El artículo analiza las dinámicas fronterizas desde el comienzo del siglo XX a través de una revisión bibliográfica apoyada en el análisis de datos cuantitativos y dos casos de estudio. La tesis central es que existe un conflicto entre las fronteras culturales y las político-territoriales, desafiando los límites geográficos reconocidos oficialmente. La frontera político-territorial es un fenómeno jurídico, una demarcación lineal que establece los límites espaciales dentro de los cuales el estado nación ejerce la soberanía de forma exclusiva, eficaz, autónoma respecto al exterior y bajo el reconocimiento de la legislación internacional. La frontera cultural es un fenómeno histórico que responde a hechos vitales y no a una construcción jurídica ni política ni intelectual. Podemos definirla como un área sociocultural habitada por una población que comparte una serie de elementos simbólicos, costumbres y valores. La gestión del conflicto entre los dos tipos de frontera depende de los desarrollos históricos que tienen lugar en el ámbito de las relaciones internacionales Nuestra tesis muestra que dichas dinámicas pueden articularse en torno a tres ejes. El primero está guiado por el auge del proceso globalizador y la consecuente apertura de fronteras. La apertura de fronteras puede definirse como el aumento en la porosidad de los símbolos, costumbres y valores compartidos en un área sociocultural respecto a los del exterior y/o la disminución de barreras al tránsito físico. Se le contrapone otro eje que lleva al cierre de fronteras, espoleado por los procesos de descolonización, la disolución de la URSS y el resurgir del nacionalismo. El cierre de fronteras se define como la disminución de la porosidad fronteriza o el aumento de las barreras al tránsito físico. El tercer eje está marcado por las disputas territoriales, fundadas sobre diferencias culturales, que llevan a intentar modificar las fronteras oficiales. La modificación de fronteras se da bien cuando un estado nación busca alargar la línea fronteriza que delimita el área bajo su soberanía o un grupo sociocultural trata de delimitar un territorio soberano frente al exterior, bien cuando un área sociocultural definida se expande o retrae sea por el auge o decline de su cultura sea por el del grupo humano que la representa. Los acontecimientos históricos para el análisis de los tres ejes citados provienen de fuentes bibliográficas, periodísticas y de bases de datos. Además, mostramos como la teoría se plasma en dos casos de estudio actuales, el independentismo catalán y el intento venezolano de crear un nuevo poder regional en el Caribe. ; The article analyses border dynamics since the beginning of the 20th century through a literature review supported with the analysis of quantitative data and two case studies. The central thesis is that there is a contradiction between the cultural and the geopolitical borders, challenging the official territorial limits. The geopolitical border is a legal phenomenon, a lineal boundary that establishes the territorial limits within which the nation-state exercises its sovereignty in an exclusive and effective manner, autonomous with respect to any foreign authority and under the recognition of the international law. The cultural frontier is a historical phenomenon shaped by emotional developments and not a legal, political or philosophical construction. It can be defined as a sociocultural area occupied by a population that shares a series of symbolic elements, customs and values. The management of the conflict between both types of borders depends on the historical developments that have taken place within the international relations' field. In order to analyse how geo-political borders and cultural frontiers interact between them we apply a hypothetic-deductive method. Firstly, we establish a theoretical framework that defines five basic analytical concepts shaping border dynamics. Those concepts are cultural frontier, geo-political border, closure axis, opening axis and modification axis. We design a model that explains how such concepts interact between them and we gather and analyse the evolution of a series of quantitative variables that allow us to empirically introduce their relationship along time. The construction of the theoretical framework, as well as the selection and interpretation of quantitative variables, comes together with the introduction of quotations and bibliography that back it up. Moreover, we apply the conclusions deducted from the global analysis to two case studies. The similarities and differences between both case studies are pointed out and we summarize the dynamics shaping the current management of borders. Finally, we offer some recommendations in order to design an effective and efficient geostrategy.The management of borders is articulated around three axes: closure, opening and modification. In other words, nation-states aim to achieve their geostrategic objectives through the modification, closure or opening of their cultural frontiers or/and geopolitical borders. The opening of borders/frontiers can be defined as the increase in the porosity to the outside world of the symbols, customs and values that are shared within a sociocultural area; and/or the wave of barriers to physical transactions —people, goods, capital flows, etc.—. On the other hand, the closure of borders/frontiers happens when the aforementioned porosity decreases or the barriers are strengthened. Finally, the modification of borders/frontiers can be either expansive or contractive as well as happening in the geopolitical dimension or the cultural one. Regarding the geopolitical dimension, the nation-state aims to expand the lineal boundary that mark out the area under its sovereignty or the sociocultural group aims to delimit to the outside world a territory under its exclusive sovereignty. Concerning the cultural dimension, a specific sociocultural area enlarges or retracts either as a consequence of the rise or decline of its culture or of the human group that embraces it. The evolution of the three axes is proxied by a series of variables and their trends. Moreover, the historical events laying down the foundations of the analysis of the three axes are gathered from different sources: bibliography, newspapers and data bases. Moreover, we show how the theory is captured in two current case studies, the independentism in Catalonia and the Venezuelan attempt to create a new regional power in the Caribbean. While the globalization process fosters the opening of borders, the will of the nation-state to safeguard its historical rights and the international status quo drives its closure. On the other hand, the modification of borders is marked by territorial disputes arising from the contradictions between geopolitical borders and cultural frontiers, often exacerbated by the dynamics related to the two previous axes. The territorial dispute between Venezuela and the Cooperative Republic of Guayana is an example of such a dynamic. On the one hand, the State of Venezuela tries to safeguard its traditional rights presenting the dispute as a national question. At the same time, globalization lengthens cultural boundaries while Venezuela revives the ideological division between a capitalist and a socialist world. The closure of borders and frontiers, marked by the nationalist revival, and the opening, driven by the globalization process, act as a catalyser of borders modification. The article is structured by an introduction and six sections. The introduction defines the concepts of geopolitical border and cultural frontier. Moreover, it establishes the theoretical framework used to analyse the evolution of both types of borders and how the interaction between them shapes international relationships during the 20th and 21st centuries. The first section introduces the three axes —closure, opening and modification— along which the management of borders develops during the period under analyses and the relationships arising between them. The second section analyses the closure axis that is driven by the rise of nationalism, the Cold War and the decolonisation process. We use a series of variables to proxy how such an axis evolved along time: total number of international organizations, creation and end of international organizations, net foreign direct investment flows, international trade of goods, attitude of the government towards immigration and number of United Nations peacekeeping missions. The third section does the same for the opening axis. The opening of borders is fostered by the expansion of economic and political liberalism through the globalization process. We use the same variables as in section two to empirically assess the evolution of the opening axis. Section number four introduces the modification axis and how the changes of borders and frontiers are related to events linked to the opening and closure axes. The section analyses three types of modifications (territorial concessions, declarations of independence and annexations). Data about modifications are gathered from The Correlates of War Project and The World Factbook data bases. Section number five shows how the tension between cultural and geopolitical borders determines the management of borders nowadays, following the three axes of closure, opening and modification outlined above. Firstly, we introduce the case study of Catalonia, which is mainly related to the closure axis. Secondly, we analyse the case study of Guayana Esebequio and the territorial dispute between Venezuela and the Cooperative Republic of Guayana. Finally, we compare the differences and similarities between both case studies. The last section consists of the conclusions and political recommendations that we extract from our research so that policy makers can implement efficient and effective policies on borders managements. ; Border dynamics in the 20-21st Century : a mirror of the world order evolution
The article analyses border dynamics since the beginning of the 20th century through a literature review supported with the analysis of quantitative data and two case studies. The central thesis is that there is a contradiction between the cultural and the geopolitical borders, challenging the official territorial limits. The geopolitical border is a legal phenomenon, a lineal boundary that establishes the territorial limits within which the nation-state exercises its sovereignty in an exclusive and effective manner, autonomous with respect to any foreign authority and under the recognition of the international law. The cultural frontier is a historical phenomenon shaped by emotional developments and not a legal, political or philosophical construction. It can be defined as a sociocultural area occupied by a population that shares a series of symbolic elements, customs and values. The management of the conflict between both types of borders depends on the historical developments that have taken place within the international relations' field. In order to analyse how geo-political borders and cultural frontiers interact between them we apply a hypothetic-deductive method. Firstly, we establish a theoretical framework that defines five basic analytical concepts shaping border dynamics. Those concepts are cultural frontier, geo-political border, closure axis, opening axis and modification axis. We design a model that explains how such concepts interact between them and we gather and analyse the evolution of a series of quantitative variables that allow us to empirically introduce their relationship along time. The construction of the theoretical framework, as well as the selection and interpretation of quantitative variables, comes together with the introduction of quotations and bibliography that back it up. Moreover, we apply the conclusions deducted from the global analysis to two case studies. The similarities and differences between both case studies are pointed out and we summarize the dynamics shaping the current management of borders. Finally, we offer some recommendations in order to design an effective and efficient geostrategy. The management of borders is articulated around three axes: closure, opening and modification. In other words, nation-states aim to achieve their geostrategic objectives through the modification, closure or opening of their cultural frontiers or/and geopolitical borders. The opening of borders/frontiers can be defined as the increase in the porosity to the outside world of the symbols, customs and values that are shared within a sociocultural area; and/or the wave of barriers to physical transactions —people, goods, capital flows, etc.—. On the other hand, the closure of borders/frontiers happens when the aforementioned porosity decreases or the barriers are strengthened. Finally, the modification of borders/frontiers can be either expansive or contractive as well as happening in the geopolitical dimension or the cultural one. Regarding the geopolitical dimension, the nation-state aims to expand the lineal boundary that mark out the area under its sovereignty or the sociocultural group aims to delimit to the outside world a territory under its exclusive sovereignty. Concerning the cultural dimension, a specific sociocultural area enlarges or retracts either as a consequence of the rise or decline of its culture or of the human group that embraces it. The evolution of the three axes is proxied by a series of variables and their trends. Moreover, the historical events laying down the foundations of the analysis of the three axes are gathered from different sources: bibliography, newspapers and data bases. Moreover, we show how the theory is captured in two current case studies, the independentism in Catalonia and the Venezuelan attempt to create a new regional power in the Caribbean. While the globalization process fosters the opening of borders, the will of the nation-state to safeguard its historical rights and the international status quo drives its closure. On the other hand, the modification of borders is marked by territorial disputes arising from the contradictions between geopolitical borders and cultural frontiers, often exacerbated by the dynamics related to the two previous axes. The territorial dispute between Venezuela and the Cooperative Republic of Guayana is an example of such a dynamic. On the one hand, the State of Venezuela tries to safeguard its traditional rights presenting the dispute as a national question. At the same time, globalization lengthens cultural boundaries while Venezuela revives the ideological division between a capitalist and a socialist world. The closure of borders and frontiers, marked by the nationalist revival, and the opening, driven by the globalization process, act as a catalyser of borders modification. The article is structured by an introduction and six sections. The introduction defines the concepts of geopolitical border and cultural frontier. Moreover, it establishes the theoretical framework used to analyse the evolution of both types of borders and how the interaction between them shapes international relationships during the 20th and 21st centuries. The first section introduces the three axes —closure, opening and modification— along which the management of borders develops during the period under analyses and the relationships arising between them. The second section analyses the closure axis that is driven by the rise of nationalism, the Cold War and the decolonisation process. We use a series of variables to proxy how such an axis evolved along time: total number of international organizations, creation and end of international organizations, net foreign direct investment flows, international trade of goods, attitude of the government towards immigration and number of United Nations peacekeeping missions. The third section does the same for the opening axis. The opening of borders is fostered by the expansion of economic and political liberalism through the globalization process. We use the same variables as in section two to empirically assess the evolution of the opening axis. Section number four introduces the modification axis and how the changes of borders and frontiers are related to events linked to the opening and closure axes. The section analyses three types of modifications (territorial concessions, declarations of independence and annexations). Data about modifications are gathered from The Correlates of War Project and The World Factbook data bases. Section number five shows how the tension between cultural and geopolitical borders determines the management of borders nowadays, following the three axes of closure, opening and modification outlined above. Firstly, we introduce the case study of Catalonia, which is mainly related to the closure axis. Secondly, we analyse the case study of Guayana Esebequio and the territorial dispute between Venezuela and the Cooperative Republic of Guayana. Finally, we compare the differences and similarities between both case studies. The last section consists of the conclusions and political recommendations that we extract from our research so that policy makers can implement efficient and effective policies on borders managements. ; El artículo analiza las dinámicas fronterizas desde el comienzo del siglo XX a través de una revisión bibliográfica apoyada en el análisis de datos cuantitativos y dos casos de estudio.La tesis central es que existe un conflicto entre las fronteras culturales y las político-territoriales, desafiando los límites geográficos reconocidos oficialmente. La frontera político-territorial es un fenómeno jurídico, una demarcación lineal que establece los límites espaciales dentro de los cuales el estado nación ejerce la soberanía de forma exclusiva, eficaz, autónoma respecto al exterior y bajo el reconocimiento de la legislación internacional. La frontera cultural es un fenómeno histórico que responde a hechos vitales y no a una construcción jurídica ni política ni intelectual. Podemos definirla como un área sociocultural habitada por una población que comparte una serie de elementos simbólicos, costumbres y valores. La gestión del conflicto entre los dos tipos de frontera depende de los desarrollos históricos que tienen lugar en el ámbito de las relaciones internacionalesNuestra tesis muestra que dichas dinámicas pueden articularse en torno a tres ejes. El primero está guiado por el auge del proceso globalizador y la consecuente apertura de fronteras. La apertura de fronteras puede definirse como el aumento en la porosidad de los símbolos, costumbres y valores compartidos en un área sociocultural respecto a los del exterior y/o la disminución de barreras al tránsito físico. Se le contrapone otro eje que lleva al cierre de fronteras, espoleado por los procesos de descolonización, la disolución de la URSS y el resurgir del nacionalismo. El cierre de fronteras se define como la disminución de la porosidad fronteriza o el aumento de las barreras al tránsito físico. El tercer eje está marcado por las disputas territoriales, fundadas sobre diferencias culturales, que llevan a intentar modificar las fronteras oficiales. La modificación de fronteras se da bien cuando un estado nación busca alargar la línea fronteriza que delimita el área bajo su soberanía o un grupo sociocultural trata de delimitar un territorio soberano frente al exterior, bien cuando un área sociocultural definida se expande o retrae sea por el auge o decline de su cultura sea por el del grupo humano que la representa.Los acontecimientos históricos para el análisis de los tres ejes citados provienen de fuentes bibliográficas, periodísticas y de bases de datos. Además, mostramos como la teoría se plasma en dos casos de estudio actuales, el independentismo catalán y el intento venezolano de crear un nuevo poder regional en el Caribe.
