The dynamics of specialist development banking: the case of the agriculture development bank of Trinidad and Tobago

Includes bibliography

Environmental training in organisations: From a literature review to a framework for future research

Although the research on the relationship between human factors and environmental sustainability is slowly progressing, environmental training has attracted the most attention from researchers and practitioners. However, there remains a lack of research that integrates and systematises the available knowledge on organisational environmental training. Environmental training is fundamental to any successful activity of environmental management, conservation and recycling of resources. Thus, the aim of this paper was to present the results of a systematic literature review on environmental training in organisations. The main studies in this area were classified and coded, and a research agenda with 9 recommendations that may advance the field was presented. As a result of the gaps in the current literature, a framework was proposed aiming guide and strengthens the state-of-the-art research on environmental training. Additionally, results show that more research is needed on environmental training, combining training and green human resource management and defining/measuring the objectives of the environmental training actions. Future studies should also consider mixed methodologies and comparative perspectives. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of different rest intervals, between sets, on muscle performance during leg press exercise, in trained older women

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Evaluating sustainability of an Indian university

The objective of this research is to verify the adherence between the sustainable activities of an Indian university and the variables recommended by Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar (2008) in a framework that analyzed the contributions made by Higher Education Institutions for Sustainable Development. For such, a field work was conducted in India by the first author of this article to get in-depth data about sustainability at the university analyzed. Besides direct observations and gathering documents, interviews were also conducted with professors/scholars, students and employees. It was ascertained that up to the time in which the research was performed, the university studied was not fully adhering to the framework recommended by Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar (2008). Thus, there are still several opportunities for the university studied to be more sustainable. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmental management and operational performance in automotive companies in Brazil: The role of human resource management and lean manufacturing

The main objective of this study is to verify the influence of Environmental Management (EM) on Operational Performance (OP) in Brazilian automotive companies, analyzing whether Lean Manufacturing (LM) and Human Resources (HR) interfere in the greening of these companies. Therefore, a conceptual framework listing these concepts was proposed, and three research hypotheses were presented. A questionnaire was elaborated based on this theoretical background and sent to respondents occupying the highest positions in the production/operations areas of Brazilian automotive companies. The data, collected from 75 companies, were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The main results are as follows: (a) the model tested revealed an adequate goodness of fit, showing that overall, the relations proposed between EM and OP and between HR, LM and EM tend to be statistically valid; (b) EM tends to influence OP in a positive and statistically weak manner; (c) LM has a greater influence on EM when compared to the influence HR has over EM; (d) HR has a positive relationship over EM, but the statistical significance of this relationship is less than that of the other evaluated relationships. The originality of this paper lies in its gathering the concepts of EM, LM, HR and OP in a single study, as they generally tend not to be treated jointly. This paper also provided valid empirical evidence for a littlestudied context: the Brazilian automotive sector. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sustainable production of biologically active molecules of marine based origin

The marine environment offers both economic and scientific potential which are relatively untapped from a biotechnological point of view. These environments whilst harsh are ironically fragile and dependent on a harmonious life form balance. Exploitation of natural resources by exhaustive wild harvesting has obvious negative environmental consequences. From a European industry perspective marine organisms are a largely underutilised resource. This is not due to lack of interest but due to a lack of choice the industry faces for cost competitive, sustainable and environmentally conscientious product alternatives. Knowledge of the biotechnological potential of marine organisms together with the development of sustainable systems for their cultivation, processing and utilisation are essential. In 2010, the European Commission recognised this need and funded a collaborative RTD/SME project under the Framework 7-Knowledge Based Bio-Economy (KBBE) Theme 2 Programme 'Sustainable culture of marine microorganisms, algae and/or invertebrates for high value added products'. The scope of that project entitled 'Sustainable Production of Biologically Active Molecules of Marine Based Origin' (BAMMBO) is outlined. Although the Union is a global leader in many technologies, it faces increasing competition from traditional rivals and emerging economies alike and must therefore improve its innovation performance. For this reason innovation is placed at the heart of a European Horizon 2020 Strategy wherein the challenge is to connect economic performance to eco performance. This article provides a synopsis of the research activities of the BAMMBO project as they fit within the wider scope of sustainable environmentally conscientious marine resource exploitation for high-value biomolecules. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Processos de tomada de decisões na performance musical: influência das heurísticas e vieses na elaboração da performance

