Collaborative learning and knowledge sharing in food sustainability

This thesis critically analyses food related collaborative platforms and the role of their knowledge in food sustainability. It explores how these collaborative platforms learn and how their knowledge impacts food sustainability. The existing literature suggests that contemporary and future food sustainability challenges are getting more complex and that collaborative multi-stakeholder platforms are one response to this. Although these have not been studied, the literature suggests that the role of knowledge and collective learning within collaborative platforms might be an essential element for developing effective solutions to food sustainability challenges. This thesis therefore sets out to study two collaborative platforms, the UK Product Sustainability Forum and the European Food Sustainable Consumption and Production Roundtable, to analyse what they do, how they work and what influence they have within food sustainability. These two platforms were selected, because they work in the area of food sustainability, provide guidance to stakeholders in the food system, involve government representatives and they emphasise their desire to create and share knowledge collaboratively on food sustainability. The analysis shows the importance of collaborative multi-stakeholder platforms within food sustainability and highlights the critical role of collaborative learning and knowledge sharing. This study shows that collaborative learning on food sustainability is influenced by strong motives of pragmatism, financial benefits and strengthening the resilience of the agro-industrial food system. These aspects not only endorse past and unsustainable practices in the food system, but also limit the creation of effective knowledge that can help to solve current food sustainability challenges. Thus, even though food related collaborative platforms are a form of solution to understand and act on current and emerging food sustainability challenges, the research has shown that at present they are only partially promoting effective solutions. The thesis argues that there is the potential to improve existing food related collaborative platforms and their learning on food sustainability. These improvements can help to implement and operate food related collaborations on a local, national and international level. This research is the first exploration of learning and knowledge transfer within food related collaborative platforms that work on sustainability challenges. The findings provide guidance to food collaborations, policy makers, food industry, civil society and academia to help understand and utilise collaborative learning and knowledge within food sustainability. Keywords: Collaborative platforms, food industry, knowledge, politics, collaborative learning, knowledge transfer, sustainability, food system

Forging a potent vaccine adjuvant: CpG ODN/cationic peptide nanorings

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Type I interferon inducers may potentially be engineered to function as antiviral and anticancer agents, or alternatively, vaccine adjuvants, all of which may have clinical applications. We recently described a simple strategy to convert a Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) agonist devoid of interferon alpha (IFN alpha) stimulating activity into a robust Type I interferon inducer with potent vaccine adjuvant activity

Electromigration-Induced Propagation of Nonlinear Surface Waves

Due to the effects of surface electromigration, waves can propagate over the free surface of a current-carrying metallic or semiconducting film of thickness h_0. In this paper, waves of finite amplitude, and slow modulations of these waves, are studied. Periodic wave trains of finite amplitude are found, as well as their dispersion relation. If the film material is isotropic, a wave train with wavelength lambda is unstable if lambda/h_0 < 3.9027..., and is otherwise marginally stable. The equation of motion for slow modulations of a finite amplitude, periodic wave train is shown to be the nonlinear Schrodinger equation. As a result, envelope solitons can travel over the film's surface.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev.

Experimental observation of speckle instability in nonlinear disordered media

Temporal fluctuations of the speckle pattern formed upon backscattering of a laser beam from an interface between gold and nonlinear polymer film have been observed as a function of optical power. The instability can be explained by coupling of laser light to surface plasmons and other guided modes, which experience multiple scattering while propagating in the film along the interface. The speckle pattern produced in this process is extremely sensitive to fluctuations of the scattering potential near the interface.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure