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Yes To Renewables Done Right: online module handbook
No full textIntroduction
Welcome to our ‘Yes to renewables done right’ six-week online learning module.
Friends of the Earth International recognises the enormous scale of the climate crisis and the need for a rapid and just transition away from the harmful fossil fuel-based energy systems to a renewable energy system based on the right to clean energy and energy sufficiency. However, whilst acknowledging that an increase in renewables will require materials for infrastructure, we are aware of the huge challenges and injustice posed by the scale of current extraction of resources for renewables. We cannot simply replace the current unjust fossil system with renewables, we need system change to ensure renewables are done right
Understanding the Impact of Professional Football Club Cultural Climates on the Experiences of Women Working in Football
Get PDFSince the professionalization of English women's football in 2018, it is now considered a viable career opportunity for women footballers. Nevertheless, little is known about women working within the culture of professional football clubs, the impact on their career experiences, and crucially, within the context of women's sport. Utilizing Schein's model of organizational culture as a theoretical framework and focusing on the professional tiers of English women's football, we interviewed General Managers and Head Coaches for what they perceive to be the cultural features of their organizations that either constrain or support the recruitment, retention, and/or progression of female leaders. In doing so, this research advances existing literature by centering the specific dynamics of women's sport organizations rather than extrapolating from men's football and offers a gendered critique of cultural assumptions that continue to marginalize women. We also extend Schein's framework by applying it to a gendered sporting context, highlighting how deeper cultural artifacts, espoused values, and underlying assumptions intersect with structural inequalities. Findings suggest that women continue to be appraised on the basis of gender rather than capability and that club cultures and practices are constraining the appointment of a gender‐diverse workforce. We argue for a shift in focus toward systemic cultural change to address persistent gender inequalities in football leadership
Land cover change across the major proglacial regions of the sub-Antarctic islands, Antarctic Peninsula, and McMurdo Dry Valleys, during the 21st century
Get PDFLand cover information is essential for understanding Earth surface processes and ecosystems. Here, we use K-means clustering to classify Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) images covering six proglacial sites of sub-Antarctic islands, the Antarctic Peninsula, and the McMurdo Dry Valleys at 30-m resolution. We quantify spatial patterns of water, bedrock, vegetation, and sediments to an accuracy of 77 percent. Vegetation is most abundant on South Georgia (7 percent of the proglacial area) and the South Shetland Islands (1 to 2 percent). Furthermore, we use change vector analysis (CVA) to discriminate landcover change in the twenty-first century. A latitudinal pattern is evident in ice loss and proglacial landscape change; for example, loss of ice on South Georgia and proglacial landcover change is two orders of magnitude greater than in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Four of the studied sites had similar landscape stability (64 to 68 percent unchanged), with Alexander Island an exception (50 percent change) due to recent enhanced glacier melt. Overall, we show how landcover of proglacial regions of the climaticallysensitive sub-Antarctic and Antarctica has changed since 2000, with a CVA accuracy of 80 percent. These findings inform understanding of geomorphological activity and sediment and nutrient fluxes and hence terrestrial and marine ecosystems
Integrating Mental Health in Curriculum Design: Reflections from a Case Study in Sport, Exercise, and Health Science
Get PDFThe rise of mental health concerns in today’s Higher Education (HE) students is a growing concern. Integrating mental health principles into curricular design can enhance the student experience and improve outcomes such as continuation, completion, and success. This paper aims to integrate mental health guidance into the design of a revalidated curriculum in sport, exercise, and health sciences. A further aim is to provide recommendations for future mentally healthy curricular design. A case study design exploring how mental health does, and might, feature across curricula was undertaken, employing a qualitative methodology. A range of stakeholders, including students, participated in workshops, interviews, and revalidation events over a 4-month period. The analysis and interpretation of the resulting transcripts proposed two main lines of action; ‘building students’ (centring on helping them navigate the nuances of the academic process and developing confidence in their university self, for example, through systematic scaffolding) and ‘building connections’ (focusing on enhancing social connections and psychological safety, for example learning student names). Recommendations proposed by this research highlight that induction should be primarily social, progressing to more fundamental skills, behaviours, and knowledge. Systematic scaffolding and mapping of relevant skills, behaviours, and knowledge throughout the course are fundamental to building students’ confidence. This could reduce both academic staff and students’ frustrations about a lack of ‘know-how’. Staff–student interactions and a focus on micro-behaviours could further enhance a student’s sense of belonging and desire to engage
Extracellular Vesicles From a Model of Melanoma Cancer‐Associated Fibroblasts Induce Changes in Brain Microvascular Cells Consistent With Pre‐Metastatic Niche Priming
Get PDFMalignant melanoma has one of the lowest 5‐year survival rates of any cancer and is characterised by its high invasiveness and metastatic potential, with especially poor outcomes in patients who develop brain metastases. Crosstalk between melanoma cells and cells of the tumour microenvironment (TME), including cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAFs), is a central driver of disease progression. While the role of melanoma‐derived small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) in reprogramming stromal cells has been well documented, the reciprocal effects of CAF‐derived sEVs remain less clear. Here, using an in vitro model of melanoma CAFs, we show that CAF sEVs alter melanoma cells and fibroblasts to promote oncogenic traits and remodel endothelial cells, including brain microvascular cells, in ways consistent with early pre‐metastatic niche (PMN) changes. Multi‐omics cargo profiling revealed significant differential expression of proteins and RNAs linked to extracellular matrix organisation, vascular remodelling, and patient outcomes, with functional validation identifying THBS1 as an EV cargo that restrains endothelial sprouting while potentially promoting barrier destabilisation. Together, these findings suggest that CAF‐derived sEVs contribute to local and distal PMN remodelling, highlight their potential as therapeutic targets, and identify EV cargoes with promise as circulating biomarkers in melanoma
