scholarly journals From petrochemistry to biotech: a European perspective on the bio-based economy

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurens Landeweerd ◽  
Monique Surette ◽  
Corry van Driel
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Energy Supply ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Industrial Biotechnology ◽  
Agricultural Crops ◽  
European Perspective ◽  
Food And Feed

This paper gives an account of the issues at play in Europe with regard to the transition to a bio-based economy. Agricultural crops have always been used for the production of food, feed, fibre and fuel. The Model T Ford—the first mass produced car—originally ran on bioethanol, and wood has been in use as a source for energy ever since the discovery of fire. What is new is that the balance between agricultural uses is changing under the pressure of an increasing need for food and feed, as well as the new need for biofuels and biomaterials. At the basis of this change lie several serious issues related to the current use of bio-based feedstock to secure energy supply, the future depletion of natural resources and global climate change. Innovations in industrial biotechnology are expected to play a crucial role in dealing with these issues in biomass use.

Resource extractivism, health and climate change in small islands

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 272-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hilary Bambrick
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Small Islands ◽  
Resource Exploitation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Climate Risks ◽  
Environment And Health

Purpose The extraction of natural resources has long been part of economic development in small islands. The damage to environment and health is extensive, even rendering once productive islands virtually uninhabitable. Rather than providing long-term benefits to the population or to the environment, the culture of “extractivism” – a nonreciprocal approach where resources are removed and used with little care or regard to consequences – has instead left many in far more fragile circumstances, increasingly dependent on external income. The purpose of this paper is to show how continued extractivism in small islands is contributing to global climate change and increasing climate risks to the local communities. Design/methodology/approach Through a series of case studies, this paper examines the history of extractivism in small islands in Oceania, its contribution to environmental degradation locally and its impacts on health. Findings It examines how extractivism continues today, with local impacts on environment, health and wellbeing and its much more far-reaching consequences for global climate change and human health. At the same time, these island countries have heightened sensitivity to climate change due to their isolation, poverty and already variable climate, whereas the damage to natural resources, the disruption, economic dependence and adverse health impacts caused by extractivism impart reduced resilience to the new climate hazards in those communities. Practical implications This paper proposes alternatives to resource extractivism with options for climate compatible development in small islands that are health-promoting and build community resilience in the face of increasing threats from climate change. Originality/value Extractivism is a new concept that has not previously been applied to understanding health implications of resource exploitation thorough the conduit of climate change. Small-island countries are simultaneously exposed to widespread extractivism, including of materials contributing to global climate change, and are among the most vulnerable to the hazards that climate change brings.

scholarly journals Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Inoculation Enhances Endurance to Severe Heat Stress in Three Horticultural Crops

HortScience ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Maxym Reva ◽  
Custodia Cano ◽  
Miguel-Angel Herrera ◽  
Alberto Bago
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Heat Stress ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Arbuscular Mycorrhizal ◽  
Fruit Production ◽  
Agricultural Crops ◽  
Severe Heat Stress

Global climate change is increasing temperatures worldwide, which greatly affects all biological relationships. Plant and soil ecosystems are also suffering in this new scenario, especially in semi-arid areas where water resources are limited. Regarding agricultural crops, temperatures that increase dramatically negatively affect fruit production and quality, making it mandatory to find sustainable practices to cope with these new situations. Symbiotic microorganisms in general and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in particular have been revealed as promising methods of alleviating stress that are respectful of the environment and soil equilibrium. In this work, we demonstrate the suitability of an ultra-pure, in vitro-issued arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculant for alleviating severe heat stress when applied to three important agricultural crops (tomato: Solanum lycopersicum L.; pepper: Capiscum annuum L.; cucumber: Cucumis sativus L.) under agronomic conditions. Inoculated plants had greatly improved endurance under heat stress because of increased vigor, productivity, and fruit quality. Considering the actual scenario of global climate change, our results shed a light of hope and indicate more sustainable cultivation practices adapted to global change.

Introduction – An Amphibious Anthropology: The Production of Place at the Confluence of Land and Water

2017 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karine Gagné ◽  
Mattias Borg Rasmussen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Political Economy ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Ways Of Knowing ◽  
Relational Ontology ◽  
Global Political Economy

Amid global climate change and an uneven global political economy that preys on natural resources, landscapes are reshaped at the confluence of land and water, concretely and abstractly. Focusing on the production of place, we suggest that at their point of convergence, there is relational ontology between land and water. This constitutive relationality is the basis of what we call an amphibious anthropology. By foregrounding temporality, movement, and ways of knowing, we aim to grasp the experience of places at the confluence of land and water and to probe into the specificities of life in such landscapes or into various amphibious anthropologies.

scholarly journals Time Series Properties of Some Climatic Variables in Dinajpur District

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-137
Author(s):  
MJ Rahman ◽  
JA Syeda ◽  
M Nasser
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Time Series ◽  
Natural Resources ◽  
Climatic Change ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Unit Roots ◽  
Cointegration Analysis ◽  
Statistical Tools ◽  
Local Climate

Several direct empirical time series investigations of global climate change and its impact have been studied by several world famous researchers. Some researches regarding local climatic change and its impact have been published but the time series properties of the variables related to national as well as local climate are yet to be able to have proper attention. The presence or absence of unit roots in these time series or inappropriate statistical tools may challenge the validity of the interpretations of their results and implies that cointegration analysis can be used to investigate the relation among variables. This article attempts to deduce time series properties of temperature, rainfall and humidity of Dinajpur district.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jesnr.v6i2.22109 J. Environ. Sci. & Natural Resources, 6(2): 127-137 2013

Energy Economics and Climate Change

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Energy Supply ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Energy Economics ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Rapid Expansion ◽  
Minimum Size ◽  
Chinese Government

Energy economics and global climate change–related issues are becoming more and more important in China. China is the world’s largest energy producer and consumer. The sustained growth of energy supply has provided an important boost to the country’s economic growth and social progress, while the rapid expansion of energy consumption has raised energy security concerns. At the same time, a still coal-dominated primary energy supply and a still growing economy lead to massive emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases. During the past 100 years, the Earth’s climate has experienced significant changes characterized by global warming. This global trend is also happening on a regional scale in China. The impact of climate change on China’s agriculture and livestock breeding, forestry, water resources, coastal zones, and many other natural eco-systems is evident, such as sea level rise in the coastal areas, glacial retreat in northwestern areas, and the earlier arrival of the spring phenophase. More frequent extreme weather events are occurring, such as drought in the north and more frequent rainstorms and floods in the south. To cope with the existing negative impacts of climate change, the Chinese government is adopting climate change adaptation policy measures, such as early warning systems for floods in coastal cities. To avoid global climate change, at the same time, mitigation measures are being implemented, such as energy efficiency improvements and a primary energy mix change toward low or zero carbon energy carriers. In 2020, China’s national emission trading scheme in the power sector is on schedule to be launched, initially for coal- and gas-fired power plants of a certain minimum size. In contrast to other countries, hardly any climate change skeptics are found in China. The existence of anthropogenic climate change is widely accepted in this country.

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