Single-Use Plastics: A Roadmap for Sustainability

The benefits of plastic are undeniable. The material is cheap, lightweight and easy to make. These qualities have led to a boom in the production of plastic over the past century. This trend will continue as global plastic production skyrockets over the next 10 to 15 years. We are already unable to cope with the amount of plastic waste we generate, unless we rethink the way we manufacture, use and manage plastics. Ultimately, tackling one of the biggest environmental scourges of our time will require governments to regulate, businesses to innovate and individuals to act. This paper sets out the latest thinking on how we can achieve this. It looks at what governments, businesses and individuals have achieved at national and sub-national levels to curb the consumption of single-use plastics. It offers lessons that may be useful for policymakers who are considering regulating the production and use of single-use plastics

Legitimacy building for the European Energy Exchange

"This paper analyzes the strategies to build legitimacy for the European Energy Exchange in Leipzig (short: EEX) which became the central trading place for electricity in Germany in 2002. Following Suchman's differentiation in the three phases of gaining, maintaining and repairing legitimacy, it focuses on the phase of gaining legitimacy. The arguments in this article are predominately based on neoinstitutional sociology. They are part of a larger project on the forms, functions and consequences of price building at the EEX." (author's abstract

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Über die Schattenseite des Vertrauens in Systeme und Misstrauensagenturen am Beispiel des börslichen Stromhandels

In dem vorliegenden Beitrag stehen Systemvertrauen und Vertrauen in Misstrauensagenturen am empirischen Fall des börslichen Stromhandels im Mittelpunkt. Einerseits stellt die Strombörse selbst eine hohe Transparenz und eine permanente Kontrolle durch hoheitliche Kontrollinstanzen nach außen dar, um auf diesem Wege Vertrauen insbesondere bei den Marktteilnehmern einzuwerben. Andererseits lassen strukturell bedingte Intransparenzen und ein Wegfall der Kontrollbefugnis der vormals zuständigen Börsenaufsicht an dieser Transparenz und an der Funktionsfähigkeit der Kontrollinstanzen zweifeln. Die empirischen Beobachtungen werden genutzt, um auf die Relevanz von Dysfunktionalitäten von Systemvertrauen und von Vertrauen in Misstrauensagenturen mit Blick auf ihr Krisenpotential hinzuweisen.

Power of Forest Stakeholders in the Participatory Decision Making Process: A Case Study in Northern Italy

AbstractIn European countries, current forest use aims to enhance goods and services supplied by forest ecosystems, taking into account the multiple needs and interests of society through a participatory process. A successful participatory process requires a thorough analysis of stakeholders’ perceptions and preferences. The aim of this paper is to investigate the differences between stakeholders’ perceived influence and real power in forest management. A questionnaire survey was carried out among 51 forest stakeholders in a case study in the Italian Alps. Perceived influence was measured by asking stakeholders to rate on a 5-point scale the extent to which they can influence forest management issues. Real power was analyzed using social network analysis (SNA), investigating the relationships that stakeholders have with each other in the network. Real power was measured using a Freeman’s degree centrality measure, which focuses on the direct ties coming in and out for each stakeholder. The results show that public administration is the category of stakeholders with the most power in all forest management issues, while the actors of the tourism sector are in a marginal position. In addition, the results of the study suggest that in many cases stakeholders have a distorted perception of their own power.</jats:p

Correlation between mean and minimum joint space measurements in a long-term trial with glucosamine sulfate, an osteoarthritis modifying agent

peer reviewe

The role of diet and exercise and of glucosamine sulfate in the prevention of knee osteoarthritis: Further results from the PRevention of knee Osteoarthritis in Overweight Females (PROOF) study

