The purpose of this research was to investigate how sustainable agriculture is being conceptualized and implemented in Saskatchewan. Zero tillage, organic farming, and the discourses surrounding them were examined as theoretical and practical responses to sustainable agriculture. Characteristics of 33 organic and 33 zero tillage farming systems located throughout the soil climatic zones of southern Saskatchewan were compared, as well as farmers' perceptions of sustainable agriculture and factors influencing their management decisions. The analysis was extended beyond the local level by examining the links between major socio-political forces shaping agriculture and farmers' perceptions and choices. Central to this analysis is an examination of the role of informal and formal knowledge systems in the development of sustainable agriculture, and how relations of power affect the knowledge that is being produced and ultimately the direction of change in agriculture. Interdisciplinary and exploratory approaches were used to identify and examine a range of emergent issues. The data gathered was analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. This study revealed commonalities between zero tillage and organic farmers' basic views on sustainable agriculture, and important differences in the ways these two groups of farmers translated these ideas into practice. Most farmers defined sustainability at the farm-level, focusing on land stewardship and the preservation of the family farm. Farmers adopted zero tillage because of specific environmental, economic and labour advantages, whereas organic farming was adopted for a combination of environmental, health, economic, philosophical/spiritual and labour factors. In general, zero tillage and organic farming systems differed in size, in production and management operations, in land tenure, and in the use of purchased inputs and labour. Zero tillage farms tended to be large, capital-intensive, specialized cropping operations, with a significant proportion of rented land and non-family hired labour. Organic farms were moderate-sized, diversified crop and livestock operations that substituted biological and cultural practices for purchased (agrochemical) inputs, had a high degree of ownership, and relied more upon labour exchange. These characteristics create distinct environmental, economic and social advantages and disadvantages. Zero tillage, compatible with the dominant agricultural paradigm and the industrial model, continues to be promoted by agricultural institutions and agribusiness as the best solution to farm-level sustainability. Interest in organic agriculture and the alternative agricultural paradigm is increasing, however, due to the current crisis in the farm economy and changes in consumers' perceptions and choices.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a two-stage disease, acquisition of infection and progression to disease. A complex interaction exists between the individual and their environment that determines who acquires infection and who progresses to disease. According to TB literature, 10% of individuals with infection will develop TB disease (1;2). Tuberculosis has been described a disease of poverty, but other factors may be important. The contribution of both individual measures, such as ethnic origin, gender and age and area-level measures, or socio-economic factors, to this two-stage process is not well understood. Understanding tuberculosis epidemiology and identifying those at risk for developing TB is important for effectively controlling the disease. The objective of this study was to determine the individual (age, gender, ethnic origin, geographic location) and area-level measures (income, home ownership, housing density, education, and employment) that contribute to the progression from tuberculosis infection to disease. Data from all Canadian-born Caucasians, Status Indians, and non-Status Indians and Metis, with an initial positive tuberculin skin test (TST) documented in the Saskatchewan TB Control database from January 1, 1986 to January 31, 2002 was analyzed. Exclusion criteria included any previous BCG vaccination, treatment for latent TB infection, or missing data. Individual data was obtained from the TB Control database. Area-level measures were obtained by matching individual postal codes with Canada census data to obtain information from enumeration areas. Outcome was time to TB disease at > 1 month following a documented positive tuberculin skin test. Analysis was completed using Cox regression proportional hazards model. 7588 individuals with a positive tuberculin skin test were included in the study and of these 338 (4.5%) developed TB disease. Thirty-four out of 4140 (0.8%) of Caucasians, 183 out of 2649 (6.9%) of Status Indians and 121 out of 799 (15.1%) non-Status Indians and Metis developed TB. The rate of progression to TB was 5.6/1000 person years for the entire study population. The incidence for Caucasians was 0.9/1000 person years, 7.7/1000 person years for Status Indians and 16.0/1000 person years for non-Status Indians and Metis. In the Cox regression model, including individual and area-level measures, the risk factors association with the progression to TB was age and ethnic origin (< 19 years of age HR 3.7, 95% CI 2.8 - 4.8 compared to > 19 years and ethnic origin HR 5.1, 95% CI 3.0 - 8.6 for Status Indians and HR 7.4, 95% CI 4.1-13.3 for non-Status Indians and Metis both compared to Caucasians). No socio-economic factor was consistently associated with progression to disease. We have found that age and ethnic origin are associated with an increased risk of TB infection progressing to disease. The differences in TB rates between Saskatchewan Caucasians and Status Indians, non-Status Indians and Metis can be explained by Grigg's natural history curve of TB epidemiology within a population (3). The Aboriginal population of Saskatchewan is much earlier in its epidemic resulting in higher disease rates compared to the Caucasian population. Identifying those at risk of developing TB and understanding the determinants of TB epidemiology are important for establishing successful TB control programs.

