Integrated Management Planning in Canada's Northern Marine Environment: Engaging Coastal Communities

In accordance with international law and custom, Canada declared an exclusive economic zone of 2.9 million km² when it passed the Oceans Act in 1997. Extensive resource management responsibilities were associated with this declaration. An early effort to engage a northern coastal community in the first stages of an integrated management planning process focused on the small northern community of Churchill, Manitoba, and a 150 km stretch of the Hudson Bay coastline. The steps taken included communicating the importance of management planning for the town's coastal region; conducting personal interviews on coastal activities and concerns with a representative sample of the community; consolidating, tabulating, and mapping the results of these interviews; verifying results with the community; and evaluating the effectiveness of the process used. The approach taken, as well as the weeks spent living in the community, were important factors in developing a relationship of trust between the researcher and the community. Those interviewed were more comfortable participating once they had had a number of opportunities to become familiar with the context of the study, its relevance to them, and the researcher.En adoptant la Loi sur les océans en 1997, le Canada a déclaré une zone économique exclusive de 2,9 millions de km², en vertu du droit international. D'importantes responsabilités de gestion des ressources étaient rattachées à cette déclaration. Une première tentative visant à amener une communauté côtière du Nord à participer aux étapes préliminaires d'un processus de planification de gestion intégrée a porté sur la petite collectivité nordique de Churchill, au Manitoba, et sur un tronçon de 150 km du rivage de la baie d'Hudson. Les démarches entreprises comprenaient: la communication de l'importance de la planification de la gestion pour la région côtière de la ville; la réalisation d'entrevues personnelles sur les activités et les enjeux reliés à la côte avec un échantillon représentatif de la communauté; le regroupement, la compilation et la représentation cartographique des résultats de ces entrevues; la vérification des résultats de concert avec la collectivité; ainsi que l'évaluation de l'efficacité de la méthode suivie. L'approche utilisée, de même que les semaines vécues au sein de la communauté, étaient des facteurs importants dans le développement d'une relation de confiance entre le chercheur et la collectivité. Les répondants étaient plus à l'aise pour participer, après avoir eu diverses occasions de se familiariser avec le contexte de l'étude, sa pertinence à leur égard, ainsi que la personne menant la recherche

The Beaufort Sea Conference 2000 on the Renewable Marine Resources of the Canadian Beaufort Sea

The Beaufort Sea Conference 2000, held in Inuvik, Northwest Territories, in September 1999, had three objectives: to review our current understanding of the renewable aquatic resources of the Beaufort Sea; to review the factors that affect those resources; and to develop a vision that will guide management of those resources for the benefit of present and future generations. To achieve these objectives, the conference brought together representatives of the full range of groups interested in the renewable resources of the Beaufort Sea. These included hunters and fishers, other resource users, scientists, government managers, educators, students, and the public. The conference was structured to encourage interaction between participants so that they could jointly discuss opportunities for the future. ... This special issue of the journal "Arctic" presents the formal scientific papers on each resource species or group and the presentation by Inuvialuit elder Billy Day. The paragraphs below summarize the conference discussions under the four themes, as well as the discussions of the youth delegation. The Canadian Beaufort Sea region pioneered and put into practice the theory of co-management in the Canadian Arctic, beginning with the signing of the Inuvialuit Final Agreement in 1984 and the Gwich'in Final Agreement eight years later. Workshop discussions considering the role of co-management of renewable resources in this region focused on the following challenges for the future: Community engagement .... Youth and elders .... Communication .... Good governance .... Research .... Traditional ecological knowledge .... Chaos and innovation ...

Sustainable Development for Canada's Arctic and Subarctic Communities: A Backcasting Approach to Churchill, Manitoba

