Educating for sustainable production and consumption and sustainable livelihoods: learning from multi-stakeholder networks

This paper examines how education for sustainable development (ESD) can be concretely advanced using the theoretical approaches of sustainable consumption and production (SCP) and sustainable livelihoods (SL). Five case examples illustrate a diverse set of strategic educational interventions focusing on: (1) education of specific organizational actors about these theoretical frameworks illustrated with case examples (such as SCP training by the United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies [UNU-IAS] and CSR-Asia of government and business representatives), (2) regional education strategies focused on production and consumption in specific sectors (such as the food sector in Sk?ne, Sweden), (3) social learning directed at innovation for sustainable development (such as competitions of solar boats developed by universities in the region of Friesland, the Netherlands), (4) education of consumers and firms made possible by the adoption of certification systems affirming SCP and SL (such as Cradle-to-Cradle certification of a paper company in the Netherlands or the establishment of Fair Trade cities in Sweden), or (5) reorienting communities to address underutilized productive physical capital within communities (such as the sharing productive capital project in rural areas of Saskatchewan, Canada). The cases are drawn from the projects that the UNU-IAS, four of its regional centers of expertise (RCE) on ESD and other affiliates have conducted. In addition to documenting the educational processes emerging from specific regions, the paper highlights findings related to the success of these projects and opportunities for further research, including regional and inter-regional approaches.     

Distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and other persistent organic pollutants in human serum from Greece

Human serum samples (n=61) were collected in Attika, Greece between June and October 2007 and analyzed for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). Thirty samples were collected from computer clerks of a large computer company in Athens working full-time with computers, and thirty-one from a control population in the Attika region with no computer use. Σ(5)PBDE concentrations (sum of tri- to hexa-BDEs) in all samples (n=61) ranged from 0.68 to 13.3 ng g(-1) lipid, with a median of 1.07 ng g(-1) lipid. These concentrations are on the lower end of those reported from other countries, probably reflecting lower usage of PBDE-containing products or lower exposures to these chemicals. Individual and Σ(5)PBDE concentrations did not statistically differ between the two groups of computer clerks and non-computer users (p>0.05), with the exception of BDE 153 (p=0.033). The predominant congener was BDE 153, followed by BDEs 47, 100, 99, 183, 154 and 28. HBCD was also detected in 70% of the samples. BDE 209 was detected in 8 out 61 samples (13%), with concentrations ranging from 1.18 to 19.1 ng g(-1) lipid, and a median of 2.94 ng g(-1) lipid. No age dependency was found for PBDEs. Σ(11)PCB (sum of PCBs 74, 99, 118, 138, 146, 153, 156, 170, 180, 183 and 187,) in all samples (n=61) ranged from 36 to 402 ng g(-1) lipid, with a median of 110 ng g(-1) lipid. pp'-DDE concentrations ranged from 53.8 to 1649 ng g(-1) lipid, with a median of 268 ng g(-1) lipid. This is the first study to report levels of PBDEs in a possibly occupationally exposed subset of the Greek population.     

Status and trends of circumpolar peregrine falcon and gyrfalcon populations

Ambio - The peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) and the gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus) are top avian predators of Arctic ecosystems. Although existing monitoring efforts are well established for both...     

Degrading permafrost river catchments and their impact on Arctic Ocean nearshore processes

Arctic warming is causing ancient perennially frozen ground (permafrost) to thaw, resulting in ground collapse, and reshaping of landscapes. This threatens Arctic peoples'' infrastructure, cultural sites, and land-based natural resources. Terrestrial permafrost thaw and ongoing intensification of hydrological cycles also enhance the amount and alter the type of organic carbon (OC) delivered from land to Arctic nearshore environments. These changes may affect coastal processes, food web dynamics and marine resources on which many traditional ways of life rely. Here, we examine how future projected increases in runoff and permafrost thaw from two permafrost-dominated Siberian watersheds—the Kolyma and Lena, may alter carbon turnover rates and OC distributions through river networks. We demonstrate that the unique composition of terrestrial permafrost-derived OC can cause significant increases to aquatic carbon degradation rates (20 to 60% faster rates with 1% permafrost OC). We compile results on aquatic OC degradation and examine how strengthening Arctic hydrological cycles may increase the connectivity between terrestrial landscapes and receiving nearshore ecosystems, with potential ramifications for coastal carbon budgets and ecosystem structure. To address the future challenges Arctic coastal communities will face, we argue that it will become essential to consider how nearshore ecosystems will respond to changing coastal inputs and identify how these may affect the resiliency and availability of essential food resources.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-021-01666-z.     

