Search results for: information systems success model

Authors: Fatima Boutaleb

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Entrepreneurship proves to be crucial for the economic growth and development, since it contributes to job creation and the improvement of the overall productivity thus generating a positive impact upon society at various levels. Promoting entrepreneurship stimulates therefore economic diversity that is key to the betterment and/or maintaining of the standard of living. In fact, recent research suggests that entrepreneurship contributes to development by creating businesses and jobs, stimulating innovation, creating social capital across borders, and channeling political and financial capital. However, different research studies indicate that among the main factors impeding the entrepreneurship are politico-economic as socio-cultural problems, with an intensity for those related to young people and to women. In the MENA region, discrimination inherent in gender is alarming: Only one woman in eight runs her own business against 1 in 3 men. In most countries, young women and young men are facing problems involving access to finance, inadequate infrastructure, lack of support and, in general, an ecosystem that is rather unfavorable. According to the International Labor Organization, North Africa and the Middle East has the highest unemployment rate in all other regions of the world. In other hand, nearly a quarter of the population under 30 is unemployed and youth unemployment costs more than $40 billion each year to the region. In the current context, the situations in the Middle East and North Africa region are singular, both in terms of demographic trends and socio-economic issues around the employment of a large and better trained youth, but still strongly affected by unemployment and under-employment. According to a study published in 2015 by McKinsey, the world gain 26% of additional GDP (47% in the MENA region), more than 28 trillion dollars by 2025, if women came to participate, as well as men, to the economy. Promoting entrepreneurship represents an excellent alternative for the countries whose productive fabric fails to integrate the contingent of young people entering the job market each year. The MENA region, presenting entrepreneurial activity rates below those of other regions in terms of comparable development, has undoubtedly leeway at this level, even though the region displays large national heterogeneity, namely in the priority given to the promotion of entrepreneurship. The objective of this article is therefore to examine the women entrepreneurial vocation in the MENA region, to see to what extent research on the determinant of gender can provide information on the trend of the emerging entrepreneurial activity whether driven by necessity or by opportunity and, on this basis, to submit public policy proposals for the improvement of the mechanisms of inclusion among the youth women people. The objective is not to analyze the causality models but rather to identify the entrepreneurial construct specific to the MENA region via the analysis of GEM data from 2017 to 2019 among adults belonging to 10 countries of the MENA region. Notably, the study shows that inclusion of young women may be enhanced. These disadvantaged segments frequently intend to become entrepreneurs, but they tend not to enact their vocational intentions.

Keywords: economic development, entrepreneurial activity, GEM, gender, informal sector

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Authors: Tabbye Chavous, Felecia Webb, Bridget Richardson, Gloryvee Fonseca-Bolorin, Seanna Leath, Robert Sellers

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There has been recent renewed attention to Black students’ experiences at predominantly White U.S. universities (PWIs), e.g., the #BBUM (“Being Black at the University of Michigan”), “I too am Harvard” social media campaigns, and subsequent student protest activities nationwide. These campaigns illuminate how many minority students encounter challenges to their racial/ethnic identities as they enter PWI contexts. Students routinely report experiences such as being ignored or treated as a token in classes, receiving messages of low academic expectations by faculty and peers, being questioned about their academic qualifications or belonging, being excluded from academic and social activities, and being racially profiled and harassed in the broader campus community due to race. Researchers have linked such racial marginalization and stigma experiences to student motivation and achievement. One potential mechanism is through the impact of college experiences on students’ identities, given the relevance of the college context for students’ personal identity development, including personal beliefs systems around social identities salient in this context. However, little research examines the impact of the college context on Black students’ racial identities. This study examined change in Black college students’ (N=329) racial identity beliefs over the freshman year at three predominantly White U.S. universities. Using cluster analyses, we identified profile groups reflecting different patterns of stability and change in students’ racial centrality (importance of race to overall self-concept), private regard (personal group affect/group pride), and public regard (perceptions of societal views of Blacks) from beginning of year (Time 1) to end of year (Time 2). Multinomial logit regression analyses indicated that the racial identity change clusters were predicted by pre-college background (racial composition of high school and neighborhood), as well as college-based experiences (racial discrimination, interracial friendships, and perceived campus racial climate). In particular, experiencing campus racial discrimination related to high, stable centrality, and decreases in private regard and public regard. Perceiving racial climates norms of institutional support for intergroup interactions on campus related to maintaining low and decreasing in private and public regard. Multivariate Analyses of Variance results showed change cluster effects on achievement motivation outcomes at the end of students’ academic year. Having high, stable centrality and high private regard related to more positive outcomes overall (academic competence, positive academic affect, academic curiosity and persistence). Students decreasing in private regard and public regard were particularly vulnerable to negative motivation outcomes. Findings support scholarship indicating both stability in racial identity beliefs and the importance of critical context transitions in racial identity development and adjustment outcomes among emerging adults. Findings also are consistent with research suggesting promotive effects of a strong, positive racial identity on student motivation, as well as research linking awareness of racial stigma to decreased academic engagement.

Keywords: diversity, motivation, learning, ethnic minority achievement, higher education

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Authors: Piacentini Diego, Della Rovere Federica, Fattorini Laura, Lanni Francesca, Cittadini Martina, Altamura Maria Maddalena, Falasca Giuseppina

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Plants have evolved sophisticated mechanisms to cope with environmental cues. Changes in intracellular content and distribution of phytohormones, such as the auxin indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), have been involved in morphogenic adaptation to environmental stresses. In addition to phytohormones, plants can rely on a plethora of small signal molecules able to promptly sense and transduce the stress signals, resulting in morpho/physiological responses thanks also to their capacity to modulate the levels/distribution/reception of most hormones. Among these signaling molecules, nitrogen monoxide (nitric oxide – NO) is a critical component in several plant acclimation strategies to both biotic and abiotic stresses. Depending on its levels, NO increases plant adaptation by enhancing the enzymatic or non-enzymatic antioxidant systems or by acting as a direct scavenger of reactive oxygen/nitrogen (ROS/RNS) species produced during the stress. In addition, exogenous applications of NO-specific donor compounds showed the involvement of the signal molecule in auxin metabolism, transport, and signaling, under both physiological and stress conditions. However, the complex mechanisms underlying NO action in interacting with phytohormones, such as auxins, during metal stress responses are still poorly understood and need to be better investigated. Emphasis must be placed on the response of the root system since it is the first plant organ system to be exposed to metal soil pollution. The monocot Oryza sativa L. (rice) has been chosen given its importance as a stable food for some 4 billion people worldwide. In addition, increasing evidence has shown that rice is often grown in contaminated paddy soils with high levels of heavy metal cadmium (Cd) and metalloid arsenic (As). The facility through which these metals are taken up by rice roots and transported to the aerial organs up to the edible caryopses makes rice one of the most relevant sources of these pollutants for humans. This study aimed to evaluate if NO has a mitigatory activity in the roots of rice seedlings against Cd or As toxicity and to understand if this activity requires interactions with auxin. Our results show that exogenous treatments with the NO-donor SNP alleviate the stress induced by Cd, but not by As, in in-vitro-grown rice seedlings through increased intracellular root NO levels. The damages induced by the pollutants include root growth inhibition, root histological alterations and ROS (H2O2, O2●ˉ), and RNS (ONOOˉ) production. Also, SNP treatments mitigate both the root increase in root IAA levels and the IAA alteration in distribution monitored by the OsDR5::GUS system due to the toxic metal exposure. Notably, the SNP-induced mitigation of the IAA homeostasis altered by the pollutants does not involve changes in the expression of OsYUCCA1 and ASA2 IAA-biosynthetic genes. Taken together, the results highlight a mitigating role of NO in the rice root system, which is pollutant-specific, and involves the interaction of the signal molecule with both IAA and brassinosteroids at different (i.e., transport, levels, distribution) and multiple levels (i.e., transcriptional/post-translational levels). The research is supported by Progetti Ateneo Sapienza University of Rome, grant number: RG120172B773D1FF

Keywords: arsenic, auxin, cadmium, nitric oxide, rice, root system

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Authors: Deborah A. Hollingworth

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The key tenets associated with ‘environmental justice’, were first articulated in a global context in Principle 10 of the United Nations Declaration on Environment and Development at Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (the Rio Declaration). The elements can be conflated to require: public participation in decision-making; the provision of relevant information to those affected about environmental hazards issues; access to judicial and administrative proceeding; and the opportunity for redress where remedy where required. This paper examines the legislative and regulatory arrangements in place for the implementation these elements in a number of industrialised democracies, including Australia. Most have, over time made regulatory provision for these elements – even if they are not directly attributed Principle 10 or the notion of environmental justice. The paper proposes, that of these elements the most critical to the achievement of good environmental governance, is a legislated recognition and role of public participation. However, the paper considers that notwithstanding sound legislative and regulatory practices, environmental regulators frequently struggle, where there is a complex decision-making scenario or long-standing enmity between a community and industry to achieve effective engagement with the public. This study considers the dilemma confronted by environmental regulators to given meaningful effect to the principles enshrined in Principle 10 – that even when the legislative expression of Principle 10 is adhered to – does not prevent adverse outcomes. In particular, it considers, as a case study a prominent environmental incident in 2014 in Australia in which an open-cut coalmine located in the regional township of Morwell caught fire during bushfire season. The fire, which took 45 days to be extinguished had a significant and adverse impact on the community in question, but compounded a complex, and sometime antagonistic history between the mine and township. The case study exemplifies the complex factors that will often be present between industry, the public and regulatory bodies, and which confound the concept of environmental justice, and the elements of enshrined in the Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration. The study proposes that such tensions and complex examples will commonly be the reality of communities and regulators. However, to give practical effect to outcomes contemplated by Principle 10, the paper considers that regulators will may consider public intervention more broadly as including early interventions and formal opportunities for “conferencing” between industry, community and regulators. These initiatives help to develop a shared understanding and identification of issues. It is proposed that although important, options for “alternative dispute resolution” are not sufficiently preventative, as they come into play when a dispute has arise. Similarly “restorative justice” programs, while important once an incident or adverse environmental outcome has occurred, are post event and therefore necessarily limited. The paper considers the examples of how public participation at the outset – at the time of a proposal, before issues arise or eventuate to ensure, is demonstrably the most effective way for building commonality and an agreed methodology for working to resolve issues once they occur.

