Climate-smart production of coffee: Improving social and environmental sustainability by Reinhold Muschler (ed.)

Coffee production changed dramatically over the years. Through mass marketing, coffee consumption increased exponentially until the 1970s. Speciality coffees emerged to satisfy a specific group of consumers, and such segmentation of the market continues until today based on refined gradations in quality and taste, along with a greater focus on social and environmental responsibility. Especially the latter trend in coffee consumption also highlights the need for coffee growers to shift their production system to a climate-friendly approach. Not only to meet the respective demand in the coffee market, but also to contribute their part to reduce the environmental impact of the coffee industry. How this can be done is outlined in this highly interesting and easy to read publication. The book is divided into parts, of which the first comprises seven chapters and starts with a description of the environmental sustainability of growing coffee and the farmers’ income - why do (smallholder) coffee producers earn so little? It clearly shows how the livelihoods of these producers can be improved and how a more sustainable coffee sector can be created. The challenges faced by small- and medium-scale coffee growers are presented and ways forward are identified. The environmental services that coffee farmers can provide, such as carbon sequestration and storage, biodiversity protection, watershed protection, and cultural and recreational benefits, are also detailed.In the chapter on accessing and managing the environmental and social impacts of coffee production, for example, the carbon footprint of a cup of coffee as well as the greenhouse gas emissions on coffee farms are elaborated. Relevant factors that reduce environmental impacts, such as shade management and biodiversity management options, are presented to. The book also introduces the reader to the fair trade coffee market by asking the question “How fair is fair?”. It shows that an important aspect of fair trade should be the price paid to the producer. It should enable farmers to lead a decent life and finance additional investments to enable them shifting to more sustainable production methods and adjusting to climate change.Coffee breeding aspects are also covered in this publication, with a separate chapter on advances in Arabica coffee breeding. This chapter describes, among other things, the genetic resources of Arabica varieties, available germplasm banks, and variety selection criteria, such as yield, resistance to coffee leaf rust, as well as to other pest and diseases. Like most chapters in this book, this one also ends with a list of addresses where further information can be obtained. This extra information can be very helpful to practitioners and researchers alike.The last chapter of the book’s first part deals with post-harvest practices; here the steps and processes are discussed that ensure that a maximum amount of raw coffee beans is converted into a final, saleable product with maximum taste.The second part deals in depth with sustainable pest and disease management. It describes the insect pests and diseases that affect coffee production in different agroecosystems, as well as alternative pest control methods. Two diseases have their own chapter: coffee leaf rust and coffee wilt disease. The last three chapters of the second part present integrated management approaches towards control of nematodes, soil-borne insect and fungal pests, and weeds in coffee production systems.Overall, this book that is based on extensive research by a wide range of internationally recognised experts, is of interest to all stakeholders in the coffee value chain, including extension workers and their organisations

Acoustic monitoring of rail faults in the German railway network

The early detection of rail surface defects such as squats, poor welds, or wheel burns is important to prevent further rail deterioration. In this paper, a methodology for acoustic monitoring of squats in the German railway network is proposed based on the measurement of axle box acceleration (ABA) on the DB noise measurement car (SMW) and the previously developed numerical model WERAN for wheel/rail interaction. Specific characteristics of squats in the ABA signals are determined with the model and verified by pass-by measurements combined with direct geometry measurements of the squats. Based on these re- sults, a logistic regression classifier is devised for the detection of squats in the measured ABA signals of the SMW. Trained with simulated and measured data, the classifier identifies all of the known severe squats and 87% of the known light squats in the measured test data

