Cold chains in Hanoi and Bangkok:changing systems of provision and practice

We know that patterns of domestic consumption are situated within broader systems of provision and that home appliances like the fridge freezer bridge between practices of cooking, shopping and eating, on the one hand, and increasingly global systems of food production, distribution and diet on the other. In analysing uses of fridge freezers in Hanoi and Bangkok as expressions, in microcosm, of complex and evolving processes of urbanisation and food provisioning this paper provides new insight into how specific configurations, dependencies and patterns of consumption take hold and how they vary and change. Our analysis of systems and practices in flux has the dual function of showing how household strategies reflect and contribute to more extensive transformations, and of demonstrating how these are shaped by ongoing tensions and relations between new and established forms of urban food supply and associated concepts of freshness and safety. The result is a subtle account of the multiple routes through which consumer ‘needs’ evolve

The ‘integrative approach’ and labour regulation and Indonesia: prospects and challenges

In contrast to theories of regulation which bypass the state and cede regulatory authority to private regimes, the scholar Kevin Kolben makes a cogent argument for the state to be brought back to centre stage in labour regulation, but envisages that private actors can develop and strengthen its capacity. This article considers the utility of what he terms an integrative approach for Indonesia. In line with what the approach advocates, the article examines the relationships between private actors and the state and considers the extent to which the former can communicate, interact with and incentivise the latter in ways which strengthen its regulatory capacity. Several challenges are identified. Finally, the potential of the Better Work Programme in Indonesia to further the goals of the approach is assessed

Insecticidal Activity of the Essential Oils from Different Plants Against Three Stored-Product Insects

This study was conducted to determine the insecticidal activity of essential oils from oregano, Origanum onites L. (Lamiales: Lamiaceae), savory, Satureja thymbra L. (Lamiales: Lamiaceae), and myrtle, Myrtus communis L. (Rosales: Myrtaceae) against three stored-product insects. Essential oils from three species of plants were obtained by Clevenger-type water distillation. The major compounds in these essential oils were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and their insecticidal activity was tested against adults of the Mediterranean flour moth Ephestia kuehniella Zeller (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), the Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella Hübner (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) and the bean weevil Acanthoscelides obtectus Say (Coleoptera: Bruchidae). While the major compound found in oregano and savory was carvacrol, the main constituent of the myrtle was linalool. Among the tested insects, A. obtectus was the most tolerant species against the essential oils. However, the insecticidal activity of the myrtle oil was more pronounced than other oils tested against A. obtectus adults. The essential oils of oregano and savory were highly effective against P. interpunctella and E. kuehniella, with 100% mortality obtained after 24 h at 9 and 25 µl/l air for P. interpunctella and E. kuehniella, respectively. LC50 and LC99 values of each essential oil were estimated for each insect species

Higher education in Indonesia: Contemporary challenges in governance, access, and quality

This chapter presents the development of Indonesian higher education since its origins to current challenges in the fields of governance, autonomy, access, equity, quality, and internationalization. Indonesia has a massive and diversified tertiary education, including experiments in community colleges and online programs. The higher educational system remains mainly centralized, with the exception of some reforms towards financial autonomy. Insufficient public funding hinders the capacity to provide adequate teaching, research, and facilities among other aspects. The consequential rise in student fees contributes to an overrepresentation of students from Java, urban centers, and higher social classes

Genome-wide trans-ancestry meta-analysis provides insight into the genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes susceptibility.

To further understanding of the genetic basis of type 2 diabetes (T2D) susceptibility, we aggregated published meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies (GWAS), including 26,488 cases and 83,964 controls of European, east Asian, south Asian and Mexican and Mexican American ancestry. We observed a significant excess in the directional consistency of T2D risk alleles across ancestry groups, even at SNPs demonstrating only weak evidence of association. By following up the strongest signals of association from the trans-ethnic meta-analysis in an additional 21,491 cases and 55,647 controls of European ancestry, we identified seven new T2D susceptibility loci. Furthermore, we observed considerable improvements in the fine-mapping resolution of common variant association signals at several T2D susceptibility loci. These observations highlight the benefits of trans-ethnic GWAS for the discovery and characterization of complex trait loci and emphasize an exciting opportunity to extend insight into the genetic architecture and pathogenesis of human diseases across populations of diverse ancestry

