68 research outputs found
Estimating the supply of biomass from short-rotation coppice in England, given social, economic and environmental constraints to land availability
No full textBackground: biomass has been identified as an important source of renewable energy. However, growing demand for dedicated energy crops could lead to conflicts with food production and ecosystem services. This study uses a geographic information systems-embedded modeling approach to assess the spatial supply of short-rotation coppice, taking into account social, economic and environmental constraints. Results: results suggest that 7.5 million tons of biomass (from short-rotation coppice) is realistically available in England. Such production would require 0.8 million ha and could be grown almost entirely on poor quality marginal lands. Conclusion: we therefore conclude that short-rotation coppice energy crops have the potential to play an important role in meeting UK renewable energy targets without compromising environmental sustainability or food productio
Refining the genetic architecture of inherited cardiomyopathies through case-control analyses
No full textInherited cardiomyopathies comprise a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of heart muscle disorders, which are a major cause of heart disease and cardiac morbidity. Genetic testing for these conditions has been available for over a decade, and the number of genes incorporated into clinical test panels has increased significantly in recent years. However, rather than an increase in genetic diagnoses, this has resulted in a higher proportion of inconclusive results.
In this study, large-scale case-control analyses were employed to compare rare variation in 7855 cardiomyopathy cases and 60,706 reference controls, with the aim of identifying significant excess of rare variation in cases. These analyses highlighted the genes and classes of variant that show the strongest evidence of causality, as well as those that cannot be interpreted reliably. This methodology was used to reassess genes in current clinical test panels and to explore the contribution of more recently implicated genes. Analyses were also undertaken to explore the prevalence of pathogenic variants in the wider population.
These analyses provide critical insight into the genetic architecture of inherited cardiomyopathies, confirming the main causal genes and classes of variant. One novel finding was identified (an excess of rare truncating variants in the ALKP3 gene in sarcomere-negative HCM cases compared to controls), but in most recently implicated genes, the gene-disease relationship could not be validated and lack of evidence precluded variant interpretation. Collectively, these findings inform evidence-based selection of genes for clinical test panels, reduce uncertainty in interpretation, and increase the clinical utility of testing in these medically important disorders. More broadly, this study demonstrates how the methods described can be used to enhance understanding of rare variation in dominant Mendelian disease genes.</p
Does the UN Security Council Compound the Global Democratic Deficit?
No full textSince the end of the Cold War, the UN Security Council has frequently endorsed the notion that democracy and democratic governance are desirable preconditions for domestic stability and international peace and security. However, the Security Council’s response to the 2008 Zimbabwean presidential elections called into question, perhaps for the first time since the end of the Cold War, its commitment to democracy as the preferred from of domestic governance. In this article, the author discusses the concept of the democratic deficit and explores its application to the UN Security Council. In addition, the author examines the relationship between democracy and international law, retracing the argument that there is an international norm promoting democratic governance. Finally, the author examines the relationship between the Security Council and democracy, suggesting a growing formal commitment to democracy, particularly in post-conflict environments
Beyond what works : how and why do people stop offending?
No full textThe author explores a comparative analysis of social work models for engendering change in criminal behaviors among offenders in Scotland
Different pathways for different journeys: ethnicity, identity transition and desistance
No full textThis chapter argues that the processes of adopting viable non-offending identities are as important in the desistance of minority ethnic offenders as they are for offenders who are white. However, differences in structural location and cultural expectations and practices mean that the forms of pro-social identity that are accessible and available vary. The author examines the ways Black and dual heritage and South Asian male desisters invest in available discourses of masculinity which are shaped by ethnicity (Gadd and Farrall, 2004) and how this process of identity re-construction provides a means of transitioning from an offender to a non-offender identity. The author then pinpoints the ways that identity is racialised and reviews the effects this has on desistance and the different strategies employed to deal with challenges imposed by racism.</p
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Rethinking what works with offenders ::probation, social context and desistance from crime /
No full textWhen it was published twenty years ago, Rethinking What Works with Offenders made a major contribution to criminological knowledge on why people stopped offending, and the impact the probation service had on the desistance process. Unlike other studies that had relied on official conviction data, it was the first to make use of self-reported data, including interviews with men and women on probation, and their supervising Probation Officers. It reconceptualised probation outcomes in terms of degrees of success rather than as 'successful' or 'unsuccessful' and offered important policy implications of these conclusions. The Twentieth Anniversary edition contains the original text along with a newForeword by Shadd Maruna and Fergus McNeill, locating the book historically and assessing its continued importance to Criminology. It also includes a new chapter by the author reporting on the key findings of the follow-up interviews in 2004 and 2010-12, reflecting on key developments in the field and developing a theory of assisted desistance. Furthermore, it features four newcommentaries from Mark Halsey, Isabelle F.-Dufour, Martine Herzog-Evans and Jos Cid reflecting on the importance and legacy of the book. This book presents an important and challenging range of findings on 'what works' in probation and with offenders and remains essential reading for anybody professionally concerned with the present and future of probation
A new paradigm for social work with offenders?
