A biodiversity jigsaw: A review of current New Zealand legislation and initiatives

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review the current legislation and initiatives surrounding biodiversity management, protection and sustainable use related to the New Zealand local government sector. Design/methodology/approach: This paper takes the form of an archival review of the academic databases, legislation and biodiversity related websites to ascertain the current legislation and initiatives in place in New Zealand surrounding biodiversity. Findings: The paper found biodiversity to be managed through a combination of legislation, national policies, strategies, trusts and contestable funds. The majority of biodiversity protection on private land is the responsibility of the 78 local authorities that comprise the local government sector through their administration of the Resource Management Act 1991. Despite the legislative requirement to protect and manage biodiversity the paper confirmed that no statutory framework currently exists to guide biodiversity reporting. Research limitations/implications: This study is limited to New Zealand biodiversity related legislation and initiatives. As such it may not necessarily be applicable to any other jurisdictions. Practical implications:This review illustrates the difficulty that exists in navigating the disjointed legislation and other initiatives relating to biodiversity. This currently hinders the development of framework for reporting on biodiversity by local government. However the development of such a framework is crucial to the conservation and sustainable use of New Zealand’s unique biodiversity for the benefit of current and future generations. Originality/value: This paper adds to the limited literature in the field of biodiversity reporting and extends it to the local government sector in New Zealand

Incorporating indigenous values in corporate social responsibility reports

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to show how a major state-owned enterprise in New Zealand uses its annual report to promote the image of an organisation concerned with the local community including Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, Māori values and their relationship with the environment. Design/methodology/approach – This longitudinal single case study of Mighty River Power Limited spans the period 2000 to 2009. It involves detailed examination of the narrative disclosures contained in the annual reports, including photographs, over the period of the study to determine whether Mighty River Power used the annual report to present a favourable image to the organisation’s stakeholders. Indigenous partnerships between the organisation and Māori trusts were also investigated to determine how these contributed to the corporate identity promoted in the annual reports. Findings – The analysis found that annual report was used to promote the image of an organisation upholding the Māori value of kaitiakitanga as part of its social responsibility to the local community and environment. Māori partnerships and community environmental group sponsorship were featured extensively in the images and narratives, with specific reference to indigenous values. Originality/value – This paper builds upon previous literature in the field of corporate social responsibility in annual reports and extends it to the state-owned enterprise sector in New Zealand, focusing specifically on the relationship between the entity and the indigenous community in which it operates

Intellectual Capital Reporting by the New Zealand Local Government Sector

Sweeping financial management reforms occurred in New Zealand during the late 1980s and early 1990s which radically changed the face of the New Zealand public sector. These reforms sought to significantly restructure and reorganise local government thereby improving their effectiveness and efficiency and improving their accountability to their stakeholders. The principal vehicle for the discharge of this accountability is the annual report, which must be prepared according to Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP) and commercial principles. Organisations in the private sector are beginning to recognise the value of accounting for intellectual capital (IC) (see for example Quinn, 1992; Brooking, 1996; Sveiby, 1997; Edvinsson Malone, 1997; Bontis, Dragonetti, Jacobsen Roos, 1999; Guthrie, Petty Johanson, 2001; Bounfour, 2003). Studies on the measurement, management and reporting of IC have been undertaken internationally in Asia (Abeysekera Guthrie, 2005; Goh Lim, 2004; Ordenez de Pablos, 2002), Australia (Guthrie Petty, 2000), Europe (Bozzolan, Favotto and Ricceri, 2003; Olsson, 2001; Ordenez de Pablos, 2004), United Kingdom (Collier, 2001; Williams, 2001) and Ireland (Brennan, 2001). Despite the significant research interest in the field of intellectual capital internationally, scant attention has been paid to intellectual capital reporting by commercial organisations in New Zealand. An extensive review of the IC literature yielded only two New Zealand based studies (Miller Whiting, 2005; Wong Gardner, 2005). Further, no studies to date have addressed intellectual capital reporting by local governments in either New Zealand or internationally. This study aims to fill this gap through the development of an intellectual capital disclosure model that could be applied to local authorities. The research describes and explains the development of a disclosure index used to measure the extent and quality of current intellectual capital disclosure by local authorities in New Zealand. The index was developed through a consultative process with a panel of local government stakeholders which was used to establish the weightings for each item. The final index comprised 26 items divided into three categories: internal capital, external capital and human capital. The 2004/2005 annual reports of 82 New Zealand local authorities were scored for extent and quality of disclosure against the index. The results indicate that intellectual capital reporting by local authorities is varied. Manukau City Council scored the achieved the highest overall score (76%) out of the 82 reports analysed while Whakatane District Council scored the lowest with 33%. The most reported items were joint ventures/business collaborations and management processes. The least reported items were intellectual property and licensing agreements. The most reported category of intellectual capital was internal capital, followed by external capital. The least reported category was human capital. The findings indicate a number of areas of reporting that could be improved in order to meet with stakeholder disclosure expectations. In the internal capital category, intellectual property disclosures could be improved. In the external capital category disclosure concerning ratepayer demographics and licensing agreements could be improved. In the human capital category, disclosure of most items could be improved, in particular, entrepreneurial innovativeness and vocational qualifications. The study provided an insight into the current level and quality of intellectual capital disclosure by the NZ local government sector. The results indicated that local authorities are disclosing some aspects of intellectual capital in their annual report, however there is no consistent reporting framework, and many areas of IC disclosures are not meeting stakeholder expectations. More research is needed in the area of intellectual capital reporting in the public sector. This study provides a preliminary framework which can be used by local authorities to enhance intellectual capital disclosures in their annual reports

Motive, Auswirkungen und Bilanzierung im nachberuflichen Studium

In Zeiten tiefgreifender gesellschaftlicher Transformationen gewinnt das Lebenslange bzw. Lebensbegleitende Lernen zur Sicherung von Orientierung und Teilhabe zunehmend an Bedeutung. Hierbei spielen auch die Angebote der Hochschulen im Rahmen eines Gast- bzw. Seniorenstudiums eine immer stärkere Rolle, ermöglichen diese doch einem breiten Adressat*innenkreis, zumeist ohne formale Bildungsvoraussetzungen, den Zugang zu wissenschaftlichen Themen und Diskursen. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird der Frage nachgegangen, welche Erwartungen mit der Teilnahme an nachberuflicher wissenschaftlicher Weiterbildung verbunden sind und inwieweit diese durch die Partizipation an dem Bildungsangebot eingelöst werden. Neben den Teilnahmemotiven und Auswirkungen stehen somit die intraindividuellen Bilanzierungen und personen- und teilnahmebezogenen Einflussfaktoren im Mittelpunkt. Als Datengrundlage dient eine Befragung der Teilnehmenden des Seniorenstudiums der Leibniz-Universität Hannover aus dem Sommersemester 2019. Abschließend werden die Relevanz und praktischen Implikationen diskutiert. (DIPF/Orig.

Transformation of Medical Diagnostics with Machine Learning by Considering the Example of Atrial Fibrillation Identification

The paper addresses the problem of detecting one of the most common cardiac arrhythmias atrial fibrillation with artificial intelligence. The arrhythmia increases the risk of suffering from a stroke massively. Because of this, it is essential to detect atrial fibrillation early. As the arrhythmia occurs in short sequences, it is only possible to detect the disease in long-term measurements for example with electrocardiography. All common current detection techniques are calculating the R-R intervals with variations of the root mean square of successive differences. Because this approach is inflexible and expensive, a major hospital in Germany suggests the implementation of an artificial intelligence solution for atrial fibrillation detection. The aim of the paper is to study the feasibility of atrial fibrillation detection with artificial intelligence in the clinical setting of the hospital

