Developing a participatory impact assessment approach and action research culture within a communication for social change organisation in Nepal

Developing an effective impact evaluation framework, managing and conducting rigorous impact evaluations, and developing a strong research and evaluation culture within development communication organisations presents many challenges. This is especially so when both the community and organisational context is continually changing and the outcomes of programs are complex and difficult to clearly identify.----- This paper presents a case study from a research project being conducted from 2007-2010 that aims to address these challenges and issues, entitled Assessing Communication for Social Change: A New Agenda in Impact Assessment. Building on previous development communication projects which used ethnographic action research, this project is developing, trailing and rigorously evaluating a participatory impact assessment methodology for assessing the social change impacts of community radio programs in Nepal. This project is a collaboration between Equal Access – Nepal (EAN), Equal Access – International, local stakeholders and listeners, a network of trained community researchers, and a research team from two Australian universities. A key element of the project is the establishment of an organisational culture within EAN that values and supports the impact assessment process being developed, which is based on continuous action learning and improvement. The paper describes the situation related to monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and impact assessment before the project began, in which EAN was often reliant on time-bound studies and ‘success stories’ derived from listener letters and feedback. We then outline the various strategies used in an effort to develop stronger and more effective impact assessment and M&E systems, and the gradual changes that have occurred to date. These changes include a greater understanding of the value of adopting a participatory, holistic, evidence-based approach to impact assessment. We also critically review the many challenges experienced in this process, including:----- • Tension between the pressure from donors to ‘prove’ impacts and the adoption of a bottom-up, participatory approach based on ‘improving’ programs in ways that meet community needs and aspirations.----- • Resistance from the content teams to changing their existing M&E practices and to the perceived complexity of the approach.----- • Lack of meaningful connection between the M&E and content teams.----- • Human resource problems and lack of capacity in analysing qualitative data and reporting results.----- • The contextual challenges, including extreme poverty, wide cultural and linguistic diversity, poor transport and communications infrastructure, and political instability.----- • A general lack of acceptance of the importance of evaluation within Nepal due to accepting everything as fate or ‘natural’ rather than requiring investigation into a problem.

Gas boosted solar water heaters : Queensland case studies of installation practices in new homes

Because of the greenhouse gas emissions implications of the market dominating electric hot water systems, governments in Australia have implemented policies and programs to encourage the uptake of solar water heaters (SWHs) in the residential market as part of climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies. The cost-benefit analysis that usually accompanies all government policy and program design could be simplistically reduced to the ratio of expected greenhouse gas reductions of SWH to the cost of a SWH. The national Register of Solar Water Heaters specifies how many renewable energy certificates (RECs) are allocated to complying SWHs according to their expected performance, and hence greenhouse gas reductions, in different climates. Neither REC allocations nor rebates are tied to actual performance of systems. This paper examines the performance of instantaneous gas-boosted solar water heaters installed in new residences in a housing estate in south-east Queensland in the period 2007 – 2010. The evidence indicates systemic failures in installation practices, resulting in zero solar performance or dramatic underperformance (estimated average 43% solar contribution). The paper will detail the faults identified, and how these faults were eventually diagnosed and corrected. The impacts of these system failures on end-use consumers are discussed before concluding with a brief overview of areas where further research is required in order to more fully understand whole of supply chain implications.

Spatiotemporal patterns of Japanese Encephalitis in China, 2002–2010

OBJECTIVE The aim of the study is to examine the spatiotemporal pattern of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in mainland China during 2002-2010. Specific objectives of the study were to quantify the temporal variation in incidence of JE cases, to determine if clustering of JE cases exists, to detect high risk spatiotemporal clusters of JE cases and to provide evidence-based preventive suggestions to relevant stakeholders. METHODS Monthly JE cases at the county level in mainland China during 2002-2010 were obtained from the China Information System for Diseases Control and Prevention (CISDCP). For the purpose of the analysis, JE case counts for nine years were aggregated into four temporal periods (2002; 2003-2005; 2006; and 2007-2010). Local Indicators of Spatial Association and spatial scan statistics were performed to detect and evaluate local high risk space-time clusters. RESULTS JE incidence showed a decreasing trend from 2002 to 2005 but peaked in 2006, then fluctuated over the study period. Spatial cluster analysis detected high value clusters, mainly located in Southwestern China. Similarly, we identified a primary spatiotemporal cluster of JE in Southwestern China between July and August, with the geographical range of JE transmission increasing over the past years. CONCLUSION JE in China is geographically clustered and its spatial extent dynamically changed during the last nine years in mainland China. This indicates that risk factors for JE infection are likely to be spatially heterogeneous. The results may assist national and local health authorities in the development/refinement of a better preventive strategy and increase the effectiveness of public health interventions against JE transmission.

