Cumulative effects, anthropogenic changes, and modern life paths in sub-Arctic contexts. Envisioning the future in Northeastern British Columbia: the case of the Doig and Blueberry River First Nations

This work is an attempt to describe what is happening in North-eastern British Columbia, in an area where extractivism intertwined with the market-driven economy had been generating changes not always foreseen, understood, and mitigated. Drawing on my year of fieldwork (July 2019 - August 2020), I explore how the traditional lifestyle and socio-economic organization of the Doig and Blueberry River First Nations have been changed by the cumulative effects of industrial development. At first glance, resource extraction may be perceived as a solution to tackle the many problems of scattered and isolated Indigenous communities (i.e. unemployment, lack of opportunities for socio-cultural and economic continuity in the area). However, enjoying the benefits extractivism produces comes at a high price. It impacts Indigenous cosmovision and cultural heritage while shaping how community members envision the future and the kind of future(s) they perceive as possible. The timeliness of this ethnographic work is also confirmed by the litigation BRFN v. BC (2015-2021). For the first time in Canadian legal history, a trial on cumulative effects intertwined with Treaty 8 infringements and the recognition of Constitutional rights was initiated by a First Nation Band in an attempt to stop development projects to which the Band did not give its consent. The litigation came to an end in June 2021, with a ground-breaking verdict in which it was judged that the BC province could not continue to authorize activities that breach Treaty 8 and its unwritten promises. As a result, on 7th October 2021, a preliminary agreement between BRFN and the BC Government was reached. The province has agreed to allocate a total amount of C$ 65 million to the BRFN for land restoration activities and cultural practices revitalization. To explain the complex reality community members (and Fort St. John residents) meet in their everyday lives while facing extractivism, I introduce the concept of ‘atemporal modernity’ as an (a)temporal status in continuous becoming. I argue that people are trapped in such a status, perpetually waiting for a better future yet to come, which can only be achieved through extractivism. By letting people talk, I try to describe their everyday challenges while exploring which kind of future(s) community members envision to keep living off the land as long as ‘the sun shines, the rivers flow, and the grass grows’

Implementing UNDRIP in British Columbia in a Post-Yahey Context: What to Expect After the Yahey v. BC Litigation (S151727) and the Agreement on Industrial Development and Cumulative Effects Management

Almost two years after the ground-breaking verdict that the Supreme Court of British Columbia issued in the context of the Yahey v. BC litigation, on January 18, 2023, the Province of British Columbia signed a historic agreement with Blueberry River First Nation (BRFN) to address the cumulative effects of industrial development on the meaningful exercise of Treaty 8 rights in the Nation’s traditional territory while establishing collaborative approaches to land and resource planning. At the same time, the Province concluded agreements with other Treaty 8 First Nations (Doig River, Fort Nelson, McLeod Lake, Prophet River, Saulteau and West Moberly First Nations) concerning cumulative effects management, land planning and resource exploitation. These agreements have been praised as ground-breaking steps towards a new relationship that Government and Industry are eager to build with First Nations while healing the land and ensuring certainty for Industry to carry on resource development in British Columbia. This happens as the Province and the Federal Government move forward with their action plans to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (hereafter UNDRIP) at the provincial and federal levels. It also comes at a time of significant challenges British Columbia must face, between new First Nations development projects (i.e., the Cedar LNG project) that the Province is actively supporting and recent litigations initiated by some First Nations to see UNDRIP adequately implemented in the BC legal framework (i.e., the trial initiated by Gitxaala and Ehattesaht First Nations concerning the lack of consultation regarding how BC grants mineral claims).

Branded vs. Generic drugs: the role of self-perceived seriousness of disease

Purpose -This study aims at exploring the role of perceived disease seriousness in consumers' preference for generic versus branded drugs, by shedding light on new factors impacting consumer purchase behaviour for pharmaceutical products. Design/methodology/approach - An exploratory study based on a quantitative analysis has been conducted with a sample of 100 participants who have been presented with two different scenarios: one related to more serious disease (as in cardiological disease) and one related to less serious disease (as in the seasonal flu). This paper considered Italy as a research setting where the recent mandatory prescription of the active ingredient by doctors leaves the final purchase decision in consumers' hands Findings-Results show that, although consumers are free to choose whether to buy a branded or a generic prescribed active ingredient, their choice is mainly driven by the role of the brand. Consumers' intention to buy generic drugs is higher in the case of diseases perceived as less serious, while the intention to buy branded drugs is higher in the case of disease perceived as more serious. Originality/value - This study contributes to marketing research and practice by proposing that consumers' perceived seriousness of their disease should be considered as a further factor in identifying new marketing strategies in those contexts in which the choice between branded or generic drugs is free

TopoVar90m: Global high-resolution topographic variables for environmental modeling

