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Dual learning system performance for learners and businesses in the agri-food sector of Kazakhstan
Get PDFThe lack of communication between educational institutions and businesses has led to a skills
mismatch and a shortage of qualified professionals, leaving many graduates unable to secure
jobs. The rise in self-employment among young professionals raises concerns about their
commitment to specialised industries. Inspired by the successful implementation of
Germany’s dual learning system (DLS), Kazakhstan introduced this approach into its
vocational and higher education sectors to address the shortage of skilled workers across its
economy. DLS emphasises immersive, work-based training in collaboration with businesses,
equipping students with essential skills for the modern workforce and easing their transition
into employment. However, adopting international best practices, particularly in developing
countries, requires tailoring to fit the specific social and economic contexts and industry needs.
This study contributes to the literature by empirically studying the implementation
effectiveness of DLS versus traditional education in Kazakhstan’s agri-food business sector
based on the perceptions of learners and businesses.
Implementing Focus Group Discussions with employers of 19 businesses of different
sizes utilised a qualitative methodology based on the expectancy theory of motivation to
understand the attitudes of employers and their motivation for participation in DLS. This study
also aims to test satisfaction levels with the practice experience of learners (students and
graduates) and factors influencing their intentions after graduation, i.e., whether they remain
with the same employer in the agri-food industry, change employers in the same industry or
leave the industry altogether. Evaluation is based on a multistage random sample of 651
learners undertaking dual learning system (hence dual) and 217 learners undertaking
traditional education (hence non-dual). Kirkpatrick's training evaluation model provided the
theoretical framework for designing satisfaction dimensions potentially influencing post-graduation decisions. Multinomial Logistic Regression was used to examine the career
intentions of both dual and non-dual groups after graduation
A ceratopsid-dominated tracksite from the Dinosaur Park Formation (Campanian) at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada
Get PDFThe badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada) are renowned for the exceptional abundance and diversity of Campanian-aged vertebrate body fossils, especially dinosaurs. Due to the steep exposures and rapid erosion, dinosaur tracks and trackways are considered extremely rare but have been recorded from a small number of concretionary casts, which pertain to hadrosaurids and a single tyrannosaurid.
Here, we document the first multitaxic dinosaur footprint assemblage from the Dinosaur Park Formation based on a new locality that contains multiple individual ceratopsids, two tyrannosaurids, a possible ankylosaurian, and a small theropod-like taxon. Ceratopsid tracks are globally rare but dominate the new tracksite, suggesting gregarious behaviour, which is also supported by their regular spacing
and parallel arrangement. The possible ankylosaurian track is identified (in part) on account of having three distinct pedal digits, consistent with the pedal anatomy of several Dinosaur Park ankylosaurids (Euoplocephalus, Dyoplosaurus) and the newly erected ichnotaxon Ruopodosaurus clava but differentiating it from other ankylosaurian tracks (Tetrapodosaurus isp.). Importantly, the new tracks are the first natural moulds (concave epirelief) found in Dinosaur Provincial Park, which, due to the unique geomorphology of the area, can only be recognised in outcrops where there
are prominent sediment displacement rims. The new search image outlined here has already resulted in several subsequent trackway discoveries, and has the potential to
transform ichnological studies in the Dinosaur Park Formation and related formations where badlands prevail
Government procurement and corporate environmental policies
Get PDFWe investigate how the government, as a customer, affects a supplier’s environmental policies. We find that government contractors have significantly lower levels of toxic pollution. Exploring the mechanisms, we show that government contractors reduce pollution by strengthening internal environmental governance and increasing investments in pollution abatement. Further analysis rules out alternative explanations related to reduced economic activities and financial constraints. Overall, our results highlight the important role of the government in disciplining corporate environmental misbehavior
Experience and interaction in exhibition displays and their contexts
No full textThis research enquires into how any artefact, when shown in public, is inseparably intertwined
with its staging and context in an act of communication which is bound in time and space and that
surpasses the meaning of the sole work. To stage the works within a chosen context is the crucial
role of exhibition design, as the means providing the grammar, the syntax and building the very
text of a display whose meaning is ultimately shaped by its actual reception, in the visitors'
experience.
Challenging a still widespread concept like the existence of ‘neutral installations’, this research
also investigates whether and to which extent it might be possible to read an exhibition as the
possible conveyor of a very peculiar kind of visual text: a narrative. Furthermore, this research
also aims at analysing and practicing a possible bijective methodology, apt not only for reading,
but also for a more conscious writing (design) and clarity of the physical staging. Clarity in
presenting will also be discussed as one of the primary goals, to enable also non-specialist visitors
by giving them wider access into exhibitions and fostering the effectiveness of the curatorial plans
in organizing and framing the interactions with their public. Lastly, the possible existence of a
specific, deeper, relationship between this complex form of communication and its context (both
physical and cultural) will also be put to test, relying on the practice-based part of this study.
