Conviviality as a politics of endurance: the refugee emergency and the consolations of artistic intervention

Against the impasse of despair in the public response to the refugee emergency, artistic interventions emerge to offer fleeting significant opportunities for restorative and reparative action. This article takes up conviviality as a conceptual tool to understand artistic interventions to the forced migration and asylum issues that variably aim for healing, empathy, and reflexivity. Drawing on comparative research consisting of interviews of artists in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States and textual analyses of their performances, we discuss specific motivations and diverse representational practices that aim to enact togetherness-in-difference. We discuss the potentials and risks of convivial artistic productions, which we argue produce a politics of endurance that, as Feldman has said, helps “people live better with circumstances they cannot change.

Resolving Functional Resilience of Microbial Communities to Climate-Induced Change in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica

The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica are an abiotically driven ecosystem characterized by having a very simple trophic structure dominated by microbial communities, whose diversity is shaped by extreme abiotic gradients, particularly extreme aridity and oligotrophy. Regional isolation and dispersal limitations have concurrently led to the emergence of heterogeneous microbial communities with highly localized dominant taxa across the region. These taxa were selected based on specialized genetic and physiological adaptations accumulated during long-term isolation, which conferred an advantage to endure the physical and chemical stress. Models predict that over the coming decades, climate change will trigger hydrological changes in the system with potential consequences for its microbial communities and, subsequently, ecosystem-level processes. The capacity of the Antarctic microbiome to absorb change while maintaining its structural and/or functional attributes will determine the extent to which predicted environmental changes will threaten the system's stability. This research starts by developing and validating a space-for-time sampling approach using variations in geochemical factors that follow alterations in water availability as time progresses and to which biological communities respond. This approach was replicated across the six major lakes in the Wright and Taylor valleys, and builds on previous examples of environmental gradients, which used arbitrary distance-based metrics as sampling design, incorporating significant yet uncharacterized in situ geochemical variability. The approach developed here enabled the acquisition of a comprehensive dataset that predicts, with confidence, that future hydrological changes will significantly alter the composition and diversity of microbial communities historically adapted to arid and oligotrophic conditions. The latter will result in significant changes in the metabolic activity of pathways associated with carbon, nitrogen, phosphorous and sulphur cycles, with an increase in functional diversity and activity as the system becomes wetter. This work further provides first time evidence that carbon fixation via atmospheric chemosynthesis is the primary active pathway for carbon acquisition under extreme aridity in polar deserts, being replaced by photosynthetic carbon fixation with prolonged exposure to wetness. To complement predictions made in situ using a space-for-time approach, this research incorporated temporal observations using manipulative experiments, performed in a Polar Desert Environmental Chamber (PDEC), to test the sensitivity and resilience of microbial communities to short-term wetting disturbances. It demonstrated that co-existing microbial taxa respond asynchronously during wetting and drying periods, which indicates dry soil communities comprise co-existing taxa with preferences for different environmental conditions. It also experimentally showed, for the first time, the capacity of microbial communities from this region to recover from short-term wetting events associated with the ability of dry-adapted taxa, mostly affiliated with Actinobacteriota and Acidobacteria phyla, to persist during the wetting period. Through the incorporation of large-scale spatial transects in conjunction with manipulative experiments, this research delivered a fundamental evidence-based anticipation of the compositional and functional aspects that are likely to change in the McMurdo Dry Valleys ecosystem in response to alterations in water dynamics as well as on the microbial attributes that enhance the ecosystem's functional resilience to climate change

