Le projet hydoélectrique de Tenosique (Mexique-Guatemala) : Barrage global et gouvernance locale, quelles perspectives ?

Le projet de Tenosique-Boca del Cerro consiste en un important complexe de barrages qui viendrait mettre en valeur le potentiel hydroélectrique de l’Usumacinta, sixième fleuve latino-américain en terme de débit, et berceau de la civilisation Maya et de la plus grande forêt équatoriale au nord de l’Amazone. Entre un potentiel économique fort (ressources pétrolières et forestières, potentiel hydroélectrique), un aspect patrimonial essentiel (sites archéologiques, conservation de la forêt) et une tension politique importante (frontière cruciale et mal contrôlée, guérilla zapatiste, relations diplomatiques tendues entre les deux pays), le projet de Tenosique-Boca del Cerro est au coeur des enjeux et des contradictions qui caractérisent la région. Haut lieu territorial, la question des modes de gouvernance et de l’application des principes du développement durable qui s’y appliquent est essentielle, car elle aborde celle, plus large, de la démocratisation du Mexique et du Guatemala. Abordé sous un angle géographique, le projet est ici envisagé sous l’angle des logiques territoriales qui sous-tendent le débat qui l’entourent depuis sa première version, dans les années 1960 : en 2008, et pour la cinquième fois, le Mexique annonce une reprise du processus et annonçait une mise en service en 2017.The Usumacinta watershed, the 6th largest river and second tropical rainforest in Latin America, as well as the cradle of the Mayan civilization. Thanks to the building of five large dams, the important project of Tenosique-Boca del Cerro aims to develop the hydroelectric potential of the mesoamerican region, an area of numerous and contradictory stakes, and high potential of conflict: economically (oil, forest and water ressources), environmentally (patrimony and conservation), as well as a strong political and territorial conflict (out of control border, zapatist guerilla, tense diplomatic relations). As a territorial pivot, this project implies some essential questions, such as the governance of this process in a context of relative democratization, as well as the difficulty of the implementation of Sustainable Development principles. This article gives a geographical approach of these issues, by analysing the territorial logics and strategies witch have been used for 50 years about these potential dams: in 2008, for the fifth time, the mexican government anounced a revival of the project

Educational decision-making in an era of AIDS: exploring the narratives of affected young adults in the Cape Flats

This paper analyses how HIV and AIDS affects decisions around education. Data was collected through in-depth interviews with eight young adults, as part of a larger study into educational decision-making among young Black African adults in general. Results indicate that HIV and AIDS heighten psychological problems including stress, insecurity and anxiety, as identified by psychological research. HIV and AIDS add an extra layer to the already existing complexity and fragility of young people's lives and worlds. But no evidence was found that affected young people would more readily make negative decisions about education, or would orient their values, attitudes and behaviour towards the short- rather than the long-term. The AIDS-affected young people in the sample shape their identities by focusing on future success, albeit within a world characterised by fragility, in ways that are similar to non-affected young people. Positive educational decision-making is clearly an integral part of those young people who choose to regard their current situation of deprivation as temporal and to use education as a vehicle towards future success

The stuff that dreams are made of...Narratives on educational decision-making among young adults in Cape Town

This paper examines the narratives of eight young, Black South Africans on their decisions around education. Analysis focuses on these young adults' value of education on the one hand, and the parallels or breaches between that value and education-related choices or actions on the other. It shows that educational decision-making should be regarded as part of a larger process of identity-formation. I argue that the young people in my sample choose different strategies in attempts to create their identity. One such strategy implies a long-term oriented focus on success; choosing in favour of education is an intrinsic part thereof. Another one rests on a more short-term oriented wish for the same type of success, however with little or no concrete plans on how to reach that. The importance of education is not openly rejected by young adults adapting this second strategy, yet it is not a central factor in it either. Strategies such as these are, however, not static, and the distinction between them not as unambiguous as may seem. Shifting factors in a context of 'fragility' may lead young adults to rethink their choices and plans; many move between different strategies, or create 'in-between' versions that leave room for adaptation when necessary