Mención Internacional en el título de doctor ; Renewable energies are the leading alternative to fossil fuels, facing the constant threat of climate change. The development of these new resources has grown in the latest years, especially in the field of solar and wind energy. These renewable power sources have gathered a series of research challenges that, to this date, are still to be solved, with many contributions to this end in the last decade. The role of estimation and forecasting of solar energy is key to the development of the solar energy market, because it cheapens instrumentation costs and improve the efficiency of solar energy market participation in the power grid. The forecast of solar energy is fundamental to estimate costs and operational regulations of a solar plant, although the intermittence of solar energy makes this a difficult task. On the other hand, the estimation of solar irradiance can replace expensive measuring devices such as pyranometers or pyrheliometers; or the need of expert supervision on meteorological stations for cloud type classification. In order to improve estimation, two proposals are studied. The first approach to estimation is the automatic classification of clouds by including ceilometer information. This is a device capable of measuring height and thickness of a cloud, information that has never been applied to cloud classification. The next proposal is the estimation of irradiance by directly analyzing images with Convolutional Networks and multiple perspectives, a never before used technique for solar energy estimation. To improve forecasting the integration of prediction models is proposed. This technique compares and combines existing predictive models to obtain a final, more accurate, prediction. Although this is not a new approach, it has never been applied to various prediction models specialized in different horizons, or for short-term forecasting. Given that clouds produce the greatest interference between extraterrestial and surface irradiance, whole-sky cloud images are a valuable source of data for radiation estimation. To study the cloud type classification problem a Random Forest algorithm is employed. The algorithm is trained using information from cloud height and thickness, which is combined with camera im- 3 age features. Including cloud height and width proves to noticeably improve accuracy even when difficult to classify cloud types are included. Results for 10-class cloud classification, including multiple clouds in a single image, show 71.12%, an improvement over the 50.6% achieved without ceilometer information. This study shows the positive impact of ceilometer information in the cloud classification problem. Irradiance estimation can also be estimated directly from camera images. To face this problem various models have been created using convolutional neural networks, a Machine Learning technique fit for image recognition. Two approaches are proposed, a model with information from a single camera and a model with multiple sky perspectives. In addition to the common RGB colour channels used in image processing, two new channels are included: the distance from a pixel to the sun and the cloudy pixels of an image. Multiple perspectives improve noticeably all alternatives proposed, proving the contribution of the multi-view convolutional network proposed. There are many predictive models that predict with diverse capabilities at different predictive horizons. In this thesis, this process is called forecast integration (or blending). An integration model is proposed to blend four physical models from four meteorological stations at the south of the Iberian peninsula. Using support vector regression these are combined in a linear and non-linear way using the four predictors as inputs to machine learning. Two approaches are presented: a horizon approach that builds a model for each predictive horizon, and a general approach that builds a single prediction model for all horizons. In addition, a regional model is proposed, capable of of making predictions at a regional level instead of a station level. Results from integration are very positive compared with the baseline models for global and direct irradiance. Some absolute improvements reach 15% when comparing integration models to any predictor model when rRMSE and rMAE are evaluated on global and direct irradiance. At a regional level, there are also improvements, at an absolute 5% on global radiation over the predictor models and 10% for direct irradiance. The general approach is specially remarkable because, using a single model, it can obtain the best results on rMAE and match the results of other integration models on rRMSE. ; Las energías renovables son una importante alternativa a los combustibles fósiles ante el constante avance del cambio climático. El desarrollo de estos nuevos recursos se ha acelerado en los últimos años, especialmente en el campo de energía eólica y solar. Estas fuentes energéticas han atraído una serie de desafíos de investigación que siguen en progreso de ser resueltos, con numerosas contribuciones en la última década. La labor de estimación y predicción de energía solar es integral para el desarrollo del mercado energético, ya que permite abaratar costes instrumentales y mejorar la eficiencia de la penetración de la energía solar en la mezcla energética. La predicción de energía es fundamental en el mercado energético para estimar costes y regulaciones operativas de plantas solares, aunque la intermitencia de la energía solar hace que sea una tarea difícil. Por otro lado, la estimación de radiación solar permite reemplazar herramientas de alto coste como piranómetros y pirheliómetros; o la necesidad de expertos para detectar tipos de nube. Para la mejora de estimación se estudian dos propuestas diferentes. En primer lugar se trata de abordar el problema de clasificación de nubes, incluyendo información de ceilómetro. Esta es una herramienta que mide altura y anchura de una nube, cuyo uso nunca ha sido aplicado en la clasificación de nubes. La siguiente propuesta es la estimación de radiación directa a partir de imágenes, usando Redes Convolucionales y múltiples perspectivas, una técnica que nunca ha sido empleada para la estimación de energía solar. Para la mejora de la predicción de energía solar se propone la integración de modelos predictivos. Esta técnica consiste en la combinación de modelos predictivos existentes para obtener una predicción final mucho más precisa que las iniciales. Aunque esta no es una aproximación nueva, su exploración ha sido insuficiente para varios modelos especializados en distintos horizontes, o para predicción a corto plazo. Dado que las nubes producen el mayor impacto entre la radiación extraterrestre y la radiación que alcanza la superficie, las imágenes de nubes son una fuente de datos valiosa para la estimación de radiación. Para estudiar la clasificación del tipo de nube se emplea un algoritmo Random Forest entrenado con información sobre la altura y ancho de la nube, que se combina con estadísticos obtenidos a partir de imágenes. La información del ceilómetro permite mejorar notablemente los resultados incluso cuando se incluyen ejemplos de nube difíciles para expertos. Se logra predecir 10 tipos de nube con un 71.1% de precisión frente al 50.6% obtenido sin ceilómetro. Este estudio prueba que la inclusión de información del ceilómetro tiene un impacto muy positivo en los resultados. La estimación de radiación también se puede afrontar directamente a partir de las imágenes. Para tratar este problema se han creado varios modelos usando redes convolucionales apropiadas para el análisis de imágenes. Se proponen modelos que utilizan información proveniente de una sola cámara y otro modelo con múltiples perspectivas del cielo. Además de los canales habituales utilizados en el proceso de imágenes con redes convolucionales (RGB) se incluyen varios canales adicionales: la lejanía de los píxeles al sol y los píxeles que representan nubes. Las múltiples perspectivas y canales de información adicionales mejoran notablemente las alternativas propuestas, demostrando el aporte de la red convolucional multi-perspectiva propuesta. Existen multitud de modelos predictivos que ofrecen predicciones con capacidades diversas a distintos horizontes de predicción. En esta tesis, se propone un modelo integrador de cuatro modelos predictivos. Usando Maquinas de Vectores de Soporte para regresión se combinan de manera lineal y nolineal los cuatro predictores, utilizando como entradas al modelo las predicciones de los cuatro predictores. Se proponen dos aproximaciones, una por horizontes, construyendo un modelo para cada horizonte de predicción, y otra general, construyendo un modelo único para todos los horizontes. Los modelos han sido evaluados con datos procedentes de cuatro localizaciones al sur de la península ibérica. También se propone un modelo integrador regional, capaz de aportar predicciones a nivel regional en lugar de a nivel de estación. Los resultados de integración son muy positivos tanto para radiación global como directa, mostrando mejoras absolutas hasta del 15% frente a cualquier predictor tanto en rRMSE como en rMAE. A nivel regional también se obtienen mejoras del 5% para radiación global y del 10% para radiación directa. La aproximación general es especialmente destacable, haciendo uso de un único modelo, es capaz de obtener los mejores resultados en rMAE e igualar al resto de modelos de integración en rRMSE. ; This dissertation has been developed under the project PROSOL ENE2014-56126-C2 (Towards an integrated model for solar energy forecasting) in collaboration with the research group MATRAS (University of Jaen) and funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation (Spanish Government). All the data shown in this text has been provided by MATRAS and has been used with their permission. ; Programa de Doctorado en Ciencia y Tecnología Informática por la Universidad Carlos III de Madrid ; Presidente: Pedro Isasi Viñuela.- Secretario: Esteban García Cuesta.- Vocal: Ricardo Simón Carbajo
BEFORE THE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION POLICY In clarity that the policy of science, technology and innovation is, on the one hand, one of the main guidelines developed by the national government for the 2014-2018 period, and on the other hand, part of the strategy of Strategic Competitiveness and Infrastructure for the period 2016-2025, to which is added the Colombian historical experience of being in the frame of action of post Agreements of Havana, the Criteria Libre Jurídico Magazine is compelled to join the efforts from the framework of academic and investigative action of the Faculty of Right of Universidad Libre Seccional Cali to contribute to the visibility of research results as a missionary principle that responds to the demands of the country's bets in order to respond to the specific challenges of the territories in cooperation with the agents of the national system of innovation. Although to achieve high rates of visibility, the editorial policy of the Free Criteria journal should be rigorous in following the guidelines required by Publíndex, it finds, beyond the reach of measurement indicators, an opportunity to be decidedly a contribution to the dissemination of results of inquiries carried out by national and international researchers. Several steps have already been taken from the route to follow, and this is what the authors identify who have seen in our editorial the propitious setting for their publications. What remains to be removed brings great challenges. Every time that the universities turn their eyes towards the policy of Colombian CTeI, they try to attend it with the rigor that their budgetary possibilities allow them, which means to tend for a pertinent bet of the investigation in the regions, at the same time as the actions advanced by the Teachers researchers also join the path of institutional accreditation, certification and recertification of programs. The policy of CTeI is transversal to the requirements for the academic offer and the recognition of quality in the accreditation; both the one and the other, has among its indicators the publications. Being the Criterio Libre Jurídico Magazine a scientific publication scenario in the areas of Law, Political and Social Sciences, it has its virtual publication in the Open Journal System -OJS software, under the guidelines of Publindex, adding to this the open visibility of inquiries of the researchers and what that implies in an opportunity for their indicators as a researcher and author of publications, as well as the strengthening of the institutions to which the researchers are formally linked. The challenge is to position the editorial rigor of the Criterio Libre Jurídico Magazine visible in the National Service of Indexing of Serial Specialized Publications of Science, Technology and Innovation - Publindex, thereby irradiating the academic communities that have decided to publish with us. We are all then called to know the one and multiple ways of reading the world from the perspective of law, political and social sciences, as research results, adding to this reflection exercises for future new publications. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Faculty of Law, Political and Social Sciences Universidad Libre Seccional Cali ; ANTE LA POLÍTICA DE CIENCIA, TECNOLOGÍA E INNOVACIÓN En claridad que la política de ciencia, tecnología e innovación es, por un lado, uno de los principales lineamientos que desarrolla el Gobierno nacional para la vigencia 2014-2018, y por otro, parte de la estrategia de Competitividad e Infraestructura Estratégicas para el periodo 2016-2025, a lo que se suma la experiencia histórica colombiana de encontrarse en marco de actuación de pos Acuerdos de la Habana, la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico se ve compelida a aunar los esfuerzos desde el marco de actuación académico e investigativo de la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad Libre Seccional Cali que coadyuven a la visibilización de resultados de investigación como principio misional que responde a las exigencias de las apuestas de país en pro de dar respuesta a los retos específicos de los territorios en cooperación con los agentes del sistema nacional de innovación. Si bien para lograr altos índices de visibilización, la política editorial de la revista Criterio Libre Jurídico debe ser rigurosa en seguir los lineamientos exigidos por Publíndex, encuentra, allende al alcance de indicadores de medición, una oportunidad para ser decididamente un aporte a la difusión de resultados de indagaciones que adelantan los investigadores nacionales e internacionales. De la ruta por seguir se han dado ya varios pasos, y así lo identifican los autores que han visto en nuestra editorial el escenario propicio para sus publicaciones. Lo que queda por trasegar trae consigo grandes retos. Cada que las universidades viran la mirada hacia la política de CTeI colombiana, intentan atenderla con el rigor que su posibilidad presupuestal les permite, lo que implica propender por una apuesta pertinente de la investigación en las regiones, a la vez que las acciones adelantadas por los docentes investigadores sumen igualmente a la ruta de acreditación institucional, la certificación y recertificación de programas. La política de CTeI es transversal a las exigencias para la oferta académica y el reconocimiento de calidad en la acreditación; tanto lo uno como lo otro, tiene entre sus indicadores las publicaciones. Siendo la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico un escenario de publicación científica en las áreas del Derecho, Ciencias Políticas y Sociales, dispone su publicación virtual en el software Open Journal System –OJS, bajo los lineamientos de Publindex, sumando con ello tanto a la visibilización abierta de indagaciones de los investigadores y lo que ello implica en oportunidad para sus indicadores como investigador y autor de publicaciones, como al fortalecimiento de las instituciones a los que los investigadores se encuentran formalmente vinculados. El reto, lograr posicionar el rigor editorial de la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico visible en el Servicio Nacional de Indexación de Publicaciones Especializadas Seriadas de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación – Publindex, irradiando con ello a las comunidades académicas que han decidido publicar con nosotros. Somos todos convocados entonces a conocer las una y múltiples formas de leer el mundo desde la perspectiva del derecho, las ciencias políticas y sociales, en tanto resultados de investigación, sumando con ello a ejercicios de reflexión para futuras nuevas publicaciones. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Facultad de Derecho, Ciencias Políticas y Sociales Universidad Libre Seccional Cali ; ANTE A POLÍTICA CIÊNCIA, TECNOLOGIA E INOVAÇÃO Com a clareza de que a política de ciência, tecnologia e inovação é, por um lado, uma das principais diretrizes desenvolvidas pelo governo nacional para o período 2014-2018 e, por outro lado, parte da estratégia de competitividade estratégica e infra-estrutura para o período 2016-2025, ao qual se adiciona a experiência histórica colombiana de estar no quadro de ação dos pós- acordos da Havana. A Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico é obrigada a unir os esforços do quadro de ação acadêmica e de investigação da Faculdade de Direito da Universidade Livre Seccional Cali para contribuir para a visibilidade dos resultados da pesquisa como um princípio missionário que responda às demandas das apostas do país para responder aos desafios específicos dos territórios em cooperação com os agentes do sistema nacional de inovação. Embora para alcançar altas taxas de visibilidade, a política editorial da revista Criterio livre Jurídico deve ser rigorosa ao seguir as diretrizes exigidas pelo Publíndex, descobre, além do alcance dos indicadores de medição, uma oportunidade para ser decididamente uma contribuição para a difução de resultados de inquéritos realizados por pesquisadores nacionais e internacionais. Várias etapas já foram tiradas da rota a seguir, é isso o que identifaca os autores que têm visto em nosso editorial o cenário propício para suas publicações. O que resta para se-transferir traz grandes desafios. Toda vez que as universidades voltam os olhos para a política da CTeI colombiana, elas tentam atendê-la com o rigor que suas possibilidades orçamentais lhes permitem, o que significa tender para uma aposta pertinente da investigação nas regiões, ao mesmo tempo que as ações avançadas pelos professores pesquisadores também se juntam ao caminho da acreditação institucional, certificação e recertificação de programas. A política da CTeI é transversal aos requisitos para a oferta acadêmica e ao reconhecimento da qualidade na acreditação; tanto o um como o outro, tem entre os seus indicadores as publicações. Sendo a Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico um cenário de publicação científica nas áreas de Direito, Ciências Políticas e Sociais, tem sua publicação virtual no software Open Journal System -OJS, de acordo com as diretrizes do Publindex, acrescentando a isso a visibilidade aberta ás indagações de pesquisadores e o que isso implica em uma oportunidade para seus indicadores como pesquisador e autor de publicações, bem como o fortalecimento das instituições às quais os pesquisadores estão formalmente ligados. O desafio é posicionar o rigor editorial da Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico visível no Serviço Nacional de Indexação de Publicações Especializadas em Séries de Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação - Publindex, irradiando assim as comunidades acadêmicas que decidiram publicar conosco. Todos somos chamados a conhecer uma e múltiplas formas de ler o mundo da perspectiva das ciências jurídicas, políticas e sociais, como resultados de pesquisa, somando a esses exercicios de reflexão para novas publicações futuras. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Faculdade de Direito, Ciências Políticas e Sociais Universidade Livre Seccional Cali