Dinâmica das comunidades procariotas estuarinas e o ciclo do azoto

Mestrado em MicrobiologiaEstuaries are highly dynamic aquatic systems, having steep physical and chemical gradients, such as salinity, influencing microbial communities in terms of their abundance and diversity. The analysis of microbial responses and adaptations to those environmental fluctuations became essential to understand the biogeochemical cycles that regulate these ecosystems, which have been undergoing progressive anthropogenic pressures. In this study, we investigated the dynamics of Archaea and Bacteria diversity along the salinity gradient of the Douro River estuary (NW Portugal). Samples were collected at four locations covering the salinity gradient, ranging from 4.9 - 21.7 ppt. The application of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) showed a variation of Bacteria and Archaea diversity along the salinity gradient. The diversity of ammonia oxidizing Archaea (AOA) was also assessed by the analysis of amoA diversity. Simultaneously, were measured net fluxes of inorganic nitrogen (NH4+, NO3-, NO2-) and nitrification rates by using acetylene and 15N isotope analysis. The results showed that although there was an increase in the diversity of AOA with the decrease of salinity, the highest magnitudes of nitrification rates were registered at intermediary saline sites, where there was a higher availability of NH4+. This study revealed important insights on the effect of salinity on estuarine prokaryotic diversity structure as well on the dynamics of key processes of the nitrogen cycle.Estuários são ecossistemas aquáticos altamente dinâmicos, possuindo grandes gradientes físicos e químicos, como é o caso da salinidade, influenciando as comunidades microbianas em termos de diversidade e abundância. A análise das respostas e adaptações destas comunidades às flutuações ambientais torna-se essencial para a compreensão dos ciclos biogeoquímicos que regulam estes ecossistemas, que tem vindo nos últimos anos a sofrer pressões ambientais devido à crescente atividade antropogénica. Neste estudo, investigámos a dinâmica da diversidade de Archaea e Bacteria ao longo de um gradiente de salinidade no estuário do Rio Douro (NW, Portugal). As amostras foram recolhidas em quatro locais cobrindo um gradiente de salinidade que variou entre 4.9 - 21.7 ppt. A aplicação da técnica de electroforese em gel com gradiente desnaturante (DGGE), revelou uma variação na diversidade de Bacteria e Archaea ao longo do gradiente salino. A diversidade das comunidades de Archaea com a capacidade de oxidar a amónia (AOA) foi também avaliada através da análise de diversidade do gene funcional amoA. Paralelamente, foram avaliados os fluxos líquidos dos compostos de azoto inorgânico (NH4+, NO3-, NO2-) bem como as taxas de nitrificação através da utilização do método do acetileno e da análise isotópica de 15N. Os resultados mostraram que apesar de ter ocorrido um aumento da diversidade das AOA com a diminuição da salinidade, as maiores magnitudes das taxas de nitrificação foram registadas nos locais com salinidades intermédias, onde se registou maior disponibilidade de NH4+. Este estudo permitiu-nos obter importantes conhecimentos sobre o efeito da salinidade na estrutura das comunidades procariotas estuarinas bem como na dinâmica de processos chave do ciclo do azoto

Who Are We? Square Politics and the Collective Self-Understanding of the Indignados in Spain and Greece—Reflections and Legacies

As occupations of squares in Spain spread across Europe, the Spanish Indignados gave rise to a transnational movement of ordinary citizens united in their anger against the banks, corruption, the electoral system, the global financial system, and the press. In this article, we reflect upon the legacies of the Spanish and Greek Indignados and show how their collective self-understanding—that is, a sense of a “us”—is formed and articulated very differently in Spain and Greece through square politics. We argue that it is the dramaturgy of political protest that fundamentally constructs and shapes the collective self-understanding of the Indignados in Spain and Greece. We will see that while in Spain there is a clearer sense of a shared political project and a shared identity, in Greece social movement actors were divided by their particular agendas and sectarian identities, which resulted in different articulations of their collective identity

Microwave-Assisted Synthesis of Zn2SnO4 Nanostructures for Photodegradation of Rhodamine B under UV and Sunlight