Impact of a maternal health voucher scheme on institutional delivery among low income women in Pakistan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Only 39% of deliveries in Pakistan are attended by skilled birth attendants, while Pakistan's target for skilled birth attendance by 2015 is > 90%.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A 12-month maternal health voucher intervention was implemented in Dera Ghazi Khan City, located in Southern Punjab, Pakistan in 2009. A pre-test/post-test non-experimental study was conducted to assess the impact of the intervention. Household interviews were conducted with randomly selected women who delivered in 2008 (the year prior to the voucher intervention), and with randomly selected women who delivered in 2009. A strong outreach model was used and voucher booklets valued at $50, containing redeemable coupons for three antenatal care (ANC) visits, a postnatal care (PNC) visit and institutional delivery, were sold for$1.25 to low-income women targeted by project workers. Regression analysis was conducted to determine the impact of the voucher scheme on ANC, PNC, and institutional delivery. Marginal effects estimated from logistic regression analyses were used to assess the magnitude of the impact of the intervention.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The women targeted by voucher outreach workers were poorer, less educated, and at higher parity. After adjusting for these differences, women who delivered in 2009 and were sold voucher booklets were significantly more likely than women who delivered in 2008 to make at least three ANC visits, deliver in a health facility, and make a postnatal visit. Purchase of a voucher booklet was associated with a 22 percentage point increase in ANC use, a 22 percentage point increase in institutional delivery, and a 35 percentage point increase in PNC use.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A voucher intervention implemented for 12 months was associated with a substantial increase in institutional delivery. A substantial scale-up of maternal health vouchers that focus on institutional delivery is likely to bring Pakistan closer to achieving its 2015 target for institutional delivery.</p

Regional actorness and interregional relations:ASEAN, the EU and Mercosur

The European Union (EU) has a long tradition of interregional dialogue mechanisms with other regional organisations and is using these relations to project its own model of institutionalised actorness. This is partly motivated by the emerging actorness of the EU itself, which benefits from fostering capable regional counterparts in other parts of the world. This article advances the argument that actorness, which we conceptualise in terms of institutions, recognition and identity, is a relational concept, dependent on context and perception. Taking the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) and their relations with the EU as case studies, this article demonstrates that the actorness capabilities of all three organisations have been enhanced as result of ASEAN-EU and Mercosur-EU relations. However, there are clear limits to the development of the three components of regional actorness and to the interregional relations themselves. These limits stem both from the type of interregionalism at play and from the different regional models the actors incorporate. While there is evidence of institutional enhancement in ASEAN and Mercosur, these formal changes have been grafted on top of firmly entrenched normative underpinnings. Within the regional organisations, interactions with the EU generate centrifugal forces concerning the model to pursue, thus limiting their institutional cohesion and capacity. In addition, group-to-group relations have reinforced ASEAN and Mercosur identities in contrast to the EU. The formation of such differences has narrowed the scope of EU interregionalism despite the initial success of improved regional actorness

Food Security in the South Pacific Island Countries with Special Reference to the Fiji Islands

This paper analyses the status of food security in selected South Pacific Island countries

Global recession and higher education in eastern Asia: China, Mongolia and Vietnam

This paper presents a perspective on the capacity of colleges and universities during past and present economic shocks. The main argument is that the environment of the global recession-an Asia far more economically integrated than during past economic shocks, with more unified aspirations to be globally competitive and socially responsible-no longer delay reforms in higher education. In fact, the global recession has become an opportune time for higher education in Asia, specifically developing countries in eastern (East and Southeast) Asia, to continue reforming governance and administration, access and equity, internal and external efficiency, and regional collaboration. Economic shocks have accelerated reforms in higher education, especially those for promoting innovation in their economies, though more is needed in improving governance and access for underserved populations. This paper examines the cases of China, Mongolia, and Vietnam as examples of how the global recession and regional integration are growing forces in shaping their higher education reform and development. The paper also identifies a series of measures for increasing the resilience of higher education systems in serving poor and vulnerable populations during economic recessions. Responses to the global economic recession by nations in eastern Asia are likely to improve the global shift in economy and human capital. © 2011 The Author(s).published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201