Dissertação de mestrado em Ecologia, apresentada ao Departamento de Ciências da Vida da Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade de Coimbra. ; Os ecossistemas marinhos têm vindo a enfrentar um aumento no número de ameaças como a exploração insustentável dos recursos marinhos (por exemplo a pesca excessiva), degradação e perda de habitats marinhos, efeitos da poluição, da introdução de espécies invasoras e efeitos das alterações climáticas. Uma possível forma de diminuir tais impactos é através da implementação de Áreas Marinhas Protegidas (Marine Protected Areas, MPAs), que desempenham um papel importante na conservação da biodiversidade e contribuem para a recuperação do ambiente marinho. No entanto a percentagem do oceano que está actualmente sob protecção (2.8%) é bastante baixo considerando um dos objectivos estabelecidos pela CBD (Convention on Biological Diversity): proteger pelo menos 10% da costa e áreas marinhas até 2020. As águas circundantes ao arquipélago das Berlengas têm um grande valor de conservação devido às suas características que levam à agregação de grande produtividade marinha, permitindo a subsistência de várias aves marinhas, algumas delas em perigo de extinção (como a Pardela-Balear Puffinus mauritanicus). Embora esta área esteja actualmente sob protecção, os limites da Área Marinha Protegida (MPA) não se sobrepõem totalmente à área definida como importante para as aves marinhas (marine Important Bird Area, mIBA) que foi estabelecida com base apenas na biodiversidade local. Os limites actuais da MPA das Berlengas foram definidos com a contribuição de informação de rastreamento das áreas de procura de alimento mais importantes para uma ave marinha predadora de topo com uma ampla distribuição, a Cagarra Calonectris diomedea, sobretudo durante a fase de alimentação às crias entre 2005 e 2008. Contudo, os limites da mIBA e MPA das Berlengas não foram avaliados usando informação de rastreamento de todo o ciclo reprodutivo da espécie durante vários anos (para englobar a estocasticidade ambiental inter-anual). O objectivo desta tese foi usar dados de rastreamento de uma ave marinha predadora de topo para definir importantes áreas de procura de alimento e avaliar a sua adequabilidade no estabelecimento de uma rede de Áreas Marinhas Protegidas ao longo de Portugal Continental. Mais especificamente este trabalho pretende responder às seguintes questões: (1) Que factores (ambientais ou antropogénicos) influenciam a distribuição de procura de alimento da Cagarra ao longo do período de reprodução e através dos anos? (2) Estarão os actuais limites (da mIBA e MPA das Berlengas) a proteger todas as importantes áreas de procura de alimento desta espécie? Para responder a estas questões fixaram-se dispositivos de GPS (Global Positioning System) nas penas do dorso dasaves para identificar as áreas de procura de alimento usadas pela espécie. Modelos de distribuição de espécies (MaxEnt) foram realizados usando informação de rastreamento e dados ambientais de forma a entender que variáveis ambientais desencadeiam a distribuição de procura de alimento da espécie. Para avaliar a adequabilidade dos limites das actuais mIBA e MPA das Berlengas usou-se o software Zonation, que pode ser usado para o delineamento e avaliação de Áreas Marinhas Protegidas, produzindo diferentes cenários dependendo das especificações das prioridades de conservação. Os resultados demonstraram diferentes padrões de procura de alimento em 2010 e 2012 comparativamente com os anos de 2011 e 2013; e também diferenças nas características das viagens, com viagens mais perto da colónia nos períodos de alimentação das crias. Estas diferenças anuais podem estar relacionadas com a variação climática, como reflectido pelo índice NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation), que mostra valores de índice positivos mais altos em 2012 (considerando o período de tempo de estudo) e valores de índice negativos mais baixos em 2010. Durante o período de alimentação das crias, as aves mostraram um comportamento de procura de alimento designado por central-place foraging, como consequência da constante necessidade de voltar para a colónia para alimentar as crias. Portanto, áreas na periferia da colonia são mais propensas a ser usadas durante o período de alimentação das crias do que durante os períodos de incubação e antes da postura do ovo. De forma geral, as aves exploraram sobretudo áreas produtivas sobre a plataforma continental nos arredores da colónia e áreas ao longo da costa Portuguesa, assim como áreas produtivas mais distantes perto de bancos e montes submarinos na região do Norte Atlântico. Os resultados permitem-nos concluir que a actual MPA está apenas a proteger 25.9% das áreas de procura de alimento mais relevantes para a Cagarra. Enquanto essas áreas de procura de alimento sobrepõem-se 45.5% com a mIBA das Berlengas. Um valor de sobreposição mais elevado (59.6%) é obtido ao comparar com as novas Áreas Marinhas Protegidas propostas que estão actualmente sob a avaliação do governo Português. A implementação das novas Áreas Marinhas Protegidas iria permitir a protecção das áreas de procura de alimento mais relevantes para a Cagarra. Isto porque a sua implementação iria gerar uma conectividade entre a maioria das áreas a norte e sul da actual MPA das Berlengas, providenciando um corredor ecológico para a Cagarra e outros organismos marinhos. ; Marine ecosystems have been facing an increasing number of threats such as unsustainable exploitation of marine resources (e.g. overfishing), degradation and loss of marine habitats, pollution, invasive species and climate change. A possible way to diminish the impact of such threats is through the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which play an important role in biodiversity conservation and contribute to restock the entire marine environment. However the percentage of ocean that are already protected (2.8%) is alarmingly low considering one of the targets set by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD): to protect at least 10% of coastal and marine areas until 2020. Berlengas archipelago surrounding waters have great conservation value due to features that congregate a high marine productivity, allowing the survival and maintenance of several seabird species, some of them endangered (e.g. the Balearic shearwater Puffinus mauritanicus). Although this important area is currently under protection, the boundaries of the Berlengas Marine Protected Area (MPA) do not overlap fully with the Berlengas marine Important Bird Area (mIBA), which was designated based on the areas with great importance to the small range local biodiversity. The present boundaries of the Berlengas MPA were defined with the contribution of tracking information of the most important foraging areas of a wide range seabird top predator, the Cory's shearwater Calonectris diomedea, mostly during the chick-rearing phases of 2005 – 2008. Yet, the boundaries of the Berlengas mIBA and MPA have not been assessed, using tracking information for the whole breeding cycle of this species during several years (in order to take into account inter-annual environmental stochasticity). The aim of this thesis was to use tracking data of a seabird top predator to define boundaries of key foraging grounds and assess their adequacy on the establishment of a network of Marine Protected Areas within Mainland Portugal. More specifically, this work intended to answer the following questions: (1) Which factors (environmental or Human-related) drive the foraging distribution of Cory's shearwater along the breeding period and across years? (2) Are the current boundaries (from both Berlengas mIBA and Berlengas MPA areas) protecting all key foraging grounds of this species? To address these questions Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices were attached to the back feathers of Cory's shearwater in order to identify the foraging areas used by this species. Species Distribution Models (SDM; MaxEnt) were performed using foraging tracking data combined with environmentaldata in order to understand which environmental variables trigger the foraging distribution of the species. To better access the adequacy of the current Berlengas mIBA and MPA boundaries it was used the conservation planning software Zonation. This software can be used to design and evaluate Marine Protected Areas by producing different scenarios depending on specification of conservational priorities. Results showed very distinct foraging patterns in 2010 and 2012 comparing with 2011 and 2013 and also distinct foraging trip characteristics, with trips closer to the colony during chick-rearing periods. These annual differences may be related with climatic variation, as reflected by the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index, with the highest positive index value in 2012 (considering our study period) and the lowest negative index value in 2010. During the chick-rearing period, birds showed a typical central-place foraging behaviour, as a consequence of the constant need to return to the colony to feed their chick. Therefore, areas in the vicinity of the colony are more likely to be used during chick-rearing than during pre-laying and incubation periods. Overall, birds mostly exploited productive areas above the continental shelf around the colony and along the Portuguese coast, as well as more distant productivity areas near known banks and seamounts of the north Atlantic region. Results also allowed to conclude that the actual Berlengas MPA is only protecting 25.9% of the most relevant foraging region for Cory's shearwater. While the same foraging region overlapped 45.5% with the Berlengas mIBA. A considerably higher overlapped area (59.6%) was obtained when comparing with new proposed Marine Protected Areas, under evaluation by the Portuguese government. The implementation of these new areas would protect the most relevant foraging areas of Cory's shearwater. This is because the implementation of these new areas would generate connectivity between the main areas north and south of the actual Berlengas MPA, thus providing an ecological corridor for Cory's shearwaters and other marine taxa.
BEFORE THE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION POLICY In clarity that the policy of science, technology and innovation is, on the one hand, one of the main guidelines developed by the national government for the 2014-2018 period, and on the other hand, part of the strategy of Strategic Competitiveness and Infrastructure for the period 2016-2025, to which is added the Colombian historical experience of being in the frame of action of post Agreements of Havana, the Criteria Libre Jurídico Magazine is compelled to join the efforts from the framework of academic and investigative action of the Faculty of Right of Universidad Libre Seccional Cali to contribute to the visibility of research results as a missionary principle that responds to the demands of the country's bets in order to respond to the specific challenges of the territories in cooperation with the agents of the national system of innovation. Although to achieve high rates of visibility, the editorial policy of the Free Criteria journal should be rigorous in following the guidelines required by Publíndex, it finds, beyond the reach of measurement indicators, an opportunity to be decidedly a contribution to the dissemination of results of inquiries carried out by national and international researchers. Several steps have already been taken from the route to follow, and this is what the authors identify who have seen in our editorial the propitious setting for their publications. What remains to be removed brings great challenges. Every time that the universities turn their eyes towards the policy of Colombian CTeI, they try to attend it with the rigor that their budgetary possibilities allow them, which means to tend for a pertinent bet of the investigation in the regions, at the same time as the actions advanced by the Teachers researchers also join the path of institutional accreditation, certification and recertification of programs. The policy of CTeI is transversal to the requirements for the academic offer and the recognition of quality in the accreditation; both the one and the other, has among its indicators the publications. Being the Criterio Libre Jurídico Magazine a scientific publication scenario in the areas of Law, Political and Social Sciences, it has its virtual publication in the Open Journal System -OJS software, under the guidelines of Publindex, adding to this the open visibility of inquiries of the researchers and what that implies in an opportunity for their indicators as a researcher and author of publications, as well as the strengthening of the institutions to which the researchers are formally linked. The challenge is to position the editorial rigor of the Criterio Libre Jurídico Magazine visible in the National Service of Indexing of Serial Specialized Publications of Science, Technology and Innovation - Publindex, thereby irradiating the academic communities that have decided to publish with us. We are all then called to know the one and multiple ways of reading the world from the perspective of law, political and social sciences, as research results, adding to this reflection exercises for future new publications. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Faculty of Law, Political and Social Sciences Universidad Libre Seccional Cali ; ANTE LA POLÍTICA DE CIENCIA, TECNOLOGÍA E INNOVACIÓN En claridad que la política de ciencia, tecnología e innovación es, por un lado, uno de los principales lineamientos que desarrolla el Gobierno nacional para la vigencia 2014-2018, y por otro, parte de la estrategia de Competitividad e Infraestructura Estratégicas para el periodo 2016-2025, a lo que se suma la experiencia histórica colombiana de encontrarse en marco de actuación de pos Acuerdos de la Habana, la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico se ve compelida a aunar los esfuerzos desde el marco de actuación académico e investigativo de la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad Libre Seccional Cali que coadyuven a la visibilización de resultados de investigación como principio misional que responde a las exigencias de las apuestas de país en pro de dar respuesta a los retos específicos de los territorios en cooperación con los agentes del sistema nacional de innovación. Si bien para lograr altos índices de visibilización, la política editorial de la revista Criterio Libre Jurídico debe ser rigurosa en seguir los lineamientos exigidos por Publíndex, encuentra, allende al alcance de indicadores de medición, una oportunidad para ser decididamente un aporte a la difusión de resultados de indagaciones que adelantan los investigadores nacionales e internacionales. De la ruta por seguir se han dado ya varios pasos, y así lo identifican los autores que han visto en nuestra editorial el escenario propicio para sus publicaciones. Lo que queda por trasegar trae consigo grandes retos. Cada que las universidades viran la mirada hacia la política de CTeI colombiana, intentan atenderla con el rigor que su posibilidad presupuestal les permite, lo que implica propender por una apuesta pertinente de la investigación en las regiones, a la vez que las acciones adelantadas por los docentes investigadores sumen igualmente a la ruta de acreditación institucional, la certificación y recertificación de programas. La política de CTeI es transversal a las exigencias para la oferta académica y el reconocimiento de calidad en la acreditación; tanto lo uno como lo otro, tiene entre sus indicadores las publicaciones. Siendo la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico un escenario de publicación científica en las áreas del Derecho, Ciencias Políticas y Sociales, dispone su publicación virtual en el software Open Journal System –OJS, bajo los lineamientos de Publindex, sumando con ello tanto a la visibilización abierta de indagaciones de los investigadores y lo que ello implica en oportunidad para sus indicadores como investigador y autor de publicaciones, como al fortalecimiento de las instituciones a los que los investigadores se encuentran formalmente vinculados. El reto, lograr posicionar el rigor editorial de la Revista Criterio Libre Jurídico visible en el Servicio Nacional de Indexación de Publicaciones Especializadas Seriadas de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación – Publindex, irradiando con ello a las comunidades académicas que han decidido publicar con nosotros. Somos todos convocados entonces a conocer las una y múltiples formas de leer el mundo desde la perspectiva del derecho, las ciencias políticas y sociales, en tanto resultados de investigación, sumando con ello a ejercicios de reflexión para futuras nuevas publicaciones. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Facultad de Derecho, Ciencias Políticas y Sociales Universidad Libre Seccional Cali ; ANTE A POLÍTICA CIÊNCIA, TECNOLOGIA E INOVAÇÃO Com a clareza de que a política de ciência, tecnologia e inovação é, por um lado, uma das principais diretrizes desenvolvidas pelo governo nacional para o período 2014-2018 e, por outro lado, parte da estratégia de competitividade estratégica e infra-estrutura para o período 2016-2025, ao qual se adiciona a experiência histórica colombiana de estar no quadro de ação dos pós- acordos da Havana. A Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico é obrigada a unir os esforços do quadro de ação acadêmica e de investigação da Faculdade de Direito da Universidade Livre Seccional Cali para contribuir para a visibilidade dos resultados da pesquisa como um princípio missionário que responda às demandas das apostas do país para responder aos desafios específicos dos territórios em cooperação com os agentes do sistema nacional de inovação. Embora para alcançar altas taxas de visibilidade, a política editorial da revista Criterio livre Jurídico deve ser rigorosa ao seguir as diretrizes exigidas pelo Publíndex, descobre, além do alcance dos indicadores de medição, uma oportunidade para ser decididamente uma contribuição para a difução de resultados de inquéritos realizados por pesquisadores nacionais e internacionais. Várias etapas já foram tiradas da rota a seguir, é isso o que identifaca os autores que têm visto em nosso editorial o cenário propício para suas publicações. O que resta para se-transferir traz grandes desafios. Toda vez que as universidades voltam os olhos para a política da CTeI colombiana, elas tentam atendê-la com o rigor que suas possibilidades orçamentais lhes permitem, o que significa tender para uma aposta pertinente da investigação nas regiões, ao mesmo tempo que as ações avançadas pelos professores pesquisadores também se juntam ao caminho da acreditação institucional, certificação e recertificação de programas. A política da CTeI é transversal aos requisitos para a oferta acadêmica e ao reconhecimento da qualidade na acreditação; tanto o um como o outro, tem entre os seus indicadores as publicações. Sendo a Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico um cenário de publicação científica nas áreas de Direito, Ciências Políticas e Sociais, tem sua publicação virtual no software Open Journal System -OJS, de acordo com as diretrizes do Publindex, acrescentando a isso a visibilidade aberta ás indagações de pesquisadores e o que isso implica em uma oportunidade para seus indicadores como pesquisador e autor de publicações, bem como o fortalecimento das instituições às quais os pesquisadores estão formalmente ligados. O desafio é posicionar o rigor editorial da Revista Criterio Livre Jurídico visível no Serviço Nacional de Indexação de Publicações Especializadas em Séries de Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação - Publindex, irradiando assim as comunidades acadêmicas que decidiram publicar conosco. Todos somos chamados a conhecer uma e múltiplas formas de ler o mundo da perspectiva das ciências jurídicas, políticas e sociais, como resultados de pesquisa, somando a esses exercicios de reflexão para novas publicações futuras. JOSÉ HOOVER SALAZAR RÍOS Faculdade de Direito, Ciências Políticas e Sociais Universidade Livre Seccional Cali