Topographical relief involves the vertical and horizontal variation of the Earth\u27s terrain and it drives processes in hydrology, climatology, geography and ecology. Its assessment and characterization is fundamental for various types of modeling and simulation analysis. In this regard, the Multi-Error-Removed Improved Terrain (MERIT) Digital Elevation Model (DEM) currently provides the best high-resolution DEM globally available, at a 3 arc-second resolution (90m), due to the removal of multiple error components from the underlying SRTM3 and AW3D30 DEMs. To depict topographical variations worldwide, we developed a new dataset comprising different terrain features derived from the MERIT-DEM. The fully standardized topographical variables consist of slope, aspect, eastness, northness, roughness, terrain roughness index, vector ruggedness measure, topographic position index, stream power index, convergence, profile/tangential curvature, first/second order partial derivative and 10 geomorphological landform classes with their parameters features (intensity, exposition, range, variance, elongation, azimuth, extend and width). To assess how potential errors in the MERIT-DEM affect the derived topographic variables, we compared our results with the same variables derived from the National Elevation Dataset (NED), which is the best-available gridded elevation dataset for the United States. We compared the two data sources by calculating the first order derivative (i.e., rate of change through space measured in degrees) of the difference between a MERIT- derived vs. a NED-derived topographic variable. All newly-created topographic variables are readily available at a 3 arc-second resolution, for use as input data in various environmental models and analyses in the field of geography, geology, hydrology, ecology and biogeography

Externalised vs. Internalised Consumption of Luxury Goods: Propositions and Implications for Luxury Retail Marketing

This study conceptualises the dichotomy of luxury goods consumption ('externalised luxury' vs. 'internalised luxury') in terms of six dimensions: on the one hand ostentation, materialism and superfluousness (which refer to luxury as a social statement) and, on the other hand individual lifestyle, emotions/hedonism and culture (which refer to luxury as individual style). Through this literary framework, it presents a series of propositions that might be tested in future research, one for each dimension, about retail strategies and operations for fashion luxury brands. Implications for retail managers of luxury companies are discussed for each proposition, considering the main aspects of retailing strategies and tools (e.g. assortment, sales force, in-store experience and atmospherics) together with possible theoretical developments. © 2012 Taylor and Francis Group, LLC

Exploring the Relationships of Fire Occurrence Variables by Means of CART and MARS Models

Recently, in the framework of long-term fire risk assessment, researcher have implemented spatial and non-spatial non-parametric prediction models to discover complex relationships among wildfire variables. The main scope was to overcome the assumption of spatial stationarity in the relationship among the response variable and the predictors, assumed by the traditional regression techniques. The present article aims to test and compare the potential of the CART and MARS models in predicting fire occurrence at local scale. The test is performed in the Arno River Basin, a fire prone area located in the central part of Italy. Road network, topographic variables and population data were implemented to build up fire prediction model using 1621 ignition points recorded during the period 1997-2003. The models produce two prediction maps slightly similar. In general the CART model overperform compare to the MARS one. Nonetheless, the MARS model produces a smoothened surface that theoretically better follow the probability of a fire event.JRC.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Monitoring the quality of an Italian public psychiatric service: A four dimensions study of the outcome

Objective: Within the concept of the outcome of hea1th services, the user's satisfaction has to be integrated by other more objective measures of health and quality of life. Debra Srebnik and coworkers have proposed a Survey for Monitoring the Quality of Public Mental Hea1th Services (SMQPMHS), which covers the following dimensions: Satisfaction, Functioning, Quality of Life and Clinica1 Status. The research main goals were as follows: a) to study the psychometric properties of the Ita1ian version of the Survey, and b) to study possible differences between the outcome of psychiatric patients applying to our outpatient facilities vs. the American sample. Methods: The Italian version of SMQPMHS was proposed to all patients receiving care at 2 Italian outpatient psychiatric facilities over a period of 2 months. 291 subjects accepted to participate in the study and fi1led in adequately the questionnaire. Results: Mean scores of the 13 variables of the Survey were very similar to those observed in the Arnerican sample. A matrix of correlations between each variable and each of the others indicated adequate internal consistency. A principal component analysis supported the four-dimensions model of the Survey. Patients recently hospitalized showed a poorer Clinical Status and a lower Satisfaction. Patients unemployed at the time of the survey showed a poorer Clinical Status. Conclusions: The Italian version of SMQPMHS showed good psychometric properties, even though concurrent validity needs further study. No differences emerged between the present sample and the American sample

Elderly consumers and financial choices: A systematic review

The purpose of this paper is to investigate elderly choices and behaviors in financial services markets. A systematic review of a five-decade period (1970–2019) of academic research in the marketing field was carried out in order to identify elderly consumers’ decisions regarding financial asset management and legacy, highlighting the main findings of extant research and practical implications for marketers. Results shed light on financial asset management in terms of welfare, retirement planning, and investments for old age, as well as legacy practices in terms of special possessions, charities, and rites of passage. The study underlines the need to consider the heterogeneous nature of elderly consumers’ values and lifestyles in designing strategies for financial services and products, emphasizing that demographic differences alone are not adequate to effectively define market segments. Furthermore, the role of mixed marketing approaches considering elderly choices are discussed, together with implications for companies that want to target such consumer target

Luxury Purchasing among Older Consumers: Exploring Inferences about Cognitive Age, Status, and Style Motivations

This research deals with the possibility that luxury purchasing among older consumers is related to their cognitive age (i.e., the age they feel) and, accordingly, the study reported herein assesses the effects of the underlying luxury motives on cognitive age. Results show that older consumers who relate luxury goods purchasing mainly to status reasons tend to feel younger than those who consider luxury goods purchasing primarily as a means to express their individual style. Furthermore, the study finds that, in order to meet their needs and wants, older consumers with a lower cognitive age rely more on brands than specific products; so their luxury goods purchasing intention is influenced more by brand images than product characteristics. These findings have marketing implications in the context of planning ad hoc advertising strategies aimed at luxury selling to older consumers