Accredited qualifications for capacity development in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation

Increasingly practitioners and policy makers working across the globe are recognising the importance of bringing together disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. From studies across 15 Pacific island nations, a key barrier to improving national resilience to disaster risks and climate change impacts has been identified as a lack of capacity and expertise resulting from the absence of sustainable accredited and quality assured formal training programmes in the disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation sectors. In the 2016 UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, it was raised that most of the training material available are not reviewed either through a peer-to-peer mechanism or by the scientific community and are, thus, not following quality assurance standards. In response to these identified barriers, this paper focuses on a call for accredited formal qualifications for capacity development identified in the 2015 United Nations landmark agreements in DRR and CCA and uses the Pacific Islands Region of where this is now being implemented with the launch of the Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals, for DRR and CCA. A key issue is providing an accreditation and quality assurance mechanism that is shared across boundaries. This paper argues that by using the United Nations landmark agreements of 2015, support for a regionally accredited capacity development that ensures all countries can produce, access and effectively use scientific information for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The newly launched Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals who work in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation may offer a model that can be used more widely

Imaging air volume fraction in sea ice using non-destructive X-ray tomography

Although the presence of a gas phase in sea ice creates the potential for gas exchange with the atmosphere, the distribution of gas bubbles and transport of gases within the sea ice are still poorly understood. Currently no straightforward technique exists to measure the vertical distribution of air volume fraction in sea ice. Here, we present a new fast and non-destructive X-ray computed tomography technique to quantify the air volume fraction and produce separate images of air volume inclusions in sea ice. The technique was performed on relatively thin (4–22cm) sea ice collected from an experimental ice tank. While most of the internal layers showed air volume fractions 5 mm). While micro bubbles were the most abundant type of gas bubbles, most of the air porosity observed resulted from the presence of large and macro bubbles. The ice texture (granular and columnar) as well as the permeability state of ice are important factors controlling the air volume fraction. The technique developed is suited for studies related to gas transport and bubble migration

Biological maturation, relative age and self-regulation in male professional academy soccer players: A test of the underdog hypothesis

ObjectivesThe main and interactive effects of biological maturity status and relative age upon self-regulation in male academy soccer players are considered. Consistent with the ‘underdog’ hypothesis, whereby relatively younger players may benefit from competitive play with older peers, it was predicted later maturing and/or relatively younger players would report more adaptive self-regulation.DesignCross-sectional study.MethodPlayers (n = 171, aged 11–16 years) from four English professional soccer academies completed the modified Soccer Self-Regulation Scale. Date of birth, height, weight and parental height were obtained. Relative age was based on birth quarter for the selection year. Maturity status was based upon percentage of predicted adult height attained.ResultsLinear regression models showed later maturation was inversely associated with adaptive self-regulation, while relative age was unrelated to self-regulation.ConclusionsIn partial support of the underdog hypothesis, later maturing players appear to possess a psychological advantage

Patterns of HIV prevalence among injecting drug users in the cross-border area of Lang Son Province, Vietnam, and Ning Ming County, Guangxi Province, China

BACKGROUND: To assess patterns of injecting drug use and HIV prevalence among injecting drug users (IDUs) in an international border area along a major heroin trans-shipment route. METHODS: Cross-sectional surveys of IDUs in 5 sites in Lang Son Province, Vietnam (n = 348) and 3 sites in Ning Ming County, Guangxi Province, China (n = 308). Respondents were recruited through peer referral ("snowball") methods in both countries, and also from officially recorded lists of IDUs in Vietnam. A risk behavior questionnaire was administered and HIV counseling and testing conducted. RESULTS: Participants in both countries were largely male, in their 20s, and unmarried. A majority of subjects in both countries were members of ethnic minority groups. There were strong geographic gradients for length of drug injecting and for HIV seroprevalence. Both mean years injecting and HIV seroprevalence declined from the Vietnamese site farthest from the border to the Chinese site farthest from the border. 10.6% of participants in China and 24.5% of participants in Vietnam reported crossing the international border in the 6 months prior to interview. Crossing the border by IDUs was associated with (1) distance from the border, (2) being a member of an ethnic minority group, and (3) being HIV seropositive among Chinese participants. CONCLUSION: Reducing the international spread of HIV among IDUs will require programs at the global, regional, national, and "local cross border" levels. At the local cross border level, the programs should be coordinated on both sides of the border and on a sufficient scale that IDUs will be able to readily obtain clean injection equipment on the other side of the border as well as in their country of residence

