L'aide au développement des communes et des cantons Suisses

Zusammenfassung : Die Entwicklungshilfe der schweizerischen Gemeinden und Kantone Wie aus den von der DEH erstellten Statistiken hervorgeht, haben die Gemeinden und Kantone 1982 die — im Vergleich zu den vom Bund aufgewendeten 480 Millionen — bescheidene Summe von 7,5 Mio Franken für die Entwicklungs- und humanitäre Hilfe ausgegeben. Allerdings zeigt dies eine positive Tendenz innerhalb der öffentlichen Meinung auf. Im Sinne des entsprechenden Bundesgesetzes lässt der Bund den Gemeinden und Kantonen im Bereich der Entwicklungshilfe einen grossen Spielraum, obwohl besonders die DEH den in diesem Bereich weniger versierten Gemeinden und Kantonen — wenn nötig — assistiert. Im Gegensatz zur humanitären Hilfe wird die von letzteren geleistete Entwicklungshilfe jedoch mehr von der politischen Orientierung der Empfängerländer abhängig gemacht. Sowohl die humanitäre Hilfe als auch die mit mehr Vielfalt ausgestattete Entwicklungshilfe werden als indirekte Hilfe über eine spezialisierte Entwicklungshilfeorganisation befördert oder von den Gemeinden (einschliesslich der Kirchen) und Kantonen direkt geplant und verwaltet. Obwohl die gegenwärtige Wirtschaftskrise die Gefahr einer Kürzung der Entwicklungshilfe in sich birgt, sollte die von den Gemeinden und Kantonen geleistete Entwicklungshilfe weiterhin unterstützt werden

L'aide au développement des communes et des cantons Suisses

Zusammenfassung : Die Entwicklungshilfe der schweizerischen Gemeinden und Kantone Wie aus den von der DEH erstellten Statistiken hervorgeht, haben die Gemeinden und Kantone 1982 die — im Vergleich zu den vom Bund aufgewendeten 480 Millionen — bescheidene Summe von 7,5 Mio Franken für die Entwicklungs- und humanitäre Hilfe ausgegeben. Allerdings zeigt dies eine positive Tendenz innerhalb der öffentlichen Meinung auf. Im Sinne des entsprechenden Bundesgesetzes lässt der Bund den Gemeinden und K..

Developing interdisciplinary and intercultural skills in engineers through short-term field experiences

Short-term field study experiences are increasingly popular in engineering education. Where they include an international dimension, they can also develop skills and knowledge needed for working across cultures and in interdisciplinary teams. Such programs can take students out of their ‘comfort zone’, thereby enabling them to question their previously taken-for-granted assumptions. Here we analyze four different case studies of organizing short-term international field study programs in engineering education which share a methodology of mixing student disciplines and skills, of interaction with people from other cultures or contexts, and using reflection tools drawn from social and human sciences. While such programs appear to directly address skills desired in engineering students, it was extremely challenging to fit them within the constraints of a traditional university program and to have their modes of reflection accepted as valid by more traditional engineering education practitioners

The roles of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in pregnancy, lactation and infancy: review of current knowledge and consensus recommendations

This paper reviews current knowledge on the role of the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6), in maternal and term infant nutrition as well as infant development. Consensus recommendations and practice guidelines for health-care providers supported by the World Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Early Nutrition Academy, and the Child Health Foundation are provided. The fetus and neonate should receive LC-PUFA in amounts sufficient to support optimal visual and cognitive development. Moreover, the consumption of oils rich in n-3 LC-PUFA during pregnancy reduces the risk for early premature birth. Pregnant and lactating women should aim to achieve an average daily intake of at least 200mg DHA. For healthy term infants, we recommend and fully endorse breastfeeding, which supplies preformed LC-PUFA, as the preferred method of feeding. When breastfeeding is not possible, we recommend use of an infant formula providing DHA at levels between 0.2 and 0.5 weight percent of total fat, and with the minimum amount of AA equivalent to the contents of DHA. Dietary LC-PUFA supply should continue after the first six months of life, but currently there is not sufficient information for quantitative recommendation

Maternal outcomes and risk factors for COVID-19 severity among pregnant women.

Pregnant women may be at higher risk of severe complications associated with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which may lead to obstetrical complications. We performed a case control study comparing pregnant women with severe coronavirus disease 19 (cases) to pregnant women with a milder form (controls) enrolled in the COVI-Preg international registry cohort between March 24 and July 26, 2020. Risk factors for severity, obstetrical and immediate neonatal outcomes were assessed. A total of 926 pregnant women with a positive test for SARS-CoV-2 were included, among which 92 (9.9%) presented with severe COVID-19 disease. Risk factors for severe maternal outcomes were pulmonary comorbidities [aOR 4.3, 95% CI 1.9-9.5], hypertensive disorders [aOR 2.7, 95% CI 1.0-7.0] and diabetes [aOR2.2, 95% CI 1.1-4.5]. Pregnant women with severe maternal outcomes were at higher risk of caesarean section [70.7% (n = 53/75)], preterm delivery [62.7% (n = 32/51)] and newborns requiring admission to the neonatal intensive care unit [41.3% (n = 31/75)]. In this study, several risk factors for developing severe complications of SARS-CoV-2 infection among pregnant women were identified including pulmonary comorbidities, hypertensive disorders and diabetes. Obstetrical and neonatal outcomes appear to be influenced by the severity of maternal disease

Developing interdisciplinary and intercultural skills in engineers through short-term field experiences

Short-term field study experiences are increasingly popular in engineering education. Where they include an international dimension, they can also develop skills and knowledge needed for working across cultures and in interdisciplinary teams. Such programs can take students out of their 'comfort zone', thereby enabling them to question their previously taken-for-granted assumptions. Here we analyze four different case studies of organizing short-term international field study programs in engineering education which share a methodology of mixing student disciplines and skills, of interaction with people from other cultures or contexts, and using reflection tools drawn from social and human sciences. While such programs appear to directly address skills desired in engineering students, it was extremely challenging to fit them within the constraints of a traditional university program and to have their modes of reflection accepted as valid by more traditional engineering education practitioners

Short-term field study programmes for developing interdisciplinary skills in engineering education

Short-term field study involves groups of students working in an off-campus (sometimes international) setting, and often involves working on realistic, open-ended problems, in interaction with a host community. Such learning experiences are intended to develop skills and knowledge needed for working across cultures and contexts and in interdisciplinary teams. One aspect of such programs which requires particular attention is their potential to take students out of their ‘comfort zone’, thereby enabling them to question their previously taken-for-granted assumptions. Fully exploiting such opportunities requires considering the role of social and human sciences in such programmes for engineering students. Here we analyse four case studies of short-term field study programmes in engineering education. While there are differences in location (Switzerland, China, Russia, Colombia), and in the nature of the projects, they share a methodology of mixing student disciplines and skills, interaction with people from other cultures or contexts, physically moving to a fieldwork location radically different from a classroom setting, and the use of reflection tools drawn from social and human sciences. Conclusions are drawn from this as to the possibilities, issues and challenges in short-term field studies in engineering education