Er is wereldwijd een groeiende groep milieuvluchtelingen. Voor deze mensen, die vluchten als gevolg van bijvoorbeeld een tsunami, dijkdoorbraak, hoge concentraties vrijkomende giftige stoffen bij een industrieel ongeval, verwoestijning, uitputting van de bodem of langdurige regenval, bestaat nog geen adequaat internationaal beschermingsregime. Ons vorige artikel in Applied Research Today (april 2013) bracht in kaart welke soorten milieuvluchtelingen bestaan, en betoogde dat de bescherming van deze groep plaats kan vinden onder het VN-principe The Responsibility to Protect (R2P). R2P omvat onder andere een integrale aanpak die gericht is op het voorkomen, reageren en opbouwen, waarbij de verantwoordelijkheid is ondergebracht in drie pijlers: 1) een staat is zelf verantwoordelijk voor de bescherming van milieuvluchtelingen, 2) de internationale gemeenschap heeft een verantwoordelijkheid een staat hierbij te assisteren, en 3) de internationale gemeenschap heeft de verantwoordelijkheid om collectief snel en beslissend te reageren indien een staat zelf zijn milieuvluchtelingen niet kan of wil beschermen. Dit vervolgartikel formuleert hoe de integrale aanpak van The Responsibility to Protect kan worden geoperationaliseerd voor de bescherming van milieuvluchtelingen. ABSTRACT The number of environmental refugees is growing. An adequate international legal protection regime is lacking for people who, for example, flee as a result of a tsunami or levee breach; high concentrations of toxic substances from industrial accidents; desertification; soil depletion or prolonged rainfall. Our previous article in Applied Research Today (April 2013) described eight different groups of environmental refugees and argued that the protection of these groups can be ensured under the UN principle the Responsibility to Protect (R2P). R2P offers an integral approach that focuses on prevention, reaction and rebuilding. In first instance, the responsibility to take protective measures lies with the state itself. Secondly, the international community has a responsibility to assist. Lastly, when a state is not able or willing to protect its environmental refugees, the international community has the responsibility to respond in a swift and decisive manner. This follow-up article formulates how the Responsibility to Protect concept could be operationalised to protect environmental refugees.
The phenomena of urbanization and climate change interact with the growing number of older people living in cities. One of the effects of climate change is an increased riverine flooding hazard, and when floods occur this has a severe impact on human lives and comes with vast economic losses. Flood resilience management procedures should be supported by a combination of complex social and environmental vulnerability assessments. Therefore, new methodologies and tools should be developed for this purpose. One way to achieve such inclusive procedures is by incorporating a social vulnerability evaluation methodology for environmental and flood resilience assessment. These are illustrated for application in the Polish city of Wrocław. Socio-environmental vulnerability mapping, based on spatial analyses using the poverty risk index, data on the ageing population, as well as the distribution of the areas vulnerable to floods, was conducted with use of a location intelligence system combining Geographic Information System (GIS) and Business Intelligence (BI) tools. The new methodology allows for the identification of areas populated by social groups that are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of flooding. C 2018 SETAC Original Publication: Integr Environ Assess Manag 2018;14:592–597. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ieam.4077
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Concepts to protect wood from factors like ultraviolet (UV) radiation, water and wood-decaying fungi with the help of fungi exist in different variants. The idea to treat wood with the help of linseed oil and the living fungus Aureobasidium pullulans originated in 1996 during an European project assessing sustainable protection systems (Sailer et al., 2010). At that time, wood impregnated with natural oils resulted surprisingly in an evenly dark colored surface. These color changes were usually associated with irregular discoloration and staining and were further investigated. It has been shown that the fungus Aureobasidium pullulans was growing on surfaces treated with linseed oil. The fact that Aureobasium pullulans reproducibly grows on water repellent linseed surfaces in many regions around the world makes it suitable for use in a wide range of applications. Research did show that Aureobasidium pullulans produces pigments and binders on its own. This contribution documents the investigation to, identify the possibilities of biological wood surface treatment with Aureobasidium. The combination of the hydrophobizing effect of linseed oil and the surface treatment with the so-called biofinish creates an aesthetically appealing dark living surface, which significantly prolongs the life of wood outdoors and reduces maintenance costs. Since the idea has been developed into an industrially applicable process (Xyhlo biofinish, 2018). Using this concept, building components e.g. façades can be protected with a biological and functional coating thereby contribution to lessen the environmental impact of buildings.