Keywords: environmental justice, alternative dispute resolution, domestic environmental law, international environmental law

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Authors: Paula Costa, Ana Picado, Filomena Pinto, Justina Catarino

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Environmental impact associated with large scale shale gas development is of major concern to the public, policy makers and other stakeholders. To assess this impact on the atmosphere, it is important to monitoring ambient air quality prior to and during all shale gas operation stages. Baseline observations can provide a standard of the pre-shale gas development state of the environment. The lack of baseline concentrations was identified as an important knowledge gap to assess the impact of emissions to the air due to shale gas operations. In fact baseline monitoring of air quality are missing in several regions, where there is a strong possibility of future shale gas exploration. This makes it difficult to properly identify, quantify and characterize environmental impacts that may be associated with shale gas development. The implementation of a baseline air monitoring program is imperative to be able to assess the total emissions related with shale gas operations. In fact, any monitoring programme should be designed to provide indicative information on background levels. A baseline air monitoring program should identify and characterize targeted air pollutants, most frequently described from monitoring and emission measurements, as well as those expected from hydraulic fracturing activities, and establish ambient air conditions prior to start-up of potential emission sources from shale gas operations. This program has to be planned for at least one year accounting for ambient variations. In the literature, in addition to GHG emissions of CH4, CO2 and nitrogen oxides (NOx), fugitive emissions from shale gas production can release volatile organic compounds (VOCs), aldehydes (formaldehyde, acetaldehyde) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). The VOCs include a.o., benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, xylenes, hexanes, 2,2,4-trimethylpentane, styrene. The concentrations of six air pollutants (ozone, particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulphur oxides (SOx), and lead) whose regional ambient air levels are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), are often discussed. However, the main concern in the emissions to air associated to shale gas operations, seems to be the leakage of methane. Methane is identified as a compound of major concern due to its strong global warming potential. The identification of methane leakage from shale gas activities is complex due to the existence of several other CH4 sources (e.g. landfill, agricultural activity or gas pipeline/compressor station). An integrated monitoring study of methane emissions may be a suitable mean of distinguishing the contribution of different sources of methane to ambient levels. All data analysis needs to be carefully interpreted taking, also, into account the meteorological conditions of the site. This may require the implementation of a more intensive monitoring programme. So, it is essential the development of a low-cost sampling strategy, suitable for establishing pre-operations baseline data as well as an integrated monitoring program to assess the emissions from shale gas operation sites. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 640715.

Keywords: air emissions, baseline, green house gases, shale gas

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Authors: Kriti Jain, Sucha Singh Gill

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Subsidies have been a major part of agricultural policies around the world, and more extensively since the green revolution in developing countries, for the sake of attaining higher agricultural productivity and achieving food security. But entrenched subsidies lead to distorted incentives and promote inefficiencies in the agricultural sector, threatening the viability of these very subsidies and sustainability of the agricultural production systems, posing a threat to the livelihood of farmers and laborers dependent on it. This paper analyzes the economic and ecological sustainability implications of prolonged input and output subsidies in agriculture by studying the case of Indian Punjab, an agriculturally developed state responsible for ensuring food security in the country when it was facing a major food crisis. The paper focuses specifically on the environmentally unsustainable cropping pattern changes as a result of Minimum Support Price (MSP) and assured procurement and on the resource use efficiency and cost implications of power subsidy for irrigation in Punjab. The study is based on an analysis of both secondary and primary data sources. Using secondary data, a time series analysis was done to capture the changes in Punjab’s cropping pattern, water table depth, fertilizer consumption, and electrification of agriculture. This has been done to examine the role of price and output support adopted to encourage the adoption of green revolution technology in changing the cropping structure of the state, resulting in increased input use intensities (especially groundwater and fertilizers), which harms the ecological balance and decreases factor productivity. Evaluation of electrification of Punjab agriculture helped evaluate the trend in electricity productivity of agriculture and how free power imposed further pressure on the extant agricultural ecosystem. Using data collected from a primary survey of 320 farmers in Punjab, the extent of wasteful application of groundwater irrigation, water productivity of output, electricity usage, and cost of irrigation driven electricity subsidy to the exchequer were estimated for the dominant cropping pattern amongst farmers. The main findings of the study revealed how because of a subsidy has driven agricultural framework, Punjab has lost area under agro climatically suitable and staple crops and moved towards a paddy-wheat cropping system, that is gnawing away the state’s natural resources like water table has been declining at a significant rate of 25 cms per year since 1975-76, and excessive and imbalanced fertilizer usage has led to declining soil fertility in the state. With electricity-driven tubewells as the major source of irrigation within a regime of free electricity and water-intensive crop cultivation, there is both wasteful application of irrigation water and electricity in the cultivation of paddy crops, burning an unproductive hole in the exchequer’s pocket. There is limited access to both agricultural extension services and water-conserving technology, along with policy imbalance, keeping farmers in an intensive and unsustainable production system. Punjab agriculture is witnessing diminishing returns to factor, which under the business-as-usual scenario, will soon enter the phase of negative returns to factor.

Keywords: cropping pattern, electrification, subsidy, sustainability

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Authors: Stephen Dankwa, Zheng Wenfeng, Xiaolu Li

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Climate change is recently gaining the attention of many countries across the world. Climate change, which is also known as global warming, referring to the increasing in average surface temperature has been a concern to the Environmental Protection Agency of Ghana. Recently, Ghana has become vulnerable to the effect of the climate change as a result of the dependence of the majority of the population on agriculture. The clearing down of trees to grow crops and burning of charcoal in the country has been a contributing factor to the rise in temperature nowadays in the country as a result of releasing of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases into the air. Recently, petroleum stations across the cities have been on fire due to this climate changes and which have position Ghana in a way not able to withstand this climate event. As a result, the significant of this research paper is to project how the rise in the average surface temperature will be like at the end of the mid-21st century when agriculture and deforestation are allowed to continue for some time in the country. This study uses the Coupled Modeled Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5) experiment RCP 8.5 model output data to monitor the future climate changes from 2041-2050, at the end of the mid-21st century over the ten (10) major cities (Accra, Bolgatanga, Cape Coast, Koforidua, Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi, Sunyani, Ho, Tamale, Wa) in Ghana. In the models, Support Vector Machine and Random forest, where the cities as a function of heat wave metrics (minimum temperature, maximum temperature, mean temperature, heat wave duration and number of heat waves) assisted to provide more than 50% accuracy to predict and monitor the pattern of the surface air temperature. The findings identified were that the near-surface air temperature will rise between 1°C-2°C (degrees Celsius) over the coastal cities (Accra, Cape Coast, Sekondi-Takoradi). The temperature over Kumasi, Ho and Sunyani by the end of 2050 will rise by 1°C. In Koforidua, it will rise between 1°C-2°C. The temperature will rise in Bolgatanga, Tamale and Wa by 0.5°C by 2050. This indicates how the coastal and the southern part of the country are becoming hotter compared with the north, even though the northern part is the hottest. During heat waves from 2041-2050, Bolgatanga, Tamale, and Wa will experience the highest mean daily air temperature between 34°C-36°C. Kumasi, Koforidua, and Sunyani will experience about 34°C. The coastal cities (Accra, Cape Coast, Sekondi-Takoradi) will experience below 32°C. Even though, the coastal cities will experience the lowest mean temperature, they will have the highest number of heat waves about 62. Majority of the heat waves will last between 2 to 10 days with the maximum 30 days. The surface temperature will continue to rise by the end of the mid-21st century (2041-2050) over the major cities in Ghana and so needs to be addressed to the Environmental Protection Agency in Ghana in order to mitigate this problem.

Keywords: climate changes, CMIP5, Ghana, heat waves, random forest, SVM

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Authors: Nikhilesh Singh, Shishir Gaur, Anitha K. Sharma

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Climate change and anthropogenic stress have severely affected ecosystems all over the globe. Indian rivers are under immense pressure, facing challenges like pollution, encroachment, extreme fluctuation in the flow regime, local ignorance and lack of coordination between stakeholders. To counter all these issues a holistic river rejuvenation plan is needed that tests, innovates and implements sustainable solutions in the river space for sustainable river management. Smart Laboratory for Clean Rivers (SLCR) an Indo-Danish collaboration project, provides a living lab setup that brings all the stakeholders (government agencies, academic and industrial partners and locals) together to engage, learn, co-creating and experiment for a clean and sustainable river that last for ages. Just like every mega project requires piloting, SLCR has opted for a small catchment of the Varuna River, located in the Middle Ganga Basin in India. Considering the integrated approach of river rejuvenation, SLCR embraces various techniques and upgrades for rejuvenation. Likely, maintaining flow in the channel in the lean period, Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) is a proven technology. In SLCR, Floa-TEM high-resolution lithological data is used in MAR models to have better decision-making for MAR structures nearby of the river to enhance the river aquifer exchanges. Furthermore, the concerns of quality in the river are a big issue. A city like Varanasi which is located in the last stretch of the river, generates almost 260 MLD of domestic waste in the catchment. The existing STP system is working at full efficiency. Instead of installing a new STP for the future, SLCR is upgrading those STPs with an IoT-based system that optimizes according to the nutrient load and energy consumption. SLCR also advocate nature-based solutions like a reed bed for the drains having less flow. In search of micropollutants, SLCR uses fingerprint analysis involves employing advanced techniques like chromatography and mass spectrometry to create unique chemical profiles. However, rejuvenation attempts cannot be possible without involving the entire catchment. A holistic water management plan that includes storm management, water harvesting structure to efficiently manage the flow of water in the catchment and installation of several buffer zones to restrict pollutants entering into the river. Similarly, carbon (emission and sequestration) is also an important parameter for the catchment. By adopting eco-friendly practices, a ripple effect positively influences the catchment's water dynamics and aids in the revival of river systems. SLCR has adopted 4 villages to make them carbon-neutral and water-positive. Moreover, for the 24×7 monitoring of the river and the catchment, robust IoT devices are going to be installed to observe, river and groundwater quality, groundwater level, river discharge and carbon emission in the catchment and ultimately provide fuel for the data analytics. In its completion, SLCR will provide a river restoration manual, which will strategise the detailed plan and way of implementation for stakeholders. Lastly, the entire process is planned in such a way that will be managed by local administrations and stakeholders equipped with capacity-building activity. This holistic approach makes SLCR unique in the field of river rejuvenation.

