Police Training in Practice: Organization and Delivery According to European Law Enforcement Agencies

Police training plays a crucial role in the development of police officers. Because the training of police officers combines various educational components and is governed by organizational guidelines, police training is a complex, multifaceted topic. The current study investigates training at six European law enforcement agencies and aims to identify strengths and challenges of current training organization and practice. We interviewed a total of 16 police instructors and seven police coordinators with conceptual training tasks. A thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2006; Terry et al., 2017) was conducted and results organized in the two main themes evident across all six law enforcement agencies: organization of training and delivery of training. Results show that governmental structures and police executive boards are seen as the primary authorities that define the training framework in which police instructors operate. These administrative structures regulate distant and immediate resources, such as available training time, training facilities, equipment, and personnel. Within the confines of available resources and predetermined training frameworks, results indicate that police instructors thoroughly enjoy teaching, creating supportive and motivating learning environments, and applying their personal learning perspectives to training. Nonetheless, police instructors are critical of the level of training they are able to achieve with the available resources.

Challenging the sustainability of urban beekeeping using evidence from Swiss cities

Urban beekeeping is booming, heightening awareness of pollinator importance but also raising concerns that its fast growth might exceed existing resources and negatively impact urban biodiversity. To evaluate the magnitude of urban beekeeping growth and its sustainability, we analysed data on beehives and available resources in 14 Swiss cities in 2012–2018 and modelled the sustainability of urban beekeeping under different scenarios of available floral resources and existing carrying capacities. We found large increases in hives numbers across all cities from an average 6.48 hives per km2 (3139 hives in total) in 2012 to an average 10.14 hives per km2 (9370 in total) in 2018 and observed that available resources are insufficient to maintain present densities of beehives, which currently are unsustainable.

Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analyses reveal minor-yet-crucial roles of gut microbiome in deep-sea hydrothermal vent snail

Background Marine animals often exhibit complex symbiotic relationship with gut microbes to attain better use of the available resources. Many animals endemic to deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystems host chemoautotrophic bacteria endocellularly, and they are thought to rely entirely on these symbionts for energy and nutrition. Numerous investigations have been conducted on the interdependence between these animal hosts and their chemoautotrophic symbionts. The provannid snail Alviniconcha marisindica from the Indian Ocean hydrothermal vent fields hosts a Campylobacterial endosymbiont in its gill. Unlike many other chemosymbiotic animals, the gut of A. marisindica is reduced but remains functional; yet the contribution of gut microbiomes and their interactions with the host remain poorly characterised. Results Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analyses showed that the gut microbiome of A. marisindica plays key nutritional and metabolic roles. The composition and relative abundance of gut microbiota of A. marisindica were different from those of snails that do not depend on endosymbiosis. The relative abundance of microbial taxa was similar amongst three individuals of A. marisindica with significant inter-taxa correlations. These correlations suggest the potential for interactions between taxa that may influence community assembly and stability. Functional profiles of the gut microbiome revealed thousands of additional genes that assist in the use of vent-supplied inorganic compounds (autotrophic energy source), digest host-ingested organics (carbon source), and recycle the metabolic waste of the host. In addition, members of five taxonomic classes have the potential to form slime capsules to protect themselves from the host immune system, thereby contributing to homeostasis. Gut microbial ecology and its interplay with the host thus contribute to the nutritional and metabolic demands of A. marisindica. Conclusions The findings advance the understanding of how deep-sea chemosymbiotic animals use available resources through contributions from gut microbiota. Gut microbiota may be critical in the survival of invertebrate hosts with autotrophic endosymbionts in extreme environments.

Factors Affecting Profitability of Insurance Companies. Evidence from Kosovo

Profitability expresses the ability to make a profit from all the business activities of the company. It shows how efficiently management generates profit by utilizing all available resources. This paper examined the effects of specific company factors, namely independent variables such as: liquidity, company size, company age, tangible asset, leverage, company capital and growth of com-pany, on profitability represented by return on assets (ROA) and net profit margin (NPM) as a dependent variable. The sample in this study includes eleven insurance companies for the period 2015 - 2020. The regression results indicate that size, leverage and age of company, have significant effects on the ROA. Meanwhile in NPM of insurance companies in Kosovo size of company and firm growth have significant effects.