Pós-graduação em Música - IA

The employment situation in Latin America and the Caribbean: Advances and challenges in measuring decent work

At 6.4%, the unemployment rate for the Latin American and Caribbean region overall was the lowest for the past few decades, down from 6.7% in 2011. This is significant, in view of the difficult employment situation prevailing in other world regions. Labour market indicators improved despite modest growth of just 3.0% in the region’s economy. Even with sharply rising labour market participation, the number of urban unemployed fell by around 400,000, on the back of relatively strong job creation. Nevertheless, around 15 million are still jobless in the region. Other highlights of 2012 labour market performance were that the gender gaps in labour market participation, unemployment and employment narrowed, albeit slightly; formal employment increased; the hourly underemployment rate declined; and average wages rose. This rendering was obviously not homogenous across the region. Labour market indicators worsened again in the Caribbean countries, for example, reflecting the sluggish performance of their economies. The sustainability of recent labour market progress is also a cause for concern. Most of the new jobs in the region were created as part of a self-perpetuating cycle in which new jobs and higher real wages (and greater access to credit) have boosted household purchasing power and so pushed up domestic demand. Much of this demand is for non-tradable goods and services (and imports), which has stimulated expansion of the tertiary sector and hence its demand for labour, and many of the new jobs have therefore arisen in these sectors of the economy. This dynamic certainly has positive implications in terms of labour and distribution, but the concern is whether it is sustainable in a context of still relatively low investment (even after some recent gains) which is, moreover, not structured in a manner conducive to diversifying production. Doubt hangs over the future growth of production capacity in the region, given the enormous challenges facing the region in terms of innovation, education quality, infrastructure and productivity. As vigorous job creation has driven progress in reducing unemployment, attention has turned once again to the characteristics of that employment. Awareness exists in the region that economic growth is essential, but not in itself sufficient to generate more and better jobs. For some time, ILO has been drawing attention to the fact that it is not enough to create any sort of employment. The concept of decent work, as proposed by ILO, emphasized the need for quality jobs which enshrine respect for fundamental rights at work. The United Nations General Assembly endorsed this notion and incorporated it into the targets set in the framework of the Millennium Development Goals. This eighth issue of the ECLAC/ILO publication “The employment situation in Latin America and the Caribbean” examines how the concept of decent work has evolved in the region, progress in measuring it and the challenges involved in building a system of decent work indicators, 14 years after the concept was first proposed. Although the concept of decent work has been accompanied since the outset by the challenge of measurement, its first objective was to generate a discussion on the best achievable labour practices in each country. Accordingly, rather than defining a universal threshold of what could be considered decent work —regarding which developed countries might have almost reached the target before starting, while poor countries could be left hopelessly behind— ILO called upon the countries to define their own criteria and measurements for promoting decent work policies. As a result, there is no shared set of variables for measuring decent work applicable to all countries. The suggestion is, instead, that countries move forward with measuring decent work on the basis of their own priorities, using the information they have available now and in the future. However, this strategy of progressing according to the data available in each country tends to complicate statistical comparison between them. So, once the countries have developed their respective systems of decent work indicators, it will be also be important to work towards harmonizing them. ECLAC and ILO are available to provide technical support to this end. With respect to 2013, there is cautious optimism regarding the performance of the region’s labour markets. If projections of a slight uptick —to 3.5%— in the region’s economic growth in 2013 are borne out, labour indicators should continue to gradually improve. This will bring new increases in real wages and a slight drop of up to 0.2 percentage points in the region’s unemployment rate, reflecting a fresh rise in the regional employment rate and slower growth in labour market participation.