Educational decision-making in an era of AIDS

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references (p. 243-267).One of the ways in which AIDS is said to ravage the lives of young people is through its impact on education. Youth and their caregivers might respond to shortened life expectancy by investing less in schooling. No evidence has been presented for this hypothesis, however. Indeed, little is known about educational decision-making outside of a Western, industrialized context. This thesis examines educational decisionmaking in South Africa, and specifically tests the hypotheses that AIDS reduces the perceived value of education. The study combines quantitative and qualitative research, all conducted in the South African city of Cape Town. Whilst it proves difficult to model the effects of HIV/AIDS, the quantitative data from both adolescents (who participated in successive waves of the Cape Area Panel Study) and adults (who participated in the 2005 Cape Area Study) fails to provide support for the hypothesis that AIDS leads to a diminished valuation of the importance of education. Qualitative material was collected through diverse methods, from samples of AIDSaffected and non-affected young adults, and from HIV-positive adult caregivers. The qualitative research shows that young adults make educational decisions as part of a broader process of constructing identities. In a context of ‘fragility’, youth have to decide who they are and want they want to be. They construct positive ‘future selves’ that entail the aspiration for a long and successful life, in the course of which they maintain some control in the face of the chaos, hardship and mortality around them. Investing in education is an important marker of this self-control and positive aspiration, and hence their desired identity. HIV-positive adult caregivers also choose to invest heavily in their children’s education because they want to equip their children with advantages that will endure after their own deaths. HIV/AIDS might induce stress, insecurity and anxiety, but no evidence was found that it leads either caregivers or youth to make negative decisions about education, or to orient their values, attitudes and behaviour towards the short- rather than the long-term

Exploring concepts of death and subjective life expectancy: understanding young adults' perceptions of (In)-vulnerability

This study contributes to the understanding of young adults' concepts of death and subjective life expectancy, especially in an era when HIV and AIDS significantly raise morbidity and mortality levels and lower life expectancy. It was meant to inform theory building about subjective life expectancy and its potential impact on individual decision-making. The sample for this specific paper consisted of ten African adolescents aged between fifteen and twenty-two, all of whom living in areas of Cape Town most heavily affected by the AIDS pandemic, as well as by other environmental factors, such as high poverty and crime rates, and high levels of violent deaths especially among young men. Findings show that young people are extremely aware of high death rates in their environments, especially deaths of a premature nature. Causes indicated were HIV and AIDS, but even more prominently crime and violence. Although confronted with the daily reality of death, participants did not consider these high death rates to be part of "a normal life", yet related them often to a general feeling of social and moral chaos in the townships. Different psychosocial mechanisms of dealing with the threat of death showed, with often very high levels of resilience and a focus on the future, but also fear and lack of clarity about that future in general. Subjective life expectancy (SLE) for oneself, however, was generally high and not influenced by the uncontrollable threat of violent deaths; Instead, the motivation behind SLE showed young adults' belief in personal choice and control exercised within their environments characterised by the complex interaction of poverty, crime, HIV and AIDS, peer pressure and modernisation.? HIV and AIDS was mostly taken into account as a factor of influence that one had control over and therefore did not influence SLE. Peers' SLE, however, was rated far lower than their own, taking into account those factors that participants considered controllable

Down-regulation of myopodin expression reduces invasion and motility of PC-3 prostate cancer cells

Enhanced motility of cancer cells by remodelling of the actin cytoskeleton is crucial in the process of cancer cell invasion and metastasis. Although several studies propose a tumor suppressor role for the actin bundling protein myopodin, it was also shown previously that overexpression of mouse myopodin promotes invasion in vitro. In the present study, the role of myopodin in human cancer cell motility and invasion was explored using RNA interference with siRNA duplexes designed to down-regulate all human myopodin isoforms currently identified. We show that down-regulation of myopodin expression in human cancer cells significantly reduces the invasive properties of these cells both in collagen type I and in Matrigel (R). Furthermore, the motile characteristics of cancer cells are also curbed by reduced myopodin expression whereas cell-cell contacts are reinforced. These results point to a role for myopodin as tumor activator. While these findings are at variance with the suggested tumor suppressor role for myopodin, we hypothesize that the subcellular localization of the protein is involved in its suppressor or activator function in tumorigenesis

Parques nacionais do Cerrado para além da conservação da biodiversidade : serviços ecossistêmicos culturais e riscos ambientais

