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Clarification and guidance on the use of the Socio-Economic Impact Classification for Alien Taxa (SEICAT) framework
No full textUnderstanding the ways in which alien taxa threaten human well-being, beyond purely monetary costs, can be difficult as impacts differ vastly across social, cultural, and economic contexts. Failure to capture impacts outside of monetary costs means that impacts are unfairly weighted towards those that can be easily monetised, which is unlikely to be a realistic measure of how alien species truly affect human well-being. To address this issue, the Socio-Economic Impact Classification for Alien Taxa (SEICAT) was developed with the intention to facilitate standardised classifications and comparisons of the impacts of alien taxa on human well-being and livelihood. The framework measures impacts by assessing to what extent alien taxa have altered human activities, so has application across a broad range of reported impacts associated with different constituents of human well-being. Although in their original paper, Bacher et al. (2018) provided an overview of the SEICAT framework, comprehensive guidelines that enable assessors to overcome potential ambiguities were, until now, unavailable. This may be preventing the broad application of the framework due to reduced usability. Here, we provide clarification and guidance for the application of SEICAT to facilitate standardised, consistent assessments. In particular, we address uncertainties stemming from unclear definitions of impacted communities and activities, as well as the spatial and temporal scales of relevance. We clarify these key issues and give explicit recommendations, whilst encouraging the collection of additional contextual information to be recorded for each assessed impact report, to generate more practical information for end-users of SEICAT data. Further, we recommend adopting an alternative terminology for the impact categories to reduce the potential misuse of the current descriptors. The intended outcome of this work is to aid the broad application of the SEICAT framework in a consistent and transparent manner
A new dawn for Bangsamoro democracy?: Political autonomy and inclusive participation in post-conflict Mindanao
No full textWill the establishment of a new former rebel-led government in restive Mindanao, Philippines provide a catalyst for political change in the region? After decades of protracted war the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest Muslim insurgent group in Mindanao, has taken the reins of authority in the region as a consequence of a political settlement with the government of the Philippines. A new political entity, the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), was established in March 2019 after the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) during the January and February 2019 plebiscites. The BOL is the foundational instrument creating the BARMM specifying its territories, structure of government, and power- and wealth-sharing arrangements with the central government to realize the Muslim Filipinos' aspirations for self-determination and pursue their social, political, economic and cultural development within the Philippines constitutional framework. As an integral part of a comprehensive peace settlement, the BARMM is meant to correct a 'failed experiment', the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) that was a creation of past peace agreement in 1989 with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the first Muslim secessionist group that waged war against the government in the '70s
Reinforcing Multiple Capacities for Sound Infrastructure Governance: Takeaways from Bangladesh
No full textThe article examines infrastructure governance in Bangladesh's communication and transportation sectors, emphasizing the value of resource management and capacity creation. It draws attention to issues including lack of resources, ineffective regulations, and implementation difficulties and stresses the need for an all-encompassing strategy for infrastructure administration that incorporates better institutional frameworks, more human capital, and technology integration. Bangladesh can overcome its infrastructural deficiencies and promote long-term economic development by filling up these gaps and fortifying governance processes. The findings provide useful insights for practitioners and policymakers, providing a more comprehensive knowledge of the difficulties associated with infrastructure governance in developing economies
The Golden Chariot: Quacks, Quackery and New England Newspapers, 1889–1893
No full textQuack advertising was widespread in pre-Federation newspapers including those in rural New England (northern New South Wales). Between 1891 and 1892, Madame and Dr Paul Duflot and their Golden Chariot visited the New England area and attracted large crowds. At the same time, the practice of medical science was striving to establish its credibility and set itself apart from alternative health providers. They did this by pejoratively labelling alternative medicine providers as “quacks”. This article contributes to the New England media-history and news-framing literature on quack reporting. It draws on the framing theories of Robert Entman and Paul D’Angelo, alongside Zygmunt Bauman’s concepts of the “stranger” and “strangerhood”. The analysis reveals a striking hypocrisy among local newspapers: while they prominently advertised the quacks and their cures—including the Duflots’ public appearances and private consultations—they simultaneously ran anti-quack news stories. Notably, the popularity of the Duflots suggests that New Englanders were not entirely won over by medical science. Instead, they prioritised personal autonomy, human agency and control over their healthcare decisions
Intercultural communication in migration law practice
No full textNavigating migration procedures in Australia and other countries of the global north can be very challenging. Australian migration law and procedure are incredibly complex and restrictive, and the rules change constantly – some almost on a daily basis. Processes are also linguistically demanding: making sense of the law itself and then navigating the application process requires a very high level of proficiency in written, legal English, and strong computer literacy. Depending on the type of application, individuals may also need to attend an interview and discuss personal and sensitive parts of their life in great detail, as a way to prove their credibility
The blocking injunction: A comparative and critical review of the EU, Singaporean and Australian regimes
No full textThis article critically, and comparatively, evaluates the legal basis and key shortcomings of the blocking injunction, which has gained popularity in the EU, Singapore and lately Australia, as an alternative to the extrajudicial "notice and takedown" approach to enforcing intellectual property rights. The article concludes that there are problems not only with the remedy itself, but also in the manner in which the blocking injunction is implemented. The fact that multiple proceedings have to be filed in order to obtain a global level of enforcement and the possibility of blocking measures being circumvented are problems with the remedy itself. In the EU context, at least, not only does the implementation of the blocking injunction fall short of due process requirements, but also the legal basis for the remedy in the context of enforcing trade mark rights is questionable
