Mirror, mirror on the wall, wish that I could rent it all

Although raised awareness of how excess consumption of fashion causes great environmental concern in society, changes in consumption patterns have been modest. It is therefore questionable whether reduced consumption is likely to happen, it might be better to envision equally compelling ways to address consumers’ desire for fashion. The phenomenon of fashion-rental services seems promising to encourage resource efficiency in production and consumption of fashion. However, it necessitates changes in consumption practices. Previous research lacks deeper insights about consumers’ participation and engagement in offerings that build on access to products in the context of fashion. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate and critically reflect on conditions that influence consumer adoption to fashion-rental services on the Swedish market. New approaches to the topic of consumer adoption to fashion-rental services have been taken, such as following a case study research strategy, where semi-structured interviews have been conducted with market experts within the area of fashion. Moreover, using the Consumer Culture Theory as the analytical perspective. This study shows that the conditions of experiment with style, identity and belonging, trend of services as well as changes in daily life and environmental values are perceived as drivers for consumer adoption to fashion-rental services on the Swedish market. It further shows that the conditions of emotional attachment, the “kick” of material things, ease of use, ownership, consumer mindset, and supply on the market are perceived to hinder consumer adoption to fashion-rental services on the Swedish market. The findings indicate that how fashion consumption is perceived by Swedish consumers determines whether a fashion-rental service is adopted and thereby diffused on the Swedish market. These findings further reflect the challenges of combining fashion consumption and sustainable development

HIV prevention awareness and practices among married couples in Malawi

In this study we explored the level of awareness and practice on HIV prevention among married couples from selected communities in Malawi. Methods We carried out the study from October to December, 2008 in four communities, two each from Chiradzulu and Chikhwawa districts of Malawi. We conducted face-to-face in-depth interviews with 30 couples in each district using a semi-structured interview guide. The interviews lasted approximately 60-90 minutes. The husbands and wives were interviewed separately. The interviews were audio taped using a digital recorder. We wrote field notes during data collection and later reviewed them to provide insights into the data collection process. We computed descriptive statistics from the demographic data using SPSS version 16.0. We analyzed qualitative data using Atlas ti 5.0 computer software. The coded data generated themes and we present the themes in qualitative narration. Results The couples’ ages ranged from 20 to 53 years, the majority (52%) being in the 20-31year age group. Most of the couples (67%) attained only primary school education and 84% had been married only to the current partner. Most couples (83%) depended upon substance farming and 47% had been married for 3 to 9 years. The number of children per couple ranged from 1 to 10, most couples (83%) having between 1 and 5 children. All couples were aware of HIV prevention methods and talked about them in their marriages. Both wives and husbands initiated the discussions. Mutual fidelity and HIV testing were appropriate for couples to follow the HIV prevention methods. For most couples (54) there was mutual trust between husbands and wives, and members of only a few couples (6) doubted their partners’ ability to maintain mutual fidelity. Actual situations of marital infidelity were however detected among 25 couples and often involved the husbands. A few couples (5) had been tested for HIV. All couples did not favor the use of condoms with a marriage partner as an HIV prevention method. Conclusion The level of HIV prevention awareness among couples in Malawi is high and almost universal. However, there is low adoption of the HIV prevention methods among the couples because they are perceived to be couple unfriendly due to their incompatibility with the socio-cultural beliefs of the people. There is a need to target couples as units of intervention in the adoption of HIV prevention methods by rural communities

Economic Impact of Illinois Agricultural Fairs 2014

This report serves as an economic impact study for the 2014 Illinois agricultural fairs. It's purpose is to better understand the economic and social impact of agricultural fairs held in Illinois.Illinois Associate of Agricultural FairsIllinois Department of AgricultureOpe

Yleisen kirjaston ja alakoulun yhteistyö : Kirjasto oppilaan oppimisympäristön laajentajana ja toimijuuden tukijana

Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on kartoittaa millaista yhteistyötä yleisellä kirjastolla ja alakouluilla on tutkimuksen tekohetkellä Turun seudulla. Tutkimuksella pyritään lisäksi selvittämään, mitä ongelmakohtia kirjaston ja koulun yhteistyössä on tällä hetkellä ja miten yhteistyötä voisi kirjaston näkökulmasta edelleen kehittää. Tutkimuksessa selvitetään näiden lisäksi, miten kirjasto toimii oppimisympäristönä, ja miten kirjaston ja koulun yhteistyö tukee oppilaan toimijuutta ja osallisuutta. Tutkimus on laadullinen. Aineistonkeruumenetelmänä käytettiin teemahaastattelua. Haastatteluun osallistui viisi kirjastonhoitajaa, joiden työalueena olivat Turun seudun kirjastot. Haastattelut olivat yksilöhaastatteluja. Tutkimuksen aineisto on kerätty kevään/kesän 2017 aikana. Tässä tutkimuksessa aineiston analyysin filosofisena lähestymistapana on hermeneutiikka, jonka avainkäsitteitä ovat tulkinta ja ymmärtäminen. Aineistoa on pyritty todella ymmärtämään ja tulkitsemaan, kuitenkin ylitulkintaa välttäen. Tuloksissa on tästä syystä esillä runsaasti aineistokatkelmia. Tulokset on jaoteltu oppilaiden oppimisympäristön laajentamiseen, kirjaston tarjoamiin palveluihin ja yhteistyön kehittämisideoihin. Aineistosta nousi lisäksi suureksi yhteistyötä määrittäväksi tekijäksi opettajien osuus. Tärkeimmäksi kirjaston ja alakoulun yhteistyön tehtäväksi nimettiin lukemaan oppimisen ja lukuharrastuksen tukeminen. Suurin ongelmakohta yhteistyössä olivat opettajat, joita ei saatu kirjaston palveluiden pariin

Numerical and real-life assessment of the moisture safety of CLT structure with PIR insulation composite under the Swedish climate

The building industry is a major contributor of CO2 emission. Wood construction is a good option for carbon storage among various construction alternatives. Considering the growing market of multi-story wooden building in Sweden, CLT (cross laminated timber) structure with an alternative insulation composite with PIR insulation and MgO board was proposed. In order to prove the applicability of this construction for moisture safety, the hygrothermal performance of the wall was measured in real life at HSB Living Lab (Gothenburg, Sweden) throughout 2019. Furthermore, a numerical model to analyse its performance by transient heat and moisture transfer analysis was created to predict the performance of the wall system. After the successful validation of the numerical model, a parameter study was carried out to investigate the moisture risk of the wall system in the case of extensive wetting of the CLT panel and in various areas in Sweden (Gothenburg, Stockholm, Lund, Karlstad and Lule). The study showed a low mould growth risk either in the test at the living lab or in the feasibility study. The development of the technology should further focus on the cost-effectiveness and design of all the construction details for the future market application

The food strategy of Ydre : a democratic experiment for the municipality and the citizens