Keywords: sustainable management, holistic approach, living lab, integrated river management

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Authors: B. Sudhakara Reddy

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In modern economy, energy is fundamental to virtually every product and service in use. It has been developed on the dependence of abundant and easy-to-transform polluting fossil fuels. On one hand, increase in population and income levels combined with increased per capita energy consumption requires energy production to keep pace with economic growth, and on the other, the impact of fossil fuel use on environmental degradation is enormous. The conflicting policy objectives of protecting the environment while increasing economic growth and employment has resulted in this paradox. Hence, it is important to decouple economic growth from environmental degeneration. Hence, the search for green energy involving affordable, low-carbon, and renewable energies has become global priority. This paper explores a transition to a sustainable energy system using the socio-economic-technical scenario method. This approach takes into account the multifaceted nature of transitions which not only require the development and use of new technologies, but also of changes in user behaviour, policy and regulation. The scenarios that are developed are: baseline business as usual (BAU) as well as green energy (GE). The baseline scenario assumes that the current trends (energy use, efficiency levels, etc.) will continue in future. India’s population is projected to grow by 23% during 2010 –2030, reaching 1.47 billion. The real GDP, as per the model, is projected to grow by 6.5% per year on average between 2010 and 2030 reaching US$5.1 trillion or $3,586 per capita (base year 2010). Due to increase in population and GDP, the primary energy demand will double in two decades reaching 1,397 MTOE in 2030 with the share of fossil fuels remaining around 80%. The increase in energy use corresponds to an increase in energy intensity (TOE/US $ of GDP) from 0.019 to 0.036. The carbon emissions are projected to increase by 2.5 times from 2010 reaching 3,440 million tonnes with per capita emissions of 2.2 tons/annum. However, the carbon intensity (tons per US$ of GDP) decreases from 0.96 to 0.67. As per GE scenario, energy use will reach 1079 MTOE by 2030, a saving of about 30% over BAU. The penetration rate of renewable energy resources will reduce the total primary energy demand by 23% under GE. The reduction in fossil fuel demand and focus on clean energy will reduce the energy intensity to 0.21 (TOE/US$ of GDP) and carbon intensity to 0.42 (ton/US$ of GDP) under the GE scenario. The study develops new ‘pathways out of poverty’ by creating more than 10 million jobs and thus raise the standard of living of low-income people. Our scenarios are, to a great extent, based on the existing technologies. The challenges to this path lie in socio-economic-political domains. However, to attain a green economy the appropriate policy package should be in place which will be critical in determining the kind of investments that will be needed and the incidence of costs and benefits. These results provide a basis for policy discussions on investments, policies and incentives to be put in place by national and local governments.

Keywords: energy, renewables, green technology, scenario

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Authors: Thembelihle Portia Lubisi, Malusi Ntandoyenkosi Mkhize, Jonas Kalebe Johakimu

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Fertilizers play an important role in maintaining the productivity and quality of plants. Inorganic fertilizers (containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) are largely used in South Africa as they are considered inexpensive and highly productive. When applied, a portion of the excess fertilizer will be retained in the soil, a portion enters water streams due to surface runoff or the irrigation system adopted. Excess nutrient from the fertilizers entering the water stream eventually results harmful algal blooms (HABs) in freshwater systems, which not only disrupt wildlife but can also produce toxins harmful to humans. Use of agro-chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides has been associated with increased antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans as the plants are consumed by humans. This resistance of bacterial poses a threat as it prevents the Health sector from being able to treat infectious disease. Archaeological studies have found that pyrolysis liquids were already used in the time of the Neanderthal as a biocide and plant protection product. Pyrolysis is thermal degradation process of plant biomass or organic material under anaerobic conditions leading to production of char, bio-oils and syn gases. Bio-oil constituents can be categorized as water soluble (wood vinegar) and water insoluble fractions (tar and light oils). Wood vinegar (pyro-ligneous acid) is said to contain contains highly oxygenated compounds including acids, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, phenols, esters, furans, and other multifunctional compounds with various molecular weights and compositions depending on the biomass material derived from and pyrolysis operating conditions. Various researchers have found the wood vinegar to be efficient in the eradication of termites, effective in plant protection and plant growth, has antibacterial characteristics and was found effective in inhibiting the micro-organisms such as candida yeast, E-coli, etc. This study investigated characterisation of South African forestry product processing waste with intention of evaluating the potential of using the respective biomass waste as feedstock for boil oil production via pyrolysis process. Ability to use biomass waste materials in production of wood-vinegar has advantages that it does not only allows for reduction of environmental pollution and landfill requirement, but it also does not negatively affect food security. The biomass wastes investigated were from the popular tree types in KZN, which are, pine saw dust (PSD), pine bark (PB), eucalyptus saw dust (ESD) and eucalyptus bark (EB). Furthermore, the research investigates the possibility of mixing the different wastes with an aim to lessen the cost of raw material separation prior to feeding into pyrolysis process and mixing also increases the amount of biomass material available for beneficiation. A 50/50 mixture of PSD and ESD (EPSD) and mixture containing pine saw dust; eucalyptus saw dust, pine bark and eucalyptus bark (EPSDB). Characterisation of the biomass waste will look at analysis such as proximate (volatiles, ash, fixed carbon), ultimate (carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, sulphur), high heating value, structural (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin) and thermogravimetric analysis.

Keywords: characterisation, biomass waste, saw dust, wood waste

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Authors: Dilek Ozturk, Narin Ozturk, Zeliha Pala Kara, Engin Kaptan, Serap Sancar Bas, Nurten Ozsoy, Alper Okyar

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Most physiological processes oscillate in a rhythmic manner in mammals including metabolism and energy homeostasis, locomotor activity, hormone secretion, immune and endocrine system functions. Endocrine body rhythms are tightly regulated by the circadian timing system. The hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis is under circadian control at multiple levels from hypothalamus to thyroid gland. Since circadian timing system controls a variety of biological functions in mammals, circadian rhythms of biological functions may modify the drug tolerability/toxicity depending on the dosing time. Selective mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) inhibitor everolimus is an immunosuppressant and anticancer agent that is active against many cancers. It was also found to be active in medullary thyroid cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the dosing time-dependent toxicity of everolimus on the thyroid gland and hormones in mice. Healthy C57BL/6J mice were synchronized with 12h:12h Light-Dark cycle (LD12:12, with Zeitgeber Time 0 – ZT0 – corresponding to Light onset). Everolimus was administered to male (5 mg/kg/day) and female mice (15 mg/kg/day) orally at ZT1-rest period- and ZT13-activity period- for 4 weeks; body weight loss, clinical signs and possible changes in serum thyroid hormone levels (TSH and free T4) were examined. Histological alterations in the thyroid gland were evaluated according to the following criteria: follicular size, colloid density and viscidity, height of the follicular epithelium and the presence of necrotic cells. The statistical significance between differences was analyzed with ANOVA. Study findings included everolimus-related diarrhea, decreased activity, decreased body weight gains, alterations in serum TSH levels, and histopathological changes in thyroid gland. Decreases in mean body weight gains were more evident in mice treated at ZT1 as compared to ZT13 (p < 0.001, for both sexes). Control tissue sections of thyroid glands exhibited well-organized histoarchitecture when compared to everolimus-treated groups. Everolimus caused histopathological alterations in thyroid glands in male (5 mg/kg, slightly) and female mice (15 mg/kg; p < 0.01 for both ZT as compared to their controls) irrespective of dosing-time. TSH levels were slightly decreased upon everolimus treatment at ZT13 in both males and females. Conversely, increases in TSH levels were observed when everolimus treated at ZT1 in both males (5 mg/kg; p < 0.05) and females (15 mg/kg; slightly). No statistically significant alterations in serum free T4 levels were observed. TSH and free T4 is clinically important thyroid hormones since a number of disease states have been linked to alterations in these hormones. Serum free T4 levels within the normal ranges in the presence of abnormal serum TSH levels in everolimus treated mice may suggest subclinical thyroid disease which may have repercussions on the cardiovascular system, as well as on other organs and systems. Our study has revealed the histological damage on thyroid gland induced by subacute everolimus administration, this effect was irrespective of dosing time. However, based on the body weight changes and clinical signs upon everolimus treatment, tolerability for the drug was best following dosing at ZT13 in both male and females. Yet, effects of everolimus on thyroid functions may deserve further studies regarding their clinical importance and chronotoxicity.

