Thesis (M.S.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2006. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (February 23, 2006) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--York University, 2004. Graduate Programme in Geography. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 182-194). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pNQ99255

<p>Two species of Chrysaora are described from the northern Benguela ecosystem: C. fulgida and C. africana. These species can be diagnosed by a combination of morphological features including lappet and tentacle number, shape of lappets, colouration patterns (alive), shape of the proximal portion of radial septa, gastrovascular pouch shape, point of attachment of gonads and the presence or absence of small raised nematocyst warts on the exumbrellar surface. Objective, quantitative statistical analyses coupled with molecular sequence data support the qualitative morphological dissimilarity observed, as these analyses unambiguously diagnose C. fulgida and C. africana as two distinct species. There is a strong superficial resemblance between the C. fulgida material described here and the preserved specimens of C. hysoscella examined at the Natural History Museum, London. Thorough investigation does however allow the separation of these two species. Morphological features found to be dissimilar were the proximal portion of the manubrium, gastrovascular pouch shape and the presence or absence of sperm sacs. Objective, quantitative statistical analyses support these findings. Nuclear sequence variation suggests considerable divergence between the two species but additional molecular work is needed.</p>

Biological diversity is one out of four dimensions, characterizing the subject of Biology ac-cording to the school curriculum. As a concept, biological diversity had its break through at the UN environmental conference in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, where the convention about bio-logical diversity, named CBD, was signed. According to the convention, almost all the na-tions of the world have engaged themselves to preserve the national diversity of species, in-cluding the diversity of genetics and ecological systems. This thesis focuses the biological diversity from the perspective of school books. The aim is to find out how the biological diversity is presented in biology books for students aged 12-15 years. In 1994, the current Swedish secondary and high school curriculum called LPO-94 was pre-sented. The biology books used in this study were published between 1994 and 2007, all of them exist in many editions and are published by three different publishers. The conclusion of the study is that all the biology books that were examined have reached different levels of the development in the field of biological diversity.

Mixed grasslands in south Canada serve a variety of economic, environmental and ecological purposes. Numerical modeling has become a major method used to identify potential grassland ecosystem responses to environment changes and human activities. In recent years, the focus has been on process models because of their high accuracy and ability to describe the interactions among different environmental components and the ecological processes. At present, two commonly-used process models (CENTURY and BIOME-BGC) have significantly improved our understanding of the possible consequences and responses of terrestrial ecosystems under different environmental conditions. However, problems with these models include only using site-based parameters and adopting different assumptions on interactions between plant, environmental conditions and human activities in simulating such complex phenomenon. In light of this shortfall, the overall objective of this research is to integrate remote sensing products into ecosystem process model in order to simulate productivity for the mixed grassland ecosystem in the landscape level. Data used includes 4-years of field measurements and diverse satellite data (System Pour lObservation de la Terre (SPOT) 4 and 5, Landsat TM and ETM, Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) imagery). <p>Using wavelet analyses, the study first detects that the dominant spatial scale is controlled by topography and thus determines that 20-30 m is the optimum resolution to capture the vegetation spatial variation for the study area. Second, the performance of the RDVI (Renormalized Difference Vegetation Index), ATSAVI (Adjusted Transformed Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index), and MCARI2 (Modified Chlorophyll Absorption Ratio Index 2) are slightly better than the other VIs in the groups of ratio-based, soil-line-related, and chlorophyll-corrected VIs, respectively. By incorporating CAI (Cellulose Absorption Index) as a litter factor in ATSAVI, a new VI is developed (L-ATSAVI) and it improves LAI estimation capability by about 10%. Third, vegetation maps are derived from a SPOT 4 image based on the significant relationship between LAI and ATSAVI to aid spatial modeling. Fourth, object-oriented classifier is determined as the best approach, providing ecosystem models with an accurate land cover map. Fifth, the phenology parameters are identified for the study area using 22-year AVHRR data, providing the input variables for spatial modeling. Finally, the performance of popular ecosystem models in simulating grassland vegetation productivity is evaluated using site-based field data, AVHRR NDVI data, and climate data. A new model frame, which integrates remote sensing data with site-based BIOME-BGC model, is developed for the mixed grassland prairie. The developed remote sensing-based process model is able to simulate ecosystem processes at the landscape level and can simulate productivity distribution with 71% accuracy for 2005.

This thesis contains the results of a biocultural conservation research conducted between 2008 and 2011 in home gardens in Vall Fosca, Catalan Pyrenees, northeastern Spain. Vall Fosca is a valley where traditional agroecosystems still survive, but whose inhabitants are divided in defining the most suitable development model for the region. This dissertation examines the existence of landraces and knowledge associated with them in a rural area in an industrialized country. It shows who preserves landraces and why they do so. It also estimates the association between individual centrality in the network of seed exchange and conservation of landraces and associated knowledge. This thesis also discusses the ecosystem services provided by home gardens, as well as the differences between men and women when assessing these ecosystem services. The results establish the existence of landraces and knowledge associated with them in a rural area in an industrialized country. Specifically, my results show the existence of 39 landraces belonging to 31 species, in home gardens with a variety of 148 different species. Women, people over 65 years of age, experienced gardeners and people who grow the garden with organic techniques conserve more landraces than people without these characteristics. Also people who have a more active role in the seed exchange network and have higher levels of intermediation in the network retain more landraces and traditional knowledge than people who have a more passive role in social networks of seed exchange. Home gardens provide a wide range of services, often not very prominent in the literature on ecosystem services. Among these, cultural services are the most appreciated. In this regard, an interesting contribution of this work is that the most valued home garden ecosystem services differ significantly from the services provided by other farming systems. Another interesting contribution of this work is that women value the ecosystem services more than men. The explanation for this finding is part of the socialization theory that assigns women roles on family care and protection. My analysis provides new data that facilitate the understanding of the relationship between pro-environmental attitudes and gender socialization. This thesis has found that home gardens and landraces are symbols of cultural identity in the valley and that both permanent residents and visitors consider that home gardens are key elements in the landscape of the valley and should be preserved as part of biocultural heritage. In addition, the ecosystem services provided by the home gardens, particularly the cultural services, can help develop relations between people, relations that might contribute to strengthening cultural identity and to create bonds of respect with the environment. The results of this thesis can contribute to make biocultural diversity visible in the valley and generate endogenous rural development models based on the sustainable exploitation of ecosystem services generated by traditional agroecosystems. Key words: ecosystem services; landraces; rural development; socialization theory; Spain; traditional ecological knowledge. / La presente tesis recoge una investigación en conservación biocultural realizada entre el 2008 y el 2011 en los huertos domésticos de la Vall Fosca en el Pirineo catalán, nordeste de España. La Vall Fosca es un valle en el que aún perviven agroecosistemas tradicionales, pero que se encuentra dividido a la hora de definir el modelo de desarrollo más deseable. Esta tesis analiza la existencia de cultivos de manejo local y el conocimiento asociado a ellos en un área rural de un país industrializado; muestra quién y por qué se conservan los cultivos de manejo local; y estima la asociación entre la centralidad individual en la red de intercambio de semillas y la conservación de los cultivos de manejo local y su conocimiento asociado. En esta tesis también se analizan los servicios ambientales proporcionados por los huertos domésticos, así como las diferencias entre hombres y mujeres en el momento de valorar estos servicios ambientales. Los resultados del análisis establecen la existencia de cultivos de manejo local y el conocimiento asociado a ellos en un área rural de un país industrializado. Específicamente mis resultados muestran la existencia de 39 cultivos de manejo local correspondientes a 31 especies, en huertos con una diversidad de 148 especies diferentes. Las mujeres, las personas de más de 65 años de edad, los hortelanos con experiencia, y la gente que cultiva el huerto con técnicas orgánicas mantienen más cultivos de manejo local que las personas sin estas características. Asimismo las personas que tienen un papel más activo en las redes de intercambio de semillas y que tienen mayores niveles de intermediación en la red, también conservan más cultivos de manejo local y tienen mayor conocimiento tradicional que las personas que tienen un papel más pasivo en las redes sociales. Los huertos domésticos proporcionan un amplio abanico de servicios, a menudo poco destacados en la literatura. Entre estos, los servicios culturales son los más apreciados. Un aporte interesante en este sentido es que los servicios de los huertos domésticos más valorados difieren significativamente de los servicios proporcionados por otros sistemas agrícolas. Otro aporte interesante de este trabajo es que las mujeres valoran los servicios ambientales más que los hombres. La explicación a este hallazgo se enmarca en la teoría de la socialización, que asigna a las mujeres papeles de cuidado y protección. Este análisis aporta nuevos datos que facilitan el entendimiento de la relación entre actitudes pro-ambientales y la socialización de género. En esta tesis se ha podido comprobar que los huertos y los cultivos de manejo local son símbolos de identidad cultural en el valle y que tanto los habitantes permanentes como los visitantes consideran que los huertos son elementos clave en el paisaje del valle y que se deberían preservar como parte de su patrimonio biocultural. Además, los servicios ambientales proporcionados por los huertos, en particular los culturales, pueden ayudar a tejer relaciones entre las personas que contribuyan a fortalecer la identidad cultural y a crear lazos de respeto con su medio ambiente. Los resultados de esta tesis pueden contribuir a visibilizar la diversidad biocultural del valle y generar modelos endógenos de desarrollo rural basados en la explotación sostenible de los servicios ambientales generados por los agroecosistemas tradicionales. Palabras clave: conocimiento ecológico tradicional; cultivos de manejo local; desarrollo rural; España; servicios ambientales; teoría de la socialización; variedades locales. / Aquesta tesi recull una investigació en conservació biocultural realitzada entre el 2008 i el 2011 en els horts domèstics de la Vall Fosca al Pirineu català, nord-est d'Espanya. La Vall Fosca és una vall en la qual encara perviuen agroecosistemes tradicionals, però que es troba dividida a l'hora de definir el model de desenvolupament més desitjable. Aquesta tesi analitza l'existència de cultius de gestió local i el coneixement associat a ells en una àrea rural d'un país industrialitzat; mostra qui i per què es conserven els cultius de gestió local, i estima l'associació entre la centralitat individual a la xarxa d’ intercanvi de llavors i la conservació dels cultius de gestió local i el seu coneixement associat. En aquesta tesi també s'analitzen els serveis ambientals proporcionats pels horts domèstics, així com les diferències entre homes i dones en el moment de valorar aquests serveis ambientals. Els resultats de l'anàlisi estableixen l'existència de cultius de gestió local i el coneixement associat a ells en una àrea rural d'un país industrialitzat. Específicament els meus resultats mostren l'existència de 39 cultius de gestió local corresponents a 31 espècies, en horts amb una diversitat de 148 espècies diferents. Les dones, les persones de més de 65 anys d'edat, els hortolans amb experiència, i la gent que conrea l'hort amb tècniques orgàniques mantenen més cultius de gestió local que les persones sense aquestes característiques. Així mateix les persones que tenen un paper més actiu en les xarxes d'intercanvi de llavors i que tenen majors nivells d'intermediació a la xarxa, també conserven més cultius de gestió local i tenen major coneixement tradicional que les persones que tenen un paper més passiu en les xarxes socials. Els horts domèstics proporcionen un ampli ventall de serveis, sovint poc destacats en la literatura. Entre aquests, els serveis culturals són els més apreciats. Una aportació interessant en aquest sentit és que els serveis dels horts domèstics més valorats difereixen significativament dels serveis proporcionats per altres sistemes agrícoles. Un altre aportació interessant d'aquest treball és que les dones valoren els serveis ambientals més que els homes. L'explicació a aquesta troballa s'emmarca en la teoria de la socialització, que assigna a les dones papers de cura i protecció. Aquesta anàlisi aporta noves dades que faciliten l'enteniment de la relació entre actituds pro-ambientals i la socialització de gènere. En aquesta tesi s'ha pogut comprovar que els horts i els conreus de gestió local són símbols d'identitat cultural a la vall i que tant els habitants permanents com els visitants consideren que els horts són elements clau en el paisatge de la vall i que s'haurien preservar com a part del seu patrimoni biocultural. A més, els serveis ambientals proporcionats pels horts, en particular els culturals, poden ajudar a teixir relacions entre les persones que contribueixin a enfortir la identitat cultural i a crear llaços de respecte amb el seu medi ambient. Els resultats d'aquesta tesi poden contribuir a visibilitzar la diversitat biocultural de la vall i generar models endògens de desenvolupament rural basats en l'explotació sostenible dels serveis ambientals generats pels agroecosistemes tradicionals. Paraules clau: coneixement ecològic tradicional; cultius de gestió local, desenvolupament rural, Espanya, serveis ambientals, teoria de la socialització; varietats locals.

