Irrigation Management Transfer and WUAs’ dynamics: evidence from the South-Kazakhstan province

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, in Kazakhstan, as in the other Central Asian republics, significant changes in both the water and agricultural sectors have emerged; water management shifted from a purely technical issue to a sociopolitical and economic one leading to several institutional and organizational changes. To address this transitional context and its issues, since the 1990s international donors have supported the establishment of Irrigation Management Transfer (IMT) and the Water Users Associations (WUAs), both initiatives sponsored and related to the IWRM framework. This paper discusses these processes in the South-Kazakhstan Province, 10 years since the enactment of the law formalizing WUAs; three districts were selected for the analysis. The paper concludes that the IMT has been implemented in different and ambiguous methods and times, reflecting specific district dynamics and issues; furthermore, government support of IMT has decreased, leading to unexpected changes in its role in local water management and a reconsideration of the future scenario

The contested environmental futures of the Dolomites: a political ecology of mountains

In recent years, the eco-climate crisis has intensified the institutional debate on sustainable environmental futures and the need to boost green transition policies. Scholars in critical geography and political ecology have discussed the controversial nature of these policies and argued that structural transformation is needed, focused specifically on environmental conservation. However, little attention has been paid to mountain environments, which today are significantly affected by the eco-climate crisis and characterized by controversial trajectories of development, conservation and valorization. Therefore, by bringing together the political ecology of conservation and mountain geographies, this contribution reflects on the environmental futures of the Dolomites, in the eastern Alps, through an analysis of governance processes, conservation visions and rising environmental struggles. The Dolomites show the contested nature of environmental futures and their politicization, between ideas of accumulation by sustainability and radical environmental visions. Moreover, they encompass experiences and practices that envision a convivial conservation perspective with the potential to advance the political ecology of the mountain, with specific reference to the Global North

The Reconfiguration of Participatory Irrigation Management in Water Users Associations: Evidence from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union water management in Central Asia has been affected by different institutional changes which led to socio-political, technical and environmental issues, in particular at the local level. In order to address this context, since the nineties several international agencies have sought to promote participatory irrigation management (PIM) and water users associations (WUAs) in the region. This article aims to discuss these initiatives, their implementation and logic in two areas, Samarkand province (Uzbekistan) and South-Kazakhstan province (Kazakhstan), according to a qualitative comparative approach.La reconfiguration de la gestion participative de l’irrigation dans les associations d’usagers de l’eau d’Ouzbékistan et du Kazakhstan Depuis l’effondrement de l’Union soviétique, la gestion de l’eau en Asie centrale a été affectée par différents changements institutionnels liés au nouveau contexte socio-politique, technique et environnemental, en particulier au niveau local. Depuis les années quatre-vingt-dix, plusieurs organismes internationaux ont cherché à promouvoir dans la région, le modèle de gestion participative de l’irrigation (PIM) et les associations d’usagers de l’eau. Cet article présente ces initiatives, leur mise en œuvre et leurs logiques selon une approche qualitative comparative entre deux régions, la province de Samarcande (Ouzbékistan) et la province du Sud-Kazakhstan (Kazakhstan).Соотношение совместного управления ирригациями в ассоциациях потребителей воды в Узбекистане и в Казахстане После распада Советского Союза управление водными ресурсами стало предметом изучения различными институциональными изменениями, связанные с новыми социо-политическими, техническими и экологическими контекстами, в частности на местном уровне. С начала 90-х годов, различные международные организации стремились содействовать в регионе развитию модели совместного управления ирригациями (PIM) и ассоциациям потребителей воды. Эта статья представляет эти инициативы, их реализацию и их логику в сравнительно-качественном подходе между двумя областями – Самаркандской (Узбекистан) и Южно-Казахстанской (Казахстан)

Beyond Transboundary Water Cooperation: Rescaling Processes and the Hydrosocial Cycle Reconfiguration in the Talas Waterscape (Kyrgyzstan-Kazakhstan)

none1nonoopenAndrea ZinzaniAndrea Zinzan

The circle of hydro-hegemony between riparian states, development policies and borderlands: evidence from the Talas waterscape (Kyrgyzstan-Kazakhstan)

Since the 1990s, transboundary water management has come to play a key role both in global environmental politics debates and in the shaping of international development policies, specifically in the Global South. As a consequence, a growing body of literature in the framework of critical hydropolitics has emerged reflecting on the role that power, discourses, and strategies play in shaping transboundary water policies and in influencing riparian relations. The focus on a state-centric perspective, however, often has led to neglect of the role of international development actors in shaping these policies. Through a critical application of the Circle of Hydro-Hegemony (CHH) and ethnographic qualitative field research in borderlands, this contribution aims to analyse how the establishment of a development initiative known as the Chu-Talas Commission, supported by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and other donors, has influenced and shaped transboundary water politics in the Talas waterscape, which is shared by Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. The evidence shows that despite the international narration of the Chu-Talas Commission as a success story for water cooperation in Central Asia, Kazakhstan, through the deployment of both material and bargaining power strategies, has been able to shape UNECE development policies in its favour, impose its agenda on Kyrgyzstan, and emerge as the basin hydro-hegemon

