Effective Advocacy

An examination of successful environmental advocacy strategies in East Asia that shows how advocacy can be effective under difficult conditions. The countries of East Asia—China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan—are home to some of the most active and effective environmental advocates in the world. And the governments of these countries have adopted a range of innovative policies to fight pollution and climate change: Japan leads the world in emissions standards, China has become the world's largest producer of photovoltaic panels, and Taiwan and South Korea have undertaken major green initiatives. In this book, Mary Alice Haddad examines the advocacy strategies that persuaded citizens, governments, and businesses of these countries to change their behavior. How did environmental activists succeed in countries that favor business interests and are generally hostile to citizen-based advocacy? Haddad identifies and describes, with examples, five of the most effective advocacy strategies used by environmentalists in East Asia: cultivate policy access, make it work locally, make it work for business, engage the heart, and think outside the box. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative data, she develops the Connected Stakeholder Model to show how advocates work through personal and professional networks to influence people in power. Stakeholders involved in policymaking are connected to diverse and multiple networks, which help them to develop complex ideas about the policies they develop. East Asia's effective advocacy strategies, as well as Haddad's theoretical framework, offer valuable lessons for activists, policy makers, and researchers

A phýsis em Sexto Empírico e a concepção da natureza como guia para a vida

This paper is divided into two parts. In the first section, after the introduction, we exposed the various occurrences of “physis” throughout Sextus Empiricus’ Outlines of Pyrrhonism, dividing them into 5 categories: (1) "nature" as the real, in contrast to “appearance”; (2) the "natural" as that which seems characteristic, peculiar to something or someone; (3) "Nature" as a creative and guiding agent; (4) the "natural" as opposed to "unnatural"; (5) the "nature of men". The way these various uses appear in the work is invariably critical, as elements of argumentation against the dogmatists, especially the Stoics. In the second part of this paper, however, we show how “physis” also appears positively at the beginning of the Outlines with the guiding function for life, as part of the answer to the famous objection of apraxia. In addition, we defend the hypothesis that “nature”, from Sextus’ point of view, does not oppose nor surpass conventions and customs; on the contrary, nature is what is recognized by all and is even determined by conventions and customs.Este artigo se divide em duas partes. Na primeira seção, após a introdução, mapeamos as diversas ocorrências de “phýsis” ao longo das Hipotiposes Pirrônicas de Sexto Empírico, dividindo-as em 5 categorias: (1) “natureza” como o real, em posição à “aparência”; (2) o “natural” como aquilo que parece próprio, pertencente a algo ou alguém; (3) a “Natureza”, como uma dimensão criadora e regente; (4) o “natural” em oposição ao “antinatural”; (5) a “natureza dos homens”. A forma como esses diversos usos aparecem na obra é invariavelmente crítica, como elementos da argumentação contra os dogmáticos, especialmente os estoicos. Na segunda parte do trabalho, entretanto, mostramos como a “phýsis” aparece também de maneira positiva no início das Hipotiposes com a função de guia para a vida, como parte da resposta à célebre objeção da apraxía. Além disso, defendemos a hipótese de que a “natureza”, da perspectiva de Sexto, não se opõe nem ultrapassa as convenções e os costumes; pelo contrário, a natureza é o que é reconhecido por todos e é mesmo determinada pelas convenções e pelos costumes

Sobre pais e filhos na Ética a Nicômaco

Os pais não são responsáveis por seus filhos, por sua educação, por alguma norma imposta de fora. Parece que a situação é melhor compreendida inversamente. É porque os pais sofrem por e com seus filhos, que os cuidados com eles se tornam uma tarefa importante e que deveria ser ampliada para se tornar, enfim, também uma tarefa do Estado. Na Política isso fica claro quando Aristóteles empreende sua crítica à cidade construída na República de Platão. Que a philía seja um elemento primordial para a coesão da pólis, ambos concordarão

O DRAMA DA RECEPÇÃO: CÍCERO E A ACADEMIA

Neste artigo pretendemos apontar aspectos da composição de Cícero, em Academica e De finibus, que indiquem o contraste que ele mesmo estabelece entre duas correntes da Academia de Platão: a que ele representa e que se desenvolve entre Arcésilas e Fílon de Larissa; e aquela representada por Antíoco de Ascalão, um antigo discípulo de Fílon que teria mudado radicalmente de filosofia, assumindo influências estoicas. Nosso objetivo é mostrar como Cícero constrói dramaticamente essa disputa pelo legado platônico, com ênfase nas perspectivas dos personagens – especialmente no que tange à compreensão da importância de Sócrates para a filosofia de Platão – e nas emoções que lhes são atribuídas pelo Cícero escritor

Characterizing maternal isolation-induced ultrasonic vocalizations in a gene-environment interaction rat model for autism.

