Understanding the new EU-ACP trade relations from the outside in

1\. Introduction 6 2\. From Block-to-Block to Region-to-Region. The EPA Negotiations with a ‘Not So Weak South’ 7 3\. Theorizing Regional Dynamics in the New EU-ACP Trade Relations 11 3.1 Beyond a ‘North-South’ Scenario 11 3.2 Beyond a ‘Global South’ – Regional Hegemons in a Heterogeneous South 12 4\. Comparing Regional Dynamics in the SADC and the EAC EPA Negotiations 13 4.1 Negotiation Structures 13 4.1.1 The Negotiation Structure of the SADC EPA Group 13 4.1.2 The Negotiation Structure of the EAC EPA Group 14 4.2 Regional Coalition Building in the EPA Begotiations 15 4.2.1 From North vs. South to East vs. West – Varying Coalitions in the SADC EPA Group 15 4.2.2 A Joint Approach or a Non-Approach? Inside the EAC Negotiation Group 16 4.3 Leading or Lagging Transformations? Regional Hegemons in the EPA Negotiations 20 4.3.1 South Africa in the SADC-EU EPA Negotiations 20 4.3.2 Kenya in the EAC-EU EPA Negotiations 22 5\. Negotiating Economic Partnership Agreements, Transforming North-South Trade Relations? 24 Literature 26In the past ten years, the long-standing trade relations between the European Union (EU) and the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries have experienced radical transformations. The negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between the EU and seven regional groupings formed by the ACP countries have led to the EU being maneuvered into an unexpectedly weak position. For the first time, European negotiators had to substantially leave their pre-agreed negotiation path and positions due to the immense pressure from ACP countries, regional organizations, and non-state actors – and still have not been able to finalize negotiations that had initially been expected to only take five years until the end of 2007. These developments constitute a two-tire puzzle: Not only could the EU not play its ‘negotiation game’ and largely determine the outcomes of negotiations, but also did the outcomes of the negotiations differ between the individual regional negotiations groups despite a single European mandate for all seven regionally conducted EPA negotiations. The paper argues that a comparative ‘outside-in perspective’ from the ACP countries’ side towards the EU is essential to understand the puzzling EPA negotiation process and its (preliminary) outcomes. More specifically, it argues that the negotiations were rather determined by regional dynamics, different negotiation structures of individual EPA configurations, and the role of regional hegemons than by the EU’s actions and positions. This perspective has so far gained little attention. Trade negotiations with the EU have largely been illustrated as a clear-cut case in most studies and it is to be questioned to what extent the EPA negotiations challenge such a scenario. The paper presents a comparative case study on the EPA negotiation groups of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) from a ‘South-Eastern African perspective’

Transformations on whose terms? Understanding the new EU-ACP trade relations from the outside in

In the past ten years, the long-standing trade relations between the European Union (EU) and the African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries have experienced radical transformations. The negotiations of the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between the EU and seven regional groupings formed by the ACP countries have led to the EU being maneuvered into an unexpectedly weak position. For the first time, European negotiators had to substantially leave their pre-agreed negotiation path and positions due to the immense pressure from ACP countries, regional organizations, and non-state actors – and still have not been able to finalize negotiations that had initially been expected to only take five years until the end of 2007. These developments constitute a two-tire puzzle: Not only could the EU not play its ‘negotiation game’and largely determine the outcomes of negotiations, but also did the outcomes of the negotiations differ between the individual regional negotiations groups despite a single European mandate for all seven regionally conducted EPA negotiations. The paper argues that a comparative ‘outside-in perspective’ from the ACP countries’ side towards the EU is essential to understand the puzzling EPA negotiation process and its (preliminary) outcomes. More specifically, it argues that the negotiations were rather determined by regional dynamics, different negotiation structures of individual EPA configurations, and the role of regional hegemons than by the EU’s actions and positions. This perspective has so far gained little attention. Trade negotiations with the EU have largely been illustrated as a clear-cut case in most studies and it is to be questioned to what extent the EPA negotiations challenge such a scenario. The paper presents a comparative case study on the EPA negotiation groups of the Southern African Development Community(SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) from a ‘South-Eastern African perspective’

