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Article
Publication date: 5 May 2015

Li Jiang, Karen C. Seto and Junfei Bai

The impact of dietary changes associated with urbanization is likely to increase the demand for land for food production. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of…

1275

Abstract

Purpose

The impact of dietary changes associated with urbanization is likely to increase the demand for land for food production. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of urban economic development on changes in food demand and associated land requirements for food production.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on economic estimates from the Almost Ideal Demand System, feed conversion ratios, and crop yields, the authors forecast and compare future dietary patterns and land requirements for two types of urban diets in China.

Findings

The results show that the expenditure elasticities of oil and fat, meat, eggs, aquatic products, dairy, and liquor for the diet of capital cities are greater than those for the diet of small- and medium-sized cities. The authors forecast that capital city residents will experience a more rapid rate of increase in per capita demand of meat, eggs, and aquatic products, which will lead to much higher per capita land requirements. Projections indicate that total per capita land demand for food production in capital cities will increase by 9.3 percent, from 1,402 to 1,533 m2 between 2010 and 2030, while total per capita land demand in small- and medium-sized cities will increase only by 5.3 percent, from 1,192 to 1,255 m2.

Originality/value

The results imply that urban economic development can significantly affect the final outcomes of land requirements for food production. Urban economic development is expected to accelerate the rate of change toward an affluent diet, which can lead to much higher future land requirements.

Details

China Agricultural Economic Review, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-137X

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Architects, Sustainability and the Climate Emergency
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80382-292-1

Article
Publication date: 12 July 2023

Karen Humphries, Caroline Clarke, Kate Willoughby and Jake Smithson

The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of the experience of secure care from the patients’ perspective.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of the experience of secure care from the patients’ perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic review of qualitative literature was conducted. The data was sourced from the electronic databases: PsychINFO, CINAHL, Medline and the Web of Science Core Collection using pre-defined search terms. A total of 17 studies, conducted in various countries worldwide and covering high, medium and low secure inpatient settings, were included for review. The analysis involved integrating findings from across the literature and was guided by thematic synthesis.

Findings

A total of eight themes were generated from the data, three of which provided an understanding of the experience of forensic secure care, and the remaining five themes provided an understanding of the factors which may influence the experience of secure care.

Practical implications

Developing understanding of patient experience can lead to service improvements, potentially impacting patients’ motivation and engagement and thus reducing admission times, potential recalls and recidivism.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic review to date to exclusively explore the broad topic of the patient experience of secure mental health care.

Details

The Journal of Forensic Practice, vol. 25 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-8794

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 September 2017

Carlos Ferreira

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the processes involved in the creation and eventual demise of a market for biodiversity offsets in the UK. The reasons for the failure of…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the processes involved in the creation and eventual demise of a market for biodiversity offsets in the UK. The reasons for the failure of this market to take hold as a governance mechanism are considered, and its subsequent effects examined.

Design/methodology/approach

The research examines a single case study of the creation of a pilot market for biodiversity offsets in the UK. Data include policy and industry papers, complemented with interviews with biodiversity offset practitioners, regulators and non-government organisations.

Findings

The case study demonstrates that a market for biodiversity offsets was piloted with the intent to contribute to the reform of the UK planning regime. However, disagreements about this political project, uncertainties in the knowledge base, and continued entanglements with existing biodiversity meant it was impossible to stabilise the assemblages necessary to support the market, leading to its eventual demise. However, the principles and devices of offsetting have proved more resilient, and have started to combine with the existing arrangements for the governance of nature.

Practical implications

The paper presents a situation where a political project to reform governance arrangements through the creation of a market was not successful, making it of interest to researchers and policymakers alike.

Originality/value

While biodiversity offsetting has been widely discussed from scientific, legal and political perspectives, this paper addresses it as a market, explicitly designed to become a part of a governance regime. It also advances the understanding of the mechanisms by which similar processes of marketisation can fail, and suggests avenues for future research in those contexts.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 30 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 December 2017

Karen Ainsworth and Cliff Richardson

The purpose of this paper is to explore multidisciplinary attitudes and environmental factors affecting dementia care in the Cardiac Catheter Laboratory (CCL).

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore multidisciplinary attitudes and environmental factors affecting dementia care in the Cardiac Catheter Laboratory (CCL).

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaires (n=87) were distributed in a hospital CCL in the North of England. The authors utilised the Dementia Attitudes Scale which incorporates two subscales: Social Comfort and Dementia Knowledge. In addition, a newly devised questionnaire asking about perceptions of how the CCL environment affected care of patients with dementia was added.

Findings

The response rate was 71 per cent (n=62). Years’ experience in the CCL was associated with lower Social Comfort scores (p=0.026). Dementia training was associated with higher mean Dementia Attitudes Scale and Social Comfort scores (p=0.021, p=0.007). Participants who had undertaken “Professional studies” had higher Dementia Attitudes Scale and Dementia Knowledge mean scores (p=0.038, p=0.046) but “On-the-job” training was perceived as most beneficial (32 per cent, n=20). Unit co-ordinators and nurses felt the CCL was an unfavourable environment for patients with dementia. Care was perceived to be impaired by environmental functionality, equipment and the presence of ionising radiation.