The growth and characterization of strontium fluoro chloride crystals

Abstract is not available.

A study of vertical cloud structure of the Indian summer monsoon using CloudSat data

Precise specification of the vertical distribution of cloud optical properties is important to reduce the uncertainty in quantifying the radiative impacts of clouds. The new global observations of vertical profiles of clouds from the CloudSat mission provide opportunities to describe cloud structures and to improve parameterization of clouds in the weather and climate prediction models. In this study, four years (2007-2010) of observations of vertical structure of clouds from the CloudSat cloud profiling radar have been used to document the mean vertical structure of clouds associated with the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) and its intra-seasonal variability. Active and break monsoon spells associated with the intra-seasonal variability of ISM have been identified by an objective criterion. For the present analysis, we considered CloudSat derived column integrated cloud liquid and ice water, and vertically profiles of cloud liquid and ice water content. Over the South Asian monsoon region, deep convective clouds with large vertical extent (up to 14 km) and large values of cloud water and ice content are observed over the north Bay of Bengal. Deep clouds with large ice water content are also observed over north Arabian Sea and adjoining northwest India, along the west coast of India and the south equatorial Indian Ocean. The active monsoon spells are characterized by enhanced deep convection over the Bay of Bengal, west coast of India and northeast Arabian Sea and suppressed convection over the equatorial Indian Ocean. Over the Bay of Bengal, cloud liquid water content and ice water content is enhanced by similar to 90 and similar to 200 % respectively during the active spells. An interesting feature associated with the active spell is the vertical tilting structure of positive CLWC and CIWC anomalies over the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, which suggests a pre-conditioning process for the northward propagation of the boreal summer intra-seasonal variability. It is also observed that during the break spells, clouds are not completely suppressed over central India. Instead, clouds with smaller vertical extent (3-5 km) are observed due to the presence of a heat low type of circulation. The present results will be useful for validating the vertical structure of clouds in weather and climate prediction models.

Inelegibilidades : jurisprudência do TSE sobre algumas situações

Consultoria Legislativa - Área I - Direito Constitucional, Eleitoral, Municipal, Direito Administrativo, Processo Legislativo e Poder Judiciário - Área XIX - Ciência Política, Sociologia Política, História, Relações Internacionais.

A importância dos requerimentos de cunho informacional na Comissão de Minas e Energia da Câmara dos Deputados

Discute, em caráter preliminar, os motivos pelos quais a Comissão de Minas e Energia da Câmara dos Deputados (CME) apresentou volume de deliberações de projetos de lei inferior ao de requerimentos de cunho informacional no período de 2003 a 2007. Analisa as razões pelas quais os membros do referido órgão apresentaram expressivo quantitativo dos requerimentos em questão. Avalia o comportamento da CME, a partir das Teorias do Legislativo e dos fenômenos da preponderância do Poder Executivo sobre o Legislativo. Conclui que as Teorias Partidária e Distributivista explicam melhor o comportamento legislativo do CME, sobrepondo-se à perspectiva informacional.

A não-apreciação de vetos

Aborda a apreciação, em sessão conjunta da Câmara dos Deputados e do Senado Federal, dos vetos presidenciais a projetos aprovados pelo Legislativo. Descreve a origem, história e natureza jurídica do veto. Investiga possível descumprimento do que estabelece a Constituição, quanto ao prazo para exame do veto pelo Congresso Nacional e quanto ao sobrestamento da pauta, tomando por base as proposições vetadas no período de 1991 a 2004.

