Inter-sectoral and multilevel coordination alone do not reduce deforestation and advance environmental justice:Why bold contestation works when collaboration fails

Policy makers, academics, and conservationists often posit that poor coordination between different land use sectors, and between levels of governance, as an underlying challenge for reducing deforestation and forest degradation. This paper analyzes this argument using data from interviews with over 500 respondents from government, nongovernmental organizations, private companies, local and indigenous communities, activists, and individuals involved in 35 diverse land use initiatives in three countries: Peru, Indonesia, and Mexico. We find that while there is strong evidence of widespread coordination failures between sectors and levels, more fundamental political issues preclude effective coordination. We argue that political coalitions act to oppose environmental objectives and to impede their opponents from participating in land use governance. Moreover, we find that where coordination between actors does occur, it does not necessarily produce environmentally sustainable and socially just land use outcomes. Where we do find successful initiatives to reduce deforestation and benefit local people, effective coordination between well-informed actors is often present, but it does not occur spontaneously, and is instead driven by political organizing over time by activists, local people, nongovernmental organizations, and international donors. We suggest that the global environmental community must recognize explicitly these political dimensions of land use governance in order to successfully collaborate with local people to reduce deforestation

Psychometric properties of the Farsi translation of the kiddie schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia-present and lifetime version

BACKGROUND: Semi-structural clinical interviews are very important in the area of mental health research and services. There were no studies of the reliability and validity of the Farsi (Persian) version of Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL) in Iran. This study compares the results of face-to-face, semi-structural interview and clinical interview by a child and adolescent psychiatrist. METHOD: Subjects were 109 children and adolescents recruited to the child and adolescent psychiatry outpatient clinic of Hafez Hospital. Order of interview (in-psychiatrist or the semi-structural interview) was determined using random assignment within a counterbalanced framework. After, translation and back translation of K-SADS-PL, the Farsi version of K-SADS-PL was provided and used in the study. The interviewer was unaware of the child and adolescent psychiatrist diagnosis at the time of making the interview. Consensual validity, test-retest and inter-rater reliability, sensitivity, specifity, positive and negative predictive validity for the disorders were studied. RESULTS: Consensual validity of all of the psychiatric disorders was good to excellent. It was highest for panic disorder, conduct disorder, and simple phobia. Consensual validity of anorexia nervosa was 0.49. There was sufficient validity and test-retest and inter-rater reliability and good to excellent sensitivity and specifity and positive and negative predictive validity for nearly all of the disorders. Test-retest reliabilities of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and tic disorder were 0.81, 0.67, and 0.56; respectively. Inter-rater reliabilities of ADHD, and ODD were 0.69 and 0.69. Tic disorder, post traumatic disorder, panic disorder, and ADHD had the highest positive predictive validities. CONCLUSION: The Farsi version of K-SADS-PL is a valid and reliable interview instrument for use in assessing and diagnosising child and adolescent psychiatric disorders

Reducing the primate pet trade: Actions for primatologists

This commentary emerged from a panel presentation at the International Primatological Society Congress in Nairobi, Kenya, 2018. The goal was to provide regional updates on the status of primate removal from habitat countries, especially for the pet trade, and develop guidelines that could help primatologists address this critical problem. The trade in live primates includes those used as pets, in entertainment, and as subjects of biomedical experimentation, but here we focus on those primates destined for the pet trade. Such transactions are a hugely lucrative business, impacting hundreds of thousands of individuals annually and affecting the survival of wild populations. Being intimately familiar with primate social behavior, life history and biology, primatologists, whether they work with captive or wild primates, are in a unique position to understand the nature of the trade and attempt to counter its effects. In addition to updating the status of the primate pet trade, we provide recommendations that may help primatologists formulate a plan to deal, locally and regionally, with illegal trafficking in live primates. General guidelines include increasing awareness of local customs, policies and laws; developing collaborative research opportunities for local people; engaging in training/informational opportunities; and instructing on how to take action when encountering illegally‐trafficked primates