'We call it the pinch...Isn't that cool?': Digital gestures and museum objects
No full textOn the 9th of January in 2007, Steve Jobs gave the keynote address at a Macworld event in San Francisco and revealed the first iPhone. Showing off its different features, he told the audience that the phone relied on what he called ‘the best pointing device in the world’ – the human finger. Now usable with ‘multi-touch’ technology, it allowed ‘multi-finger gestures’ and worked like ‘magic’ according to Jobs. To the sound of audience gasps and claps, he then explained the ‘swipe’ and the ‘pinch’ which allowed users to move between photos in the phone’s library and to zoom in on different parts. Though Apple were not the first to use this technology, it was their product that popularised it and effectively choreographed many of our bodily interactions with the digital ever since.1 With many museums digitising and giving access to digital 3D models of items from their collections, in this short article I explore how this choreography of gestures fits into a longer history of user interactions with museum objects and consider what associations these digital gestures might bring instead
Genetic diversity, inbreeding and breeding strategies for native goats in Central Laos
No full textGoats are important livestock in smallholder production systems in Laos, contributing economically, nutritionally, and culturally. Most goats in Laos are native breeds, distributed throughout the country, with almost half of the population in central regions. This thesis aimed to evaluate 1) the genetic diversity and population structure 2) signatures of selection and identify the candidate genome regions and potential genes in Lao goats that are associated with production traits and adaptation 3) animal movement patterns and the degree of mixing between herds across villages and 4) village breeding strategies to improve genetic merit for Lao native goats while controlling inbreeding.Maintaining genetic diversity in livestock is important for long-term genetic improvement in breeding programs. In Laos, concerns have arisen about the possible reduction of genetic diversity and increasing inbreeding for Lao goats in smallholder systems. In Chapter 3 the genetic diversity and population structure of Lao goats was explored using their genomic data and comparing them with 163 global goat breeds. The genomic analyses revealed a close genetic relationship between Lao goats and those from China, Mongolia and Pakistan. Results show Lao goats have moderate genetic diversity, low inbreeding and adequate effective population size, with some genetic differences reflective of geography and culture.Domestication, selection, and breeding have produced indigenous goats well-adapted to local environments, making them valuable genetic resources. Understanding the genetic adaptations can guide the development of effective breeding strategies. In Chapter 4, the signature of selection for Lao goats was investigated, using the decorrelation composite multiple signals method. We identified 24 genomic regions harbouring 68 unique coding genes linked to adaptation to the tropical monsoon climate and economic traits such as growth and status, reproduction, milk production and carcass characteristics.In pastoral agricultural systems, the movement and mixing of animal cohorts is important for the understanding of mating patterns in free-roaming herds or flocks, as it impacts the degree of genetic diversity and levels of inbreeding. In Chapter 5, spatial data was used to track animal movement and examine the home range and the overlap home range between different villages while genomic data was used to track animal relatedness and gene flow between herds. The results show village-specific differences in home ranges, with males covering larger areas than females, and larger ranges in the dry season. There was low to moderate gene flow between villages even with minimal home range overlap between them. Within each village, the degree of gene flow is consistent with the degree of home range overlap between herds.Chapter 6 presents a simulation study to assess potential genetic improvement for Lao native goats and mating strategies that limit the rate of inbreeding. A mating strategy where bucks are rotated among herds or villages offered a significant body weight improvement and allowed an increasing but comparatively low level of inbreeding. The village rotational mating strategy could be implemented for isolated villages, while the district rotational strategy could benefit areas where there are accessible trade networks and minimal geographical boundaries. In contrast, traditional random mating at the herd level showed minimal body weight improvement and a significant increase in inbreeding over time
The contribution of pattern recognition receptor signalling in the development of age related macular degeneration: the role of toll-like-receptors and the NLRP3-inflammasome
No full textAge-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of irreversible vision loss, characterised by the dysfunction and death of the photoreceptors and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Innate immune cell activation and accompanying para-inflammation have been suggested to contribute to the pathogenesis of AMD, although the exact mechanism(s) and signalling pathways remain elusive. Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) are essential activators of the innate immune system and drivers of para-inflammation. Of these PRRs, the two most prominent are (1) Toll-like receptors (TLR) and (2) NOD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3)-inflammasome have been found to modulate the progression of AMD. Mutations in TLR2 have been found to be associated with an increased risk of developing AMD. In animal models of AMD, inhibition of TLR and NLRP3 has been shown to reduce RPE cell death, inflammation and angiogenesis signalling, offering potential novel treatments for advanced AMD. Here, we examine the evidence for PRRs, TLRs2/3/4, and NLRP3-inflammasome pathways in macular degeneration pathogenesis
Effects of water level regulation on algal biofilms in the River Murray, South Australia
No full textThe composition and growth of algal biofilms were monitored over 90 days at two littoral sites on the River Murray at Lock 1 (Blanchetown). Sites included the pool impounded by a 3m weir, where water levels are relatively stable, and the tailwater, where levels fluctuate daily. Depth profiles of organic biomass above the sediment and biofilm composition were similar between sites. Algal biomass peaked in the zones of maximum light and sustained inundation. Biofilm composition was affected more by temporal environmental changes common to both sites than by differences between sites. Filamentous Cyanobacteria (Lyngbya) were prevalent early in succession, but by day 90 were replaced by filamentous Chlorophyta (Spirogyra). If river levels are managed to maintain diverse successional stages as resources for grazing invertebrates, the magnitude and duration of inundation in the littoral zone should exceed the desiccation tolerances of biofilm organisms