Für die Wirtschaft von Vietnam ist die Ausfuhr von Holzprodukten mit 3,8% des Bruttosozialprodukts ein wichtiger Bestandteil (Nguyen, 2011). Im Jahr 2010 benötigte die holzverarbeitende Industrie von Vietnam 6,4 Mio. m³ Rundholzäquivalente, von denen nur 1,6 Mio. m³ (25%) aus heimischen Wäldern stammte (To and Canby, 2011). Die restlichen 4,8 Mio. m³ (75%) wurden aus anderen Ländern eingeführt (Nguyen, 2009). Es ist Ziel der vietnamesischen Regierung, dass in Zukunft 80% des Rohholzverbrauchs der heimischen Holzindustrie aus den Wäldern (Naturwäldern und Plantagen) des Landes geliefert werden. Bis heute sind lediglich 1% der vietnamesischen für die Holzproduktion bestimmten Wälder (insgesamt mehr als 2,4 Mio. ha) in Bezug auf ihre Nachhaltigkeit zertifiziert, dieser Anteil soll bis 2020 auf 30% ansteigen. Um die genannten Ziele zu erreichen, ist es entscheidend, die Holzbereitstellungsketten in Vietnam weiterzuentwickeln. Die angestrebte Erhöhung der nationalen Holzversorgung wird dabei auch deutliche Änderungen im Bereich der Holzbereitstellung nach sich ziehen, und zwar sowohl bei der Nutzung von Naturwäldern als auch bei der Bewirtschaftung von Plantagenwäldern. Es ist sowohl aus nationaler Sicht wie auch im Hinblick auf die internationale Konkurrenzfähigkeit des Forst-Holz-Sektors von Vietnam entscheidend, dass diese Veränderungen so gestaltet werden, dass auch zukünftig eine nachhaltige Holzbereitstellung gewährleistet ist. Aus verschiedenen Gründen, wie z.B. niedrige Arbeitskosten, großes Angebot von Arbeitskräften gerade im ländlichen Raum, geringe Verfügbarkeit von Investitionskapital und auch wegen der kleinen und zerstreut liegenden Nutzungsflächen, bedient sich die Holzernte und –bereitstellung in Vietnam heute weit überwiegend traditioneller und handarbeits-intensiver Methoden. Parallel mit der geplanten höheren Nutzung werden zwangsläufig auch höher mechanisierte Systeme eingesetzt werden. Diesen Übergang zu begleiten und seine Konsequenzen für die Nachhaltigkeit abzuschätzen ist Oberziel der vorliegenden Arbeit. Unter Anwendung des Konzepts des Sustainability Impact Assessment (SIA), welches die drei Aspekte der Nachhaltigkeit (Wirtschaft, Ökologie, Gesellschaft) umfasst, soll das Nachhaltigkeitsprofil verschiedener Holzbereitstellungsketten in einem Fallstudien-basierten Ansatz dargestellt und analysiert werden. Dabei werden exemplarisch die folgenden Nachhaltigkeitsindikatoren herangezogen: Ausnutzungsgrad des Rundholzes, Arbeitsproduktivität, Bereitstellungskosten, Beschäftigungseffekte, Lohnhöhe, Unfallhäufigkeit, Emission von klimaschädlichen Gasen, Entstehung von gesundheitsschädlichem und nicht-gesundheitsschädlichem Abfall, sowie Schäden am Waldboden. Vier Fallstudien wurden dabei ausgewählt, um die Verhältnisse für typische Nutzungsverhältnisse in Vietnam exemplarisch darzustellen: Selektive Nutzung von natürlichen (Regen-) Wäldern in eher flachem und in steilem Gelände sowie Eukalyptusplantagen, die im Kurzumtrieb und mit Kahlschlagmethoden geerntet werden, ebenfalls in gemäßigtem und imsteilem Gelände. Die analysierten Bereitstellungsketten begannen im Wald mit der Vorbereitung der jeweiligen Nutzungsbestände und umfassten alle folgenden Schritte und Prozesse der Holzbereitstellung und des Holztransports bis hin zur Holzindustrie. In den verschiedenen Fallstudien kamen sowohl traditionelle Technologien (Handarbeit, Zugtiere) wie auch teilmechanisierte Systeme (Motorsäge, Traktoren, Forwarder, Lastwagen) zum Einsatz. Die Datenermittlung erfolgte durch ausgedehnte eigene Zeitstudien aller Prozesse vor Ort, ergänzt durch Befragungen von Führungskräften und Mitarbeitern und unter Verwendung einschlägiger Statistiken, Literaturangaben und Datenbanken. Die beiden Fallstudien zur selektiven Nutzung von Naturwäldern im steilen Gelände (FWSC1) sowie im gemäßigten Gelände (FWSC2) zeigen, dass es deutliche Unterschiede hinsichtlich der Nachhaltigkeitswirkungen zwischen den beiden Bereitstellungsketten gibt, die durch die unterschiedlichen angewendeten Holzernte- und –bereitstellungsmethoden verursacht werden. In FWSC1 werden direkt nach der Fällung die Stämme vor Ort im Wald mit der Motorsäge in Bohlen (Volumen 0,20 – 0,35 m³) zerlegt, um diese danach mit Hilfe von Büffeln aus dem Wald heraus zu transportieren. In FWSC2 wurde nach dem Fällen mit der Motorsäge mit einem Kettenfahrzeug mit Seilwinde das Rundholz zur Fahrstraße geschleift. Nach dem Transport mit Lastwagen wurden die Sägeholzblöcke dann im Sägewerk zu Brettern verarbeitet. Die Rundholzausnutzung war bei diesem zweiten Prozess dabei mit 66,6% des Volumens des geernteten Baumes um 27,2%-Punkte höher als bei der ersten Methode, wo die Bohlen bereits im Wald mit Motorsägen zugerichtet wurden. Bei beiden Holzernteverfahren blieb eine relativ große Menge an Gipfelholz, Ästen und (bei FWSC1) Sägeresten ungenutzt im Bestand liegen. In Bezug auf die Produktivität wurden in FWSC1 88,6% des Zeitverbrauchs für Motorsägen-Arbeit auf das Zuschneiden von Bohlen im Wald verwendet, so dass sich insgesamt eine sehr niedrige Produktivität für die Motorsägen-Arbeit von 0,25m³ je Stunden ergab. Auch die Produktivität beim Herausziehen des Holzes mit Büffeln war mit 0,12m³ je Stunde gering. Im Gegensatz dazu war bei dem höhermechanisierten Verfahren sowohl die Motorsägen-Produktivität mit 11m³ je Stunde wie auch die Produktivität der Traktor-Rückung mit 6,7m³ je Stunde deutlich höher. Dies wirkt sich auch auf die Bereitstellungskosten aus: Während diese im FWSC1 bei 50,40 € je m³ Sägeholz lagen, betrug der Kostensatz einschließlich der Sägeholzherstellung im Sägewerk bei FWSC2 nur 34,90 € je m³. In Bezug auf die Umweltaspekte zeigt sich, dass das geringer mechanisierte Verfahren niedrigere Mengen an klimaschädlichen Gasen (7,83 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ Sägeholz) frei werden, während bei FWSC2 22,68 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ freigesetzt werden. Auch der Waldboden war bei der mechanisierten Methode mit 12,8% etwas stärker in Anspruch genommen als bei der Holzbereitstellung mit Büffeln (10,7%). Insbesondere ist aber ein starker Schädigungsgrad des Bodens mit 6,2% bei mechanisierten Verfahren fast doppelt so hoch wie bei dem Einsatz von Büffeln (3,45%). Diese Ergebnisse decken sich mit Werten aus der Literatur, die allerdings auch darauf hinweisen, dass eine sorgfältig geplante Holzerntemaßnahme (Reduced Impact Logging – RIL) ebenfalls zu niedrigeren Schadwerten zwischen 4 und 5% der Fläche führen kann. Für die Holzbereitstellungsketten in Eukalyptus-Kurzumtriebs-Plantagen (FWSC3 – Steilgelände und FWSC 4 – mäßig geneigtes Gelände) sind die Voraussetzungen für die Holzbereitstellung und den Holztransport günstiger als in den beiden untersuchten Fällen der Naturwaldnutzung. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Rundholzausnutzungsrate mit 79,8% in FWSC3 bzw. 68,9% in FWSC4 relativ hoch ist. Die meisten bei der Aufarbeitung zurückbleibenden Stammteile und Äste wurden im Nachgang von den Waldarbeitern als Feuerholz gesammelt trotz des geringen Durchmessers der gefällten Bäume. Die Geländeneigung hatte nur einen geringen Effekt auf die Produktivität der Motorsägen. Sie betrug 1,95 m³ je Stunde für Fällen und Ablängen in FWSC3 während die Produktivität im gemäßigten Gelände mit 2,11 m³ je Stunde etwas höher lag. Hier wurde das Einschneiden der Stämme nach Langholzrückung erst am Wegrand vorgenommen. Erstaunlicherweise waren die Unterschiede in der Produktivität beim Vorliefern und Rücken des Holzes an die Waldstraße in beiden Fällen nur gering: Sie betrug 0,26 m³ je Stunde in FWSC3, wo im steilen Gelände die bereits zugeschnittenen Rundholzstücke per Hand zum Wegrand gerollt wurden; und 0,33 m³ je Stunde in FWSC4, wo im flachen Gelände Büffel für das Holzrücken eingesetzt wurden. Entsprechend zeigen die Bereitstellungskosten in beiden Holzbereitstellungsketten relativ geringe Unterschiede: Bis zum Verbraucher (Papierfabrik) betrugen die Kosten in FWSC3 10,36 € je m³, während sie in FWSC4 mit 11,7 € je m³ nur wenig höher lagen. Deutliche Unterschiede gab es indessen bei den frei werdenden klimaschädlichen Gasen: In FWSC3 betrug dieser Wert 7,35 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ Rundholz, während er in FWSC4 beim Einsatz von Tieren bei nur 2,94 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ lag. Entscheidend war hierbei, dass bei FWSC3 das Laden und Entladen des Holzes mit Kran bzw. Lader mechanisiert erfolgte, während das Be- und Entladen in FWSC4 von Hand bewältigt wurde. Die Bodenschäden lagen bei der Plantagennutzung im Kahlschlagbetrieb deutlich höher als zuvor bei der selektiven Nutzung im Naturwald: Beim Fällen und Vorliefern von Hand (FWSC3) war die beschädigte Bodenfläche mit 34,7% nochmals höher als beim Einsatz von Büffeln in FWSC4 mit 22,7% der Fläche. Die Ergebnisse der Untersuchung zeigen, dass ein möglicherweise zukünftig höherer Grad der (Teil-) Mechanisierung mit positiven Nachhaltigkeitseffekten in Hinblick auf Rohholzausnutzung, Produktivität und Bereitstellungskosten einhergehen dürfte. In Hinblick auf die sozialen Aspekte sind die Ergebnisse weniger eindeutig: Einerseits ist eine deutlich verminderte Schwere der körperlichen Arbeit und auch eine geringere Unfallneigung zu erwarten. Zum anderen gehen jedoch auch Arbeitsplätze durch Mechanisierung verloren. Wie die Literaturangaben zeigen, könnte dieser Effekt jedoch zum Teil kompensiert werden durch die geplante Erhöhung der Nutzung einerseits und durch Arbeitsplätze, die im nachgelagerten Bereich z.B. bei der Wartung und Instandhaltung von Maschinen entstehen werden. In Bezug auf die Umweltwirkungen Emission klimaschädlicher Gase sowie Störungen des Waldbodens werden höhermechanisierte Methoden in der Tendenz ebenfalls zu höheren Belastungen führen. Diese können z.T. durch bessere Planung und Überwachung (RIL) begrenzt oder sogar kompensiert werden, wie entsprechende Literaturangaben zeigen. Die Möglichkeiten und Effekte einer höheren Mechanisierung wurden am Beispiel der Holzbereitstellungskette von Zellstoffholz aus Plantagen unter günstigen Geländebedingungen (FWSC4) im Sinne einer Variantenstudie detailliert analysiert: Das Ergebnis zeigt, dass unter den gegebenen Geländeverhältnissen das Vorliefern und Rücken von Holz mit Büffeln so wie das besonders anstrengende händische Beladen und Entladen von Holz auf die Transportfahrzeuge durch eine einfache "Traktor-Trailer-Kran" Kombination mechanisiert werden könnte. Ein landwirtschaftlicher Traktor der Stärkeklasse 60 kp mit einem Rundholzanhänger, auf dem ein hydraulischer Kran montiert ist, könnte auch unter den gegebenen für eine Nutzung ungünstigen strukturellen Bedingungen der Eukalyptusplantagen (geringe Stückmasse des Plantagenholzes und kleine Schlagflächen) eingesetzt werden. Die Investitionssumme würde für Vietnam 34.100,-- € betragen. Dies würde zu Bereitstellungskosten von 14,81 € je m³ Rundholz frei Werk führen (wobei die LKW nicht wie derzeit überladen sind). Dieser Kostensatz wäre 15,3 niedriger als die hier untersuchte Methode unter Einsatz von Handarbeit und Zugtieren. In Bezug auf die sozialen Aspekte würde die Einführung eines entsprechend mechanisierten Traktor-Trailer-Kran-Systems den Beschäftigungseffekt von 13,9 Stunden je m³ auf 4,26 Stunden je m³ mehr als halbieren, während andererseits die Löhne von derzeit 3,37 bis 4,29 € je Schicht auf 7,14 bis 17,85 € je Schicht erhöht wurden. Die höhere Mechanisierung würde ein besseres Training der Mitarbeiter erfordern, aber gleichzeitig geringere Risiken für Unfälle und eine verbesserte Ergonomie bedeuten. In Bezug auf die Umweltwirkung würde der Übergang auf das höher mechanisierte System zu einem etwas höheren Ausstoß von klimaschädlichen Gasen (10,18 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ Rundholz gegenüber 7,2 kg CO2-Äquivalente je m³ Rundholz in der derzeitigen Arbeitsweise führen. Der durch den Traktoreinsatz beeinträchtigte Anteil des Waldbodens würde sich je nach Arbeitsorganisation ggf. noch erhöhen. Er könnte aber auch abgesenkt werden, auch wenn eine klare Arbeitsorganisation und Überwachung der Maschinenbewegungen auf der Fläche als Standard eingeführt würde. Um den für Vietnam zu erwartenden Übergang auf eine höhere Mechanisierungsstufe auf breiter Fläche zu begleiten, sollte ein nationales Projekt angestoßen werden, zu dem auch systematische Aus- und Fortbildung der im Wald tätigen Arbeiter sowohl im Hinblick auf Arbeitsverfahren wie auch auf Sicherheit und Ergonomie gehören sollte. Auch wäre es günstig, größere Nutzungseinheiten festzulegen, um die Vorteile einer höheren Mechanisierung voll nutzen zu können. Schließlich wäre die Vergabe von Investitionshilfen und Steuer- sowie Importzollsenkungen zu erwägen, um den Akteuren die Anschaffung leistungsfähiger und zugleich schonender Forsttechnik zu erleichtern. Insgesamt zeigen die Ergebnisse Wege und Möglichkeiten auf, wie in Vietnam dem laufenden Trend zu mehr Nachhaltigkeit im Forstsektor entsprochen werden kann. Dies ist auch eine notwendige Vorbereitung zu der angestrebten Ausweitung der Nachhaltikeitszertifizierung nach den verschiedenen Konzepten (FSC, PEFC usw.). Auch zur Erfüllung der Erwartung von Importländern, dass die eingeführten Holzprodukte hohen sozialen und Umweltstandards genügen, ist es notwendig, dass die Wälder in Vietnam nachhaltiger als bisher bewirtschaftet und entsprechend zertifiziert werden. Hierbei ist insbesondere die Art und Weise der Holzbereitstellung und der Gestaltung der Holzernteketten zwischen Forst- und Holzindustrie entscheidend. Die Durchführung von systematischen Sustainability Impact Assessments (SIA) ist wie in dieser Arbeit gezeigt, ein geeigneter und strukturierter quantitativerAnsatz, um das Nachhaltigkeitsprofil und insbesondere die Schwachstellen der derzeitigen Praktiken aufzuzeigen und Hinweise in Richtung auf eine verbesserte Nachhaltigkeit zu geben. ; Timber related export revenues are an important component in GDP of Vietnam with 3.8% in 2010 (Nguyen, 2011). In 2010, a total of 13.1 million m3 roundwood equivalent was needed for Vietnam's wood processing industry of which only 6.48 million m3 (49.5%) was supplied by domestic forests, the remaining 6.62 million m3 (50.5%) was imported from other countries (Nguyen, 2009; To and Canby, 2011). The target of Vietnamese government by 2020 is that 80% of raw wood material that is processed domestically will be harvested from the country's plantations and natural forests and 30% of production forests (more than 2.4 million ha) will be certified from less than 1% at present. In order to reach these goals, the sector of the domestic forest wood supply chain in Vietnam will play an increasingly important role and will be paid more attention. The envisaged growth of the national wood supply will lead to substantial and significant changes in the forest-wood supply chain (FWSC) in terms of the utilization of natural forests and of plantation forest management. To monitor and shape these changes in a way that supports the sustainability of wood supply is crucial both from the national perspective and for the international competitiveness of the forest wood sector of Vietnam. At present, due to reasons such as low labour costs, employees availability, low available investment capital as well as small areas and the scattered distribution of single harvesting units, the current wood supply in Vietnam is mainly carried out by labour-intensive methods, but parallel to the planned increase in the utilization rate, more mechanized supply chain systems are likely to be introduced. To monitor and assess the options and consequences of this change is the underlying objective of this study. Using the concept of a sustainability impact assessment, taking into account the three aspects of sustainability (economy, ecology and society) the sustainability profile of different forest wood supply chains was analyzed on a case study basis. The following sustainability indicators were addressed: wood utilization rate, labor productivity, production cost, employment, wage level, rate of accidents, green house gas emissions, hazardous and non-hazardous waste and disturbed forest floor area disturbed. Four case studies were selected to represent and assess typical forest wood supply chains in Vietnam: Selective harvesting of natural (rain) forests on moderate and on steep terrain, Eucalyptus plantation forests harvested in a clear-cut method after short rotation, also on moderate and on steep terrain. The analyzed production chains started in the forest with preparing the stand and included all subsequent steps of wood procurement and transport, ending at the mill gate the of wood industries. Traditional technologies (manual labor, buffaloes) as well as partly mechanized systems (chainsaws, tractors, forwarders, trucks) were employed. Data collection was carried out in the field by extensive time studies of all processes, inquiries to managers and workers, and the use of statistics, literature and data banks. The two cases of selective harvesting of natural forests FWSC1 (steep terrain) and FWSC2 (moderate terrain) show that there was a significant difference of sustainability impacts between the two chains mainly due to the various operation methods applied in the logging and transport processes for each chain. In FWSC1 after felling, the logs were sawn into sawnwood by chainsaws directly in the forest at stump side with only 35.6% of the standing tree volume utilized. The boards 0.20-0.35 m3sw per board were extracted by buffaloes from the forest. In FWSC2, a tractor was used for roundwood skidding and following truck transport, the logs were sawn into boards at a local sawmill. The sawlog utilization rate was 66.6% of the standing tree volume of which 45.3% was utilized as sawnwood (27.2% higher than FWSC1) and 21.3% were sawing residues produced at the sawmill. A large amount of the whole tops and branches from logging were left in forests in the both chains. In FWSC1, up to 88.6% of the time consumption of the chainsaws was spent on board sawing, which resulted in a relatively low productivity of chainsaws with only 0.25 m3sw/PMacH for the activities from felling to the board sawing while a productivity of 0.12 m3sw/PAniH was measured for buffalo skidding. On the contrary, in FWSC2 the productivity of felling and delimbing at stump areas by chainsaw was rather high with 11.0 m3sw/PMacH, and a productivity of 6.7 m3rw/PMacH for the roundwood skidding by tractor TDT55 was measured. The resulting, production costs calculated for all the processes in FWSC1 were 50.40 €/m3sw, which was 44.4% higher than in FWSC2 with only 34.90 €/m3sw calculated for the processes until sawing board at the sawmill. However, regarding environmental aspects, FWSC1 with lower mechanization emitted lower GHG with 7.83 kgCO2eq/m3sw calculated to the sawmill, while in FWSC2, GHG emissions were much higher with 22.68 kgCO2eq/m3sw calculated including the board sawing operation at the sawmill. Also, the total disturbed area caused by the logging operations was almost the same in the two chains with 10.7% in FWSC1 and 12.8%. FWSC2 with a higher logging intensity and a higher level of mechanization caused 6.21% of heavy disturbed area while this was only 3.45% in FWSC1. The disturbed area of forest soil in FWSC2 is in the range of 10-25%, which is also reported for other conventional selective logging cases (FAO, 1989; Hendrison, 1989; Verissimo et al., 1992) but much larger than the disturbed area of only 3.8% and 4.5% caused by cases where the Reduced Impact Logging method (RIL) applied (FAO, 1997; Marsh et al., 1996). For the plantation chains FWSC3 (steep terrain) and FWSC4 (moderate terrain), which both applied th clear-cut method, the conditions for log skidding and transport were more favorable than in the two natural forest cases. The study results show that the roundwood utilization rate in plantations was relatively high with 79.8% in FWSC3 and 68.9% in FWSC4. Most of the tops and branches from logging were collected for firewood use although the DBH of the felled trees was much smaller than in the natural forest cases. The terrain slope had only a small effect on chainsaw productivity. The productivity in felling and bucking in FWSC3 with the steep terrain was 1.95 m3rw/PMacH while it was somewhat higher with 2.11 m3rw/PMacH in FWSC4 with the moderate terrain. Similarly, there were also small difference in skidding productivity between the two study cases with 0.26 m3rw/PManH in FWSC3 using manpower to roll logs on the steep terrain and 0.33 m3rw/PAniH in FWSC4, where buffaloes were used for skidding. The production costs of the two plantation chains varied with 10.36 €/m3rw calculated to the paper mill in FWSC3, where loading and unloading were mechanized by forwarder, while it was higher in FWSC4 with 11.70 €/m3rw at the paper mill. Due to the partly mechanized loading method applied, the total GHG emissions in FWSC3 calculated to the paper mill were 7.25 kgCO2eq/m3rw, while by using a manual loading method, FWSC4 emitted only 2.94 kgCO2eq/m3rw calculated to the paper mill from the chainsaws and trucks. On forest soil, where the clear felling method was used, the plantation chains caused a larger disturbed area with 34.7% of the total logging area in FWSC3 and 22.7% in FWSC4 compared to the selective felling in the natural FWSC1 and FWSC2. The results of the study show that in order to improve FWSCs towards more sustainability, a higher level of mechanization with more suitable machines is the first and key proposal, while training in occupational safety, closer supervision and inspection of logging activities, as well as the improvement of operational harvesting planning are needed