Water footprints of nations

The water footprint concept has been developed in order to have an indicator of water use in relation to consumption of people. The water footprint of a country is defined as the volume of water needed for the production of the goods and services consumed by the inhabitants of the country. Closely linked to the water footprint concept is the virtual water concept. Virtual water is defined as the volume of water required to produce a commodity or service. International trade of commodities implies flows of virtual water over large distances. The water footprint of a nation can be assessed by taking the use of domestic water resources, subtract the virtual water flow that leaves the country and add the virtual water flow that enters the country. The internal water footprint of a nation is the volume of water used from domestic water resources to produce the goods and services consumed by the inhabitants of the country. The external water footprint of a country is the volume of water used in other countries to produce goods and services imported and consumed by the inhabitants of the country. The study aims to calculate the water footprint for each nation of the world for the period 1997-2001

Water saving through international trade of agricultural products

Many nations save domestic water resources by importing water-intensive products and exporting commodities that are less water intensive. National water saving through the import of a product can imply saving water at a global level if the flow is from sites with high to sites with low water productivity. The paper analyses the consequences of international virtual water flows on the global and national water budgets. The assessment shows that the total amount of water that would have been required in the importing countries if all imported agricultural products would have been produced domestically is 1605 Gm3/yr. These products are however being produced with only 1253 Gm3/yr in the exporting countries, saving global water resources by 352 Gm3/yr. This saving is 28 per cent of the international virtual water flows related to the trade of agricultural products and 6 per cent of the global water use in agriculture. National policy makers are however not interested in global water savings but in the status of national water resources. Egypt imports wheat and in doing so saves 3.6 Gm3/yr of its national water resources. Water use for producing export commodities can be beneficial, as for instance in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Brazil, where the use of green water resources (mainly through rain-fed agriculture) for the production of stimulant crops for export has a positive economic impact on the national economy. However, export of 28 Gm3/yr of national water from Thailand related to rice export is at the cost of additional pressure on its blue water resources. Importing a product which has a relatively high ratio of green to blue virtual water content saves global blue water resources that generally have a higher opportunity cost than green water.\u

The water footprint of cotton consumption

The consumption of a cotton product is connected to a chain of impacts on the water resources in the countries where cotton is grown and processed. The aim of this report is to assess the ‘water footprint’ of worldwide cotton consumption, identifying both the location and the character of the impacts. The study distinguishes between three types of impact: evaporation of infiltrated rainwater for cotton growth (green water use), withdrawal of ground- or surface water for irrigation or processing (blue water use) and water pollution during growth or processing. The latter impact is quantified in terms of the dilution volume necessary to assimilate the pollution. For the period 1997-2001 the study shows that the worldwide consumption of cotton products requires 256 Gm3 of water per year, out of which about 42% is blue water, 39% green water and 19% dilution water. Impacts are typically cross-border. About 84% of the water footprint of cotton consumption in the EU25 region is located outside Europe, with major impacts particularly in India and Uzbekistan. Given the general lack of proper water pricing mechanisms or other ways of transmitting production-information, cotton consumers have little incentive to take responsibility for the impacts on remote water systems

PUBLIC TRUST IN CHARITIES : EVIDENCES FROM FINLAND AND SWEDEN

Master's thesis Innovative governance and public management ME523 - University of Agder 2019Public sector across the globe is currently experiencing a decline in public trustand this issue has been widelydiscussed across the globe. While working as a fundraiser in summer 2018, the author discovered that charities are struggling to recruit and keep their regular donors. Donations from general people areone of the mainsources of charity funding. Individuals who donate to charities do not receive a direct benefit in exchange for their support to charities. Moreover, they don’t have all the necessary information, on which they can decide to donate. Trust is what facilitates the transactions between charities and donors in such a situation. Some studies, for instance by the European Fundraising Association shows that the number of donors in Finland and Sweden has declined. But research on public trust in Finland and Swedenis scarce. There is a gap incomprehensive studies of public trust in charities in Finland and Sweden. The key research aim of this thesis is to examine the level of public trust in Charities in Finland and Sweden. This thesis aims to answer the question "how is the situation of public trust in the charity sector in Finland and Sweden?" To answer the research questions two separate surveys were conducted to observe situation of public trust in Finnish and Swedish charity sectors. Another two separate surveys were conducted to observe the level of public trust in Greenpeace Finland (experiencing a decline in donor numbers) and Finnish Red Cross (experiencing growth in donor numbers) and its effects. Interviews wereconducted with fundraising manager of Finish Red Cross and Greenpeace Finland, and annual reports of these organizations were also analyzed in this thesis. Quantitative descriptive analysis of survey data and content analysis of qualitative interview data were done. Three main points can be highlighted inthis thesis. First, public trust in charity sector in Finland Sweden is in satisfactory level, which also means that there is room for improvements. Second, public trust is important for donors while makingdonation decisions and administrative efficiency, transparency and accountability are main determinants of their trust towards a charity organization. And the third, public trust is not the sole reason that determines the growth in donation collection in the charity organizations. Key words: Trust, Public Trust, Charity Organization

Convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19: a review of old therapy against new disease

