Catalysing Pathway Creation for Transition Governance

Transition management is one of the key governance methodologies for catalysing vision building, experimentation and pathway construction for sustainability transitions. Its adoption in new country contexts may, however, require redesign. Finnish energy and climate policy already features wide experimentation, visioning and long-term roadmaps. Yet transition arenas could help connect these existing instruments, particularly if redesigned for a mid-range timescale. We improved the path creation toolsets and procedures to create more detailed pathways and analyses of pathway step interrelations. Our path creation system uses magnetic elements that could be easily moved around a large metallic board, a set of procedures and a digitalized counterpart of the board for out-of-the-workshop commentary and reporting. The system was used to create eight mid-range transition pathways and was reported to have facilitated and anchored well the discussions by participants with cross-sectoral backgrounds. Overall, the redesigned system underscores the potential that codesign for sustainability transitions holds, for instance, in developing transition governance instruments further.Peer reviewe

Towards low-carbon district heating : Investigating the socio-technical challenges of the urban energy transition

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The AuthorsDistrict heating is a major energy infrastructure in many urban settlements in the world, contributing significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Decarbonising district heating is an important step towards the realisation of a carbon-neutral society that entails considerable socio-technical change. Building on sustainability transitions literature that has dealt with socio-technical reconfiguration, this paper investigates the barriers to the implementation of a low-carbon district heating system that is based on biomass incineration minimisation and the total phasing out of fossil fuels. Empirically, the study relies on an extensive stakeholder analysis that involved 44 organisations representing technology providers, energy companies, industry organisations, policymakers, local authorities and researchers. The results show that while several stakeholder groups could converge on key issues such as the need to support certain technological niches and the danger of a biomass lock-in, divergences regarding barriers to be removed existed between policymakers, new entrant firms, and building owners. Cities were considered important actors for the implementation of the proposed low-carbon district heating concept. However, they should encourage building owners' participation in demand response schemes, decentralized renewable energy production, and the re-design of local electricity networks to support district heating electrification.Peer reviewe

Development and evaluation of a rapid nucleic acid amplification method to detect influenza A and B viruses in human respiratory specimens

Isothermal nucleic acid amplification methods can potentially shorten the amount of time required to diagnose influenza. We developed and evaluated a novel isothermal nucleic acid amplification method, RT-SIBA to rapidly detect and differentiate between influenza A and B viruses in a single reaction tube. The performance of the RT-SIBA Influenza assay was compared with two established RT-PCR methods. The sensitivities of the RT-SIBA, RealStar RT-PCR, and CDC RT-PCR assays for the detection of influenza A and B viruses in the clinical specimens were 98.8%, 100%, and 89.3%, respectively. All three assays demonstrated a specificity of 100%. The average time to positive result was significantly shorter with the RT-SIBA Influenza assay (90 min). The method can be run using battery-operated, portable devices with a small footprint and therefore has potential applications in both laboratory and near-patient settings. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

A Childhood Farm Environment Protects from Allergic Sensitization until Middle Age but Not from New-Onset Sensitization in Adulthood : A 15 Year Longitudinal Study

Data are insufficient on the protective effect of a farm environment in childhood regarding sensitization in middle age and new-onset sensitization in adulthood. A skin prick test (SPT) and questionnaire data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 study (NFBC66) were used to investigate sensitization at age 46 years related to childhood living environment. A subpopulation of 3409 participants was analyzed to study factors related to new-onset sensitization between ages of 31 and 46 years. Data on complete SPTs were available for 5373 cohort members at age 46. Professional farming by parents (odds ratio (OR) 0.54; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.43-0.68) and keeping of farm animals (OR 0.53; 95% CI 0.43-0.66) in infancy were associated with a lower risk of sensitization at age 46. Sensitization (OR 0.58; 95% CI 0.47-0.72) and polysensitization (OR 0.43; 95% CI 0.32-0.57) were less common in those who lived in a rural area in infancy compared to a city area. The childhood living environment had no effect on new-onset sensitization between ages 31 and 46. We conclude that living on a farm or in a rural environment in childhood had a protective effect on sensitization even in middle age, but these factors did not protect from new-onset sensitization in adults.Peer reviewe

Distribution of HPV Genotypes Differs Depending on Behavioural Factors among Young Women

Risk factors for the different human papillomavirus (HPV) genotypes are not well understood, although the risk of cancer is known to vary among them. Our aim was to evaluate the association of diverse behavioral and reproductive factors with genotype-specific HPV prevalence among 879 unvaccinated women aged 18–75 years referred to the colposcopy clinic at Helsinki University Hospital in Finland. Cervical swabs for HPV genotyping were collected in the first visit and assessed for 34 high-risk (hr) and low-risk (lr) HPV genotypes. Participants completed a questionnaire on behavioral, reproductive, and lifestyle factors. Differences in genotype-specific HPV prevalence were analyzed overall and in age groups using binary logistic regression. Smoking was associated with higher prevalence in HPV16 compared with other hrHPV genotypes together with decreasing age, being highest among younger women 20 years of age, with an OR of 0.43 (95% CI 0.23–0.83). This association was not seen with other hrHPV genotypes. Methods of contraception seemed not to have an effect on hrHPV positivity, regardless of the HPV genotype. The genotype specific hrHPV prevalence differs, depending on behavioral factors, especially among younger women referred to colposcopy

Distribution of HPV Genotypes Differs Depending on Behavioural Factors among Young Women

Risk factors for the different human papillomavirus (HPV) genotypes are not well understood, although the risk of cancer is known to vary among them. Our aim was to evaluate the association of diverse behavioral and reproductive factors with genotype-specific HPV prevalence among 879 unvaccinated women aged 18–75 years referred to the colposcopy clinic at Helsinki University Hospital in Finland. Cervical swabs for HPV genotyping were collected in the first visit and assessed for 34 high-risk (hr) and low-risk (lr) HPV genotypes. Participants completed a questionnaire on behavioral, reproductive, and lifestyle factors. Differences in genotype-specific HPV prevalence were analyzed overall and in age groups using binary logistic regression. Smoking was associated with higher prevalence in HPV16 compared with other hrHPV genotypes together with decreasing age, being highest among younger women 20 years of age, with an OR of 0.43 (95% CI 0.23–0.83). This association was not seen with other hrHPV genotypes. Methods of contraception seemed not to have an effect on hrHPV positivity, regardless of the HPV genotype. The genotype specific hrHPV prevalence differs, depending on behavioral factors, especially among younger women referred to colposcopy

Accelerating clean energy solutions in buildings with the governmental programme : Policy recommendation

Suomen kasvihuonekaasupäästöistä noin kolmasosa on peräisin rakentamisesta, rakennusten käytöstä sekä rakennusmateriaalien valmistamisesta. Jotta päästöt saadaan Suomessa riittävän nopeasti vähenemään, rakennusten puhtaiden energiaratkaisujen vauhdittaminen on välttämätöntä. Tähän voidaan päästä kiristämällä määräysten tasoa ja luomalla kannustimia uusien ja korjattavien rakennusten päästöjen vähentämiseksi

Overtreatment rate after immediate local excision of suspected cervical intraepithelial neoplasia: a prospective cohort study

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