for all four case studies. In addition, the utilization of branches, tops and other residues is also strongly recommended in natural forest cases. An example of the potentials of higher mechanization was further analyzed in more detail for the pulpwood supply in FWSC4. The results of the analysis show that under the current conditions in Vietnam, buffalo skidding and manual loading and unloading in FWSC4 could be replaced by a tractor-trailer crane system. A tractor of 60 hp plus a trailer equipped with a grapple is recommended for unfavourable forest conditions, such as the small DBH of trees and the small area of the harvesting unit in FWSC4. The total investment for the tractor and trailer crane would be less than 34,100 €, which would result in a total cost of the FWSC to the paper mill of about 14.81 €/m3rw without overloading in transport, which is 15.3% lower than with the current method. Considering social aspects, the introduction of a tractor-trailer system would reduce the employment rate from 13.90 hours/m3rw to 4.26 hours/m3rw, while increasing the wage of employees in extraction, loading and unloading from 3.37-4.29 €/shift to 7.14-17.85 €/shift in current FWSC4. There are a number of studies such as Ahmedabad (1975) and Sindhu and Grewal (1991) that have reported mechanization did not lead to a reduction in human employment rate due to an expansion in production and demand for manufacturing, servicing, distribution, repair and maintenance as well as other complementary jobs which substantially increased due to mechanization. The actual policy of the Vietnamese government aims at increasing the plantation area substantially, and by this, new jobs could compensate the negative employment effects of mechanization. Higher mechanization would require better training in occupational accidents and ergonomics, and better protection for workers by the use of necessary safety protection equipment and improved working conditions. This would improve the current situation of occupational accidents and other health risks for the employees. With regard to environmental issues, the use of the tractor-trailer system would emit 10.18 kgCO2eq/m3rw of GHG instead of 7.25 kgCO2eq/m3rw in the current chain. On the other hand, there are a number of studies such as FAO (1998); Malmer and Grip (1989); Wang (2000) concluding that using tractors for log extraction causes a more heavily disturbed area compared to manual and animal skidding. However, a number of studies reported that the negative impacts of mechanization in logging and transport on the environment could be minimized to an acceptable level if the operational harvesting is fully and carefully planned and supervised Becker (1987) and Lewark (1990). In order to achieve a higher level of mechanization, a project of mechanization in timber harvesting and transport as well as training programs in occupational safety and ergonomics should be considered. Harvesting units with a large area should be created to be suitable for mechanization. In addition, suitable policies supporting financial investments in the mechanization of the logging and transport sector should be promulgated, including reduced import taxes for appropriate forest and agricultural machines. The results of the study show ways and means to address the current international trend in the forest-wood sector towards sustainable management through the grant of forest certificates (such as FSC, PEFC, etc). To fulfill the environmental and social responsibility requirements of exported wood products, domestic forests must be managed and utilized in a sustainable way and thus be certified with special attention to the wood supply chains from forest to wood industry (To and Canby, 2011). The comprehensive assessment and understanding of the sustainability impacts of forest-wood supply chains is necessary and can be considered as the first and basic step towards providing solutions to improve current forest-wood supply practices in Vietnam towards more sustainability.
Not Available ; The land resource inventory of Hatti-1 microwatershed was conducted using village cadastral maps and IRS satellite imagery on 1:7920 scale. The false colour composites of IRS imagery were interpreted for physiography and these physiographic delineations were used as base for mapping soils. The soils were studied in several transects and a soil map was prepared with phases of soil series as mapping units. Random checks were made all over the area outside the transects to confirm and validate the soil map unit boundaries. The soil map shows the geographic distribution and extent, characteristics, classification, behavior and use potentials of the soils in the Microwatershed. The present study covers an area of 387 ha in Koppal taluk and district, Karnataka. The climate is semiarid and categorized as drought - prone with an average annual rainfall of 662 mm, of which about 424 mm is received during south –west monsoon, 161 mm during north-east and the remaining 77 mm during the rest of the year. An area of about 88 per cent is covered by soil, two per cent by rock out crops and 10 per cent by water bodies, settlements and others. The salient findings from the land resource inventory are summarized briefly below The soils belong to 10 soil series and 23 soil phases (management units) and 2 land use classes. The length of crop growing period is 150 cm). About 23 per cent is sandy at the surface, 33 per cent is loamy and 32 per cent has clayey soils at the surface. About 88 per cent of the area has non-gravelly (200mm/m). An area of about 11 per cent has nearly level (0-1%) lands and 77 per cent has very gently sloping (1-3%) lands. An area of about 26 per cent is slightly eroded (e1) and 62 per cent is moderately eroded (e2) lands. An area of about 7 per cent is slightly acid (pH 6.0 to 6.5), 53 per cent has neutral (pH 6.5 to 7.3) soils, 11 per cent slightly alkaline (pH 7.3 to 7.8), 5 per cent moderately alkaline (pH 7.8 to 8.4) ,7 per cent strongly alkaline (pH 8.4 to 9.0) and 4 per cent soils very strongly alkaline (pH>9.0). The Electrical Conductivity (EC) of the soils are dominantly 0.75%) in 38 per cent area of the soils. Available phosphorus is low (57 kg/ha) in 34 per cent of the soils. Available potassium is medium (145-337 kg/ha) in 69 per cent and high (>337 kg/ha) in 19 per cent of the soils. Available sulphur is low (20 ppm) in 11 per cent area of the soils. Available boron is low (4.5 ppm) in 75 per cent of the area. Available zinc is deficient (<0.6 ppm) in entire the area of the microwatershed. Available manganese and copper are sufficient in the entire area. The land suitability for 28 major crops grown in the microwatershed was assessed and the areas that are highly suitable (S1) and moderately suitable (S2) are given below. It is however to be noted that a given soil may be suitable for various crops but what specific crop to be grown may be decided by the farmer looking to his capacity to invest on various inputs, marketing infrastructure, market price, and finally the demand and supply position. Land suitability for various crops in the microwatershed Crop Suitability Area in ha (%) Crop Suitability Area in ha (%) Highly suitable (S1) Moderately suitable (S2) Highly suitable (S1) Moderately suitable (S2) Sorghum 54 (14) 55(14) Pomegranate 35(9) 151(39) Maize 36(9) 73(19) Guava - 114(29) Bajra 36(9) 150(39) Jackfruit 35(9) 79(20) Redgram 35(9) 50 (13) Jamun 35(9) 126(32) Bengal gram 18(5) 91 (24) Musambi 53 (14) 133 (34) Groundnut - 231(60) Lime 53 (14) 133 (34) Sunflower 53(14) 56 (15) Cashew 1(<1) 149(39) Cotton 53 (14) 56(15) Custard apple 54(14) 287(74) Chilli 36(9) 1(<1) Amla 36(9) 305 (79) Tomato 36(9) 1(<1) Tamarind 35(9) 49(13) Drumstick 35(9) 192 (50) Marigold 35(9) 74(19) Mulbery 35(9) 306(79) Chrysanthemum 35(9) 74(19) Mango 35(9) 31(8) Jasmine 35(9) 2(<1) Sapota 35(9) 79(20) Crossandra 35(9) 26(7) Apart from the individual crop suitability, a proposed crop plan has been prepared for the 2 identified LUCs by considering only the highly and moderately suitable lands for different crops and cropping systems with food, fodder, fibre and other horticulture crops. Maintaining soil-health is vital to crop production and conserve soil and land resource base for maintaining ecological balance and to mitigate climate change. For this, several ameliorative measures have been suggested to these problematic soils like saline/alkali, highly eroded, sandy soils etc., Soil and water conservation treatment plan has been prepared that would help in identifying the sites to be treated and also the type of structures required. As part of the greening programme, several tree species have been suggested to be planted in marginal and submarginal lands, field bunds and also in the hillocks, mounds and ridges. That would help in supplementing the farm income, provide fodder and fuel, and generate lot of biomass which in turn would help in maintaining the ecological balance and contribute to mitigating the climate change.SALIENT FINDINGS OF THE SURVEY The data indicated that there were 126 (55.75%) men and 100 (44.25%) women among the sampled households. The average family size of landless farmers' was 4.8, marginal farmers' was 8, small farmers' was 6.75, semi medium farmers' was 5.9 and medium farmers' was 6.4. The data indicated that, 46 (20.35%) people were in 0-15 years of age, 108 (47.79%) were in 16-35 years of age, 54 (23.89%) were in 36-60 years of age and 18 (7.96%) were above 61 years of age. The results indicated that Hatti-1 had 40.27 per cent illiterates, 0.44 per cent functional literate and masters, 27.43 per cent of them had primary school education, 3.54 per cent of them had middle school education, 12.39 per cent of them had high school education, 4.42 per cent of them had PUC education and 4.87 per cent had diploma education. The results indicate that, 58.33 per cent of household heads were practicing agriculture, 33.33 per cent of household heads were practicing agriculture labour and 2.78 per cent of the household heads were private service. The results indicate that agriculture was the major occupation for 31.86 per cent of the household members, 34.51 per cent were agricultural labourers, 0.44 per cent were in government service, 2.21 per cent were in private service, 19.47 per cent were in students, 3.98 per cent were housewives and 4.42 per cent were in children. The results show that, 100 per cent of of the population in the micro watershed has not participated in any local institutions. The results indicate that 2.78 per cent of the households possess thatched house, 61.11 per cent of the households possess katcha house, 19.44 per cent of the households possess pucca/RCC house and 16.67 per cent of them possess semi pacca house. The results show that 86.11 per cent of the households possess TV, 75 per cent of them possess mixer/grinder player, 5.56 per cent of them possess bicycle, 41.67 per cent o f the households possess motor cycle, 8.33 per cent of the households possess landline phone and 86.11 per cent of them possess mobile phones. The results show that the average value of television was Rs. 8,193, mixer grinder was Rs. 2,100, bicycle was 1,750, motor cycle was Rs. 44,722, landline was 4,000 and mobile phone was Rs. 2,769. About 16.67 per cent of the households possess bullock cart, 11.11 per cent of them possess plough, 2.78 per cent of them possess seed/fertilizer drill ,transplanter/grinder and tractor, 5.56 per cent of them possess irrigation pump 2 and harvester, 22.22 per cent of them possess sprayer, 13.89 per cent of them possess sprinkler and 66.67 per cent of them possess weeder. The results show that the average value of bullock cart was Rs. 20,333, plough was Rs. 1,770, seed/ fertilizer drill was Rs. 3,000, transplanter/grinder was Rs. 5,000, irrigation pump was Rs. 10,000, tractor was Rs. 600,000, sprayer was Rs. 1,800, sprinkler was Rs. 3,500, weeder was Rs.57, and the average value of harvester was Rs. 80. The results indicate that, 38.89 per cent of the households possess bullocks, 44.44 per cent of the households possess local cow, 2.78 per cent possess crossbreed cow and buffalo, 11.11 per cent possess sheep, 5.56 per cent possess goat and 8.33 per cent possess poultry birds. The results indicate that, average own labour men available in the micro watershed was 1.59, average own labour (women) available was 1.30, average hired labour (men) available was 12.15 and average hired labour (women) available was 11.52. The results indicate that, 72.22 per cent of the households opined that the hired labour was adequate. The results indicate that, households of the Hatti-1 micro-watershed possess 26.24 ha (48.12%) of dry land and 28.29 ha (51.88%) of irrigated land. Marginal farmers possess 2.92 ha (100%) of dry land. Small farmers possess 7.49 ha (11.78%) of dry land and 2.31 ha (23.55%) of irrigated land. Semi medium farmers possess 11.78 ha (56.18%) of dry land and 9.19 ha (43.82%) of irrigated land. Medium farmers possess 4.05 ha (19.42%) of dry land and 16.79 ha (80.58%) of irrigated land. The results indicate that, the average value of dry land was Rs. 327,656.95 and the average value of irrigated land was Rs. 438,168.81. In case of marginal famers, the average land value was Rs. 685,159.50 for dry land. In case of small famers, the average land value was Rs. 387,189.19 for dry land and Rs. 866,666.66 for irrigated land. In case of semi medium famers, the average land value was Rs. 254,464.29 for dry land and Rs. 413,298.11 for irrigated land. In case of medium farmers, the average land value was Rs. 172,900 for dry land and Rs. 392,913.96 for irrigated land. The results indicate that, there were 15 functioning bore wells in the micro watershed. The results indicate that, bore well was the major irrigation source in the micro water shed for 41.67 per cent of the farmers. The results indicate that, the depth of bore well was found to be 50.65 meters. The results indicate that small, semi medium and medium farmers had an irrigated area of 2.31 ha, 9.19 ha and 16.36 ha respectively. The results indicate that, farmers have grown bajra (10.95 ha), groundnut (7.53 ha), lemon (0.51ha), maize (34.26 ha), sunflower (9.72 ha), sorghum (10.16 ha), 3 green gram (4.53 ha), Bengal gram (3.03 ha) and sajje (6.17 ha). Marginal farmers have grown bajra and maize. Small farmers have grown bajra, maize and sajje. Semi medium farmers have grown bajra, lemon, maize, sajje and groundnut. Medium farmers have grown bajra, groundnut, maize, sajje and maize. The results indicate that, the cropping intensity in Hatti-1 micro-watershed was found to be 79.37 per cent. The results indicate that, the total cost of cultivation for bajra was Rs. 27094.51. The gross income realized by the farmers was Rs. 22929.65. The net income from bajra cultivation was Rs. -4164.85. Thus the benefit cost ratio was found to be 1:0.85. The total cost of cultivation for groundnut was Rs. 53213.11. The gross income realized by the farmers was Rs. 67512.18. The net income from groundnut cultivation was Rs. 14299.07. Thus the benefit cost ratio was found to be 1:1.27. The total cost of cultivation for maize was Rs. 34426.29. The gross income realized by the farmers was Rs. 42187.75. The net income from maize cultivation was Rs. 7761.46. Thus the benefit cost ratio was found to be 1:1.23. The total cost of cultivation for lime was Rs. 56737.36. The gross income realized by the farmers was Rs. 291732.29. The net income from lime cultivation was Rs. 234994.93. Thus the benefit cost ratio was found to be 1:5.14. The results indicate that, 50 per cent of the households opined that dry fodder and green fodder was adequate. The results indicate that the annual gross income was Rs. 27,400 for landless farmers, for marginal farmers it was Rs. 61,250, for small farmers it was Rs. 91,062.50, for semi medium farmers it was Rs. 106,825 and for medium farmers it was Rs. 228,857.14. The results indicate that the average annual expenditure is Rs. 12,642.66. For landless households it was Rs. 3,320, for marginal farmers it was Rs. 10,375, for small farmers it was Rs. 23,218.75, for semi medium farmers it was Rs. 5,250 and for medium farmers it was Rs. 21,183.67. The results indicate that, sampled households have grown 37 coconut, 261 lemon and 7 mango trees in their field. The results indicate that, households have planted 2 eucalyptus and acacia, 108 neem, 3 tamarind and banyan trees in their field. The results indicated that, bajra was sold to the extent of 128.14 per cent, ground nut was sold to the extent of 98.59 per cent, lime was sold to the extent of 100 per cent and maize was sold to the extent of 102.25 per cent. The results indicated that, households have an average investment capacity of Rs. 1,500 for land development, Rs. 1,166.67 for irrigation facility, Rs. 944.44 for improved crop production, Rs.222.22 for improved livestock management and Rs.83.33 for orchard development/ maintenance. 4 The results indicated that loan from bank was the source of additional investment for 11.11 per cent for land development and improved crop production, 8.33 per cent for irrigation facility and 5.56 per cent for improved livestock management. Soft loan was the source of additional investment for 2.78 per cent of the households for land development, improved crop production and orchard development/ maintenance and 5.56 per cent for irrigation facility. The results indicated that, about 44.44 per cent of the farmers sold their produce to agent/traders. 58.33 per cent of the farmers sold their produce to local/village merchant and 16.67 per cent of them sold their produce through regulated market. The results indicated that, 2.78 per cent of the households used head load, 25 per cent of the households used cart and 91.67 per cent of them used tractor as a mode of transportation for their agricultural produce. The results indicated that, 8.57 per cent of the households have experienced soil and water erosion problems in the farm. The results indicated that, 25 per cent have shown interest in soil test. The results indicated that, 77.78 per cent of the households used firewood and 22.22 per cent of the households used LPG as a source of fuel. The results indicated that, piped supply was the major source of drinking water for 58.33 per cent of the households; bore well was the source of drinking water for 36.11 per cent of the households and 2.78 per cent of the households used lake/tank in micro watershed. Electricity was the major source of light for 100 per cent of the households in micro watershed. The results indicated that, 47.22 per cent of the households possess sanitary toilet facility. The results indicated that, 100 per cent of the sampled households possessed BPL card. The results indicated that, 41.67 per cent of the households participated in NREGA programme. The results indicated that, cereals were adequate for 100 per cent of the households, pulses were adequate for 72.22 per cent, oilseeds were adequate for 25 per cent, vegetables were adequate for 41.67 per cent, milk and egg was adequate for 75 per cent and meat was adequate for 61.11 per cent. The results indicated that, pulses were inadequate for 27.78 per cent of the households, oilseeds were inadequate for 58.33 per cent, vegetables were inadequate for 55.56 per cent, fruits were inadequate for 63.89 per cent, milk and egg was inadequate for 25 per cent and meat were inadequate for 33.33 per cent of the households. The results indicated that, oilseeds were market surplus for 11.11 per cent of the households. 5 The results indicated that, lower fertility status of the soil was the constraint experienced by 27.78 per cent of the households, wild animal menace on farm field (50%),frequent incidence of pest and diseases (36.11%), inadequacy of irrigation water (33.33%), high cost of fertilizers and plant protection chemicals (36.11%), high rate of interest on credit and lack of marketing facilities in the area (41.67%), low price for the agricultural commodities (22.22%),inadequate extension services (5.56%), lack of transport for safe transport of the agricultural produce to the market (16.67%), less rainfall (58.33%) and source of Agritechnology information (25%) . ; Watershed Development Department, Government of Karnataka (World Bank Funded) Sujala –III Project
