Gendered geographies of environmental injustice

This is the accepted version of the following article: Buckingham, S. and Kulcur, R. (2009), Gendered Geographies of Environmental Injustice. Antipode, 41: 659–683. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8330.2009.00693.x, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-8330.2009.00693.x/abstract. Copyright @ 2009 The Authors.As environmental justice concerns become more widely embedded in environmental organizations and policy making, and increasingly the focus of academic study, the gender dimension dissolves into an exclusive focus on race/ethnicity and class/income. While grass roots campaigning activities were often dominated by women, in the more institutionalized activities of organizations dominated by salaried professionals, gender inequality is neglected as a vector of environmental injustice, and addressing this inequality is not considered a strategy for redress. This paper explores some of the reasons why this may be so, which include a lack of visibility of gendered environmental injustice; professional campaigning organizations which are themselves gender blind; institutions at a range of scales which are still structured by gender (as well as class and race) inequalities; and an intellectual academy which continues to marginalize the study of gender – and women’s – inequality. The authors draw on experience of environmental activism, participant observation, and other qualitative research into the gendering of environmental activity, to first explore the constructions of scale to see how this might limit a gender-fair approach to environmental justice. Following this, the practice of ‘gender mainstreaming’ in environmental organizations and institutions will be examined, demonstrating how this is limited in scope and fails to impact on the gendering of environmental injustice

Narrative, Sensemaking, and Improvisation in Participatory Hypermedia Construction

In this paper we describe research into a form of practitioner sensemaking in the context of participatory hypermedia construction sessions, in which groups of people build knowledge maps. We discuss how constructs from narrative theory and improvisation have helped us understand what happens at the moments when practitioners encounter dilemmas and obstacles. We provide brief examples from case studies and discuss possible contributions to broader themes in sensemaking research

End-Use Certificates for Wheat: Trade-Distorting Administrative Barriers?

International Relations/Trade,

Factors that Affect Cardiovascular Health: A Review

Cardiovascular disease is a major public health problem in terms of both high morbidity and mortality rates and large economic costs. Cardiovascular health and risk of disease are determined by a wide range of genetic and environmental factors. This review focuses on the extent to which heredity, physical activity, diet, and psychological factors (including stress) are known to contribute to cardiovascular health or disease. A predisposition for cardiovascular disease can be inherited, but genetic counselling allows the identification of those who are most at risk and an individualised plan to include appropriate lifestyle changes can then be formulated. It is well established that increasing amounts of physical activity can enhance cardiovascular health and reduce the risk of disease, but knowledge of specific aspects of exercise (such as optimal intensity and mode) is limited. Dietary interventions show that reductions in low-density lipoproteins (LDLs), and increases in high-density lipoproteins (HDLs) and certain antioxidants and vitamins may reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors. The long-term effects of dietary salt are more controversial. Psychological factors are contributory, rather than major, determinants of cardiovascular health, but there is evidence that lack of social support, stress and other negative states can increase the risk of disease

A new chiral electro-optic effect: Sum-frequency generation from optically active liquids in the presence of a dc electric field

We report the observation of sum-frequency signals that depend linearly on an applied electrostatic field and that change sign with the handedness of an optically active solution. This recently predicted chiral electro-optic effect exists in the electric-dipole approximation. The static electric field gives rise to an electric-field-induced sum-frequency signal (an achiral third-order process) that interferes with the chirality-specific sum-frequency at second-order. The cross-terms linear in the electrostatic field constitute the effect and may be used to determine the absolute sign of second- and third-order nonlinear optical susceptibilities in isotropic media.Comment: Submitted to Physical Revie

Mobile health technology to promote physical activity in a workplace setting: A mixed methods pilot study in the police force

