159 research outputs found
Capacity building for Intergovernmental Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Final report. Indo- Norwegian pilot project on capacity building in biodiversity informatics for enhanced decision making, improved nature conservation and sustainable development.
No full textHanssen, F. (editor), Mathur, V.B. (editor), Athreya, V., Barve, V., Bhardwaj, R., Boumans, L., Cadman, M., Chavan, V., Ghosh, M., Lindgaard, A., Lofthus, Ø., Mehlum, Pandav, B., Punjabi, G. A., F., González Talaván, A., Talukdar, G., Valland, N. and Vang, R. Capacity building for Intergovernmental Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Final report. Indo- Norwegian pilot project on capacity building in biodiversity informatics for enhanced decision making, improved nature conservation and sustainable development. - NINA Report 1079. 116 pp. Dette pilotprosjektet har vært koordinert av Norsk Institutt for Naturforskning (NINA) i nært
samarbeid med Wildlife Insitutute of India (WII), Artsdatabanken, Naturhistorisk Museum ved
Universitetet i Oslo, Wildlife Conservation Society- India Program (WCS) og Centre for Wildlife
Studies (CWF) i India. Prosjektet er finansiert av den Norske Regjering med støtte fra den og
India.
Prosjektet har samarbeidet med Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) og har
implementert flere av deres kapasitetsbyggende verktøy, standarder og tjenester. I tillegg er WII
og Naturhistorisk Museum nasjonale GBIF- noder. Prosjektet er nært knyttet til indiske og
internasjonale strategier for utvikling av biodiversitetsinfrastruktur.
Prosjektet har fokusert på nasjonale brukerbehov, viltkamerametodikk, dataforvaltning, åpen
datadeling og barrierer for åpen datadeling. Seks casestudier har vist hvordan biodiversitetsinformatikk,
bruk av viltkamera, datamobilisering og strategier for deling av data kan bidra til
forbedrede beslutningsprosesser. Dette har ført til en bedre forståelse for bruk av viltkamera,
occupancy-modellering, DNA-analyser, artsutbredelse, rovvilt/samfunn konflikter, effekter av
menneskelig aktivitet på ville dyr, habitatrestaurering, behov knyttet til forvaltning av tigre, samt
etterforskning av ulovlig jakt på tiger.
Prosjektet har gjennomført en mindre datarepatrieringsøvelse ved de norske naturhistoriske museene.
Kapasitetsbyggingskomponenten i dette arbeidet overfor internasjonale museumssamlinger
ligger primært i beskrivelsen av hvordan repatrierte data kan mobiliseres gjennom GBIF.
WII har utviklet en nasjonal database og en webportal for mobilisering av viltkameradata. Dette
utviklingsarbeidet er et viktig skritt i retning av å utvikle et nasjonalt åpent system for forvaltning
av viltkamerabilder og tilhørende metadata. Prosjektet har også utviklet en Best Practice Guide
(BPG) for publisering av biodiversitetsdata avledet fra viltkamerabilder. Denne guiden vil bli vedlikeholdt
av GBIF i fremtiden.
Dette prosjektet har vist høy relevans i forhold til de kapasitetsbyggingsbehov som er identifisert
av IPBES. Som prosjektet viser er det store internasjonale synergier innen kapasitetsbygging
knyttet til biodiversitetsinformatikk, bruk av viltkamera, datamobilisering, datarepatriering, dataforvaltning
og forbedrede strategier for datadeling. I avslutningsfasen av dette pilotprosjektet har
prosjektpartnerne bestemt seg for å se etter nye samarbeidsmuligheter under IPBES
HYPOXIA, HABITATS AND COMPETITION: DETERMINANTS OF ELEVATIONAL DISTRIBUTION IN HIMALAYAN BIRDS.
No full textAn important aspect of montane bird ecology is that most species have limited elevational distribution. We have a very poor understanding however, of the mechanisms that drive this limited elevational distribution in birds. In my dissertation, I investigated hypobaric hypoxia, interspecific competition and habitat loss as drivers of distribution in montane birds in the Himalayas. The first chapter is an introduction to the topic of elevational distribution in birds and the motivation behind the following chapters. In the second chapter we show that annual elevational movement patterns of Himalayan birds predict their strategy to cope with hypobaric hypoxia. We demonstrate that while elevational migrants increase hemoglobin concentration by increasing the volume of erythrocytes in their blood, sedentary high-elevation residents increase hemoglobin concentration by increasing mean cellular hemoglobin concentration in a comparative study of 15 passerine species. In the third chapter, I used song playback and feeder experiments to test the role of interspecific competition in driving the elevational distribution of green-backed and cinereous tits in the western Himalayas. I show that although green-backed tits are behaviorally dominant over cinereous tits, cinereous tits live at high elevations by occupying habitats vacated by green-backed tits. In the fourth chapter, I used the results from the behavioral experiments to predict the spatial distribution of cinereous and green-backed tits in a landscape. Using occupancy modeling, we show that green-backed tits are dependent on forests for breeding sites at their elevational lower distributional limit and might be adversely affected by habitat loss. Cinereous tits, a common low elevation species on the other hand, occupy human-modified habitats and are likely expanding their elevational range upslope due to anthropogenic habitat modifications. In the fifth chapter, we undertook the first population ecology study on the green-backed tit in the Himalayas. Using a genetic blind test, we show that green-backed tit males have broader breast stripes than females. We also show that males and females have different beak shapes in winter but there is no significant difference in beak shape in summer due to male beaks becoming shorter
Elite Dominance and Under-investment in Mass Education: Disparity in the Social Development of the Indian States, 1960-92
No full textInter- and intra-state disparities in levels of literacy rates in India are striking, especially for the marginalized groups of women and low caste population. The present paper offers an explanation of this disparate development in terms of elite dominance that discriminates against the minority groups of people and systematically under-invests in mass education. We experiment with various indirect economic and political measures of elite dominance. Results based on the Indian state-level data for the period 1960-92 suggest that higher share of land held by the top 5% of the population (a) lowers spending on education as well as total developmental spending and (b) increases total nondevelopmental spending. Greater proportion of minority representations (female and low caste members) in the ruling government however fails to have any perceptible impact on development (including education) spending in our sample. This analysis also identifies land reform and poverty alleviation as two important policy instruments to erode the initial disadvantage of the marginalised people.
