How Environmentalism, Nationalism, and Civil Rights Shape Corporate Social Responsibility in the Apparel Industry

Now more than ever, fashion has become a way of expressing political identity. The changing moral convictions of corporate leaders and the preferences of their consumers have led to the rise of three popular models of corporate social responsibility: Sustainability, American-Made, and Diversity and Inclusion. This thesis will first describe the history of these three models, and then it will report how fashion businesses have adopted each of the models today. It will further explore the extent to which some models are blended⁠—and why some blends are more popular than others. While some models go together because of our politics, others are more likely to blend despite our politics. Finally, the thesis concludes by considering the current success and limits of these models

Pharmacogenetics of analgesic drugs

• Individual variability in pain perception and differences in the efficacy of analgesic drugs are complex phenomena and are partly genetically predetermined. • Analgesics act in various ways on the peripheral and central pain pathways and are regarded as one of the most valuable but equally dangerous groups of medications. • While pharmacokinetic properties of drugs, metabolism in particular, have been scrutinised by genotype–phenotype correlation studies, the clinical significance of inherited variants in genes governing pharmacodynamics of analgesics remains largely unexplored (apart from the µ-opioid receptor). • Lack of replication of the findings from one study to another makes meaningful personalised analgesic regime still a distant future. • This narrative review will focus on findings related to pharmacogenetics of commonly used analgesic medications and highlight authors’ views on future clinical implications of pharmacogenetics in the context of pharmacological treatment of chronic pain

Africa’s trade potential: escaping the colonial past by building a self-sustaining future

Africa accounts today for 17% of the world’s population, but less than 3% of global GDP. With a fast-growing population, the continent is projected to reach 4.3 billion inhabitants (39% of the world’s total) by the end of the century. This big domestic market could represent a significant opportunity, but the economy of the continent is not growing at the same pace. In fact, Africa is still struggling to overcome its colonial past, and to gain from its current (new-colonial) dependency from China. The consequences of this can be seen in the extremely low share of intra-African trade and the underdeveloped within-continent infrastructure network. The newly implemented African Continent Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could prove to be a pivotal step forward, paving the way for self-sustaining economic growth and long-lasting social and geo-political stability on the African continent

A molecular genetic analysis of testis determination in the mouse

The testis determining gene is the Y-linked gene responsible for initiating the developmental pathway leading to testis formation in males. A strategy based upon determining the precise chromosomal location of this locus has been used to clone candidate genes. In this study members of the ZF7 gene family have been analysed in terms of their expression pattern and their functional status in XY female mice known to be defective in the testis determining gene. The failure to detect any molecular abnormality in ZFY genes in these mice, their inappropriate expression pattern and other data show that these genes cannot be involved in testis determination. A second candidate gene known as SRY was subsequently isolated in humans, also by positional cloning. This study describes the cloning of the homologous gene in mouse (Sry) and presents data showing that this is indeed the testis determining gene. Its chromosomal location and putative protein structure are consistent with a role in sex determination. Sry seems to be the only gene affected in XY female mice, indicating that it is normally necessary for testis determination. Models for how the deletion event which gave rise to these XY female mice occurred are considered in the light of the unusual genomic organisation found at the Sry locus. Finally, the finding that a genomic fragment carrying Sry can cause male development in XX mice has proved that Sry is the only gene from the Y chromosome necessary for testis determination

LIFE ON THE THRESHOLD OF THE BODY

The aim of this PhD thesis is defining the human gesture not from the point of view of single meanings but in the attempt to describe the category of gesture itself and in its relation with the human condition. The first part of the research designs a definition of gesture as the movement that opens the body beyond itself, toward external objects (as the actions or the language): identify in the form of a tension, gesture can be described as such only before achieving the object it was tending to. In the second part, an analysis of the medieval monastic rules and Renaissance painting allows to qualify a change of direction: more than being an expression of the body interrupted before the object, gesture presents itself as the response to a calling from the object, a going toward the world that gets caught into the materiality of the same body. In this opening of the body toward the world and withdrawing from the being always in action, the gestures discloses a sphere of possibilities in between, a threshold able to put into question the same opposition between the subject and the objects

Earth, Air, Water, Oil: Regulating Fracking in the Monterey Shale with Health and Environment in Mind

“Earth, Air, Water, Oil: Regulating Fracking in the Monterey Shale with Health and Environment in Mind,” explores how hydraulic fracturing regulation in California’s oil-rich Monterey Shale will impact regional public health, including groundwater and air quality. This is achieved through a combination of case study and policy analysis on both the state and national level

The European Green Deal: transforming international trade and transportation

In this Kühne Impact Series, we analyze the effects of the European Green Deal on international trade and transportation. Our main point is that the Green Deal marks a step change in the EU’s climate policy, which will transform European trade and transportation. In particular, by strengthening the EU Emission Trading System and introducing a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, it will increase the carbon price towards its social optimum. This will incentivize households and firms to buy greener products, from greener countries, using greener transportation, and thereby contribute to a more sustainable globalization. In contrast, we believe that the new green agenda in the EU’s trade policy strategy, while ambitious in spirit, is less likely to have concrete effects

A new hope for the WTO? Past achievements, current challenges, and planned reforms

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has a new Director General, and we take her appointment as an opportunity to brief the reader on this important international organization. In particular, we (i) explain its past achievements, (ii) discuss its current challenges, and (iii) summarize its planned reforms

Global trade: a future in doubt?

Talks of “deglobalization” or “slowbalization” have multiplied in the aftermath of the Great Trade Collapse of 2008/2009. The recent economic shock of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have re-ignited fears of global value chain disruptions, and lead many in international trade to claim the end of globalization as we know it. In this Kühne Impact Series we examine these facts and find that while few statistics point towards a slowdown in global trade, looking at the broad picture we can still be cautiously optimistic. More concerns arise, instead, when looking at the policy landscape