Perceived Importance of Water Issues and Factors Affecting Learning Opportunities in Oklahoma

Water resource management is a critical natural resource issue in Oklahoma and as such, has received priority in Extension program design and implementation. While the content of outreach programs has been modified over the years due to changes in technology and knowledge, the mode of delivery has largely remained the same despite changes in audience preferences. For effective outreach, Extension professionals need to understand the factors that affect audience preferences for learning opportunities pertaining to water resource issues. Using a statewide survey administered in 2018, this study developed a typology of residents based on their perceived importance of water issues and assessed the factors affecting learning opportunities about water issues in Oklahoma. Cluster analysis revealed three distinct groups, which varied in terms of socio-demographic characteristics and preferences for learning opportunities. Residents’ drinking water supply attributes and demographic characteristics affected their preference for learning opportunities about water issues. The results suggested the necessity of tailored outreach efforts, which may help in planning and implementing effective educational programs for water resource management.

Regional socio-economic aspects in the field of coal mining

Over time, the discovery of the deposit, the exploitation and processing of coal has led to the development and prosperity of many areas called “coal regions”. In the last decades we have witnessed the closing process of many exploitation capacities (underground mines or open pit quarries) with complex socio-economic and even cultural impact in the coal region and on the continent. Debates for or against “coal” with related arguments, policies, strategies and measures at global, regional, national and local level integrate holistically from the “resource” issue to large dynamic systems (energy, climate, urbanism). The relationship between the coal industry and the socio-economic aspects is multifaceted and not yet fully explored. Our paper proposes a statistically documented research on regional development using representative socio-economic indicators. The paper is aiming to present the current socio-economic state in Jiu Valley micro-region, as a result of the structural transformations / changes in the coal industry of Romania’s largest hard coal-fired coal basin.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND RESOURCE FACTORS OF THE EMERGENCE OF NETWORK PROTEST OF THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE RUSSIAN NORTH (ON THE EXAMPLE OF YANAO)

The article examines social changes among reindeer herdsmen in Yamal that have provided the phenomenon of online opposition community “the Voice of Tundra”. The prevailing approach to social processes among Nenets tun- dra native people should be reconsidered according to the authors of the article. Based on the inputs provided with the help of field studies performed in Yamal- Nenets Autonomous Okrug (YNAO) in 2017–2019 the authors have formulated “the Yamal paradox”. The real reasons for the “Yamal paradox” are due to accumu- lated problems that have not been adequately resolved for a long time. First of all, it is unemployment among indigenous youth with a demographic growth among the Nenets. To this we can add the uncertainty of the life prospects of nomadic reindeer herders in the atmosphere of accelerated industrial development of the region, as well as the crisis of indigenous leadership and official organizations of indigenous peoples. Population growth among Nenets reindeer herdsmen, dou- bling of reindeer in number and intense industrialization of the region as well have led to a clash in interest of expanding fuel and energy complex and growing nomadic populations. The fundamental precondition of the unintended conflict was the land-resource issue. It was associated with the alienation and industrial development of the tundra lands, which the natives used as pastures for centuries. The process of re-valuation of the key issues and challenges that communities of indigenous people have come across as a result of quick transformation of YNAO into the new oil-and-gas province of Russia can be demonstrated due to the outcomes achieved. Re-valuating and attitudinal changing of native people have contributed to indigenous resistance. New media such as social network “VKontakte” have become a means of transmitting indigenous voice and anxiety.

Transnational Protocol Authority for Economic Gains in Water Management

Throughout human history, struggles over access and control of water resources have been a root cause of tension and armed conflict. In Middle Eastern scheming for power, water is viewed as a strategic resource, quickly becoming the dominant resource issue. As water shortages are acute and laden with emotive conflictual tones, this is exacerbated by the lack of a mechanism short of war or external governance for allocating the resource. A strategy based on economic efficiency gains will lead to improved equity and will reinforce any peace prospect. Some of the most conflictual issues may thus be settled through a rational and equitable foundation of incentives and institutions. An evaluation of the potential welfare gains under constrained conditions provides an assessment of economic incentive to be derived from an existential gap in multinational water basins.

Mycetoma in Timor-Leste and first report of nocardiosis

Mycetoma is a neglected tropical disease with an unknown global burden. Although considered endemic to South-east Asia, it has not previously been reported from Timor-Lest. We describe two cases in Timor-Leste, highlighting the challenges surrounding microbiological diagnosis and management shared by many low to middle-income countries. As characteristically described, both patients lived rurally and presented late with marked soft tissue involvement and multiple draining sinuses following a prolonged period of high morbidity. Nocardia brasiliensis, a beadedbranched, modified acid-fast, gram-positive bacilli, was isolated and confirmed by molecular testing in the first case. The causative organism in the second case could not be confirmed due to limited microbiological capabilities. Due to limited local laboratory capabilities, Nocardia spp. infection cannot be routinely confirmed in Timor- Leste. However, the microbiology laboratory is essential for the successful diagnosis and management of Mycetoma. In both cases, medical therapy alone resulted in cure and favorable outcomes, although supply of antibiotic remains an ongoing resource issue.

Involving Lead Users in Innovation: A Structured Summary of Research on the Lead User Method

Research on the lead user method has been conducted for more than thirty years and has shown that the method is more likely to generate breakthrough innovation than traditional market research tools. Based on a systematic literature review, this paper shows a detailed view on the broad variety of research on lead user characteristics, lead user processes, lead user identification and application, and success factors. The main challenge of the lead user method as identified in literature is the resource issue regarding time, manpower, and costs. Also, internal acceptance and the processing of the method have been spotted in literature, as well as the intellectual property protection issue. From the starting point of the initial lead user method process introduced by Lüthje and Herstatt (2004), results are integrated into a revisited view on the lead user method process. In addition, concrete suggestions for corporate realization options are given. The article closes with limitations and future research suggestions.