Understanding stakeholder perceptions of wetland ecosystem services to support conservation and restoration activities in Wakiso District, Uganda

With more than one billion people directly depending on wetlands globally for their food, fresh water, and other livelihood support systems, it is crucial to conserve them for the benefit of people, climate, and biodiversity. There is a scarcity of information on stakeholder perceptions that affect wetland management, and stakeholders involved. The key objective of this doctoral research is to understand stakeholder perceptions on wetland ecosystem services and the role they play in conservation and restoration. Four research questions guided the study: What are the past and present wetland conservation and restoration legislation in Uganda? Who are the stakeholders involved, their roles and motivations? What perceptions do stakeholders have on wetland ecosystem services and how they relate to conservation and restoration activities? and how stakeholders' perceptions are integrated into wetland conservation and restoration activities and what are the missing gaps? The research was conducted in Wakiso District Uganda using a qualitative multi-site case design. Forty stakeholders from national, district and community levels participated in the research. An ecosystem services framework provided the overarching conceptual lens for the research. There are past and present efforts to conserve and restore wetlands in Wakiso District and these are supported by national laws and policies as well as domesticated international ones such as the Ramsar Convention on wetlands of 1971 and Conservation of Biological Diversity. Government projects to conserve wetlands are largely unsuccessful. However, more needs to be done as the rate of wetland conversion and degradation is on the increase in the district. Various stakeholders are involved in wetland conservation and restoration activities with divergent interests and motivations for their involvement. Stakeholders at the community level were found to be the least involved when it comes to planning for and implementation of wetland conservation and restoration activities. Wetlands among others are perceived as a source of services and materials, fertile lands, cheap and affordable, “Godgiven”, not prioritized by the central government, places for spiritual practices, tourist attractions as well as being highly degraded ecosystems. Integration of stakeholder perceptions is very limited for civil society and community level stakeholders. Perceptions play a key role in influencing human actions and need to be considered when planning any intervention. Empowerment and agency are crucial and necessary for effective wetland conservation and restoration. Without citizen agency, wetland resources are mismanaged as the stakeholders are not sufficiently empowered to demand accountability from those who are mandated by law to care for such resources. The study offers the groundwork for recommendations relating to strengthening stakeholder agency, valuing perceptions, a call to increased participation, prioritising conservation, and restoration of wetlands as well as a realisation that government alone cannot successfully conserve and restore wetlands in Wakiso District

Relationships Between Base-Catalyzed Hydrolysis Rates or Glutathione Reactivity for Acrylates and Methacrylates and Their NMR Spectra or Heat of Formation

The NMR chemical shift, i.e., the π-electron density of the double bond, of acrylates and methacrylates is related to the reactivity of their monomers. We investigated quantitative structure-property relationships (QSPRs) between the base-catalyzed hydrolysis rate constants (k1) or the rate constant with glutathione (GSH) (log kGSH) for acrylates and methacrylates and the 13C NMR chemical shifts of their α,β-unsaturated carbonyl groups (δCα and δCβ) or heat of formation (Hf) calculated by the semi-empirical MO method. Reported data for the independent variables were employed. A significant linear relationship between k1 and δCβ, but not δCα, was obtained for methacrylates (r2 = 0.93), but not for acrylates. Also, a significant relationship between k1 and Hf was obtained for both acrylates and methacrylates (r2 = 0.89). By contrast, log kGSH for acrylates and methacrylates was linearly related to their δCβ (r2 = 0.99), but not to Hf. These findings indicate that the 13C NMR chemical shifts and calculated Hf values for acrylates and methacrylates could be valuable for estimating the hydrolysis rate constants and GSH reactivity of these compounds. Also, these data for monomers may be an important tool for examining mechanisms of reactivity

Stakeholders’ perceptions of wetland conservation and restoration in Wakiso District, Uganda

Natural wetlands are critically important to the lives and livelihoods of many people. Human activities result in the degradation of wetlands globally, and more so in developing countries prioritizing fast economic growth and development. With an increasing population in their immediate surroundings, wetlands in Wakiso District, Uganda, have become over-exploited to meet human needs. Policies, plans and projects have been put in place aiming at wetland conservation and restoration, but with limited stakeholder participation, have achieved limited success. Our research objective was to identify stakeholders, their perceptions, and understand the role these perceptions play in wetland conservation and restoration activities. To achieve these objectives, we used the ecosystem services concept within a qualitative, multi-site case study research approach. Findings show that stakeholders hold divergent perceptions on wetland ecosystem services, perceiving them as source of materials, fertile places for farming, cheap to buy and own, as well as being “God-given”. Furthermore, wetlands as habitats are perceived as not prioritized by central government. Implications for conservation and restoration vary with stakeholders advocating for (1) over-use, wise-use or not-use of wetlands and their resources, (2) educating and sensitization as well as (3) the implementation of the available laws and policies. This paper explores the findings and important implications for the conservation and restoration of wetlands in Wakiso District, Uganda