This dissertation asks how the communication dimensions of technological literacy are understood in three informal education programs in Texas that aim to bridge the digital divide for female and low-income minority youth. Technological literacy is a prerequisite for economic, political, and cultural equality, yet different rationales for technological literacy highlight the economic, democratic, and social benefits for marginalized youth. Economically, technological literacy prepares youth to enter the workforce and positions the U.S. as competitive in the global market. Democratically, technological literacy allows citizens to participate in political discussions. Socially, technological literacy helps citizens make decisions in their everyday lives. Drawing from developmental democratic theory, I argue for an expanded definition of technological literacy that highlights the importance of communication and cultural production to democratic societies. Developmental democratic theory stresses the importance of individual development, including self-expression and creativity, to fostering democracy. I argue for an analysis of the digital divide that looks at capabilities, or the freedoms individuals have to pursue their own desires. These capabilities include self-representation, accessing information that is relevant to one’s life, learning to communicate about technology, and the freedom to achieve what one values. My research questions are grounded not only in the processes through which youth engage in technological learning through their participation in these informal educational programs, but also how the programs’ missions and activities envision technological literacy. Thus, I ask how is technological literacy conceptualized in three informal education programs? How is technological literacy implemented in program activities? How do youth themselves respond to technology and technological learning? I investigate these research questions through participant-observation, interviews, self-administered questionnaires, and analysis of program documents and students’ projects. I analyze these research questions in light of the economic, political, and social rationales for technological literacy. / text

One of the key complications in connecting citizens to the Internet is "remoteness," or distance from a community to the nearest metropolis. Rural areas often have higher communication and transportation costs, and have difficulty attracting investment and services in areas with insufficient telecommunication infrastructure. The communication perspective distinguishes communication from information transport, and asserts communication as the principal function of both technology and policy. The study utilizes a political economy approach to examine the interaction of specific Internet technologies, Universal Service and Texas Expanded Local Calling (ELC) policies, and commercial investment patterns with Internet access in rural Texas. A statistical analysis of 208 rural telephone exchanges was conducted to determine the relationship between Internet access, demographic characteristics and the presence of ELC policy. A concentrated case study of seven rural Texas counties, including interviews with Internet Service Providers, determined the quality and bandwidth of rural connections and the viability of state policy in addressing access issues for remote citizens. Remote communities were far less likely to have Internet access. However, those communities with ELC were much more likely to be connected than their counterparts. ELC policy favors those communities closer to metropolitan areas and served by major telephone carriers. The specific rules of ELC policy eliminate the neediest communities from regulatory relief. Rural citizens also are more likely to have Internet access in areas served by major carriers, with relatively low Hispanic populations and relatively high incomes. There are fewer ISPs in remote regions and those few are rarely prosperous. Bandwidth is generally lower, prices can be higher, and fewer services are offered. This study indicates the importance of the "last mile" of telecommunications infrastructure in connecting citizens to the Internet and highlights the need to examine a complex array of factors that condition the discursive and expressive potential of citizens in our communication age. / text

