9,537 research outputs found

    Walking with the Earth: Intercultural Perspectives on Ethics of Ecological Caring

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    It is commonly believed that considering nature different from us, human beings (qua rational, cultural, religious and social actors), is detrimental to our engagement for the preservation of nature. An obvious example is animal rights, a deep concern for all living beings, including non-human living creatures, which is understandable only if we approach nature, without fearing it, as something which should remain outside of our true home. “Walking with the earth” aims at questioning any similar preconceptions in the wide sense, including allegoric-poetic contributions. We invited 14 authors from 4 continents to express all sorts of ways of saying why caring is so important, why togetherness, being-with each others, as a spiritual but also embodied ethics is important in a divided world

    Examining the Potential for Isotope Analyses of Carbon, Nitrogen, and Sulphur in Burned Bone from Experimental and Archaeological Contexts.

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    The aim of this project was to determine whether isotope analyses of carbon, nitrogen and sulphur can be conducted on collagen extracted from burned bone. This project was conducted in two phases: a controlled heating experiment and an archaeological application. The controlled heating experiment used cow (Bos taurus) bone to test the temperature thresholds for the conservation of ή13C, ή15N, and ή34S values. These samples were also used to test the efficacy of Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and colour analysis, for determining the burning intensities experienced by bone burned in unknown conditions. The experiment showed that ή13C values were relatively unchanged up to 400°C (<2‰ variation), while ή15N values were relatively stable up to 200°C (0.5‰ variation). Values of ή34S were also relatively stable up to 200°C (1.4‰ variation). Colour change and FTIR data were well correlated with the change in isotope ratios. Models estimating burning intensities were created from the FTIR data. For the archaeological application, samples were selected from two early Anglo-Saxon cemetery sites: Elsham and Cleatham. Samples were selected from both inhumed and cremated individuals. Among the inhumed individuals ή13C values suggested a C3 terrestrial diet and ή15N values suggested protein derived largely from terrestrial herbivores, as expected for the early Anglo-Saxon period. However, ή34S values suggested the consumption of freshwater resources and that this consumption was related to both the age and sex of the individual. The experimental data shows that there is potential for isotope analyses of cremated remains, as during the cremation process heat exposures are not uniform across the body. The samples selected for the archaeological application, however, were not successful. Bone samples heated in controlled conditions produced viable collagen for isotope analysis; however, there are several differences between experiments conducted in a muffle furnace and open-air pyre cremation that need to be investigated further. Additionally, the influence of taphonomy on collagen survival in burned bone needs to be quantified. Finally, methods of sample selection need to be improved to find bone samples from archaeologically cremated remains that are most likely to retain viable collagen. While there is significant research that must be conducted before this research can be widely applied there are a multitude of cultures that practised cremation throughout history and around the world that could be investigated through the analyses proposed in this project

    Intervening on hypertension in Zambia: development of a culturally sensitized lifestyle programme to reduce disease incidence in urban areas

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    Background/purpose: Hypertension, like other non-communicable diseases, is becoming a major public health problem for Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Its increasing prevalence is driven by an epidemiological transition with more people leading unhealthy lifestyles, including poor diet and physical inactivity. This project aimed to explore the use of participatory methods with an urban community in Zambia in co-developing a culturally sensitized hypertension prevention intervention. Methods: The intervention development study was divided into four phases. I scoped and synthesized existing literature on risk factors (non-modifiable and modifiable) for hypertension in SSA in Phase One. The identified risk factors and their drivers informed Phase Two community members focus group discussions and stakeholder interviews to explore the local context in the study site to clarify the problem, identify which hypertension risk factors were malleable (potential factors to target), the mechanism of change, and how to deliver this. The findings informed the development of the causal pathway, the intervention theory of change and the Phase Three co-development of the intervention core components and small-scale evaluation. Five co-development workshops (four with local residents and one with local stakeholders) iteratively informed identification of priority risk factors, the delivery format and setting, and finalization of intervention core components. The pilot intervention was then tested with volunteer participants (N=34) to assess feasibility, acceptability and potential effectiveness in Phase four. Results: The scoping review identified the most common risk factors for hypertension in SSA. Residents FGDs and key stakeholder interviews, informed by the scoping review findings, identified a number of potentially malleable hypertension risk factors at individual and interpersonal levels, including high salt intake and other dietary factors, low physical activity, excess body weight, central obesity, high alcohol intake and smoking. From these, the workshops prioritised intervening on salt intake, other dietary factors, and physical inactivity. Using these suggestions, an 8-week group-based intervention (CHiPI) was codeveloped. Stakeholders proposed evaluation of the CHiPI on a small scale and delivery through churches: “nearly all residents belong to a church”. Stakeholders also identified community health workers and church leaders as delivery facilitators. The intervention core components were agreed and refined in close consultation with residents. These included linguistic and cultural adaptations of SMART goal setting and self-monitoring tools, which were iteratively tested and refined to reflect the local socio-cultural context. The small-scale evaluation of the intervention showed high acceptability, feasibility and potential effectiveness in improving health literacy, adoption of healthier diets (less salt added during cooking [p=0.014], reduction in added salt to the plate at mealtimes [p=0.001], increased fruit intake [p=0.001], reduced fried meals [p = 0.001]), increased physical activity [p=0.01] and reduced sedentary lifestyle [p = 0.001]. Reductions in body weight [p = 0.002], BMI [p = 0.001], WC [p = 0.001], SBP [-3mmHg, p=0.003] and DBP [-4mmHg, p = 0.001] were also observed. Conclusions and implications: Participatory methods succeeded in engaging local residents and stakeholders in the development of a potentially effective culturally sensitized, 8-week, group-based hypertension prevention lifestyle intervention for delivery through churches in Zambia. Having demonstrated high feasibility, acceptability and potential effectiveness, taking this intervention to a larger evaluation to obtain evidence of effectiveness can inform hypertension prevention intervention development in Zambia and other SSA countries

