Financing Social Entrepreneurship Franchising Approach

Social organizations mainly cope with social problems that the markets and the states have trouble or even fail to solve and, therefore, social entrepreneurs have been emerging in different locations throughout the world (OECD, 2010). Instead of being driven by financial returns, social organizations are focused on creating social and/or cultural values and they are not moved by its appropriation (European Commission, 2013). Regardless of its non-profitable nature, a social enterprise needs to be financially sustainable, if it is to reach its social goals. However, it is well acknowledged that social organizations struggle to be financially independent through income generation (Zafareiropoulou & Koufopoulos, 2012). As an example, in a recent survey performed to NGO’s operating in Portugal (Project Entrance, 2018), social entrepreneurs have identified financing, as among the most critical problems they have to face. Therefore, social entrepreneurs must look for ingenious ways to solve their financial constraints. In this framework, social franchising has emerged as a strategy to overcome this problem. Moreover, franchising has also been adopted by non-profit organizations as a strategy for growth (Meuter, 2008). The alliance in a network of small social organizations allows them to gather the advantages of big organizations namely in terms of access to capital sources and rapid growth (Zafareiropoulou and Koufopoulos, 2012). However, in spite of the apparent auspicious solution it presents to social entrepreneurship, the franchising arrangements have been showing high failure rates in the social sector (Meuter, 2008).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Social and psychological product value perceptions

The distributed value is perceived by the customer as the difference between the total value and the total cost of the product (good, service, idea, information, experience), also corresponding to the perceived value of use of the product, which includes experiences, sensations and mental states. Note that the total cost to the customer comprises all types of costs, financial (price, ability to pay, opportunity cost) and non-financial costs (physical, psychological and social aspects related to the use of the product, such as accessibility, embarrassment, usability, etc.), in which he expects to incur to evaluate, obtain and use the product.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Recent Developments in the Study of the Behavior of Fluorescent Membrane Probes in Lipid Bilayers: Molecular Dynamics Approach

We present a review of recent developments in the study of the behavior of fluorescent membrane probes in lipid bilayers by molecular dynamics simlations

Alternative herbicides to control glyphosate-resistant biotypes of Conyza bonariensis and C. canadensis

Após sucessivos anos, aplicações do herbicida glyphosate em pomares de citros no Estado de São Paulo selecionaram biótipos resistentes de Conyza bonariensis e C. canadensis. Na ocorrência de plantas daninhas resistentes em uma área agrícola, tornam-se necessárias mudanças nas práticas de manejo para obtenção de adequado controle das populações resistentes, bem como para a redução da pressão de seleção sobre outras espécies. Assim, este trabalho foi realizado com o objetivo de identificar herbicidas alternativos para controle de biótipos de Conyza spp. resistentes ao herbicida glyphosate, com aplicações em diferentes estádios fenológicos da planta daninha. Três experimentos foram conduzidos em campo, em pomares de citros em formação, sobre plantas de buva em estádio fenológico de dez folhas e no pré-florescimento. Para plantas no estádio de dez folhas, controle satisfatório foi obtido com aplicações de glyphosate + bromacil + diuron (1.440 + 1.200 + 1.200 g ha-1), glyphosate + atrazina (1.440 + 1.500 g ha-1) e glyphosate + diuron (1.440 + 1.500 g ha-1). Quando em estádio de pré-florescimento de Conyza spp., a aplicação do herbicida amônio-glufosinato, na dose de 400 g ha-1, isolado ou associado a MSMA, bromacil+diuron, metsulfuron, carfentrazone e paraquat, foi a alternativa viável para controle dos biótipos resistentes ao glyphosate.After successive years, glyphosate applications on São Paulo-Brazil citrus orchards selected resistant biotypes of Conyza bonariensis and C. canadensis. The occurrence of herbicide-resistant weed biotypes at some agricultural area makes it necessary to change the management practices to reach effective control of the selected resistant populations, as well as to reduce selection pressure on the other species. Thus, this work aimed to identify the alternative herbicides to control glyphosate-resistant biotypes of Conyza spp., with applications at different weed phenological stages. Three trials were developed under field conditions: in citrus orchards under formation, in plants with phenological stages of ten leaves and at pre-flowering. For plants at the ten leaf stage, satisfactory control was reached with applications of glyphosate + bromacil + diuron (1,440 + 1,200 + 1,200 g ha-1), glyphosate + atrazine (1,440 + 1,500 g ha-1) and glyphosate + diuron (1,440 + 1,500 g ha-1). For Conyza spp. plants at the pre-flowering stage, ammonium-glufosinate application, at the rate of 400 g ha-1, isolated or associated to MSMA, bromacil+diuron, metsulfuron, carfentrazone and paraquat, was a viable alternative to control glyphosate-resistant biotypes.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES

Preliminary study on the potential use of RPA images to quantify the influence of the defoliation after coffee harvesting to its yield