Dissertação (mestrado)—Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade UnB Planaltina, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, 2017.As zonas de amortecimento no entorno de unidades de conservação podem minimizar os impactos antrópicos negativos e estimular o uso sustentável dos recursos naturais. Por outro lado, o uso da terra nessas zonas pode potencialmente deteriorar os processos ecológicos e a conservação da biodiversidade dentro da área protegida. Neste estudo, abordamos a interação homem-ambiente nas zonas de amortecimento de 13 Parques Nacionais do Cerrado Brasileiro, sob dupla perspectiva: como ecossistemas vulneráveis sob intensa pressão de conversão do uso da terra e como importantes fontes de serviços que sustentam o bem-estar humano. Foram realizadas duas análises. A primeira teve como objetivo apontar oportunidades para expandir e complementar as atrações turísticas em torno de oito Parques Nacionais abertos para visitação, aproveitando suas vistas panorâmicas. Os métodos foram baseados em atributos biofísicos derivados de sensoriamento remoto, três categorias principais relacionadas à qualidade visual e ecológica e seis indicadores. Os resultados identificaram perfis para os parques selecionados, relacionando suas características biofísicas com seu principal potencial turístico. As topografias mais acidentadas, em geral, foram associadas a maior amplitude de escala visual e complexidade, enquanto topografias planas favorecem serviços recreativos relacionados à água. A segunda análise investigou áreas protegidas mais sensíveis a distúrbios de mudanças do uso e cobertura do solo transportadas por fluxos hidrológicos. A partir de dados de sensoriamento remoto, foram identificados três fatores que influenciam a sensibilidade ambiental, abrangendo características naturais pedológicas e hidrológicas, bem como medidas de exposição à conversão do uso e cobertura do solo na zona de amortecimento. Os resultados revelaram três grupos de parques a serem priorizados para aplicação de medidas de mitigação e prevenção. O grupo classificado como de alto risco sustenta altas taxas de conversão em suas zonas de amortecimento e outras características que agravam os impactos potenciais. O grupo classificado como de alto uso da terra mostrou as maiores taxas de conversão em suas zonas de amortecimento e também deveria ser priorizado para manejo adaptativo. Outro grupo de parques exibiu grande sensibilidade a perturbações nos fluxos hidrológicos e deveria ser direcionado para prevenção de mudanças de cobertura e uso da terra na zona de amortecimento. Embora o estudo tenha focado em Parques Nacionais localizados no Cerrado brasileiro, a área de estudo é representativa de ecossistemas tropicais com relevante riqueza de espécies e alta pressão de conversão do uso da terra.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES).Buffer zones around protected areas can minimize negative human impacts and stimulate the sustainable use of natural resources. Conversely, land-use in these zones can potentially deteriorate ecological processes and biodiversity conservation inside the area under protection. In this study, we address human-environment interaction in the buffer zones of 13 Brazilian Cerrado National Parks, with a twofold perspective: as vulnerable ecosystems under land-use change pressure, and as important sources of services that sustain human wellbeing. Two analyses were conducted. The first one was aimed at revealing opportunities to expand and complement the touristic attractions around eight Cerrado National Parks opened for visitation, by taking advantage of their scenic views. The methods were based on remote sensing derived landscape biophysical attributes, three key categories related to visual and ecological qualities and six indicators. Results identified profiles of the selected parks, relating their biophysical characteristics to their main touristic potential. Strong hilly topographies, in general, were associated with wide visual scale and high complexity while flat topographies favored water related recreational services. The second analysis investigated protected areas more sensitive to land use and land cover change disturbances carried by hydrologic flows. Three factors that influence natural areas sensitivity, encompassing soil and hydrologic natural characteristics, and measures of exposure from land use and land cover change in the buffer zone were obtained from remote sensing data. The results revealed three groups of parks to be targeted for prevention and mitigation measures. The group classified as high risk sustains high rates of conversion in their buffer zones and additional characteristics that aggravate potential impacts. The group classified as high land-use exhibited the highest rates of conversion in their buffer zones, and should also be prioritized for adaptive management. Another group of parks exhibited high sensitivity to disturbances from hydrologic flows and should be targeted for prevention of land use and land cover change in the buffer zone. Although our research focused on National Parks located in the Brazilian Cerrado, the studied area is representative of tropical ecosystems with relevant specie richness and high land use conversion pressure

Cirurgia nas mamas: a experiência de mulheres que buscam a harmonia com seus corpos

TCC (graduação em Enfermagem) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópoli

A monopartite nuclear localization sequence regulates nuclear targeting of the actin binding protein myopodin

Myopodin is an actin bundling protein that shuttles between nucleus and cytoplasm in response to cell stress or during differentiation. Here, we show that the myopodin sequence (58)KKRRRRARK(66), when tagged to either enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) or to enhanced cyan fluorescent protein-CapG (ECFPCapG), is able to target these proteins to the nucleolus in HeLa or H-EK293T cells. By contrast, (KKRR61)-K-58 ECFP-CapG accumulates in the nucleus. Mutation of (58)KKRRRRARK(66) into alanine residues blocks myopodin nuclear import and promotes formation of cytoplasmic actin filaments. A second putative nuclear localization sequence, (612)KTSKKKGKK(620), displays much weaker activity in a heterologous context, and appears not to be functional in the full length protein. Thus myopodin nuclear translocation is dependent on a monopartite nuclear localization sequence