    Understanding the adoption and implementation of Sector Skills Councils in Chile

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    Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) policies have gained increased interest in global agendas, being a particular concern in ensuring that youths have the skills needed to enter the labour market. In this line, international organisations and cooperation agencies have widely promoted sector skills bodies. This policy seeks to involve employers in skills formation and foster collaboration among different stakeholders to ensure that the skills developed through TVET meet labour market needs. However, academic research about this specific policy is limited. Moreover, even when several countries have adopted these bodies, little is known about them from a policy transfer perspective (i.e. studying the travel of an education policy from one place to another). This thesis addresses this gap by examining the adoption and implementation of private-led Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) in Chile. Thus, two main research questions guided this study: Why and how private actors in Chile have adopted SSCs? How have different employers and TVET providers implemented SSCs’ initiatives in Chile? This qualitative research utilised a multiple-case study design for which data was collected through semi-structured interviews and documents analysis. First, based on a Cultural Political Economy approach, the adoption of SSCs was investigated by examining the main factors that could account for the mechanisms involved in the process. Second, the implementation of SSCs was studied by considering a policy enactment focus and the principles of the Realist Evaluation approach to understand how two main actors affected by the policy, employers and TVET providers, have fulfilled the policy expectations. The findings of this thesis show the crucial role of ideational factors (i.e. the influence of policy entrepreneur) to trigger policy change and the specific economic, institutional, political and educational conditions at the national and sectoral levels that may explain the adoption of SSCs. As a result, it advances our understanding of the different roles played by ideational and material factors in adopting SSCs as a TVET policy. Likewise, given the unusual private-led adoption of these bodies, this study provides an empirical demonstration of this uncommon situation. Simultaneously, it offers potential new insights about the assessments made by employers and their business associations when deciding to involve in skill formation policies. Moreover, by investigating the implementation of SSCs from the perspective of the main actors expected to enact the policy, this thesis provides an initial understanding of the varied contextual and stakeholder conditions affecting these actors’ responses to SSCs. In doing so, this thesis also offers an empirical demonstration of the limitations of SSCs adopted and implemented with a skills supply orthodoxy rhetoric

    Examining the opportunities for agricultural experiences as part of Scottish secondary school pupils’ learning under Curriculum for Excellence

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    Society is increasingly disconnected from the processes and practices of agriculture as food production, and therefore the true cost and value of food. A way in which to overcome this disconnect would be to increase agricultural literacy levels through education. Learning outside the classroom has been shown to benefit children and young people including personal development and increased care towards the environment. Sustainability learning, including outdoor learning, as an approach to developing sustainable behaviours is the focus of much research. There is, however, a gap in research on the potential for agricultural learning experiences that demonstrate the positive role agriculture plays within global environmental systems. Agriculture is often portrayed in a negative framing in regard to the impacts of human action on the environment. The aim of this study was to examine opportunities for Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) to deliver lasting impressions of farming and food production for secondary school pupils in Scotland through a concept of agricultural experiences. This research was conducted through qualitatively-driven mixed methods consisting of survey, interview, and focus group methodology with a range of school-based and rural-based participants. The research found that CfE inadvertently maintains an anti-rural position, reflected in the lack of any meaningful reference to agriculture within the Experiences and Outcomes; framing agriculture within a context of negative environmental impact. There exist clear opportunities, as well multiple benefits, for agricultural experiences under CfE learning, however, there remain challenges for implementation within current CfE cultures and structures. Pupils and teachers recognised the value of agricultural experiences to deliver meaningful experiential learning experiences, as well as developing knowledge and skills for lifelong learning. Scottish agricultural stakeholders and farmers feel that media misrepresentation contributes to societal disconnect and thus the attitudes and perceptions of agriculture, particularly livestock farming, while often negating to recognise the primary function of agriculture-as-food within the current challenges facing global environmental systems. Five recommendations are put forward as a result of this research: Words Matter, Framing Farming, Balanced Environmental Education, Build Partnerships, and Be Bold. These capture ways in which agriculture and agricultural experiences can be better incorporated through a ‘Minimum Effort Strategy’ which would strengthen current CfE structures, and a ‘Radical Strategy’ which envisions a planetary or agricultural phronesis challenging us to a transformation in sustainability learning that re-imagines our human relation to the world