Ecosystem metabolism is an important indicator of aquatic ecosystem function. This thesis concerns ecosystem metabolism as recorded by daily variation in dissolved oxygen (DO) and δ18O-DO in an impacted temperate river network, the Grand River, Ontario, Canada, and specifically addresses the effects of stream size and human disturbance including agriculture, deforestation, and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). A suite of 14 sites in the Grand River network was selected with stream sizes varying from 2nd to 7th order. A transient model of river ecosystem oxygen metabolism, ROM-TM, was developed in order to calculate river ecosystem metabolic rates and reaeration rates from field observation of changes in DO and δ18O-DO. ROM-TM is an inverse modeling approach programmed using MATLAB. Key parameters describing the main metabolic processes, gas exchange, and isotopic fractionation, such as maximum photosynthetic rate (Pm), photosynthetic efficiency (a), respiration rate at 20℃ (R20), gas exchange coefficient (k), respiration isotopic fractionation factor (aR), and photorespiration coefficient (βR), can be obtained by matching of model predictions with field data. Besides being capable of teasing apart metabolic processes and gas exchange to provide daily average estimates of metabolic parameters at the ecosystem level, ROM-TM can be used to address issues related to light including light saturation phenomena at the ecosystem level, the effect of cloud cover on metabolic balance and photorespiration. Primary production responses to light along a longitudinal gradient in the Grand River network were described by means of P-I curves. Both light-limited and light-saturated conditions were observed. Production parameters Pm and Ik in the Grand River network exhibited an increase with stream order, while a was independent of stream size. However, a did vary among and within sites. Higher light availability in small and middle-sized streams without riparian trees was associated with high Pm, Ik and Ec, but low a. Ecosystem-level Pm in both small periphyton-dominated streams and large macrophyte-dominated rivers in the Grand River basin were generally less than community-level Pm values from the literature. However, two Grand River sites had comparable Pm to literature-derived Pm due to the prolific growth of macrophytes supported by high nutrient effluents from upstream WWTPs. Ecosystem-level a in my study streams were also less than those at the community level, indicating there was a declining trend of this parameter with scale, from individual, community to ecosystem. Derived parameters (e.g., Ik, Ec, and saturation point) increased from the individual level to the community level, and then to the ecosystem level. From May to early October, metabolic rates in the Grand River network (gross primary production, GPP = 0.4 to 20 and ecosystem respiration, ER = 2 to 33 g O2 m-2 day-1) were within the broad range of metabolic rates occurring in the temperate region, regardless of stream size. The Grand River network is a net heterotrophic system. The total GPP and ER for whole basin was 3.3e+08 and 4.2e+08 g O2 day-1, respectively. Reach geomorphology controls the spatial patterns of stream metabolism in the Grand River network, although the spatial patterns may be modified by effects of human disturbance on riparian vegetation, nutrients and other factors. Stream order and channel width, as measures of stream size, are good predictors of metabolic rates and ratios of GPP: ER from small streams to the central Grand River. Ecosystem metabolic rates and ratios generally increase with stream size, but with site-specific variation. The Grand River network is experiencing effects of human disturbance, mostly downstream of the urban areas and least in small streams with remaining riparian forest. The small and middle-sized streams (2nd to 4th order) without riparian trees in agriculture regions in the Grand River basin did not exhibit significantly different GPP and ER than their counterparts with riparian trees. The stimulative effect of increased light availability due to open canopy on GPP in non-shaded streams may be offset by shading from stream banks and riparian grasses, and unstable sediments resulting from agricultural activities. Large river sites impacted by WWTPs had significantly increased metabolic rates, both GPP and ER, compared to two upstream sites impacted by agriculture only. This result suggests that urban areas cause impacts on the Grand River that are superimposed on the impacts of agriculture. Three aspects of metabolism of the Grand River differ from the general pattern for the temperate regions: (1) a increase trend of GPP: ER ratios with stream size from 2nd to 7th order; (2) overall, human activities in the Grand River watershed have stronger positive effects on the GPP than on the ER; (3) the middle-sized to large river sites (5th-7th order) had greater influence than small to middle-sized streams (2nd-5th order) in the Grand River on overall GPP and ER. The general trend of GPP: ER ratio in tropical, subtropical, temperate, and global data approximately conforms to the predictions of the River Continuum Concept (RCC). However, the maximum ratio of GPP: ER in mid-reaches of river networks is not usually >1 as proposed in the RCC. There is a latitude and stream size shift phenomenon regarding where the peak ratio of GPP: ER occurs in each climate zone. The maximum GPP: ER ratio is higher at higher latitudes and occurs at higher order streams. The study of stream ecosystem metabolism can benefit from the addition of the second oxygen budget, δ18O-DO, in four ways: (1) it is better to use both DO and δ18O-DO budgets, rather than DO only, in sampling protocols with low temporal frequency but high spatial frequency; (2) the δ18O-DO time series data can provide relatively independent constraints on parameter estimation; (3) the addition of δ18O-DO in using two oxygen budgets to quantify metabolic rates provides a way, the cross-plot of δ18O-DO against fraction of DO saturation, to indicate trophic status of an aquatic ecosystem; and (4) the addition of δ18O-DO can provide an estimate of aR at the ecosystem level that can be used to understand factors affecting respiration.