The experienced practice was therefore organised and articulated according to three main set of
actions. Firstly, a widespread network of ‘instant’ exhibitions, the ‘Footnotes in the margins’,
organised with several batches of young artists and designers to allow material displays even in
times of pandemic restrictions and to experiment on the most essential tools to design an
exhibition: text and context. Secondly a middle-term plan for the definition of a flexible tool, the
atlas of reception, exploring a new form of visual narrative, based on the acts and actors of \ud
reception more than on decontextualised stories on marginalization. And finally, an overview of a
long-term (still ongoing) project for the rooting of the new diffused museum of Bicocca, Milano, a
critical enquiry on the strategy for it to become pervasive albeit without structures of its own whilst
helping rethink the very nature and structure of a new public cultural institution
Different types of depression literacy and their impacts on reducing personal stigma towards late-life depression in older adults: results from a pre-and-post intervention study
Get PDFPersonal stigma towards late-life depression, a barrier to help-seeking for older adults, may be reduced by improved depression literacy. This study adopted a pre-and-post-test design to investigate the relationships between types of depression literacy and stigma reduction. We recruited 976 older adults aged greater than or equal to fifty for a mental wellness education programme. The results of paired t-tests showed that the education programme improved participants’ depression literacy and reduced personal stigma. Their knowledge about symptoms (t = 9.10, P < .01) and facts (t = 3.05, P < .01) of depression were improved, while the myths of depression (t = −6.05, P < .01), stereotypes (t = −9.47, P < .01), prejudice (t = −6.66, P < .01), and discrimination (t = −5.60, P < .01) to late-life depression were reduced. We explored the change mechanism between depression literacy and personal stigma by multivariate regression analyses using residual scores. The significant association between depression literacy and personal stigma at baseline was not surprising. After the intervention, we found that enhanced knowledge about symptoms predicted decreased stereotypes (β = −0.13, P < .01). The decreased myths about depression contributed to the reduced stereotype significantly (β = 0.18, P < .01). Knowing more facts predicted increased prejudice (β = 0.08, P < .05). Future prevention and intervention for depression stigma may focus on knowing more about symptoms, interpreting facts cautiously, and debunking myths about depression
Community engagement and ecosystem services for mine rehabilitation
Get PDFThe growing global demand for minerals presents economic opportunities for countries such as the Philippines but also raises concerns about the impacts of mineral extraction on local communities and ecosystem services. This study explores an interdisciplinary community engagement process informing mine rehabilitation in the Philippines, framed through an ecosystem services lens. As part of the PROMT (Philippines Remediation of Mine Tailings) project, we conducted an initial participatory workshop at the Padcal Mine site, engaging Indigenous communities to assess local perspectives on ecosystem services and the impacts of mining activities. Through video presentations, a questionnaire, and focus groups, we found that 88% of participants understood the concept of ecosystem services after viewing an introductory video, while 62% believed mining negatively affected ecosystem services. Interestingly, 65% felt that rehabilitated mines could provide future ecosystem services, such as agriculture or ecotourism. Gender differences were evident, with women perceiving more significant mining impacts but being more optimistic about the rehabilitation potential. This underscores the importance of inclusive engagement approaches. The ecosystem services framework effectively bridges ecological knowledge with community priorities and tangible benefits, promoting social acceptance of mine rehabilitation. This interdisciplinary approach, particularly the integration of Indigenous perspectives, remains underused in mining contexts. Our community-based participatory methodology provides guidance for balancing diverse socioeconomic and environmental considerations
Changes in the regional water cycle and their impact on societies
Get PDFChanges in “blue water”, which is the total supply of fresh water available for human extraction over land, are quite closely related to changes in runoff or equivalently precipitation minus evaporation, P − E. This article examines how climate change-driven recent past and future changes in the regional water cycle relate to blue water availability and changes in human blue water demand. Although at the largest scales theoretical and numerical model predictions are in broad agreement with observations, at continental scales and below models predict large ranges of possible future P − E and runoff especially at the scale of individual river catchments and for shorter timescale subseasonal floods and droughts. Nevertheless, it is expected that the occurrence and severity of floods will increase and that of droughts may increase, possibly compounded by human-driven non-climatic changes such as changes in land use, dam water impoundment, irrigation and extraction of groundwater. Contemporary assessments predict that increases in 21st century human water extraction in many highly-populated regions are unlikely to be sustainable given projections of future P − E. To reduce uncertainty in future predictions, there is an urgent need to improve modeling of atmospheric, land surface and human processes and how these components are coupled. This should be supported by maintaining the observing network and expanding it to improve measurements of land surface, oceanic and atmospheric variables. This includes the development of satellite observations stable over multiple decades and suitable for building reanalysis datasets appropriate for model evaluation
Physical controls on the variability of offshore propagation of convection from Sumatra
Get PDFPrevious work has explained the physical mechanisms behind nocturnal offshore prop24 agation of convection south-west of Sumatra. Low-level moisture flux convergence due to the land breeze front controls the progression of convection, typically a squall line, away from the coast overnight. However, the diurnal convection over the mountains occurs on only 57% of days in December–February (DJF) and propagates offshore on only 49% of those days. We investigate day-to-day variability in dynamical and thermodynamical conditions to explain the variability in diurnal convection and offshore propagation, using a convection-permitting simulation run for 900 DJF days. A convolutional neural network is used to identify regimes of diurnal cycle and offshore propagation behaviour. The diurnal cycle and offshore propagation are most likely to occur ahead of an active Madden Julian Oscillation, or during El Nino or positive Indian Ocean Dipole; however, any regime can occur in any phase of these large-scale drivers, since the major control arises from the local scale. When the diurnal cycle of convection occurs over land, low-level wind is generally onshore, providing convergence over the mountains; and low-level humidity over the mountains is high enough to make the air column unstable for moist convec38 tion. When this convection propagates offshore, mid-level offshore winds provide a steering flow, combined with stronger convergence offshore due to more onshore environmental winds. Low-level moisture around the coast also means that, as the convection propagates, the storm-relative inflow of air into the system adds greater instability than would be the case on other days