Background and objectives: The PRevention of knee Osteoarthritis in Overweight Females (PROOF) study (ISRCTN 42823086) described a trend for a decrease in the incidence of knee osteoarthritis (OA) by a tailored diet and exercise program (DEP) or by oral glucosamine sulfate in women at risk for the disease, using a composite clinical and/or radiological outcome. The aim of this updated post-hoc analysis was to re-assess the results according to more precise techniques and take advantage of the 2×2 factorial design. Methods: A total of 407 overweight (BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2) women of 50-60 years of age with no diagnosis of knee OA were randomized to: (1) no DEP + placebo (Control, N = 102), (2) DEP + placebo (DEP, N = 101), (3) glucosamine sulfate + no DEP (GS, N = 102), and (4) DEP + glucosamine sulfate (DEP + GS, N =102) and followed for 2.5 years, with standardized postero-anterior, semiflexed (MTP) view knee radiographs at baseline and end of the study. DEP consisted of a tailored low fat and/or low caloric diet and easy to implement physical activities. Glucosamine was given as oral crystalline glucosamine sulfate 1500 mg once daily, double-blinded vs. placebo. Incident knee OA was defined as radiographic progression of ≥1 mm minimum joint space narrowing (mJSN) in the medial tibiofemoral compartment, as previously assessed by the visual (manual) technique and by a new semi-automated method. Logistic regression analysis was used to calculate the odds ratio for the effect of the interventions. Results: After 2.5 years, 11.8% of control subjects developed knee OA. This incidence was decreased with glucosamine sulfate, either alone or in combination with the DEP, but not by the DEP alone. Since there was no statistical interaction between treatments, the 2×2 factorial design allowed analysis of patients receiving glucosamine sulfate (= 204) vs. those not receiving it (= 203), similarly for those on the DEP (= 203) or not (= 204). Glucosamine sulfate significantly decreased the risk of developing knee OA: odds ratio (OR) = 0.41 (95% CI: 0.20-0.85, P = 0.02) by the manual JSN assessment method and OR = 0.42 (95% CI: 0.20-0.92, P = 0.03) by the semi-automated technique. Conversely, there was no decrease in risk with the DEP. Conclusions: Glucosamine sulfate decreased the risk of developing radiographic knee OA over 2.5 years in overweight, middle-aged women at risk, as determined by medial mJSN progression. Conversely a tailored diet and exercise program exerted no preventive effect, possibly because of the lower than expected effect on weight loss

A randomised, double-blind, controlled trial comparing two intra-articular hyaluronic acid preparations differing by their molecular weight in symptomatic knee osteoarthritis

Objectives: To compare the effects of an intermediate molecular weight (MW) intra-articular hyaluronic acid (HA) with a low MW product on knee osteoarthritis (OA) symptoms. Methods: Patients with symptomatic knee OA were enrolled inarandomised, controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, non-inferiority trial with the possibility to shift to superiority. Patients were randomised to GO-ON(MW 800–1500 kD, 25 mg/2.5 ml) or Hyalgan(MW 500–730 kD, 20 mg/2 ml) injected at 3-weekly intervals. The primary outcome was 6-month change in the WOMAC pain subscale (0–100 mm). Sample size was calculated on a non-inferiority margin of 9 mm, lower than the minimum perceptible clinical improvement. Secondary endpoints included OARSI-OMERACT responder rates Results: The intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) populations consisted of 217 and 209 patients and 171 and 172 patients in the GO-ON and Hyalgan groups, respectively. ITT WOMAC pain of 47.5±1.0(SE) and 48.8±1.0 mm decreased by 22.9±1.4 mm with GO-ON and 18.4±1.5 mm with Hyalgan after 6 months. The primary analysis was conducted in the PP population followed by the ITT population.Mean (95% CI) differences in WOMAC pain change were 5.2 (0.9 to 9.6)mm and 4.5 (0.5 to 8.5)mm, respectively,favouring GO-ON, satisfying the claim for non-inferiority (lower limit>−9 mm) and for statistical superiority (95% CI all>0, p=0.021). Ahigher proportion of OARSI/OMERACT responders was observed with GO-ONthan with Hyalgan (73.3% vs58.4%, p=0.001). Both preparations were well tolerated. Conclusions: Treatment with 3-weekly injections of intermediate MW HA may be superior to low MW HA on knee OA symptoms over 6 months, with similar safety