A Step Towards a General Framework for Consequential Life Cycle Assessment

At the core of consequential life cycle assessment (CLCA) is a model of the economic system of which the activity that motivates the CLCA is a part. While there are several applications of CLCA in the literature, there does not appear to exist a formal, general mathematical framework. To address this gap, this article presents a general multi‐market equilibrium framework, which could be adapted to an arbitrary level of complexity depending on the context and data availability. A general expression for total pollution (of a given type) is derived, which highlights different factors that determine the impact on emissions. It is then illustrated how microeconomic theory can help predict the direction of price and quantity changes for each commodity within the modeled system simply based on an activity's relationship to the ultimate activity or service, which motivates the CLCA. The steps involved in converting the multi‐market framework to general equilibrium are also discussed.     

Tackling the threat of antimicrobial resistance: from policy to sustainable action

Antibiotics underpin all of modern medicine, from routine major surgery through to caesarean sections and modern cancer therapies. These drugs have revolutionized how we practice medicine, but we are in a constant evolutionary battle to evade microbial resistance and this has become a major global public health problem. We have overused and misused these essential medicines both in the human and animal health sectors and this threatens the effectiveness of antimicrobials for future generations. We can only address the threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) through international collaboration across human and animal health sectors integrating social, economic and behavioural factors. Our global organizations are rising to the challenge with the recent World Health Assembly resolution on AMR and development of the Global Action plan but we must act now to avoid a return to a pre-antibiotic era.     

Measuring the performance of international genomics research projects in fostering genomic capacity in the developing world

Therapeutic applications of genomic medicine are slowly finding their way into the healthcare framework of developing countries. The establishment of equitable innovation policies is a determining factor in how genomic-based therapeutic applications will evolve in these countries. In the biomedical field, the commercialization of research results has established itself as the dominant paradigm in the innovation system. However, many recent studies have demonstrated that this emphasis on commercialization and the protection of intellectual property has led to disappointing results. A growing number of stakeholders in this debate argue that it is now necessary to go beyond the commercialization of research and implement policies based on the research valorization paradigm, which supports the achievement of social as well as economic objectives. We thus propose a new set of more inclusive research performance indicators to help policymakers measure the impact of international genomics projects on developing countries.     

Nordic brothers before strange others: pan-national boundary making in the post-war naturalization policies of the Nordic countries

The naturalization policies of Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway differentiate between non-Nordic and Nordic citizens. Nordic citizens can obtain citizenship in other Nordic countries by notification, and the residency requirement for naturalization by application is considerably lower for Nordic citizens than it is for non-Nordic applicants. The privileges of Nordic citizens in the naturalization policies of the Nordic countries is a heritage of nineteenth-century pan-Scandinavianism, continued and expanded upon with post-war Nordism. Nordism, the idea of a common Nordic culture and community, has ideologically underpinned the establishment of a pan-national Nordist citizenship regime that constructs ethno-culturally close Nordic brothers as more belonging in the Nordic countries than alien, ‘non-Nordic’, others. The article explores change and continuity in pan-national Nordic boundary making by analysing the historical interplay between ideas on Scandinavian and Nordic kinship and naturalization policy in the Nordic countries.     

The implications of improved communications for participatory forest management in Tanzania

Following the 1998 National Forest Policy and Forest Act of 2002, participatory forest management (PFM) is being introduced in Tanzania. PFM has two key objectives: to reduce forest degradation thereby increasing ecosystem services, and to improve the livelihoods of local villagers. A unique data set collected in 2006 suggests that significant challenges remain with respect to communicating the new forest policies if the objectives of PFM are to be achieved. First, villagers as a group are much less well informed than other stakeholders, and their knowledge is often inaccurate. Second, women are less likely than men to have heard of the changes. Third, how PFM will contribute to poverty reduction (a key objective of PFM) is not always clear. Fourth, environmental degradation may not be reduced as much as anticipated – without alternatives sources, villagers often continue to cut trees for charcoal and firewood in the protected forests. Finally, several mismatches in perceptions are identified that could lead to difficulties in implementing PFM.     

Some Policy Implications of the Resurfacing of Rural Factor Markets Following Agrarian De-collectivization in Ethiopia

Prior to 1975, agriculture in Ethiopia was organized largely under feudalistic/imperial arrangements. The Ethiopian military government (1974–1991)issued the Land Reform Proclamation in 1975 which nationalized and redistributed most of the agricultural land among rural households. Land redistribution was meant to achieve equal land area per household and improve agricultural performance. Sale of land and hiring of agricultural labor were prohibited and there were fears that livestock would be nationalized. Following the ousting of the military regime in 1991, there has been a reduction of the imperfections in rural factor markets. Results from a field survey in the central Ethiopian highlands indicate that selling, hiring, renting, and exchanging of agricultural land, farm labor, and animal traction are increasing. These changes will influence agricultural production in many ways, particularly if reform with respect to rural factor markets is encouraged and accorded appropriate policy support.     