Deficits in social communication and language development belong to the earliest diagnostic criteria of autism spectrum disorders. Of the many risk factors for autism spectrum disorder, the contactin-associated protein-like 2 gene, CNTNAP2, is thought to be important for language development. The present study used a rat model to investigate the potential compounding effects of autism spectrum disorder risk gene mutation and environmental challenges, including breeding conditions or maternal immune activation during pregnancy, on early vocal communication in the offspring. Maternal isolation-induced ultrasonic vocalizations from Cntnap2 wildtype and knockout rats at selected postnatal days were analyzed for their acoustic, temporal and syntax characteristics. Cntnap2 knockout pups from heterozygous breeding showed normal numbers and largely similar temporal structures of ultrasonic vocalizations to wildtype controls, whereas both parameters were affected in homozygously bred knockouts. Homozygous breeding further exacerbated altered pitch and transitioning between call types found in Cntnap2 knockout pups from heterozygous breeding. In contrast, the effect of maternal immune activation on the offspring\u27s vocal communication was confined to call type syntax, but left ultrasonic vocalization acoustic and temporal organization intact. Our results support the double-hit hypothesis of autism spectrum disorder risk gene-environment interactions and emphasize that complex features of vocal communication are a useful tool for identifying early autistic-like features in rodent models

Electrical impedance tomography to evaluate air distribution prior to extubation in very-low-birth-weight infants: a feasibility study

OBJECTIVES: Nasal continuous positive airway pressure is used as a standard of care after extubation in very-low-birth-weight infants. A pressure of 5 cmH2O is usually applied regardless of individual differences in lung compliance. Current methods for evaluation of lung compliance and air distribution in the lungs are thus imprecise for preterm infants. This study used electrical impedance tomography to determine the feasibility of evaluating the positive end-expiratory pressure level associated with a more homogeneous air distribution within the lungs before extubation. METHODS: Ventilation homogeneity was defined by electrical impedance tomography as the ratio of ventilation between dependent and non-dependent lung areas. The best ventilation homogeneity was achieved when this ratio was equal to 1. Just before extubation, decremental expiratory pressure levels were applied (8, 7, 6 and 5 cmH(2)0; 3 minutes each step), and the pressure that determined the best ventilation homogeneity was defined as the best positive end-expiratory pressure. RESULTS: The best positive end-expiratory pressure value was 6.3 ± 1.1 cmH(2)0, and the mean continuous positive airway pressure applied after extubation was 5.2 ± 0.4 cmH(2)0 (p = 0.002). The extubation failure rate was 21.4%. X-Ray and blood gases after extubation were also checked. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that electrical impedance tomography can be safely and successfully used in patients ready for extubation to suggest the best ventilation homogeneity, which is influenced by the level of expiratory pressure applied. In this feasibility study, the best lung compliance was found with pressure levels higher than the continuous positive airway pressure levels that are usually applied for routine extubation

Electrical impedance tomography to evaluate air distribution prior to extubation in very-low-birth-weight infants: a feasibility study

OBJECTIVES: Nasal continuous positive airway pressure is used as a standard of care after extubation in very-low-birth-weight infants. A pressure of 5 cmH2O is usually applied regardless of individual differences in lung compliance. Current methods for evaluation of lung compliance and air distribution in the lungs are thus imprecise for preterm infants. This study used electrical impedance tomography to determine the feasibility of evaluating the positive end-expiratory pressure level associated with a more homogeneous air distribution within the lungs before extubation. METHODS: Ventilation homogeneity was defined by electrical impedance tomography as the ratio of ventilation between dependent and non-dependent lung areas. The best ventilation homogeneity was achieved when this ratio was equal to 1. Just before extubation, decremental expiratory pressure levels were applied (8, 7, 6 and 5 cmH(2)0; 3 minutes each step), and the pressure that determined the best ventilation homogeneity was defined as the best positive end-expiratory pressure. RESULTS: The best positive end-expiratory pressure value was 6.3 ± 1.1 cmH(2)0, and the mean continuous positive airway pressure applied after extubation was 5.2 ± 0.4 cmH(2)0 (p = 0.002). The extubation failure rate was 21.4%. X-Ray and blood gases after extubation were also checked. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that electrical impedance tomography can be safely and successfully used in patients ready for extubation to suggest the best ventilation homogeneity, which is influenced by the level of expiratory pressure applied. In this feasibility study, the best lung compliance was found with pressure levels higher than the continuous positive airway pressure levels that are usually applied for routine extubation