Demographic Trends in National Forest, Recreational, Retirement, and Amenity Areas

Those who live near national forests are both potential forest visitors and neighbors who feel the impact of many forest management decisions. This paper provides some insights about those proximate populations. It does so by measuring the proportion of national forest land within each county and then combining that with an analysis of the patterns of demographic change over the past several decades. Because there is considerable overlap between counties that contain national forests and those designated as recreational, high amenity, and retirement destination counties, demographic trends in such counties are compared. A total of 757 of the 3,141 U.S. counties contain national forest land. More than 66.1 million people resided in these counties in 2000, some 24% of the U.S. total. The population in national forest counties grew by 19% between 1990 and 2000 compared to 13% for the nation as a whole. Most of the population gain in national forest areas resulted from net in-migration. Population gains in national forest counties were slightly smaller than those in recreational and natural amenity counties and significantly less than those in retirement destination counties; however, the gains were considerably larger than those in other counties. National forest counties that are metropolitan have significantly more Hispanics than other metropolitan counties but fewer Blacks and Whites. Nonmetropolitan national forest counties contain a much larger proportion of non-Hispanic Whites than their metropolitan counterparts, a finding consistent with that for nonmetropolitan counties in general. Knowledge about the changing size and demographic structure of the population in national forest counties has particular relevance to Forest Service planners and policymakers

Balancing Leisure and Work: Evidence from the Seasonal Home

Seasonal homes are used during leisure time for many recreational activities, yet recent technological innovations have diminished the separation between the work place and the seasonal home. In a survey of Walworth County seasonal home owners, most who work full time report they seldom work during vacations and weekends from their seasonal home. Yet there is a distinct subgroup who do mix work into weekends and vacations for a variety of reasons. The most frequent reasons given by these people for working from the seasonal home were related to the expectations of coworkers and clients. Understanding more about the habits and motivations of those who frequently work during weekends and on vacations could provide a new perspective on the obstacles everyone faces in balancing work and leisure

Untangling the Genetic Basis of Fibrolytic Specialization by Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae in Diverse Gut Communities

The Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae are two of the most abundant families from the order Clostridiales found in the mammalian gut environment, and have been associated with the maintenance of gut health. While they are both diverse groups, they share a common role as active plant degraders. By comparing the genomes of the Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae with the Clostridiaceae, a more commonly free-living group, we identify key carbohydrate-active enzymes, sugar transport mechanisms, and metabolic pathways that distinguish these two commensal groups as specialists for the degradation of complex plant material

Fundamental attitudes of the Russian political elite: law, truth, public welfare and violence

This study examines behavioural patterns of the top echelons of Russia’s elite within four fundamental spheres (law, truth, public welfare and violence) since 2008 and discovers certain continuities. It reveals the elite's fundamental attitudes in the four areas as evinced by its actions – attitudes which will have a decisive impact on German-Russian and EU-Russia relations in the future. The study shows that Russia’s actions since 2014 - which have surprised many Western observers - are based on attitudes that were already perceptible before then. These attitudes can thus be considered part of the Russian elite's long-standing political culture. Today, it is the instrumentalisation of law, truth and violence in foreign and domestic politics, and a desire for control derived from mistrust in external and internal actors, that especially characterise Russia’s elite. The common good or well-being of the Russian people is not a priority for the elite, or only in purely instrumental terms. Politicians and policymakers in Germany and the EU need to take these fundamental attitudes into account when developing a medium- to long-term approach to Russia because they will shape the actions of numerous members of the Russian elite for the foreseeable future. (author's abstract

A more robust Russia policy for the EU: how member-state coalitions can contribute

Since the annexation of Crimea and the outbreak of the war in Eastern Ukraine in spring 2014, the EU has largely been in crisis-management mode vis-à-vis Russia. During the past six years, it has become clear that Russia's actions towards Ukraine are not a stand-alone crisis, but rather the expression of a policy that violates the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other states and does not seek compromise with western actors in the neighbourhood. It is associated with an approach that aims to weaken the EU and many of its member states. Finally, the case of Alexei Navalny, inter alia, has indicated that the Russian leadership is prepared to use bru­tality to prevent a viable political opposition from emerging. Considering all this, the EU needs a Russia policy that is capable of dealing with Russia more effectively. (author's abstract

The EU, Russia and a less common neighbourhood: lessons reinforced by the Vilnius summit

The run-up to and outcomes of the Vilnius summit in November 2013 indicate that the Eastern Partnership is undergoing a period of crisis. This is primarily because the EU and its Eastern partners have not been successful at communicating their respective goals to each other and agreeing on viable methods for reaching them. The same applies to the EU-Russia relationship, which is becoming increasingly dysfunctional, especially with regard to the so-called common neighbourhood. Although the two policy areas interact, a clearer separation between them is currently more justified than a gradual conflation of the two approaches. The summit has highlighted a series of problems that, so far, have been addressed only sporadically or at the rhetorical level. The silver lining of Vilnius can be found in seeing it as an opportunity to analyze these problems systematically in order to modify existing policy to take better account of current realities. (author's abstract

Consolidating Germany's Russia policy: refine existing approaches and clarify trade-offs

The "Zeitenwende" in international politics implies a need to improve strategic thinking and better prepare for future challenges. Germany is already doing so by drafting strategic documents on national security and relations with China. With respect to Russia, a similar approach suggests itself. First, because Russia's aggression against Ukraine has significantly worsened the situation in Europe and beyond for the foreseeable future. Second, because the conception of a Russia policy based on the principles declared since 2022 offers an opportunity to correct previous mistakes and transform measures that have emerged from a crisis situation into long-term policy. (author's abstract

The rule of law in contemporary Ukraine: widespread elite failure puts reforms at risk

Ukraine's Euromaidan protest movement, which brought about the fall of President Yanukovych in 2014, has led to a comprehensive process of reforms. However, this process is being hampered and delayed by a large number of internal and external hurdles. There are particularly significant obstacles to establishing a state governed by the rule of law. Preserving areas in which a legal vacuum exists is in the interests of influential political and economic actors because such areas contribute to their personal enrichment and help maintain their power. It is therefore important to examine the progress that has been made and the hurdles that have been encountered in establishing the rule of law. Such an analysis can help German and European actors to take well-founded decisions on how to support Ukraine's moves towards rule-of-law structures more effectively than they have in the past. (author's abstract