Utilising biological geotextiles: Introduction to the BORASSUS project and global perspectives

Field and laboratory studies indicate that utilisation of biological geotextiles constructed from palm-leaves and other selected organic materials are an effective, sustainable and economically viable soil conservation technique. The three-year plus (1 July 2005–28 February 2009) EU-funded BORASSUS Project (contract no. INCO-CT-2005-510745) evaluated the long-term effectiveness of biological geotextiles in controlling soil erosion and assessing their sustainability and economic viability. These studies progressed in ten countries, both in the ‘industrial north’ (in Europe) and in the ‘developing south’ (Africa, South America and South East Asia). The studied countries in the ‘developing south’ included Brazil, China, The Gambia, South Africa, Thailand and Vietnam. The ‘industrial north’ countries included Belgium, Hungary, Lithuania and the UK. The main findings of these studies are summarised in this paper and thematic information is presented in the other four papers in this Special Issue. Biological geotextiles offer potentially novel bioengineering solutions to environmental problems, including technologies for soil conservation, sustainable plant production and use of indigenous plants, improved ecosystem management by decreasing deforestation, improving agroforestry and cost-effective biogeotextile applications in diverse environments. Biogeotextiles may provide socio-economic platforms for sustainable development and the benefits for developing countries may include poverty alleviation, engagement of local people as stakeholders, employment for disadvantaged groups, small and medium enterprise (SME) development, earning hard currency, environmental education and local community involvement in land reclamation and environmental education programmes. These benefits are achieved through: (i) promotion of sustainable and environmentally friendly palm-agriculture to discourage deforestation, promoting both reforestation and agroforestry; (ii) construction of biogeotextiles enabling development of a rural labour-intensive industry, particularly encouraging employment of socially disadvantaged groups and (iii) export of biogeotextiles to industrialised countries could earn hard currency for developing economies, based on the principles of fair trade. Research and development activities of the BORASSUS Project have improved our knowledge on the effect of biogeotextile mats on the micro- and macro-soil environments and at larger scales through controlled laboratory and field experiments in diverse environments

Body appreciation around the world: Measurement invariance of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age.

The Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) is a widely used measure of a core facet of the positive body image construct. However, extant research concerning measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across a large number of nations remains limited. Here, we utilised the Body Image in Nature (BINS) dataset - with data collected between 2020 and 2022 - to assess measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age groups. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis indicated that full scalar invariance was upheld across all nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups, suggesting that the unidimensional BAS-2 model has widespread applicability. There were large differences across nations and languages in latent body appreciation, while differences across gender identities and age groups were negligible-to-small. Additionally, greater body appreciation was significantly associated with higher life satisfaction, being single (versus being married or in a committed relationship), and greater rurality (versus urbanicity). Across a subset of nations where nation-level data were available, greater body appreciation was also significantly associated with greater cultural distance from the United States and greater relative income inequality. These findings suggest that the BAS-2 likely captures a near-universal conceptualisation of the body appreciation construct, which should facilitate further cross-cultural research. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Variability of diagnostic criteria and treatment of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome across European countries

The aim of the surveys conducted by the Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome Working Group of the ESPN was to study the possible variability of treatment in Europe at different stages of the disease by means of questionnaires sent to members of the Working Group. Four surveys have been completed: treatment of the first flare, treatment of the first relapse and the issue of steroid dependency, use of rituximab, and the management of steroid-resistant patients. A uniform treatment of the first flare was applied in only three countries, and ten additional centers have adopted one of the three main protocols. Reported treatment of the first relapse was relatively uniform, whereas the use of additional immunosuppressants in steroid dependency was widely variable. Rituximab had already been used in hundreds of patients, although the formal evidence of efficiency in steroid dependency was relatively recent at the time of the survey. The definition of steroid resistance was variable in the European centers, but strikingly, the first-line treatment was uniform throughout the centers and included the combination of prednisone plus calcineurin antagonists. Conclusion: The variability in the approach of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome is unexpectedly large and affects treatment of the first flare, strategies in the case of steroid dependency, as well as the definitions of steroid resistance.What is Known:• Steroids and immunosuppressants are the universal treatment of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome.What is New:• The variability of treatments and strategy of treatment in European centers of pediatric nephrology

Body appreciation around the world: Measurement invariance of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age

