The city as a refuge for insect pollinators

Research on urban insect pollinators is changing views on the biological value and ecological importance of cities. The abundance and diversity of native bee species in urban landscapes that are absent in nearby rural lands evidence the biological value and ecological importance of cities and have implications for biodiversity conservation. Lagging behind this revised image of the city are urban conservation programs that historically have invested in education and outreach rather than programs designed to achieve high‐priority species conservation results. We synthesized research on urban bee species diversity and abundance to determine how urban conservation could be repositioned to better align with new views on the ecological importance of urban landscapes. Due to insect pollinators’ relatively small functional requirements—habitat range, life cycle, and nesting behavior—relative to larger mammals, we argue that pollinators put high‐priority and high‐impact urban conservation within reach. In a rapidly urbanizing world, transforming how environmental managers view the city can improve citizen engagement and contribute to the development of more sustainable urbanization.     

Implications of human value shift and persistence for biodiversity conservation

Large‐scale change in human values and associated behavior change is believed by some to be the ultimate solution to achieve global biodiversity conservation. Yet little is known about the dynamics of values. We contribute to this area of inquiry by examining the trajectory of values affecting views of wildlife in North America. Using data from a 19‐state study in the United States and global data from the Schwartz Value Survey, we explored questions of value persistence and change and the nature of attitudinal responses regarding wildlife conservation issues. We found support, based on subjects’ ancestry, for the supposition that domination is a prevalent American value orientation toward wildlife that has origins in European Judeo‐Christian traditions. Independent of that effect, we also found indications of change. Modernization is contributing to a shift from domination to mutualism value orientations, which is fostering attitudes less centered on human interests and seemingly more consistent with a biocentric philosophy. Our findings suggest that if value shift could be achieved in a purposeful way, then significant and widespread behavior change believed necessary for long‐term conservation success may indeed be possible. In particular, greater emphasis on mutualism values may help provide the context for more collaborative approaches to support future conservation efforts. However, given the societal forces at play, it is not at all clear that human‐engineered value shift is tenable. Instead of developing strategies aimed at altering values, it may be more productive to create strategies that recognize and work within the boundaries of existing values. Whereas values appear to be in a period of flux, it will be difficult to predict future trends without a better understanding of value formation and shift, particularly under conditions of rapid social‐ecological change.     

The role of digital data entry in participatory environmental monitoring

Many argue that monitoring conducted exclusively by scientists is insufficient to address ongoing environmental challenges. One solution entails the use of mobile digital devices in participatory monitoring (PM) programs. But how digital data entry affects programs with varying levels of stakeholder participation, from nonscientists collecting field data to nonscientists administering every step of a monitoring program, remains unclear. We reviewed the successes, in terms of management interventions and sustainability, of 107 monitoring programs described in the literature (hereafter programs) and compared these with case studies from our PM experiences in Australia, Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, Greenland, and Vietnam (hereafter cases). Our literature review showed that participatory programs were less likely to use digital devices, and 2 of our 3 more participatory cases were also slow to adopt digital data entry. Programs that were participatory and used digital devices were more likely to report management actions, which was consistent with cases in Ethiopia, Greenland, and Australia. Programs engaging volunteers were more frequently reported as ongoing, but those involving digital data entry were less often sustained when data collectors were volunteers. For the Vietnamese and Canadian cases, sustainability was undermined by a mismatch in stakeholder objectives. In the Ghanaian case, complex field protocols diminished monitoring sustainability. Innovative technologies attract interest, but the foundation of effective participatory adaptive monitoring depends more on collaboratively defined questions, objectives, conceptual models, and monitoring approaches. When this foundation is built through effective partnerships, digital data entry can enable the collection of more data of higher quality. Without this foundation, or when implemented ineffectively or unnecessarily, digital data entry can be an additional expense that distracts from core monitoring objectives and undermines project sustainability. The appropriate role of digital data entry in PM likely depends more on the context in which it is used and less on the technology itself.     

城市公园环境科学规划设计与生态保护研究

针对城市公园环境科学规划设计与生态保护探讨问题,文中介绍了城市公园环境科学规划设计与生态保护意义,探讨了城市公园生态环境保护的功效,并提出了城市公园生态环境保护的规划设计,主要包括城市公园生态保护的选址和城市公园生态保护的设计规划,在这个规划中主要提出了生态保护的优先设计系统、生物种类的多样性、要尊重生态保护的自然发展、要尊重生态保护的植物配置设计和要尊重生态保护的因地制宜设计,为城市公园环境科学规划设计与生态保护提出了建议.     

水专项"十三五"时期辽河流域水环境管理研究思路初探

以水专项在辽河流域实施的阶段性成果及辽河流域水环境管理现状为基础,分析"十三五"时期辽河流域水环境管理的需求,提出构建成套流域水环境管理技术体系和管理大平台、全面建设并优化水生态环境监测网络、实行水环境管理的动态调节机制和建立健全流域水环境管理长效机制的水环境管理研究思路,并指出研究应密切结合地方管理,充分发挥地方环境管理的责任主体地位,为水专项第三阶段"综合调控"战略目标的实现提供有力支撑.     