When is coercive methadone therapy justified?

Heroin use poses a significant health and economic burden to society, and individuals with heroin dependence are responsible for a significant amount of crime. Owing to its efficacy and cost‐effectiveness, methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) is offered as an optional alternative to imprisonment for drug offenders in several jurisdictions. Some object to such ‘MMT offers’ on the basis that they involve coercion and thus invalidate the offender's consent to MMT. While we find these arguments unpersuasive, we do not attempt to build a case against them here. Instead, we explore whether administration of MMT following acceptance of an MMT offer might be permissible even on the assumption that MMT offers are coercive, and in such a way that the resulting MMT is non‐consensual. We argue that non‐consensual MMT following an MMT offer is typically permissible. We first offer empirical evidence to demonstrate the substantial benefits to the offender and society of implementing non‐consensual MMT in the criminal justice system. We then explore and respond to potential objections to such uses of MMT. These appeal respectively to harm, autonomy, bodily and mental interference, and penal theoretic considerations. Finally, we introduce and dismiss a potential response to our argument that takes a revisionist position, rejecting prevailing incarceration practices.     

Dynamics analysis of a predator–prey system with harvesting prey and disease in prey species

In this paper, a predator–prey system with harvesting prey and disease in prey species is given. In the absence of time delay, the existence and stability of all equilibria are investigated. In the presence of time delay, some sufficient conditions of the local stability of the positive equilibrium and the existence of Hopf bifurcation are obtained by analysing the corresponding characteristic equation, and the properties of Hopf bifurcation are given by using the normal form theory and centre manifold theorem. Furthermore, an optimal harvesting policy is investigated by applying the Pontryagin's Maximum Principle. Numerical simulations are performed to support our analytic results.     

How can the social sciences work with ecology in informing feral horse policy and management in south‐eastern Australia?

Feral horse management is a complex social issue. Committed and active stakeholders hold strong beliefs regarding both the level of culling needed and humane approaches to control. Ecological evidence supporting control and expert advice on ethical culling can, in such contexts, have limited effect in policy development and application. Given this complexity, social scientists have an important role to play in developing longer term solutions. Three possible approaches are evident: the use of knowledge exchange and boundary spanning expertise; the proactive development of publicly available evidence‐informed narratives; and the development of influence and leadership at the science–policy interface. Social scientists, ecologists, managers and policymakers need to work together to develop and implement sound management decisions.     

Perceptions of the Forestry and Wildlife Policy by the local communities living in the Maputo Elephant Reserve, Mozambique

A survey was undertaken in the Maputo Elephant Reserve to establish the level of people's dependence on wildlife, and their perceptions of the extant Forest and Wildlife Policy and the associated legislation, including the new Land law. The underlying assumption was that the local communities residing in the Reserve may not have been involved, or consulted in the process of formulating the policy and legislation. Results overwhelmingly confirmed this hypothesis – as 65% of the community members interviewed were unaware of the approved Forest and Wildlife Policy, and associated Legislation. 74% had never even heard of the new Land Law, 88% indicated they were not involved in any management of natural resources in the Reserve, and the majority, 53% had never even heard of any community-based natural resource management programme. The widespread unawareness of the various enabling mechanisms established by the Mozambican Government to ensure that rural people actively participate in, and sustainably and tangibly benefit from the management of natural resources is of great concern. More particularly so, as the frameworks, and strategies for achieving this have been developed under the Transfrontier Conservation Areas Project (TFCA). This study recommends, inter alia: (i) that the Directorate for Forestry and Wildlife establishes a Community Education and Public Relations Unit (CEPRU) in the Maputo TFCA in order to improve community awareness of the opportunities, and various enabling policies and legislation, especially with respect to communities' rights vis-à-vis ownership of land and the associated natural resources; (ii) the introduction of community-based tourism as a means of diversifying communities' income base. Currently nearly 82% of community members in the Reserve depend on consumptive use of wildlife, and as the human population grows the pressure may overwhelm the resource base. Generation of revenues through community-based tourism may be an incentive for communities to adopt biodiversity conservation based market economy as an alternative to their subsistence livelihood styles.