Mixed grasslands in south Canada serve a variety of economic, environmental and ecological purposes. Numerical modeling has become a major method used to identify potential grassland ecosystem responses to environment changes and human activities. In recent years, the focus has been on process models because of their high accuracy and ability to describe the interactions among different environmental components and the ecological processes. At present, two commonly-used process models (CENTURY and BIOME-BGC) have significantly improved our understanding of the possible consequences and responses of terrestrial ecosystems under different environmental conditions. However, problems with these models include only using site-based parameters and adopting different assumptions on interactions between plant, environmental conditions and human activities in simulating such complex phenomenon. In light of this shortfall, the overall objective of this research is to integrate remote sensing products into ecosystem process model in order to simulate productivity for the mixed grassland ecosystem in the landscape level. Data used includes 4-years of field measurements and diverse satellite data (System Pour lObservation de la Terre (SPOT) 4 and 5, Landsat TM and ETM, Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) imagery). <p>Using wavelet analyses, the study first detects that the dominant spatial scale is controlled by topography and thus determines that 20-30 m is the optimum resolution to capture the vegetation spatial variation for the study area. Second, the performance of the RDVI (Renormalized Difference Vegetation Index), ATSAVI (Adjusted Transformed Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index), and MCARI2 (Modified Chlorophyll Absorption Ratio Index 2) are slightly better than the other VIs in the groups of ratio-based, soil-line-related, and chlorophyll-corrected VIs, respectively. By incorporating CAI (Cellulose Absorption Index) as a litter factor in ATSAVI, a new VI is developed (L-ATSAVI) and it improves LAI estimation capability by about 10%. Third, vegetation maps are derived from a SPOT 4 image based on the significant relationship between LAI and ATSAVI to aid spatial modeling. Fourth, object-oriented classifier is determined as the best approach, providing ecosystem models with an accurate land cover map. Fifth, the phenology parameters are identified for the study area using 22-year AVHRR data, providing the input variables for spatial modeling. Finally, the performance of popular ecosystem models in simulating grassland vegetation productivity is evaluated using site-based field data, AVHRR NDVI data, and climate data. A new model frame, which integrates remote sensing data with site-based BIOME-BGC model, is developed for the mixed grassland prairie. The developed remote sensing-based process model is able to simulate ecosystem processes at the landscape level and can simulate productivity distribution with 71% accuracy for 2005.

Both developing and developed countries have witnessed the very heart position of small business in the contribution of economic growth and job creation. Nevertheless, the appetite for funds of new enterprises is still not satisfied nowadays, which limits the further blossom of entrepreneurship. Concerning about this problem, our research tries to investigate and describe financing sources of companies in seed/early stage and understand the implications of entrepreneurial leadership in the process of fundraising. Besides, this study involves three business ecosystems: America, France and China in the international context.Following the grounded theory as the researching path, this thesis is considered as a combination of realistic research about financing sources and interpretative research about entrepreneurial leadership. The study is based upon secondary data, which are widely gathered from USA, France and China. In order to achieve in-depth perspectives, empirical explorations are conducted mainly through example studies and face-to-face dialogues with experts including an entrepreneur, a consultant in relation with investors, a bank manager and a project manager.A comprehensive understanding is realized as a result of this research:• American business ecosystem proves its leading position in fundraising support for bootstrap-step companies. As to French ecosystem, it is evolving and represents various particularities regarding regulations, structural mentalities and policies. The Chinese one is fairly different due to the affection of the Communism regime but also the particularly important role of network in doing business.• Entrepreneurial leadership is helpful in fundraising process. And enactment of leadership is quite different due to diverse culture and financing sources. Through the thesis, we interpret how entrepreneurial leadership could be helpful for fundraising in each business ecosystem.• Beyond academic sphere, this research reveals significant benefits and potentials for bridging fund flow among three business ecosystems. It shows a big entrepreneurial opportunity for people who have knowledge and network to break cultural boundaries and construct this “bridge”.In no wise this study aims at explaining or prescribing. By studying each ecosystem for entrepreneurial leaders, we hope to establish an understanding of this topic that could be further examined.

Firms operate in an increasingly complex, unpredictable and fast-moving environment. Understand the business ecosystem in which an innovative company operates is a major leadership stake. Indeed, know how the various possibilities to interact with the actors present in the business ecosystem of an organization are part of the leadership role. In order to survive facing competitive organizations, and to get a sustainable competitive advantage, an innovative organization must be able to combine with various partners on its business ecosystem in order to share knowledge and competencies, and therefor implement open innovation processes may be a key success factor that should not be sidelined. To do so, an oganization must understand innovation to adopt open innovation processes, must also take into account various elements of its business ecosystem to settle competitive dynamics with stakeholders and be able to interact with these different actors, and to finish an innovative organization must be able to set open innovation processes to find a key success factor and perform a sustainable competetive advanage.