Backcasting has been used to evaluate sustainable development in several communities in Canada, Europe, and the United States, but no research has applied it to a remote northern community. This first such effort, which took place in Churchill, Manitoba, evaluated the environmental, social, and economic aspects of a small Subarctic community. As part of the backcasting approach, a community survey identified local issues and concerns, such as tundra vehicle damage, alcohol abuse, and the future economic viability of the Hudson Bay Port Company. Community residents also identified potential growth areas, including the establishment of Nunavut and increased tourism opportunities. The application of the backcasting approach in Canada's northern regions will have benefits for research and management by identifying local issues and building strategies for sustainable development.L'analyse rétrospective a été utilisée pour évaluer le développement durable dans diverses communautés du Canada, d'Europe et des États-Unis, mais aucun travail de recherche ne l'a appliquée à une communauté isolée du Grand Nord. Cette première tentative du genre, qui s'est déroulée à Churchill, au Manitoba, a évalué les facettes environnementales, sociales et économiques d'une petite collectivité subarctique. Dans le cadre de la méthode de l'analyse rétrospective, un sondage auprès de la communauté a permis d'identifier les préoccupations et enjeux locaux, tels que les dommages à la toundra causés par les véhicules, l'abus d'alcool et la future viabilité économique de la Compagnie du port de la baie d'Hudson. Les résidents de la communauté ont également identifié des zones de croissance potentielle, y compris l'établissement du Nunavut et des ouvertures accrues sur le plan touristique. L'application de la technique de l'analyse rétrospective dans les régions nordiques du Canada sera bénéfique pour la recherche et la gestion en identifiant les enjeux locaux et en édifiant des stratégies visant le développement durable

The complete mitochondrial genome of the foodborne parasitic pathogen Cyclospora cayetanensis

Cyclospora cayetanensis is a human-specific coccidian parasite responsible for several food and water-related outbreaks around the world, including the most recent ones involving over 900 persons in 2013 and 2014 outbreaks in the USA. Multicopy organellar DNA such as mitochondrion genomes have been particularly informative for detection and genetic traceback analysis in other parasites. We sequenced the C. cayetanensis genomic DNA obtained from stool samples from patients infected with Cyclospora in Nepal using the Illumina MiSeq platform. By bioinformatically filtering out the metagenomic reads of non-coccidian origin sequences and concentrating the reads by targeted alignment, we were able to obtain contigs containing Eimeria-like mitochondrial, apicoplastic and some chromosomal genomic fragments. A mitochondrial genomic sequence was assembled and confirmed by cloning and sequencing targeted PCR products amplified from Cyclospora DNA using primers based on our draft assembly sequence. The results show that the C. cayetanensis mitochondrion genome is 6274 bp in length, with 33% GC content, and likely exists in concatemeric arrays as in Eimeria mitochondrial genomes. Phylogenetic analysis of the C. cayetanensis mitochondrial genome places this organism in a tight cluster with Eimeria species. The mitochondrial genome of C. cayetanensis contains three protein coding genes, cytochrome (cytb), cytochrome C oxidase subunit 1 (cox1), and cytochrome C oxidase subunit 3 (cox3), in addition to 14 large subunit (LSU) and nine small subunit (SSU) fragmented rRNA genes

Baseline Morbidity in 2,990 Adult African Volunteers Recruited to Characterize Laboratory Reference Intervals for Future HIV Vaccine Clinical Trials

BACKGROUND: An understanding of the health of potential volunteers in Africa is essential for the safe and efficient conduct of clinical trials, particularly for trials of preventive technologies such as vaccines that enroll healthy individuals. Clinical safety laboratory values used for screening, enrolment and follow-up of African clinical trial volunteers have largely been based on values derived from industrialized countries in Europe and North America. This report describes baseline morbidity during recruitment for a multi-center, African laboratory reference intervals study. METHODS: Asymptomatic persons, aged 18-60 years, were invited to participate in a cross-sectional study at seven sites (Kigali, Rwanda; Masaka and Entebbe, Uganda; Kangemi, Kenyatta National Hospital and Kilifi, Kenya; and Lusaka, Zambia). Gender equivalency was by design. Individuals who were acutely ill, pregnant, menstruating, or had significant clinical findings were not enrolled. Each volunteer provided blood for hematology, immunology, and biochemistry parameters and urine for urinalysis. Enrolled volunteers were excluded if found to be positive for HIV, syphilis or Hepatitis B and C. Laboratory assays were conducted under Good Clinical Laboratory Practices (GCLP). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Of the 2990 volunteers who were screened, 2387 (80%) were enrolled, and 2107 (71%) were included in the analysis (52% men, 48% women). Major reasons for screening out volunteers included abnormal findings on physical examination (228/603, 38%), significant medical history (76, 13%) and inability to complete the informed consent process (73, 13%). Once enrolled, principle reasons for exclusion from analysis included detection of Hepatitis B surface antigen (106/280, 38%) and antibodies against Hepatitis C (95, 34%). This is the first large scale, multi-site study conducted to the standards of GCLP to describe African laboratory reference intervals applicable to potential volunteers in clinical trials. Approximately one-third of all potential volunteers screened were not eligible for analysis; the majority were excluded for medical reasons