De senaste decennierna har frågan om demokrati och medborgarinflytande på den kommunala nivån lyfts allt oftare inom den offentliga debatten. Staten menar att demokratin ska uppstå inte bara genom politiska val, utan även i samtalen mellan kommun och medborgare i mellanvalsperioderna. Under år 2018 pågick en process att ta fram en handlingsplan för en kommunal livsmedelsstrategi i Ydre kommun. Under året involverades medborgare genom samtal, kvalitativa intervjuer och öppna samtalsträffar där de kunde berätta vad de ansåg var viktigt i kommunens framtida livsmedelsframställning. I uppsatsen undersöks processen och hur medborgare har uppfattat denna genom kvalitativa intervjuer. Uppsatsen undersöker också hur kommunen ser på det fort-satta arbetet för att implementera de tankar och idéer som kommit fram utifrån processen. Uppsatsen visar att kommunen har en ambition att dialogen mellan kommunen och medborgare ska fortsätta. Uppsatsen visar också att kommunen i livsmedelsfrågan har ett näringslivsfokus och gärna ser att medborgarnas idéer infogas i de befintliga näringslivsverksamheterna. Detta kan tolkas som ett uttryck för kommunens för-ändrade roll resulterat av den nyliberalisering som pågår i samhället. I uppsatsen kommer även medborgarnas syn på livsmedelsproduktionen fram där man menar på att Ydrebygden är gynnad, då man av olika skäl inte rationaliserat jordbruket i lika hög grad som på andra platser. Detta har gjort att jordbruket lyckats behålla höga natur– och kulturvärden, vilket medborgarna tänker kan bidra till både naturturism och högre kvalitet på råvaror. Kommunen ser sin roll som att vara en brygga mellan medborgare och regionen och utrycker det svåra i att öka produktion men samtidigt behålla höga natur- och kulturvärden i landskapet. Sammantaget har både kommunen och medborgare ett ömsesidigt intresse av att hitta en samverkan men det råder en osäkerhet kring under vilka former det ska ske.Over the past decades, the issue of democracy and civic influence at the municipal level has been increasingly raised in public debate. The state believes that democracy should arise not only through political elec-tions but also in the conversations between the municipality and citizens in the inter-election periods. During 2018, a process was under way to develop an action plan for a food strategy in the municipality of Ydre. During the year, citizens were involved through conversations, interviews and open conversation meetings where they could tell what they considered important in the municipality's future food production. The essay examines the process and how citizens have perceived this through qualitative interviews. The essay also examines how the mu-nicipality looks at the continued work to implement the thoughts and ideas that have emerged from the process. The paper shows that the municipality has an ambition that the dialogue between the municipal-ity and citizens should continue, but that the municipality has a business focus and would like to include the citizens' ideas in the existing business activities. This can be interpreted as an expression of the munici-pality's changed role resulting from the neo-liberalization that is taking place in society. In the essay, the citizens' view of food production will also emerge, where it is said that the rural area is favored, because for various reasons agriculture is not rationalized as much as in other places. This has meant that agriculture has managed to maintain high natural and cultural values, which the citizens intend contributes to both nature tourism and raising higher quality of food. The municipality sees its role as being a bridge between citizens and the region and expresses the difficulty in increasing production but at the same time retaining high natural and cultural values in the landscape. All in all, both the municipality and the citizens have a mutual interest in finding a collab-oration, but there is uncertainty about what forms it should take

Pendugaan Beberapa Bentuk Persilangan antara Itik Alabio dengan Itik Cihateup melalui Aplikasi Program Gen Up

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menduga beberapa bentuk persilangan antara itik Alabio dan Cihateup sebagai itik potong. Persilangan kedua jenis itik ini dilakukan untuk memperbaiki kelemahan-kelemahan yang ditemui pada tetua murni, sehingga mendapatkan kelompok itik yang produktif di masa depan dan diharapkan dapat menjadi sumber informasi dalam program pemuliaan. Penelitian ini menggunakan itik jantan masing-masing jenis 30 ekor yakni itik AA (Alabio >< Alabio). Pemanfaatan heterosis dalam program persilangan antara kelompok-kelompok itik lokal dapat memberikan alternatif jangka pendek dalam meningkatkan produktivitas itik. Program persilangan dilakukan untuk memperbaiki sifat-sifat kuantitatif dan kualitatif ternak yang bersifat ekonomis. Prediksi pendugaan dari setiap persilangan dapat dilakukan dengan mengetahui parameter-parameter seperti direct additive effect, maternal additive effect, direct dominance effect dan maternal dominance effect melalui program Gen Up. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa itik persilangan CA unggul untuk sifat-sifat performans antara lain bobot hidup akhir memiliki tingkat heterosis 7,06%; pertambahan bobot hidup (PBH) sebesar 7,32%; bobot karkas tingkat heterosis 9,24%, dibandingkan dengan itik persilangan AC. Pada prediksi beberapa bentuk persilangan menunjukkan bahwa persilangan backcross antara itik betina CA dengan jantan Cihateup lebih baik. Apabila persilangan untuk tujuan membentuk kelompok itik sintetik, maka persilangan yang baik adalah dengan melakukan persilangan sintetik seimbang