Keywords: circadian rhythm, chronotoxicity, everolimus, thyroid gland, thyroid hormones

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Authors: L. Le Priol, A. Nesterenko, K. El Kirat, K. Saleh

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Introduction and objectives: Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) omega-3 and omega-6 are widely recognized as being beneficial to the health and normal growth. Unfortunately, due to their highly unsaturated nature, these molecules are sensitive to oxidation and thermic degradation leading to the production of toxic compounds and unpleasant flavors and smells. Hence, it is necessary to find out a suitable way to protect them. Microencapsulation by spray-drying is a low-cost encapsulation technology and most commonly used in the food industry. Many compounds can be used as wall materials, but there is a growing interest in the use of biopolymers, such as proteins and polysaccharides, over the last years. The objective of this study is to increase the oxidative stability of sunflower oil by microencapsulation in plant protein matrices using spray-drying technique. Material and methods: Sunflower oil was used as a model substance for oxidable food oils. Proteins from brown rice, hemp, pea, soy and sunflower seeds were used as emulsifiers and microencapsulation wall materials. First, the proteins were solubilized in distilled water. Then, the emulsions were pre-homogenized using a high-speed homogenizer (Ultra-Turrax) and stabilized by using a high-pressure homogenizer (HHP). Drying of the emulsion was performed in a Mini Spray Dryer. The oxidative stability of the encapsulated oil was determined by performing accelerated oxidation tests with a Rancimat. The size of the microparticles was measured using a laser diffraction analyzer. The morphology of the spray-dried microparticles was acquired using environmental scanning microscopy. Results: Pure sunflower oil was used as a reference material. Its induction time was 9.5 ± 0.1 h. The microencapsulation of sunflower oil in pea and soy protein matrices significantly improved its oxidative stability with induction times of 21.3 ± 0.4 h and 12.5 ± 0.4 h respectively. The encapsulation with hemp proteins did not significantly change the oxidative stability of the encapsulated oil. Sunflower and brown rice proteins were ineffective materials for this application, with induction times of 7.2 ± 0.2 h and 7.0 ± 0.1 h respectively. The volume mean diameter of the microparticles formulated with soy and pea proteins were 8.9 ± 0.1 µm and 16.3 ± 1.2 µm respectively. The values for hemp, sunflower and brown rice proteins could not be obtained due to the agglomeration of the microparticles. ESEM images showed smooth and round microparticles with soy and pea proteins. The surfaces of the microparticles obtained with sunflower and hemp proteins were porous. The surface was rough when brown rice proteins were used as the encapsulating agent. Conclusion: Soy and pea proteins appeared to be efficient wall materials for the microencapsulation of sunflower oil by spray drying. These results were partly explained by the higher solubility of soy and pea proteins in water compared to hemp, sunflower, and brown rice proteins. Acknowledgment: This work has been performed, in partnership with the SAS PIVERT, within the frame of the French Institute for the Energy Transition (Institut pour la Transition Energétique (ITE)) P.I.V.E.R.T. (www.institut-pivert.com) selected as an Investments for the Future (Investissements d’Avenir). This work was supported, as part of the Investments for the Future, by the French Government under the reference ANR-001-01.

Keywords: biopolymer, edible oil, microencapsulation, oxidative stability, release, spray-drying

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Authors: Henry Okechukwu Onyeiwu

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The role of media in the transformation of contemporary Nigeria's democracies is multifaceted and profoundly impactful. As Nigeria navigates its complex socio-political landscape, media serves as both a catalyst for democratic engagement and a platform for public discourse. This paper explores the various dimensions through which media influences democracy in Nigeria, including its role in informing citizens, shaping public opinion, and providing a forum for diverse voices. The increasing penetration of social media has revolutionized the political sphere, empowering citizens to participate in governance and hold leaders accountable. However, challenges such as misinformation, censorship, and media bias continue to pose significant threats to democratic integrity. This study critically analyzes the interplay between traditional and new media, highlighting their contributions to electoral processes, civic education, and advocacy for human rights. Ultimately, the findings illustrate that while media is a crucial agent for democratic transformation, its potential can only be realized through a commitment to journalistic integrity and the promotion of media literacy among the Nigerian populace. The media plays a critical role in shaping public democracies in Nigeria, yet it faces a myriad of challenges that hinder its effectiveness. This paper examines the various obstacles confronting media broadcasting in Nigeria, which range from political interference and censorship to issues of professionalism and the proliferation of fake news. Political interference is particularly pronounced, as government entities and political actors often attempt to control narratives, compromising the independence of media outlets. This control often manifests in the form of censorship, where journalists face threats and harassment for reporting on sensitive topics related to governance, corruption, and human rights abuses. Moreover, the rapid rise of social media has introduced a dual challenge; while it offers a platform for citizen engagement and diverse viewpoints, it also facilitates the spread of misinformation and propaganda. The lack of media literacy among the populace exacerbates this issue, as citizens often struggle to discern credible information from false narratives. Additionally, economic constraints deeply affect the sustainability and independence of many broadcasting organizations. Advertisers may unduly influence content, leading to sensationalism over substantive reporting. This paper argues that for media to effectively contribute to Nigerian public democracies, there needs to be a concerted effort to address these challenges. Strengthening journalistic ethics, enhancing regulatory frameworks, and promoting media literacy among citizens are essential steps in fostering a more vibrant and accountable media landscape. Ultimately, this research underscores the necessity of a resilient media ecosystem that can truly support democratic processes, empower citizens, and hold power to account in contemporary Nigeria.

Keywords: media, democracy, socio-political, governance

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Authors: Siphesihle Hlongwane

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Background: Globally, alcohol consumption, smoking, and the use of illicit drugs kill more than 11.8 million people each year. In sub-Saharan Africa, substance abuse is responsible for more than 6.4% of all deaths recorded and about 4.7% of all Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs), with numbers still expected to grow if no drastic measures are taken to curb and address drug use. In a setting where substance use is rife, understanding contextual factors that influence an individual’s perceived eligibility to seek rehabilitation is paramount. Using the candidacy framework, we unpack how situational factors influence an individual’s perceived eligibility for healthcare uptake in adolescents and youth with substance use disorder (SUD). Methods: The candidacy framework is concerned with how people consider their eligibility for accessing a health service. The study collected and analyzed primary qualitative data to answer the research question. Data were collected between January and July 2022 on participants aged between 18 and 35 for drug users and 18 to 60 for family members. Participants include 20 previous and current drug users and 20 family members that experience the effects of addiction. A pre-drafted semi-structured interview guide was administered to a conveniently sampled population supplemented with a referral sampling method. Data were thematically analyzed using the NVivo 12pro software to manage the data. Findings: Our findings show that people with substance use disorders are aware of their drug use habits and acknowledge their candidacy for health services. Candidacy for health services is also acknowledged by those around them, such as family members and peers, and as such, information on the navigation of health services for drug users is shared by those who have attended health services, those affected by drug use, and this includes health service research by family members to identify accessible health services. While participants reported willingness to quit drug use if assistance is provided, the permeability of health care services is hindered by both individual determinations to quit drug use from long-time use and the availability of health services for drug users, such as rehabilitation centers. Our findings also show that drug users are conscious and can articulate their ailments; however, the hunt for the next dose of drugs and long waiting cues for health service acquisition overshadows their claim to health services. Participants reported a mixture of treatments prescribed, with some more gruesome than others prescribed, thus serving as both a facilitator and barrier for health service uptake. Despite some unorthodox forms of treatments prescribed in health care, the majority of those who enter treatment complete the process of treatment, although some are met with setbacks and sometimes relapse after treatment has finished. Conclusion: Drug users are able to ascertain their candidacy for health services; however, individual and environmental characteristics relating to drug use hinder the use of health services. Drug use interventions need to entice health service uptake as a way to improve candidacy for health use.

Keywords: substance use disorder, rehabilitation, drug use, relapse, South Africa, candidacy framework

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Authors: Felice Elefant, Akanksha Bhatnaghar, Keegan Krick, Elizabeth Heller

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Context: The severity of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) progression involves an interplay of genetics, age, and environmental factors orchestrated by histone acetyltransferase (HAT) mediated neuroepigenetic mechanisms. While disruption of Tip60 HAT action in neural gene control is implicated in AD, alternative mechanisms underlying Tip60 function remain unexplored. Altered RNA splicing has recently been highlighted as a widespread hallmark in the AD transcriptome that is implicated in the disease. Research Aim: The aim of this study was to identify a novel RNA binding/splicing function for Tip60 in human hippocampus and impaired in brains from AD fly models and AD patients. Methodology/Analysis: The authors used RNA immunoprecipitation using RNA isolated from 200 pooled wild type Drosophila brains for each of the 3 biological replicates. To identify Tip60’s RNA targets, they performed genome sequencing (DNB-SequencingTM technology, BGI genomics) on 3 replicates for Input RNA and RNA IPs by Tip60. Findings: The authors' transcriptomic analysis of RNA bound to Tip60 by Tip60-RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) revealed Tip60 RNA targets enriched for critical neuronal processes implicated in AD. Remarkably, 79% of Tip60’s RNA targets overlap with its chromatin gene targets, supporting a model by which Tip60 orchestrates bi-level transcriptional regulation at both the chromatin and RNA level, a function unprecedented for any HAT to date. Since RNA splicing occurs co-transcriptionally and splicing defects are implicated in AD, the authors investigated whether Tip60-RNA targeting modulates splicing decisions and if this function is altered in AD. Replicate multivariate analysis of transcript splicing (rMATS) analysis of RNA-Seq data sets from wild-type and AD fly brains revealed a multitude of mammalian-like AS defects. Strikingly, over half of these altered RNAs were bonafide Tip60-RNA targets enriched for in the AD-gene curated database, with some AS alterations prevented against by increasing Tip60 in fly brain. Importantly, human orthologs of several Tip60-modulated spliced genes in Drosophila are well characterized aberrantly spliced genes in human AD brains, implicating disruption of Tip60’s splicing function in AD pathogenesis. Theoretical Importance: The authors' findings support a novel RNA interaction and splicing regulatory function for Tip60 that may underlie AS impairments that hallmark AD etiology. Data Collection: The authors collected data from RNA immunoprecipitation experiments using RNA isolated from 200 pooled wild type Drosophila brains for each of the 3 biological replicates. They also performed genome sequencing (DNBSequencingTM technology, BGI genomics) on 3 replicates for Input RNA and RNA IPs by Tip60. Questions: The question addressed by this study was whether Tip60 has a novel RNA binding/splicing function in human hippocampus and whether this function is impaired in brains from AD fly models and AD patients. Conclusions: The authors' findings support a novel RNA interaction and splicing regulatory function for Tip60 that may underlie AS impairments that hallmark AD etiology.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease, cognition, aging, neuroepigenetics

