Percepción y conocimiento de la biodiversidad por estudiantes urbanos y rurales de las tierras áridas del centro-oeste de Argentina

Research on environmental perception is essential for the understanding of individuals' relations and expectations towards natural environments. Here, we evaluated the perception of high school students on exotic and native species in Brazil. We interviewed 371 students from two high schools located in the state of Goiás, one with and one without a protected area within its premises. Students needed to identify native and exotic species and to indicate species origin. We used a t-test to evaluate differences between students' scores regarding the correctness of species origin and also ANOVA to assess whether these scores varied among taxonomic groups. Students identified exotic species better than native ones. Students better identified exotic mammals, fishes, and birds than native ones. We found there were no significant relationships of students' knowledge of species' origins with socioecological factors. Students' perceptions of exotic and native species were low and focused on charismatic large-bodied species. We suggest that students are encouraged to expand their knowledge of local biodiversity. Teachers, local schools, and policymakers are essential to achieve this aim. A more diverse methodology for teaching, including new technologies and citizen-science projects, can help establish a genuine interest of local biodiversity students.

<i>Integrative Conservation</i>: A new journal from the conservation frontline

Invited article: The impacts of non‐native species: a review of the British Ornithologists’ Union's Autumn 2008 Scientific Meeting

This research is focused to know crisis management strategy at Internal Communication and Protocolaire division at PT Krakatau Steel (PT KS) Cilegon in handling a legal dispute case of Kubang Sari land between PT KS and Cilegon city government, to know the implementation program which are done by Internal Communication and Protocolaire division PT KS, and also to criticize the lackness of crisis management system conducted by Internal Communication and Protocolaire division PT KS. This research is qualitative research. The result of the research shows that the strategy which is used in handling the legal dispute crisis of Kubang Sari land uses social recoveryprogram, and law solution. Social recovery program is a short term program that are focused to solve crisis for public, government, Non Government Organization, mass media, and other stakeholders, to eliminate negative thoughts towards company, to acknowledge the problem that really happen, and to return back the companies image in society, through negotiation, compromize, and lobbying. Then, law solution program tent to handle crisis through law systems. From this research, it can be concluded that PT KS managemet crisis is well enough, but there are still many lackness in applying media relation, and PT KS’s public relation doesn’t have crisis plan in the form of manual book to solve sudden crisis. Keywords: Crisis, Crisis Management, Public Relations

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is a global phenomenon to which state governments have been forced to take unprecedented action. According to the scientific community, the most effective way to return to normalcy is to vaccinate a large percentage of citizens. However, the short period of time in which the first types of vaccines were created creates an insecurity and reluctance towards vaccines, which, however, is evolving into a global phenomenon. Of course, vaccine-related misinformation on coronavirus, which poses a serious threat not only to public health but also to national security and the global economy, also plays a role. Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate and clarify the risk of misinformation arising in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic vaccination. In addition, it carries out a development of the reasons that push the population to movements of distrust and challenge through a literature review in research studies that collect data on the anti-vaccination movement during the COVID-19 pandemic. This issue is a burning issue in everyday life and is of particular interest because it undermines the impact of media misinformation on disseminating false news and shaping views against public health and the well-being of the population, promoting panic and fear. Methods & Material: The material used for this study is a product of systematic review and critical evaluation of the most important published articles and studies in the international printed and electronic literature, as well as technical manuals and legislation by international governmental and non-governmental organizations regarding the risk of misinformation arising in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic vaccination. In order to approach the development of the anti-vaccination movement and its presentation through the media, as well as the risk posed by this issue for Public Health, the methodology of the systematic literature review was chosen, using the PRISMA analysis, studies of the international literature related to the issue. The search was conducted through the online academic research databases of Google Scholar, PubMed and Scopus, with the limitation that the studies have been carried out in the last 4 years. Results: Following the methodology of the PRISMA analysis and after the exclusion of some articles, the research ended up focusing on 11 articles that met the criteria of the research and which were included in the review. The results of the research showed that participants are not able to distinguish between true and false content of events and news posted and shared on social networks related to the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination issues. In addition, the dissemination of information seems to be guided by the interaction that characterizes each social media as well as by the specific patterns of interaction of user groups dealing with the issue. However, although social media is recognized as a major source of misinformation regarding COVID-19 and vaccination issues, the same problem is found in the print media and a more rigorous evaluation of the information by their authors is recommended. Finally, when the use of the Internet poses risks to public health, governments should develop strategies for controlling health information on the Internet, but without censoring the population. Conclusions: In the present systematic literature review, misinformation is evaluated as an important factor in dealing with the pandemic. Accompanied by false information, the content of the media and social networking is hampering the efforts of the global community. Although the World Health Organization (WHO) and other stakeholders are aware of the misinformation and are trying to reduce it, myths and rumors are widespread. This review identifies the carriers of misinformation and its possible effects during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eleven research articles published from 2017 to 2020 were selected, the findings of which misinformation appears to be a strong risk factor and a significant obstacle to tackling the global health crisis. Myths and rumors through traditional and new platforms of news and social media cause xenophobia, human rights violations and psychological disorders in the population. Despite the efforts of the World Health Organization, much more is needed to neutralize the effects of misinformation. Improved global health care policies and strategies are therefore recommended to combat misinformation and mitigate the related effects of COVID-19. Key-words: Vaccine Movement, COVID-19 Legislation, Misinformation, Mass Media, Public Health, Fake News, Conspiracy Theories

