Social Capital and Housing Tenure in an Adelaide Neighbourhood

Author version made available in accordance with publisher copyright policy.In this paper we compare and contrast elements of social capital across different housing tenures in an Adelaide neighbourhood. Using the results of 530 self-completion questionnaires and in-depth qualitative interviews with 16 people we assess perceptions of conflict across housing tenures and between socioeconomic groups, feelings of acceptance and belonging in the local neighbourhood, and levels of involvement in local formal and informal networks. While only a small number of questionnaire respondents reported negative views of socioeconomic diversity in the area a common theme emerging in the qualitative data indicated that housing tenure was relevant to some of these negative perceptions. Respondents from across different tenure types also reported differences in feelings of acceptance in the neighbourhood, and involvement in formal and informal networks. The study findings suggest that housing tenure is relevant to the development of neighbourhood-based social capital, and that this factor needs to be considered by social planners, housing policy makers and others involved in implementing social mix policies. In addition, the findings indicate the need to consider the community housing and public housing tenures in their own right, given the different models of housing provision, rather than collectively under the common banner of social housing as most research studies do. It is recommended that the full diversity of housing tenure is considered in any future analysis

PathOrganic – Risks and Recommendations Regarding Human Pathogens in Organic Vegetable Production Chains

PathOrganic assesses risks associated with the consumption of fresh and minimally processed vegetables due to the prevalence of bacterial human pathogens in plant produce. The project evaluates whether organic production poses a risk on food safety, taking into consideration sources of pathogen transmission (e.g. animal manure). The project also explores whether organic versus conventional production practices may reduce the risk of pathogen manifestation. In Europe, vegetable-linked outbreaks are not well investigated. A conceptual model together with novel sampling strategies and specifically adjusted methods provides the basis for large-scale surveys of organically grown plant produce in five European countries. Critical control points are determined and evaluated and factors contributing to a food safety problem are analyzed in greenhouse and field experiments. The project aims at developing a quantitative risk assessment model and at formulating recommendations for improving food safety in organic vegetable production

Assessing the impact of area-based initiatives in deprived neighborhoods: The example of S. João de Deus in Porto, Portugal

Though there have been many area-based initiatives to regenerate rundown areas in numerous cities around the world, many of them involving the demolition of stigmatized housing estates, far fewer attempts have been made to assess the effects of these initiatives upon the fortunes of displaced households and those who remain in these areas. By presenting the results of an empirical in-depth case study on the effects of an area-based initiative targeted at one of the most deprived neighborhoods in Porto, this article raises several epistemological concerns related to the goals, ideological assumptions, and social and spatial effects of these initiatives. Among other interrelated issues, the article discusses the impact of conflicting ideologies upon processes of radical strategy shift and of social and territorial marginalization and appeals to the need for more pluralistic approaches to evaluation.I gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Portuguese Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia for research grant SFRH/BPD/75863/2011, POPH/FSE

Persistence of Two Campylobacter jejuni Strains in Soil and on Spinach Plants

There are indications that the more frequent use of untreated organic residues for fertilization results in increased risk of contamination with human pathogens. Here, we evaluate the ability of two different strains of Campylobacter jejuni to persist in manure and soil as well as spread to spinach plants. It was revealed that different strategies for inoculation of C. jejuni contribute to the persistence of the bacterium in soil, roots, and shoots. Upon inoculation of the bacteria into manure prior to soil application,the amount of C. jejuni subsequently recovered in soil was higher than that from treatments involving the addition of C. jejuni cells to the soil after plant emergence. Irrespective of the bacterial inoculation dose and strategy employed, the C. jejuni content in soil remained relatively constant, whereas the majority of C. jejuni cells applied to spinach leaves could be recovered during the whole evaluation period of 21 days

Final report "PathOrganic. Risks and Recommendations Regarding Human Pathogens in Organic Vegetable Production Chains"

PathOrganic assesses risks associated with the consumption of fresh and minimally processed vegetables due to the prevalence of bacterial human pathogens (e.g. Salmonella enterica, pathogenic E. coli, Campylobacter spp., Listeria monocytogenes) in organically grown plant produce. The project aims at evaluating whether organic production poses a risk on food safety and addresses the food chain by taking into consideration potential sources of pathogen transmission (e.g. animal manure). In addition, it evaluates whether organic production may reduce the risk of pathogen manifestation. From a European perspective, vegetable-linked outbreaks are not well investigated. Within the PathOrganic project, surveys of organically grown vegetables are carried out in five European countries, and regionally different environmental and management factors are taken into consideration for performing risk assessment. In order to carry out a meaningful survey and to choose appropriate experimental plans, a model for pathogen transfer to selected plants is built in work package 1 (WP 1) to describe relevant food chains. Based on this model sampling strategies and methodological adjustments are made. A questionnaire is set up to describe current management practices (WP 1). WP 2 of the project is dedicated to surveying the presence of food pathogens in organic plant produce. As a major part of the project, field surveys of organic farming systems are performed and vegetable plants are sampled in five European countries. The analysis of relevant parameters is done by the respective partners with the appropriate expertise. “Risk crops” and “risk factors” are identified and specific production procedures shall be investigated, leading to the determination of critical control points (CCPs). Factors suggesting a problem concerning food safety are subjected to more detailed analysis in WP3 by performing specifically targeted greenhouse and field experiments. These experiments allow analyzing critical environmental and management factors and at the same time enable to re-assess the critical control points. Finally, based on the results obtained in the previous WPs, in WP 4 recommendations will be provided for improving procedures which secure consumer-oriented food safety and the quality of certified organic vegetable food chains. Thus, project results shall enable producers and other stakeholders to prevent and better control plant produce-associated outbreaks