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Authors: Zihao He

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The majority of existing studies on the Taiping Movement (1851-1864) viewed their anti-Manchu attitudes as nationalist agendas: Taiping was aimed at revolting against the Manchu government and establishing a new political regime. To explain these aggressive and violent attitudes towards Manchu, these studies mainly found socio-economic factors and stressed the status of “being deprived”. Even the ‘demon-slaying’ narrative of the Taiping to dehumanize the Manchu tends to be viewed as a “religious tool” to achieve their political, nationalist aim. This paper argues that these studies on Taiping’s anti-Manchu attitudes and behaviors are analyzed from an external angle and have two major problems. Firstly, they distinguished “religion” from “nationalist” or “political”, focusing on the “political” nature of the movement. “Religion” and the religious experience within Taiping were largely ignored. This paper argues that there was no separable and independent “religion” in the Taiping Movement, as opposed to secular, nationalist politics. Secondly, these analyses held an external perspective on Taiping’s anti-Manchu agenda. Demonizing and killing Manchu were viewed as purely political actions. On the contrary, this paper focuses on the internal perspective of anti-Manchu narratives in the Taiping Movement. The method of this paper is mainly textual analysis, focusing on the official documents, edicts, and proclamations of the Taiping movement. It views the writing of the Taiping as a coherent narrative and rhetoric, which was attractive and convincing for its followers. In terms of the main findings, firstly, internal and external perspectives on anti-Manchu violence are different. Externally, violence was viewed as a tool and necessary process to achieve the political goal. However, internally speaking, in Taiping’s writing, violence was a result of Godlessness, which would be solved as far as the faith in God is restored in China. Having a framework of universal love among human beings as sons and daughters of the Heavenly Father and killing was forbidden, the Taiping excluded Manchus from the family of human beings and demonized them. “Demon-slaying” was not violence. It was constructed as a necessary process to achieve the Great Peace. Moreover, Taiping’s anti-Manchu violence was not merely “political.” Rather, the category “religion” and its binary opposition, “secular,” is not suitable for Taiping. A key point related to this argument is the revolutionary violence against the Manchu government, which inherited the traditional “Heavenly Mandate” model. From an internal, theological perspective, anti-Manchu was ordained and commanded by the Heavenly Father. Manchu, as a regime, was standing as a hindrance in the path toward God. Besides, Manchu was not only viewed as a regime, but they were also “demons.” Therefore, the paper examines how Manchus were dehumanized in Taiping’s writings and were situated outside of the consideration of nonviolent and love. Manchu as a regime and Manchu as demons are in a dynamic relationship. As a regime, the Manchu government was preventing Chinese people from worshipping the Heavenly Father, so they were demonized. As they were demons, killing Manchus during the revolt was justified and not viewed as being contradicted the universal love among human beings.

Keywords: anti-manchu, demon-slaying, heavenly mandate, religion and violence, the taiping movement.

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Authors: Ali Reza Vaezi, Naser Fakori Ivand, Fereshteh Azarifam

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Interrill erosion is the detachment and transfer of soil particles between the rills due to the impact of raindrops and the shear stress of shallow surface runoff. This erosion can be affected by some soil properties such as texture, amount of organic matter and stability of soil aggregates. Information on the temporal variation of interrill erosion during a rainfall event and the effect soil properties have on it can help in understanding the process of runoff production and soil loss between the rills in hillslopes. The importance of this study is especially grate in semi-arid regions, where the soil is weakly aggregated and vegetation cover is mostly poor. Therefore, this research was conducted to investigate the temporal variation of surface flow and interrill erosion and the effect of soil properties on it in some semi-arid soils. A field experiment was done in eight different soil textures under simulated rainfalls with uniform intensity. A total of twenty four plots were installed for eight study soils with three replicates in the form of a random complete block design along the land. The plots were 1.2 m (length) × 1 m (width) in dimensions which designed with a distance of 3 m from each other across the slope. Then, soil samples were purred into the plots. The plots were surrounded by a galvanized sheet, and runoff and soil erosion equipment were placed at their outlets. Rainfall simulation experiments were done using a designed portable simulator with an intensity of 60 mm per hour for 60 minutes. A plastic cover was used around the rainfall simulator frame to prevent the impact of the wind on the free fall of water drops. Runoff production and soil loss were measured during 1 hour time with 5-min intervals. In order to study soil properties, such as particle size distribution, aggregate stability, bulk density, ESP and Ks were determined in the laboratory. Correlation and regression analysis was done to determine the effect of soil properties on runoff and interrill erosion. Results indicated that the study soils have lower booth organic matter content and aggregate stability. The soils, except for coarse textured textures, are calcareous and with relatively higher exchangeable sodium percentages (ESP). Runoff production and soil loss didn’t occur in sand, which was associated with higher infiltration and drainage rates. In other study soils, interrill erosion occurred simultaneously with the generation of runoff. A strong relationship was found between interrill erosion and surface runoff (R2 = 0.75, p< 0.01). The correlation analysis showed that surface runoff was significantly affected by some soil properties consisting of sand, silt, clay, bulk density, gravel, hydraulic conductivity (Ks), lime (calcium carbonate), and ESP. The soils with lower Ks such as fine-textured soils, produced higher surface runoff and more interrill erosion. In the soils, Surface runoff production temporally increased during rainfall and finally reached a peak after about 25-35 min. Time to peak was very short (30 min) in fine-textured soils, especially clay, which was related to their lower infiltration rate.

Keywords: erosion plot, rainfall simulator, soil properties, surface flow

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Authors: Yuanyuan Fu

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Background and Purpose: Along with the change of society and economy, the traditional home function of old people has gradually weakened in the contemporary China. Acknowledging these situations, to better meet old people’s needs on formal services and improve the quality of later life, this study seeks to identify patterns of intended service use among frail old people living in the communities and examined determinants that explain heterogeneous variations in old people’s intended service use patterns. Additionally, this study also tested the relationship between culture value and intended service use patterns and the mediating role of enabling factors in terms of culture value and intended service use patterns. Methods：Participants were recruited from Haidian District, Beijing, China in 2015. The multi-stage sampling method was adopted to select sub-districts, communities and old people aged 70 years old or older. After screening, 577 old people with limitations in daily life, were successfully interviewed. After data cleaning, 550 samples were included for data analysis. This study establishes a conceptual framework based on the Anderson Model (including predisposing factors, enabling factors and need factors), and further developed it by adding culture value factors (including attitudes towards filial piety and attitudes towards social face). Using a latent class analysis (LCA), this study classifies overall patterns of old people’s formal service utilization. Fourteen types of formal services were taken into account, including housework, voluntary support, transportation, home-delivered meals, and home-delivery medical care, elderly’s canteen and day-care center/respite care and so on. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the direct effect of culture value on service use pattern, and the mediating effect of the enabling factors. Results: The LCA classified a hierarchical structure of service use patterns: multiple intended service use (N=69, 23%), selective intended service use (N=129, 23%), and light intended service use (N=352, 64%). Through SEM, after controlling predisposing factors and need factors, the results showed the significant direct effect of culture value on older people’s intended service use patterns. Enabling factors had a partial mediation effect on the relationship between culture value and the patterns. Conclusions and Implications: Differentiation of formal services may be important for meeting frail old people’s service needs and distributing program resources by identifying target populations for intervention, which may make reference to specific interventions to better support frail old people. Additionally, culture value had a unique direct effect on the intended service use patterns of frail old people in China, enriching our theoretical understanding of sources of culture value and their impacts. The findings also highlighted the mediation effects of enabling factors on the relationship between culture value factors and intended service use patterns. This study suggests that researchers and service providers should pay more attention to the important role of culture value factors in contributing to intended service use patterns and also be more sensitive to the mediating effect of enabling factors when discussing the relationship between culture value and the patterns.

