Linking communities of practice with value chain development in smallholder farming systems

Recognizing that value chains involve complex social and economic relationships, there are shortcomings in existing approaches to governance, whereby different communities in smallholder agriculture could instead work together, leading to increased resilience. Relations of power, politics, socialization, and a collective history of slavery were identified by smallholders as factors contributing to mistrust, and provoked the desire to act independently rather than collaborating in communities of practice. “Communities of practice” literature is not included in value chain research and development; however, it is helpful in discerning the core challenges of collaboration, trust, and learning, particularly in developing area contexts

Chronicles of Oklahoma

Corrections section from Volume 91, Number 2, Summer 2013. It includes a correction to the map on page 412 of the article "A Separate People: A History of the Oklahoma Amish" from Volume 90 Number 4, Winter 2012-13. It also includes a correction to a photograph label on page 33 in the article "The Enigma of Mike Monroney" from Volume 91, Number 1, Spring 2013

A framework for analyzing institutional gaps in natural resource governance

In this paper we present the Inter-Institutional Gap(IIG) Framework as a novel approach to conceptualizing the often-overlooked interconnectivity of different rule-levels between formal and informal institutions in a resource system. This framework goes beyond the existing concepts of legal pluralism, institutional void, structural hole, and cultural mismatch, each of which offer valuable insights to particular gaps between formal and informal institutions, but do not sufficiently address the interaction at every rule level (i.e. constitutional choice, collective choice and operational choice rules). In order to demonstrate the potential of our framework for better understanding the underlying causes of inter-institutional gaps, we apply it to four case studies that encompass diverse geographical locations, governance scales, and social-ecological systems. Results reveal inter-institutional gaps can be created when there are unintended, unforeseen or hidden gaps between different rule hierarchies in two or more simultaneously operating institutions. More specifically we observe that: i) inter-institutional gaps are co-existing, therefore if a certain gap is identified, other gaps may be expected; ii) certain gaps may reveal latent gaps; and iii) intermediaries may be key to addressing inter-institutional gaps. In many cases, sustainable natural resource management and regulation cannot be achieved without directly addressing the inter-institutional gaps that exist between formal and informal institutions operating in the same resource system. The Framework facilitates analysis and understanding of multi-level governance structures in pursuit of addressing complex natural resource management issues

Assessing dysphagia via telerehabilitation: patient perceptions and satisfaction

To gain insight into factors which may infl uence future acceptance of dysphagia management via telerehabilitation, patients’ perceptions were examined before and after a telerehabilitation assessment session. Forty adult patients with dysphagia(M = 66 years, SD = 16.25) completed pre- and post-session questionnaires which consisted of 14 matched questions worded to suit pre- and post-conditions. Questions explored comfort with the use of telerehabilitation, satisfaction with audio and video quality, benefi ts of telerehabilitation assessments and patients’ preferred assessment modality. Questions were rated on a 5-point scale (1 = strongly disagree, 3 = unsure, 5 = strongly agree). Patients’ comfort with assessment via telerehabilitation was high in over 80% of the group both pre- and post-assessment. Pre-assessment, patients were unsure what to expect with the auditory and visual aspects of the videoconference, however there were signifi cant positive changes reported post-experience. In relation to perceived benefits of telerehabilitation services in general, most patients believed in the value of telerehabilitation and post-assessment this increased to 90 – 100% agreement. Although 92% felt they would be comfortable receiving services via telerehabilitation, 45% of patients indicated ultimate preference for a traditional faceto-face assessment. The data highlight that patients are interested in and willing to receive services via telerehabilitation; however, any concerns should be addressed pre-assessment

Overview of the economy and economic policy

This chapter provides a high-level review of the economy's performance and key policy development for the period 2001-2003. The focus is on economic performance and policy in relation to the demand for labour, and hence as they pertain to human resource development. From a performance perspective the chapter shows that economic growth was resilient despite a global slow-down and dramatic exchange rate fluctuations. From a policy perspective the chapter shows that, despite policy deepening and some expansion of direct government policies, the growth model adopted in 1994 remains fundamentally unchanged. The overall conclusion of the chapter is that the high-skills, technology-intensive growth path supported by the government will fail to relieve unemployment in a meaningful way unless human resource development initiatives are able to bridge the skills gap between the skills profile of the unemployed and the skills demanded by this economic growth path.