Received: January 24th, 2023 ; Accepted: May 22nd, 2023 ; Published: September 18th, 2023 ; Correspondence: [email protected] is an agricultural commodity with global commercial importance capable of impacting the production chain. The quantification of defoliation at harvest is important for monitoring crop yield because defoliation is one of the main types of damage caused by this agricultural operation in coffee crops. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between yield and defoliation obtained in the field and obtained through remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) images. The experiment was conducted in a coffee plantation belonging to the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. An RPA with a rotary wing containing a multispectral camera was used in autonomous flight mode with a height of 30 m, an image overlap of 80%, and a speed of 3 m s-1 . The images were collected before and after the 2020 and 2021 harvest, defoliation data obtained in the field were measured in 2020 and 2021, and the yield was measured from 2019 to 2021. Image processing was performed in the software PhotoScan, postimage processing was performed in QGIS, and statistical analyses were performed using the software R. With the processing of the images in 2020, the crop showed reductions of 17.3% and 18.4% in leaf area and volume, respectively, after harvest. In 2021, the crop showed reductions of 12.8% and 9.8% in leaf area and volume, respectively, after harvest. The leaf area and leaf volume of the coffee plantation after harvest could be quantified by means of images obtained by RPA, which allowed the observation of the loss of area and volume of the coffee plantation. Furthermore, it was possible to analyse the interactions between field data and the yield of the same harvest year, which were directly proportional, and the interaction of image data from one year with the previous yield, which were inversely proportional. In the year 2020, there was a reduction of 17.3% in leaf area after harvest, and a reduction of 18.4% in leaf volume after harvest in the plots under study.In the processing carried out in 2021, there was a 12.8% reduction in leaf area after harvest, and a 9.8% decrease in leaf volume after harvest in the plots under study

Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of Mpox Patients Attending an STD Clinic in Lisbon

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human Monkeypox—an Emerging Zoonotic Disease and a Global Threat)Mpox is a viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus, which marked the year of 2022 with a global outbreak. While previously considered to be a zoonosis of almost exclusive animal-to-human transmission, the current outbreak has been attributed to human-to-human transmission, particularly sexual transmission. As a new sexually transmissible disease, we studied the epidemiological and clinical features, as well as the concomitant occurrence of other sexually transmissible diseases, treatment approach, and outcome of our 291 patients, in the current outbreak. We found a total of 169 concomitant sexually transmissible infections of bacterial and viral origins, corresponding to 107 patients. Neisseria gonorrhoeae was the most common agent, particularly in the anal location. With this work, we emphasize the need for a thorough epidemiological and medical history, as well as a concomitant complete laboratorial screening for other STIs in patients with confirmed or suspected mpox.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Avaliação Da Influência Das Condições Meteorológicas Em Dias Com Altas Concentrações De Material Particulado Na Região Metropolitana Do Rio De Janeiro

In the Metropolitan Area of Rio de Janeiro, high levels of particulate matter concentrations (PM10) with violations of the limits established by CONAMA Resolution 03/90 are routinely recorded. Analyzing data recorded between 1998 and 2008, 146 days with concentrations above these values were identified. In those days, it was possible to verify the influence of South Atlantic Subtropical Anticyclone, the lack of precipitation and temperature inversions in the lower troposphere, which confirm the strong relationship between high PM10 concentration and the atmospheric conditions in region. © 2016, ABES - Associacao Brasileira de Engenharia Sanitaria e Ambiental. All rights reserved.21230731

Happiness, Value, and Organizational Toughness: Three Concepts in Search of a Theory

Happiness—life satisfaction, subjective well-being, or welfare—is generally considered the ultimate goal of life. Research shows that happiness correlates positively with various resources, desirable characteristics, and favorable life circumstances. Happiness can influence productivity, emotions, health, self-esteem, social skills, creativity, hope, or integrity. As such, happiness seems to affect how individuals may go about their personal and professional lives. As complex social systems rely on competencies, attitudes, and behaviors to fulfill their goals, happiness affects organizations and vice versa in different ways. Resilience, flexibility, plasticity, and eventually organizational toughness can all be seen as emerging coping properties of complex adaptive systems needed to continue meeting their objectives, despite uncertainty and adversity in turbulent periods. These properties are valuable because they account for enhancing the viability and sustainability of individuals and organizations. However, the conceptual mechanisms through which happiness at work connects to value creation and organizational toughness are in short supply. In this chapter, we provide a conceptual model for addressing this complex relationship

Detection of Borrelia lusitaniae, Rickettsia sp. IRS3, Rickettsia monacensis and Anaplasma phagocytophilum in Ixodes ricinus collected in Madeira Island, Portugal

A total of 300 Ixodes ricinus ticks were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the presence of Borrelia spp., Rickettsia spp., and Anaplasma phagocytophilum. Sequence analysis demonstrated 8 (2.7%) ticks infected with B. lusitaniae, 60 (20%) with Rickettsia spp., and 1 (0.3%) with A. phagocytophilum. Seven (2.3%) ticks were coinfected with B. lusitaniae and Rickettsia spp., 2 (0.6%) with R. monacensis, and 5 (1.7%) with Rickettsia sp. IRS3. The results of this study suggest simultaneous transmission of multiple tick-borne agents on Madeira Island, Portugal

Kaluza-Klein Type Robertson Walker Cosmological Model With Dynamical Cosmological Term Λ\Lambda

In this paper we have analyzed the Kaluza-Klein type Robertson Walker (RW) cosmological models by considering three different forms of variable $\Lambda$: $\Lambda\sim(\frac{\dot{a}}{a})^2$,$\Lambda\sim(\frac{\ddot{a}} {a})$ and $\Lambda \sim \rho$. It is found that, the connecting free parameters of the models with cosmic matter and vacuum energy density parameters are equivalent, in the context of higher dimensional space time. The expression for the look back time, luminosity distance and angular diameter distance are also derived. This work has thus generalized to higher dimensions the well-known results in four dimensional space time. It is found that there may be significant difference in principle at least, from the analogous situation in four dimensional space time.Comment: 16 pages, no figur