Research limitations/implications

The small sample limits generalisability. Although the Dementia Attitudes Scale is a validated questionnaire it has not been widely used so reliability of these results is unclear.

Practical implications

Caring for patients with dementia has unique challenges especially in areas like the CCL. These results suggest that practical experience and training can affect the perception of staff to patients with dementia hence there may be a need to assess what would be the most appropriate training to give health professionals in the future.

Originality/value

The authors believe this to be the first multi-professional research study into care of patients with dementia in a specialised acute unit. This was the most diverse sample known to have attitudes to dementia measured quantitatively in an acute hospital department and the results need to be replicated before practice should be changed.

Details

Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, vol. 18 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-7794

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 October 2018

Karen Morris and Kath Ward

Facilitation of genuine occupational engagement rather than a more superficial level of participation that has minimal therapeutic benefit is a challenge within secure mental…

Abstract

Purpose

Facilitation of genuine occupational engagement rather than a more superficial level of participation that has minimal therapeutic benefit is a challenge within secure mental health settings. The purpose of this paper is to develop, pilot and evaluate therapeutic tools based on a framework of occupational engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used action research with occupational therapists from two secure residential units. Focus group discussions gathered participants’ views of how the occupational engagement framework could be used to inform a therapeutic tool. Following the development and piloting of the subsequent tools, focus groups were again used to review their usefulness in practice. Discussions were audio recorded and thematically analysed.

Findings

Three tools were designed and piloted. Evaluation revealed a number of benefits and different ways in which the tools could be used in practice.

Research limitations/implications

This research has indicated that the occupational engagement framework has potential for increasing understanding of the relationship between the value and consequences of participating in occupations. The limited timescale of the research restricted the opportunity to fully explore the tools’ potential effectiveness as outcome measures.

Practical implications

The clinical tools developed within this research have provided some information to the clinical teams which has contributed to their understanding of how service users experience participating in occupations.

Originality/value

The occupational engagement framework and resulting tools have the potential to enhance understanding of occupational engagement within secure settings.

Details

Mental Health Review Journal, vol. 23 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1361-9322

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 June 2022

Maryam Ranjbar Zahedani, Mohammad Hassan Eftekhari, Mehran Nouri, Shohreh Alipour, Jafar Hassanzadeh and Majid Fardaei

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of methyl donor supplementation on anthropometric indices, body composition, glycemic control, lipid profile, homocysteine…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of methyl donor supplementation on anthropometric indices, body composition, glycemic control, lipid profile, homocysteine and appetite regulatory hormones in overweight and obese subjects.

Design/methodology/approach

This randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial was conducted on overweight and obese subjects in Shiraz, Iran, in 2018. The 25 participants in each intervention and control group were required to take methyl donor supplement and placebo, respectively, for eight weeks. A variety of measurements was collected at baseline and the end of the study. The data were analyzed using SPSS 21 software.

Findings

The results indicated a significant reduction in weight, body mass index, body fat and waist and hip circumference (p < 0.001 for all parameters) within both groups and a significant improvement in skeletal muscle (p = 0.005), fat-free mass (p = 0.006), visceral fat area (p < 0.001) and body cell mass (p = 0.004) in the intervention group. Also, the results showed a significant difference between the two groups regarding serum homocysteine concentration at the end of the intervention (p < 0.001).

Originality/value

The results demonstrated that methyl donor supplementation might have effects on the improvement of anthropometric indices, body composition, glycemic and lipid profile status and appetite regulatory hormones among obese and overweight individuals. These effects might be attributed to their roles in energy metabolism, protein synthesis and epigenetics regulation.

Details

Nutrition & Food Science , vol. 53 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 15 July 2022

Valentina C. Tassone, Perry den Brok, Cassandra W.S. Tho and Arjen E.J. Wals

By envisioning the learning environment as an eco-social system, this study aims to map interrelated enablers of students’ sustainability-oriented learning (SoL) in the context of…

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Abstract

Purpose

By envisioning the learning environment as an eco-social system, this study aims to map interrelated enablers of students’ sustainability-oriented learning (SoL) in the context of a university course at the interface of science and society.

Design/methodology/approach

A case-study approach was used to delineate what enables student learning in a university-wide transdisciplinary Master of Science course. A sample of 102 students, university and societal stakeholders participated to this study, by sharing their experiences and views through focus groups and questionnaires.

Findings

A main finding is the development of a configuration of six intertwined enablers that through their interplay help to cultivate students’ SoL, in the course under exploration.

Originality/value

This study paves the way for a re-orientation of how to explore learning in complex environments. It shows that adopting a relational, situated and systems approach is not only feasible but is also desirable to understand and guide learning practices in complex environments.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 23 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

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