In the paper we examine the childbearing trends in Iceland during 1982-2013 by analyzing theprogression to parities one, two and three, as well as changes in the birth spacing patterns over theperiod. Emphasis are placed on the years after the turn of the century. In the first decade of the 21stcentury two potentially influential events took place in Iceland in relation to subsequent fertilityoutcomes; a reform was made to the parental leave scheme between 2001 and 2003 and a deepeconomic crisis came ashore in late 2008. Special attention is given to the trends following thesetwo critical junctures. As well as looking at the parity progressions over time we also investigate theevidence of sex preferences for children among Icelandic parents. In three of the other four Nordiccountries a preference for daughters has been found. As Iceland shares the same egalitarianemphasis within a universal welfare regime it is interesting to investigate if the same applies toIceland. Individual longitudinal register data are used in the calculations; the dataset consists of thetotal female population born in Iceland between 1941 and 1997. The data are of high quality and arestored and processed at Statistics Iceland. The findings are presented in the form of relative risksand are derived from piecewise constant exponential models. In terms of findings, the first birthtrends are characterized by postponement of motherhood at the younger ages and trends ofrecuperation at the older ages. The second and third birth rates indicate that the reform in theparental leave had positive influence on continued childbearing but the elevation in the rates mayalso be associated with the upswing in the business cycle at the same time. The second and thirdbirth rates did not fall at the onset of the economic crisis but three years into the recession. Finally,estimations indicate that Icelandic parents have a preference for having daughters.

Title: Investigations on the real estate market, what are the main factors influencing the performance of the French Real Estate Investments Trusts? Problem: In 2003, the French government implemented a new tax-exempt structure in the real estate market. Like REITs in the United States, SIICs are listed French companies that aim to improve the performance of real estate stocks on Paris Stock Exchange. The problem consists of determining the performance of the SIICs’ portfolio, identifying the major influences of economic factors and capturing financial behaviour in asset portfolio management. Purpose: Recently, the subprime crisis has largely brought out uncertainty of financial actors in the real estate sector. In this context, we try to apprehend the performance of these specific SIICs investment vehicles related to financial, economic and managerial influences, by quantifying their stock performance in a five-year time frame. Methodology: A deductive approach guides our thesis to emphasize our research question. Our business strategy entails positivism and objectivism considerations and relies on a case analysis research design using the multifactor model. Besides, the data collection process is following a quantitative approach of twenty chosen French SIICs between 2003 and 2007. Result / Conclusion: Even if the multifactor model used by the authors may be viewed as unspecified, useful results can still be extracted and analysed. The hotel &amp; LDG sector slightly performs better than others depending on the strategy of investment and the state of economy. Long-term interest rate acts as the principal explanatory factor. Investors do not necessarily respond in favour of the general market confidence indicator.