Evaluation der Wohnsitzregelung nach §12a AufenthG

Im Auftrag des Forschungszentrums des Bundesamtes für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF-FZ) evaluierte die empirica ag in Zusammenarbeit mit der Europa-Universität Viadrina Frankfurt/Oder die Wirkung der Wohnsitzregelung nach §12a AufenthG auf die nachhaltige Integration der von der Regelung erfassten Personen in die Lebensverhältnisse der Bundesrepublik Deutschland. Die Evaluation fand zwischen Juni 2021 und Dezember 2022 statt und betrachtet die Wirkungen der Wohnsitzregelung zum Stand des 01. Juni 2021. Der Fokus lag dabei auf den Effekten in den Bereichen Erwerbstätigkeit, Wohnen, soziale Integration und Gewaltschutz. Die für die Analyse zur Verfügung stehenden Daten sind in ihrer Aussagekraft begrenzt. Unter Berücksichtigung dessen kommen die Verfasserinnen und Verfasser in der Bewertung verschiedener Partialwirkungen der Wohnsitzregelung zu dem Schluss, dass diese in der Summe wahrscheinlich nicht die intendierten Effekte erbringt. Sie erzeugt zudem einen hohen bürokratischen Aufwand bei Ausländerbehörden. Zwar gibt es eine klare räumliche Steuerungswirkung, da Umzüge zwischen den Bundesländern stark reduziert wurden. Allerdings findet insgesamt nur eine verhältnismäßig geringe Mobilität in der Gesamtheit der Schutzberechtigten statt und potenziell integrationsfördernde Umzüge werden nach Einschätzung des Berichtes zu stark behindert. Zudem sind die Wirkungen der Regelung in den einzelnen Integrationsbereichen ambivalent und nicht nachhaltig positiv, was z.B. die Erwerbsbeteiligung angeht. Gleichzeitig konnten aber auch entlastende Wirkungen für besonders stark von Zuzügen betroffene Kommunen festgestellt werden. Das Forschungskonsortium empfiehlt daher eine Anpassung der Wohnsitzregelung hinsichtlich einer Beschränkung auf örtliche Zuzugssperren nach § 12a Abs. 4 AufenthG, was auch die Ausländerbehörden deutlich entlasten würde. Zusätzlich könnten frühzeitige Matching-Verfahren zu einer effizienteren Verteilung der Schutzsuchenden beitragen. Schließlich wird auch ein Modellprojekt zu Haltefaktoren für Schutzberechtigte im ländlichen Raum angeregt

Performance analysis of wind fence models when used for truck protection under crosswind through numerical modeling

This paper is focused on truck aerodynamic analysis under crosswind conditions by means of numerical modeling. The truck was located on the crest of an embankment during the study. In order to analyze the performance of three wind fence models, the truck's aerodynamic coefficients were obtained and compared in two different situations either with or without the wind fences installed. In addition, the effect of both height and porosity of wind fence models on the aerodynamic coefficients acting on truck with respect to separation distance between the truck and the wind fence, was analyzed. A finite volume (or computational fluid dynamic) code was used to carry out the numerical modeling. The Reynolds-averaged Navier?Stokes (RANS) equations along with the k?? SST turbulence model were used to predict the behavior of turbulent flow. With respect to the results, the influence of the distance on the rollover coefficient is soft for all height values studied except for the lowest value (1 m of fence height), where the maximum value of rollover coefficient was obtained for the truck position closer to the fence. Regarding fence porosity, its effect on rollover coefficient is stronger for truck positions on road closer to the wind fence model.This work was supported by the OASIS Research Project that was co-financed by CDTI (Spanish Science and Innovation Ministry) and developed with the Spanish companies: Iridium, OHL Concesiones, Abertis, Sice, Indra, Dragados, OHL, Geocisa, GMV, Asfaltos Augusta, Hidrofersa, Eipsa, PyG, CPS, AEC and Torre de Comares Arquitectos S.L. and 16 research centres. The authors would also like to thank the GICONSIME research group of the University of Oviedo (Spain) for their collaboration in this research

The Sustainability of Bison Production in North America: A Scoping Review

The American bison (Bison bison) is iconic of the Great Plains of North America, yet the genus has had to overcome near extinction in the recent past prior to being re-established for food production. This scoping review summarizes the literature on the Plains Bison as a large ruminant species adequate for modern-day meat production in order to evaluate the species’ appropriateness as a sustainable meat source and to identify knowledge gaps hindering the sustainability evaluation of bison production. To date, we can anecdotally assume that bison husbandry could contribute to sustainability based on its positive contribution to biodiversity, physiological robustness, economically higher price per kg, and nutritive values, despite their decreased growth and performance rates compared to beef cattle. However, targeted and system-based research is required in order to unequivocally assess the sustainability of bison production in North America

L'oeil du cerf-volant : évaluation et suivi des états de surface par photographie aérienne sous cerf-volant

Fort de son expérience personnelle au Niger, l'auteur décrit les utilisations de la photographie aérienne sous cerf-volant pour le suivi des essais en champ et des interventions de développement agricole, notamment pour la surveillance des fluctuations saisonnières et annuelles. Il présente en outre plusieurs techniques et réalisations et explique comment obtenir le matériel requis