3,245 research outputs found
Stranded Assets and the Energy Transition: Evaluating Country Level Risk of Fossil Fuel Stranded Assets
The term “stranded asset” is commonly used in association with the energy transition. The reference to a “stranded asset” is meant to denote an asset that has the potential to be devalued prior to the end of its economic life, no longer producing an economic return due to the worlds transition to a low carbon economy. Many factors can drive asset stranding, including: Economic, Physical, Transitional, and Regulatory risk factors.
The shift to a low carbon economy has the potential to strand entire regions or industries which will lead to direct and indirect impacts to society. The potential for asset stranding is more prominent for certain sectors due to the pressures to reduce emissions and align with the Paris Agreement. This places high emitting sectors at a higher risk of stranding assets if the transition is mismanaged without proper consideration given to workforce, capacity, and policy/regulation.
There are potentially large financial implications associated with stranded assets including, unburnable fossil fuel reserves, early decommissioning of plants, terminals, or other physical assets, and the inability for fossil fuel-based industries to gain investor financial support or insurance coverages due to societal pressure to stop supporting carbon intensive industries.
This purpose of this capstone project is to evaluate the potential of stranding fossil fuel assets due to the energy transition and to quantitatively rate that risk at the country level. Stranded asset risks were researched to determine the most predictive risk metrics to be used in the model that was built as part of this Capstone. The model can be used to quantitatively measure or rate fossil fuel stranded asset risk at the country level utilizing publicly available data sources. The model was tested on six countries and the results are summarized in the paper.
The risk of stranding fossil fuels assets in the energy transition is a complicated topic with many variables to consider. Having the ability to quantitively rate this risk will allow governments, companies, and all types of organization to better plan for and mitigate these risks
Workshops: A Direct and Interactive Forum for Forensics Coaches/Judges
Forensics is an educational function set in an educational environment While the obligations and concomitant responsibilities are many, forensics personnel preeminently are serving a teaching function ... (McBath, 1975, p. 47)
Most would agree with the assumption that forensics serves primarily a pedagogical function. Consequently, forensics personnel often utilize opportunities for professional growth by actively participating in professional associations and contributing to research in the field. The unique concerns and opportunities in forensics, however, present a need for a more direct and interactive forum, such as workshops for forensics personnel.
A search of the literature has revealed very little emphasis concerning the use of workshops for coaches (Ross, 1984) Additionally, workshops for college individual events coaches are limited in number and scope. Despite this apparent dearth of workshops and discussion concerning them, the fact remains that workshops can provide an effective pedagogical and experiential laboratory for the exchange of theories, ideas, and practices regarding issues in forensics.
This paper will present a rationale for the use of coaches\u27 workshops, and offer several proposals for the implementation of these workshops. It should be noted, however, that the intent of the authors is to be descriptive, rather than prescriptive in this discussion
An Educational Module Explaining The Effect of Cryotherapy on Post-Operative Opioid Consumption Following Orthopedic Surgery: A Quality Improvement Project
Background: The opioid crisis has stemmed from the undertreatment of pain. This inadequacy has led to increased use of opioids and a rapid rise in opioid-related fatalities. Opioids are used extensively in the perioperative period because of their beneficial pain-relieving and conscious-altering properties. Patients are often sent home with prescriptions for these habit-forming medications, leading to tolerance, addiction, and potential overdoses. This is especially true for very painful procedures, such as orthopedics. As a result, healthcare providers are at the forefront of making a change in the trajectory of the opioid crisis. One method is to find safe and effective non-opioid modalities to control postoperative pain. One such modality is the use of cryotherapy.
Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted using Google Scholar and PubMed databases to find research articles within the last 6 years on the effects of cryotherapy on postoperative opioid consumption following orthopedic surgery.
Results: Five research articles were selected for review. The articles investigated the effect of cryotherapy on postoperative opioid consumption in orthopedic surgery patients. It was shown that cryotherapy reduces postoperative opioid consumption following orthopedic surgery
An Educational Module on Minority Maternal Mortality and Complications in Obstetric Care
Background
Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists may be impacted by the growing minority maternal mortality and complications of obstetric care. Healthcare providers will be held accountable for the adverse health outcomes of minority obstetric patients by completing the Multidimensional Cultural Humility Scale and Cultural Humility Scale educational tools which shed light on racial biases. The U.S is ranked 46th in maternal mortality, reflecting a rate that has doubled since 1990, and includes an exponential increase in the African American (AA) population. The significance of the problem is seen in the comparison of mortality ratios between white women, black women, and women of other races during childbirth. Promoting cultural humility by instituting educational tools is the proposed solution to combat the disproportionate rate of AA maternal mortality.
Methods
Utilizing CINAHL and MEDLINE the keywords “Cultural humility” “African American”, and “maternal mortality” were searched yielding 133 results. Applying inclusion criteria resulted in 3 articles included in this study. An educational module and pre- and posttest test questionnaire were prepared and disseminated to anesthesia providers based on the selected evidence with the intent to answer the question: In minority obstetric patients, how effective are cultural humility educational tools in improving healthcare providers accountability and awareness for racial inequalities in obstetric healthcare?
Results
The baseline knowledge was 49% on the pretest and 73% on the posttest, reflecting a 24% knowledge increase. Limitations were a small sample size and time constraints to administer the pre and post survey. Implementation of both scales may bridge the gap between cultural humility and AA maternal mortality by increasing awareness of providers to diverse patients
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