The employment situation in Latin America and the Caribbean: Crisis, stabilization and reactivation: performance of the labour market in 2009

Following a five-year period during which economic and social performance in Latin America and the Caribbean surpassed anything seen in recent decades, the global economic and financial crisis not only hurt macroeconomic variables but also impacted heavily on labour markets in the region’s countries. Between 2003 and 2008 employment rates had risen considerably, especially in the formal sector, but the crisis spelled a reversal of this trend. Nevertheless, the region was better prepared than it had been in previous crises, since it had achieved a sound fiscal footing, a good level of international reserves and low rates of inflation. This meant that the authorities had the space to implement countercyclical policies on both fiscal and monetary levels. Be this as it may, faced with the worst global crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s, these measures could only attenuate the impact on the region’s economies —they could not prevent it altogether. Furthermore, the crisis struck with notable differences among subregions and countries depending on the nature of their trade integration, and not all the countries had the fiscal space to implement vigorous countercyclical policies. As discussed in this third ECLAC/ILO bulletin, the crisis did less damage to the region’s labour markets than had been feared at the beginning of last year, thanks to the implementation of public policies geared towards employment, as reviewed in the two previous bulletins. This bulletin offers an additional analysis from the perspective of gender equality. Moreover, some countries in the region, notably Brazil, managed to rapidly stabilize and revive economic growth, with positive effects on labour variables. The fact remains, however, that millions in Latin America and the Caribbean lost their jobs or were obliged to accept more poorly paid employment in more precarious conditions. The macroeconomic data indicate that recovery is under way and is stronger and occurring more rapidly than foreseen one year ago. In fact, regional growth in 2010 may well exceed the 4.1% forecast at the end of 2009. Consequently, although the unemployment rate may be expected to record a modest drop, it may not return to pre-crisis levels. The upturn is taking many different forms in the countries of the region. In some, especially in South America, recovery has benefited from the buoyancy of the Asian economies, whose demand for natural resources has driven large increases in exports, in terms of both volume and price. Countries whose economies are closely tied to the United States economy are benefiting from the recovery there, albeit more slowly and with a certain lag. Conversely, some countries are still suffering from major disequilibria, which are hampering their economic reactivation. Lastly, Chile and Haiti were both victims of devastating earthquakes early in the year and are therefore facing additional challenges associated with reconstruction, on top of their efforts to sustain an economic upturn. Despite the relatively favourable outlook for regional growth in 2010, great uncertainty still surrounds the global economy’s recovery, which affects the region’s economic prospects over the longer term. The weakness of the recovery in some regions and the doubts about its sustainability in others, as well as shocks that have occurred in international financial markets, are warning signs which authorities need to monitor continuously because of the region’s close integration with the global economy. In addition, a return to growth does not directly or automatically mean higher employment rates —still less decent working conditions. Although some labour indicators have performed reasonably favourably since the end of last year, the countries still face daunting challenges in improving the labour market integration of millions in Latin America and the Caribbean who are not seeing the fruits of renewed growth. This is why it is important to learn the lessons arising from the policies implemented during the crisis to offset its impact on labour markets. With this third joint bulletin, ECLAC and ILO continue to pursue their objective of affording the region the information and analyses needed to face these challenges, as regards both trends in the region’s labour markets and the corresponding policy options.

A relação entre crescimento econômico e desenvolvimento sustentável: a Região do Araguaia no contexto regional paraense