The present Doctoral Thesis was carried out under the framework of the "Pedalea y Anda al COle: PACO" (Cycling and Walk to School) project. This project is directed by the principal investigator, Dr. Palma Chillón Garzón, from the Department of Physical Education and Sports of the University of Granada and a group of doctors and doctoral students included in the project. This project is supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness and the European Regional Development Fund (DEP2016-75598-R, MINECO/FEDER, UE). ; Active commuting to school (ACS) is a routine behaviour that enables pupils to be more physical active in their day through walking or cycling to school. However, low rates of PA and levels of sedentary behaviours among youth population are increasing worldwide. So, it is necessary to analyse the factors that lead to this situation and contribute to increase physical activity domains. Therefore, the purposes of the present Doctoral Thesis were to analyse a commuting-to-school questionnaire for families, to study the parents' and adolescents' perceived barriers towards active commuting to school and to analyse the effects of a school-based intervention to promote this behaviour. These purposes were answered through 4 studies, whose methods are: Study I. A total of 611 child-parents pairs from Granada, completed in two sessions separated by 14 days, the "Family commuting-to-school behaviour" questionnaire (completed by family), and the "Mode and frequency of commuting to and from school" questionnaire (completed by children. The validation between family and children's questions was assessed using the Kappa and Spearman correlation coefficients, and the test–retest reliability within the family questions was assessed using the Kappa and the weighted Kappa. Study II. A systematic literature review was conducted through seven online databases, from the beginning of the database to March 2018. Five categories of search terms were identified: parents, barriers, school, active commuting/transport and children. Specific terms used in the search were obtained from previous reviews and experts' opinion. Also, the PRISMA guide was used to perform the review, and it was registered on PROSPERO. Study III. A total of 401 child–parent pairs, from Granada, Jaén, Toledo and Valencia, self-reported, their mode of commuting to school and work, respectively, and the children's barriers to ACS. T-tests and chi square tests were used to analyse the differences by age for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Binary logistic regressions were performed to study the association between ACS barriers of children and parents and ACS. Study IV. A total of 122 adolescents from Granada, Jaén and Valencia participated in this study (cycling group, n=60; and control group, n=62). The cycling group participated in a school-based intervention to promote cycling to school within the Physical Education lessons. To analyse the changes in the dependent variables at baseline and the follow-up of the intervention, Wilcoxon, Signs and McNemar tests were conducted. The association between intervention and commuting and barriers was observed by binary logistic regression. The main results extracted from the four studies were: Study I) The children's modes of commuting to school (mean age: 11.44 ± 2.77 years old) were mainly passive (57.7% to school) while parents' modes of commuting to work were mainly active (71.6%). The validity of the mode of commuting questionnaire was significant with high Kappa and Spearman coefficients. The test–retest reliability presented a good agreement for the mode of commuting to school in children, distance and time to school, and the mode of commuting to work in parents, while the questions on acceptable distance to walk or cycle to school showed a moderate to good agreement. Study II) The main parental barriers reported by parents of children (21 studies) were built environment, traffic safety, distance, crimerelated safety and social support. The main parental barriers reported by parents of adolescents (6 studies) were built environment (street connectivity), distance, traffic safety and physical and motivation barriers. The parental barriers associated with ACS were mainly related to the built environment and traffic safety. Study III) Children and adolescents perceived higher physical and motivational barriers and social support barriers towards ACS than their parents (all p < 0.05). Additionally, the parents perceived higher distance, traffic safety, convenience, built environment, crime-related safety and weather as barriers towards ACS, than their children (all p < 0.05). Moreover, a higher perception of barriers was related to lower ACS. Study IV) The school-based intervention might be feasible at school context. The cycling knowledge improved after the school-based intervention; the scores of cycling skills were medium-low; the adolescents' attendance, enjoyment and usefulness of the sessions were high. Concerning the effects, the rates of cycling to school and active commuting to/from school did not change after the school-based intervention, and only the "Built environment (walk)" barrier on the cycling group was higher on the follow-up. Also, no association was found between the participation on the school-based intervention with the rates of cycling or active commuting to school and the perception of barriers to ACS. The main conclusions from the four studies were: Study I) The "Family Commuting-to-School Behaviour" questionnaire could be a useful tool to assess the mode of commuting of children, distance and time to school for researchers and practitioners. Study II) The results showed that it is crucial to involve parents through interventions to reduce the perception of safety and to increase awareness of the importance of ACS. In addition, these strategies should be complemented by environmental changes performed by local governments. Study III) The outcomes of the study showed the necessity of attenuating the perceptions of children and their parents in order to increase ACS. This is relevant to develop interventions in the specific contexts of each barrier and involving both populations. Study IV) The results manifest the necessity of developing and implementing schoolbased cycling interventions, and they may include families and other agents such as policy makers to create multicomponent interventions. ; El desplazamiento activo al centro educativo (DAC) es un comportamiento rutinario que permite a los alumnos ser más activos físicamente en su día desplazándose a pie o en bicicleta al centro educativo. Sin embargo, las bajas tasas de actividad física y los niveles de comportamiento sedentario entre la población joven están aumentando en todo el mundo. Por lo que es necesario analizar los factores que afectan a esta situación y contribuir al incremento de los niveles de actividad física. Los objetivos de la presente Tesis Doctoral fueron analizar un cuestionario sobre el desplazamiento al centro educativo para las familias, estudiar las barreras percibidas por los padres y adolescentes sobre el desplazamiento activo al centro educativo y analizar los efectos de una intervención en entorno escolar para promover este comportamiento. Estudio I. Un total de 611 padres (edad media: 43,28 ± 6,25 años) de Granada (España) completaron el cuestionario "Comportamiento familiar para el desplazamiento al centro educativo" en dos sesiones separadas por 14 días (2016 y 2018). La validación entre las preguntas de la familia y los niños se evaluó mediante los coeficientes de correlación Kappa y Spearman, y la fiabilidad test-retest dentro de las preguntas familiares se evaluó mediante el Kappa y el Kappa ponderado. Estudio II. Se realizó revisión sistemática de la literatura a través de siete bases de datos electrónicas, desde el inicio de la base de datos hasta marzo de 2018. Se identificaron cinco categorías de términos de búsqueda: padres, barreras, centro educativo, desplazamiento / transporte activo y niños. Los términos específicos utilizados en la búsqueda se obtuvieron de revisiones anteriores y opiniones de expertos. Asimismo, se utilizó la guía PRISMA para realizar la revisión, y se registró en PROSPERO. Estudio III. Un total de 401 parejas de padres e hijos, de Granada, Jaén, Toledo y Valencia, informaron por separado, de su modo de desplazarse a la escuela y al trabajo, respectivamente, y las barreras de los niños para la ACS. Se utilizaron pruebas T y pruebas de chi cuadrado para analizar las diferencias por edad para las variables continuas y categóricas, respectivamente. Se realizaron regresiones logísticas binarias para estudiar la asociación entre las barreras de ACS de niños y padres y ACS. Estudio IV. En este estudio participaron un total de 122 adolescentes de Granada, Jaén y Valencia (grupo de ciclismo, n = 60; y grupo de control, n = 62). El grupo de ciclistas participó en una intervención escolar para promover el uso de la bicicleta en la escuela dentro de las lecciones de Educación Física. Para analizar los cambios en las variables dependientes al inicio del estudio y el seguimiento de la intervención, se realizaron las pruebas de Wilcoxon, Signs y McNemar. La asociación entre intervención y desplazamientos y barreras se observó mediante regresión logística binaria. Los principales resultados extraídos de los cuatro estudios fueron: Estudio I) Los modos de desplazamiento de los niños al centro educativo (edad media: 11,44 ± 2,77 años) fueron principalmente pasivos (57.7% al centro educativo) mientras que los modos de desplazamiento de los padres al trabajo fueron principalmente activos (71.6%). La validez del modo de desplazamiento del cuestionario fue significativa con altos coeficientes Kappa y Spearman. La fiabilidad test-retest presentó una buena concordancia para el modo de desplazamiento al centro educativo en los niños, la distancia y el tiempo al centro educativo, y el modo de desplazamiento al trabajo en los padres, mientras que las preguntas sobre la distancia aceptable para caminar o ir en bicicleta al centro educativo mostraron un coeficiente de moderado a buen acuerdo. Estudio II) Las principales barreras reportadas por los padres de niños (21 estudios) fueron el entorno construido, la seguridad en el tráfico, la distancia, la seguridad relacionada con el crimen y el apoyo social. Las principales barreras reportadas por padres de adolescentes (6 estudios) fueron el entorno construido (conectividad de la calle), la distancia, la seguridad en el tráfico y las barreras físicas y de motivación. Las barreras parentales asociadas con DAC se relacionaron principalmente con el entorno construido y la seguridad del tráfico. Estudio III) Tanto los niños como los adolescentes percibieron mayores barreras físicas y motivacionales y barreras de apoyo social hacia el DAC que sus padres (p <0,05). Además, los padres percibieron una mayor la distancia, la seguridad en el tráfico, la conveniencia, el entorno construido, seguridad relacionada con el crimen y clima como barreras hacia el DAC, que sus hijos (p <0.05). Además, una mayor percepción de barreras se relacionó con una menor DAC. Estudio IV) La intervención podría ser una herramienta viable en el contexto escolar. Además, el conocimiento vial mejoró después de la intervención escolar y las puntuaciones de las habilidades ciclistas fueron medias-bajas. Respecto a la asistencia a la sesión fue alta y el grupo de ciclistas indicó que les gustaron las sesiones y fueron útiles. En cuanto a los efectos, los rangos de desplazamiento en bicicleta al centro educativo y los desplazamientos activos hacia y desde el centro educativo no cambiaron después de la intervención, y solo la barrera del "entorno construido (caminar)" en el grupo de ciclistas fue más alta tras la intervención. Además, no se encontró asociación entre la participación en la intervención con los rangos de desplazamiento en bicicleta o desplazamientos activos al centro escolar y la percepción de barreras para DAC. Las principales conclusiones de los estudios incluidos fueron: Estudio I) El cuestionario "Comportamiento familiar para el desplazamiento al centro educativo" podría ser una herramienta útil para evaluar el modo de desplazamiento de los niños, la distancia y el tiempo al centro educativo, para investigadores y profesionales. Estudio II) Los resultados mostraron que es crucial involucrar a los padres a través de intervenciones para reducir la percepción de la barrera de seguridad y aumentar la conciencia sobre la importancia de los DAC. Además, estas estrategias deben complementarse con cambios en el entorno realizados por los gobiernos locales. Estudio III) El estudio mostró la necesidad de atenuar las percepciones de barreras de los niños y sus padres para incrementar el DAC. Esto es relevante para desarrollar intervenciones en los contextos específicos de cada barrera e involucrando a ambas poblaciones. Estudio IV) Los resultados manifiestan que es necesario continuar desarrollando e implementando intervenciones de ciclismo a nivel escolar, y pueden incluir a las familias y otros agentes, como políticos, para crear intervenciones multicomponentes. ; Tesis Univ. Granada. ; Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness and the European Regional Development Fund (DEP2016-75598-R, MINECO/FEDER, UE)
Human activities now represent the most important force shaping the degradation of ecosystems in all of the world´s major biomes (well established). Long-established drivers of land degradation continue to increase across much of the world, including agricultural activities {3.3.1, 3.3.2}, driven by increasing demands for food and bioenergy. More recent global change drivers, such as climate change and atmospheric nitrogen deposition, further exacerbate impacts {3.4}. We are now in a qualitatively different and novel world, compared to only a few decades ago, and the combination of drivers creates significant challenges to restore degraded land and mitigate further degradation (established but incomplete). Few, if any, areas of the world are now free of some form of human influence (well established) and some systems are experiencing unprecedented challenges. Changes in the extent and severity of both land degradation and restoration commonly result from multiple underlying social and economic factors – indirect drivers, many of which occur in places distant from where the impacts are felt (well established) {3.6.4}. Demand for food imports is increasing across much of the world. This high dependency on imported commodities means that a large share of the environmental impacts of consumption is felt in other parts of the world. The physical quantity of goods traded internationally only represents one third of the actual natural resources that were used to produce these traded goods. The sustainability of the commodity production systems that support global supply chains is thus substantially shaped by the sourcing and investment decisions of market actors who may have little direct connection to the production landscapes (established but incomplete). Moreover, the globalized nature of many commodity supply chains potentially elevates the relative importance of global-scale factors such as trade agreements, market prices and exchange rates, as well as distant linkages related to buyer and investment preferences, over national and regional governance arrangements and the agency of individual producers (inconclusive). Addressing this complexity to avoid and reverse land degradation therefore requires the building of effective multi-sector and multi-stakeholder partnerships that span national boundaries (established but incomplete) {3.6.6}. Economic growth and per capita consumption, more than poverty, is one of the biggest threats to sustainable land management globally (established but incomplete) {3.6.3, 3.6.4}. Extreme poverty, combined with resource scarcity, can contribute to land degradation and unsustainable levels of natural resource use, but is rarely the major underlying cause (well established). Many of the most marked changes in how land is used and managed come from individual and societal responses to economic opportunities, such as a shift in demand for a particular commodity or improved market access, moderated by institutional and political factors (established but incomplete). For example, clearance of native vegetation and land degradation across much of Latin America and Asia is linked to agricultural expansion and intensification at a commercial scale for export markets (well established). Reducing poverty, although a priority for sustainable development, is insufficient to mitigate land degradation if not accompanied by additional measures. Concurrently, rising per capita consumption levels can exacerbate degradation. Efforts to reverse degradation therefore require a combination of local and regional poverty-alleviation strategies, including the adoption of pro-poor food production systems, together with efforts to improve the enforcement of public regulations for sustainable land uses, and strengthening the accountability of global market actors in effectively supporting such strategies. The highly interconnected and globalized nature of indirect drivers of land degradation and restoration means that the outcome of any global, regional or local intervention can be highly unpredictable, yet contextual generalizations are possible (established but incomplete) {3.6.2.3, 3.6.3}. The ways in which land is used in one part of the world can be highly sensitive to sudden, unexpected changes in economic and institutional factors elsewhere (unresolved). For example, changes in currency exchange rates, and cascading effects on the profitability of a given commodity, can markedly accelerate or decelerate the clearance of native vegetation for agriculture within a single year {3.6.2.3}. The sudden imposition of trade restrictions (e.g., due to disease controls), can have a similarly marked impact. However, with an improved understanding of the interactive effects amongst different drivers, it is possible to make predictions that are valid under a certain range of conditions. For example, agricultural intensification and agroforestry practices can help reduce the pressure on remaining areas of native vegetation under certain conditions (such as inelastic demand for staple crops), but unless such measures are coupled with increased enforcement of land-use policies they can result in a rebound effect that increases pressure on natural resources (established but incomplete) {3.6.3}. Land degradation in any given place is rarely the consequence of a single anthropogenic driver, but is instead the result of a diverse and frequently mutually-reinforcing set of human activities and underlying drivers (well established) {3.4.5, 3.5, 3.6.2.1}. Typically, at least three types of indirect driver, such as economic, technological and institutional, underpin any direct driver of land degradation or restoration (established but incomplete). The complexity of drivers that commonly underpin land degradation highlights the fact that single factors, such as high rural population density, rarely provide an adequate underlying explanation on their own for observed impacts (established but incomplete) {3.6.3}. Land degradation is typically the result of multiple direct drivers, especially in instances of severe degradation (e.g., where land-use intensification drives increased species invasions and increases in fire frequency). This combination of drivers has resulted in large expanses of economically important grazing lands, including in North America, being transformed to fire-prone annual grass monocultures (well established) {3.3.7}. The multi-causality of land degradation requires commensurately holistic policy responses that operate across multiple scales and combine both regulatory and incentive based measures (established but incomplete). Rapid expansion and inappropriate management of agricultural lands (including both grazing lands and croplands), especially in dryland ecosystems, is the most extensive land degradation driver globally (well established) {3.3.1, 3.3.2}. The expansion of grazing lands has largely stagnated globally with evidence for an approximate 1% decline in grazing land area over the past decade. Grazing pressure has been stable or only moderately increasing across the major land areas globally, although there are regional exceptions such as Southern Asia. Over half of grazing lands occur in dryland environments that are highly susceptible to land degradation (established but incomplete) {3.3.1.3}. More recently intensification and increasing industrialization of livestock production systems, especially in developed countries, has resulted in an increasing reliance on mixed crop-livestock production systems and industrialized "landless" systems. As a result, 35% of global crop production is now allocated to livestock feed. Globally, fertilizer and pesticide use is expected to double by 2050 {3.3.2.2}. Marked drops in nitrogen-use efficiency (change in yield per unit of