"十三五"期间地方社会发展领域科技发展思路研究

"十三五"时期,围绕安徽省资源环境领域科技创新紧迫需求.安徽省应重点在矿产资源绿色高效开发利用、水资源高效利用、地理信息产业、水污染防治、大气污染防治、土壤污染防治、生态环境治理、再生资源综合利用、环保装备等领域实施科技攻关.通过完善普惠性创新支持政策、增加多元化科技创新投入、加大公共产品供给、加强适应新常态的社会发展科技治理体系建设等途径,切实增强社会发展领域自主创新能力.     

生态城市特征性指标的辨析及其应用

生态城市是依据生态学原理提出的一类社会、经济、自然协调发展的城市.基于生态城市内涵建立的城市特征性指标对城市特征性要素的量化和评价,是将生态城市个性这一主观观念变为可操作性目标的主要途径.基于城市复合生态系统理论和生态城市"健康、安全和发展"内涵,探讨了生态城市特征性指标的辨析方法.以厦门为例构建了厦门生态城市特征性指标体系.评价结果揭示了厦门城市特有的生态环境和资源的总体状态为亚健康状态(0.69)、比较脆弱的中警状态(0.39)和一般持续的发展状态(0.63).与现实的分析调研结果相符.这表明生态城市特征性指标有助于研究者辨识和评价城市生态系统的特定复合特征,更有针对性地明确城市生态规划和建设的重点行动领域,从而为城市实施可持续发展战略提供决策依据.     

Post-license education for novice drivers: evaluation of a training programme implemented in Spain

INTRODUCTION: This study evaluated the implementation of a second phase training program for novice drivers in Spain, which puts the primary focus of the training on the higher hierarchical levels of driver behavior. METHOD: Two hundred and sixty-three participants took part throughout the study, which was implemented as an experimental design with the test and control groups assessed before and after the one day safety training. Measurement of the impact of the training program focused on the participants' self-evaluation and self-reporting of some driving behavior indicators related to accident risk. RESULTS: Data analysis showed a change in the expected direction in the scale related to the skills for careful driving, but not for the other four scales considered. A feedback survey about the training course offered some important input for evaluating the organization, contents, tuition, and results of the three parts of the training program (discussion group, on-road and track training) as reported by the participants in the test group. CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS: The results of the experiment show that using a one day driver safety course, it is possible to change some of the drivers' evaluations connected to safe driving style into safe direction. The follow-up period was exceptionally long (9 months) and the design (randomly divided experimental and control groups with before and after measurements) was reliable. More effort should be devoted to improving the on-road part of the training, which was often perceived as a typical driving lesson rather than a feedback drive. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: The findings suggest consideration of a mandatory 2nd phase driver training programme as a means to raise awareness of the full range of risks encountered by novice drivers, and as already introduced in 5 EU countries: Austria, Estonia, Finland, Luxembourg and Switzerland.     

有机化改性海泡石对六六六吸附性能的探讨

分别采用阴阳离子表面活性剂对海泡石进行有机化改性处理,并对改性海泡石进行了吸附六六六实验.结果表明,未经有机化改性的海泡石对六六六各异构体去除能力由小到大依次为:γ-六六六(12.66%)、δ-六六六(12.79%)、α六六六(17.35%)、β-六六六(33.57%).经DOSO3Na有机化改性的海泡石对六六六各异构体的去除能力由小到大依次为:β-六六六、γ δ-六六六、α-六六六.经CTMAB有机化改性的海泡石对六六六各异构体的去除能力由小到大依次为:β-六六六、α-六六六、γ δ-六六六.有机化改性海泡石使体系中β-六六六大幅度增加,可能为有机化海泡石催化α、γ、δ各异构体向β异构体转化.     

Critical perspectives of sustainable development research and practice

Sustainable development has been intensely debated for more than twenty years, but real progress of our societies to become more sustainable is very slow. Therefore this special issue provides a forum for critical perspectives of Sustainable Development Research and Practice. The papers are grouped into three clusters: a. Sustainability Science, b. Economic Problems and c. Corporate Contributions to Sustainable Development.Although a single special issue cannot address the entire array of issues pertaining to progress of sustainability related research, the selected papers highlight special aspects of sustainability research either due to their theoretical contributions or because they report on valuable empirical evidence. The main goal of sustainability research should be to contribute to our understanding of sustainability problems and to develop and help to implement solutions to solve them. This can be described as the relevance of sustainability research. A precondition to gain relevance is the rigor of sustainability science: it has to be based on solid scientific principles and methods. Additionally it has to be regarded that Sustainable Development is dynamic and that it has both normative and practical aspects. It is concluded that sustainability science and practice should be based upon these four central aspects: rigor, relevance, normative aspects and dynamic