Inequality And Democratization: A Power-Centered Approach to Democratic Transitions

What are the conditions under which democratization is more likely to happen? After decades of research focused on the relationship between economic development and democratization, the more recent theories have identified economic inequality as the more specific variable of importance, but they disagree over what exactly its effects are. Here I present a new theory of power, inequality and democratization which conceptualizes democratization as a composite process made up of two distinct transformations: liberalization, which establishes greater government accountability along the horizontal dimension, in the form of powerful legislatives and courts; and electoralization, which makes the government more vertically accountable through universally free and fair elections. I hypothesize that changes along the two dimensions are determined by economic inequality within the wealthy elite, and between the wealthy and the rest of the population. Empirical support for these relationships is found in dynamic probit analyses of worldwide inequality and regime type data from 1821 to 1992 and in in-depth examinations of the democratization process in England and in South Korea. The evidence suggests that economic inequality is an important predictor of democratization, but the relationship is complex: low inequality within the wealthy elite increases the likelihood of liberalization, while low inequality between the rich and rest makes electoralization more probable

CONECT 2023 XVI International Scientific Conference of Environmental and Climate Technologies

10–12 May 2023 | Riga, Latvi

Attitudes of Counselors Regarding Ethical Situations Encountered by In-Home Counselors

This survey study explored the attitudes of in-home and outpatient counselors in Virginia regarding ethical situations encountered by in-home counselors. Differences in responses were examined across several variables to identify any relationships among those constructs that are salient to in-home counseling and ethics. Of 108 participants, no significant differences were found between the two groups. One variable was found to predict counselors\u27 responses: the percent counselors provide counseling services compared to case management. The item seen as most ethical involved telling a client to apply for needed services, surprising, given its directive nature that runs counter to the counseling profession. The item seen as least ethical involved providing counseling outside of one\u27s level of competence. Considering this along with several open-ended comments expressing concern over unqualified and under-educated in-home counselors provides important implications for counselors, supervisors, and educators and gives direction for future research

Challenges and Barriers for Aquaculture Sector: Review Article on Freshwater Aquaculture

The EU aquaculture sector, like other sectors of the EU economy, must participate in the ‘green transition’ set out in the European Green Deal. The sector has a particular role to play in contributing to the transition towards sustainable food systems and the development of the bioeconomy and circular economy. Aquatic organisms and fish cultivated in aquacultures are important sources of food and feed, the importance of developing which has been highlighted in several EU policy planning documents. Due to high nutritive value, fish and aquatic organisms are a valuable food source. Despite the rapid growth of aquaculture in Europe and other parts of the world, the promotion of sustainable or organic aquaculture is crucial for the provision of high-quality, locally accessible food. Aquacultures produce relatively low greenhouse gas emissions compared to sources of protein grown on land. However, there is still room for growth, therefore, to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions from aquacultures and foster more sustainable practices and greater resource and energy efficiency are required. This review article includes an analysis of policy planning documents adopted in Latvia and the EU, outlining opportunities and risks for creating a sustainable aquaculture industry. The purpose of this review article is to identify the most significant problems and obstacles to achieving a sustainable aquaculture system at both the local and European levels. In addition, the review investigates and contrasts recent advancements in aquaculture technological processes and socioeconomic impact factors. Whether aquaculture’s path to sustainability is jeopardized by inefficient consumption of resources and wastes (feed, energy, emissions) at the beginning or end of the organisms’ life cycle

From Readiness to Action: Social Justice Training in Practicum

Social justice is an imperative within counseling and is recognized through the American Counseling Association\u27s code of ethics, nationally endorsed competencies, and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs. The authors completed a phenomenological study exploring the experience of five master’s-level counseling students in their practicum course relative to their development of a socially just counseling approach. The authors identified themes to provide a textural-structural description of how students experienced the transition towards social action. Moving from readiness to action encompassed previous experiences, the learning community, and change agents including awareness, responsibility, motivation, and comfort. Implications for educators and supervisors of professional counselors are provided

Analysis of Energy Consumption for Biomass Drying Process

This study is dedicated to the analysis of the drying process energy consumption. In order to evaluate the main energetic processes that consume the most energy, the energy consumption of each individual drying process with and without air recirculation was modelled. The model shows that drying agent (air) recirculation is not an energy-saving operation, since it increases the total electricity and heat consumption. Recirculation of the drying agent increases the moisture content of the drying agent at the dryer entrance, which increases the need for fresh air in the dryer so that it can absorb the evaporating moisture from the dried material. An increased flow of the drying agent in the dryer increases the heat and electricity consumption

Energy Audit and Energy Management Systems: Review of International Energy Auditing Practice