Economic and environmental effects of unilateral climate actions

Unilateral climate policy can be detrimental to global climate protection. Our objective is to provide insight into such a policy, to quantify the risk of carbon leakage, and to investigate the effects related to potential anti-leakage measures. We analyze existing definitions of carbon leakage and propose an alternative, rigorous one, which is different in three respects. The definition is then tested using computable general equilibrium analysis of the global economy and decomposition analysis. We identify a list of parameters that affect not only the magnitude but also the sign of the carbon leakage rate. Manipulating elasticities of substitution suggests that carbon leakage can be either positive or negative. Computable general equilibrium models, which are widely applied, including by the European Commission in this area, should be transparent, and their assumptions call for careful validation. We find that emission limits are properly distributed between sectors covered by the European Union Emissions Trading System and other sectors for the first commitment period (ended in 2012) but not for the second one (ending in 2020), where the target for the non-trading sectors should be reduced relative to the target for the trading sectors in order to equlize marginal abatement costs.     

Siberian environmental change: Synthesis of recent studies and opportunities for networking

A recent multidisciplinary compilation of studies on changes in the Siberian environment details how climate is changing faster than most places on Earth with exceptional warming in the north and increased aridity in the south. Impacts of these changes are rapid permafrost thaw and melt of glaciers, increased flooding, extreme weather events leading to sudden changes in biodiversity, increased forest fires, more insect pest outbreaks, and increased emissions of CO₂ and methane. These trends interact with sociological changes leading to land-use change, globalisation of diets, impaired health of Arctic Peoples, and challenges for transport. Local mitigation and adaptation measures are likely to be limited by a range of public perceptions of climate change that vary according to personal background. However, Siberia has the possibility through land surface feedbacks to amplify or suppress climate change impacts at potentially global levels. Based on the diverse studies presented in this Ambio Special Issue, we suggest ways forward for more sustainable environmental research and management.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-021-01626-7.     

The monoculture vs. rotation strategies in forestry: formalization and prediction by means of Markov-chain modelling

The monoculture strategy of forest management, where the same tree species (e.g., Picea abies) is cultivated in a number of successive planting-growing-felling cycles, is generally considered to be economically efficient, yet not sustainable as it reduces biodiversity in the forest. The sound alternative suggests a long-term strategy of forest management in which different forest types rotate either with planting after clear cutting, or by natural forest succession, yet the commercial output remains dubious. We suggest an approach to formalization and modelling forest dynamics in the long-term by means of Markov chains, the monoculture strategy resulting in an absorbing chain and the rotation one in a regular chain. The approach is illustrated with a case study of Russkii Les, a managed forest located in the Moscow Region, Russia, and the nearby forest reserve having been used as a data source for undisturbed forest dynamics. Starting with conceptual schemes of transitions among certain forest types (states of the chain) in the monoculture and rotation cases, we estimated the transition probabilities by an original method based on average duration of the corresponding states and on the likelihood of alternative transitions from a state into the next one. Formal analysis of the regular chain reveals an opportunity to achieve particular management objectives within the rotation strategy, in particular, to get the distribution of forest types in accordance with an adopted hierarchy of their commercial values, i.e. more valuable types have greater shares.     

Double trouble: health risks of accidental sewage release

Occupational health risks from long-term exposure to sewage are well documented [Am J. Ind. Med. 25 (1994) 59; Ann. Agric. Environ. Med. 81 (2001) 39; Am J. Ind. Med. 40 (2001) 170]. Some studies suggest an increase in the incidence of specific cancers [Am J. Ind. Med. 19 (1991) 75; J. Occup. Med. 36 (1994) 31]. There are also many reports of acute fatalities in confined spaces (sewage chambers and pipes) [H&S at Work 13 (1991), 10; FACE report: sewer worker dies when inflatable sewer plug bursts in Washington, DC, Performer, National Institute For Occupational Safety and Health, 19th July 1990]. In a residential area incidents of sudden sewage release can be regarded as double trouble because both the emergency service personnel and the local residents may be exposed to a galaxy of chemical and microbiological agents present in sewage. However, data on the effects of acute non-occupational exposure due to accidental sewage releases is still very limited. The incidents investigated here took place at two different locations in the southern part of the UK. In both incidents the symptoms experienced by those exposed were more serious than expected by the public health experts.     

Landscape--wildfire interactions in southern Europe: implications for landscape management

Every year approximately half a million hectares of land are burned by wildfires in southern Europe, causing large ecological and socio-economic impacts. Climate and land use changes in the last decades have increased fire risk and danger. In this paper we review the available scientific knowledge on the relationships between landscape and wildfires in the Mediterranean region, with a focus on its application for defining landscape management guidelines and policies that could be adopted in order to promote landscapes with lower fire hazard. The main findings are that (1) socio-economic drivers have favoured land cover changes contributing to increasing fire hazard in the last decades, (2) large wildfires are becoming more frequent, (3) increased fire frequency is promoting homogeneous landscapes covered by fire-prone shrublands; (4) landscape planning to reduce fuel loads may be successful only if fire weather conditions are not extreme. The challenges to address these problems and the policy and landscape management responses that should be adopted are discussed, along with major knowledge gaps.