Issues in adjustment lending
No full textReaping the full benefit of adjustment packages depends on a government's commitment to reform as well as a variety of complementary factors, many of which have not been duly considered because of the lack of time, resources, and skills. It is becoming increasingly clear that if these packages are to be more effective and credible, the menu of policy options might be expanded in three areas. One is translating adjustment policies into improved economic performance -- the objective of domestic strategy. The second is reconciling policy reforms with changing external strategy. The third is improving the process of adjustment itself. The report concludes that attention needs to be placed on the commitment to price reforms and nonprice areas. Support might increase for the outward orientation of countries -- if discussions are extended to consider external factors and if nondistortionary ways of promoting domestic production are explored. There must also be greater government commitment to building support for the reforms as well as flexiblity in the external financing community.Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Country Strategy&Performance,Achieving Shared Growth,ICT Policy and Strategies
Elite dominance and under-investment in mass education: Disparity in the social development of the Indian states, 1960-92
No full textLiteracy rates continue to be strikingly low among women and low caste
population compared to the general population not only in any Indian state, but more so
in the worst performing ones. The present paper offers an explanation of this disparate
development in terms of the hypothesis of elite dominance that discriminates against
women and low-caste people and systematically under-invests in mass education. We
experiment with various indirect economic and political measures of elite dominance.
Results based on the Indian state-level data for the period 1960-92 suggest that higher
share of land held by the top 5% of the population (a) lowers spending on education as
well as total developmental spending and (b) increases total non-developmental spending.
(c) Greater proportion of minority representations (female and low caste members) in the
ruling government however fails to have any perceptible impact on both development
(including education) and non-development spending in our sample. (d) While underinvestment
in education by the elite is supported by the lack of demand for education
from the poorer population (who are often the marginalised people), greater initiatives of
the state to enact land reform legislations enhance the spending on education
On asset pricing and the equity premium puzzle
No full textThis thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Presented here are consumption and production related asset pricing models which seek to explain stock market behaviour through the stock premium over risk-free bonds and to do so using parameter values consistent with theory. Our results show that there are models capable of explaining stock market behaviour.
For the consumption-based model, we avoid many of the suggestions to artificially boost the predicted stock premium such as modelling consumption as leverage claims; instead we use the notion of surplus consumption. We find that with surplus consumption, there are models including the much-maligned power utility model, capable of yielding theory consistent estimates for the discount rate, risk-free rate as well as the coefficient of relative risk aversion, y.
Since real business cycle theory assumes a risk aversion coefficient of 1, we conclude that our model which gives a value close to but not equal to 1, provides an indication of the impact of market imperfections.
For production, we present many of the existing models which seek to explain stock market behaviour using production data which we find to be generally incapable of explaining stock market behaviour. We conclude by presenting a profit based formulation which uses deviations of actual from expected profits and dividends via stock price reaction parameters to successfully explain stock market behaviour. We also conclude that the use of a profit based formulation allows for a link to investment, output and pricing decisions and hence link consumption and production.Thames Valley Universit
Corridors at Crossroads: Linear Development-Induced Ecological Triage As a Conservation Opportunity
No full textThe transportation infrastructure of a nation forms the backbone of its economic growth and social development, and, as a developing country, India is no exception. However, with imperatives to improve connectivity for economic and social growth, ecological costs are often at stake. Roads, old and new, cut through protected forests and connecting habitats, resulting in a plethora of ecological effects. These may include the severing of natural corridors thereby compromising the role of landscapes as conservation units especially for landscape-dependent wild animal species. Consequent loss of biodiversity and ecosystems and decline in innumerable ecosystem services emanating from these natural reserves are other serious impacts. As India aspires for better, modern roads, the ecological concerns regarding many road upgradation projects have recently been the cause of disputes between the transportation sector and the conservation community. Delayed consideration of ecological concerns into linear development project planning leads to inadequate appropriation of funds needed for mitigating impacts of such developments. It is in these circumstances that the question of prioritizing areas and strategies for mitigation given limited mitigation funds arises. We examine the different facets to the debate of triage vis-à-vis conservation, development and mitigation planning in the transportation sector in a developing country context. We suggest that it is important and possible to secure investment towards conservation in areas outside the purview of legal protection through project mitigation costs and other mechanisms. We also make suggestions to avoid the ‘laissez-faire’ approach to linear development projects that is prevalent in India
- …