Herstellermarke vs. Handelsmarke

Im Mittelpunkt des vorliegenden Arbeitspapier steht die Gegenüberstellung von Herstellermarken und Handelsmarken. Dazu wird zunächst der Begriff der Marke definiert. Wichtige Funktionen, die sie inne hat, werden beschrieben und ihre Erfolgsprinzipien erläutert, bevor näher auf die Hersteller- und Handelsmarken eingegangen wird. Nach einer Definition dieser Begriffe folgt eine Abgrenzung zwischen Hersteller- und Handelsmarke. Mit der Betrachtung der Vor- und Nachteile der Handelsmarke gegenüber der Herstellermarke schließt die Grundlagenlegung ab. Im dritten Kapitel werden die Hersteller- und Handelsmarken klassifiziert, es werden verschiedene Markentypen erläutert und mit anschaulichen Beispielen unterlegt. Näher betrachtet werden dabei die Individual- oder Einzelmarke, Warengruppen- oder Segmentmarke, Sortiments- und Hausmarke, Hersteller-Dachmarke sowie die Einzelhändlermarke. Abschließend erfolgt eine Erläuterung der markenstrategischen Kombinationsmöglichkeiten der unterschiedlichen Markentypen. Das vierte Kapitel befasst sich mit der Herstellermarke - mit ihrer Entstehung, Entwicklung, möglichen Positionierung und Einsatz durch den Einzelhandel. Ausführlicher betrachtet werden dabei der klassische Markenartikel, die Luxusmarke und der Markenartikel als Zweit- bzw. Drittmarke. Im fünften Kapitel wird die Handelsmarke unter den Gesichtspunkten ihrer Funktionen, Formen, Entstehung sowie der Ziele und Strategien, die mit ihr verfolgt werden können, betrachtet. Abschließend werden auch hier mögliche Positionierungen und Einsatzmöglichkeiten aufgezeigt, dazu gehören, neben der klassischen Handelsmarke, die Gattungs- und Premiummarke. Ein Fazit schließt dieses Arbeitspapier ab. --

Bedürfnisse von Junglandwirten und ihre Wünsche an die Jugendarbeit der ökologischen Anbauverbände

Organic producer organisations are recruiting new members. On important target group are young farmers who at some point in their careers will consider membership. The objective of this study was to analyse i) the needs of young farmers, ii) which services would make membership attractive, and iii) which services producer organisations currently offer young farmers, for producer organisations to derive new ideas on specific services for this target group. Young farmer’s most important demands for services are advice in the process of setting up a business, job placement and networking among young farmers and with experienced farmers, e.g. by specific arrangement such as young farmer’s days, field trips etc. The current offers of producer organisations, if they exist, are rarely communicated as such. Addressing young farmers early in their careers with specific offers is therefore highly recommended

Treg-specific deletion of the phosphatase SHP-1 impairs control of inflammation in vivo

INTRODUCTION: To achieve a healthy and functional immune system, a delicate balance exists between the activation of conventional T cells (Tcon cells) and the suppression by regulatory T cells (Treg). The tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1, a negative regulator of TCR signaling, shapes this \u27activation-suppression\u27 balance by modulating Tcon cell resistance to Treg-mediated suppression. Treg cells also express SHP-1, but its role in influencing Treg function is still not fully understood. METHODS: We generated a Treg-specific SHP-1 deletion model, RESULTS: We show that SHP-1 modulates Treg suppressive function at different levels. First, at the intracellular signaling level in Treg cells, SHP-1 attenuates TCR-dependent Akt phosphorylation, with loss of SHP-1 driving Treg cells towards a glycolysis pathway. At the functional level, SHP-1 expression limits the CONCLUSION: Our data identify SHP-1 as an important intracellular mediator for fine-tuning the balance between Treg-mediated suppression and Tcon activation/resistance

