theoretische und methodologische Grundlagen

Summary: The Transdisciplinary Integrative Vulnerability and Resilience Assessment (TIV) developed by the Disaster Research Unit is a fundamental methodology and method which has derived from various sociological approaches and constantly been refined ever since. It serves as a counter model to established vulnerability and resilience assessments, which either descriptively / quantitatively determine vulnerabi lity and resilience top- down or carry out a participative bottom -up assessment together with those potentially affected. TIV combines both approaches and focusses on an iterative process in which the results obtained are continuously discussed and evaluated with experts, the general public, organizations, etc., in order to ensure a common and milieu-sensitive assessment. This working paper first defines "transdisciplinarity" and outlines the current state of research followed by a presentation of selected vulnerability and resilience assessments that form the basis for TIV, or where TIV goes beyond them. Then TIV itself and its methodological, methodical and contentbased approaches are presented

Katastrophen und Katastrophenvorsorge in Jena aus Sicht der Bevölkerung

Das Working-Paper „Katastrophen und Katastrophenvorsorge in Jena aus Sicht der Bevölkerung“ stellt Ergebnisse einer Studie zur Wahrnehmung von Katastrophen und Katastrophenvorsorge in Jena vor, die im Rahmen des vom Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) finanzier-ten Projekts „INVOLVE – Verringerung sozialer Vulnerabilität durch freiwilliges Engagement“ durch-geführt wurde. Es werden qualitative Ergebnisse aus Expert*inneninterviews, Workshops und Gruppendiskussionen, v.a. aber die Ergebnisse einer quantitativen Bevölkerungsbefragung darge-stellt. Im Mittelpunkt der Forschung stand sowohl in der qualitativen wie quantitativen Befragung die Wahrnehmung und Einschätzung von Katastrophen, Katastrophenschutz sowie Vorsorgemaß-nahmen gegenüber den Szenarien Starkregen/Hochwasser, Hitzewellen sowie sozioökonomische Krise. Es zeigt sich, dass „Katastrophe“ von Katastrophenschutzexpert*innen anders definiert wird als von den Befragten, die potenziell von einer Katastrophe betroffen sein könnten. Zugleich wird deutlich, dass „klassische Naturkatastrophen“ als Gefahr im Bewusstsein und dem daraus resultie-renden Vorsorgeverhalten deutlich weniger präsent sind als sozioökonomische Aspekte, wie bspw. Angst vor gesellschaftlicher Spaltung oder Existenzsicherungsängsten. Derweil ist das Gefühl sozia-ler Kohäsion in der direkten Nachbarschaft sehr hoch, ebenso wie das Vertrauen in Organisationen des Katastrophenschutzes wie das Technische Hilfswerk (THW), Feuerwehren oder Hilfsorganisati-onen.The working paper "Disasters and Disaster Risk Reduction in Jena" provides an overview of a case study conducted within the framework of the INVOLVE project "INitiate VOLunteerism to counter VulnErability" funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Primarily the results of a quantitative survey of the population, but also qualitative results from expert inter-views, workshops and group discussions are presented. Central to the research in the qualitative and quantitative survey were the perception and assessment of disasters, disaster management as much as preventive measures for heavy rain/flood, heatwaves as well as socio-economic crisis. As it turns out, the definition of a disaster varies greatly between civil protection experts and those potentially affected. At the same time, it can be shown that “natural disasters” are much less per-ceived as a risk in the public awareness – and therefore less considered within precautionary be-havior – than socio-economic aspects such as the fear of social division or for a secure livelihood. Simultaneously, though, the feeling of social cohesion in the direct neighborhood is very strong, as is the trust in civil protection organizations like the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW), fire brigades or aid organizations