Funding Information: This work is funded by National Funds through FCT—Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, Reference UIDB/50025/2020-2023. This work also received funding from the European Community’s H2020 program under grant agreement No. 716510 (ERC-2016-StG TREND) and No. 101008701 (EMERGE). Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.The contamination of water resources by pollutants resulting from human activities represents a major concern nowadays. One promising alternative to solve this problem is the photocatalytic process, which has demonstrated very promising and efficient results. Oxide nanostructures are interesting alternatives for these applications since they present wide band gaps and high surface areas. Among the photocatalytic oxide nanostructures, zinc tin oxide (ZTO) presents itself as an eco-friendly alternative since its composition includes abundant and non-toxic zinc and tin, instead of critical elements. Moreover, ZTO nanostructures have a multiplicity of structures and morphologies possible to be obtained through low-cost solution-based syntheses. In this context, the current work presents an optimization of ZTO nanostructures (polyhedrons, nanoplates, and nanoparticles) obtained by microwave irradiation-assisted hydrothermal synthesis, toward photocatalytic applications. The nanostructures’ photocatalytic activity in the degradation of rhodamine B under both ultraviolet (UV) irradiation and natural sunlight was evaluated. Among the various morphologies, ZTO nanoparticles revealed the best performance, with degradation > 90% being achieved in 60 min under UV irradiation and in 90 min under natural sunlight. The eco-friendly production process and the demonstrated ability of these nanostructures to be used in various water decontamination processes reinforces their sustainability and the role they can play in a circular economy.publishersversionpublishe

European 'films of voyage' : nation, boundaries and identity

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Educating for participatory active citizenship: an example from the ecological activist field

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to privacy and ethical concerns [but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request].Based on a short-term ethnography with a grassroots group of young environmental activists in the city of Porto, Portugal, this paper describes and problematizes their use of participatory methodologies to engage individual, community and organizational actors in tackling the problems of global climate change. By initiating what they call a “friendship network” that seeks to achieve democratic and participatory forms of activism, the group brings together both experienced and circumstantial activists (Ollis & Hamel-Green in Aust Adult Learn 55:202–219, 2015) in order to foster plural and situated learning (Lave & Wenger, Situated learning legitimate peripheral participation, 1991). The group does so by promoting the commitment of all actors (including opposite-minded ones) to the co-creation of a 4-day-municipal event on the theme of environmental sustainability. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the strategic mechanism of the group and their actions as a nucleus, we firstly examine some of the groups’ views on civic and political participation (Stack, in Citizenship Studies 16:871–885, 2012) and, secondly, describe and discuss the methodologies they intentionally use to put citizenship-in-action and to foster the activation of ‘standby citizens’ (Amna & Ekman, in Amnå, E., & Ekman, J., Eur Political Sci Rev 6:261–281, 2014). This ethnography enabled us to learn how the group strives to achieve its goals by placing itself in-between the institutional sphere and the public realm: the ethnographer had the opportunity to observe their attempts to, on the one hand, influence decision-making by acquiring a degree of insider status in institutions that legislate and, on the other hand, to engage with large publics, encouraging citizens’ voices and involvement in processes of co-participation focused on promoting ecological consciousness and political change.Open access funding provided by FCT|FCCN (b-on). The authors disclosed receipt of the following fnancial support for the research and/or authorship of this paper: This study was funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), under the grant agreement No PD/BD/114282/2016

Acompanhamento das operações culturais em dois olivais em sebe na região de Elvas

