Development of an Environmental Conscience: A Conservation History of Costa Rica

The University of Kansas has long historical connections with Central America and the many Central Americans who have earned graduate degrees at KU. This work is part of the Central American Theses and Dissertations collection in KU ScholarWorks and is being made freely available with permission of the author through the efforts of Professor Emeritus Charles Stansifer of the History department and the staff of the Scholarly Communications program at the University of Kansas Libraries’ Center for Digital Scholarship.Costa Rica proves to be an exemplary case study for the development of a national environmental conscience. This thesis examines what such a conscience entails, how it developed historically, hew it was tested and challenged, and finally hew it is manifested in society today. Conservation is the yardstick by which this environmental conscience can be measured in Costa Rica. Research for this paper concentrated specifically on land use patterns—from the beginnings of the agricultural era to the contemporary experience of protecting lands through national forests, parks, and biological reserves. The result is that fully one quarter of Costa Rican territory now is protected in one form or another. Hew this occurred against economic pressures to develop is analyzed herein. Likewise, that much of the history of these conservation successes occurred during a time of great economic crisis fueled both curiosity and interest in investigating this Costa Rican conservationist model. Tb accomplish this goal meant studying as much pertinent literature in the field as possible (especially the works written by those most personally involved in this area), meeting with seme of these individuals to discuss their views, and visiting on site some of the agencies (both governmental and private) that play a role in Costa Rican conservation issues. The end product is this thesis which attempts to fuse these elements together to show the development of an environmental conscience through the country's history of conservation

The Green Republic: A Conservation History of Costa Rica, 1838-1996

The University of Kansas has long historical connections with Central America and the many Central Americans who have earned graduate degrees at KU. This work is part of the Central American Theses and Dissertations collection in KU ScholarWorks and is being made freely available with permission of the author through the efforts of Professor Emeritus Charles Stansifer of the History department and the staff of the Scholarly Communications program at the University of Kansas Libraries’ Center for Digital Scholarship.Costa Rica is often cited as a "model" for environmental conservation. This dissertation seeks to track the history of conservation efforts in Costa Rica via analysis of the development of its national parks and other protected areas. The focus of the work will be on discussing how Costa Rica came to establish its conservation system which today includes over twenty-five percent of the country's terrain. It will describe the system, discuss key leaders involved, and analyze conservation in light of what it was in response to: rapid destruction of tropical ecosystems due to the expansion of exportrelated agricultural commodities. How and why were national parks and biological reserves proposed and designated? Who has been behind them? Why and how did these individuals become involved in their country's conservation movement? What has been the overall impact of conservation on the nation's environmental well being, economy, and education? What challenges have conservationists had to confront; what goals and dilemmas await them? Importantly, the work will address what Costa Ricans have said and are saying about these conservation concerns. Emphasis will be placed on policy reactions—laws and decrees and how they came about. To limit the scope of this project, "conservation" here will imply the creation of national parks, biological reserves, national wildlife refuges, and indigenous reserves that have been set aside for long-range preservation for future generations. While there have been many works written about Costa Rica's national parks, what is missing is a historical work that links development of conservation patterns with agricultural and political history. The intent of this dissertation is to show how conservation policy came about, how leaders in the movement worked to forge changes, and how conservation thought has evolved from the early days of Costa Rican independence to 1996

Linking the Histories of Slavery: North America and Its Borderlands

Slavery in the North American Borderlands The editors of Linking the Histories of Slavery state that the goal of their volume is that by introducing “unexpected scenes and by “challeng[ing] assumptions about how slavery worked across North America, they want readers to “expand th...

Review of \u3ci\u3eWet Prairie: People, Land, and Water in Agricultural Manitoba. \u3c/i\u3eBy Shannon Stunden Bower. Foreword by Graeme Wynn.

Wet Prairie is excellent environmental history that evaluates the human/nature relationship. Stunden Bower writes, In grappling with the environment of their province, Manitobans confronted not only the environmental conditions, but also the political and social arrangements that bore on their lives. Though no easy task, she succeeds in showing these relationships in what is an important contribution to the geographical, environmental, political, and cultural history of the Prairie Provinces and to the Great Plains as a whole

Crossing the Green Line: Frontier, environment and the role of bandeirantes in the conquering of Brazilian territory

This article’s objective is to present, via bibliographic research, the territorial makeup of colonial Brazil (1500-1822) and the Brazilian historical approach at the beginning of the twentieth century that sought to relate questions and concepts of frontier, territoriality, and nature in the historic role of the bandeirante movement. The goal here is to address territorial and geographic questions, but also environmental ones, based on historical geography, and to present arguments that fall in the nexus between history and nature in the debate on Brazilian territorial expansion. The text is grounded in classical works, and works by renown authors on this topic, but we also include discussion of less well known sources. The intent is to identify how the theme of bandeirantes and Brazilian westward expansion can be analyzed differently in the pertinent specialized historical literature

Nickel: A micronutrient element for hydrogen-dependent growth of \u3ci\u3eRhizobium japonicum\u3c/i\u3e and for expression of urease activity in soybean leaves