Keywords: frail old people, intended service use pattern, culture value, enabling factors, contemporary China, latent class analysis

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Authors: Bolatbek Rysbaiuly, Nazerke Rysbayeva, Aigerim Rysbayeva

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Relevance: Energy saving elevated to public policy in almost all developed countries. One of the areas for energy efficiency is improving and tightening design standards. In the tie with the state standards, make high demands for thermal protection of buildings. Constructive arrangement of layers should ensure normal operation in which the humidity of materials of construction should not exceed a certain level. Elevated levels of moisture in the walls can be attributed to a defective condition, as moisture significantly reduces the physical, mechanical and thermal properties of materials. Absence at the design stage of modeling the processes occurring in the construction and predict the behavior of structures during their work in the real world leads to an increase in heat loss and premature aging structures. Method: To solve this problem, widely used method of mathematical modeling of heat and mass transfer in materials. The mathematical modeling of heat and mass transfer are taken into the equation interconnected layer [1]. In winter, the thermal and hydraulic conductivity characteristics of the materials are nonlinear and depends on the temperature and moisture in the material. In this case, the experimental method of determining the coefficient of the freezing or thawing of the material becomes much more difficult. Therefore, in this paper we propose an approximate method for calculating the thermal conductivity and moisture permeability characteristics of freezing or thawing material. Questions. Following the development of methods for solving the inverse problem of mathematical modeling allows us to answer questions that are closely related to the rational design of fences: Where the zone of condensation in the body of the multi-layer fencing; How and where to apply insulation rationally his place; Any constructive activities necessary to provide for the removal of moisture from the structure; What should be the temperature and humidity conditions for the normal operation of the premises enclosing structure; What is the longevity of the structure in terms of its components frost materials. Tasks: The proposed mathematical model to solve the following problems: To assess the condition of the thermo-physical designed structures at different operating conditions and select appropriate material layers; Calculate the temperature field in a structurally complex multilayer structures; When measuring temperature and moisture in the characteristic points to determine the thermal characteristics of the materials constituting the surveyed construction; Laboratory testing to significantly reduce test time, and eliminates the climatic chamber and expensive instrumentation experiments and research; Allows you to simulate real-life situations that arise in multilayer enclosing structures associated with freezing, thawing, drying and cooling of any layer of the building material.

Keywords: energy saving, inverse problem, heat transfer, multilayer walling

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Authors: Fawzyah Albaldi

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Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the most prevalent of infectious diseases and > 80% are caused by uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC). Infection occurs following adhesion to urothelial plaques on bladder epithelial cells, whose major protein constituent are the uroplakins (UPs). Two of the four uroplakins (UPIa and UPIb) are members of the tetraspanin superfamily. The UPEC adhesin FimH is known to interact directly with UPIa. Tetraspanins are a diverse family of transmembrane proteins that generally act as “molecular organizers” by binding different proteins and lipids to form tetraspanin enriched microdomains (TEMs). Previous work by our group has shown that TEMs are involved in the adhesion of many pathogenic bacteria to human cells. Adhesion can be blocked by tetraspanin-derived synthetic peptides, suggesting that tetraspanins may be valuable drug targets. In this study, we investigate the role of tetraspanins in UPEC adherence to bladder epithelial cells. Human bladder cancer cell lines (T24, 5637, RT4), commonly used as in-vitro models to investigate UPEC infection, along with primary human bladder cells, were used in this project. The aim was to establish a model for UPEC adhesion/infection with the objective of evaluating the impact of tetraspanin-derived reagents on this process. Such reagents could reduce the progression of UTI, particularly in patients with indwelling catheters. Tetraspanin expression on the bladder cells was investigated by q-PCR and flow cytometry, with CD9 and CD81 generally highly expressed. Interestingly, despite these cell lines being used by other groups to investigate FimH antagonists, uroplakin proteins (UPIa, UPIb and UPIII) were poorly expressed at the cell surface, although some were present intracellularly. Attempts were made to differentiate the cell lines, to induce cell surface expression of these UPs, but these were largely unsuccessful. Pre-treatment of bladder epithelial cells with anti-CD9 monoclonal antibody significantly decreased UPEC infection, whilst anti-CD81 had no effects. A short (15aa) synthetic peptide corresponding to the large extracellular region (EC2) of CD9 also significantly reduced UPEC adherence. Furthermore, we demonstrated specific binding of that fluorescently tagged peptide to the cells. CD9 is known to associate with a number of heparan sulphate proteoglycans (HSPGs) that have also been implicated in bacterial adhesion. Here, we demonstrated that unfractionated heparin (UFH)and heparin analogs significantly inhibited UPEC adhesion to RT4 cells, as did pre-treatment of the cells with heparinases. Pre-treatment with chondroitin sulphate (CS) and chondroitinase also significantly decreased UPEC adherence to RT4 cells. This study may shed light on a common pathogenicity mechanism involving the organisation of HSPGs by tetraspanins. In summary, although we determined that the bladder cell lines were not suitable to investigate the role of uroplakins in UPEC adhesion, we demonstrated roles for CD9 and cell surface proteoglycans in this interaction. Agents that target these may be useful in treating/preventing UTIs.

Keywords: UTIs, tspan, uroplakins, CD9

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Authors: Poulomi Bhadra, Manjushree Palit, Sanjeev P. Sahni

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Forensic science uses all branches of science for criminal investigation and trial and has increasingly emerged as an important tool in the administration of justice. However, the growth and development of this field in India has not been as rapid or widespread as compared to the more developed Western countries. For successful administration of justice, it is important that all agencies involved in law enforcement adopt an inter-professional approach towards forensic science, which is presently lacking. In light of the alarmingly high average acquittal rate in India, this study aims to examine the lack of understanding and appreciation of the importance and scope of forensic evidence and expert opinions amongst law professionals such as lawyers and judges. Based on a study of trial court cases from Delhi and surrounding areas, the study underline the areas in forensics where the criminal justice system has noticeably erred. Using this information, the authors examine the extent of forensic understanding amongst legal professionals and attempt to conclusively identify the areas in which they need further appraisal. A cross-sectional study done using a structured questionnaire was conducted amongst law professionals across age, gender, type and years of experience in court, to determine their understanding of DNA, fingerprints and other interdisciplinary scientific materials used as forensic evidence. In our study, we understand the levels of understanding amongst lawyers with regards to DNA and fingerprint evidence, and how it affects trial outcomes. We also aim to understand the factors that prevent credible and advanced awareness amongst legal personnel, amongst others. The survey identified the areas in modern and advanced forensics, such as forensic entomology, anthropology, cybercrime etc., in which Indian legal professionals are yet to attain a functional understanding. It also brings to light, what is commonly termed as the ‘CSI-effect’ in the Western courtrooms, and provides scope to study the existence of this phenomenon and its effects on the Indian courts and their judgements. This study highlighted the prevalence of unchallenged expert testimony presented by the prosecution in criminal trials and impressed upon the judicial system the need for independent analysis and evaluation of the scientist’s data and/or testimony by the defense. Overall, this study aims to define a clearer and rigid understanding of why legal professionals should have basic understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of forensic sciences. Based on the aforementioned findings, the author suggests various measures by which judges and lawyers might obtain an extensive knowledge of the advances and promising potentialities of forensic science. This includes promoting a forensic curriculum in legal studies at Bachelor’s and Master’s level as well as in mid-career professional courses. Formation of forensic-legal consultancies, in consultation with the Department of Justice, will not only assist in training police, military and law personnel but will also encourage legal research in this field. These suggestions also aim to bridge the communication gap that presently exists between law practitioners, forensic scientists and the general community’s awareness of the criminal justice system.

Keywords: forensic science, Indian legal professionals, interdisciplinary awareness, legal education

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Authors: Kutangila Malundama Succes, Koita Mahamadou

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In the context of climate change and demographic pressure, groundwater has emerged as an essential and strategic resource whose sustainability relies on good management. The accuracy and relevance of decisions made in managing these resources depend on the availability and quality of scientific information they must rely on. It is, therefore, more urgent to improve the state of knowledge on groundwater to ensure sustainable management. This study is conducted for the particular case of the aquifers of the transboundary sedimentary basin of Taoudéni in its Burkinabe part. Indeed, Burkina Faso (and the Sahel region in general), marked by low rainfall, has experienced episodes of severe drought, which have justified the use of groundwater as the primary source of water supply. This study aims to improve knowledge of the hydrogeology of this area to achieve sustainable management of transboundary groundwater resources. The methodological approach first described lithological units regarding the extension and succession of different layers. Secondly, the hydrodynamic behavior of these units was studied through the analysis of spatio-temporal variations of piezometric. The data consists of 692 static level measurement points and 8 observation wells located in the usual manner in the area and capturing five of the identified geological formations. Monthly piezometric level chronicles are available for each observation and cover the period from 1989 to 2020. The temporal analysis of piezometric, carried out in comparison with rainfall chronicles, revealed a general upward trend in piezometric levels throughout the basin. The reaction of the groundwater generally occurs with a delay of 1 to 2 months relative to the flow of the rainy season. Indeed, the peaks of the piezometric level generally occur between September and October in reaction to the rainfall peaks between July and August. Low groundwater levels are observed between May and July. This relatively slow reaction of the aquifer is observed in all wells. The influence of the geological nature through the structure and hydrodynamic properties of the layers was deduced. The spatial analysis reveals that piezometric contours vary between 166 and 633 m with a trend indicating flow that generally goes from southwest to northeast, with the feeding areas located towards the southwest and northwest. There is a quasi-concordance between the hydrogeological basins and the overlying hydrological basins, as well as a bimodal flow with a component following the topography and another significant component deeper, controlled by the regional gradient SW-NE. This latter component may present flows directed from the high reliefs towards the sources of Nasso. In the source area (Kou basin), the maximum average stock variation, calculated by the Water Table Fluctuation (WTF) method, varies between 35 and 48.70 mm per year for 2012-2014.