IL-11 induces NLRP3 inflammasome activation in monocytes and inflammatory cell migration to the central nervous system

The objective of this study is to examine IL-11-induced mechanisms of inflammatory cell migration to the central nervous system (CNS). We report that IL-11 is produced at highest frequency by myeloid cells among the peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) subsets. Patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) have an increased frequency of IL-1

Glucocorticoids suppress Wnt16 expression in osteoblasts in vitro and in vivo

Glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis is a frequent complication of systemic glucocorticoid (GC) therapy and mainly characterized by suppressed osteoblast activity. Wnt16 derived from osteogenic cells is a key determinant of bone mass. Here, we assessed whether GC suppress bone formation via inhibiting Wnt16 expression. GC treatment with dexamethasone (DEX) decreased Wnt16 mRNA levels in murine bone marrow stromal cells (mBMSCs) time- and dose-dependently. Similarly, Wnt16 expression was also suppressed after DEX treatment in calvarial organ cultures. Consistently, mice receiving GC-containing slow-release prednisolone pellets showed lower skeletal Wnt16 mRNA levels and bone mineral density than placebo-treated mice. The suppression of Wnt16 by GCs was GC-receptor-dependent as co-treatment of mBMSCs with DEX and the GR antagonist RU-486 abrogated the GC-mediated suppression of Wnt16. Likewise, DEX failed to suppress Wnt16 expression in GR knockout-mBMSCs. In addition, Wnt16 mRNA levels were unaltered in bone tissue of GC-treated GR dimerization-defective GRdim mice, suggesting that GCs suppress Wnt16 via direct DNA-binding mechanisms. Consistently, DEX treatment reduced Wnt16 promoter activity in MC3T3-E1 cells. Finally, recombinant Wnt16 restored DEX-induced suppression of bone formation in mouse calvaria. Thus, this study identifies Wnt16 as a novel target of GC action in GC-induced suppression of bone formation

Holocene vegetation transitions and their climatic drivers in MPI-ESM1.2

We present a transient simulation of global vegetation and climate patterns of the mid- and late-Holocene using the MPI-ESM (Max Planck Institute for Meteorology Earth System Model) at T63 resolution. The simulated vegetation trend is discussed in the context of the simulated Holocene climate change. Our model captures the main trends found in reconstructions. Most prominent are the southward retreat of the northern treeline that is combined with the strong decrease of forest in the high northern latitudes during the Holocene and the vast increase of the Saharan desert, embedded in a general decrease in precipitation and vegetation in the northern hemispheric monsoon margin regions. The southern hemisphere experiences weaker changes in total vegetation cover during the last 8000 years. However, the monsoon-related increase in precipitation and the insolation-induced cooling of the winter climate lead to shifts in the vegetation composition, mainly between the woody plant functional types (PFTs). The large-scale global patterns of vegetation almost linearly follow the subtle, approximately linear, orbital forcing. In some regions, however, non-linear, more rapid changes in vegetation are found in the simulation. The most striking region is the Sahel-Sahara domain with rapid vegetation transitions to a rather desertic state, despite a gradual insolation forcing. Rapid shifts in the simulated vegetation also occur in the high northern latitudes, in South Asia and in the monsoon margins of the southern hemisphere. These rapid changes are mainly triggered by changes in the winter temperatures, which go into, or move out of, the bioclimatic tolerance range of individual PFTs (Plant Functional Types). The dynamics of the transitions are determined by dynamics of the Net Primary Production (NPP) and the competition between PFTs. These changes mainly occur on timescales of centuries. More rapid changes in PFTs that occur within a few decades are mainly associated with the time scales of mortality and the bioclimatic thresholds implicit in the dynamic vegetation model, which have to be interpreted with caution. Most of the simulated Holocene vegetation changes outside the high northern latitudes are associated with modifications in the intensity of the global summer monsoon dynamics that also affect the circulation in the extra tropics via teleconnections. Based on our simulations, we thus identify the global monsoons as the key player in Holocene climate and vegetation change