Power in Numbers: Fair Trade as a Civil Society Alternative to Neoliberal Free Trade

Abstract:This paper examines fair trade as a more positive alternative to the free trade framework that currently pervades the global economy, and as a critique of the wider neoliberal economic paradigm, through secondary research and analysis. The existing free trade model is outdated, perpetuates capitalist hegemony and maintains an oppressive consumerist mindset that is incompatible with an ethical and sustainable future. Fair trade is one potential civil society alternative that already has positive and tangible impacts that should be expanded and refined. This article explores neoliberalism and its drawbacks while presenting fair trade as a critique and possible replacement. It is hoped that this paper stimulates discussion on the negative impacts of the hegemonic neoliberal economic system and the merits of fair trade and incites thought into other possible alternatives for a more inclusive, ethical and sustainable future. Résumé :Cet article examine le commerce équitable comme un choix plus positif au cadre de libre-échange qui envahit actuellement l’économie mondiale et présent une critique du paradigme néolibéral au sens large, à travers les recherches et l’analyse secondaire. Le modèle de libre-échange est démodé, perpétue l’hégémonie capitaliste et maintient un état d’esprit de consommateur oppressif incompatible avec un avenir éthique et durable. Le commerce équitable est une alternative potentielle de la société civile qui a déjà des impacts positifs et tangibles qu’il convient d’étendre et d’affiner. Cet article également explore le néolibéralisme et ses inconvénients et présente le commerce équitable comme une critique et une alternative possible. Nous espérons que ce document ouvrira une discussion sur des impacts négatifs du système économique néolibéral hégémonique et des avantages du commerce équitable et incitera d’autres solutions pour un avenir plus inclusif, éthique et durable

On the origins and properties of <i>Verticillium</i> isolates associated with Crucifers

It had been proposed that long-spored isolates of Verticillium from crucifers were amphihaploid interspecific hybrids between V dahliae and V albo-atrum. The original aims of this thesis were to construct artificial hybrids between these two species and analyse the hybrids through molecular, genetic and pathological means. It was shown that limited recombination is possible between nit mutants of each species. Through pathogenicity testing on oilseed rape it was shown that long-spored amphihaploid isolates could be differentiated from haploid V dahliae isolates. However, during this work it was found that of the non-V dahliae-like supposed ‘parent’ was unlike any isolate of V albo-atrum found to this day, and this species was unlikely to be involved in the hybridisation events that produced amphihaploid isolates of Verticillium. The projects main aims were revised to further characterise the long-spored isolates molecularly and through pathogenicity testing so their ‘parental’ origins were better understood. Molecular analysis of the rRNA gene V-region and ITS showed that a disease outbreak in cauliflowers in Belgium was caused by isolates molecularly similar to those from oilseed rape in Europe, and that isolates from Lucerne in Iran were V albo-atrum. This thesis reports the first direct evidence that long-spored amphihaploid isolates of Verticillium from crucifers are interspecific hybrids through amplification of the 5S rRNA IGR and the β-tubulin gene. Sequence analysis of these along with the mitochondrial cytochrome B gene proved that V albo-atrum was not a ‘parent’ of the amphihaploid isolates, but the 5S rRNA IGR supports the further division of Verticillium amphihaploids AFLP group B, to form a third group y, represented by isolates from horseradish in Illinois, USA. Although the ‘unknown parent’ involved in the hybridisation events has yet to be found, through the results from this thesis it would now be possible to identify it molecularly

Radical Relations: Queer(ing) Desire, Love, and Kinship in the Writing of William Godwin and his Circle