Atuação do legislativo frente ao presidencialismo de coalizão

Objetiva analisar todas as leis ordinárias que entraram em vigor durante a 51ª e 52ª Legislaturas (janeiro de 1999 a janeiro de 2007) identificando a autoria e as áreas temáticas dessas leis dando assim, continuidade ao estudo realizado por Otávio Amorim Neto e Fabiano Santos no texto "O Segredo Ineficiente Revisto: O que Propõem e o que aprovam os Deputados Brasileiros", onde foi feito o levantamento das leis ordinárias entre os anos de 1985 e 1999 a partir de tipologia criada por Taylor-Robinson e Diaz que quantificou e classificou as leis de acordo com o assunto ou objeto. A metodologia empregada foi o levantamento das leis ordinárias compreendidas entre janeiro de 1999 a janeiro de 2007, a partir do banco de dados do Site da Presidência da República, do Sistema de Informações Legislativas da Câmara dos Deputados (SILEG) e do Sistema de Informações do Congresso Nacional (SICON). A análise dos dados mostra que a maior parte das Leis Ordinárias que entraram em vigor é de autoria do Poder Executivo levando, consequentemente, à baixa produção legislativa do Congresso Nacional. Além disso, o Poder Executivo, detentor do Poder de Agenda, é o autor das leis consideradas de maior relevância à sociedade.

Diário da Constituinte [gravação de vídeo] : [programa n. 497]

Fundo da Assembleia Nacional Constituinte 1987/88 - Câmara dos Deputados, Centro de Documentação e Informação, Coordenação de Arquivo.

Política Pública de Formação Continuada do Professor: O PDE no Paraná - Implicações no Trabalho Docente

Este estudo tem como objeto e análise a compreensão da Política Pública de Formação Continuada dos Professores da rede estadual de ensino do Paraná, materializada no Programa de Desenvolvimento Educacional entre os anos de 2003-2010. A pesquisa se constitui em uma investigação de natureza bibliográfica, documental e de campo, a partir do método materialista histórico dialético, no entendimento que os dados levantados nesses três processos investigativos se articulam para uma análise qualitativa de compreensão da realidade. Os objetivos foram compreender a partir da formação do professor PDE em que medida os pressupostos, a concepção e os objetivos anunciados no referido Programa foram objetivados nas relações sociais, no trabalho docente, na socialização do conhecimento e no redimensionamento das práticas coletivas. Da mesma forma, entender o processo de implantação e articulação entre os dois níveis de ensino (educação básica e o ensino superior) uma vez que o Programa foi desenvolvido em parceria entre os dois níveis de ensino. Ainda, explicita de que forma e em que medida foram incorporadas as proposições históricas dos trabalhadores da educação por formação continuada. O trabalho conclui que: ao considerar o espectro mais amplo do contexto social, político, econômico e educacional, no bojo da sociedade capitalista neoliberal, a Política Pública de Formação Continuada, materializada no Programa de Desenvolvimento Educacional entre os anos de 2007-2010, cuja concepção político-metodológica é orientada pelo princípio ontológico do trabalho, apresenta-se como uma proposta inovadora de qualificação, que contribui para o aperfeiçoamento e para o avanço na carreira e na valorização dos professores; se contrapõe à visão da educação, da formação e do trabalho docente estritamente vinculada ao mundo do trabalho e que, em certa medida, acolhe as reivindicações e proposições dos trabalhadores da educação; esse Programa produziu importantes contribuições no campo da formação continuada dos professores da rede estadual de ensino paranaense quanto aos fundamentos políticos e disciplinares de caráter teórico-prático com impactos significativos na melhoria no processo ensino-aprendizagem, mesmo que não diretamente por meio da implementação dos projetos de intervenção, mas pela própria condição de aprofundamento no conhecimento do professor participante no Programa e, com isso, a incidência na sua prática pedagógica, na preparação das aulas, na organização dos conteúdos, na metodologia de trabalho e no processo avaliativo; que mesmo considerando os problemas, as dificuldades encontradas durante o Programa não anulam os esforços empreendidos até aqui, ao contrário, indicam possibilidades sempre de superação

Lake Victoria fisheries catch assessment surveys (CAS) information, Uganda, 2005 - 2011

This CAS report provides estimates of the quantities of fish landed in the riparian districts sharing the Ugandan waters of Lake Victoria;the monetary value of the fish catches; the contribution of different fish species to the catches; and the trends in fish catch rates, and the monthly catches for the sampled month since the beginning of the current CAS activities from July 2005 to May 2011. So far there have been 14 CASs conducted in the Uganda sector of the lake. The report also compares the annual catch and gross beach value of the catch in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2011.

