19366 research outputs found
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Special Olympics and serious leisure
No full textThose who engage in serious leisure activities (such as sports) gain a sense of achievement, an increase in self esteem, stress reduction, skill acquisition, and an enhanced level of self-confidence. They also deepen their social relationships, form friendships, expand their social networks and have an enhanced social life. In addition, serious leisure participants are engaged in a ‘social world’ that has its own actors, organisations and practices (Unruh, 1979). Using social worlds as a research lens can enable us to understand the mechanisms that deliver benefits for subjective wellbeing. To date, social world theory has not been applied within the context of intellectually disabled people’s leisure experiences.
Disabled people have been overlooked by leisure and event studies researchers in the past, but there is now an emerging body of work investigating their experiences. Music events (Bossey, 2020, 2024; Dinis et al., 2020; Alvarado, 2022), sporting events (dos Santos Neto et al., 2019; McGillivray et al., 2019), rural events (Sage & Flores, 2019) and arts events (Walters, 2023) have all featured. However, it is predominantly the voices of people with physical disabilities who have been heard in these studies: the experiences of people with intellectual isabilities, who are frequently subject to societal narratives of ‘no vision, no future, no contribution, a burden on others’ (Mullen & Wills, 2016, p. 6), have largely been neglected.
This UK-based project addresses these gaps in our understanding, adopting social world theory as the lens through which to investigate the importance of sport as serious leisure for intellectually disabled people. Specifically, this qualitative project seeks to answer the research question, “How does participation in the social world of Special Olympics contribute to quality of life for athletes with intellectual disabilities and their wider networks?” Preliminary findings from the analysis of semi-structured interviews will be presented
The role of agricultural cooperatives in improving mechanization levels: Differences between outsourcing machinery services and household-owned machines
No full textAlthough mechanization is reshaping rural and agricultural development by reducing drudgery through substituting farm labourers, improving input use efficiency and increasing farm productivity, the level of mechanization in developing countries still needs improvements. This study explores whether agricultural cooperatives can improve mechanization levels by investigating the differences between outsourcing machinery services and household-owned machines. We consider mechanization adoption status and the mechanized ratio at different production stages, including tillage, seeding, pesticide spraying, fertilization and harvesting. Utilizing data collected by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and an inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment estimator, we find that, overall, agricultural cooperatives significantly increase the probability of farmers’ adoption of mechanization for tillage, seeding, pesticide spraying, fertilization and harvesting by 5%–38% and mechanization ratios by 6%–29%. Disaggregated analyses reveal that agricultural cooperatives significantly increase the adoption probabilities and ratios of machines provided by outsourcing services by 9%–102% and 10%–79%, respectively. Among household-owned machines, agricultural cooperatives only significantly impact tillage adoption, reducing farmers’ adoption probability and ratio by around 16%–21%. Our findings highlight the importance of agricultural cooperatives in improving farmers’ access to and use of machines provided by outsourcing service
Urban community gardens in Ōtautahi Christchurch
No full textThis report investigates locations and spatial characteristics of actively used urban community gardens (CGs) in Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand based on a community garden survey. The survey was conducted between October 2024 and February 2025 in response to a lack of reliable data regarding the number and locations of actively used urban CGs in Christchurch. The study area included the urbanised areas of Christchurch City as defined by the Christchurch District Plan. Out of 57 investigated potential CG locations, 37 gardens met our definition of actively used CGs within the study area. The survey collected three types of data: basic information about the gardens, including their locations, land data and spatial information, and on-site inventory-based information. By providing updated data on actively used urban CGs in Christchurch, their locations and various characteristics, the report serves as a source of information for researchers, garden communities, NGOs, and municipal stakeholders
Research at the interface between indigenous knowledge and soil science; weaving knowledges to understand horticultural land use in Aotearoa / New Zealand
No full textAddressing the complex challenges of soil and food security at international and local scales requires moving beyond the boundaries of individual disciplines and knowledge systems. The value of transdisciplinary research approaches is increasingly recognised, including those that value and incorporate Indigenous knowledge systems and holders. Using a case study at P¯ ohatu, Aotearoa/New Zealand, this paper demonstrates the value of a transdisciplinary approach to explore past M¯ aori food landscapes and contribute to contemporary M¯ aori soil health and food sovereignty aspirations. Engaging at the interface between soil science and Indigenous knowledge (m¯ atauraka M¯aori) in an Aotearoa/New Zealand context, we provide an example and guide for weaving knowledges in a transdisciplinary context. Here, m¯ atauraka M¯ aori, including waiata (songs) and ingoa w¯ ahi (place names), provided the map of where to look and why, and soil analysis yielded insight into past cultivation, soil modification, and fertilisation practices. Both knowledges were needed to interpret the findings andsupport M¯ aori in re-establishing traditional horticultural practices. Furthermore, the paper extends the current literature on the numerous conceptual frameworks developed to support and guide transdisciplinary research by providing an example of how to do this type of research in an on-the-ground applicatio