No full textIn an influential article published in 1979, Bottoms and McWilliams proposed the adoption of a 'non-treatment paradigm' for social work practice with offenders. Their argument rested on a careful analysis not only of empirical evidence about the ineffectiveness of rehabilitative treatment but also of theoretical, moral and philosophical questions about such interventions. By 1994, emerging evidence about the potential effectiveness of some intervention programmes was sufficient to lead Raynor and Vanstone to suggest significant revisions to the 'non treatment paradigm'. In this article, it is argued that a different but equally relevant form of empirical evidence - that derived from desistance studies - suggests a need to reevaluate these earlier paradigms for criminal justice social work practice
Encouraging desistance through resettlement: an exploration of voluntary sector practice
No full textThis study is an exploration of voluntary-sector resettlement practice and the encouragement of the desistance process through resettlement work. The author discusses how desistance theory ties in
with resettlement practice. This exploration is important because of the current political context of
resettlement and the Government’s pledge to revive the rehabilitative ideal. Through this revival, the
Government has focused their efforts towards resettlement support, both in custody and on release, with a view to supporting offenders to lead lives free from crime. The voluntary-sector has been given an important role within this agenda and they have been encouraged to become major
providers of resettlement services through Payment by Results contracts. Therefore, this research aims to address how effectively voluntary-sector organisations can support desistance through resettlement.
The author uses thematic analysis and a deductive ‘top-down’ process to analyse a series of in-depth interviews sourced from staff, volunteers and service-users of a voluntary-sector resettlement
project. The author analysed the data in accordance with the literature surrounding resettlement and desistance with particular emphasis on whether voluntary resettlement practice accords with desistance research and theory. The author then uses those findings in order to shed light on the implications of the implementation of desistance in resettlement practice.
The author concludes that voluntary-sector resettlement practice did not accord with desistance due to the incorrect utilisations of practices. Underpinning this was a lack of understanding, on an
organisational level, of desistance in resettlement work and it was found that this was either a
possible consequence of, or made worse by, the traditional model of resettlement which voluntary-sector organisations work within which, by their nature, militate against a desistance-based
approach to resettlement. The collective findings, therefore, led the author to question whether
desistance theory and research is useful for voluntary-sector organisations to implement due to the complex nature of desistance and the difficulty in retrofitting it into traditional ways of voluntary-sector workings. Thus, these implications and findings provide a foundation for, and indicators of, future research into how resettlement services can support desistance through resettlement
Evidencing the Impact of Criminal Justice Services on Re-offending
No full textFrom 2003 to 2006, Sacro undertook a quantitative evaluation of five of its Criminal Justice Services, using reconviction rates in an attempt to measure the impact on re-offending. This research illustrates the limitations of evaluating Criminal Justice Services in terms of the impact on re-offending using reconviction data alone. This report discusses the implications for policy, recommends the use of other research methods that are in line with the aims and objectives of specific services and organisational values, while highlighting some of the limits of any criminal justice system in relation to addressing harm in society
Dialogue and Collaboration in the Creation of New Works for Clarinet
No full textThis PhD thesis explores dialogue-based, “intimate” collaboration through the creation of new works for clarinet. It borrows from Grounded Theory in order to facilitate an analysis through which emergent themes within a dialogue-based
collaboration are discovered. The aim has not been to insist on one model of collaboration, but to discover methods for improving one’s collaborative skills and to identify ways in which one benefits from a focus on dialogue in
collaboration. Furthermore, it aims to suggest that through collaboration one can make discoveries about the instrument: original contributions to clarinet technique are made within this thesis. The literature from which the research draws inspiration to further collaborative “technique” is cross-disciplinary and wide-ranging: it draws from social theory, collaborative creative writing, dance, the visual arts and of course, music. Added to this is a select discussion of collaboration throughout the repertoire of the clarinet. Finally, this consists of practice-based research. Seven new pieces for clarinet accompany the text
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