Global climate change

Vivid, accessible and pedagogically informed, this book will be a key resource for undergraduate and taught postgraduate students in geography, environment, and ecology; as well as students of the social sciences with an interest in environmental issue

Should farmers apply fertilizer according to when their daffodils are in flower?:Utilizing a “farmer-science” approach to understanding the impact of soil temperature on spring N fertilizer application in Wales

Perennial ryegrass starts growing when soil temperatures reach 5.5°C for five consecutive days; applying N fertiliser before this risks environmental losses. To test whether daffodil flowering signified when to apply N fertiliser, farmers volunteered to take part in a citizen‐science study. The PROSOIL project used a ‘citizen science’, participatory approach to create farmer‐informed science, aiming to increase awareness of the importance of soil health. In 2014, over 300 farmers completed a “How do you manage your soil” survey. The survey included a question on the use of daffodils (Narcissus spp) to indicate the best time to apply the first nitrogen fertiliser of the season, based on anecdotal feedback from farmers involved in the PROSOIL project. The survey recorded 7% of farmers based their first fertiliser application on when daffodils flowered. To increase farmer awareness of soil temperatures, we provided them with soil thermometers, held workshops and hosted interactive stands at agricultural events in 2014. In autumn 2014, farmers planted daffodil bulbs of the same variety, across Wales, and monitored soil temperatures. Farmers returned postcards once their daffodils were in flower, noting the soil temperature. An assessment of whether daffodil flowering date could indicate when to apply N fertiliser was made. Overall, in spring 2015, daffodils flowered when soil temperature was 6.4(±0.35)°C, suggesting daffodil flowering date is a more reliable indicator for fertiliser application, than first hypothesised. Findings show a scientific validation of local knowledge, regarding the use of daffodils to indicate the “not‐before” date for the first N fertiliser application

Influence of socio-cultural factors and gender on waste behaviour of travellers: Insights from 11 touristic destinations in Europe

In the course of a global increase of tourism, the need to deal with waste generation, management and prevention caused by tourism activities requires increased attention. In this regard, tourists’ behaviour is a crucial factor for improving the efficacy and efficiency of the waste strategies in place. Tourists’ behaviour has been extensively studied in terms of environmental awareness, while less attention has been given to behaviour and attitudes of tourists in terms of waste generation and prevention. Especially, the socio-cultural and gender component have been hardly addressed in available research. There is some evidence about differences in environmental attitudes and behaviour between tourists from different countries of origin, just as there is evidence of different attitudes towards the environment between men and women, but these two sets of evidences are not integrated, and certainly not with regard to waste behaviour. The present study was developed as part of the H2020 project “URBANWASTE” that aims at understanding the influence of tourism on waste management and production and at developing eco-innovative and gender sensitive strategies for waste prevention and management in 11 European pilot cases. Particularly, this study aimed at analysing and understanding the role and effect of socio-cultural factors (e.g. place of residence, age, education) and gender on ‘waste behaviour’ of tourists; the study includes the tourists’ behaviour at home in comparison to their behaviour on holidays and accounts, hence, also for ‘behavioural gaps’ between home- vs. holiday-behaviour

Effectiveness of Holistic Interventions for People with Severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Systematic Review of Controlled Clinical Trials