Soybean plants and Rhizobium japonicum 122 DES, a hydrogen uptake-positive strain, were cultured in media purified to remove Ni. Supplemental Ni had no significant effect on the dry matter or total N content of plants. However, the addition of Ni to both nitrate-grown and symbiotically grown plants resulted in a 7- to 10-fold increase in urease activity (urea amidohydrolase, EC 3.5.1.5) in leaves and significantly increased the hydrogenase activity (EC 1.18.3.1) in isolated nodule bacteroids. When cultured under chemolithotrophic conditions, free-living R. japonicum required Ni for growth and for the expression of hydrogenase activity. Hydrogenase activity was minimal or not detectable in cells incubated either without Ni or with Ni and chloramphenicol. Ni is required for derepression of hydrogenase activity and apparently protein synthesis is necessary for the participation of Ni in hydrogenase expression. The addition of Cr, V, Sn, and Pb in place of Ni failed to stimulate the activity of hydrogenase in R. japonicum and urease in soybean leaves. The evidence indicates that Ni is an important micronutrient element in the biology of the soybean plant and R. japonicum

On the Challenges of Identifying Benthic Dominance on Anthropocene Coral Reefs

The concept of dominance is frequently used to describe changes in rapidly reconfiguring ecosystems, but the definition of dominance can vary widely among studies. Using coral reefs as a model, we use extensive benthic composition data to explore how variability in applying dominance concepts can shape perceptions. We reveal that coral dominance is sensitive to the exclusion of key algal groups and the categorization of other benthic groups, with ramifications for detecting an ecosystem phase shift. For example, ignoring algal turf inflates the dominance of hard and soft corals in the benthic habitats underpinning reef ecosystems. We need a consensus on how dominance concepts are applied so that we can build a more comprehensive understanding of ecosystem shifts across a broad range of aquatic and terrestrial settings. For reefs, we highlight the benefits of comprehensive and inclusive surveys for evaluating and managing the altered ecosystem states that are emerging in the Anthropocene

Histological Examination in Obtaining a Diagnosis in Patients with Lymphadenopathy in Lima, Peru.

The differential diagnosis for lymphadenopathy is wide and clinical presentations overlap, making obtaining an accurate diagnosis challenging. We sought to characterize the clinical and radiological characteristics, histological findings, and diagnoses for a cohort of patients with lymphadenopathy of unknown etiology. 121 Peruvian adults with lymphadenopathy underwent lymph node biopsy for microbiological and histopathological evaluation. Mean patient age was 41 years (Interquartile Range 26-52), 56% were males, and 39% were HIV positive. Patients reported fever (31%), weight loss (23%), and headache (22%); HIV infection was associated with fever (P < 0.05) and gastrointestinal symptoms (P < 0.05). Abnormalities were reported in 40% of chest X-rays (N = 101). Physicians suspected TB in 92 patients (76%), lymphoma in 19 patients (16%), and other malignancy in seven patients (5.8%). Histological diagnoses (N = 117) included tuberculosis (34%), hyperplasia (27%), lymphoma (13%), and nonlymphoma malignancy (14%). Hyperplasia was more common (P < 0.001) and lymphoma less common (P = 0.005) among HIV-positive than HIV-negative patients. There was a trend toward reduced frequency of caseous necrosis in samples from HIV-positive than HIV-negative TB patients (67 versus 93%, P = 0.055). The spectrum of diagnoses was broad, and clinical and radiological features correlated poorly with diagnosis. On the basis of clinical features, physicians over-diagnosed TB, and under-diagnosed malignancy. Although this may not be inappropriate in resource-limited settings where TB is the most frequent easily treatable cause of lymphadenopathy, diagnostic delays can be detrimental to patients with malignancy. It is important that patients with lymphadenopathy undergo a full diagnostic work-up including sampling for histological evaluation to obtain an accurate diagnosis

Implementation of a novel stratified PAthway of CarE for common musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions in primary care: Protocol for a multicentre pragmatic randomised controlled trial (the PACE MSK trial)

Introduction Musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions constitute the highest burden of disease globally, with healthcare services often utilised inappropriately and overburdened. The aim of this trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of a novel clinical PAthway of CarE programme (PACE programme), where care is provided based on people's risk of poor outcome. Methods and analysis Multicentre randomised controlled trial. 716 people with MSK conditions (low back pain, neck pain or knee osteoarthritis) will be recruited in primary care. They will be stratified for risk of a poor outcome (low risk/high risk) using the Short Form Örebro Musculoskeletal Pain Screening Questionnaire (SF-ÖMSPQ) then randomised to usual care (n=358) or the PACE programme (n=358). Participants at low risk in the PACE programme will receive up to 3 sessions of guideline based care from their primary healthcare professional (HCP) supported by a custom designed website (mypainhub.com). Those at high risk will be referred to an allied health MSK specialist who will conduct a comprehensive patient-centred assessment then liaise with the primary HCP to determine further care. Primary outcome (SF 12-item PCS) and secondary outcomes (eg, pain self-efficacy, psychological health) will be collected at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months. Cost-effectiveness will be measured as cost per quality-Adjusted life-year gained. Health economic analysis will include direct and indirect costs. Analyses will be conducted on an intention-To-Treat basis. Primary and secondary outcomes will be analysed independently, using generalised linear models. Qualitative and mixed-methods studies embedded within the trial will evaluate patient experience, health professional practice and interprofessional collaboration. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval has been received from the following Human Research Ethics Committees: The University of Sydney (2018/926), The University of Queensland (2019000700/2018/926), University of Melbourne (1954239), Curtin University (HRE2019-0263) and Northern Sydney Local Health District (2019/ETH03632). Dissemination of findings will occur via peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and social media. Trial registration number ACTRN12619000871145