Development of Asahan River Tourism Activities in Support of National Tourism Strategic Area of Lake Toba

Following up on the Development of The National Tourism Strategic Area of Lake Toba, which was directed in the study "Integrated Tourism Masterplan for Lake Toba" (ITMP Danau Toba) in 2018, one of which was the development of river-based natural tourism attractions allocated in the Asahan Watershed including Asahan Regency, Tanjung Balai Municipality, Toba Samosir Regency, and Simalungun Regency. Regarding the policy of river-based tourism attractions, this research is focused on developing river tourism activities that will have implications for the development of the natural attraction of the Asahan River. This study has produced a mixed method of sustainable tourism development strategies by prioritizing the benefits of the ecological, socio-economic and cultural environment. Development is directed towards packaging special interest tourism products following the characteristics of available resources.

A review on maize-finger millet relay cropping in hills of Nepal: Prospects and constraints

Maize (Zea mays) and Finger millet (Elusine corocana) are two key staple crops grown in the hills of Nepal. These crops are planted in a relay intercropping system developed by farmers since the dawn of time. The unique example of cereal-cereal intercropping with its cropping system and cropping pattern at different altitudes is reviewed along with the yield comparison of direct-seeded and transplanted finger millet with maize. Relay cropping is the planting of second crop in the same land area before the harvest of first crop with the goal of higher productivity by sharing the available resources. Considerable research has been done on maize and millet but there has been a limited approach to their cropping system. This paper reviews the existing system of cropping, its prospects, and its constraints. The prospects of maize/finger millet cultivation are pronounced in the form of yield increment, economic and efficient use of available resources, insurance against crop failure, and reduced insect, pest, and weed incidence. Although this cropping system has benefits, it exhibits limitations as well which are competition between crops, lack of suitable varieties, labor-intensive system, and soil-nutrient loss. As maize and finger millet are the main food crops in hilly terrain, it is urged to provide the focus and encouragement regarding their sustainable and modern approaches by developing and disseminating crop growing and management technologies.

Information support for research of financial behavior of households

The article substantiates the need for the formation of appropriate information support for the study of financial behavior of the population, due to the lack of official statistics. Existing sample surveys conducted by research teams do not always meet the objectives of this study, and most of them are not publicly available. It is argued that today there are difficulties in obtaining accurate and reliable data that represents the behavior of individuals and households. Official statistics form databases on households in terms of income and expenditure, material well-being, investment behavior, employment structure, migration, health and nutrition structure, education and other indicators It is determined that when studying the financial behavior of the population, it is advisable to establish not only the results of decisions about spending money, but also the motives. The constituent sources of information on the peculiarities of the formation of income and expenditure by peasant households are systematized and proposals for their improvement are developed taking into account foreign practice. It is established that there is a difference between the domestic practice and the European approach to estimating the value of products produced for own consumption. was donated to relatives and others. It is substantiated that in order to form a system of information support for the study of financial behavior of households, it is advisable to conduct a special survey, which should form indicators of available resources and cash expenditures and savings. It is established that this approach will create an information database that displays complete information on the amount of available resources, which includes in addition to cash income estimates of natural consumption from various sources, as well as the amount of loans and savings, as well as information on consumption expenditures and savings within households.

The Role of Digitalization on the Internationalization Strategy of Born-Digital Companies

Digital technologies have led to born-digital companies, defined by their highly digitalized value chains, designed at their inception. Born-digital (BD) companies leverage digitalization across their value chains in the internationalization path. However, despite this emergence, very few empirical studies in international business literature have explained the impact of bricolage in conducting value chain activities and exploiting the internationalization strategy of BD companies. The present study responds to these omissions of how the digitalization of the value chain activities and the internationalization strategy enhance companies by allowing them to reach customers (users) and partners with available resources and less time. The results indicate that the digitalization of value chain activities facilitates the re-use and mixing of the resources at hand to overcome challenges, innovate solutions, or create new opportunities for international growth, in line with the bricolage theory. Overall, this study contributes to international business literature regarding, specifically, the behaviors of born-digital companies as they strategically approach internationalization efforts.

Patriotic Education in Post-Soviet De Facto States: Identities and Practices

The article considers specific features of official patriotism and patriotic education in post-Soviet de facto (unrecognized) stated. It discusses the question of how the official patriotic discourse reflects the issues of international recognition deficit and of scarcity of available resources. The author attempts to conceptualize patriotic upbringing in the light of de facto statehood, analyzes specific features of those identities that underlie the patriotic education in the context of de facto statehood as well as some aspects of implementation of patriotic education concepts in post-Soviet de facto states. The author concludes that the deficit of international recognition, scarcity of resources and uncertain prospects for future development make propagation of patriotic values more complicated while strong influence of a patron state and prevalence of double citizenships erode patriotic loyalties to some extent. Among specific features of patriotic education in post-Soviet de facto states are also the enhanced role of militarized practices and commemoration of “wars for independence”.