Keywords: hydrodynamic behaviour, taoudeni basin, piezometry, water table fluctuation

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Authors: Gulhan Sen

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Disasters could result in many deaths and injuries. In these difficult times, accessible resources are limited, demand and supply balance is distorted, and there is a need to make urgent interventions. Disproportionateness between accessible resources and intervention capacity makes triage a necessity in every stage of disaster response. Healthcare professionals, who are in charge of triage, have to evaluate swiftly and make ethical decisions about which patients need priority and urgent intervention given the limited available resources. For such critical times in disaster triage, 'doing the greatest good for the greatest number of casualties' is adopted as a code of practice. But there is no guide for healthcare professionals about ethical decision-making during disasters, and this study is expected to use as a source in the preparation of the guide. This study aimed to examine whether the qualities healthcare professionals in Izmir related to disaster triage were adequate and whether these qualities influence their capacity to make ethical decisions. The researcher used a survey developed for data collection. The survey included two parts. In part one, 14 questions solicited information about socio-demographic characteristics and knowledge levels of the respondents on ethical principles of disaster triage and allocation of scarce resources. Part two included four disaster scenarios adopted from existing literature and respondents were asked to make ethical decisions in triage based on the provided scenarios. The survey was completed by 215 healthcare professional working in Emergency-Medical Stations, National Medical Rescue Teams and Search-Rescue-Health Teams in Izmir. The data was analyzed with SPSS software. Chi-Square Test, Mann-Whitney U Test, Kruskal-Wallis Test and Linear Regression Analysis were utilized. According to results, it was determined that 51.2% of the participants had inadequate knowledge level of ethical principles of disaster triage and allocation of scarce resources. It was also found that participants did not tend to make ethical decisions on four disaster scenarios which included ethical dilemmas. They stayed in ethical dilemmas that perform cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, manage limited resources and make decisions to die. Results also showed that participants who had more experience in disaster triage teams, were more likely to make ethical decisions on disaster triage than those with little or no experience in disaster triage teams(p < 0.01). Moreover, as their knowledge level of ethical principles of disaster triage and allocation of scarce resources increased, their tendency to make ethical decisions also increased(p < 0.001). In conclusion, having inadequate knowledge level of ethical principles and being inexperienced affect their ethical decision-making during disasters. So results of this study suggest that more training on disaster triage should be provided on the areas of the pre-impact phase of disaster. In addition, ethical dimension of disaster triage should be included in the syllabi of the ethics classes in the vocational training for healthcare professionals. Drill, simulations, and board exercises can be used to improve ethical decision making abilities of healthcare professionals. Disaster scenarios where ethical dilemmas are faced should be prepared for such applied training programs.

Keywords: disaster triage, medical ethics, ethical principles of disaster triage, ethical decision-making

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Authors: Pierre-Andre Mudry, Jean Decaix, Jeremy Schmid, Cesar Papilloud, Cecile Munch-Alligne

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In most of the Swiss Alpine regions, the availability of water resources is usually adequate even in times of drought, as evidenced by the 2003 and 2018 summers. Indeed, important natural stocks are for the moment available in the form of snow and ice, but the situation is likely to change in the future due to global and regional climate change. In addition, alpine mountain regions are areas where climate change will be felt very rapidly and with high intensity. For instance, the ice regime of these regions has already been affected in recent years with a modification of the monthly availability and extreme events of precipitations. The current research, focusing on the municipality of Val de Bagnes, located in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, is part of a project led by the Altis company and achieved in collaboration with WSL, BlueArk Entremont, and HES-SO Valais-Wallis. In this region, water occupies a key position notably for winter and summer tourism. Thus, multiple actors want to apprehend the future needs and availabilities of water, on both the 2050 and 2100 horizons, in order to plan the modifications to the water supply and distribution networks. For those changes to be salient and efficient, a good knowledge of the current water distribution networks is of most importance. In the current case, the water drinking network is well documented, but this is not the case for the irrigation one. Since the water consumption for irrigation is ten times higher than for drinking water, data acquisition on the irrigation network is a major point to determine future scenarios. This paper first presents the instrumentation and simulation of the irrigation network using custom-designed IoT devices, which are coupled with a digital clone simulated to reduce the number of measuring locations. The developed IoT ad-hoc devices are energy-autonomous and can measure flows and pressures using industrial sensors such as calorimetric water flow meters. Measurements are periodically transmitted using the LoRaWAN protocol over a dedicated infrastructure deployed in the municipality. The gathered values can then be visualized in real-time on a dashboard, which also provides historical data for analysis. In a second phase, a digital clone of the irrigation network was modeled using EPANET, a software for water distribution systems that performs extended-period simulations of flows and pressures in pressurized networks composed of reservoirs, pipes, junctions, and sinks. As a preliminary work, only a part of the irrigation network was modelled and validated by comparisons with the measurements. The simulations are carried out by imposing the consumption of water at several locations. The validation is performed by comparing the simulated pressures are different nodes with the measured ones. An accuracy of +/- 15% is observed on most of the nodes, which is acceptable for the operator of the network and demonstrates the validity of the approach. Future steps will focus on the deployment of the measurement devices on the whole network and the complete modelling of the network. Then, scenarios of future consumption will be investigated. Acknowledgment— The authors would like to thank the Swiss Federal Office for Environment (FOEN), the Swiss Federal Office for Agriculture (OFAG) for their financial supports, and ALTIS for the technical support, this project being part of the Swiss Pilot program 'Adaptation aux changements climatiques'.

Keywords: hydraulic digital clone, IoT water monitoring, LoRaWAN water measurements, EPANET, irrigation network

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Authors: Suneet Jagdev, Hrishabh Amrodia, Siddharth Menon, Abhishek Singh, Mansi Shivhare

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Delhi, the National Capital, has undergone a surge in development rate, consequently engendering an unprecedented increase in population. Over the years the city has transformed into a car-centric infrastructure with high-speed corridors, flyovers and fast lanes. A considerable section of the population is hankering to rehabilitate to the good old cycling days, in order to contribute towards a green environment as well as to maintain their physical well-being. Furthermore, an extant section of Delhi’s population relies on cycles as their primary means of commuting in the city. Delhi has the highest number of cyclists and second highest number of pedestrians in the country. However, the tumultuous problems of unregulated traffic, inadequate space on roads, adverse weather conditions stifle them to opt for cycling. Lately, the city has been facing a conglomeration of problems such as haphazard traffic movement, clogged roads, congestion, pollution, accidents, safety issues, etc. In 1957, Delhi’s cyclists accounted for 36 per cent of trips which dropped down to a mere 4 per cent in 2008. The declining rate is due to unsafe roads and lack of proper cycle lanes. Now as the 10 percent of the city has cycle tracks. There is also a lack of public recreational activities in the city. These conundrums incite the need of a covered elevated cycling bridge track to facilitate the safe and smooth cycle commutation in the city which would also serve the purpose of an alternate urban public space over the cycle bridge reducing the cost as well as the space requirement for the same, developing a user–friendly transportation and public interaction system for urban areas in the city. Based on the archival research methodologies, the following research draws information and extracts records from the data accounts of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. as well as the Centre for Science and Environment, India. This research will predominantly focus on developing a prototype design for high speed elevated bicycle lanes based on different road typologies, which can be replicated with minor variations in similar situations, all across the major cities of our country including the proposed smart cities. Furthermore, how these cycling lanes could be utilized for the place making process accommodating cycle parking and renting spaces, public recreational spaces, food courts as well as convenient shopping facilities with appropriate optimization. How to preserve and increase the share of smooth and safe cycling commute cycling for the routine transportation of the urban community of the polluted capital which has been on a steady decline over the past few decades.

Keywords: bicycle track, prototype, road safety, urban spaces

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Authors: Karishma Kashyap, Subha D. Parida

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Rapid population growth and urbanization is creating pressure throughout the world. This has a dramatic effect on a lot of elements which include water, food, transportation, energy, infrastructure etc. as few of the key services. Built environment sector is growing concurrently to meet the needs of urbanization. Due to such large scale development of buildings, there is a need for them to be monitored and managed efficiently. Along with appropriate management, climate adaptation is highly crucial as well because buildings are one of the major sources of greenhouse gas emission in their operation phase. Buildings to be adaptive need to provide a triple bottom approach to sustainability i.e., being socially, environmentally and economically sustainable. Hence, in order to deliver these sustainability outcomes, there is a growing understanding and thrive towards switching to green buildings or renovating new ones as per green standards wherever possible. Academic institutions in particular have been following this trend globally. This is highly significant as universities usually have high occupancy rates because they manage a large building portfolio. Also, as universities accommodate the future generation of architects, policy makers etc., they have the potential of setting themselves as a best industry practice model for research and innovation for the rest to follow. Hence their climate adaptation, sustainable growth and performance management becomes highly crucial in order to provide the best services to users. With the objective of evaluating appropriate management mechanisms within academic institutions, a feasibility study was carried out in a recent 5-Star Green Star rated university building (housing the School of Construction) in Victoria (south-eastern state of Australia). The key aim was to understand the behavioral and social aspect of the building users, management and the impact of their relationship on overall building sustainability. A survey was used to understand the building occupant’s response and reactions in terms of their work environment and management. A report was generated based on the survey results complemented with utility and performance data which were then used to evaluate the management structure of the university. Followed by the report, interviews were scheduled with the facility and asset managers in order to understand the approach they use to manage the different buildings in their university campuses (old, new, refurbished), respective building and parameters incorporated in maintaining the Green Star performance. The results aimed at closing the communication and feedback loop within the respective institutions and assist the facility managers to deliver appropriate stakeholder engagement. For the wider design community, analysis of the data highlights the applicability and significance of prioritizing key stakeholders, integrating desired engagement policies within an institution’s management structures and frameworks and their effect on building performance

Keywords: building optimization, green building, post occupancy evaluation, stakeholder engagement

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Authors: Munir Kassa, Mengistu Hailemariam, Meghan Obermeyer, Kefelegn Baruda, Yonas Getachew, Asnakech Dessie