This research combines the analysis of international knowledge in energy audit practices with information on the nature of energy audit and its involved parties on the path to fulfil the goals set by the European Union policy and Latvian national policy. The article also analyses the publicly available information about the energy sector in Latvia, industry statistics, and legislative acts that have a direct impact on the implementation of energy audits. Although the European Union aims to reduce EU emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and to reduce gas demand by 15% by May 2023, sustainable energy use requires not only increased renewable energy production but also an efficient and competent use of this energy.The article first assesses the institutional basis, by EU regulations, to promote energy audits in the country. International energy audit and energy efficiency practices are also reviewed, focusing on government policy, energy audit standards, tools and methods.As each member state of the European Union has independently interpreted and adapted the EU requirements related to energy efficiency, especially the Directive of the European Parliament and of Council no. 2018/844, which amends Directive 2010/31/EU on the energy efficiency of buildings and Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency, points 6 and 9, then the exchange of information between member states on their knowledge and experience should be considered an essential aspect of the policy, so that in the future countries together could achieve European energy security, independence, competitiveness and sustainability by adopting the best examples there are.The result achieved in the research is a summary of the energy audit experience of the EU and other countries, a description of energy consumption and their prices in Europe, as well as an extract of the most important regulatory acts

Advantages of robotic right colectomy over laparoscopic right colectomy beyond the learning curve: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: With the widespread application of robotic systems and the increasing number of studies comparing robotic right colectomy (RRC) and laparoscopic right colectomy (LRC), there is a need for an up-to-date systemic review and meta-analysis assessing the advantages of this technique. Methods: The systemic review was performed in Medline, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane Oral Health Group Specialized Register and Google Scholar databases searching for studies comparing RRC and LRC, with no date restriction but limited to English and French literature. Two independent reviewers performed data extraction and qualitative synthesis. Random-effects models were used to summarize the risk ratio (RR) and mean differences (MD) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: Twenty-six non-randomized clinical trials (NRCTs) and 1 RCT were included. Overall, 2,314 patients underwent RRC and 17,791 LRC. Operative time was significantly longer for RRC with a MD of 45.36 min (95% CI: 31.75-58.97; P<0.00001). Conversion rate was significantly lower in the RRC group with a RR of 0.47 (95% CI: 0.27-0.81; P=0.007, I-2=33%). Also, the number of harvested lymph node was significantly higher in the RRC group than the LRC group, with a MD of 2.03 (95% CI: 0.45-3.61; P=0.01, I-2=68%). Estimated blood loss favored RRC, with a MD of-8.68 (95% CI:-17.27 to-0.08; P=0.05, I-2=46%). There was no difference in the overall complication rate, mortality, anastomotic leakage, and time to first flatus. However, a significantly shorter hospital stay was associated with RRC, with a MD of -0.60 (95% CI:-1.01 to-0.19; P=0.004, I-2=64%). No quantitative analysis could be performed for oncological outcomes. RRC was associated with significantly higher costs (MD 3,185.50 USD; 95% CI: 720.98-5650.02; P=0.01, I-2=94%). Conclusions: RRC is a safe procedure that may offer certain advantages over LRC as lower conversion rate, blood loss, hospital stay. However, this should be balanced out with increased operative time and higher costs

Increasing Sustainability in Vocational Education System: Latvia Case Study

Promoting sustainability in educational systems is crucial for preserving resources and diminishing negative impacts on the environment. A key aspect of this is enhancing energy efficiency within educational institutions. By implementing energy-efficient building systems, advancing the use of renewable energy sources, and incorporating sustainable practices into the curriculum, educational institutions can decrease their environmental impact and conserve resources for future generations. Active participation from all stakeholders, including managers, teaching staff, and students, is essential for the success of these efforts. Providing students with a comprehensive education on sustainability equips them to apply this knowledge in their future professions, thus contributing to a more sustainable society. This research paper aims to explore ways to increase sustainability in Latvia's vocational education system, with a specific focus on reducing energy consumption in buildings and increasing the use of renewable energy sources. A study of 23 professional schools has been conducted to understand the current state of sustainability in the educational system, including data collection on energy consumption and surveying the schools on their current energy efficiency practices, renewable energy sources, and environmental policies. The energy efficiency and renewable energy production measures have been optimized for each school. A composite indicator has been developed to rank and compare schools based on their sustainability, promoting the use of energy-efficient and renewable energy sources within a limited budget. Results of the study show that by implementing mandatory and optional measures, the schools can significantly decrease primary energy consumption by 32% and greenhouse gas emissions by 33%

Optimized ratiometric calcium sensors for functional in vivo imaging of neurons and T lymphocytes

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2013. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Nature Publishing Group for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Nature Methods 11 (2014): 175-182, doi:10.1038/nmeth.2773.The quality of genetically encoded calcium indicators (GECIs) has improved dramatically in recent years, but high-performing ratiometric indicators are still rare. Here we describe a series of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based calcium biosensors with a reduced number of calcium binding sites per sensor. These ‘Twitch’ sensors are based on the C-terminal domain of Opsanus troponin C. Their FRET responses were optimized by a large-scale functional screen in bacterial colonies, refined by a secondary screen in rat hippocampal neuron cultures. We tested the in vivo performance of the most sensitive variants in the brain and lymph nodes of mice. The sensitivity of the “Twitch” sensors matched that of synthetic calcium dyes and allowed visualization of tonic action potential firing in neurons and high resolution functional tracking of T lymphocytes. Given their ratiometric readout, their brightness, large dynamic range and linear response properties, Twitch sensors represent versatile tools for neuroscience and immunology.2014-07-0