Conclusion : what priorities for the research and development of organic agriculture ?

Le colloque DinABio a permis de faire le point sur les acquis récents de la R&D dans le domaine de l’agriculture biologique. Essayons maintenant d’en tirer les enseignements pour accroître la pertinence l’efficacité et les ambitions des travaux à venir. En nous appuyant sur les points forts des exposés et des débats de ce colloque, nous tentons dans le texte qui suit de dégager quelques priorités d’action pour les organismes de R&D dans le domaine de l’agriculture biologique

Analysis of transition forms towards more ecologically-oriented farming: the case of organic farming and integrated crop protection

Interdisciplinary approaches developed concerning the conversion to organic farming show that the types of conversion trajectories can be differentiated on the basis of the progression of crop protection changes within a larger framework where relationships to other “objects” are transformed – the soil, products, rotations, work organisation, marketing, social networks and knowledge acquisition. In the case of integrated plant production, the extent of changes depends on the degree of recomposition of agronomic practices. This transition implies major knowledge acquisition that relies on the support and contribution of advisors and on the group dynamics that develop within a group of farmers. Transitions towards integrated crop protection are, by their nature, more reversible and therefore more fragile than the conversion to organic farming. This is due to the fact that they are not stabilised by a certification or by the market, and analysis shows that their sustainability is linked in part to their integration within a group dynamics

Produzir de outro modo

Research on farming systems enables the the integrated understanding of economic and agronomic reasons that lead farmers to intensify their productive methods with damaging consequences to the environment. This is the methodological background for the elaboration of proposals that seek to harmonize specialized com crop production with the reduction of inputs without discouraging farmers by poorer economic results.As pesquisas em sistemas de produção contribuem para a compreensão integrada das razões econômicas e agronômicas que levam os agricultores a intensificar seus métodos produtivos com consequências nefastas para o meio ambiente. Esta é a base metodológica para a elaboração de propostas que procurem compatibilizar a produgção especializada de grãos com a redução no uso de insumos, sem que os resultados econõmicos para o agricultor sejam desestimulantes

Undocumented Migrants in Switzerland: Geographical Origin Versus Legal Status as Risk Factor for Tuberculosis

Undocumented migrants, meaning migrants without a legal residency permit, come to Geneva from countries with high tuberculosis (TB) incidence. We estimate here whether being undocumented is a determinant of TB, independently of origin. Cross-sectional study including undocumented migrants in a TB screening program in 2002; results were compared to 12,904 age and frequency matched participants in a general TB screening program conducted at various workplaces in Geneva, Switzerland from 1992 to 2002. A total of 206 undocumented migrants (36% male, 64% female, mean age 37.8 years (SD 11.8), 82.5% from Latin America) participated in the TB screening program. Compared to legal residents, undocumented migrants had an adjusted OR for TB-related fibrotic signs of 1.7 (95% CI 0.8;3.7). The OR of TB-related fibrotic signs for Latin American (vs. other) origin was 2.7 (95% CI 1.6;4.7) among legal residents and 5.5 (95% CI 2.8;10.8) among undocumented migrants. Chest X-ray screening identified a higher proportion of TB-related fibrotic signs among Latin Americans, independently of their residency statu

Surveillance strategies for Classical Swine Fever in wild boar – a comprehensive evaluation study to ensure powerful surveillance

Surveillance of Classical Swine Fever (CSF) should not only focus on livestock, but must also include wild boar. To prevent disease transmission into commercial pig herds, it is therefore vital to have knowledge about the disease status in wild boar. In the present study, we performed a comprehensive evaluation of alternative surveillance strategies for Classical Swine Fever (CSF) in wild boar and compared them with the currently implemented conventional approach. The evaluation protocol was designed using the EVA tool, a decision support tool to help in the development of an economic and epidemiological evaluation protocol for surveillance. To evaluate the effectiveness of the surveillance strategies, we investigated their sensitivity and timeliness. Acceptability was analysed and finally, the cost-effectiveness of the surveillance strategies was determined. We developed 69 surveillance strategies for comparative evaluation between the existing approach and the novel proposed strategies. Sampling only within sub-adults resulted in a better acceptability and timeliness than the currently implemented strategy. Strategies that were completely based on passive surveillance performance did not achieve the desired detection probability of 95%. In conclusion, the results of the study suggest that risk-based approaches can be an option to design more effective CSF surveillance strategies in wild boar

Spatio-temporal variation in the composition of the macroalgae assemblage of the intertidal rocky zone from maitencillo, valparaíso, central coast of Chile