Safety and Immunogenicity Study of Multiclade HIV-1 Adenoviral Vector Vaccine Alone or as Boost following a Multiclade HIV-1 DNA Vaccine in Africa

We conducted a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase I study of a recombinant replication-defective adenovirus type 5 (rAd5) vector expressing HIV-1 Gag and Pol from subtype B and Env from subtypes A, B and C, given alone or as boost following a DNA plasmid vaccine expressing the same HIV-1 proteins plus Nef, in 114 healthy HIV-uninfected African adults.Volunteers were randomized to 4 groups receiving the rAd5 vaccine intramuscularly at dosage levels of 1×10(10) or 1×10(11) particle units (PU) either alone or as boost following 3 injections of the DNA vaccine given at 4 mg/dose intramuscularly by needle-free injection using Biojector® 2000. Safety and immunogenicity were evaluated for 12 months. Both vaccines were well-tolerated. Overall, 62% and 86% of vaccine recipients in the rAd5 alone and DNA prime - rAd5 boost groups, respectively, responded to the HIV-1 proteins by an interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) ELISPOT. The frequency of immune responses was independent of rAd5 dosage levels. The highest frequency of responses after rAd5 alone was detected at 6 weeks; after DNA prime - rAd5 boost, at 6 months (end of study). At baseline, neutralizing antibodies against Ad5 were present in 81% of volunteers; the distribution was similar across the 4 groups. Pre-existing immunity to Ad5 did not appear to have a significant impact on reactogenicity or immune response rates to HIV antigens by IFN-γ ELISPOT. Binding antibodies against Env were detected in up to 100% recipients of DNA prime - rAd5 boost. One volunteer acquired HIV infection after the study ended, two years after receipt of rAd5 alone.The HIV-1 rAd5 vaccine, either alone or as a boost following HIV-1 DNA vaccine, was well-tolerated and immunogenic in African adults. DNA priming increased the frequency and magnitude of cellular and humoral immune responses, but there was no effect of rAd5 dosage on immunogenicity endpoints.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00124007

MyCare study: protocol for a controlled trial evaluating the effect of a community-based intervention on psychosocial, clinical outcomes and hospital admission rates for adults with severe mental illness

Introduction People with serious mental illness (SMI) often fail to receive adequate treatment. To provide a higher level of support, mental health systems have been reformed substantially to integrate mental healthcare into the community. MyCare is one such community-based mental health model of care. This paper describes the study protocol of a controlled trial examining the effect of MyCare on psychosocial and clinical outcomes and hospital admission and duration rates for adults with SMI.Methods and analysis This is a multisite non-randomised controlled trial with a 3, 6 and 12-month follow-up period. The study participants will be adults (18–64 years of age) with SMI recruited from Hobart, Launceston and the North-West of Tasmania. The treatment group will include adults who receive both the MyCare intervention and standard mental health support; the control group will include adults who receive only standard mental health support. The primary outcome includes psychosocial and clinical functioning and the secondary outcome will examine hospital admission rates and duration of stay. Mixed-effects models will be used to examine outcome improvements between intake and follow-up. This trial will generate the evidence needed to evaluate the effect of a community mental health support programme delivered in Tasmania, Australia. If MyCare results in sustained positive outcomes for adults with SMI, it could potentially be scaled up more broadly across Australia, addressing the inequity and lack of comprehensive treatment that many individuals with SMI experience.Ethics and dissemination This study has been approved by the Tasmanian Health and Medical Human Research Ethics Committee. The findings will be disseminated to participants and staff who delivered the intervention, submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal and shared at academic conferences.Trial registration number ACTRN12620000673943

Arctic change and coastal communities: overview of the Coastal Zone Canada Conference, Tuktoyaktuk, August 2006

Publisher's version/PDFThis special issue of Arctic represents the output from a conference sponsored by the Coastal Zone Canada Association and organized in large part by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. A number of sponsors (see Acknowledgements) also contributed to the success of the conference. The conference, entitled "Arctic Change and Coastal Communities," was held from 12 to 16 August 2006 in the town of Tuktoyaktuk in the western Canadian Arctic. This overview was compiled from statements made at the conference by presenters and participants and does not necessarily represent the views of the authors