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Management Options for Organic Winter Wheat Production under Climate Change
Full text linkAn effective adaptive strategy for reducing climate change risks and increasing agro-system resiliency is broadening cropping system diversity, heightening the flexibility of cultivation and tillage methods. Climate change impacts on standard cultivation practices such as mineralisation and nitrate leaching due to mild and rainy winters, as well as frequent drought or water saturation, not only limiting fieldwork days, but also restricting ploughing. This calls for alternative methods to counteract these propensities. From 2010 to 2013, a farming system experiment was conducted on a distinctly heterogeneous organic farm in Brandenburg, Germany. With the intention of devising a more varied and flexible winter wheat cultivation method, standard organic farming practices (winter wheat cultivation after two years of alfalfa-clover-grass and ploughing in mid-October) were compared to four alternative test methods, which were then evaluated for their robustness and suitability as adaptive strategies. Two of the alternative methods, early sowing and catch crop, entailed moving up the date for alfalfa-clover-grass tilling to July. Instead of a plough, a ring-cutter was used to shallowly (8 cm) cut through and mix the topsoil. In the early sowing test method, winter wheat was sown at the end of August, after repeated ring-cutter processing. With the catch crop method, winter wheat seeding followed a summer catch crop and October tillage. The two oat methods (oat/plough; oat/ring-cutter) entailed sowing winter wheat in September, following oat cultivation. Overall, the cultivation methods demonstrated the following robustness gradation: standard practice = catch crop ≥ early sowing > oat/plough > oat/ring-cutter. When compared to standard procedures, the catch crop and early sowing test methods showed no remarkable difference in grain yields. Measured against early sowing, the catch crop test method was significantly more robust when it came to winterkill, quality loss, and weed infestation (40% lower weed-cover). High Nmin- values (up to 116 kg N ha-1) in autumn could have caused the chamomile and thistle infestation in both oat/ploughoat/ring-cutter test methods, which led to crop failure in the hollows. Compared to standard practices, the oat ring-cutter test method brought in over 50% less grain yield. This was attributed to ring-cutter processing, which reduced N mineralisation and caused high weed infestation. However, the ring-cutter effectively regulated alfalfa-clover-grass fields in both exceedingly wet and very dry weather; a temporal flexibility which increases the number of fieldwork days. The catch crop and early sowing test methods contributed most to boosting future agronomic diversity
An Experimental Test of a Biodynamic Method of Weed Suppression: The Biodynamic Seed Peppers
Full text linkAn experimental test of a biodynamic agriculture method of weed suppression was carried out in growth chambers to establish the feasibility of the method as a preliminary to field trials. Four generations of Brassica rapa plants were used in a randomized block design. Treated flats received ashed seeds prepared according to biodynamic indications. Seed weight and counts were measured at the end of each generation, and germination of the control and experimental seed was investigated at the end of generation four. The biodynamic seed peppers, created and applied as described here, had no effect on seed production or viability, and did not effectively inhibit reproduction of the targeted species over the course of four consecutive treatments
Urban Agriculture: Fostering the Urban-Rural Continuum
Full text linkUrban agricultural projects have been mushrooming since the end of the twentieth century, reshaping urban landscapes and even the whole urban fabric, experimenting with alternatives to the traditional urban life, sometimes creating new commons, and bringing people together. Within a city, farmers, gardeners, and their neighbors share more than just fence lines. Cities already have a huge potential for farming. Three examples can be observed in very different cities around the World: Singapore, is fully self-reliant in meat, Bamako is self-sufficient in vegetables, and in Berlin there are 80,000 community gardens on communal land and 16,000 more people are on a waiting-list [1]. And this is just the beginning; in many cities new unbuilt areas emerge in the wake of deindustrialization (derelict lands, wastelands, brownfields, etc.), or as a consequence of urban shrinking due to aging populations (as in Japan or Germany), or of emigration (as in some African mid-sized cities). These new areas are a wonderful opportunity for urban agriculture. In Detroit, thousands hectares of urban land have been given over to unemployed workers for food growing. In Britain, urban agriculture has been promoted on wastelands of 20 cities by their various councils [2]. Urban agriculture is gradually becoming a planning policy option. In Delft, the planners of the city already combine urban agriculture with several other land uses in their planning documents; in Paris, an inclusive local land development plan protects agricultural landscapes [3,4]. Urban agriculture is neither—or no more—the short-lived remnant of a rural culture nor the hipsters' latest futile craze
Pacification & Mega-events in Rio de Janeiro: Urbanization, Public Security & Accumulation by Dispossession
No full textThis paper outlines how Brazil's latest public security initiative-its highly controversial Police Pacification Campaign (UPP)-is an integral component of a neoliberal political framework that is enacting rapid urbanization projects in and around strategically located favelas (informal settlements or slums) of Rio de Janeiro. Specifically, it evaluates what kinds of economic development initiatives are moving forward, how they are facilitated by the UPP, how they connect to the city's mega-events, and who is profiting from them. The article also examines how the pacification has affected residents in three favelas over a seven-year period from the inauguration of the UPP in 2008 through to mid-2015
Review of On-Scene Management of Mass-Casualty Attacks
Full text linkBackground: The scene of a mass-casualty attack (MCA) entails a crime scene, a hazardous space, and a great number of people needing medical assistance. Public transportation has been the target of such attacks and involves a high probability of generating mass casualties. The review aimed to investigate challenges for on-scene responses to MCAs and suggestions made to counter these challenges, with special attention given to attacks on public transportation and associated terminals. Methods: Articles were found through PubMed and Scopus, “relevant articles” as defined by the databases, and a manual search of references. Inclusion criteria were that the article referred to attack(s) and/or a public transportation-related incident and issues concerning formal on-scene response. An appraisal of the articles’ scientific quality was conducted based on an evidence hierarchy model developed for the study. Results: One hundred and five articles were reviewed. Challenges for command and coordination on scene included establishing leadership, inter-agency collaboration, multiple incident sites, and logistics. Safety issues entailed knowledge and use of personal protective equipment, risk awareness and expectations, cordons, dynamic risk assessment, defensive versus offensive approaches, and joining forces. Communication concerns were equipment shortfalls, dialoguing, and providing information. Assessment problems were scene layout and interpreting environmental indicators as well as understanding setting-driven needs for specialist skills and resources. Triage and treatment difficulties included differing triage systems, directing casualties, uncommon injuries, field hospitals, level of care, providing psychological and pediatric care. Transportation hardships included scene access, distance to hospitals, and distribution of casualties. Conclusion: Commonly encountered challenges during unintentional incidents were added to during MCAs, implying specific issues for safety, assessment, triage, and treatment, which require training. Effectively increasing readiness for MCAs likely entail struggles to overcome fragmentation between the emergency services and the broader crisis management system as well as enabling critical and prestige-less, context-based assessments of needed preparatory efforts
Rio De Janeiro’s Olympic Legacy: Public Security for Whom?
