A sustainable fashion company\u27s transition from home to mass production: An exploratory study

The purpose of this study is to document the transition of a small fashion company from home to mass-produced sustainable apparel. The case company is a two-person apparel company whose mission is to create sustainable, natural goddess wear. In 2017, with increasing orders, Unalome\u27s proprietors decided to cease home sewing and contract for mass. To delve deeply into this topic and to incorporate multiple sources of data (e.g., interviews, company website, social media, and internal documents), the case study research approach was chosen. Several themes emerged from data analysis, the most prominent being the company\u27s strong and clear mission that sustainability is a necessity for both people and planet. However, the more specific vision for the company was driven entirely by the designer/founder and was not easily communicated, which caused confusion. These results will provide a lens through which to view the company\u27s successes and challenges as it moves forward

Kinetics of Surfactant Adsorption at Fluid-Fluid Interfaces: Surfactant Mixtures

The adsorption at the interface between an aqueous solution of several surface-active agents and another fluid (air or oil) phase is addressed theoretically. We derive the kinetic equations from a variation of the interfacial free energy, solve them numerically and provide an analytic solution for the simple case of a linear adsorption isotherm. Calculating asymptotic solutions analytically, we find the characteristic time scales of the adsorption process and observe the behavior of the system at various temporal stages. In particular, we relate the kinetic behavior of the mixture to the properties of its individual constituents and find good agreement with experiments. In the case of kinetically limited adsorption, the mixture kinetics is found to be considerably different from that of the single-surfactant solutions because of strong coupling between the species.Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures, to be published in Langmui

Implanting sustainability in business strategies : CSR, ethics or the law

This paper elucidates the conundrum faced by Australian businesses in developing &lsquo;sustainable&rsquo; business strategies that are acceptable to a multiplicity of stakeholders. A content analysis of the web pages for leading Australian companies indicates that there is little tangible evidence that sustainable business practices are being implemented. The authors propose several directions for research into substantive issues between ethical behaviour, corporate social responsibility and environmentally sustainable behaviour for businesses. Each of these areas is developing research in relative isolation. However, we argue that this paradigmatic divide is limiting the opportunities for research to provide real insight into seemingly intractable problems.<br /

Assessment of peer presentations as an instructional tool in an introductory fashion course

The purpose of this study is to determine if student knowledge of influential fashion designers increased in response to peer presentations and if students valued this method of learning. In an introductory fashion course, pairs of students developed and delivered a short oral and visual presentation about an assigned designer. Pre- and posttests asked about familiarity with these designers. Through paired sample t-test, there is strong evidence (t = 15.04, p = .000) that peer presentations improved student recognition of designers and their contributions. These results were supported by the qualitative data. Before presentations, students reported not knowing many of the designers. After presentations, students noted that they could now see the influence of these designers on current trends. Overwhelmingly, students appreciated peer presentations, calling them fun and really interesting. Based on data analysis, peer presentations were thus considered an effective pedagogical technique in teaching fashion-related content

A holistic approach to facility protection from adventitious agents – A case study

The Eli Lilly biologics manufacturing facility in Kinsale, Ireland has been operational since 2010 with a 100% cell culture contamination control success rate. The presentation will review the holistic approach to facility protection from adventitious agents that underpins this success including: The risk assessment approach to points of entry and management via detectability and control measures The approach to personnel training that considers human factors, increased vigilance and event simulations following strategies that are used in chemical synthesis process safety The presentation will then focus on control of adventitious virus. The talk will briefly comment on the early warning measures via use of an in process qPCR assay and then move on to place significant emphasis on the application of High Temperature Short Term (HTST) treatment for culture media. The Proof of Concept studies showing applicability to certain media classes and challenges for others will be discussed and then a case study showing detailed laboratory support studies for a number of products will be presented. Finally the challenges of application to clinical and commercial products will be discussed

Parental wellbeing factors In parents of children with an intellectual and developmental disability: a research portfolio

Aims: Parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities tend to illustrate and report higher levels of stress and lower wellbeing than parents of typically developing children. This thesis aimed to explore the aspects of this relationship between parental wellbeing and raising a child with heterogeneous intellectual and developmental disability. Firstly, the thesis aimed to review the current literature and evidence base for mindfulness-based group and individual interventions and their effect on psychological outcomes for parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Secondly, a research study aimed to explore the role of overall parental locus of control and particular sub-domains of locus of control on parent reported wellbeing. Furthermore, the role of child compliant and social behaviour, child problem behaviour, diagnostic groups, level of functioning, and demographic variables were explored. Method: A systematic review of the literature was conducted to address the first aim of this thesis. Within the research study, a single sample of parents and family carers (n = 114) completed an online anonymous survey consisting of demographic information and three self-report measures; a modified version of the Parental Locus of Control Scale, the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale, and the Nisonger Child Behaviour Rating Form. Results: The systematic review illustrated that mindfulness-based interventions appear to have a significant effect on a number of parent psychological outcomes; such as wellbeing, stress, mental health, compassion, and mindfulness. A further four papers indicated a significant impact on child behavioural outcomes from parental mindfulness interventions. The research study indicated parental locus of control, in particular the two sub-domains of child control, and parent efficacy significantly mediated the relationship between child problem behaviour and parental wellbeing. Conclusions: There is a need to further explore the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions on parental distress and child behaviour, in particular in comparison to well-established interventions and groups. The research study results highlight the importance of parental attributions in influencing the wellbeing of parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. However, it is clear from these findings that there is a complex relationship between parent cognitive attributions and broader social and societal factors. These findings may inform future practice with these families, although further research to explore these complex relationships is required

Implementation of environmental sustainability in business: suggestions for improvement

Abstract This paper discusses the options for implementing &apos;sustainable&apos; environmental business strategies that are acceptable to a multiplicity of stakeholders. To evaluate the current situation in Australia a content analysis of the web pages for leading companies indicates that there is little tangible evidence that sustainable business practices are being implemented. The authors propose several directions for research into substantive issues between ethical behaviour, corporate social responsibility and environmentally sustainable behaviour for business. Each of these areas is developing research in relative isolation. However, we argue that this paradigmatic divide is limiting the opportunities for research to provide real insight into seemingly intractable problems

Distributed network organization underlying feeding behavior in the mollusk Lymnaea

The aim of the work reviewed here is to relate the properties of individual neurons to network organization and behavior using the feeding system of the gastropod mollusk, Lymnaea. Food ingestion in this animal involves sequences of rhythmic biting movements that are initiated by the application of a chemical food stimulus to the lips and esophagus. We investigated how individual neurons contribute to various network functions that are required for the generation of feeding behavior such as rhythm generation, initiation ('decision making'), modulation and hunger and satiety. The data support the view that feeding behavior is generated by a distributed type of network organization with individual neurons often contributing to more than one network function, sharing roles with other neurons. Multitasking in a distributed type of network would be 'economically' sensible in the Lymnaea feeding system where only about 100 neurons are available to carry out a variety of complex tasks performed by millions of neurons in the vertebrate nervous system. Having complementary and potentially alternative mechanisms for network functions would also add robustness to what is a 'noisy' network where variable firing rates and synaptic strengths are commonly encountered in electrophysiological recording experiments