European mortgage market: An overview 1992-2003

The development of the European mortgage market, its current situation in terms of volume, growth, prices, interest rates and new products, and an analysis of mortgage integration are the focus of this paper. The recent creation of the European Mortgage Finance Agency (EMFA), as an attempt to build a single European securitization market, is an important step toward integration within the wider goal of EU financial integration. Obstacles to integration, potential members of the EMFA, and its main goals and advantages are discussed in the forward-looking section of this paper. In addition, the paper deals with three important aspects of the EU mortgage market, taken as a whole: • How it operates. Other aspects considered include transaction costs, transparency requirements affecting credit institutions (European Code of Conduct), and a classification of mortgage products on the market. • Refinancing in Europe (as compared to the USA). The secondary market for the funding of financial institutions, in relation to mortgage bonds and mortgage-backed securities, including explanations of their main characteristics and the differences between them. • How European mortgage markets influence the economy and how they may affect private investment and consumption, household debt (which continues to increase each year), and the performance of financial institutions (high competitiveness) are other important points considered.European mortgage market integration; Growth; Interest rate applied; Transaction costs;

Educational activities for students and citizens supporting the One-Health approach on antimicrobial resistance

Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security and development. Urgent action is needed at all levels of society to reduce the impact and spread of antibiotic resistance. For a more sustaining approach, education in children, college students, citizens and caregivers are essential. The One-Heath approach is a collaborative, multisectoral and transdisciplinary strategy in which, no single organizations or sector can address the issue of antimicrobial resistance at the human–environment interface alone. Within this strategy, education plays a central role. In this scoping review, we highlighted a range of learning activities on antibiotic resistance as part of the One-Health approach. In particular, those applications that can be introduced to a wide audience to help arrest the current crisis for the next generation. The review identifies a high number of teaching opportunities: board and role-play games, round tables, musicals, e-learning and environmental experiments to couple with more curricula and formal education to inform a diverse group of audiences

Editorial of special issue “natural and artificial unsaturated soil slopes”

Natural and artificial slopes are frequently constituted, at least in part, by soils in unsaturated conditions [...

THE MOSAIC OF THE FRIGIDARIUM OF “VILLA BONANNO” IN PALERMO: MINERALOGICAL AND PETROGRAPHIC ANALYSES FOR IN SITU CONSERVATION AND RESTORATION INTERVENTIONS

The topic of this study was the mineralogical and petrographic characterization of bedding mortars (made of different layers) and tesserae of Roman age (3rd century A.D.), taken from the mosaic of the Frigidarium of “Villa Bonanno”, brought to light by archaeological excavations conducted in the historical centre of Palermo. The collected samples have been analysed by thin-section optical microscopy (PLM), and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS). The study was aimed to define the “recipe” (composition of aggregate and binder, aggregate size distribution, aggregate/binder ratio), in order to assess the provenance of raw materials (supply site/area) and to acquire useful information in order to formulate "restoration mortars" that should be most comparable with the original ones, for replacements and/or integration. Rock types constituting the coloured tesserae were also characterized by thin-section optical microscopy. The mineralogical and petrographic investigations allowed establishing two different recipes used for the formulation of the studied mortars in terms of both compositional and textural features. The aggregate is composed by diverse proportions of detritic calcareous granules (both bioclasts and limestone fragments deriving from the local outcropping biocalcarenites and limestones), siliceous sand (monocrystalline quartz, chert and quartzarenite fragments), volcanic ash (pozzolana) and sometimes cocciopesto. The resulting hydraulic binder was the product of the „pozzolanic reaction‟ between volcanic ash and the aerial lime (specifically made by the calcination of locally available magnesian limestone or dolostone). The coloured tesserae can be all classified as compact limestones of Mesozoic or Cenozoic age, likely of local provenance

Reducing plastic pollution by recovery and recycling: evidence from a ‘Blue Economy’ project impacting policy-making in Italy

: This paper recognizes the relevance of the Seabed Cleaning Project, created by the Angelo Vassallo Sindaco Pescatore Foundation in 2010, and presents it as a tool to achieve benefits in environmental, social, and economic terms, in line with the innovative framework of the Blue Economy. The project suggests a practical, feasible, and scalable solution to plastic pollution that can be obtained thanks to the activity performed by fishermen in cooperation with the municipality and local community (in a multi-level cooperation perspective). The data show a significant reduction of plastic on the seafloor thanks to the project, but further research is needed in order to collect further positive outcomes from different applications of the project. In 2022, the "Salva Mare" Law was approved in the Senate, extending the good practices proposed by the Foundation nationwide and showing how small gestures and concrete actions can provide significant improvements in pursuit of a healthier, safer, greener, and smarter city for the future

Educational activities for students and citizens supporting the one-health approach on antimicrobial resistance

Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security and development. Urgent action is needed at all levels of society to reduce the impact and spread of antibiotic resistance. For a more sustaining approach, education in children, college students, citizens and caregivers are essential. The One-Heath approach is a collaborative, multisectoral and transdisciplinary strategy in which, no single organizations or sector can address the issue of antimicrobial resistance at the human–environment interface alone. Within this strategy, education plays a central role. In this scoping review, we highlighted a range of learning activities on antibiotic resistance as part of the One-Health approach. In particular, those applications that can be introduced to a wide audience to help arrest the current crisis for the next generation. The review identifies a high number of teaching opportunities: board and role-play games, round tables, musicals, e-learning and environmental experiments to couple with more curricula and formal education to inform a diverse group of audiences