Atlas des agricultures du monde et des systèmes alimentaires face au changement climatique
No full textBotrytis cinerea: Woody trunk endophytes that interact with botryosphaeriaceae members of the grapevine trunk disease complex and modulate disease expression
No full textIn a previous study of fungal endophytes associated with grapevine trunk disease (GTD) in New Zealand vineyards, Botrytis cinerea was recovered from the inner trunk tissues of vines that were symptomatic or asymptomatic for GTD. The effect of B. cinerea, considered an endophytic latent pathogen, on colonisation and symptom development by the grapevine trunk pathogens Neofusicoccum parvum and Diplodia seriata was investigated. B. cinerea isolates recovered from both GTD symptomatic and asymptomatic grapevine trunks, and isolates from infected berries, were pathogenic on green shoots and berries. In planta interactions between B. cinerea and N. parvum or D. seriata were evaluated on detached green Sauvignon Blanc shoots and woody stems of 2-year-old potted Sauvignon Blanc vines. Lesion length and colonisation of the shoots by the pathogens was determined by reisolation, 2 and 12 weeks post-inoculation for detached and attached shoots, respectively. D. seriata did not produce lesions but was shown to endophytically colonise, being recovered from inoculated shoots. Reisolation of D. seriata was unaffected by co-inoculation with B. cinerea in both detached and attached shoots. For N. parvum, co-inoculation with B. cinerea did not affect lesion lengths in detached shoots. In contrast, in attached shoots co-inoculation by B. cinerea inhibited N. parvum lesion development. This was hypothesised to be due to contrasting infection mechanisms by the two Botryosphaeriaceae species and alteration in the host response between detached and attached tissues. The findings indicate that B. cinerea is involved in the GTD complex and affects symptom expression
Representing air as imaginary water: Analysis of soil water and soil aeration corequisites for plant growth
No full textPlant‐available water and adequate soil aeration are two fundamental requirements for successful plant growth. These prerequisites have generally been assessed independently in relation to plant growth, with limited focus on their complementary and competing behavior in a soil–water matrix. In this study we introduce a corequisite index adopted from a complex number representation by linking soil–water (the real component) and soil–air (the imaginary component) as the orthogonal counterparts in an Argand diagram. The new corequisite index constitutes a soil–water component defined based on field capacity and permanent wilting point, and a soil–air component defined based on critical soil–gas diffusivity. To calibrate model parameters, the soil–water characteristics were measured in vadose soil profiles (0‐ to 60‐cm depth) from 48 replicate sites. Results revealed that the corequisite index, with its magnitude (0.5–1) and corequisite angle (0–30°) in the given range, provided the best combined soil water and aeration status for the selected soil. The majority of the selected soils were affected by insufficient aeration (gas diffusivity < 0.01) when at field capacity (drained to −10 kPa), requiring the soils to drain further (−50 to −100 kPa) to satisfy the corequisites. The derived soil aeration parameters showed promising relationships with measurable soil physical properties. We further recommend adopting a 15% volumetric soil air content as a general threshold for minimum soil aeration in the absence of measured soil–gas diffusivity data
Molecular characterization of root-lesion nematode, Pratylenchus species, and their prevalence in New Zealand maize fields
No full textRoot-lesion nematodes (Pratylenchus spp.) are significant plant parasites, causing substantial crop damage worldwide. This study aimed to characterize Pratylenchus spp. in New Zealand maize fields using molecular techniques and map their prevalence. Soil sampling from 24 maize fields across the North and South Islands provided 381 composite samples. Root-lesion nematodes were extracted using the sieving-centrifugal-sugar flotation method and differentiated into five morphospecies. Molecular characterization involved direct partial sequencing of the D2/D3 28S rDNA, ITS rDNA, and COX1 mtDNA regions using Sanger technology from a single nematode. Five Pratylenchus species were identified: P. neglectus, P. crenatus, P. thornei, P. penetrans, and P. pratensis, confirmed by phylogenetic analysis. Prevalence mapping showed P. neglectus and P. crenatus in all sampled fields, while P. thornei, P. penetrans, and P. pratensis were more localized. This study is the first to report these Pratylenchus species on maize in New Zealand and provides the first partial sequences of the D2/D3, COX1, and ITS regions for these species on maize in New Zealand. The findings highlight the diversity of Pratylenchus populations in New Zealand maize fields and emphasize the need for region-specific management strategies to mitigate crop damage
Generative AI and case teaching in horticultural education: Advantages, challenges and ethics
No full textI facilitate innovative case-based teaching in horticulture by strategically integrating generative AI to enhance student engagement with real-world scenarios. Through structured comparative analysis between AI-generated and scholarly outputs, students develop critical evaluation skills whilst gaining hands-on experience with data analysis and case memo writing. Our evidence-based approach demonstrates the importance of equitable AI access and thoughtful implementation, offering transferable insights for case teaching across disciplines
Polar tourism
No full textPolar tourism refers to visits, excluding those for scientific research or support, to the Arctic (typically comprised of the states, water bodies, and islands north of the tree-line) or the Antarctic (often described as the continent itself, ice shelves, water, and islands south of the Antarctic Convergence). The geographic remoteness associated with unique biota, landscapes, and climate forms the appeal of the polar regions