Arbeidsmigratie in vieren. Bulgaren en Roemenen vergeleken met Polen.

In januari 2007 traden Bulgarije en Roemenie toe tot de Europese Unie (EU). De toetreding van beide landen leidde tot een toename van het aantal Bulgaren en Roemenen in Nederland. Omdat velen van hen zich niet registreren in de GBA is het lastig om exacte cijfers te noemen. Van der Heijden et al. (2011) schatten het aantal Bulgaren dat in 2008 in Nederland verbleef op tussen de 39.000 en 51.000 en het aantal Roemenen op tussen de 40.000 en 51.000. Deze cijfers moeten wel met grote voorzichtigheid worden benaderd. Dat geldt ook voor de schatting van het aantal Polen dat tussen de 144.000 en 170.000 zou liggen. Niettemin geven deze cijfers een indicatie van een groeiende groep van arbeidsmigranten uit Midden- en Oost-Europa (MOE-landen) in de Nederlandse samenleving. In deze studie staan de Bulgaren en Roemenen centraal. Naar deze groep is tot nog toe amper onderzoek gedaan. Om hun positie beter te begrijpen is een systematische vergelijking gemaakt met Poolse arbeidsmigranten. De Polen hebben sinds mei 2007 volledig toegang tot de Nederlandse arbeidsmarkt, terwijl de Bulgaren en Roemenen nog onderhevig zijn aan een overgangsregime. Zij hebben een tewerkstellingsvergunning nodig om op de reguliere arbeidsmarkt te kunnen werken. Deze studie schetst een beeld van de maatschappelijke positie van Bulgaren, Roemenen en Polen, evenals van patronen van arbeidsmigratie en –integratie. Het is gebaseerd op onderzoek in negen Nederlandse gemeenten, waaronder twee grote steden (Rotterdam en Den Haag), drie middelgrote steden (Dordrecht, Breda en Westland) en vier kleinere gemeenten (Moerdijk, Zundert, Oostland en Hillegom). In deze gemeenten zijn 164 Bulgaren, 112 Roemenen en 353 Polen geïnterviewd. Naast een kwantitatieve analyse en beschrijving van de kenmerken van de maatschappelijke positie van Bulgaren en Roemenen in vergelijking met Polen, wordt in het slothoofdstuk een meer kwalitatieve, interpretatieve analyse gemaakt van de bevindingen voor het beleid

Arbeidsmigranten uit Bulgarije, Polen, en Roemenie in Rotterdam: sociale leefsituatie, arbeidspositie en toekomstperspectief

Aims: To assess longer-term outcomes of a drop-in rolling-group model of behavioural support for smoking cessation and the factors that influence cessation outcomes. Design: Prospective observational cohort study. Setting: Fag Ends NHS Stop Smoking Service in Liverpool and Knowsley, UK. Participants: A total of 2585 clients, aged 16 or over, setting a quit date. Measurements: Routine monitoring data were collected from Fag Ends service users and were supplemented by survey data on socio-economic circumstances, smoking-related behaviour and self-report and carbon monoxide (CO)-validated smoking status at 52-week follow-up. Findings: The CO-validated prolonged abstinence rate at 52 weeks for smokers attending the groups was 5.6%, compared with 30.7% at 4 weeks (a relapse rate of 78.2%). The sample was particularly disadvantaged: 68% resided in the most deprived decile of the English Index of Multiple Deprivation. Higher socio-economic status within the sample was a predictor of quitting. Other predictors of long-term cessation in multivariate analysis included older age, being female, lower levels of nicotine dependence, having a live-in partner, stronger determination to quit and use of varenicline versus other medication. Conclusions: A wholly state-reimbursed clinical stop-smoking service providing behavioural support and medication in a region of high economic and social disadvantage has reached a significant proportion of the smoking population. Long-term success rates are lower than are found typically in clinical trials, but higher than would be expected if the smokers were to try and quit unaided. Research is needed into how to improve on the success rates achieved

Racism and anti-racism in Europe: a critical analysis of concepts and frameworks

The targets and expressions of racism vary across Europe. This article discusses the relevance of different descriptions and analyses of racism despite the different terms used in different countries such as ‘ethnic minority’, ‘foreigner’ or ‘black’ and different interpretations of which differences matter. It shows the significance of a cross-national European perspective on racism. There are important convergences across European countries in the discourses and practices of racism, particularly the distinction between ‘useful’ and ‘abusive’ migrants. A cross-European perspective can be an important inspiration for anti-racist struggles

Spatial Variation in Throughfall, Soil, and Plant Water Isotopes in a Temperate Forest

Studies of stable isotopes of water in the environment have been fundamental to advancing our understanding of how water moves through the soil‐plant‐atmosphere continuum; however, much of this research focuses on how water isotopes vary in time, rather than in space. We examined the spatial variation in the δ18O and δ2H of throughfall and bulk soil water, as well as branch xylem and bulk leaf water of Picea abies (Norway Spruce) and Fagus sylvatica (Beech), in a 1 ha forest plot in the northern Alps of Switzerland. Means and ranges of water isotope ratios varied considerably among throughfall, soil, and xylem samples. Soil water isotope ratios were often poorly explained by soil characteristics and often not predictable from proximal samples. Branch xylem water isotope values varied less than either soil water or bulk leaf water. The isotopic range observed within an individual tree crown was often similar to that observed among different crowns. As a result of the heterogeneity in isotope ratios, inferences about the depth of plant root water uptake drawn from a two end‐member mixing model were highly sensitive to the soil sampling location. Our results clearly demonstrate that studies using water isotopes to infer root water uptake must explicitly consider how to characterize soil water, incorporating measures of both vertical and lateral variation. By accounting for this spatial variation and the processes that shape it, we can improve the application of water isotopes to studies of plant ecophysiology, ecohydrology, soil hydrology, and paleoclimatology