Research report of the quantitative survey

Im Sommer 2013 wurde die Verbandsgemeinde Elbe-Havel-Land in Sachsen-Anhalt während des Elbehochwassers nach einem Deichbruch weiträumig überflutet: Häuser, Straßen und Grundstücke wurden zerstört. Der Bericht beleuchtet die Folgen des Hochwassers 2013 und ihre Bewältigung aus Sicht der Bewohner*innen, basierend auf Ergebnissen einer quantitativen Bevölkerungsbefragung drei Jahre nach dem Ereignis. Ausgehend von erlebten materiellen und immateriellen Auswirkun-gen und dem Stand der Verarbeitung des Ereignisses, wird der Bedarf an Unterstützung aufgezeigt, fehlende Hilfeleistungen identifiziert und die Bedeutung verschiedener Akteure im Verlauf der Katastrophe dargestellt. Dabei zeigen sich insbesondere zeitliche Variationen der Hilfebedarfe und ein anhaltender Bedarf an Unterstützung sowie Nachwirkungen des Ereignisses bis zum Zeitpunkt der Befragung.During the 2013 European floods, the municipalities of the Elbe-Havel-Land in Saxony-Anhalt were flooded after the water masses of the Elbe River caused a levee to break; houses, streets and plots of land were destroyed. This report, based on the results of a quantitative survey carried out three years after the event, shines light on the effects of the 2013 Flood, and how well, according to the perception of residents, the disaster has been dealt with. Based on personally experienced materi-al and immaterial impacts and on the state of psychological recuperation, we highlight the need for further support needed, identify what kinds of aid have been missing, and illustrate the relative importance of different actors throughout the disaster. The results indicate that the need for assis-tance varies especially with regard to time, that after-effects continued to linger at the time of questioning, and that accordingly there is a continued need for support

Forschungsbericht zur quantitativen Datenerhebung

Im Sommer 2013 wurde die Verbandsgemeinde Elbe-Havel-Land in Sachsen-Anhalt während des Elbehochwassers nach einem Deichbruch weiträumig überflutet: Häuser, Straßen und Grundstücke wurden zerstört. Der Bericht beleuchtet die Folgen des Hochwassers 2013 und ihre Bewältigung aus Sicht der Bewohner*innen, basierend auf Ergebnissen einer quantitativen Bevölkerungsbefragung drei Jahre nach dem Ereignis. Ausgehend von erlebten materiellen und immateriellen Auswirkungen und dem Stand der Verarbeitung des Ereignisses, wird der Bedarf an Unterstützung aufgezeigt, fehlende Hilfeleistungen identifiziert und die Bedeutung verschiedener Akteure im Verlauf der Katastrophe dargestellt. Dabei zeigen sich insbesondere zeitliche Variationen der Hilfebedarfe und ein anhaltender Bedarf an Unterstützung sowie Nachwirkungen des Ereignisses bis zum Zeitpunkt der Befragung

Ergebnisse einer quantitativen Bevölkerungsbefragung

Das Working-Paper „Katastrophen und Katastrophenvorsorge in Berlin-Neukölln aus Sicht der Bevölkerung“ stellt Ergebnisse einer Studie zur Wahrnehmung von Katastrophen und Katastrophen-vorsorge in Neukölln vor, die im Rahmen des vom Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) finanzierten Projekts „INVOLVE – Verringerung sozialer Vulnerabilität durch freiwilliges Engagement“ (2015-2018) durchgeführt wurde. Es werden die deskriptiven Ergebnisse einer quan-titativen Bevölkerungsbefragung dargestellt. Im Mittelpunkt der Erhebung stand die Wahrneh-mung und Einschätzung von Katastrophen, Katastrophenschutz sowie Vorsorgemaßnahmen ge-genüber den Szenarien Starkregen/Überschwemmungen, Hitzewellen sowie sozioökonomische Krise. Es zeigt sich, dass „klassische Naturkatastrophen“ als Gefahr im Bewusstsein und dem daraus resultierenden Vorsorgeverhalten deutlich weniger präsent sind als sozioökonomische Aspekte und individuelle Sorgen, wie bspw. Existenzsicherungsängste. Das Gefühl sozialer Einbettung in persönlichen Netzwerken und sozialer Kohäsion in der direkten Nachbarschaft und die damit ver-bundenen Ressourcen bei der Katastrophenbewältigung, ebenso wie das Vertrauen in Organisati-onen des Katastrophenschutzes wie das Technische Hilfswerk (THW) und Feuerwehren sind bei den Befragten sehr stark ausgeprägt. Das Vertrauen in die Kompetenzen von Behörden ist dagegen geringer

The Terrestrial Isopod Microbiome: An All-in-One Toolbox for Animal–Microbe Interactions of Ecological Relevance