A relação entre crescimento econômico e desenvolvimento sustentável é a problemática deste estudo que propõe analisar esta por meio do uso do Índice de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Local. Nesse sentido, a categoria de análise usada foi à região que é definida como um sistema formado por e a partir da conjunção de elementos internos e externos. O objeto de análise selecionado foi a região do Araguaia paraense que se localiza no Estado do Pará – Brasil, essa escolha ocorreu porque, ao longo dos últimos 40 anos, essa região tem assumido expressão econômica nesse estado e, ao mesmo tempo, tem sido foco de questionamentos quanto ao modelo de desenvolvimento econômico empregado no passado e os seus resultados no presente. O objetivo central deste estudo é analisar, por meio dos elementos internos e externos de uma região considerada como fronteira de recursos, se o cenário de crescimento econômico contribuiu para o desenvolvimento sustentável. A seleção de um estudo de caso foi à estratégia de investigação e os instrumentos de levantamento de dados foram: a aplicação de questionários, a análise da evolução de dados secundários e a construção de um Índice de Desenvolvimento Sustentável (IDLS) que foi usado para dimensionar de forma integrada o desempenho social, ambiental, econômico e institucional da região pesquisada em relação ao contexto regional paraense. O principal resultado, deste estudo, foi à constatação de que crescimento econômico das regiões paraenses até a atualidade não mediou processos favoráveis ao desenvolvimento na perspectiva da sustentabilidade. Observou-se que a região do Araguaia, encontra-se em estado de alerta no IDLS, seguindo a mesma tendência de outros espaços regionais que cresceram economicamente no Estado do Pará. Para cada região do Estado do Pará, uma dimensão diferente comprometeu a sustentabilidade regional, no caso da Região do Araguaia a dimensão ambiental foi a que mais comprometeu o seu IDSL. Tal resultado comprova vários estudos que afirmaram que os impactos ambientais comprometem o desenvolvimento sustentável dessa região. Apesar disso, essa região obteve o terceiro melhor desempenho na dimensão social da sustentabilidade, dado mais importante para o desenvolvimento sustentável que este estudo se propôs medir. Por conseguinte, duas conclusões principais podem ser apontadas. A primeira é que atualmente houve uma melhora no padrão social das regiões paraense como um todo, em alguns casos as áreas centrais dos grandes investimentos superaram o desempenho social de outras regiões que não foram focos dos investimentos promovidos nas décadas anteriores. Apesar de alguns estudos apontarem que os investimentos governamentais não se revestiram em benefícios sociais. A segunda é que os elementos externos às regiões contribuíram para a mudança do quadro social descrito, mas não para alteração do quadro ambiental regional, pois criou institucionalidades que direcionassem as forças internas na produção dos resultados do quadro econômico, social, institucional e ambiental. Portanto, tanto a elevação do padrão social quanto a piora do quadro ambiental da região do Araguaia paraense são o resultado de um conjunto de políticas nacionais que, provavelmente, se somaram aos cenários de ação e decisão dos atores locais.

Desenvolvimento de framework para análise e simulação dinâmica de sistemas elétricos de potência

Esta tese apresenta uma metodologia flexível orientada a objetos (OO) para a aplicação no projeto e implementação de sistemas de software utilizados na realização de estudos dinâmicos de sistemas elétricos de grande porte. A metodologia OO proposta objetiva tornar mais simples o desenvolvimento, a atualização e a manutenção de complexos sistemas de software para estudos de transitórios eletromecânicos em sistemas elétricos de potência. Os requisitos de usuário são mapeados para um conjunto de classes básicas, as quais são usadas para efetuar a modelagem de dispositivos dinâmicos tais como geradores elétricos. Para avaliação da metodologia foram realizados dois estudos de casos. No primeiro estudo caso o Framework foi aplicado na simulação das unidades geradoras da Usina Hidrelétrica de Tucuruí. Os resultados da simulação foram comparados com medições obtidos em ensaios no campo e mostrou a boa performance do Framework na reprodução dos fenômenos eletromecânicos desta usina de grande porte. No segundo estudo de caso, por outro lado, o Framework foi aplicado na modelagem de um sistema de geração fotovoltaico (PV) com seu sistema de Rastreamento da Potência Máxima (MPPT). O controle MPPT foi implementado usando técnicas digitais. Os resultados das simulações demonstram a performance do Framework na modelagem do sistema de controle de corrente, assim como no controle MPPT, dos sistemas de geração PV.