Full text linkAs Rio de Janeiro struggles to hold itself together through the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, its much lauded public security Games plan, including its highly controversial police pacification program—long promoted as one of the cornerstones of Rio’s Olympic legacy—descends into a state of near total collapse. This paper takes an intimate look at what is likely the last days of this contentious pacification policy, the part it plays in the wider ‘Games Security Plan’, and how and why it has been implemented in the lead up to the 2016 Summer Olympics
Can the Adoption of Organic Farming Be Predicted by Biogeographic Factors? A French Case Study
Full text linkOrganic farming adoption is on the rise in many countries, due to the increased awareness of farmers, citizens, governments and other stakeholders of its more sustainable nature. Various studies have investigated the socio-economic drivers (e.g., consumer demand, support measures, agricultural policies) of organic farming adoption, but less attention has been paid to whether biogeographic factors could also be associated with variation in rates of organically managed farms in certain regions within countries. We investigate whether biogeographic factors are associated with variation in the proportion of land under organic farming in French departments. The proportion of land under organic farming increased with decreasing latitude and increasing department area. Non-significant factors were number of plant taxa, proportion of Natura 2000 protected areas, connectivity, longitude, altitude and department population. These results were robust to controlling for spatial autocorrelation. Larger and southern French departments tend to have a greater adoption of organic farming, possibly because of the more extensive nature of agriculture in such regions. Biogeographic factors have been relatively neglected in investigations of the drivers of organic farming adoption, but may have an important explanatory value
Human Security: China’s Discourses and Experience
Full text linkThis article addresses three research questions by elaborating on how the idea of human security is understood or defined by the government and social actors in China; how the distinction between the “protection” aspect and “empowerment” aspect of human security is understood and accepted; and what particular downside risks are perceived as pressing human security issues in China. Amongst these the major ones include air pollution, food security, and cyber security. The study reveals that, whilst as a term “human security” is not frequently used, there have been significant discussions leading to the consideration and implementation of various human security practices in China. The idea of human security has been firmly established and threats to human security detected. For both the government and academic community in China, human security and state security are not necessarily confrontational but can rather be combined, often complimenting each other. Recent developments in China are pointing to a positive direction in terms of human security in the country
A Review of 'Energy and Transport in Green Transition: Perspectives on Ecomodernity'
Full text linkThe book “Energy and Transport in Green Transitions – Perspectives on Ecomodernity” deals with the societally and scientifically crucial topic of energy and climate change mitigation. The book starts by setting high ambitions as the authors attempt “to go beyond both the extremism of the anti-capitalist critique and the radical enthusiasm of techno-economic positivism” in their exploration to find ways to resolve political, economic and technological entanglements “to boost a greener economy and culture”. It aims to so through a regional comparative study that looks at mature Western economies, the rapidly developing China, and the developing economies in sub-Saharan Africa. The authors present an excellent descriptive historical review for those interested in the broader picture of energy production and automobile sector in the regions addressed. However, in an attempt to cover as much ground as possible while assuring "maximum accessibility”, the authors' explanation of the dynamics of change involved is not conveyed in an analytically convincing manner
Human Security Workers Deployed in Austere Environments: A Brief Guide to Self-Care, Sustainment, and Productivity
Full text linkSince the early 1990s, the human security movement has sought to expand the concept of security beyond the traditional military defense of national borders to focus on the intra-state security needs of populations at the individual level. Specific initiatives frequently address problems of population health, ethnic conflict, religious extremism, human rights, environmental or natural disasters, and other critical issues. For expatriate human security workers in the field, the environment may present meaningful challenges to their wellbeing and productivity. This can be especially so for those who have relatively more experience in academic, business, or administrative settings, and less in the field. The authors' goal is to illuminate practices that have demonstrated their efficacy in enhancing wellness, sustainment, and productivity for human security and other humanitarian and development workers deployed to austere environments. The content represents a synoptic consensus of best general practices and guidance from a range of resources comprising United Nations agencies and activities, national and international non-governmental organizations (NGO's), private volunteer organizations (PVO's), national military services, and international business concerns