The future we want

Purpose – This paper aims to provide a description of the achievements of the United Nations (UN) Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014) with a focus on higher education, and it describes some of the key issues which will guide sustainable development in the coming years. Design/methodology/approach – The paper initially presents an analysis of past developments, complemented by an assessment of the emphasis on sustainable development by the International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. In particular, it makes cross-references to the deliberations held at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 2012, with a special emphasis to the document “The Future we Want”. It concludes by listing a set of suggestions and measures that both industrialised and developing countries may consider to translate the principles of sustainable development into reality. Findings – Sustainable development is and will continue to be a matter of substantial international interest and concern. The developments achieved over the past 20 years have been substantial, but there are still many gaps and need which need to be met, so as to improve its prospects in the next two decades. Originality/value – The paper provides useful insights which allow a better understanding of the role of universities in fostering sustainable development, and some of the key issues need to be considered, so as to allow things to move in the right direction

The politics of international human rights regimes With particular reference to the work of Amnesty International and the International Committee of the Red Cross

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:DX179917 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Addressing Climate Change in the Mediterranean Basin: Some Thoughts for the Future

This short paper provides some perspectives on climate change adaptation in the Mediterranean basin, paving the way for further initiatives

Both early-onset and late-onset ventilator-associated pneumonia are caused mainly by potentially multiresistant bacteria

Objective: To compare the causative pathogens of early-onset and late-onset ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) diagnosed by bronchoalveolar lavage quantitative cultures. Most previous reports have been based on endotracheal aspirate cultures and gave uncertain findings. Design: Prospective evaluation of consecutive patients with clinical suspicion for VAP. Setting: Multidisciplinary intensive care unit of a university hospital. Patients and participants: During a 3-year period 473 patients with clinical suspicion of VAP entered the study. Diagnosis of VAP was confirmed by cultures of bronchoalveolar lavage (>10(4) cfu/ml) specimens in 408 patients. Interventions: Protected bronchoalveolar lavage samples were taken. Initial antibiotic therapy was modified upon bronchoalveolar lavage culture results. Measurements and results: Among 408 patients 191 had early-onset (<7 days mechanical ventilation) and 217 late-onset (>= 7 days) VAP. Potentially multiresistant bacteria, mainly Pseudomonas aeruginosa and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), were the most commonly isolated pathogens in both types of VAP. No difference was noted in the contribution of potentially multiresistant pathogens (79% vs. 85%), P. aeruginosa (42% vs. 47%), or MRSA (33% vs. 30%) between early-onset and late-onset VAP. Initial antibiotic therapy was modified in 58% of early-onset VAP episodes and in 36% of late-onset VAP episodes. No difference in mortality was found between the two types of VAP. Conclusions: Both early-onset and late-onset VAP were mainly caused by potentially multiresistant bacteria, most commonly P. aeruginosa and MRSA. Antimicrobial agents against these pathogens should be prescribed empirically, at least in our institution