Bacterial symbionts represent essential drivers of arthropod ecology and evolution, influencing host traits such as nutrition, reproduction, immunity, and speciation. However, the majority of work on arthropod microbiota has been conducted in insects and more studies in non-model species across different ecological niches will be needed to complete our understanding of host–microbiota interactions. In this review, we present terrestrial isopod crustaceans as an emerging model organism to investigate symbiotic associations with potential relevance to ecosystem functioning. Terrestrial isopods comprise a group of crustaceans that have evolved a terrestrial lifestyle and represent keystone species in terrestrial ecosystems, contributing to the decomposition of organic matter and regulating the microbial food web. Since their nutrition is based on plant detritus, it has long been suspected that bacterial symbionts located in the digestive tissues might play an important role in host nutrition via the provisioning of digestive enzymes, thereby enabling the utilization of recalcitrant food compounds (e.g., cellulose or lignins). If this were the case, then (i) the acquisition of these bacteria might have been an important evolutionary prerequisite for the colonization of land by isopods, and (ii) these bacterial symbionts would directly mediate the role of their hosts in ecosystem functioning. Several bacterial symbionts have indeed been discovered in the midgut caeca of terrestrial isopods and some of them might be specific to this group of animals (i.e., Candidatus Hepatoplasma crinochetorum, Candidatus Hepatincola porcellionum, and Rhabdochlamydia porcellionis), while others are well-known intracellular pathogens (Rickettsiella spp.) or reproductive parasites (Wolbachia sp.). Moreover, a recent investigation of the microbiota in Armadillidium vulgare has revealed that this species harbors a highly diverse bacterial community which varies between host populations, suggesting an important share of environmental microbes in the host-associated microbiota. In this review, we synthesize our current knowledge on the terrestrial isopod microbiome and identify future directions to (i) fully understand the functional roles of particular bacteria (both intracellular or intestinal symbionts and environmental gut passengers), and (ii) whether and how the host-associated microbiota could influence the performance of terrestrial isopods as keystone species in soil ecosystems

Multiple drugs compete for transport via the Plasmodium falciparum chloroquine resistance transporter at distinct but interdependent sites

Mutations in the "chloroquine resistance transporter" (PfCRT) are a major determinant of drug resistance in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. We have previously shown that mutant PfCRT transports the antimalarial drug chloroquine away from its target, whereas the wild-type form of PfCRT does not. However, little is understood about the transport of other drugs via PfCRT or the mechanism by which PfCRT recognizes different substrates. Here we show that mutant PfCRT also transports quinine, quinidine, and verapamil, indicating that the protein behaves as a multidrug resistance carrier. Detailed kinetic analyses revealed that chloroquine and quinine compete for transport via PfCRT in a manner that is consistent with mixed-type inhibition. Moreover, our analyses suggest that PfCRT accepts chloroquine and quinine at distinct but antagonistically interacting sites. We also found verapamil to be a partial mixed-type inhibitor of chloroquine transport via PfCRT, further supporting the idea that PfCRT possesses multiple substratebinding sites. Our findings provide new mechanistic insights into the workings of PfCRT, which could be exploited to design potent inhibitors of this key mediator of drug resistance

Restricted Kaposi’s Sarcoma (KS) Herpesvirus Transcription in KS Lesions from Patients on Successful Antiretroviral Therapy

Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) is caused by Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV; human herpesvirus 8). KS is an AIDS-defining cancer, and it is changing in the post-antiretroviral therapy (post-ART) era. In countries with ready access to ART, approximately one-third of KS cases present in patients with undetectable HIV loads and CD4 counts of ≥200 cells/µl. This is in contrast to pre-ART era KS, which was associated with systemic HIV replication and CD4 counts of ≤200 cells/µl. Using primary patient biopsy specimens, we identified a novel molecular signature that characterizes AIDS KS lesions that develop in HIV-suppressed patients on ART: KSHV transcription is limited in HIV-suppressed patients. With one exception, only the canonical viral latency mRNAs were detectable. In contrast, early AIDS KS lesions expressed many more viral mRNAs, including, for instance, the viral G protein-coupled receptor (vGPCR)

The force of events: the 'Brexit interval' and popular aspirations for Gibraltarian diplomacy

This paper highlights both an overreliance on legal perspectives in the study of paradiplomacy at the expense of more dynamic understandings of agency, and also the affective force of waiting and other temporal states on political subject formation. Empirically, it reports the results of a longitudinal study on Gibraltarians’ concerns over the Gibraltar–Spain frontier. By comparing data from two identical surveys conducted a year apart during the period between the Brexit referendum and the (as yet incomplete) legal withdrawal, we trace the force of the incomplete event on political subjectivities. Conceptualizing our findings through assemblage theory and paradiplomacy, we highlight that the intensity of the event has heightened Gibraltarians’ dissatisfaction with their constitutional reliance on the UK to resolve Brexit in a way advantageous for Gibraltar. A minor shift occurred in the year studied towards more agentic proscriptions of what the Government of Gibraltar ought to do to resolve Brexit. Quantitative analysis reveals that younger respondents tend to emphasize this more agentic view, while older respondents tend to advocate further lobbying of the UK or feel Gibraltar has a complete lack of agency. Qualitative analysis of the respondents’ policy proscriptions reveals a complex set of views within each perspective on agency