Accredited qualifications for capacity development in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation

Increasingly practitioners and policy makers working across the globe are recognising the importance of bringing together disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. From studies across 15 Pacific island nations, a key barrier to improving national resilience to disaster risks and climate change impacts has been identified as a lack of capacity and expertise resulting from the absence of sustainable accredited and quality assured formal training programmes in the disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation sectors. In the 2016 UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, it was raised that most of the training material available are not reviewed either through a peer-to-peer mechanism or by the scientific community and are, thus, not following quality assurance standards. In response to these identified barriers, this paper focuses on a call for accredited formal qualifications for capacity development identified in the 2015 United Nations landmark agreements in DRR and CCA and uses the Pacific Islands Region of where this is now being implemented with the launch of the Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals, for DRR and CCA. A key issue is providing an accreditation and quality assurance mechanism that is shared across boundaries. This paper argues that by using the United Nations landmark agreements of 2015, support for a regionally accredited capacity development that ensures all countries can produce, access and effectively use scientific information for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The newly launched Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals who work in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation may offer a model that can be used more widely

Accredited qualifications for capacity development in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation

Increasingly practitioners and policy makers working across the globe are recognising the importance of bringing together disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. From studies across 15 Pacific island nations, a key barrier to improving national resilience to disaster risks and climate change impacts has been identified as a lack of capacity and expertise resulting from the absence of sustainable accredited and quality assured formal training programmes in the disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation sectors. In the 2016 UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, it was raised that most of the training material available are not reviewed either through a peer-to-peer mechanism or by the scientific community and are, thus, not following quality assurance standards. In response to these identified barriers, this paper focuses on a call for accredited formal qualifications for capacity development identified in the 2015 United Nations landmark agreements in DRR and CCA and uses the Pacific Islands Region of where this is now being implemented with the launch of the Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals, for DRR and CCA. A key issue is providing an accreditation and quality assurance mechanism that is shared across boundaries. This paper argues that by using the United Nations landmark agreements of 2015, support for a regionally accredited capacity development that ensures all countries can produce, access and effectively use scientific information for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The newly launched Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals who work in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation may offer a model that can be used more widely

Use of contingency management incentives to improve completion of hepatitis B vaccination in people undergoing treatment for heroin dependence: a cluster randomised trial

Background: Poor adherence to treatment diminishes its individual and public health benefit. Financial incentives, provided on the condition of treatment attendance, could address this problem. Injecting drug users are a high-risk group for hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and transmission, but adherence to vaccination programmes is poor. We aimed to assess whether contingency management delivered in routine clinical practice increased the completion of HBV vaccination in individuals receiving opioid substitution therapy. Methods: In our cluster randomised controlled trial, we enrolled participants at 12 National Health Service drug treatment services in the UK that provided opioid substitution therapy and nurse-led HBV vaccination with a super-accelerated schedule (vaccination days 0, 7, and 21). Clusters were randomly allocated 1:1:1 to provide vaccination without incentive (treatment as usual), with fixed value contingency management (three £10 vouchers), or escalating value contingency management (£5, £10, and £15 vouchers). Both contingency management schedules rewarded on-time attendance at appointments. The primary outcome was completion of clinically appropriate HBV vaccination within 28 days. We also did sensitivity analyses that examined vaccination completion with full adherence to appointment times and within a 3 month window. The trial is registered with Current Controlled Trials, number ISRCTN72794493. Findings: Between March 16, 2011, and April 26, 2012, we enrolled 210 eligible participants. Compared with six (9%) of 67 participants treated as usual, 35 (45%) of 78 participants in the fixed value contingency management group met the primary outcome measure (odds ratio 12·1, 95% CI 3·7–39·9; p<0·0001), as did 32 (49%) of 65 participants in the escalating value contingency management group (14·0, 4·2–46·2; p<0·0001). These differences remained significant with sensitivity analyses. Interpretation: Modest financial incentives delivered in routine clinical practice significantly improve adherence to, and completion of, HBV vaccination programmes in patients receiving opioid substitution therapy. Achievement of this improvement in routine clinical practice should now prompt actual implementation. Drug treatment providers should employ contingency management to promote adherence to vaccination programmes. The effectiveness of routine use of contingency management to achieve long-term behaviour change remains unknown