Despite a well-recognised burden of disabling physical symptoms compounded by co-morbidities, psychological distress and social isolation, the needs of people with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are typically poorly addressed.To assess the effectiveness of interventions designed to deliver holistic care for people with severe COPD.We searched 11 biomedical databases, three trial repositories (January 1990-March 2012; no language restrictions) and contacted international experts to locate published, unpublished and in-progress randomised controlled trials (RCTs), quasi-RCTs and controlled clinical trials (CCTs) that investigated holistic interventions to support patients with severe COPD in any healthcare context. The primary outcome was health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Quality assessment and data extraction followed Cochrane Collaboration methodology. We used a piloted data extraction sheet and undertook narrative synthesis.From 2,866 potentially relevant papers, we identified three trials: two RCTs (from United States and Australia), and one CCT (from Thailand): total 216 patients. Risk of bias was assessed as moderate in two studies and high in the third. All the interventions were led by nurses acting in a co-ordinating role (e.g. facilitating community support in Thailand, providing case-management in the USA, or co-ordinating inpatient care in Australia). HRQoL improved significantly in the Thai CCT compared to the (very limited) usual care (p<0.001), in two sub-domains in the American trial, but showed no significant changes in the Australian trial. Exercise tolerance, dyspnoea, and satisfaction with care also improved in the Thai trial.Some 15 years after reports first highlighted the unmet needs of people with severe COPD, we have been unable to find robust trial evidence about interventions that can address those needs. There is an urgent need to develop and evaluate holistic care interventions designed improve HRQoL for people with severe COPD.PROSPERO (CRD42012002430)

Activism, affect, identification: trans documentary in France and Spain and its reception

This article explores the documentation of trans activism in France and Spain since the 2000s. The first part addresses questions surrounding the place of affect and narrative in documentary film, particularly in relation to trans issues. The second part o f the article analyses an audience case study from a screening at the International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival in Barcelona of Valérie Mitteaux's Girl or Boy, My Sex is not my Gender (2011), considering how different viewers respond to the representatio n of trans identities. The article builds on qualitative research whilst extending the exploration of sexuality and gender in previous audience studies to a consideration of documentary film, seeking to provide a more nuanced understanding of what audience claims for identification in politicised contexts mean

The liminality of training spaces: Places of private/public transitions

This paper draws upon research, conducted for the London West Learning and Skills Council, on the training experiences of women with dependent children. One of the striking revelations of the research, we suggest, is the way in which training spaces are used and perceived by women, which are often at odds with government intentions. To help make sense of women’s use of and motivation for training we utilise the concept of ‘liminality’ and the private/public imbrication to explain the ways in which women use, or are discouraged from using, training spaces. Further, how the varied and multiple uses women in our research have put training to in their own lives has encouraged us to rethink the relationship between the private and the public more generally. In the light of this, we suggest that training and the places in which training take place, have been neglected processes and spaces within feminist geography and might usefully be explored further to add to an extensive literature on women’s caring and domestic roles and their role in the paid workplace

Phenotypically distinct anti-insulin B cells repopulate pancreatic islets after anti-CD20 treatment in NOD mice

Aims/hypothesis Autoreactive B cells escape immune tolerance and contribute to the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes. While global B cell depletion is a successful therapy for autoimmune disease, the fate of autoreactive cells during this treatment in autoimmune diabetes is unknown. We aimed to identify and track anti-insulin B cells in pancreatic islets and understand their repopulation after anti-CD20 treatment. Methods We generated a double transgenic system, the VH125.hCD20/NOD mouse. The VH125 transgenic mouse, expressing an increased frequency of anti-insulin B cells, was crossed with a human CD20 (hCD20) transgenic mouse, to facilitate B cell depletion using anti-CD20. B cells were analysed using multiparameter and ImageStream flow cytometry. Results We demonstrated that anti-insulin B cells were recruited to the pancreas during disease progression in VH125.hCD20/NOD mice. We identified two distinct populations of anti-insulin B cells in pancreatic islets, based on CD19 expression, with both populations enriched in the CD138int fraction. Anti-insulin B cells were not identified in the plasma-cell CD138hi fraction, which also expressed the transcription factor Blimp-1. After anti-CD20 treatment, anti-insulin B cells repopulated the pancreatic islets earlier than non-specific B cells. Importantly, we observed that a CD138intinsulin+CD19− population was particularly enriched after B cell depletion, possibly contributing to the persistence of disease still observed in some mice after anti-CD20 treatment. Conclusions/interpretation Our observations may indicate why the loss of C-peptide is only temporarily delayed following anti-CD20 treatment in human type 1 diabetes