This thesis offers a queer re-evaluation of the portrayal of desire, love, and kinship within the writing of William Godwin and his circle. With Godwin having repeatedly been labelled by critics as a deliberately ‘homophobic’ novelist who portrayed same-sex passion and gender non-conformity only as intrinsically ruinous threats from which civilised society must be continually protected, my study argues for a much needed about-turn in how we interpret and understand these thematics within his writing. I argue that, instead of portraying transgressive same-sex bonds as intrinsically and unchangeably ruinous, Godwin presents male-male desire as having manifested as such because of its inability to be expressed and explored within the virulently antisodomitical and antieffeminate post-Revolutionary socio-political climate under which his protagonists are desperately trying — but relentlessly failing — to live and to love. Moving attention beyond the author’s most famous novel Caleb Williams (1794), a work which critics have repeatedly prioritised, I conduct close analyses of his later and comparatively understudied novels St. Leon (1799), Fleetwood (1805), Mandeville (1817), and Cloudesley (1830) in order to examine the complex, detailed, and nuanced ways in which Godwin addresses and readdresses the thematics of same-sex passion and gender non-conformity across his long career. His protagonists’ perceptions of themselves and their desires take on myriad forms, from self-hatred and despair, to agonising cravings and sensations of intolerable incompleteness, to glimpses of hope, and even utopian imaginings. I argue these can be grouped as one: they each scrutinise the experience of having a deep-rooted desire that falls far beyond the boundaries of familial, social, moral, and gendered acceptability — and beyond the boundaries of that which was defined as normal or natural within the political regimes of the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries. Through analysing Godwin’s presentation of same-sex desire and gender non-conformity in communication with his broader philosophical writings upon the body, the mind, human relationality, materiality, kinship, love, and domesticity, I argue that Godwin’s advocacy for same-sex desire signals the broader and more pervasive political project at work within and running throughout the five-decade span of his writing: exploring the fluidity, multiplicity, and capability of sexualities, genders, and ways of loving and living otherwise beyond the ideological boundaries of the marital and familial units. Through this, I uncover how Godwin’s novels connected with and/or inspired his fellow writers who similarly challenged and destabilised gendered boundaries of normativity and acceptability, including Mary Wollstonecraft, Joanna Baillie, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, William Godwin Jr., and Edward Bulwer-Lytton. My project expands beyond the Romantic era to argue that Godwin’s radical interrelated rethinking of desire, love, and kinship anticipates — and, moreover, may guide us to expand and/or reconsider — queer thinking and theorisation in our present moment, tracing connections between Godwinian thought and queer theorists including Jack Halberstam, Judith Butler, Lee Edelman, and José Esteban Muñoz. This thesis builds upon existing work within Romantic studies focused upon constructions of sexuality and gender, as well as upon the emerging work on queer Romanticisms, to argue for Godwin’s integral place within a broader genealogy of queer, counter-cultural thinking. In doing so, my study responds to the recent calls within queer studies to uncover queer histories and expand the queer archive in order to formulate new ways of understanding queer, as well as to the recent calls within Romantic studies to diversify, rewrite commonplaces about, and consider the relevance of the Romantic period to the socio-political issues within our present moment

First record of verticillium wilt (Verticillium longisporum) in winter oilseed rape in the UK