Impending extinction crisis of the world’s primates: Why primates matter

Non-human primates, our closest biological relatives, play important roles in the livelihoods, cultures and religions of many societies, and offer unique insights into human evolution, biology, behavior and the threat of emerging diseases. They are an essential component of tropical biodiversity, contributing to forest regeneration and ecosystem health. The most recent compilation of primate taxonomy lists 504 species, 197 subspecies and 79 genera distributed in the Neotropics, mainland Africa, Madagascar and Asia. Alarmingly, ~60% of primate species are now threatened with extinction as a result of unsustainable human activities, including illegal hunting and those resulting in extensive land-cover changes: industry driven agricultural production, deforestation, livestock and cattle ranching, oil and gas drilling, mining, dam building, climate change, and poor governance. Although drivers of primate decline vary by region, it is clear that decreasing the per capita demand of industrialized nations, lowering human birth rates and population growth, improving health, reducing poverty and gender biases in education, developing sustainable land-use initiatives, and preserving traditional livelihoods in primate range countries are all part of a comprehensive solution. Despite the existing threats to primate survival, we are adamant that primate conservation is not yet a lost cause. We still have the opportunity to reduce the human impact to primates and their habitats, but that demands raising greater local, regional and global public awareness of the plight of the world’s primates and the costs of their loss to ecosystem health, human culture and ultimately human survival

Detecting suicidality among adolescent outpatients: evaluation of trained clinicians' suicidality assessment against a structured diagnostic assessment made by trained raters

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Accurate assessment of suicidality is of major importance. We aimed to evaluate trained clinicians' ability to assess suicidality against a structured assessment made by trained raters.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>Treating clinicians classified 218 adolescent psychiatric outpatients suffering from a depressive mood disorder into three classes: 1-no suicidal ideation, 2-suicidal ideation, no suicidal acts, 3-suicidal or self-harming acts. This classification was compared with a classification with identical content derived from the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS-PL) made by trained raters. The convergence was assessed by kappa- and weighted kappa tests.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The clinicians' classification to class 1 (no suicidal ideation) was 85%, class 2 (suicidal ideation) 50%, and class 3 (suicidal acts) 10% concurrent with the K-SADS evaluation (γ²= 37.1, df 4, p = 0.000). Weighted kappa for the agreement of the measures was 0.335 (CI = 0.198–0.471, p < 0.0001). The clinicians under-detected suicidal and self-harm acts, but over-detected suicidal ideation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>There was only a modest agreement between the trained clinicians' suicidality evaluation and the K-SADS evaluation, especially concerning suicidal or self-harming acts. We suggest a wider use of structured scales in clinical and research settings to improve reliable detection of adolescents with suicidality.</p

Hidden politics of power and governmentality in transitional justice and peacebuilding:The problem of ‘bringing the local back in’

This paper examines ‘the local’ in peacebuilding by examining how ‘local’ transitional justice projects can become spaces of power inequalities. The paper argues that focusing on how ‘the local’ contests or interacts with ‘the international’ in peacebuilding and post-conflict contexts obscures contestations and power relations amongst different local actors, and how inequalities and power asymmetries can be entrenched and reproduced through internationally funded local projects. The paper argues that externally funded projects aimed at emancipating ‘locals’ entrench inequalities and create local elites that become complicit in governing the conduct and participation of other less empowered ‘locals’. The paper thus proposes that specific local actors—often those in charge of externally funded peacebuilding projects—should also be conceptualised as governing agents: able to discipline and regulate other local actors’ voices and their agency, and thus (re)construct ideas about what ‘the local’ is, or is not

Terrestrial behavior in titi monkeys (Callicebus, Cheracebus, and Plecturocebus) : potential correlates, patterns, and differences between genera

For arboreal primates, ground use may increase dispersal opportunities, tolerance to habitat change, access to ground-based resources, and resilience to human disturbances, and so has conservation implications. We collated published and unpublished data from 86 studies across 65 localities to assess titi monkey (Callicebinae) terrestriality. We examined whether the frequency of terrestrial activity correlated with study duration (a proxy for sampling effort), rainfall level (a proxy for food availability seasonality), and forest height (a proxy for vertical niche dimension). Terrestrial activity was recorded frequently for Callicebus and Plecturocebus spp., but rarely for Cheracebus spp. Terrestrial resting, anti-predator behavior, geophagy, and playing frequencies in Callicebus and Plecturocebus spp., but feeding and moving differed. Callicebus spp. often ate or searched for new leaves terrestrially. Plecturocebus spp. descended primarily to ingest terrestrial invertebrates and soil. Study duration correlated positively and rainfall level negatively with terrestrial activity. Though differences in sampling effort and methods limited comparisons and interpretation, overall, titi monkeys commonly engaged in a variety of terrestrial activities. Terrestrial behavior in Callicebus and Plecturocebus capacities may bolster resistance to habitat fragmentation. However, it is uncertain if the low frequency of terrestriality recorded for Cheracebus spp. is a genus-specific trait associated with a more basal phylogenetic position, or because studies of this genus occurred in pristine habitats. Observations of terrestrial behavior increased with increasing sampling effort and decreasing food availability. Overall, we found a high frequency of terrestrial behavior in titi monkeys, unlike that observed in other pitheciids