O estágio decorreu na Herdade das Casas Velhas, na freguesia de Vila Fernando, concelho de Elvas. Consistiu no acompanhamento das operações culturais realizadas entre fevereiro e julho de 2023 em duas parcelas de olival em sebe, plantadas em 2020, uma com a variedade ‘Arbequina’ (9,5 ha) e a outra com a variedade ‘Koroneiki’ (6,0 ha). Foram acompanhadas as operações da poda, do controlo da vegetação do solo, da rega, da fertilização e dos tratamentos fitossanitários. Adicionalmente foram feitas observações da fenologia, seguindo a escala BBCH, do período de floração, da qualidade da flor e da taxa de vingamento das inflorescências. A poda teve como objetivo limpar a base da sebe, para facilitar a colheita com máquina automotriz, tendo também sido eliminados ramos que cresciam em direção á entrelinha. As fertilizações e os tratamentos fitossanitários foram feitos num esquema fixo que nos pareceu pouco específico para os olivais da Herdade, após indicação tardia da empresa que presta apoio técnico. A instalação de 2 sondas Wartermark permitiu verificar que, mesmo após duas alterações das dotações da rega, o teor de humidade do solo era inferior ao desejável, situação mais crítica na variedade ‘Koroneiki’ onde um solo mais ligeiro requeria uma gestão da rega diferente. Nas próximas campanhas será requerida mais informação sobre os resultados das análises do solo e foliares para participação conjunta, com a empresa de apoio técnico, nas decisões de fertilização. Os tratamentos fitossanitários também deverão se ajustados à estimativa de risco para este local específico e realizados seguindo os princípios da proteção integrada. Deverão ser instaladas mais sondas nas outras parcelas de olival e a gestão da rega deverá ser consoante as leituras Verificou-se que a variedade ‘Arbequina’ é mais precoce que a ‘Koroneiki’, e, esta variedade também apresenta uma maior percentagem de flores perfeitas e uma maior taxa de vingamento inicial e final.The internship took place at Herdade das Casas Velhas, in the parish of Vila Fernando, in the municipality of Elvas. It consisted of monitoring the cultural operations carried out between February and July 2023 on two plots of hedged olive groves, planted in 2020, one with the 'Arbequina' variety (9.5 ha) and the other with the 'Koroneiki' variety (6.5 ha). 0 ha). The operations of pruning, soil vegetation control, irrigation, fertilization and phytosanitary treatments were monitored. Additionally, observations were made of the phenology, following the BBCH scale, of the flowering period, of the flower quality and of the fruit setting rate. The purpose of pruning was to clean the base of the hedge, to facilitate harvesting with a self-propelled machine, also eliminating branches that grew towards the interlines. Fertilization and phytosanitary treatments were carried out in a fixed scheme that seemed to us not very specific for the Herdade's olive groves, after a late indication from the company that provides technical support. The installation of 2 Wartermark probes made it possible to verify that, even after two changes in the irrigation allocations, the soil moisture content was lower than desirable, a more critical situation in the 'Koroneiki' variety where a different soil required a different irrigation management. In future campaigns, more information will be required on the results of soil and foliar analyses for joint participation, with the technical support company, in fertilization decisions. Phytosanitary treatments should also be adjusted to the risk estimate for this specific location and carried out following the principles of integrated protection. More probes should be installed in the other olive grove plots and irrigation management should depend on the readings It was found that the 'Arbequina' variety is earlier than the 'Koroneiki', that the percentage of perfect flowers is also higher in this variety and which presents higher rate of initial and final setting.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Picturing protest: visuality, visibility and the public sphere (special issue introduction).

Aims and Scope: This special issue is concerned with how and why certain visual images picturing protest events and social movements are rendered visible or invisible in the public sphere. ‘Picturing Protest’ responds to the growing interest in a new protest culture and new ways of ‘doing politics’, ranging from Arab revolts to the Occupy Movement, the Indignados and anti-austerity protests in Europe. Since 2011 these new activisms have gained momentum in media and scholarly debates. Contemporary activisms are seen as powerfully tied in to the possibilities that social media platforms and web 2.0 technologies offer to those involved in practices of dissent in physical squares and streets as much as in virtual environments. Of special interest here is how new forms of political participation and the practice of dissent go in tandem with the widespread use of visual images and internet memes facilitated by technological devices with documentation facilities (e.g., smartphones, tablets) and social network technologies (Bennett and Segerberg 2012). Iconic images like the image of dying Neda, a 26-year-old Iranian woman killed by a sniper bullet during a protest event, go viral in social media platforms and have the power to galvanize the attention of global publics. Hence, this new protest culture demands for a different approach in the study of how protest images are constituted, analysed, interpreted and circulated in both old and new media environments. Taken all together, the different contributions ask how and why activists, photojournalists, citizen journalists and journalists use protest images, ranging from maps, posters, to amateur and professional photographs, to communicate with a range of audiences within and beyond nationally-defined public spheres. The contributors do so by employing theoretical tools and methods that originate from within a variety of disciplines, including media and communication, political science, sociology, semiotics and art history. In pursuing their research, the contributors draw on a variety of political contexts, including Spain, Portugal, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, Greece, Germany, Italy, Austria and the UK. One of the key aims of this special issue is to overcome the overemphasis on the intended symbolic meanings of protest images (Philipps, 2011), by directing the analytical lens to issues of image production and diffusion. It does so to show how certain visual images, and not others, end up circulating in a range of traditional and new media environments