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The production, use, disposal and recovery of packaging not only generates massive volumes of waste, it also consumes raw materials, water and energy (Fitzpatrick et al. 2012). Simultaneously, consumers have shown an increasing interest in products incorporating sustainable and social attributes (Kletzan et al., 2006). As a result, environmentally friendly packaging, also called ecofriendly or sustainable packaging, has become mainstream. In this context, packaging is more than just ensuring the product's protection and easing transportation, it is also a communicative tool (Palmer, 2000) and it becomes associated with multiple drivers of the purchasing process. Consequently, companies face pressure to innovate responding to consumer demands, and focusing on sustainable solutions that reduce harmful materials and favour green alternatives for both, the product and the packaging. Although the above has triggered research on consumer choice for sustainable products and alternatives on sustainable packaging, the relation between sustainable packaging and consumer behaviour remains underexplored. This research unpacks this relationship, i.e., empirically verifies which dimensions (recyclability, biodegradability, reusability) of sustainable packaging are perceived and valued by consumers. Put differently, this research investigates consumer behaviour towards the functions of sustainable packaging in terms of product protection, convenience, reliability of information and promotion, and scrutinises the perceived credibility of the associated ethical responsibility claims. It aims to identify those packaging materials and/or sustainability characteristics perceived as more sustainable by consumers as well as the factors influencing actual consumer choice towards sustainable packaged products. We aim to gain more insights in the perceptual frame that different types of consumers apply when exposed to sustainable packaging. To this end, we will make use of revealed preference methods to measure consumer valuations of sustainable packaged products. This game-theoretic approach should provide a more complete depiction of consumers' perceptions and preferences.
Human kind has a major impact on the state of life on Earth, mainly caused by habitat destruction, fragmentation and pollution related to agricultural land use and industrialization. Biodiversity is dominated by insects (~50%). Insects are vital for ecosystems through ecosystem engineering and controlling properties, such as soil formation and nutrient cycling, pollination, and in food webs as prey or controlling predator or parasite. Reducing insect diversity reduces resilience of ecosystems and increases risks of non-performance in soil fertility, pollination and pest suppression. Insects are under threat. Worldwide 41 % of insect species are in decline, 33% species threatened with extinction, and a co-occurring insect biomass loss of 2.5% per year. In Germany, insect biomass in natural areas surrounded by agriculture was reduced by 76% in 27 years. Nature inclusive agriculture and agri-environmental schemes aim to mitigate these kinds of effects. Protection measures need success indicators. Insects are excellent for biodiversity assessments, even with small landscape adaptations. Measuring insect biodiversity however is not easy. We aim to use new automated recognition techniques by machine learning with neural networks, to produce algorithms for fast and insightful insect diversity indexes. Biodiversity can be measured by indicative species (groups). We use three groups: 1) Carabid beetles (are top predators); 2) Moths (relation with host plants); 3) Flying insects (multiple functions in ecosystems, e.g. parasitism). The project wants to design user-friendly farmer/citizen science biodiversity measurements with machine learning, and use these in comparative research in 3 real life cases as proof of concept: 1) effects of agriculture on insects in hedgerows, 2) effects of different commercial crop production systems on insects, 3) effects of flower richness in crops and grassland on insects, all measured with natural reference situations
Project aimsNorthSEE aims to achieve greater coherence in Maritime Spatial Planning (processes; MSP) and in Maritime Spatial Plans (outcomes/solutions), capturing synergies and preventing incompatibilities in the North Sea Region (NSR). The project seeks to create better conditions for sustainable development of the area in the fields of shipping, energy and environmental protection. NorthSEE is possible thanks to the financial support from the Interreg North Sea Region programme of the European Union (European Regional Development Fund).Project tasks and resultsTo suggest a multi-level coordination framework capable of supporting ongoing coordination in MSP across the NSR in the long term. To develop an information and planning platform for MSP, enabling planners and stakeholders to share evidence for MSP and test different planning options in the form of scenarios based on real data. The MSP Challenge computer-supported simulation game will became this platform. To increase the capacity of stakeholders in key transnational sectors to actively contribute to MSP To align approaches for taking into account wider environmental issues in MSP To facilitate greater transnational coherence in MSP with respect to offshore energy infrastructure To achieve greater transnational coherence in using MSP to support environmental protection objectives. To facilitate greater transnational coherence in MSP with respect to shipping routes.Our roleThe Academy for Digital Entertainment (ADE) of Breda University of Applied Sciences is a full partner in this project. ADE is responsible for designing and developing the MSP Challenge simulation game concerning the NSR, as well as facilitating its application, all with the aim of developing insights befitting the project aims and thus Maritime Spatial Planning in the North Sea Region (see task 2). We therefore work closely with all NorthSEE partners to define the right requirements and ensure that the simulation game fulfills them. Multiple MSP Challenge sessions are planned to help develop insightful future scenarios and useful planning solutions for the NSR. More information about MSP Challenge is available on NorthSEE (https://northsearegion.eu/northsee) and on its own website (https://www.mspchallenge.info/).