fertilizer input) in many parts of the world, particularly the Asia Pacific region, often accompanied by continued excessive fertilizer application, underscore the critical importance of sustainable agricultural practices, including conservation agricultural techniques, to maintain yield improvements (established but incomplete) {3.3.2.3}. Increases in consumption levels of many natural resources underpin increasing levels of degradation in many parts of the world (well established), with slow rates of adoption of sustainable production systems (established but incomplete) {3.6.2.2, 3.6.3.2, 3.6.4.2}. Projections to 2050 suggest that one billion ha of natural ecosystems could be converted to agriculture by that time. More than half of agricultural expansion in the last three decades has occurred in relatively intact tropical forests. Economic growth in the developing world is projected to double global consumption of forest and wood products by 2030, with demand likely to exceed production in many developing and emerging economies in Asia and Africa within the next decade. Traditional fuelwood and charcoal continue to represent a dominant share of total wood consumption in low income countries, up to 70%, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (well established). Under current projections efforts to intensify wood production in plantation forests, together with increases in fuel-use efficiency and electrification are only likely to partly offset the pressure on native forests (unresolved). Adoption of more sustainable production systems continues to be slow, as seen, for example, by a slowdown in the expansion of the area of certified forests. More than half of the terrestrial surface of the Earth has fire regimes outside the range of natural variability, with changes in fire frequency and intensity posing major challenges for land restoration (established but incomplete) {3.3.7}. The frequency of fires has increased in many areas – exacerbated by decreases in precipitation – including in many regions of humid and temperate forests that rarely experience large-scale fires naturally. Some changes in fire regimes, particularly in tropical forests, are sufficiently severe that recovery to pre-disturbance conditions may no longer be possible. Increases in international trade, intensification of land use and urbanization have meant that few areas of the planet are free of invasive species (established but incomplete) {3.3.8}. Nearly one fifth of the Earth´s surface is at high risk of plant and animal invasion, including many biodiversity hotspots. Climate change, including increased nitrogen deposition and changes in CO2, as well as increases in fire frequency with rising temperatures in many areas, are all likely to increase invasions {3.4}. Once established, the eradication of many invasive species is often very expensive, if not impossible, underscoring the need to develop proactive strategies to pre-empt invasions, including through inspections, research and education. Activities related to industrialization, infrastructure development, urbanization, and many extractive industries result in complete transformation of ecosystems, accompanied by near or complete loss of biodiversity and ecosystem function and the services those ecosystems provide (well established) {3.3.6}. Infrastructure, industrial development and urbanization activities, often replace natural ecosystems with impervious or contaminated surfaces such as asphalt, concrete and rooftops, leading to the one of the most severe forms of land degradation in the form of soil sealing. Built-up areas, which are dominated by sealed soils, currently occupy nearly 0.6% of the global land surface. If population densities in cities remain stable, the extent of built-up areas in developed countries is expected to increase by 30% and triple in developing countries between 2000 and 2050. Under more extreme scenarios of increasing population density and economic development, the extent of built-up areas globally may increase to over 2% of the global land area over this same time period. New urban design and green technologies that incorporate features that promote sustainability and delivery of ecosystem services can play an important role in restoring some of the ecosystem functions and services of built environments. The importance of climate change for land degradation is most prominent through its role in exacerbating the impacts of other human activities (established but incomplete) {3.4}. The exacerbating effect of climate change on the impact of degradation drivers, including land clearance and intensive farming techniques, can be felt both through chronic impacts and directional changes – like temperature changes, leading to shifts in species range sizes, as well as changes in average precipitation levels, atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen deposition – and acute impacts through extreme weather events of flooding, drought, and other natural disasters (well established). Heavy rainfall events and storms as well as heat waves and droughts are predicted to increase in frequency over several parts of the globe, with cascading effects on the frequency, intensity, extent and timing of other drivers such as fires, pest and pathogen outbreaks, species invasions, soil erosion and landslides (established but incomplete). The last decade has witnessed a rise in consumer-driven demand for sustainable land use and land management, as well as commitments to restore degraded land that is unprecedented in human history (well established) {3.6}. In the last decade hundreds of companies have made pledges to reduce their impacts on forests and on the rights of local communities, with many committing to eliminate deforestation from their supply chains entirely by 2020. In the same period, many governments and civil society groups have made ambitious commitments to restore hundreds of millions of hectares of degraded land. New players, such as the finance sector, who until recently have been completely detached from the mainstream sustainability agenda are also starting to make explicit commitments to avoiding environmental harm. The overall impact of these voluntary measures remains to be assessed but they offer a vital window of opportunity for reversing degradation trends and placing economies on a more sustainable footing – especially as large areas of marginal agricultural become increasingly abandoned with ongoing development (unresolved).
Human activities now represent the most important force shaping the degradation of ecosystems in all of the world´s major biomes (well established). Long-established drivers of land degradation continue to increase across much of the world, including agricultural activities {3.3.1, 3.3.2}, driven by increasing demands for food and bioenergy. More recent global change drivers, such as climate change and atmospheric nitrogen deposition, further exacerbate impacts {3.4}. We are now in a qualitatively different and novel world, compared to only a few decades ago, and the combination of drivers creates significant challenges to restore degraded land and mitigate further degradation (established but incomplete). Few, if any, areas of the world are now free of some form of human influence (well established) and some systems are experiencing unprecedented challenges. Changes in the extent and severity of both land degradation and restoration commonly result from multiple underlying social and economic factors – indirect drivers, many of which occur in places distant from where the impacts are felt (well established) {3.6.4}. Demand for food imports is increasing across much of the world. This high dependency on imported commodities means that a large share of the environmental impacts of consumption is felt in other parts of the world. The physical quantity of goods traded internationally only represents one third of the actual natural resources that were used to produce these traded goods. The sustainability of the commodity production systems that support global supply chains is thus substantially shaped by the sourcing and investment decisions of market actors who may have little direct connection to the production landscapes (established but incomplete). Moreover, the globalized nature of many commodity supply chains potentially elevates the relative importance of global-scale factors such as trade agreements, market prices and exchange rates, as well as distant linkages related to buyer and investment preferences, over national and regional governance arrangements and the agency of individual producers (inconclusive). Addressing this complexity to avoid and reverse land degradation therefore requires the building of effective multi-sector and multi-stakeholder partnerships that span national boundaries (established but incomplete) {3.6.6}. Economic growth and per capita consumption, more than poverty, is one of the biggest threats to sustainable land management globally (established but incomplete) {3.6.3, 3.6.4}. Extreme poverty, combined with resource scarcity, can contribute to land degradation and unsustainable levels of natural resource use, but is rarely the major underlying cause (well established). Many of the most marked changes in how land is used and managed come from individual and societal responses to economic opportunities, such as a shift in demand for a particular commodity or improved market access, moderated by institutional and political factors (established but incomplete). For example, clearance of native vegetation and land degradation across much of Latin America and Asia is linked to agricultural expansion and intensification at a commercial scale for export markets (well established). Reducing poverty, although a priority for sustainable development, is insufficient to mitigate land degradation if not accompanied by additional measures. Concurrently, rising per capita consumption levels can exacerbate degradation. Efforts to reverse degradation therefore require a combination of local and regional poverty-alleviation strategies, including the adoption of pro-poor food production systems, together with efforts to improve the enforcement of public regulations for sustainable land uses, and strengthening the accountability of global market actors in effectively supporting such strategies. The highly interconnected and globalized nature of indirect drivers of land degradation and restoration means that the outcome of any global, regional or local intervention can be highly unpredictable, yet contextual generalizations are possible (established but incomplete) {3.6.2.3, 3.6.3}. The ways in which land is used in one part of the world can be highly sensitive to sudden, unexpected changes in economic and institutional factors elsewhere (unresolved). For example, changes in currency exchange rates, and cascading effects on the profitability of a given commodity, can markedly accelerate or decelerate the clearance of native vegetation for agriculture within a single year {3.6.2.3}. The sudden imposition of trade restrictions (e.g., due to disease controls), can have a similarly marked impact. However, with an improved understanding of the interactive effects amongst different drivers, it is possible to make predictions that are valid under a certain range of conditions. For example, agricultural intensification and agroforestry practices can help reduce the pressure on remaining areas of native vegetation under certain conditions (such as inelastic demand for staple crops), but unless such measures are coupled with increased enforcement of land-use policies they can result in a rebound effect that increases pressure on natural resources (established but incomplete) {3.6.3}. Land degradation in any given place is rarely the consequence of a single anthropogenic driver, but is instead the result of a diverse and frequently mutually-reinforcing set of human activities and underlying drivers (well established) {3.4.5, 3.5, 3.6.2.1}. Typically, at least three types of indirect driver, such as economic, technological and institutional, underpin any direct driver of land degradation or restoration (established but incomplete). The complexity of drivers that commonly underpin land degradation highlights the fact that single factors, such as high rural population density, rarely provide an adequate underlying explanation on their own for observed impacts (established but incomplete) {3.6.3}. Land degradation is typically the result of multiple direct drivers, especially in instances of severe degradation (e.g., where land-use intensification drives increased species invasions and increases in fire frequency). This combination of drivers has resulted in large expanses of economically important grazing lands, including in North America, being transformed to fire-prone annual grass monocultures (well established) {3.3.7}. The multi-causality of land degradation requires commensurately holistic policy responses that operate across multiple scales and combine both regulatory and incentive based measures (established but incomplete). Rapid expansion and inappropriate management of agricultural lands (including both grazing lands and croplands), especially in dryland ecosystems, is the most extensive land degradation driver globally (well established) {3.3.1, 3.3.2}. The expansion of grazing lands has largely stagnated globally with evidence for an approximate 1% decline in grazing land area over the past decade. Grazing pressure has been stable or only moderately increasing across the major land areas globally, although there are regional exceptions such as Southern Asia. Over half of grazing lands occur in dryland environments that are highly susceptible to land degradation (established but incomplete) {3.3.1.3}. More recently intensification and increasing industrialization of livestock production systems, especially in developed countries, has resulted in an increasing reliance on mixed crop-livestock production systems and industrialized "landless" systems. As a result, 35% of global crop production is now allocated to livestock feed. Globally, fertilizer and pesticide use is expected to double by 2050 {3.3.2.2}. Marked drops in nitrogen-use efficiency (change in yield per unit of fertilizer input) in many parts of the world, particularly the Asia Pacific region, often accompanied by continued excessive fertilizer application, underscore the critical importance of sustainable agricultural practices, including conservation agricultural techniques, to maintain yield improvements (established but incomplete) {3.3.2.3}. Increases in consumption levels of many natural resources underpin increasing levels of degradation in many parts of the world (well established), with slow rates of adoption of sustainable production systems (established but incomplete) {3.6.2.2, 3.6.3.2, 3.6.4.2}. Projections to 2050 suggest that one billion ha of natural ecosystems could be converted to agriculture by that time. More than half of agricultural expansion in the last three decades has occurred in relatively intact tropical forests. Economic growth in the developing world is projected to double global consumption of forest and wood products by 2030, with demand likely to exceed production in many developing and emerging economies in Asia and Africa within the next decade. Traditional fuelwood and charcoal continue to represent a dominant share of total wood consumption in low income countries, up to 70%, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (well established). Under current projections efforts to intensify wood production in plantation forests, together with increases in fuel-use efficiency and electrification are only likely to partly offset the pressure on native forests (unresolved). Adoption of more sustainable production systems continues to be slow, as seen, for example, by a slowdown in the expansion of the area of certified forests. More than half of the terrestrial surface of the Earth has fire regimes outside the range of natural variability, with changes in fire frequency and intensity posing major challenges for land restoration (established but incomplete) {3.3.7}. The frequency of fires has increased in many areas – exacerbated by decreases in precipitation – including in many regions of humid and temperate forests that rarely experience large-scale fires naturally. Some changes in fire regimes, particularly in tropical forests, are sufficiently severe that recovery to pre-disturbance conditions may no longer be possible. Increases in international trade, intensification of land use and urbanization have meant that few areas of the planet are free of invasive species (established but incomplete) {3.3.8}. Nearly one fifth of the Earth´s surface is at high risk of plant and animal invasion, including many biodiversity hotspots. Climate change, including increased nitrogen deposition and changes in CO2, as well as increases in fire frequency with rising temperatures in many areas, are all likely to increase invasions {3.4}. Once established, the eradication of many invasive species is often very expensive, if not impossible, underscoring the need to develop proactive strategies to pre-empt invasions, including through inspections, research and education. Activities related to industrialization, infrastructure development, urbanization, and many extractive industries result in complete transformation of ecosystems, accompanied by near or complete loss of biodiversity and ecosystem function and the services those ecosystems provide (well established) {3.3.6}. Infrastructure, industrial development and urbanization activities, often replace natural ecosystems with impervious or contaminated surfaces such as asphalt, concrete and rooftops, leading to the one of the most severe forms of land degradation in the form of soil sealing. Built-up areas, which are dominated by sealed soils, currently occupy nearly 0.6% of the global land surface. If population densities in cities remain stable, the extent of built-up areas in developed countries is expected to increase by 30% and triple in developing countries between 2000 and 2050. Under more extreme scenarios of increasing population density and economic development, the extent of built-up areas globally may increase to over 2% of the global land area over this same time period. New urban design and green technologies that incorporate features that promote sustainability and delivery of ecosystem services can play an important role in restoring some of the ecosystem functions and services of built environments. The importance of climate change for land degradation is most prominent through its role in exacerbating the impacts of other human activities (established but incomplete) {3.4}. The exacerbating effect of climate change on the impact of degradation drivers, including land clearance and intensive farming techniques, can be felt both through chronic impacts and directional changes – like temperature changes, leading to shifts in species range sizes, as well as changes in average precipitation levels, atmospheric CO2 and nitrogen deposition – and acute impacts through extreme weather events of flooding, drought, and other natural disasters (well established). Heavy rainfall events and storms as well as heat waves and droughts are predicted to increase in frequency over several parts of the globe, with cascading effects on the frequency, intensity, extent and timing of other drivers such as fires, pest and pathogen outbreaks, species invasions, soil erosion and landslides (established but incomplete). The last decade has witnessed a rise in consumer-driven demand for sustainable land use and land management, as well as commitments to restore degraded land that is unprecedented in human history (well established) {3.6}. In the last decade hundreds of companies have made pledges to reduce their impacts on forests and on the rights of local communities, with many committing to eliminate deforestation from their supply chains entirely by 2020. In the same period, many governments and civil society groups have made ambitious commitments to restore hundreds of millions of hectares of degraded land. New players, such as the finance sector, who until recently have been completely detached from the mainstream sustainability agenda are also starting to make explicit commitments to avoiding environmental harm. The overall impact of these voluntary measures remains to be assessed but they offer a vital window of opportunity for reversing degradation trends and placing economies on a more sustainable footing – especially as large areas of marginal agricultural become increasingly abandoned with ongoing development (unresolved).
