Cooperativismo e inclusão social: o caso dos mercados institucionais no Sul do Brasil

It was in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul that Brazil's first cooperatives emerged. However, it was also in this state that the emergence of business cooperatives, economic organizations that grew during the 1960s and 1980s, thanks to the generous subsidies of the authoritarian state (1964-1985), is witnessing. The economic crisis unleashed during and after the 1980s - the lost decade - shook the foundations of business cooperativism and the principles of this economic and social doctrine. This article focuses on a completely different reality, namely, that of small family farming cooperatives located in the southern tip of Brazil whose emergence is inextricably linked to the implementation of food security policies, especially through institutional purchases led by public entities, example of the School-Restaurant of the Federal University of Pelotas. Such a system proves to be efficient both from the point of view of ensuring that demand is met and of promoting the social inclusion of rural families that are part of the cooperatives' membership. However, this process is interrupted due to the bureaucratic impositions of the federal control bodies, a fact that generates uncertainty and discouragement for the actors involved in this process. Meanwhile, there remains recognition of the virtues of cooperativism as a way to reconcile economic development with social justice and to encourage innovation, learning and convergence around common interests and goals. The aim of the article is to reflect on this experience in the light of concrete reality. This approach was based on a qualitative methodology whose emphasis was in depth interviews with a semi-structured script applied to various social actors, especially leaders and producers who work in cooperatives linked to institutional markets. Keywords: Food security. Family farming. Cooperativism. Institutional Markets.Fue en el interior de Rio Grande do Sul que surgieron las primeras cooperativas de Brasil. Sin embargo, es también en este estado brasileño que se asiste a la emergencia de las cooperativas empresariales, unas estructuras económicas que se agigantaron durante las décadas de 1960 y 1980 a raíz de las generosas subvenciones del Estado autoritario (1964-1985). La crisis económica acaecida durante y después de los años 1980- la llamada década perdida – afectó los fundamentos del cooperativismo empresarial y los pilares elementares de esta doctrina económica y social. El presente artículo aborda una realidad completamente distinta, cual sea, la de pequeñas cooperativas de agricultura familiar ubicadas en el extremo meridional cuya aparición está ligada a la implantación de políticas de seguridad alimentaria, sobre todo a través de las compras institucionales capitaneadas por entes públicos, sobre todo de los comedores de la Universidade Federal de Pelotas. Tal sistema se mostró eficiente tanto del punto de vista de atender la demanda como de promover la inclusión social de las familias que integran el cuadro social de las cooperativas. Sin embargo, tal ciclo se interrumpe a causa de las imposiciones burocráticas de los órganos de control, hecho que causa incertidumbre y desaliento para los actores implicados en este proceso. Todavia, resta la convicción sobre las virtudes del cooperativismo como camino para conciliar desarrollo económico y justicia social, así como para generar innovación, aprendizaje y convergencia en torno a intereses y objetivos comunes. El objetivo del artículo ha sido reflexionar sobre dicha experiencia bajo la perspectiva de la realidad concreta. Tal aproximación se dio a partir de metodología cualitativa, cuya  énfasis recae sobre entrevistas en profundidad y guión semiestructurado aplicadas junto a diversos actores sociales, especialmente junto a dirigentes y productores que actuan en las cooperativas ligadas a los mercados institucionales. Palabras-clave: Seguridad alimentaria. Agricultura familiar. Cooperativismo. Mercados Institucionales.Foi no interior do Rio Grande do Sul que surgiram as primeiras cooperativas do Brasil. Não obstante, é também nesse estado que se assiste à emergência das cooperativas empresariais, organizações econômicas que se agigantaram, durante as décadas de 1960 e 1980, graças aos generosos subsídios do Estado autoritário (1964-1985). A crise econômica desencadeada durante e depois dos anos 1980 – a década perdida – abalou os fundamentos do cooperativismo empresarial e os princípios desta doutrina econômica e social. O presente artigo se debruça sobre uma realidade completamente distinta, qual seja, a de pequenas cooperativas de agricultura familiar situadas no extremo meridional do Brasil cujo surgimento está inextricavelmente ligado à implantação das políticas de segurança alimentar, mormente pelas compras institucionais capitaneadas por entes públicos, a exemplo do Restaurante-Escola da Universidade Federal de Pelotas. Tal sistema se mostra eficiente tanto do ponto de vista de assegurar o atendimento da demanda como no sentido de promover a inclusão social das famílias rurais que integram o quadro social das cooperativas. Todavia, tal processo é interrompido por força das imposições burocráticas dos órgãos federais de controle, fato que gera incertezas e desalento para os atores implicados nesse processo. Entrementes, resta o reconhecimento sobre as virtudes do cooperativismo como caminho para conciliar desenvolvimento econômico com justiça social e de incentivar a inovação, a aprendizagem e a convergência em torno a interesses e objetivos comuns. O objetivo do artigo é fazer uma reflexão sobre essa experiência à luz da realidade concreta. Tal aproximação se deu a partir de metodologia qualitativa cuja ênfase foram entrevistas com roteiro semiestruturado aplicadas junto a diversos atores sociais, especialmente de lideranças e produtores que atuam nas cooperativas ligadas aos mercados institucionais. Palavras-chave: Segurança alimentar. Agricultura familiar. Cooperativismo. Mercados Institucionais

Prevalence of lip and perioral Ephelides in beach workers

BACKGROUND: Ephelides are small hyperpigmented macules common in the skin, presenting as areas with increased melanin production. Ephelides are observed in genetically predisposed individuals, particularly fair-skinned people highly susceptible to sunburn. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of lip and perioral ephelides in 362 beach workers in the city of Natal (Rio Grande do Norte) and to investigate potential associations with sociodemographic, occupational and general health. METHODS: For this purpose clinical tests were performed by calibrated examiners in the epidemiological area around the lips and the area bounded laterally by the nasolabial groove and at the bottom by the chin. A questionnaire was completed and assessed. The possible associations between sociodemographic variables, occupational and general health with the presence of lip and perioral ephelides were evaluated by chi-square test for a significance level of 5%. RESULTS: Approximately one third of the workers were affected by perioral ephelides (33.7%) and around a quarter of them by lip ephelides (24.0%). Gender was the only variable significantly associated with the presence of perioral ephelides (p = 0.002), unlike lip ephelides which proved to be significantly associated with habits (p = 0.036) and alcoholism (0.030). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of ephelides in lip and perioral region was high in the study population, with gender and certain habits associated with its occurrence

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Diagnosis and treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia: recommendations from the Brazilian Group of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

ABSTRACT Chronic lymphocytic leukemia is characterized by clonal proliferation and progressive accumulation of B-cell lymphocytes that typically express CD19+, CD5+ and CD23+. The lymphocytes usually infiltrate the bone marrow, peripheral blood, lymph nodes, and spleen. The diagnosis is established by immunophenotyping circulating B-lymphocytes, and prognosis is defined by two staging systems (Rai and Binet) established by physical examination and blood counts, as well as by several biological and genetic markers. In this update, we present the recommendations from the Brazilian Group of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia for the diagnosis and treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia. The following recommendations are based on an extensive literature review with the aim of contributing to more uniform patient care in Brazil and possibly in other countries with a similar social-economic profile