Efectos fitotóxicos de Euphorbia dracunculoides, una mala hierba del sistema de cultivo garbanzo-garbanzo de secano

Phytotoxic effect occurs when plants release chemicals that inhibit neighoubouring plants. Phytotoxic effects of aqueous extracts of different parts of Euphorbia dracunculoides L.  (green spurge) at two concentrations, and its infested soil were investigated on germination and seedling growth of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). The fruit extract at 1:20 (w/v) concentration caused maximum reduction (12%) in  germination of chickpea seeds while leaf extract at 1:10 (w/v)concentration resulted in maximum mean germination time value and minimum germination index of chickpea seeds. All the traits of chickpea seedling growth including emergence were adversely affected by the aqueous extracts at bothconcentrations. Further, the inhibition of chickpea seedling growth was more pronounced with 1:10 (w/v) concentrationwhereas the lower concentration (1:20 w/v) showed stimulatory effect on shoot length, seedling vigor index and chlorophyll contents of chickpea seedlings. The leaf extract at 1:10 (w/v) concentration proved most harmful to seedling growth and chlorophyll contents (76% reduction) of chickpea. Soil beneath the E. dracunculoides plants significantly reduced emergence (23%), seedling vigor index (55%) and chlorophyll content (19%) of chickpea but a significant increase in N (6%), P (16%) and K (4%) contents of chickpea seedlings was recorded. Thus it can be concluded that E. dracunculoides contains compounds in its tissues which may cause phytotoxic effects on chickpea under field conditions.Se produce un efecto fitot&oacute;xico cuando las plantas liberan sustancias qu&iacute;micas que producen inhibiciones en las plantaspr&oacute;ximas. Utilizando extractos acuosos a dos diferentes concentraciones de distintas partes de Euphorbia dracunculoides L., as&iacute; como del suelo infestado, se&nbsp; investigaron sus efectos fitot&oacute;xicos sobre la germinaci&oacute;n y crecimiento de pl&aacute;ntulas de garbanzo (Cicer arietinum L.). Extractos del fruto 1:20 (p/v) provocaron la m&aacute;xima reducci&oacute;n (12%) en la germinaci&oacute;n de las semillas de garbanzo, mientras que extractos de hoja 1:10 dieron el m&aacute;ximo valor del tiempo medio de germinaci&oacute;n y el m&iacute;nimo en el &iacute;ndice de germinaci&oacute;n. Todos los caracteres de crecimiento de las pl&aacute;ntulas de garbanzo, incluyendo la emergencia, fueron perjudicados por los extractos acuosos a ambas concentraciones. Adem&aacute;s, la concentraci&oacute;n 1:10 inhibi&oacute; el crecimiento de las pl&aacute;ntulas de garbanzo de forma m&aacute;s pronunciada, mientras que la 1:20 mostr&oacute; un efecto estimulante sobre la longitud de brotes y el &iacute;ndice de vigor y contenido de clorofila de las pl&aacute;ntulas de garbanzo. El&nbsp; extracto de hoja 1:10 result&oacute; m&aacute;s perjudicial para el crecimiento de pl&aacute;ntulas y el contenido de clorofila (76% de reducci&oacute;n). Suelo extra&iacute;do debajo de las plantas de E. dracunculoides redujo significativamente la emergencia&nbsp;(23%), el &iacute;ndice de vigor (55%) y el contenido de clorofila (19%) de las pl&aacute;ntulas, pero en cambio se registr&oacute; un aumento significativo en el contenido en N (6%), P (16%) y K (4%) de las pl&aacute;ntulas. Se concluye que E. dracunculoides contiene compuestos en los tejidos que pueden causar efectos fitot&oacute;xicos en garbanzo en condiciones de campo