A discursive review of the textual use of ‘trapped’ in environmental migration studies: The conceptual birth and troubled teenage years of trapped populations

First mooted in 2011, the concept of Trapped Populations referring to people unable to move from environmentally high-risk areas broadened the study of human responses to environmental change. While a seemingly straightforward concept, the underlying discourses around the reasons for being ‘trapped’, and the language describing the concept have profound influences on the way in which policy and practice approaches the needs of populations at risk from environmental stresses and shocks. In this article, we apply a Critical Discourse Analysis to the academic literature on the subject to reveal some of the assumptions implicit within discussing ‘trapped’ populations. The analysis reveals a dominant school of thought that assisted migration, relocation, and resettlement in the face of climate change are potentially effective adaptation strategies along a gradient of migrant agency and governance

Water security for a planet under pressure: Interconnected challenges of a changing world call for sustainable solutions

Sustainability, equitable allocation and protection of water resources must occur within the framework of integrated management and water governance, but its implementation is problematic. Ongoing global climate change, increasing population, urbanization, and aspirations for better living standards present a challenge to the planetary sustainability. While water use at global scale currently seems to be within its planetary boundary, shortages prevail in several water-scarce and overpopulated regions, and are projected to increase. Furthermore large-scale impoverishment of aquatic biodiversity, ecosystem degradation and reductions in water quality are unaddressed 'side effects' in areas where water can be secured for human and economic uses. As the world prepares for Rio+20, challenges to the sustainability of global water security should be scrutinized. Of particular concern is the likelihood that the water-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) targets may not be achievable due to lack of funding commitments, and a failure of delivery mechanisms including water governance. Constraints on water availability and reductions in water quality jeopardize secure access to this resource for all legitimate stakeholders, including aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Water connects several socio-ecological, economic and geophysical systems at multiple scales and hence constitutes a 'global water system'. This should be considered both in technical interventions and in governance frameworks. Humans have been changing the global water system in globally significant ways since the industrial revolution, yet without adequate knowledge of the system and its response to change; and without sufficient understanding of how to govern the system at local and global scales. Water security in the 21st century will require better linkage of science and policy, as well as innovative and cross-sectoral initiatives, adaptive management and polycentric governance models that involve all stakeholders. Consensus solutions will need to be achieved by evidence-based mediation, rather than following untested 'panaceas', so as to ensure equitable and sustainable global water use. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Reliability Analysis for Preliminary Forecasts of Hydrogeological Unit Productivity

The aim of this work is to find a probabilistic characterization of the productive capacity of a well in a geological formation hosting an aquifer. Such characterization in terms of productive capacity may allow a preliminary assessment to be made of the probability of success for a required productivity (i.e. target point). This evaluation is usually carried out by statistical analysis of a geological dataset, which is likely to be influenced by many parameters. Such datasets are often incomplete or unreliable. Therefore, a method for evaluating potential productivity, using probabilistic hydraulic conductivity data, is proposed. The hydraulic characterization of hydrogeologic units is based on the collection of information obtained mainly through pumping tests and their interpretation. The results, expressed in terms of hydraulic conductivity, are summarized in a range of variability that is strictly dependent on the number of performed tests and their spatial distribution in the unit itself. If this range is known, an estimate of well’s yield can be made on a deterministic basis, through Thiem’s relationship for steady state conditions, by setting a value of hydraulic conductivity that corresponds to the average value of the range. The proposed reliability analysis enables to overcome the limitations of the deterministic approach by correlating each calculated flow rate, which is taken to be a design flow rate exceeding the critical flow rate of the hydrogeologic unit, to its probability of failure. Therefore, this approach aims to evaluate the probability of failure of the water system. The preliminary result is to associate the values of aquifer exploitation with a probability failure function. This outcome can then be used to define the potential solutions in the optimal allocation of the withdrawal by means of reliability analysis that takes into account the uncertainty of the system

Macrophage apolipoprotein-E knockdown modulates caspase-3 activation without altering sensitivity to apoptosis

Apolipoprotein-E (apoE) expression may be associated with apoptosis resistance. Since macrophages constitutively synthesize apoE we speculated that this may contribute to apoptosis resistance. Using siRNA, human monocyte derived macrophage (hMDM) apoE mRNA and protein was reduced by 97% and 61%, respectively. ApoE knockdown increased staurosporine-induced caspase-3 activation by 78% without altering cell survival or apoptosis as assessed by TUNEL analysis and morphological changes. This result was confirmed using murine bone marrow derived macrophages (mBMDM) from apoE null and wild type mice. In these experiments, staurosporine-induced caspase-3 activation was increased by 49% in apoE null compared to wild type mBMDM and this was not associated with differences in TUNEL signal, annexin-V binding or DNA fragmentation. ApoE is also important for cholesterol transport and macrophage cholesterol can regulate apoptosis. Knockdown of hMDM apoE inhibited basal cholesterol efflux by 20% without altering apolipoprotein-AI mediated cholesterol efflux over 24 h. Similarly, in apoE null mBMDM a non significant trend for a 16% reduction in basal cholesterol efflux was observed as compared to wild type mBMDM. In conclusion, apoE expression modulates capase-3 activity, but this has no significant impact on sensitivity to apoptosis and only a moderate impact on basal cholesterol efflux. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved