Environmental and Social Impact of Fashion: Towards an Eco-Friendly, Ethical Fashion

The fashion industry is one of the largest industrial sectors in the world. The fashion supply chain is diverse and complex, spanning four or more tiers, including design, raw material harvesting, spinning, yarn production, dyeing, weaving, cutting, stitching and final garment construction. Fast fashion, which references apparel with short product life cycles, has emerged as a potent competitive force. Fast fashion brands introduce new styles at more frequent intervals, focusing less on durable quality, and more on low costs and up to the minute designs. One consequence of fast fashion has been an explosion in consumption accompanied by increased waste. Fast fashion leaves a pollution footprint, with each step of the clothing life cycle generating potential environmental and occupational hazards. Due to the large quantity of products manufactured, used, and disposed of, the textile and apparel industry has a big environmental impact in every phase of product life cycle. When we talk about environment it comprises of both natural as well as social environment and production process involves exploitation of both natural and social environment. Sustainable or ethical fashion is a response to the environmental and social devastation brought by conventional production techniques. This descriptive diagnostic paper aims to make consumers more aware of the physiological as well as physical needs that fashion fulfils, and to consider the entire life cycle impacts of clothing – from raw material to disposal

Children and young people’s voices

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) recognises children’s right to be heard on matters that affect them. This means that the institutions and organisations whose decisions shape children and young people’s lives should make the effort to consult them and to take their views into account. To respect this right, and to inform our work throughout, the Digital Futures Commission (DFC) will conduct regular consultations with children and young people during its three years. Before undertaking a new consultation, we decided first to listen carefully to the views that children and young people have already expressed in reports recently published by children’s organisations. Hence this report asks: what do children and young people value about the digital world and what changes do they call for

Dinámica estacional de comunidades de peces en una marisma intermareal de Sundarbans indio

In the present study, the seasonal and inter-annual fish assemblage structure of intertidal mudflats of Indian Sundarbans was analysed during tidal cycles. A total of 31 fish species belonging to 22 families and 9 orders were collected during high tide, whereas only 12 were recorded during low tide. Fish assemblage descriptions were based on several community descriptors, namely diversity (H′), species richness (S), species dominance (D), and species evenness (J) and on an ecological guild classification. A canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was performed to evaluate the relationship between estuarine habitat and fish assemblages in the mudflat habitat during inundated and exposed conditions. All the diversity indices showed marked seasonal and inter-annual variations. Temporal variations were also found in fish assemblage structure in both tidal conditions. Estuarine species were the most important ecological guild of the mudflats during both high and low tides. Of all the abiotic variables examined, CCA showed that salinity, pH and nutrients were the most important influencing fish assemblage during high tide. Total dissolved solids, water temperature and salinity were significant during low tide. Considering the importance of mudflats in supporting fish diversity, the present study emphasizes the increased efforts for conservation of this habitat in the Indian Sundarbans.En el presente estudio, la estructura estacional e interanual de comunidades de peces en el intermareal fangoso de Sundarbans se analizó durante ciclos de marea. 31 especies pertenecientes a 22 familias y 9 órdenes fueron recogidas durante la marea alta, mientras que sólo 12 se registraron durante la marea baja. Las comunidades se describieron varios descriptores: diversidad (H′), riqueza de especies (S), dominancia de especies (D) y uniformidad de especies (J) y una clasificación ecológica de comunidad. Se realizó un análisis de correspondencia canónico (CCA) para evaluar la relación entre hábitat estuárico y comunidades de peces durante condiciones inundadas y expuestas. Todos los índices de diversidad mostraron marcadas diferencias estacionales e interanuales. También se encontraron variaciones temporales en la estructura del conjunto de peces en tanto las condiciones de la marea. Especies estuarinas (ES) fue el grupo ecológico más importante de las marismas de Sundarbans tanto durante la marea alta como en la baja

Child rights impact assessment: a tool to realise children’s rights in the digital environment

The Digital Futures Commission is an exciting research collaboration of innovators, policymakers, regulators, academics and civil society. Its aim - to put the needs and rights of children and young people into the minds and work plans of digital innovators, businesses, regulators and governments

Cambios temporales en la diversidad de los cangrejos braquiuros a lo largo de un hábitat heterogéneo del manglar indio de Sundarban