The dissertation deals with the problems related to the tools of simulation of economical factors of the enterprises. The main goals of the dissertation is to analyze the main economic factors of enterprise activity, to create the educational model of economic processes, to prepare the software for distance, group and individual leaning, and evaluate possibilities to use it in learning and teaching. The several tasks were formulated for this work: to analyze the methods of modeling of economic processes, game-based educational tools and their components, factors of economic processes as well as possibilities of formal description of means; to design imitational model of business processes and to create an universal and dynamic business game according to it; to propose a method allowing to create an educational environment of simulation of business processes; to integrate business game “Kietas riešutas” (“Hard nut”) into formal and informal studies, to suggest additional components for traditional and distance learning, to evaluate applicability in educational process. Dissertation consists of introduction, four chapters and conclusions. Introduction discusses the importance of the problem, formulates goal and tasks of the work, describes scientific novelty of the work, and presents publications of the author as well as structure of the dissertation. The first chapter provides the literature review. It discusses informational technological platform of business games, compared... [to full text] / Disertacijoje nagrinėjamos mokymo procese naudojamos įmonių ekonominių veiksnių imitacinio modeliavimo priemonės. Pagrindinis disertacijos tikslas – išanalizavus verslo įmonių veiklos pagrindinius ekonominius veiksnius, sukurti edukacinį ekonominių procesų modelį, parengti nuotolinio, grupinio ir individualaus mokymo programinę įrangą ir įvertinti jos taikymo mokymui ir mokymuisi galimybes. Darbe sprendžiami keli uždaviniai: palyginti ekonominių procesų modeliavimo metodus, žaidybines mokymo priemones ir jų kompiuterinių informacinių platformų komponentus; išanalizuoti ekonominių procesų veiksnius ir formalaus aprašymo priemonių galimybes, suprojektuoti verslo procesų imitacinį modelį ir pagal jį sukurti kompiuterinį verslo žaidimą, pasižymintį universaliomis ir dinamiškomis savybėmis; pasiūlyti metodą, leidžiantį sukurti verslo procesų imitavimo mokomąją aplinką; integruoti sukurtąjį kompiuterinį verslo žaidimą („Kietas riešutas“) į formalių ir neformalių studijų mokomuosius modulius, pateikti papildomų integracinių komponentų sąveikos mechanizmus, siekiant juos įgyvendinti tradiciniu ir nuotoliniu būdais, taip pat įvertinti žaidimo priimtinumą studijų procese. Disertaciją sudaro įvadas, keturi skyriai ir paskutinis – rezultatų apibendrinimas. Įvade nagrinėjamas problemos aktualumas, formuluojamas darbo tikslas bei uždaviniai, apra��omas mokslinis darbo naujumas, pristatomi autorės pranešimai ir publikacijos, disertacijos struktūra. Pirmasis skyrius skirtas literatūros... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Prekyba žmonėmis – tai reali grėsmė bet kokio amžiaus, socialinio statuso ar lyties žmogui. Remiantis JAV valstybės departamento Prekybos žmonėmis pranešimu (2006), kiekvienais metais yra parduodama apie 600 000 – 800 000 vyrų, moterų ir vaikų kertant tarptautines sienas. / At the moment trafficking in women is considered to be one of the basic sources of revenue of the criminal word. According to different sources from 800.000 up to 4 million persons, mainly women and children, are trafficked abroad for sexual exploitation every year word-wide. The profit of this criminal business is calculated in billions of US dollars.

<p>Contraception is said to be one of the vital determinants of fertility (Bongaarts, 1978). African nations, especially those in sub-Saharan Africa have a history of high fertility levels and low contraceptive use. However, contraceptive methods have been used one way or another throughout human history, although, due to improvements, these methods have evolved over the years. In Namibia, there tend to be a huge gap between women&rsquo / s knowledge of methods of contraception and usage thereof. For instance as per NDHS survey of 2000, 97 percent of married women knew of a contraceptive method, while 38 percent utilised them. This study aims at investigating knowledge and usage of contraceptives among women in union of reproductive age in an independent Namibia, 10 years after independence between 1992 and 2000. Socio-economic and demographic factors affecting contraceptive usage are examined in this study to determine their significance.</p>

The thesis documents the changes in Italian public opinion towards the Euro. Its aim is to assess the relevance of economic factors for the decline in Italian support for the common currency. The thesis begins by assessing the extent to which support for the Euro has declined in Italy. While there has been popular, media and political comment on this issue, the thesis investigates the changes in attitude through the use of survey material and concludes that there is compelling evidence that public support for the Euro has declined in Italy. The thesis adopts a utilitarian/rational choice approach in order to investigate the reasoning behind the Italian public's developing relationship with the single currency from 1998 to the present. Its central question is: How have economic factors impacted on the Italian public's support for the Euro? The analysis focuses on Italians' perceptions - not their actual knowledge - of national and individual level economic changes brought about by the single currency. The thesis investigates how such perceptions have impacted Italian popular support for the Euro over the period 1998-2007. The method employed in this thesis is primarily based around analysing quantitative data gathered from Standard and Flash Eurobarometers. Other sources considered are academic literature and newspaper articles. The analysis clearly suggests that Italians' optimism towards their national and personal economic situations have all decreased since the Euro was introduced, concurrently with their diminishing support for the Euro. This work suggests that the main reason for decreased support lies in Italian perceptions that the Euro has contributed to worsening economic situations at both the national and individual levels. In particular, Italians believe the Euro has spurred inflation and diminished their purchasing power, and accuse it of failing to promote economic growth and jobs. However, Eurobarometer data combined with newspaper articles indicate that it is the perceived economic consequences at the individual level - loss of purchasing power due to Euro-related price increases, and pessimism towards their household financial situation - that more strongly determine Italians' decreasing support for the Euro.