Long read book review: deplorable me: the alt-right comes to power by J.A. Smith

J.A Smith reflects on two recent books that help us to take stock of the election of President Donald Trump as part of the wider rise of the 'alt-right', questioning furthermore how the left today might contend with the emergence of those at one time termed 'a basket of deplorables'. Deplorable Me: The Alt-Right Comes to Power Devil's Bargain: Steve ..

The long read: blue labour in the age of Corbyn by J.A. Smith

Following the results of the latest leadership vote on Saturday 24 September 2016, Jeremy Corbyn remains leader of the Labour Party. Yet, the ‘Blue Labour’ strain is also far from over – a tendency grouped around the social thought of Maurice Glasman that emerged within the Party after the financial crash. In the aftermath of the contest, J.A. Smith reviews Ian Geary and Adrian Pabst‘s edited volume, Blue Labour: Forging a New Politics, reflecting on how to understand this brand of Labour in the continuing age of Corbyn

The development of large-scale integrated sugar schemes in western Kenya

This paper examines the development of the large-scale agro-industrial sugar schemes in western Kenya. The schemes are related both to Kenya's attempts to become self-sufficient in sugar production and to promote rural development in western Kenya. In particular, the paper emphasises the need to integrate the development of agricultural output, industrial production and transport systems and examines the spatial patterns consequent upon these developments

Transport And Marketing Of Horticultural Crops By Communal Farmers Into Harare

A GJZ article on the marketing of horticultural crops by rural (communal) farmers.A study was initiated in 1987 with the aim of establishing the major characteristics of the transport and marketing systems for horticultural crops into Harare. Emphasis was placed on identifying the constraints in the rural-urban link and their impact on the communal farmers. The findings reported in this paper are based on interviews with almost 200 communal farmers using Mbare growers’ market and two private city wholesalers, the Independent Market and the National Fruit and Vegetable Agency. Together, these markets represent the major outlets for horticultural produce in Harare. Survey work was undertaken in January/ February and June/July, 1987, in order to identify any seasonal variations in the marketing. The study was undertaken as part of a larger project concerned with the overall development of horticulture in Zimbabwe, including the large-scale commercial sector and the potential for export, thus allowing some wider comparisons to be made (Smith, 1987, 1990)

How much water is enough? Domestic metered water consumption and free basic water volumes: The case of Eastwood, Pietermaritzburg

This article is based on an in-depth case study of urban water services to poor households in the community of Eastwood, Pietermaritzburg, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, for the period 2005-2007. The article adopts a mixedmethodological approach. Despite government progress in delivering water infrastructure post-1994, ability to pay for the service limited access. The free basic water policy, initiated by national Government in 2001, sought to provide all citizens, but particularly the poor, with a basic supply of free water. The concessions were envisaged to improve public health, gender and equity, affordability, and as an instrument of post-apartheid redress and poverty alleviation. Once free basic water (FBW) was declared a new imperative for local government the debate on exactly how much was enough, why 6 kℓ was chosen, the structure of the offering and broader state intentions opened up. This article positions the FBW offering within the prevailing international discourse on ‘need’ calculation. Through the exploration of actual water consumption patterns of urban poor households, the ideological assumptions and ‘scientific’ calculations underpinning this discourse were found to have ignored the fluidness of use as well as the value of water beyond mere physiological need. In this regard, access to FBW was conditioned on a small household size and further predicated the modification of normal water activities and lifestyle and carried a disproportionate social cost. The free basic volume of 6 kℓ was found to have no resonance with actual water volumes consumed by the majority of Eastwood households.Keywords: free basic water, indigent, basic water requirements, water usage, municipal water services, urban poor househol

Risk management for drinking water safety in low and middle income countries: cultural influences on water safety plan (WSP) implementation in urban water utilities

We investigated cultural influences on the implementation of water safety plans (WSPs) using case studies from WSP pilots in India, Uganda and Jamaica. A comprehensive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews (n = 150 utility customers, n = 32 WSP ‘implementers’ and n = 9 WSP ‘promoters’), field observations and related documents revealed 12 cultural themes, offered as ‘enabling’, ‘limiting’, or ‘neutral’, that influence WSP implementation in urban water utilities to varying extents. Aspects such as a ‘deliver first, safety later’ mind set; supply system knowledge management and storage practices; and non-compliance are deemed influential. Emergent themes of cultural influence (ET1 to ET12) are discussed by reference to the risk management, development studies and institutional culture literatures; by reference to their positive, negative or neutral influence on WSP implementation. The results have implications for the utility endorsement of WSPs, for the impact of organisational cultures on WSP implementation; for the scale-up of pilot studies; and they support repeated calls from practitioner communities for cultural attentiveness during WSP design. Findings on organisational cultures mirror those from utilities in higher income nations implementing WSPs – leadership, advocacy among promoters and customers (not just implementers) and purposeful knowledge management are critical to WSP success

The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene family of Anopheles gambiae

Background Members of the M2 family of peptidases, related to mammalian angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), play important roles in regulating a number of physiological processes. As more invertebrate genomes are sequenced, there is increasing evidence of a variety of M2 peptidase genes, even within a single species. The function of these ACE-like proteins is largely unknown. Sequencing of the A. gambiae genome has revealed a number of ACE-like genes but probable errors in the Ensembl annotation have left the number of ACE-like genes, and their structure, unclear. Results TBLASTN and sequence analysis of cDNAs revealed that the A. gambiae genome contains nine genes (AnoACE genes) which code for proteins with similarity to mammalian ACE. Eight of these genes code for putative single domain enzymes similar to other insect ACEs described so far. AnoACE9, however, has several features in common with mammalian somatic ACE such as a two domain structure and a hydrophobic C terminus. Four of the AnoACE genes (2, 3, 7 and 9) were shown to be expressed at a variety of developmental stages. Expression of AnoACE3, AnoACE7 and AnoACE9 is induced by a blood meal, with AnoACE7 showing the largest (approximately 10-fold) induction. Conclusion Genes coding for two-domain ACEs have arisen several times during the course of evolution suggesting a common selective advantage to having an ACE with two active-sites in tandem in a single protein. AnoACE7 belongs to a sub-group of insect ACEs which are likely to be membrane-bound and which have an unusual, conserved gene structure