Anti-Asylum Policies of Hungary

The thesis focuses on the principal dilemma of the institution of asylum of Hungary in the post-Communist, pre-European Union era. The broader context is provided by analyses of international migration waves that reach Hungary, a presentation of the country’s international human rights obligations and a discussion of the anti-migration influence of accession to the European Union. Finally, proposals are outlined for a closer adherence to international human rights principles and for the elaboration of national asylum policy

Long-term weather sensitivity of open sand grasslands of the Kiskunság Sand Ridge forest-steppe mosaic after wildfires

We studied the long-term impact of wildfire on the vegetation dynamics of sand grasslands in a forest-steppe vegetation mosaic in Central Hungary (Kiskunság). Longterm permanent quadrat monitoring was carried out from 1997 to 2008. We sampled the forest-steppe mosaic both in burnt and unburnt areas in 100 patches altogether using one by one meter quadrats. The effect of fire and precipitation on vegetation dynamics was characterized by patch type transitions between years. Patch types were defined by means of Cocktail method. Nine patch types of sand grasslands were altogether identified. The least productive patch types, bare soil and cryptogam dominance, did not occur in the burnt patches, while annual dominated patch type appeared only in burnt patches. The frequencies of patch type changes were significantly higher in burnt patches than in unburnt ones, independently on the time since fire. All the eight patch types found in the unburnt patches proved permanent, while in the burnt patches only four of seven were so. The relative frequency of patch type changes did not correlate to the precipitation in the vegetation period in the unburnt patches, while positively correlated in the burnt patches. It was concluded that the long-term difference in grassland dynamics between the unburnt and burnt patches, i.e. the excess of the patch type transitions in the burnt grasslands, are due to increased drought sensitivity of the grassland, which is the consequence of the elimination of the woody component of the forest-steppe vegetation

Managing intra-EU mobility—do WHO principles of ethical recruitment have relevance?

BACKGROUND: The WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel provides for guidance in health workforce management and cooperation in the international context. This article aims to examine whether the principles of the voluntary WHO Global Code of Practice can be applied to trigger health policy decisions within the EU zone of free movement of persons. METHODS: In the framework of the Joint Action on European Health Workforce Planning and Forecasting project (Grant Agreement: JA EUHWF 20122201 (see healthworkforce.eu)), focus group discussions were organised with over 30 experts representing ministries, universities and professional and international organisations. Ideas were collected about the applicability of the principles and with the aim to find EU law compatible, relevant solutions using a qualitative approach based on a standardised, semi-structured interview guide and pre-defined statements. RESULTS: Based on implementation practices summarised, focus group experts concluded that positive effects of adhering to the Code can be identified and useful ideas-compatible with EU law-exist to manage intra-EU mobility. The most relevant areas for intervention include bilateral cooperations, better use of EU financial resources, improved retention and integration policies and better data flow and monitoring. Improving retention is of key importance; however, ethical considerations should also apply within the EU. Compensation of source countries can be a solution to further elaborate on when developing EU financial mechanisms. Intra-EU circular mobility might be feasible and made more transparent if directed by tailor-made, institutional-level bilateral cooperations adjusted to different groups and profiles of health professionals. Integration policies should be improved as discrimination still exists when offering jobs despite the legal environment facilitating the recognition of professional qualifications. A system of feedback on registration/licencing data should be promoted providing for more evidence on intra-EU mobility and support its management. CONCLUSIONS: Workforce planning in EU Member States can be supported, and more equitable distribution of the workforce can be provided by building policy decisions on the principles of the WHO Code. Political commitment has to be strengthened in EU countries to adopt implementation solutions for intra-EU problems. Long-term benefits of respecting global principles of the Code should be better demonstrated in order to incentivise all parties to follow such long-term objectives

Taxon-specific responses to different forestry treatments in a temperate forest

There are only few studies that explore the ecological consequences of forest management on several organism groups. We studied the short-term effects of four forestry treatments including preparation cutting, clear-cutting, retention tree group and gap-cutting in a temperate managed forest on the assemblage structure of understory plants, enchytraeid worms, spiders and ground beetles. Here we show, that the effect of treatments on the different facets of assemblage structure was taxon-specific. Clear-cutting and retention tree group strongly impoverished enchytraeids assemblages. Even if the species richness and cover of plants increased in clear-cutting and gap-cutting, their species composition moderately changed after treatments. For spiders only their species composition was influenced by the treatments, while the response of ground beetles was slightly affected. Short-term effect of forest management interventions on biodiversity might be compensated by the dispersal (spiders, ground beetles) and resilience (plants) of organism groups, however sedentary soil organism showed high sensitivity

Wind-snow interactions at the Ojos del Salado region as a potential Mars analogue site in the Altiplano - Atacama desert region

The general characteristics and interactions happening at a unique, potential new Mars analogue site, located in the Altiplano and Atacama Desert region: the Ojos del Salado inactive volcano. The interaction between rare snowing events and strong winds transported large masses of porous volcanic grains there could produce decimeter - meter thick buried snow masses fast, shielded against sublimation for extended periods (years). Subsurface temperature logging suggests that water ice melting is rare and surface modification is dominated by desiccation of the cryosphere and wind activity – just like on Mars. The site contains decameter scale megaripples, which are unusual for Earth and also support the understanding of resemble features on Mars. The shallow subsurface analysis with Mars relevance is supported here by drilled cores of evaporitic sediments

Headcount and FTE data in the European health workforce monitoring and planning process

Background: Health workforce (HWF) planning and monitoring processes face challenges regarding data and appropriate indicators. One such area fraught with difficulties is labour activity and, more specifically, defining headcount and full-time equivalent (FTE). This study aims to review national practices in FTE calculation formulas for selected EU Member States (MS). Methods: The research was conducted as a part of the Joint Action on European Health Workforce Planning and Forecasting. Definitions, categories and terms concerning the five sectoral professions were examined in 14 MS by conducting a survey. To gain a deeper understanding of the international data-reporting processes (Joint Questionnaire on Non-Monetary Health Care Statistics-JQ), six international expert interviews were conducted by using a semi-structured interview guide. Results: Of the 14 investigated countries, four MS indicated that they report FTE to the JQ and that they also calculate FTE data for national planning purposes. The other countries do not use FTE data for national purposes, but most of them do use special calculations and/or estimation methods for converting headcount to FTE. The findings revealed significant differences between national calculation methods when reporting FTE data to the JQ. This diversity in terms of calculations and estimations can lead to biases with respect to international comparisons. This finding was reinforced by the expert interviews, since the experts agreed that the activities of healthcare professionals are a fundamental factor in HWF monitoring and planning. Experts underscored that activity should also be measured by FTE, and not only by headcount. Conclusions: FTE and headcount are significant factors in HWF planning and monitoring therefore, national data collections should place emphasis on collecting data and calculating the appropriate indicators. National FTE could serve as a call to action for HWF planners due to the lack of matching international FTE data. At the international level, it is beneficial to monitor the trends and numbers regarding human resources and working time. For the moment, the exchange of information and mutual assistance for developing the capacity to apply common methodology could be a first step towards the standardisation of data collections. © 2016 The Author(s)