Currently, novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a big threat to global health which has revived the potential beneficial effect of ancient convalescent plasma therapy (CPT). This review was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness and adverse drug reactions associated with convalescent plasma therapy in COVID-19 patients, based on articles available to date. PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane library, and Hinari databases were searched until 15th September 2020. Every country across the globe today is encountered with a virus that has impacted millions of lives today and for generations to come. Nonetheless recommended antiviral drugs and vaccines are not evident and specified for novel coronavirus disease. This is now very well known that scientists and medical experts across the world are vigilant about recommending the use of CPT and call it an investigational treatment that may help in assisting recovery. The World health organization has perpetuated that there is not enough proof that plasma therapy works in treating those fighting the novel coronavirus. Therefore, convalescent plasma therapy is a feasible and immediate option for alleviating the impact of the disease. Comparing the effectiveness of convalescent plasma therapy with SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and COVID-19 would help in deriving proper outcomes for COVID-19 infected cases

Valuing Non-market Goods: Three Essays on Outdoor Recreation

Millions of people annually participate in a variety of nature-based outdoor activities on public lands. While the recreation spending these people bring to an area is helpful in characterizing the economic contribution of recreation activities in the local economy, the total value of many natural resource amenities for recreational use is not fully understood. This is mainly because of the non-market nature of natural resource amenities, which often lack market data to characterize the monetary value. Revealed preference non-market valuation methods such as travel cost modeling allow modeling demand for access to sites of recreational potential with respect to cost of travel and thereby estimate the economic value of site access. The essays included in this dissertation utilize methods grounded in travel cost theory to address three unique problems related to economic valuation of outdoor recreation resources.This first essay employs an individual travel cost model with onsite survey data of national forests visitors to investigate the economic value of downhill skiing. The model is extended to project the potential effects of climate change on demand and value of downhill skiing in the foreseeable future. The second essay applies a similar valuation framework on nationwide visitor survey data to assess and compare the demand for and value of non-motorized boating access between Wild and Scenic Rivers designated and non-designated rivers. Although no significant difference exists between designated and non-designated rivers, the findings of this study underscore the importance of various site characteristics in recreational value. The third essay utilizes a zonal travel cost model of hunting permit application to address a unique issue of valuation in the presence of lottery-rationed demand. Specific findings incorporated in these three essays and the overall conclusions drawn from these studies will help resource managers, and planners understand the net benefit and public value of nature-based recreation resources and guide in management and policy making

Heritage Conservation in Nepal: Policies, Stakeholders and Challenges

Introduction of Ancient Monuments Preservation Act in 2013 B.S. (1956 AD) marked the provision of modern concept of heritage conservation in Nepal. UNESCOs mission to restore the Hanuman Dhoka Durbar in the 1970s was the first major international assistance for heritage conservation in Nepal. The enlisting of seven different sites from Kathmandu valley including 3 Durbar Squares, Pashupatinath, Bouddha, Changu Narayan and Swoyambhu in the UNESCO\u27s World Heritage Sites brought Nepal to international attention in heritage conservation arena. Along with nature conservation and biodiversity conservation, cultural heritage conservation has been of interest to many national and international agencies. It is also linked with tourism and development besides the primary intention of preserving cultural and historic heritage. However, much needs to be done with regards to promulgation of effective policies and institutional frameworks to address various challenges. There is a pressing need to balance conflicting interests between different stake holders, for example — tourism agencies and the local entrepreneurs, donor agencies and government institutions, conservation works and development projects, and so on. Sometimes foreign technical assistance — that often comes along with the primary financial assistance — needs to be critically evaluated. Department of Archaeology, the central government institution in-charge of cultural heritage conservation in the country and powered by the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, lacks adequate resources and mechanisms to oversee projects and to take care of heritage sites throughout the country. Even within heritage sites in the Kathmandu valley, some conflicts among different stakeholders — particularly between the DoA and local residents are observed. The complications of management of world heritage sites in Kathmandu valley was criticized by international agencies like UNESCO resulting in enlisting the Kathmandu Valley World Heritage Sites in the \u27endangered list\u27 in 2003 which was recently been delisted. Often the underlined conservation approach in these policies is contested by residents of heritage zones. The conservation approach in Nepal — most of which is adapted from international frameworks mostly originating in different contexts abroad - needs to be evaluated in local cultural contexts. Responding to Nepal\u27s diverse geographical and cultural contexts, the conservation policy in Nepal needs to count on local cultural institutions, cultural practices and economic bases.\u2

Public Archaeology in Nepal: Now and in the next 10 years

In Nepal – and perhaps true in other South Asian countries as well, the term ‘public archaeology’ is not very frequently used among heritage professionals. Though it exists in limited use, largely the heritage practice including archaeology in Nepal is experts or authority driven. Perhaps the primary reason for this is the lack of a critical mass of archaeologists and broader heritage practitioners as well as a general lack of awareness among the public. There are disciplinary crisis situations prevalent across heritage related studies and practice areas in Nepal. However, with the increasing landscape of academic programmes and professional awareness among younger generations, we can be hopeful. Hence, I would expect that we will be able to create sufficient interests among students and younger professionals towards archaeology and heritage