The Qualitative Systems Exploration Model (QSEM): A new framework to support the structural analysis of Causal Loop Diagrams within participatory System Dynamics
No full textThis paper introduces the Qualitative Systems Exploration Model (QSEM), a new semi-quantitative framework for systematically interpreting and analysing Causal Loop Diagrams within participatory system dynamics. QSEM is applied at late-stage model conceptualisation and offers researchers and modelling practitioners a set of tools and techniques to improve transparency and reproducibility in model assessment, ensuring that component and feedback structure selections are traceable and well-justified. Throughout its three core phases: (i) System Factor Classification; (ii) Loops of Interest; and, (iii) Archetype Identification and Analysis, QSEM integrates with established Group Model Building scripts to facilitate structured participant engagement and collaborative sensemaking. Real-world application is demonstrated in a commissioned government project aimed at understanding factors influencing dietary choices and food systems, where the framework helped identify potential policy-relevant system drivers. Future directions involve applying QSEM in other projects, evaluating its robustness, consistency and scalability, refining archetype detection, enhancing data visualisation, and exploring dedicated software solutions to expand its utility in qualitative SD
Spontaneous self-affirmation and student-specific stress: relationships with overlapping constructs of positive self regard
No full textStudent-specific stress is pervasive and impairs health and attainment. Experimentally induced self-affirmation can reduce stress, but little is known about the mechanisms underlying this effect, and the role of individual differences. The present UK-based study explores the relationship between spontaneous self-affirmation, student-specific stress, and overlapping constructs of positive self-regard. The study investigated inter-relationships between spontaneous self-affirmation, student-specific perceived stress and potential covariates including self-esteem, self-integrity and habitual positive self-thought. University students (N = 151) aged 18 to 50 responded to an online questionnaire including the Spontaneous Self-Affirmation Measure, College Student Stress Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Habitual Index of Positive Thinking and Self-Integrity Scale. Unexpectedly, regression analysis revealed that spontaneous self-affirmation was a positive predictor of student-specific stress, seemingly driven by relational affirmations. Self-esteem and habitual self-thought were negative predictors of student-specific stress, whilst self-integrity was not a predictor. Habitual positive self-thought may offer a sustainable solution to student-specific stress, but spontaneous self-affirmation does not. A reduction in defensive responses, elicitation of negative emotions, or use of conditional relationships in relational affirmation may explain the positive relationship between spontaneous self-affirmation and student-specific stress
Internal training exposure: development and construct validation of an individualised method using heart rate variability
No full textPurpose
The aim was to develop and validate an individualised internal training exposure method by deriving weighting factors for each heart rate (HR) from detrended fluctuation analysis of heart rate variability (DFA-α1) during a graded exercise test.
Methods
Thirty-seven participants (17 females; 32.72 ± 9.26 years; maximal oxygen uptake,
O2max = 48.32 ± 7.95 mL kg−1 min−1) completed a step- and a ramp incremental test to measure blood lactate (BLa), DFA-α1, and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) variables, i.e. speed at lactate, ventilatory thresholds (LTs/VTs), and
O2max. Exponential fitting of the fractional elevation of HR (ΔHR) with BLa (individualised training impulse; iTRIMP) or DFA-α1 (αTRIMP) generated individualised coefficients for both methods. The TRIMP weightings were interpolated values of BLa or DFA-α1 derived at each ΔHR through coefficients to represent individualised physiological intensity. Principal component regression evaluated the relationship between combined CRF variables and the TRIMP coefficients or weightings.
Results
Large inter-individual variation was observed at the same physiological thresholds (ΔHR at LT1/VT1 = 0.51–0.83 and LT2/VT2 = 0.63–0.96), underscoring the need for TRIMP methods to weight ΔHR and account for different exposure at similar intensity. CRF had a moderate relationship with coefficients for iTRIMP and αTRIMP methods (R2average = 0.52–0.67), but a moderate to strong relationship with their weightings at a fixed ΔHR (R2average = 0.67–0.78).
Conclusion
αTRIMP is a valid and practically accessible method for quantifying internal training exposure using ECG-based HR monitors, which individualises physiological intensity through DFA-α1-derived weightings among individuals of varied fitness exercising at same percentages of HR
Determining the contextual factors in a decision making framework for a rugby league ball carrier: a Rapid Review and Delphi study
Get PDFUsing a two-phase approach in the form of a rapid literature review and Delphi consensus, this study aimed to reach consensus on the terms, definitions, and potential options to develop a framework that captures the contextual factors that can affect a rugby league ball carrier’s decision making, whilst also determining the perceived importance of these contextual factors. Forty terms, their definitions, and potential options, were extracted from the rapid review. In a two-round Delphi survey, experts rated their level of agreement with each term, definition, and potential options on a 5-point Likert scale. Consensus was defined by ≥80% agreement (with ≤10% in disagreement). The experts then rated the level of importance to a ball carrier’s decision making of each of the terms on a 7-point Likert scale. Eighteen experts participated in round-one and 15 participated in round-two (response rate 83%). Five additional terms were suggested by the experts and reached consensus in the second round of the Delphi survey. In total, consensus was reached on 45 terms, their definitions, and potential options, which were grouped into five themes (match context, offensive context, defensive context, offensive ball carrier skill, and attacking outcomes). Seventeen of the 45 terms were perceived to be important or very important. Nine of these factors were associated with offensive context, and eight were associated with defensive context. The framework can be used by coaches, performance analysts, and researchers to better understand player in-game decisions and to support the design of training interventions
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