The present study investigates the effect of different habitat attributes on brachyuran crab diversity in two different study sites in the Sundarban mangrove, India. The two sites differ in the level of anthropogenic intrusion and in the age of the mangrove forest. Seasonal changes in the environment and in brachyuran faunal abundance were recorded for three years. Species composition varied between the two habitats irrespective of season. The habitat heterogeneity and the recorded crab community was analysed by several univariate and multivariate statistical techniques. The newly replanted mangrove site showed lesser diversity than the natural one. Ocypodid crabs, mainly Uca rosea, dominated both study sites, whereas Uca triangularis was totally absent from the replanted site. Canonical correspondence analysis showed that the total acidity, total alkalinity, pH content of water, total dissolved solids, inorganic phosphate content of water, soil specific gravity, soil density and the physical constructions of the habitat play a crucial role in moderating the crab community structure. This study reveals that brachyuran crab diversity can be used as a potential indicator of the alterations of mangrove habitats.El presente estudio investiga el efecto de las diferentes características de hábitat sobre la diversidad de los cangrejos braquiuros en dos lugares diferentes del manglar Sundarban, India. Los dos sitios difieren en el nivel de intrusión antropogénica, así como en la edad del bosque de manglar. Se registraron cambios estacionales en el medio y en la abundancia de la fauna de braquiuros durante tres años. A pesar de las diferencias estacionales, la composición de especies difiere en los dos hábitats. Se analizó la heterogeneidad del hábitat y la comunidad de cangrejos mediante técnicas estadísticas univariantes y multivariantes. La zona de manglares replantada recientemente mostró menor diversidad que la zona natural. Los cangrejos ocipódidos, principalmente Uca rosea, dominaron en ambas zonas de estudio, mientras que Uca triangularis estuvo totalmente ausente en la zona replantada. El análisis de Correspondencia Canónica (CCA) mostró que la acidez total, la alcalinidad total, el contenido de pH del agua, los sólidos totales disueltos (TDS), el contenido de fosfato inorgánico del agua, el peso específico del suelo, la densidad del suelo, junto con las construcciones físicas del hábitat desempeñan un papel fundamental en la estructura de la comunidad de cangrejos. Este estudio revela que la diversidad de los cangrejos braquiuros puede ser utilizada como un potencial indicador de las alteraciones de los hábitats de manglares

Illuminating Focus on The Food Preservation with Different Essential Oils and Their Effects: A Review

Essential oils are becoming highly valued these days because of their practicality, therapeutic efficacy, safety, and food preservation qualities, as well as their overall health benefits. The negative consequences of synthetic preservatives in food, cosmetics, and medications are becoming more widely known. Therapeutic plants are abundant sources of essential oils which are secondarymetabolites and volatile in nature. Plant materials such as fruit peels, bark, seeds, flowers, roots, leaves, and wood are used to make essential oils. Some important examples include cinnamon, eucalyptus, thyme, eucalyptus, oregano, clove, basil, lemon, rosemary, and ginger. They have potent antibacterial and foodpreservation properties. They contain several active compounds, including terpenes, terpenoids, carotenoids, and curcumin. Especially in the sanitary, cosmetic, food, pharmaceutical and agricultural industries, essential oils are frequently employed for antiviral, insecticidal, fungicidal, bacterial, antiparasitic, medicinal, or cosmetic uses. Different conventional techniques are employed to extract the oils, including ultrasound- assisted extraction, supercritical fluid extraction, microwave-assisted extraction. Due to their nontoxic properties and numerous health benefits, essential oils as natural preservatives have an advantage over their synthetic counterparts. This reviewfocuses on how essential oils work as food preservatives

Organization and dynamics of N-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)-labeled lipids: a fluorescence approach

Lipids that are labeled with the NBD (7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl) group are widely used as fluorescent analogues of native lipids in biological and model membranes to monitor a variety of processes. NBD-labeled lipids have previously been used to monitor the organization and dynamics of molecular assemblies such as membranes, micelles and reverse micelles utilizing the wavelength-selective fluorescence approach. In this paper, we have characterized the organization and dynamics of various NBD-labeled lipids using red edge excitation shift (REES) and other fluorescence approaches which include analysis of membrane penetration depths of the NBD group using the parallax method. We show here that the environment and location experienced by the NBD group of the NBD-labeled lipids could depend on the ionization state of the lipid. This could have potentially important implications in future studies involving NBD-labeled lipids as tracers in a cellular context

Seasonal dynamics of fish assemblages in an intertidal mudflat of Indian Sundarbans

In the present study, the seasonal and inter-annual fish assemblage structure of intertidal mudflats of Indian Sundarbans was analysed during tidal cycles. A total of 31 fish species belonging to 22 families and 9 orders were collected during high tide, whereas only 12 were recorded during low tide. Fish assemblage descriptions were based on several community descriptors, namely diversity (H′), species richness (S), species dominance (D), and species evenness (J) and on an ecological guild classification. A canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was performed to evaluate the relationship between estuarine habitat and fish assemblages in the mudflat habitat during inundated and exposed conditions. All the diversity indices showed marked seasonal and inter-annual variations. Temporal variations were also found in fish assemblage structure in both tidal conditions. Estuarine species were the most important ecological guild of the mudflats during both high and low tides. Of all the abiotic variables examined, CCA showed that salinity, pH and nutrients were the most important influencing fish assemblage during high tide. Total dissolved solids, water temperature and salinity were significant during low tide. Considering the importance of mudflats in supporting fish diversity, the present study emphasizes the increased efforts for conservation of this habitat in the Indian Sundarbans

Relationship Between Trade, Investment and Environment: A Review of Issues

The inter-linkage between economic openness and environmental repercussions is a widely researched area. The current study contributes in the existing pool of research by conducting a cross-country empirical analysis for the year 2008 by exploring the interrelationship between openness indicators (trade and investment) and environmental performance of a country. For this purpose, the analysis separately considers export orientation, import orientation, FDI inwardness and FDI outwardness of the countries in different variations of the proposed empirical model. The regression results do not provide strong support to the Pollution Haven Hypothesis (PHH). The findings also confirm a relationship between socio-economic and socio-political factors in a country and its environmental performance