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Improving the quality of sexual and reproductive health services that women receive is expected to have an impact on women’s satisfaction with the services, on their continued use and, ultimately, on their ability to achieve their fertility goals or reproductive intentions. Surprisingly, however, there is little empirical evidence of either whether this expectation is correct, or how best to improve service quality within sexual and reproductive health programs so that these impacts can be achieved. The Recent focus on quality has prompted more physicians to do quality improvement work, but often without the needed skill sets, which results in poorly conceived and ultimately unsuccessful improvement initiatives. As this renders the work unpublishable, it further impedes progress in the field of health care improvement and widens the quality chasm. Moreover, since 2014, the Center for International Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT) has worked diligently with 11 teaching hospitals across Ethiopia to increase access to contraception and abortion care services. This work has included improving pre-service training through education and curriculum development, expanding hands-on training to better learn critical techniques and counseling skills, and fostering a “team science” approach to research by encouraging scientific exploration. This is the first time this systematic approach has been applied and documented to improve access to high-quality services in Ethiopia. The purpose of this article is to report initiatives undertaken, and findings concluded by the clinical service team at CIRHT in an effort to provide a pragmatic approach to quality improvement projects. An audit containing nearly 300 questions about several aspects of patient care, including structure, process, and outcome indicators was completed by each teaching hospital’s quality improvement team. This baseline audit assisted in identifying major gaps and barriers, and each team was responsible for determining specific quality improvement aims and tasks to support change interventions using Shewart’s Cycle for Learning and Improvement (the Plan-Do-Study-Act model). To measure progress over time, quality improvement teams met biweekly and compiled monthly data for review. Also, site visits to each hospital were completed by the clinical service team to ensure monitoring and support. The results indicate that applying an evidence-based, participatory approach to quality improvement has the potential to increase the accessibility and quality of services in a short amount of time. In addition, continued ownership and on-site support are vital in promoting sustainability. This approach could be adapted and applied in similar contexts, particularly in other African countries.

Keywords: abortion, contraception, quality improvement, service provision

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Authors: Kevin Baxter, Ron Grove, James Pitney, John Harrison, Ozlem Gumus

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The purpose of this research is to determine the mediating effect of effectiveness of the training provided by Northwestern University’s School of Police Staff and Command (SPSC), on the ability of law enforcement mid-level managers to learn transformational and authentic leadership traits. This study will also evaluate the leadership styles, of course, graduates compared to non-attendees using a static group comparison design. The Louisiana State Police pay approximately $40,000 in salary, tuition, housing, and meals for each state police lieutenant attending the 10-week program of the SPSC. This school lists the development of transformational leaders as an increasing element. Additionally, the SPSC curriculum addresses all four components of authentic leadership - self-awareness, transparency, ethical/moral, and balanced processing. Upon return to law enforcement in roles of mid-level management, there are questions as to whether or not students revert to an “autocratic” leadership style. Insufficient evidence exists to support claims for the effectiveness of management training or leadership development. Though it is widely recognized that transformational styles are beneficial to law enforcement, there is little evidence that suggests police leadership styles are changing. Police organizations continue to hold to a more transactional style (i.e., most senior police leaders remain autocrats). Additionally, research in the application of transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership related to police organizations is minimal. The population of the study is law enforcement mid-level managers from various states within the United States who completed leadership training presented by the SPSC. The sample will be composed of 66 active law enforcement mid-level managers (lieutenants and captains) who have graduated from SPSC and 65 active law enforcement mid-level managers (lieutenants and captains) who have not attended SPSC. Participants will answer demographics questions, Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, and the Kirkpatrick Hybrid Evaluation Survey. Analysis from descriptive statistics, group comparison, one-way MANCOVA, and the Kirkpatrick Evaluation Model survey will be used to determine training effectiveness in the four levels of reaction, learning, behavior, and results. Independent variables are SPSC graduates (two groups: upper and lower) and no-SPSC attendees, and dependent variables are transformational and authentic leadership scores. SPSC graduates are expected to have higher MLQ scores for transformational leadership traits and higher ALQ scores for authentic leadership traits than SPSC non-attendees. We also expect the graduates to rate the efficacy of SPSC leadership training as high. This study will validate (or invalidate) the benefits, costs, and resources required for leadership development from a nationally recognized police leadership program, and it will also help fill the gap in the literature that exists between law enforcement professional development and transformational and authentic leadership styles.

Keywords: training effectiveness, transformational leadership, authentic leadership, law enforcement mid-level manager

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Authors: Maike Andresen, Georg Dochtmann

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Due to political, social, and societal changes in labor organization, top-sharing, defined as job-sharing in leading positions, becomes more important in HRM. German companies are looking for practical and economically meaningful solutions that allow to enduringly increase women’s ratio in management, not only because of a recently implemented quota. Furthermore, supporting employees in achieving work-life balance is perceived as an important goal for a sustainable HRM to gain competitive advantage. Top-sharing is seen as being suitable to reach both goals. To evaluate determinants leading to effective top-sharing, a case study of a newly implemented top-sharing tandem in a large German enterprise was conducted over a period of 15 months. In this company, a full leadership position was split into two 60%-part-time positions held by an experienced female leader in her late career and a female college who took over her first leadership position (mid-career). We assumed a person-person fit in terms of a match of the top sharing partners’ personality profiles (Big Five) and their leadership motivations to be important prerequisites for an effective collaboration between them. We evaluated the person-person fit variables once before the tandem started to work. Both leaders were expected to learn from each other (mentoring, competency development). On an operational level, they were supposed to lead together the same employees in an effective manner (leader-member exchange), presupposing an effective cooperation between both (handing over information). To see developments over time, these processes were evaluated three times over the span of the project. Top-Sharing and the underlined processes are expected to positively influence the tandem’s performance which has been evaluated twice, at the beginning and the end of the project, to assess its development over time as well. The evaluation of the personality and the basic motives suggests that both executives can be a successful top-sharing tandem. The competency evaluations (supervisor as well as self-assessment) increased over the time span. Although the top sharing tandem worked on equal terms, they implemented rather classical than peer-mentoring due to different career ambitions of the tandem partners. Thus, opportunities were not used completely. Team-member exchange scores proved the good cooperation between the top-sharers. Although the employees did not evaluate the leader-member-exchange between them and the two leaders of the tandem homogeneously, the top-sharing tandem itself did not have the impression that the employees’ task performance depended on whom of the tandem was responsible for the task. Furthermore, top-sharing did not negatively influence the performance of both leaders. During qualitative interviews with the top-sharers and their team, we found that the top-sharers could focus more easily on their tasks. The results suggest positive outcomes of top-sharing (e.g. competency improvement, learning from each other through mentoring). Top-Sharing does not hamper performance. Thus, further research and practical implementations are suggested. As part-time jobs are still more often a female solution to increase their work-life- and work-family-balance, top-sharing may be a suitable solution to increase the woman’s ratio in leadership positions as well as to sustainable increase work-life-balance of executives.

Keywords: mentoring, part-time leadership, top-sharing, work-life-balance

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Authors: Oscar Nieto-Garzón, Angélica Lozano

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In urban areas, on-road freight transportation creates several social and environmental externalities. Then, it is crucial that freight transport considers not only economic aspects, like retailer distribution cost reduction and service improvement, but also environmental effects such as global CO2 and local emissions (e.g. Particulate Matter, NOX, CO) and noise. Inadequate infrastructure development, high rate of urbanization, the increase of motorization, and the lack of transportation planning are characteristics that urban areas from developing countries share. The Metropolitan Area of Mexico City (MAMC), the Metropolitan Area of São Paulo (MASP), and Bogota are three of the largest urban areas in Latin America where air pollution is often a problem associated with emissions from mobile sources. The effect of the lockdown due to COVID-19 was analyzedfor these urban areas, comparing the same period (January to August) of years 2016 – 2019 with 2020. A strong reduction in the concentration of primary criteria pollutants emitted by road traffic were observed at the beginning of 2020 and after the lockdown measures.Daily mean concentration of NOx decreased 40% in the MAMC, 34% in the MASP, and 62% in Bogota. Daily mean ozone levels increased after the lockdown measures in the three urban areas, 25% in MAMC, 30% in the MASP and 60% in Bogota. These changes in emission patterns from mobile sources drastically changed the ambient atmospheric concentrations of CO and NOX. The CO/NOX ratioat the morning hours is often used as an indicator of mobile sources emissions. In 2020, traffic from cars and light vehicles was significantly reduced due to the first lockdown, but buses and trucks had not restrictions. In theory, it implies a decrease in CO and NOX from cars or light vehicles, maintaining the levels of NOX by trucks(or lower levels due to the congestion reduction). At rush hours, traffic was reduced between 50% and 75%, so trucks could get higher speeds, which would reduce their emissions. By means an emission model, it was found that an increase in the average speed (75%) would reduce the emissions (CO, NOX, and PM) from diesel trucks by up to 30%. It was expected that the value of CO/NOXratio could change due to thelockdownrestrictions. However, although there was asignificant reduction of traffic, CO/NOX kept its trend, decreasing to 8-9 in 2020. Hence, traffic restrictions had no impact on the CO/NOX ratio, although they did reduce vehicle emissions of CO and NOX. Therefore, these emissions may not adequately represent the change in the vehicle emission patterns, or this ratio may not be a good indicator of emissions generated by vehicles. From the comparison of the theoretical data and those observed during the lockdown, results that the real NOX reduction was lower than the theoretical reduction. The reasons could be that there are other sources of NOX emissions, so there would be an over-representation of NOX emissions generated by diesel vehicles, or there is an underestimation of CO emissions. Further analysis needs to consider this ratioto evaluate the emission inventories and then to extend these results forthe determination of emission control policies to non-mobile sources.

Keywords: COVID-19, emissions, freight transport, latin American metropolis

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