Verticillium longisporum is an important pathogen of oilseed rape (OSR) and vegetable brassicas in several European countries, but has not been reported previously in the UK (Karapapa et al., 1997; Steventon et al., 2002). In 2007, Verticillium wilt was suspected in UK crops of winter OSR (W-OSR) on cv. Castille in Romney Marsh, Kent and on cv. Barrel near Hereford. At these two locations, 32 and 10% of the plants, respectively, appeared to be affected, but the presence of stem canker may have masked some infections. Symptoms were first seen as the crops began to ripen (seeds green-brown to brown, Growth Stage: 6,4-6,5) and included brown and dark grey vertical bands on the stems from soil level into the branches, and premature ripening of some branches (Fig. 1). Microsclerotia were observed on stem samples collected in the field (Fig. 2), suggesting V. longisporum as the causal agent. Cultures were prepared from field samples by immersing stem pieces in 5% sodium hypochlorite solution for one minute, washing twice in sterile distilled water and plating onto potato dextrose agar containing 25 mg/l streptomycin sulphate. Isolates from three plants per outbreak were identified morphologically as V. longisporum. Mean conidial dimensions (25 spores per isolate) were 8.80-9.65 μm (length) and 2.50-2.85 μm (width) and all isolates produced elongated microsclerotia, characters typical of V. longisporum (Karapapa et al., 1997). The identity was confirmed by PCR using species-specific primers (Steventon et al., 2002) and, as a member of the α sub-group, by direct sequencing of the amplicons from primer pairs ITS4-ITS5 and DB19-DB22 (Collins et al., 2003; 2005). Sequences for isolate 003 from Kent were deposited in GenBank (Accession Nos. HQ702376 and HQ702377). All isolates tested from 2008 and 2009 were identical with previously deposited sequences for European OSR isolates (e.g. AF363992 and AF363246 respectively). Pathogenicity was confirmed by inoculating three OSR cv. Castille seedlings per isolate using the root dip technique with 1 x 106 spores/ml (Karapapa et al., 1997) under heated glasshouse conditions at 19°C. Leaf yellowing and blackening of the leaf veins were found 26 days after inoculation (Fig. 3). Yellowing affecting the three oldest leaves increased for seven to nine days. After five weeks the final mean leaf area affected was 63-78% with no differences between isolates. No leaf yellowing occurred in the controls. After five weeks, V. longisporum was re-isolated from all the inoculated seedlings, but not from the non-inoculated controls. In June 2008, infection of W-OSR crops in different fields on the same farms was found on cv. Es Astrid in Kent (56% incidence) and on cv. Lioness in Hereford (15% incidence). The Kent farm had been growing W-OSR alternating with winter wheat for at least 10 years whilst the Hereford farm had grown W-OSR one year in four. These short rotations of OSR may be contributing to the appearance of this disease. This study confirms the identification of V. longisporum on any host in the UK, through molecular studies and detailed spore measurements that were not reported in an earlier review (Gladders, 2009). This pathogen occurs in several European countries and, since OSR may be traded freely, following a Defra consultation, no statutory plant health action is to be taken

Nutrition education to improve dietary intake and micronutrient nutriture among children in less-resourced areas: a randomised controlled intervention in Kabarole district, western Uganda

Objective: To determine whether nutrition education targeting the child-feeding practices of low-income rural caregivers will reduce anaemiaand improve vitamin A nutriture of the young children in their care.Design: A controlled intervention trial, based on experiential learning theory. Forty-six women completed a nine-session nutrition educationprogramme, while controls (n = 43) concurrently engaged in sewing classes.Setting: Two rural farming communities in the Kabarole district, western Uganda.Subjects: Less literate, low-income rural female caregivers and the children in their care (6-48 months).Outcome measures: Caregivers’ child-feeding practices and the children’s nutritional status were assessed at baseline, one month afterintervention (Follow-up 1) and one year from baseline (Follow-up 2).Results: Caregivers in the intervention group reported improved child snacking patterns, food-selection practices, meal adequacy, and foodvariety. Children in the intervention group recorded lower haemoglobin levels at baseline (9.86 vs. 10.70 g/dl) and caught up with controlsat Follow-up 1 (10.06 vs. 10.78 g/dl). However, changes were not sustained. Mean retinol-binding protein improved from 0.68 ìmol/l (95%CI: 0.57-0.78) to 0.91 ìmol/l (95% CI: 0.78-1.03) among intervention children, but remained approximately the same in controls. Vitamin Anutriture was influenced by infections.Conclusion: Nutrition education significantly improved feeding practices and children’s nutritional status. The effectiveness and sustainabilityof this programme can be enhanced if nutrition education is integrated into other food-production and public health programme

Aquaporins influence seed dormancy and germination in response to stress

Aquaporins influence water flow in plants, yet little is known of their involvement in the water‐driven process of seed germination. We therefore investigated their role in seeds in the laboratory and under field and global warming conditions. We mapped the expression of tonoplast intrinsic proteins (TIPs) during dormancy cycling and during germination under normal and water stress conditions. We found that the two key tonoplast aquaporins, TIP3;1 and TIP3;2, which have previously been implicated in water or solute transport, respectively, act antagonistically to modulate the response to abscisic acid, with TIP3;1 being a positive and TIP3;2 a negative regulator. A third isoform, TIP4;1, which is normally expressed upon completion of germination, was found to play an earlier role during water stress. Seed TIPs also contribute to the regulation of depth of primary dormancy and differences in the induction of secondary dormancy during dormancy cycling. Protein and gene expression during annual cycling under field conditions and a global warming scenario further illustrate this role. We propose that the different responses of the seed TIP contribute to mechanisms that influence dormancy status and the timing of germination under variable soil conditions