Anti-CD19 monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell malignancies: a narrative review with focus on diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Purpose: CD19 is a cell surface protein that is found on both healthy and malignant B cells. Accordingly, it has become an important target for novel treatments for non-Hodgkin lymphomas and B-cell leukaemia. Three anti-CD19 monoclonal antibodies with distinct mechanisms of action have been developed for the treatment of B-cell malignancies. Methods: We reviewed the preclinical and clinical data on the development of the newly approved anti-CD19 monoclonal antibodies blinatumomab, tafasitamab and loncastuximab tesirine, and consider their place in the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell malignancies. Results: Blinatumomab is a bispecific T-cell engager that binds to both CD19 on B cells and CD3 on T cells, facilitating antibody-dependent cytotoxicity. Blinatumomab significantly prolongs overall survival in patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, although cytokine release syndrome and severe neurotoxicity may necessitate discontinuation. Tafasitamab, which has modified anti-CD19 Fab and Fc regions, has significantly enhanced affinity for both CD19 and effector cell receptors compared with unmodified anti-CD19. In L-MIND, tafasitamab plus lenalidomide provided an overall response rate (ORR) of 57.5% in patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in patients non-transplant eligible. Loncastuximab tesirine is an antibody–drug conjugate that has been studied as monotherapy and in combination with ibrutinib in 3L + relapsed or refractory DLBCL. The ORR was 48.3% in a phase II trial of loncastuximab tesirine. The optimal place of anti-CD19 monoclonal antibodies in therapy has yet to be determined, but the prospect of improved outcomes for at least some patients with treatment-resistant B-cell malignancies appears likely, particularly in those with limited therapeutic options and poor prognosis

Critical concepts, practice recommendations, and research perspectives of pixantrone therapy in non-Hodgkin lymphoma: a SIE, SIES, and GITMO consensus paper

Objectives: In this paper, we present a review of critical concepts and research perspectives and produce recommendations on the optimal use of pixantrone in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) by group discussion from an expert panel appointed by the Italian Society of Hematology and the affiliate societies, Societa Italiana di Ematologia Sperimentale and Gruppo Italiano Trapianto di Midollo Osseo. Methods: Recommendations were produced using the Delphi process. Scientific evidence on pixantrone efficacy was analyzed using Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology in the areas where at least one randomized trial was published. The following key issues were addressed for practical recommendations: pixantrone monotherapy in aggressive relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphomas and toxicity risk management in patients candidates to pixantrone. Results and conclusions: After a balanced and value-oriented discussion, the panel agreed that the benefit/risk profile was in favor of pixantrone in the treatment of adult patients with multiply relapsed or refractory aggressive NHL B-cell lymphomas. Pixantrone was deemed to be contraindicated in patients with uncontrolled cardiovascular disease. Despite a low rate of cardiotoxicity of pixantrone reported in clinical trials, the panel recommended that all patients receiving pixantrone should undergo periodical cardiac monitoring

Novel Therapies for Aggressive B-Cell Lymphoma

Aggressive B-cell lymphoma (BCL) comprises a heterogeneous group of malignancies, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), Burkitt lymphoma, and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). DLBCL, with its 3 subtypes, is the most common type of lymphoma. Advances in chemoimmunotherapy have substantially improved disease control. However, depending on the subtype, patients with DLBCL still exhibit substantially different survival rates. In MCL, a mature B-cell lymphoma, the addition of rituximab to conventional chemotherapy regimens has increased response rates, but not survival. Burkitt lymphoma, the most aggressive BCL, is characterized by a high proliferative index and requires more intensive chemotherapy regimens than DLBCL. Hence, there is a need for more effective therapies for all three diseases. Increased understanding of the molecular features of aggressive BCL has led to the development of a range of novel therapies, many of which target the tumor in a tailored manner and are summarized in this paper

Contested novel ecosystems: Socio-ecological processes and evidence from Italy

In the context of contemporary global climate and environmental change, both natural and social scientists have stressed the role green areas play in global warming adaptation strategies and in improving the healthiness of the urban environment. Indeed, in recent years these spaces have become central to institutional political debates and various policies have been designed for their valorization. However, little attention has been paid to rewilded urban spaces, recently defined as novel urban ecosystems, and to their socio-ecological complexity. By adopting an interdisciplinary approach that links natural and social science perspectives, this article aims to highlight the role of novel urban ecosystems in the reconfiguration of urban policies. Indeed, this contribution analyzes ecosystem services coupled with the hybrid, contested socio-ecological nature of four case studies in Italy characterized by grassroots socio-environmental mobilization. Data were collected through comparative quantitative and qualitative methods. The evidence shows that the specific ecological features of novel urban ecosystems are strategic in terms of actual and potential ecosystem service provision for cities and suggests that citizens play a fundamental role in recognizing and valorizing them. In parallel, these spaces, reconceptualized as contested novel ecosystems, emerge as controversial hybrid urban socio-natures that enable community empowerment and produce a heterogeneous, grassroots political space oriented towards urban commons and environmental-climate justice