Indexación: Scopus.Records on the diversity of algae serve as a foundation for establishing management and environmental protection programs, as well as for determining new commercial uses of algae. With this context in mind, the goal of the present study was to determine the richness, coverage, and composition of the macroalgae assemblage in the intertidal zone of Maitencillo, Valparaíso, Chile over the course of 3 years (2013-2015). A total of 29 species were recorded from 3 phyla - 23 Rhodophyta; 3 Ochrophyta, of the Phaeophyceae class; and 3 Chlorophyta. Species richness presented high spatial and temporal variations, with these variations most significantly explained by intertidal zone (61%) and the seasons (31%). The highest levels of specific richness were recorded in the mid and lower intertidal zones (14 species) in spring, as well as in the lower intertidal zone (14 species) during summer. The lowest values of specific richness were recorded for the mid intertidal zone (2 species) during fall. The distinct levels of the intertidal zone also notably impacted algae assemblage, explaining 53% of variation while the seasons explained 18% of variation. The greatest coverage was recorded in the mid intertidal zone during spring, with a predominance of Mazzaella laminarioides and Ulva spp. complex. In turn, the lowest coverage was found in fall, linked with processes of sand accretion. In rocky walls, the Pyropia complex dominated. Results indicate a marked pattern of vertical and seasonal distribution in the macroalgae assemblage, as well as notably high presence of Rhodophyta species. This benthic flora description serves to update information on the diversity of representative algal species from Valparaíso Region of Chile. © 2018, Universidad de Valparaiso. All rights reserved

Diversity of experimentation by farmers engaged in agroecology

International audienceAbstractAgroecology questions the production of generic knowledge. Rather than searching for the best practices for large-scale transfer, it would be more efficient to help farmers find their own solutions. A promising activity for farmers is experimentation because it answers their needs and helps them learn. However, how agroecological practices are tested by farmers in their own experiments is still poorly known. In this study, we examined the short-term experimental activity, i.e., experiments carried out at a yearly scale in pre-defined fields. Seventeen farmers in south eastern France were surveyed. The farmers practiced conventional or organic farming and cultivated either arable or market garden crops. Experiments on agroecological practices were characterized, located along a timeline, and discussed with them. To conduct the interviews with the farmers, each experiment was described in three stages: (1) designing the experiment, (2) managing it in real time, and (3) evaluating the results of the experiment. The data collected in the interviews were first analyzed to build a descriptive framework of farmers’ experiments, after which hierarchical cluster analysis was used to analyze the diversity of the farmers’ experiments. Here, we propose for the first time a generic framework to describe farmers’ experiments at a short time scale based on the consistency between the Design, Management, and Evaluation stages. We used the framework to characterize the diversity of farmers’ experiments and identified four clusters. The originality of this work is both building a descriptive framework resulting from in-depth analyses of farmers’ discourse and using statistical tools to identify and interpret the groups of experiments. Our results provide a better understanding of farmers’ experiments and suggest tools and methods to help them experiment, a major challenge in the promotion of a large-scale agroecological transition

Computing Components of Everyday Stress Responses: Exploring Conceptual Challenges and New Opportunities

Repeated assessments in everyday life enables collecting ecologically valid data on dynamic, within-persons processes. These methods have widespread utility and application and have been extensively used for the study of stressors and stress responses. Enhanced conceptual sophistication of characterizing intraindividual stress responses in everyday life would help advance the field. This article provides a pragmatic overview of approaches, opportunities, and challenges when intensive ambulatory methods are applied to study everyday stress responses in “real time.” We distinguish between three stress-response components (i.e., reactivity, recovery, and pileup) and focus on several fundamental questions: (a) What is the appropriate stress-free resting state (or “baseline”) for an individual in everyday life? (b) How does one index the magnitude of the initial response to a stressor (reactivity)? (c) Following a stressor, how can recovery be identified (e.g., when the stress response has completed)? and (d) Because stressors may not occur in isolation, how can one capture the temporal clustering of stressors and/or stress responses (pileup)? We also present initial ideas on applying this approach to intervention research. Although we focus on stress responses, these issues may inform many other dynamic intraindividual constructs and behaviors (e.g., physical activity, physiological processes, other subjective states) captured in ambulatory assessment

Beyond traditional surveillance: applying syndromic surveillance to developing settings – opportunities and challenges

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>All countries need effective disease surveillance systems for early detection of outbreaks. The revised International Health Regulations [IHR], which entered into force for all 194 World Health Organization member states in 2007, have expanded traditional infectious disease notification to include surveillance for public health events of potential international importance, even if the causative agent is not yet known. However, there are no clearly established guidelines for how countries should conduct this surveillance, which types of emerging disease syndromes should be reported, nor any means for enforcement.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The commonly established concept of syndromic surveillance in developed regions encompasses the use of pre-diagnostic information in a near real time fashion for further investigation for public health action. Syndromic surveillance is widely used in North America and Europe, and is typically thought of as a highly complex, technology driven automated tool for early detection of outbreaks. Nonetheless, low technology applications of syndromic surveillance are being used worldwide to augment traditional surveillance.</p> <p>Summary</p> <p>In this paper, we review examples of these novel applications in the detection of vector-borne diseases, foodborne illness, and sexually transmitted infections. We hope to demonstrate that syndromic surveillance in its basic version is a feasible and effective tool for surveillance in developing countries and may facilitate compliance with the new IHR guidelines.</p