A matter of life and death: sociomateriality, information systems and critical care

Sociomateriality has been attracting growing attention in the Organization Studies and Information Systems literatures since 2007, with more than 140 journal articles now referring to the concept. Over 80 percent of these articles have been published since January 2011 and almost all cite the work of Orlikowski (2007, 2010; Orlikowski and Scott 2008) as the source of the concept. Only a few, however, address all of the notions that Orlikowski suggests are entailed in sociomateriality, namely materiality, inseparability, relationality, performativity, and practices, with many employing the concept quite selectively. The contribution of sociomateriality to these literatures is, therefore, still unclear. Drawing on evidence from an ongoing study of the adoption of a computer-based clinical information system in a hospital critical care unit, this paper explores whether the notions, individually and collectively, offer a distinctive and coherent account of the relationship between the social and the material that may be useful in Information Systems research. It is argued that if sociomateriality is to be more than simply a label for research employing a number of loosely related existing theoretical approaches, then studies employing the concept need to pay greater attention to the notions entailed in it and to differences in their interpretation.

纳帕海越冬黑颈鹤（Grus nigricollis）空间生态学研究

黑颈鹤中部越冬种群是三个越冬种群中最为濒危的一个。由于栖息地退化和 丧失等因素的影响，其分布区逐渐萎缩，在大多数分布区（大理、鹤庆、丽江、 祥云），黑颈鹤已经消失或偶见。目前稳定的越冬区仅见于香格里拉县境内的纳 帕海和碧塔海，其中90%以上的个体在纳帕海越冬。纳帕海已经成为中部种群最 重要的越冬地。 本论文主要报道了2007 年～2010 年有关种群数量、空间利用模式、栖息地 偏好以及迁徙生态等工作成果。 1） 纳帕海黑颈鹤种群呈增长态势，数量由2004 年的281 只增长到2007 年的325 只。但2007 年的幼体新增率仅为8.1%，大大低于2004 年的16.3%。 这也说明黑颈鹤繁殖的成功率在不同的年份波动比较大。 2） 黑颈鹤在纳帕海的总利用区域（100%等值线）面积为990.9ha，而核心 利用面积（50%等值线）仅为42.3ha，分别占总研究区域的28.2%和1.2%。每个 月的平均90%利用区域面积为217.5 ±40.8ha （值域= 108.0～317.4ha, N = 5 个 月） ，月平均核心利用区域为25.5 ±5.1ha （值域=10.4～38.6ha, N = 5 个月）。 涝季和旱季相比，黑颈鹤的总利用区域和核心利用区的面积没有显著差异（t-检 验，P 均>0.05）。在不同的月份黑颈鹤会利用不同的区域，任意两月的总活动面 积重叠率为39.1 ±3.8% （值域= 21.3～57.2%），而核心活动面积重叠率仅为9.9 ±3.0%（值域= 0～28.5%）。栖息地的改变对黑颈鹤的空间利用造成较大的影响， 随着明水面由南向北退却，黑颈鹤的活动区域也随之移动。 3） 黑颈鹤对各栖息地具有选择性。使用欧几里德距离法分析表明黑颈鹤偏 好浅水沼泽和湿草甸，而回避耕地和干草地。这种偏好性不随季节而改变。 4）通过卫星跟踪发现：黑颈鹤具有相似的春季和秋季迁徙路线，但花费的 时间差异较大，春季时仅需1～2 天，而秋季时则花费了1～20 天。在迁徙过程 中，黑颈鹤通过山区时，沿河流飞行，在高原面上则顺低谷迁徙，迁徙中回避海 拔较高的高山，而多沿海拔较低的山谷飞行，在翻越高山时也选择较低的山隘口 通过。 根据研究的结果，提出如下保护建议：将黑颈鹤的核心利用区划为保护区的 核心区；重点保护浅水沼泽栖息地，在越冬期应该稳定保持一定面积的沼泽；规 范旅游管理，减少游客对黑颈鹤造成的干扰；开展家猪对湿地影响的研究，确立 合适的散养数量。

盘片式光纤传感器灵敏度计算方法

系统地开展了对各类盘片式光纤传感器灵敏度的研究工作。以周边固支、中心镶嵌刚性质量块的盘片式光纤加速度传感器为例，分析了传感器弹性盘片上各点的应力应变状态；结合迈克耳孙干涉仪原理，建立了计算传感器加速度灵敏度的数学模型，并讨论了粘贴光纤盘的最佳尺寸。制作两个相应的传感器进行对比实验，验证了上述计算模型的正确性。采用上述模型系统地推导了不同边界条件情况下盘片式光纤传感器的粘贴区域和灵敏度计算公式。对盘片式光纤传感器如光纤加速度传感器、光纤压力传感器、光纤水听器等的设计制作具有理论指导作用。