The Presentation of Culture and Identity in the Contemporary Film Musical Soundtrack: An Exploration of Moulin Rouge! and Burlesque

Film musicals convey meaning through soundtrack in ways that no other film genre can. This audio performance space, in which deeper thoughts and emotions are performed in such revealing and intimate ways, allows for levels of expression above that which can be achieved through words alone, or through music ascribed to a character with which they cannot interact. In contemporary musical films particularly, this space has come to be occupied by explorations of culture and identity, as investigated in this thesis. This study analyses the presentation of culture and identity in the soundtracks of two contemporary movie musicals: Moulin Rouge! (Luhrmann, 2001) and Burlesque (Antin, 2010). Particularly focusing on performing masculinities and femininities, the project explores how gender identity is presented, as well as sexuality and race. In a modern context, these are more widely represented due to a society-wide focus on representation, inclusivity and acceptance. By studying existing literature, alongside the exploration of contemporary case studies, this project draws conclusions on identity and culture based on many theoretical models, including film, music and queer theory. The analysis shows that many factors influence the messages conveyed through soundtrack, such as vocality, vocal quality and the context of a pre-existing song, and that these particularly influence how messages are interpreted by the listener. The research also shows how other factors influence how the soundtrack is interpreted, such as the role of celebrity, stereotyping, and the aesthetic look of the film. This research demonstrates the possibility for further research into the role of both compiled and composed soundtracks in contemporary film musicals, as the popularity of the genre grows, and filmmakers approach scoring identity in new and refreshing ways

Poor intestinal permeability in mildly stunted Nepali children: associations with weaning practices and Giardia lamblia infection

Studies in the Gambia, using the lactulose-mannitol dual-sugar intestinal permeability test (lactulose:mannitol ratio) as a non-invasive way of investigating mucosal damage, have shown that food malabsorption is significantly associated with early growth retardation. In this cross-sectional study, 210 poor urban Nepali children, 0-60 months old, were recruited and measured for height or length and weight, 167 were examined for intestinal permeability and 173 for parasite infection. Weaning and morbidity data were collected from 172 caretakers. Children were mildly stunted (mean height-for-age z-score -1·45) and underweight (mean weight-for-age z-score -1·62). The lactulose:mannitol ratio (0·26) was poorer than that of UK children (0·12), but similar to that found in Bengali children of the same age (0·24). Two stages of weaning, the onset supplementary feeding (6 months) and the cessation of breast-feeding (23 months), were shown to have differential impact. In children currently breast-feeding, the duration of supplementation was negatively related to lactose (P<0·001) and lactose:lactulose values (P<0·0001), indicating lactose maldigestion. In children who had ceased breast-feeding, a longer period of lactation was associated with poorer intestinal permeability (P=0·031), and poorer height-for-age (P=0·024), which was an unexpected result. No significant relationships were found between intestinal permeability and growth, or with morbidity and helminth infection, except in children with Giardia lamblia who had worse lactulose:mannitol ratios than those without (0·43 v. 0·25 respectively, P=0·014). It is likely that insults to the gut (e.g. Giardia) and challenges to the immune system (weaning) have a different impact in early and late infancy

Sudden gains in behavioural activation for depression

Sudden gains have been linked to improved outcomes in cognitive behaviour therapy for depression. The relationship between sudden gains and outcome is less clear in other treatment modalities, including interpersonal psychotherapy and supportive expressive therapy, which may indicate different mechanisms of change between treatment modalities. The current study examined sudden gains in adults meeting diagnostic criteria for depression (N = 40) offered up to 12 sessions of behavioural activation treatment. Sudden gains were found in 42.5% of the sample. Sudden gains occurred early (median pre-gain session 2) and were related to outcome: those who experienced a sudden gain had significantly lower post-treatment scores on the PHQ-9. Furthermore, the proportion meeting the reliable and clinically significant change criteria at end of treatment was higher in the sudden gain group. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the mechanisms by which sudden gains relate to therapy outcome in behavioural activation