Durable infrared optical coatings based on pulsed DC-sputtering of hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H)

Optical properties of low-temperature pulsed DC-sputter deposited (≤70°C) hydrogenated carbon are presented. Increasing hydrogen incorporation into the sputter deposited carbon significantly decreases infrared optical absorption due to a decrease in deep absorptive states associated with dangling bonds. Hydrogen flow is optimized (hydrogen flow 3 sccm), achieving the best compromise between increased infrared transmittance and hardness for durable coating performance. Optical, environmental, and durability performance of pulsed DC-sputtered carbon incorporated in multilayer (a-C:H/Ge) infrared antireflective coatings indicates suitability as a durable infrared optical coating for commonly used infrared substrates, including temperature sensitive chalcogenide glass

Viral Entry Properties Required for Fitness in Humans Are Lost through Rapid Genomic Change during Viral Isolation

Human parainfluenza viruses cause a large burden of human respiratory illness. While much research relies upon viruses grown in cultured immortalized cells, human parainfluenza virus 3 (HPIV-3) evolves in culture. Cultured viruses differ in their properties compared to clinical strains. We present a genome-wide survey of HPIV-3 adaptations to culture using metagenomic next-generation sequencing of matched pairs of clinical samples and primary culture isolates (zero passage virus). Nonsynonymous changes arose during primary viral isolation, almost entirely in the genes encoding the two surface glycoproteins—the receptor binding protein hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) or the fusion protein (F). We recovered genomes from 95 HPIV-3 primary culture isolates and 23 HPIV-3 strains directly from clinical samples. HN mutations arising during primary viral isolation resulted in substitutions at HN’s dimerization/F-interaction site, a site critical for activation of viral fusion. Alterations in HN dimer interface residues known to favor infection in culture occurred within 4 days (H552 and N556). A novel cluster of residues at a different face of the HN dimer interface emerged (P241 and R242) and imply a role in HPIV-3-mediated fusion. Functional characterization of these culture-associated HN mutations in a clinical isolate background revealed acquisition of the fusogenic phenotype associated with cultured HPIV-3; the HN-F complex showed enhanced fusion and decreased receptor-cleaving activity. These results utilize a method for identifying genome-wide changes associated with brief adaptation to culture to highlight the notion that even brief exposure to immortalized cells may affect key viral properties and underscore the balance of features of the HN-F complex required for fitness by circulating viruses. IMPORTANCE Human parainfluenza virus 3 is an important cause of morbidity and mortality among infants, the immunocompromised, and the elderly. Using deep genomic sequencing of HPIV-3-positive clinical material and its subsequent viral isolate, we discover a number of known and novel coding mutations in the main HPIV-3 attachment protein HN during brief exposure to immortalized cells. These mutations significantly alter function of the fusion complex, increasing fusion promotion by HN as well as generally decreasing neuraminidase activity and increasing HN-receptor engagement. These results show that viruses may evolve rapidly in culture even during primary isolation of the virus and before the first passage and reveal features of fitness for humans that are obscured by rapid adaptation to laboratory conditions