Addressing Stakeholder Concerns Regarding the Effective Use of Bio-Based and Biodegradable Plastics

Bio-based and biodegradable materials have the potential to replace traditional petroleum-based plastics across a range of products and contribute to a more circular economy. However, the uptake of these materials will not succeed unless consumers, manufacturers, and regulators are convinced of their efficacy. Investigating performance and safety concerns put forward by academic and non-academic communities, this paper assesses whether these concerns are being adequately addressed by current policy and regulation. In addition, measures to overcome significant concerns are developed through a series of stakeholder engagement events, informed by the Prospex-CQI-and STIR methodology. Discussions across the stakeholder engagement events have highlighted several concerns that create barriers to market up-take of bio-based and biodegradable plastic products, including the continued confusion regarding terminology and resultant communication, difficulties in navigating the plethora of documents related to safety, the appropriateness of safety documents when applied to new products, and the overall suitability and sustainability of such materials as an alternative to traditional plastics. To overcome these concerns, a series of recommendations for research, policy, and practice are made with respect to the following key areas of concern: regulation and legislative instruments, material quality and performance, market penetration and availability, waste management infrastructure, sourcing and supply chain, communication and information provision, and material health and safety.

Download Full-text

Finding Synergy in Academe: An Interview With Dave L. Edyburn

Intervention in School and Clinic ◽

10.1177/10534512211014880 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 105345122110148

Author(s):

Randall Boone ◽

Kyle Higgins

Keyword(s):

Research Policy ◽

Professor Emeritus ◽

Policy And Practice ◽

Central Florida ◽

Use Of Technology ◽

Associate Dean ◽

And Performance ◽

Teaching Learning ◽

Theory Research ◽

The University

Dave L. Edyburn, PhD, is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Exceptional Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and more recently the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Community Innovation and Education at the University of Central Florida. His teaching and research interests focus on the use of technology to enhance teaching, learning, and performance. He has authored more than 175 articles and book chapters on the use of technology in special education, and his work represents a variety of contributions to theory, research, policy, and practice.

Download Full-text

Ensuring Quality Education to Promote Transition: A Summary of Existing Studies

Inclusion ◽

10.1352/2326-6988-6.4.258 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 258-273

Author(s):

Martin Agran ◽

Fred Spooner ◽

Colleen Robertson

Keyword(s):

Developmental Disabilities ◽

Research Policy ◽

Health And Safety ◽

Secondary Level ◽

Skills Training ◽

Future Research ◽

Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities ◽

Safety Skills ◽

Policy And Practice ◽

Research Areas

Abstract The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) hosted the National Goals in Research, Policy, and Practice working meeting in August, 2015, to identify key national policies, priorities, and practices to serve and support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) at the secondary level. The purpose of this article is to extend the discussion of several topics discussed at the meeting and suggest future research areas in the areas of: academic instruction; social skills training; balancing/aligning academic, functional, and transition education skills; importance of health and safety skills; extending common core standards to include functional and transition skills; teaching and realizing self-determination skills; preparing students with IDD for postsecondary educational opportunities; weighing the respective benefits of inclusive and community-based instructional activities; and promoting citizenship (teaching voting skills). To ensure quality secondary-level programs for students with IDD, the authors recommend that the above content areas be considered.

Download Full-text

“I Don’t Shag Dirty Girls”

American Journal of Men s Health ◽

10.1177/1557988314559241 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 128-140 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Mark Limmer

Keyword(s):

Sexual Risk ◽

Young Women ◽

Social Inclusion ◽

Research Policy ◽

Young Men ◽

Sexual Risk Taking ◽

Policy And Practice ◽

And Performance ◽

Socially Excluded ◽

The Impact

Understanding and addressing the sexual risk taking of young men remains a key research, policy, and practice concern in attempts to improve the emotional and physical sexual health of young men and their sexual partners. This article explores one of the ways in which young men attempt to mitigate sexual risk through the assigning of labels to particular young women and using these as a basis for their decisions in relation to sexual activity, contraception, and condom use. The article uses the lens of hegemonic masculinities theory to increase understanding of the role played by the construction and performance of marginalized masculinities and how these in turn are influenced by social exclusionary processes. The article draws on focus group and interview data from 46 young men aged 15 to 17 years living in the northwest of England, purposively selected on the basis of the prevailing policy definitions of social inclusion and exclusion. The article describes a form of marginalized masculinity pertaining to socially excluded young men, which as a result of limited access to other tenets of hegemonic masculinity, is disproportionately reliant on sexual expertise and voracity alongside overt demonstrations of their superiority over women. It is in this context that young women are assigned the labels of “dirty” or “clean” on the basis of a selection of arbitrary judgments relating to dress, demeanor, area of residence, and perceived sexual activities. The motivations of the young men, the impact on young women, and the policy and practice implications are all discussed.

Download Full-text