Researching without “methods”: an experiment in socio-ecological sustainability research with rural communities

This article describes an improvisatory or ‘no method’ research approach in socio-ecological sustainability in two rural Ugandan communities. A team of multidisciplinary researchers purposed to understand how rural community members make sense of their role in, and relationship with, the environment. In addition, they sought to unsettle pre-existing assumptions, categories of knowledge, and methods of knowledge generation, through a practical and conceptual exploration of community-academy collaboration in research. The authors present an account of the research process as an experiment towards a decolonial, context-specific, and post-qualitative practice of inquiry and collaboration. The paper describes the context of the Ugandan communities involved and the socio-ecological issues that impact their lives. Related methodological practices are discussed to support the description and discussion of the improvised methods employed in this study. The methodological findings that conclude this paper have implications for global sustainability research, partnership, and action

Mechanisms of Action of (Meth)acrylates in Hemolytic Activity, in Vivo Toxicity and Dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) Liposomes Determined Using NMR Spectroscopy

We investigated the quantitative structure-activity relationships between hemolytic activity (log 1/H50) or in vivo mouse intraperitoneal (ip) LD50 using reported data for α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds such as (meth)acrylate monomers and their 13C-NMR β-carbon chemical shift (δ). The log 1/H50 value for methacrylates was linearly correlated with the δCβ value. That for (meth)acrylates was linearly correlated with log P, an index of lipophilicity. The ipLD50 for (meth)acrylates was linearly correlated with δCβ but not with log P. For (meth)acrylates, the δCβ value, which is dependent on the π-electron density on the β-carbon, was linearly correlated with PM3-based theoretical parameters (chemical hardness, η; electronegativity, χ; electrophilicity, ω), whereas log P was linearly correlated with heat of formation (HF). Also, the interaction between (meth)acrylates and DPPC liposomes in cell membrane molecular models was investigated using 1H-NMR spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The log 1/H50 value was related to the difference in chemical shift (ΔδHa) (Ha: H (trans) attached to the β-carbon) between the free monomer and the DPPC liposome-bound monomer. Monomer-induced DSC phase transition properties were related to HF for monomers. NMR chemical shifts may represent a valuable parameter for investigating the biological mechanisms of action of (meth)acrylates

男女児のボール投げ動作とボール速度

本研究は, 幼稚園年長児 (5～6歳) 134名を対象に全力ボール投げ時の動作, ボール速度およびそれらの関係や性差を検討してきた。本研究で得られた結果は, 次のように要約できる。1) 投動作を12種類のパターンによって分類したところ, 成人型に近い動作を示したものの比率は女児よりも男児の方が高かった。また, 12種類のパターンの中で男児は出現しなかったパターンがあったが, 女児ではすべてのパターンがあらわれた。2) 男女それぞれの全体のボール速度は平均で10.4m/sで男児の方が高かった。また, 同一動作パターンにおけるボール速度も男児の方が高かった。3) 男児では最も発達度の高いパターンのボール速度が他のパターンより高い傾向を示した。また, 男女とも最も未発達のパターンのボール速度が最も低かった

ジュニアスキー選手の体力プロフィール (1) : 下肢動的筋力の特徴

Eighteen Japanese junior alpine ski racers were studied to evaluate the physical fitness parameters. Measurements of physical characteristics, isometric and isokinetic leg strength (Nm・kg-1) were made to younger group (YG : n=9, age of 13.6±1.59) and older group (OG : n=9, age of 15.4±2.01) . The ratio of isometric muscle strength to that isokinetic muscle strength was calculated to demonstrate the superiority in contraction speed. OG was significantly higher in age and had more percent body fat than YG. OG had significantly more isokinetic knee extension strength than YG at 30 and 180 deg・sec-1. OG had significantly greater isokinetic knee flexion strength than YG at 30, 60 and 180 deg・sec-1. OG also had significantly more isometric and isokinetic hip extension strength than YG at 30, 60, 180 and 300 deg・sec-1. However, no significant differences in hip flexion strength were observed between two groups. OG had high isokinetic/isometric knee flexion strength ratio at slow rates of contraction (30 and 60 deg・sec-1). And both groups had high isokinetic/isometric hip extension and flexion ratio at slow rates of contraction (30 and 60 deg・sec-1). These results suggested that older group had more isokinetic knee and hip strength than younger group and that both groups produced high isokinetic leg strength at low contraction rates. These findings may reflect the performance of slow concentric leg actions specific to alpine skiing