Abstract The Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) is a widely used measure of a core facet of the positive body image construct. However, extant research concerning measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across a large number of nations remains limited. Here, we utilised the Body Image in Nature (BINS) dataset – with data collected between 2020 and 2022 – to assess measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age groups. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis indicated that full scalar invariance was upheld across all nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups, suggesting that the unidimensional BAS-2 model has widespread applicability. There were large differences across nations and languages in latent body appreciation, while differences across gender identities and age groups were negligible-to-small. Additionally, greater body appreciation was significantly associated with higher life satisfaction, being single (versus being married or in a committed relationship), and greater rurality (versus urbanicity). Across a subset of nations where nation-level data were available, greater body appreciation was also significantly associated with greater cultural distance from the United States and greater relative income inequality. These findings suggest that the BAS-2 likely captures a near-universal conceptualisation of the body appreciation construct, which should facilitate further cross-cultural research

Body appreciation around the world: Measurement invariance of the Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age

The Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2) is a widely used measure of a core facet of the positive body image construct. However, extant research concerning measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across a large number of nations remains limited. Here, we utilised the Body Image in Nature (BINS) dataset - with data collected between 2020 and 2022 - to assess measurement invariance of the BAS-2 across 65 nations, 40 languages, gender identities, and age groups. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis indicated that full scalar invariance was upheld across all nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups, suggesting that the unidimensional BAS-2 model has widespread applicability. There were large differences across nations and languages in latent body appreciation, while differences across gender identities and age groups were negligible-to-small. Additionally, greater body appreciation was significantly associated with higher life satisfaction, being single (versus being married or in a committed relationship), and greater rurality (versus urbanicity). Across a subset of nations where nation-level data were available, greater body appreciation was also significantly associated with greater cultural distance from the United States and greater relative income inequality. These findings suggest that the BAS-2 likely captures a near-universal conceptualisation of the body appreciation construct, which should facilitate further cross-cultural research

Fibre and seed productivity of industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa l.) varieties under mediterranean conditions

Farmers’ interest in renewable raw materials such as hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) fibres has recently increased, but hemp productivity is strongly affected by genotype and environment conditions. A 3-year field experiment was conducted under Mediterranean environment in northern Greece to evaluate the productivity (regarding fibres and seeds) of six monoecious hemp varieties. The vars. Futura 75 and Bialobrzeskie provided the greatest (p < 0.01) fibre productivity (4.57 and 4.27 t ha−1, respectively), which were 77.1% and 65.5%, respectively, greater than that of the least productive var. Fedora 17. However, the vars. Santhica 27, Tygra and Bialobrzeskie provided the highest (p < 0.05) seed yield (2.7, 2.9 and 2.6 t ha−1, respectively), which were 28.6%, 38.1% and 23.8%, respectively, greater than that of the least productive var. Futura 75. Hemp fibre yield was strongly positively correlated with total biomass (R2 = 0.8612) and stem biomass yield (R2 = 0.9742), while it was inversely correlated with fibre strength (R2 = 0.424). Hemp seed yield was not correlated with the hemp plant density, height, total biomass or stem biomass yield. The six hemp genotypes evaluated in the study had ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content lower than 0.2% satisfying the European legislation requirements for industrial hemp varieties. The results of the study indicated that, under Mediterranean conditions (northern Greece), the var. Bialobrzeskie showed high productivity, as averaged across years, for both fibres and seeds. This result is very helpful for farmers which should prefer hemp varieties of dual-purpose production (stems and inflorescences or stems and seeds) adapted best to their local environment. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Evaluation of biological geotextiles for reduction of runoff and soil loss

The objective of the work reported is to evaluate the effectiveness of selected types of biological geotextile in reducing runoff and soil lossin continental, temperate and tropical environments. Laboratory simulations used various rainfall intensities, flow shear stresses and slope gradient and field plot data were collected from seven countries. The laboratory experiments indicate that all tested biological geotextiles are effective in reducing interrill runoff (32-73% of the value for bare soil) and interrill erosion rates (5-27% of the value for bare soil). Since simulated concentrated flow discharge sometimes flows below the geotextiles, their effectiveness in reducing concentrated flow erosion is significantly less (25-153% of the value for bare soil). On field plots, where both interrill and rill erosion occur, all tested geotextiles reduced runoff depth on average to 17-63% of the control value for bare soil and in some cases, runoff depth increased compared to bare soil surfaces, which can be attributed to the impermeable and hydrophobic characteristics of some biological geotextiles. In the field, soil loss rates due to interrill and rill erosion were reduced on average to 5-20% of the value of bare soil by the biological geotextiles. For all environmental conditions, the relative reduction of both runoff and soil loss by geotextiles compared to bare soil, increased with increasing rainfall depth. Runoff depths are significantly more reduced by Buriti and Rice straw geotextiles on the longer field plots (6-10 m) compared to the short interrill laboratory plots (0.9 m). Only the Rice straw geotextiles are significantly more effective in reducing soil loss on the longer field plots compared to the short interrill laboratory plot. © 2010 Taylor & Francis Group, London.status: publishe