between 0.50 and 1.45% of leaf dry matter, the calculated theoretical content of indigo ranged between 0.22 and 0.64% of leaf dry matter. The general use fastness properties differ according to species and provenance. Both high and low values were achieved. The data on the cultivation of dye plants in organic farming show promising results. Research should address improvement in yields and quality, development of dyestuff extracts, and optimization of dyeing methods. Research on dye plants needs a systemic look at the whole chain including producers, processors, trade, and consumers

The uncertainties associated with sediment fingerprinting suspended and recently deposited fluvial sediment in the Nene river basin

The use of tracers within a sediment fingerprinting framework has become a commonly used technique for investigating the sources of fine sediment. However, uncertainties associated with tracer behaviour have been cited as major potential limitations to sediment fingerprinting methodologies. This paper aims to determine the differences between fingerprinting results derived using different groups of tracer properties and to determine the role of organic matter content, particle size, and within-source variability in tracer concentrations on the observed differences. A mean difference of 24.1% between the predicted contributions of sediment originating from channel banks was found when using different tracer groups. Mean differences between tracer group predictions were lower, at between 8% and 11%, when fingerprinting contributions from urban street dusts. Organic matter content and / or particle size showed little indication that they caused differences between tracer group predictions. The within-source variability in tracer concentrations and small contrasts between the tracer concentrations of different source groups were identified as probable causes of inherent uncertainty in the fingerprinting predictions. We determined that the ratio of the percentage difference between median tracer concentrations in the source groups and the average within-source tracer concentration coefficient of variation could indicate the likely uncertainty in model predictions prior to tracer use

Germination responses to light of four Neotropical forest tree species along an elevational gradient in the southern Central Andes

Seed germination is a key part of plants' life cycle and is mostly affected by the genetic background, the environmental conditions experienced by the mother plant and the seedbed conditions. The germination response to light is essential to optimize germination and seedling establishment in space and time. In addition, the germination response to light is a trait often related to the response of the seeds to their position in the soil (uncovered/buried). Here, we studied the germination response to light of four key tree species of the Yungas forest (Anadenanthera colubrina, Enterolobium contortisiliquum, Jacaranda mimosifolia and Handroanthus impetiginosus) sampled along an elevational and environmental gradient with contrasting vegetation cover and disturbance. Relative light germination (RLG) and mean germination time (MGT) were determined. Final germination was tested under cycles of light (8 h) and darkness (16 h) versus complete darkness (24 h) and elevation, and MGT was tested as a function of elevation of the provenance. The RLG increased from smaller to larger-seeded species. The MGT of three of the studied species was affected by the elevation of the provenance. Complete darkness negatively affected final germination, while two species exhibited a significant interaction between the provenance and light. The variable germination responses to light along the elevational gradient highlights the influence of the environment on germination as a key factor that should be considered for forest management, conservation and restoration projects

Are Local Filters Blind to Provenance? Ant Seed Predation Suppresses Exotic Plants More than Natives

The question of whether species’ origins influence invasion outcomes has been a point of substantial debate in invasion ecology. Theoretically, colonization outcomes can be predicted based on how species’ traits interact with community filters, a process presumably blind to species’ origins. Yet, exotic plant introductions commonly result in monospecific plant densities not commonly seen in native assemblages, suggesting that exotic species may respond to community filters differently than natives. Here, we tested whether exotic and native species differed in their responses to a local community filter by examining how ant seed predation affected recruitment of eighteen native and exotic plant species in central Argentina. Ant seed predation proved to be an important local filter that strongly suppressed plant recruitment, but ants suppressed exotic recruitment far more than natives (89% of exotic species vs. 22% of natives). Seed size predicted ant impacts on recruitment independent of origins, with ant preference for smaller seeds resulting in smaller seeded plant species being heavily suppressed. The disproportionate effects of provenance arose because exotics had generally smaller seeds than natives. Exotics also exhibited greater emergence and earlier peak emergence than natives in the absence of ants. However, when ants had access to seeds, these potential advantages of exotics were negated due to the filtering bias against exotics. The differences in traits we observed between exotics and natives suggest that higher-order introduction filters or regional processes preselected for certain exotic traits that then interacted with the local seed predation filter. Our results suggest that the interactions between local filters and species traits can predict invasion outcomes, but understanding the role of provenance will require quantifying filtering processes at multiple hierarchical scales and evaluating interactions between filters.Fil: Pearson, Dean. University of Montana; Estados Unidos. United States Department of Agriculture; Estados UnidosFil: Icasatti, Nadia Soledad. United States Department of Agriculture; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Hierro, Jose Luis. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra y Ambientales de La Pampa; ArgentinaFil: Bird, Benjamin B.. United States Department of Agriculture; Estados Unido