Motive, Auswirkungen und Bilanzierung im nachberuflichen Studium

In Zeiten tiefgreifender gesellschaftlicher Transformationen gewinnt das Lebenslange bzw. Lebensbegleitende Lernen zur Sicherung von Orientierung und Teilhabe zunehmend an Bedeutung. Hierbei spielen auch die Angebote der Hochschulen im Rahmen eines Gast- bzw. Seniorenstudiums eine immer stärkere Rolle, ermöglichen diese doch einem breiten Adressat*innenkreis, zumeist ohne formale Bildungsvoraussetzungen, den Zugang zu wissenschaftlichen Themen und Diskursen. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird der Frage nachgegangen, welche Erwartungen mit der Teilnahme an nachberuflicher wissenschaftlicher Weiterbildung verbunden sind und inwieweit diese durch die Partizipation an dem Bildungsangebot eingelöst werden. Neben den Teilnahmemotiven und Auswirkungen stehen somit die intraindividuellen Bilanzierungen und personen- und teilnahmebezogenen Einflussfaktoren im Mittelpunkt. Als Datengrundlage dient eine Befragung der Teilnehmenden des #Progr# der #Uni# aus dem Sommersemester 2019. Abschließend werden die Relevanz und praktischen Implikationen diskutiert

Senior:innenstudierende als nicht-traditionelle Zielgruppe der Hochschulbildung

Vor dem Hintergrund der bildungspolitischen Diskussion zur Öffnung der Hochschulen sowie der gestiegenen Bedeutung Lebenslangen Lernens widmet sich der Beitrag einer besonderen Untergruppe nicht-traditioneller Studierender: „learners in later life“, die an Angeboten der wissenschaftlichen Weiterbildung teilnehmen. Anhand von Daten der Universitäten Hannover und Magdeburg (2014–2021) werden die Bedeutung der Studienmotive „Selbstwirksamkeit & Sinn“ für die Weiterbildungsteilnahme im Zeitverlauf identifiziert und Korrelationen mit akademischer Vorbildung und Geschlecht festgestellt. Sodann werden Implikationen für die Hochschul- und Qualitätsentwicklung der Lehre diskutiert

Learners in later life. A non-traditional target group in higher education

Vor dem Hintergrund der bildungspolitischen Diskussion zur Öffnung der Hochschulen sowie der gestiegenen Bedeutung Lebenslangen Lernens widmet sich der Beitrag einer besonderen Untergruppe nicht-traditioneller Studierender: „learners in later life“, die an Angeboten der wissenschaftlichen Weiterbildung teilnehmen. Anhand von Daten der Universitäten Hannover und Magdeburg (2014–2021) werden die Bedeutung der Studienmotive „Selbstwirksamkeit & Sinn“ für die Weiterbildungsteilnahme im Zeitverlauf identifiziert und Korrelationen mit akademischer Vorbildung und Geschlecht festgestellt. Sodann werden Implikationen für die Hochschul- und Qualitätsentwicklung der Lehre diskutiert. (DIPF/Orig.)This article addresses a particular subgroup of non-traditional students: “learners in later life” who participate in further academic education. Our research ties in with the educational policy discussion on opening universities and the increased importance of life-long learning in empirical educational research. Based on survey data from the universities of Hanover and Magdeburg (2014–2021), the importance of the study motives “self-efficacy and meaning” was gauged over time, and correlations with previous academic education and gender were identified. Based on the empirical results, we discuss the implications for higher education and teaching quality development. (DIPF/Orig.

The Potential of Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) as Complementary Medicine for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Complementary and alternative medicine has the potential to enrich conventional therapy to improve the treatment of various diseases. Patients that suffer from inflammatory bowel disease, which requires a constant need for medication, have to deal with the adverse effects of repeated application. Natural products such as Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) possess the potential to improve symptoms of inflammatory diseases. We investigated the efficacy of EGCG on an inflamed co-culture model simulating IBD and compared it to the efficacies of four commonly applied active pharmaceutical ingredients. EGCG (200 µg/mL) strongly stabilized the TEER value of the inflamed epithelial barrier to 165.7 ± 4.6% after 4 h. Moreover, the full barrier integrity was maintained even after 48 h. This corresponds to the immunosuppressant 6-Mercaptopurin and the biological drug Infliximab. The EGCG treatment significantly decreased the release of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 (to 0%) and IL-8 (to 14.2%), similar to the effect of the corticosteroid Prednisolone. Therefore, EGCG has a high potential to be deployed as complementary medicine in IBD. In future studies, the improvement of EGCG stability is a key factor in increasing the bioavailability in vivo and fully harnessing the health-improving effects of EGCG