    Techno-economic analysis for local hydrogen production for energy storage and services

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    The energy industry is quickly changing, with more renewable energy technologies emerging and sustainable sources growing in their capacities, which is slowly reducing the need for fossil fuel sourced energy supply. But with it come challenges, with energy storage becoming increasingly more important to help balance the gap between the energy supply and demand. The interest in hydrogen has accelerated in recent years as it can be used for several end uses, for example power-to-power, power-to-gas and power-to-fuel. It could therefore potentially decarbonise several industries, not just the energy sector. For hydrogen produced by renewables through water electrolysis to become competitive, the issues of low roundtrip efficiencies, high costs and the need of scaling up a new infrastructure needs to be addressed. This research project is a collaboration between University of Edinburgh and Bright Green Hydrogen (BGH). BGH is a non-for-profit company that created and launched the Levenmouth Community Energy Project (LCEP) in 2014 (operational from 2017) to explore electrolytic hydrogen’s ability to decarbonise energy supplies. The LCEP consists of: 750 kW wind turbine, 48 kW roof PV, 112 kW ground PV, 250 kW PEM electrolyser, 100 kW PEM fuel cell, two 60 kW hydrogen refuellers and a total of 17 hydrogen vehicles of three different models. This project used the data, information and observations from the LCEP to build an energy system model that included hydrogen with real-world aspects. The model was used to explore different ways that the economics and self-reliance for energy of small-scale hydrogen systems can be improved by conducting a techno-economic analysis on a number of alterations. The electrolyser control system was improved to help the electrolyser behave more energy efficiently, components were changed in sizing and a Lithium-ion battery was added into the model to help optimising the main electrolyser’s performance. The first novelty of this work was a new electrolyser model that was developed specifically to account for energy consumption and hydrogen production at low load, which appeared frequent and significant in this type of system. The model was found to represent the plant data better than existing ones. One general conclusion from this work was the impact of operation at low load, which is difficult to avoid at all times and yet should be minimised for good technical and economic performance. The second contribution to knowledge in this work is the methods and findings of the technoeconomic assessment. Several possible improvements were explored to find a balance in techno-economic performance of the small-scale hydrogen production facility. It was found that a control system that made adequate use of forecast weather and energy supply data was critical for effective and efficient use of the electrolyser, without excessive shutdown time and parasitic loss at times of low energy supply. In addition, changes in the respective capacities of the components (electrolyser, storage, solar energy supply) for the same demand could result in significant improvements in economic performance, and so could the incorporation of batteries within the system in support of the electrolyser. Batteries helped both electrolyser standby load (to help with grid independence) and hydrogen production (to improve electrolyser’s output). However, there is a balance between battery storage size and system benefits. In the particular case of the LCEP as built, the system struggled to perform well while it had two end uses (energy storage for buildings and fuel for vehicles) without more energy and hydrogen supply. Also, the main electrolyser was oversized for its needs, resulting in poor capacity utilization and high parasitic load. But a significantly smaller electrolyser with sufficient storage had a notable technical benefit to the system. Finally, there were several adjustments that could lead to a technically well-performing smallscale hydrogen system, but none that made it economically feasible. Capital costs, operating costs, maintenance costs, major replacement costs and durability of components are still major factors that need to be addressed for hydrogen at this scale to be feasible. However, this work clearly identified required areas of progress to achieve economic viability without subsidies, in particular, improving the longevity of the electrolyser and fuel cell stacks would alone enable a positive Net Present Value. In addition, recent and ambitious policy decisions and more widely deployed demonstration projects can stimulate volumes of productions of these components, and the significant cost reductions that these would allow
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