A dinâmica dos recursos comuns em Unidades de Conservação e Assentamentos Rurais no Amazonas: uma abordagem fuzzy set

A teoria de Garret Hardin intitulada “A tragédia dos comuns” apresenta a privatização e o controle governamental como saída para evitar o esgotamento dos recursos naturais. Entretanto, outros autores demonstraram que os usuários dos recursos podem apresentar eficientes formas de manejo, aliando o uso pelo homem à conservação da natureza. Esta tese analisa o uso de recursos comuns em Unidades de Conservação e Assentamentos Rurais de Uso Sustentável, localizadas no interflúvio Purus-Madeira, região Sul do Estado do Amazonas. A pergunta que norteou a hipótese da pesquisa foi: Diante das especificidades amazônicas e das regras impostas pelas políticas ambientais e agrárias na região, quais condições apresentam-se como necessárias e suficientes ao bom desempenho no uso de recursos comuns? A análise foi realizada por meio da combinação de três métodos: o método comparativo Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), o método de análise institucional Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) Framework e a lógica fuzzy. Operacionalmente, foram consideradas como variáveis independentes (X) os aspectos socioeconômicos, produtivos, ambientais e institucionais, partindo-se do pressuposto de que os programas governamentais destinados às Unidades devem apresentar melhorias nestes indicadores, refletindo por sua vez no bom desempenho no uso de recursos comuns (variável dependente Y) a partir deste desenho institucional. Os resultados confirmaram as hipóteses levantadas, afirmando-se que o bom desempenho no uso de recursos comuns, preconizado pelos critérios da sustentabilidade, somente pode ser alcançado mediante a combinação de um desempenho também satisfatório nas variáveis socioeconômicas, produtivas, institucionais e ambientais, apresentando-se estas variáveis como individualmente necessárias e conjuntamente suficientes para ocorrência deste fenômeno.

IPSFlow: Um framework para Sistema de Prevenção de Intrusão baseado em Redes Definidas por Software

Os Sistemas de Detecção e Prevenção de Intrusão (Intrusion Detection Systems – IDS e Intrusion Prevention Systems - IPS) são ferramentas bastante conhecidas e bem consagradas no mundo da segurança da informação. Porém, a falta de integração com os equipamentos de rede como switches e roteadores acaba limitando a atuação destas ferramentas e exige um bom dimensionamento de recursos de hardware como processamento, memória e interfaces de rede de alta velocidade, utilizados para implementá-las. Diante de diversas limitações deparadas por pesquisadores e administradores de redes, surgiu o conceito de Rede Definida por Software (Software Defined Network – SDN), que ao separar os planos de controle e de dados, permite adaptar o funcionamento da rede de acordo com as necessidades de cada um. Desta forma, devido à padronização e flexibilidade propostas pelas SDNs, e das limitações apresentadas dos IPSs, esta dissertação de mestrado propõe o IPSFlow, um framework que utiliza uma rede baseada na arquitetura SDN e o protocolo OpenFlow para a criação de um IPS com ampla cobertura e que permite bloquear um tráfego caracterizado pelos IDS(s) como malicioso no equipamento mais próximo da origem. Para validar o framework, experimentos no ambiente virtual Mininet foram realizados utilizando-se o Snort como IDS para analisar tráfego de varredura (scan) gerado pelo Nmap de um host ao outro. Os resultados coletados apresentam que o IPSFlow funcionou conforme planejado ao efetuar o bloqueio de 85% do tráfego de varredura.

A trade off between separation, detection and sustainability in liquid chromatographic fingerprinting

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Greening the campus of a Brazilian university: cultural challenges

Purpose - This study examined the relationship between environmental management practices developed at a campus of a Brazilian university (University of Sao Paulo) and the greening of its organizational culture. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approach - This article presents a theoretical background based on the concepts of environmental management, organizational culture and environmental management in higher education institutions. The main framework of this research is the model proposed by Harris and Crane.Findings - The studied university has an environmental management program that is sometimes constrained in the following ways: the university bureaucracy and hierarchy; the main performance indicators for lecturers and professors are based on scientific production and publication, giving them little time for complementary activities; and some units develop their own environmental management practices, but they are not disseminated as best practices for use by other units. Some academic units showcase the proactive actions of professors who incorporate environmental management into their daily activities. The general perception is that the phrase environmental management is almost synonymous with solid waste management.Originality/value - This research details the first Brazilian application of the Harris and Crane model. It contributes an original analysis of environmental management and green organizational culture of a Brazilian university, an organizational type that has seldom been studied to date.