As work roles become more sedentary, new interventions to promote physical activity (PA) and reduce sedentary behaviour (SB) are required. Mobile health (mHealth) technology (including wearable activity monitors and smartphone apps) is increasingly popular, low cost and accessible. The project consisted of a systematic review of the existing evidence for mHealth interventions for PA and SB in workplace settings, followed by a real-world pre-post pilot study of a specific mHealth intervention in the police force (the Physical Activity Wearables in the Police Force, or PAW-Force study). The review findings indicated that mHealth is a potentially effective, feasible and acceptable tool for promoting PA in a workplace context, at least in the short term. The longer-term impact and acceptability, and the impact on SB and wider outcomes (such as health, wellbeing and productivity) were less clear. The methodological quality of many existing studies was low and there were few mixed methods and qualitative studies. The study aims were to address the evidence gaps identified in the review, including the use of mixed methods, a detailed exploration of feasibility, acceptability and engagement in both the short- and longer-term, in addition to the impact on PA, sedentary time, health and wellbeing, perceived stress, perceived productivity and sickness absence. This was the first known study of an mHealth intervention for PA and SB in the police force. Police officers and staff (n = 180) within the Devon and Cornwall and Dorset Police received a 12-week intervention (a Fitbit® activity monitor and ‘Bupa Boost’ smartphone app) with 8 months follow-up. The results suggested a potential short- and long-term impact of the intervention on PA, particularly for less active officers and staff. Although the intervention was perceived as acceptable and feasible at various organisational levels, the findings highlighted the importance of contextual factors and opportunity, particularly for reducing SB. As in previous studies in other workplace settings, the impact on health, wellbeing, stress, productivity and sickness absence was unclear. The fields of workplace wellness, mHealth and behaviour change are brought together in this PhD. The findings will inform future interventions in addition to policy and practice in the police force

A short survey of discourse representation models

With the advancement of technology and the wide adoption of ontologies as knowledge representation formats, in the last decade, a handful of models were proposed for the externalization of the rhetoric and argumentation captured within scientific publications. Conceptually, most of these models share a similar representation form of the scientific publication, i.e. as a series of interconnected elementary knowledge items. The main differences are given by the terminology used, the types of rhetorical and/or argumentation relations connecting the knowledge items and the foundational theories supporting these relations. This paper analyzes the state of the art and provides a concise comparative overview of the five most prominent discourse representation models, with the goal of sketching an unified model for discourse representation

Interprofessional learning in practice: The student experience

Interprofessional learning and the development of teamworking skills are recognised as essential for patient care and are also a government priority for undergraduate education. Sixteen occupational therapy students worked on an interprofessional training ward as part of their practice placement and three of them participated in an evaluation using the nominal group technique. Despite this small number, the evaluation identifies the value of this learning experience in giving the students an opportunity to appreciate the importance of interpersonal skills; to learn about other team members’ roles; and to experience the challenges of working on a busy rehabilitation ward for older people

Is Cardiovascular Health Affected by Exercise Type and Impact?

The principal aim of this study was to determine whether cardiovascular health, assessed by resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure and resting heart rate, was affected by exercise type (golf vs. tennis) and associated impact (low vs. high). Male and female golfers (n = 40) and tennis players (n = 40) aged between 40 and 71 years completed a short questionnaire relating to their main sport and typical exercise habits. Resting blood pressure and heart rate readings were then taken using an electronic wrist sphygmomanometer. The analysis of variance (General Linear Model) showed that overall there were no significant differences in either the resting systolic or diastolic blood pressure, or resting heart rate, of golfers and tennis players. However, a significant increase in systolic blood pressure with age (F = 10.48, p = 0.002) was observed in golfers, compared with no significant age-related increases in blood pressure in tennis players. In conclusion, exercise type and impact appear to have no effect on cardiovascular health in the 40 to 71 year olds age group, but high impact exercise may have a protective effect against age-related increases in blood pressure which requires further investigation

A Control System for Intraseason Salmon Management

Management of Salmon populations in large rivers like the Skeena (B.C., Canada) is usually done in two stages. First long range goals and data are used to set annual target exploitation rates for each stock or population that spawns in the river. Second, actions are taken within each fishing season to regulate catches so as to produce the target exploitation. The most difficult monitoring and decision problems are associated with intra-season management; the purpose of this paper is to outline a control system for dealing with these problems