In: Kirkels , Y E M 2010 , ' Brokerage in SME networks ' , Doctor of Philosophy , Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences , Eindhoven . https://doi.org/10.6100/IR690690
Firms are increasingly facing their own limitations in today's complex and demanding environment. The need for cooperation is evident in an environment characterized by uncertainty, complexity and rapid technological progress. Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular are faced by a dilemma. On the one hand SMEs feel the urge to cooperate with others in order to acquire knowledge and other competencies; on the other hand they often face difficulties in finding partners and often they lack the knowledge base to be able to absorb the required knowledge. This dilemma clearly points to a need for understanding their environment, and brokers in particular, in order to deal effectively with the complex environment. Brokers, or intermediaries, are regarded as people who connect disconnected parties and facilitate knowledge flows in the local innovation system. Since brokers are becoming more and more important the need arises to provide SMEs with insight into the role of brokers in the network. The main question of this dissertation is: Which factors contribute to the capacity of main brokers in a SME network? This dissertation investigates their network environment, their inter-firm relations and intrinsic characteristics that facilitate networking at an individual level. The focus of this study is on the SME network of design and high-tech companies in Southeast Netherland. The fields ascribe to the research since their activities involve complex knowledge processes which in turn benefit highly of optimal knowledge creation and exchange. Design is seen as increasingly important in product development and there is an increase in efforts to establish co-operations between design and high-tech organizations. The design sector is a dynamic but highly fragmented industry. However, high-tech organizations (i.e. original equipment manufacturers, first, second and third tier suppliers) in the region seem to be highly interdependent. By this study we aim to gain a better understanding of efficiency across these particular fields. To study the network environment, inter-firm relations and intrinsic characteristics of brokers, we have conducted quantitative and qualitative research. A questionnaire was used to map the most important work relations between people who are active in the fields of design and high-tech industries. Respondents were asked to mention the names and organizations of at most ten Dutch business partners who had an important (qualitative) influence on their performance over the last five year. In order to take into account the full richness of relationships in the network the respondent had to identify who was important to them in what way. Everybody who was listed in the response also received an invitation to fill in the survey. Data collection took place in several waves. This snowball technique is developed to identify hidden members and relation patterns. Social network analysis is used to draw the actual network and to identify the brokers. The results in Chapter two and three are based on the main component of this network which includes 440 names and 584 relations mentioned by 93 respondents. Finally, in order to investigate what brokers actually do an empirical multiple case study is conducted. The information regarding the actual network across design and high-tech industries is used to select 12 brokers for semi-structured interviews. A qualitative comparative analysis of the results has provided a more general picture of how brokers span structural holes between various social groups. Question 1 This dissertation searches to answer five subquestion underlying the main research question. The first of these questions addresses connectivity and efficiency of the SME network across design and high-tech industries. These characteristics are likely to be different for networks of various industries. The growing importance of networks requires that SMEs thoroughly understand its characteristics, so they can use this knowledge to their own advantage. The first question of this research is: 1) What are the structural network characteristics of the SME network, in particular at network and subgroup level? Chapter two investigates if knowledge is transferred in an efficient way, if there are partnership concentrations and who is involved in co-operations. The concept of 'small worlds' is used to investigate knowledge diffusion in the network and consequently judge overall network efficiency. Proximity to others is important in order to manage the complex processes. However entrepreneurs or SMEs do not have the resources to manage a large network. A few well positioned stakeholders can be dealt with. A small world consists of a relatively small number of intermediaries which are relative closely positioned to people in the environment and which probably have stable reputations and various backgrounds. Knowing more about small worlds in this network is therefore highly interesting for science and valuable to the region. The actual network can be classified as one in which a small world is present. The short paths between people indicates the presence of efficient knowledge flows, the high clustering of efficient knowledge exploitation. Visualization of the results shows a single core group in the network, indicating that the two industries are not distinctly separated. It is found that people of the non-profit as well as science sector are overrepresented in the core of the field. Still, this part of the study describes the core-group of people only to a certain extent. Chapter three and four explore who has significant brokerage capacity and the concept of brokerage. Question 2a and 2b In order to investigate brokers they have to be identified first. The second question is: 2a) Can brokers be identified within the SME network? 2b) What types of brokers can be detected within the SME network Chapter three highlights the personal networks of members across design and high-tech industries and investigates the brokerage roles they fulfill. The concept of brokerage roles perceives brokerage behavior as the facilitation of information flows whether or not a direct reward is involved. A person in a network can fulfill several roles depending on his interests. The study of brokerage roles enables to identify who has significant brokerage capacity in the network, but also enables to describe what types of brokers are observed. Our empirical results show that there are persons with significant brokerage capacity in the actual network. Furthermore significant values with regard to gatekeepers, representatives and liaison roles are found. Question 3 In addition to identifying main brokers, Chapter three investigates whether specific characteristics are associated with these brokers. Studying characteristics provides clear insights into how third parties contribute to the transfer and development of knowledge. Question three is: 3) What are characteristics of brokers in the SME network? Whether or not people emerge as brokers seems to depend on the characteristics of people and the context in which they work. Chapter three highlights individual's affiliation, kind of partners and kind of information exchanged in the network, with controls for gender, education and years in branch as sources of brokerage capacity influence. Empirical results show that people with high brokerage capacity are found in the nonprofit and science sector and have a long track record in their branch. Furthermore a wide variety of information is discussed with brokers; practical support in the form of valuable contacts and innovation-related information, but also finance, marketing and operational information. Question 4 The last part of the study complements the research regarding characteristics of brokers by taking an in-depth look at what brokers actually do. This leads to the fourth question of this study: 4. How is brokerage enacted in the SME network? How brokers actually seize network opportunities can be investigated by studying their strategic goals, strategic actions and strategic behavior. Empirical results in Chapter four show that specific strategic goals, activities and behavior can indeed be associated with having high brokerage capacity. The main brokers have a tertius iungens orientation; they strive to interconnect others. It is not in their interest to keep parties, passively or actively, separated for their own personal benefit. They seem not to neglect their personal aims in favor of others. It is just that more can be accomplished together. Furthermore, brokers are mainly involved in knowledge exploring activities, i.e. articulation of needs and requirements, information gathering, connecting partners, setting up projects in order to generate and combine information, and facilitating contract negotiations. Finaly brokers work according to the logic of effectuation. They prefer to focus on current means and they transform these means into co-created goals with others. They consider it less important to focus on setting clear goals in advance and carefully plan and execute their bridging actions to accomplish these goals. At a detailed level, there are differences among main brokers regarding (the combination of) strategic goals, activities and behavior. It indicates that there are different kind of types among main brokers. The answering of the various subquestions enables us to draw a more detailed picture of how brokers span structural holes. People with the highest brokerage capacity are found in the non-profit and science sector. However, the resemblance between these brokers and others is high in general. Brokers discuss a variety of information with others and they have a long track record in their branch. Brokers in general focus on the same strategic goals, activities and behavior. The results implicate that the brokers operate as architects and lead operators of the network. Brokers in this field are less involved in care-taking activities; maintaining and enhancing the existing network. In Chapter 4 it is shown that the sector, especially the job context, influences strategy preferences only at sub-level. Theoretical implications The study is important from an academic perspective because it addresses the voids in research about brokers at the individual level who (consciously) position themselves between heterogeneous actors in networks; people who differ in industry backgrounds and skills. Our results are based on a network of both formal (business) as well as informal (personal) oriented relations at the individual level, while most relationships in the existing literature are based on formal relationships only and usually studied at firm level. The study in general provides more insights into the concept of brokerage regarding SME networks in different fields. In particular it highlights how third parties in general contribute to the transfer and development of knowledge. Chapter two contributes to empirical research concerning structural aspects of a network as a whole and in particular on network structures that span sectors by taking an inter-sectoral approach. Furthermore network theory regarding small worlds is enhanced because our insights contributes to the still infant field that studies the efficiency of partnerships in SME networks. Chapter generates knowledge regarding brokers in general. The main contribution of this part of the study is, in contrast to most other work than our own, that it is quantitative and that it focuses on brokers identified in an actual network (based on both suppliers and users of the knowledge infrastructure). The research contributes to social network theory by taking a look at empirical data in order to generate a better understanding of the specific brokerage concepts first. One can argue that a grounded theory perspective is taken by trying to show how people handle information problems. Chapter four addresses the lack of empirical research regarding the range of brokers and their practices in detail. Chapter four enhances the understanding of social network theory by integrating theories based on the fields of innovation and entrepreneurship regarding brokerage. To be able to develop an individual-level understanding of brokers other theories besides network theory need to be studied. Cross theory studies creates a more holistic view regarding brokerage at the individual level. Such research was not undertaken before. In addition, highlighting individual strategic dimensions separately as well as in combination will also contribute to an extended picture of how intermediaries contribute to the transfer and development of knowledge. By empirically highlighting brokerage in general, brokers of the actual network can be compared to others in other industry networks and thus can be valued. In general, the research contributes to theory on mediation processes, alliances, social capital, network dynamics, SMEs and innovation. Practical Implications The study contributes to the efficiency of knowledge creation and exchange in dynamic industries, especially across sectors. It contributes to the design and high-tech industries in particular. The research is the first attempt to actually construct the design and high-tech network in a social network way. No such data was available before in the Netherlands. Chapter two shows that increases of efforts of various parties to establish co-operations between the two industries seem to work. The triple helix between companies, governmental institutions and science organizations is well present in this network. In policy terms these are interesting findings. Despite the positive results, policy makers may reflect on these findings in terms of improving their interventions in the economic structure of the region even more. Results of Chapter two and three imply that SMEs should get involved in projects in the non-profit or science sector. Chapter three also shows that SMEs or even non-profit organizations whose brokerage capacity is not in line with their ambitions should invest in connections with branch experienced people with a broad knowledge base. From a non-profit consultant point of view these findings are also interesting. They often have difficulties in proving their successes. Sometimes merely mentioning contact information leads to a successful match. Sometimes brokerage takes much time and effort and still the involved parties are dissatisfied. Moreover the effectiveness of non-profit organizations, like branch associations, is subject to discussion in the Netherlands. This research shows that the intervention of non-profit consultants (eventually) is of value to companies. Traditional supply-side innovation policies seem to be insufficient to meet the challenges posed in promoting competitiveness. At the European Union level interest is focused on public procurement as a means to spur innovation. Measurement at individual level gives a profound picture of actual contributions of government expenditures. It is now possible to review policy from the bottom up. Chapter four shows that brokers are involved in exploration of an opportunity together with others, but generally are not involved in exploitation of an opportunity; the building of efficient business systems for full-scale operations. The focus on exploration of information indicates that the time spend on brokerage is important, but the results are not predictable. The non-profit and science sector should be aware that the efficiency of this work is not predictable and should take this awareness into account when timetables are being made. The profit sector should be aware that investments without secure profit are necessary. Brokerage is labor with delayed profits; at the moment of investment it is still unclear if payment will be possible and who will pay in the end. The results also imply that co-developing and coordinating projects concerned with commercialization of exploration outcomes over time, may be interesting to stimulate in this field. Furthermore since people of the non-profit and science sector can not operate in the competitive field, the research findings imply that an important role can be fulfilled by people in the profit sector. SMEs can strengthen their broker capacity by leaping in on projects related to the commercialization of outcomes.
"We all recognize that climate change is a supremely important issue of our time, which requires both trans-national and trans-generational collaboration and shared responsibility. What we haven't yet fully appreciated, argues political philosopher Henry Shue, are the ethical considerations surrounding the fact that the next one or two decades will determine whether climate change, which already has led us to dangerous effects, will surge into inescapably disastrous effects. The people alive today thus represent a pivotal generation in human history. For the past two centuries humans have undermined our climate at an increasing rate, in ways that the present generations are the first to fully understand, and the last to be able to reverse. But our responsibility for decisive and immediate action rests on three special features of the relation of our present to the future, that many have failed to realize (1) future generations face dangers greater than ours even if we act robustly, (2) the worsening dangers for future generations are currently without limit, and (3) a less robust effort by us is likely to allow climate change to pass critical tipping points for severely worse and potentially unavoidable future dangers. Shue, a renowned scholar of ethics, politics and international relations who has been studying the ethics of climate change for the last two decades, guides us through what our ethical responsibilities to others are, both across the world but especially over time, and what those commitments require us to do in addressing the climate change crisis, now and forcefully"--
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