European society, with its steadily increased welfare levels, is not only concerned about food (safety, prices), but also on other aspects such as biodiversity loss, landscape degradation, pollution of water, soil and atmosphere. To a large extent these concerns can be translated into a wider concept named sustainable development defined as a normative concept by Morgan and Sonnino (2008). Sustainability in the food chain means approaching a new emerging vision of a sustainable agro-food system introducing an institutional dimension to take into account. Among different attempts to conjugate such concepts, there is one that is taking place in many Regions of Italy. In the last years spontaneous aggregations of consumers are developing. They are named Solidarity Purchase Group (SPG). In short, they are characterized by an economy, not necessarily local, ethical and equitable, where social and economic territorial relations tend to develop districts and networks. One of the main characteristics of a SPG is the direct relations between small farms, and their customers with a high content of participation and specialization. The study means to tackle issues related to organizational frameworks, at farm and chain level, and to assess those elements that mark consumer’s choices and satisfaction.

Impacts of invasive plants on soil fungi and on above- and belowground plant diversity in temperate forests

How to communicate on pests and invasive alien plants? Conclusions of the EPPO/CoE/IUCN‐ ISSG/DGAV/UC/ESAC Workshop

Post-2020 aspirations for biodiversity

A European Patent Indicator for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit-Sharing

Biodiversity in Bangladesh is deteriorating gradually due to many anthropogenic activities. Agricultural practices along with modern farming techniques causing depletion of biodiversity. The study was conducted to determine the impacts of agricultural practices on biodiversity in the study area. Cultivable land increase only 1% but total cultivable land came under irrigation. Cropping in wetland area got popular and increase 95% in term of land area. As water level goes down, digging pond in wetland area became a trend recently. Simultaneously, the use of submersible water pumps gaining popularity. Agricultural practices shift dramatically from inorganic fertilizer to organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer. The numbers of pesticides use reached three folds. On the other hand, floral and faunal species is losing its diversity in the study area. Total, 29% fruit plants, 38% timber plant and 42% medicinal plant species extinct. In case of fauna, 33% wild animal, 26% birds and 46% fish species extinct form the study area. People perception mentioned cultivation land used pattern, use of chemical fertilizer, pesticide etc. irrigation, cultivating hybrid, HYV and exotic plant, use of modern agriculture technology, habitat destruction, infrastructural development, urbanization etc. as the causes of loss of biodiversity. But, in this study finds most of the biodiversity caused by anthropogenic activities. Farmers of the study area have no training of any kinds of fertilizer using but they admit that conserving biodiversity is important. Anthropogenic agricultural effects on biodiversity are a field needs further research, particularly about the conditions where native and diverse species may sustain and flourish.

Sakai is the last remaining indigenous tribes in the south of Thailand, who lives together in small groups scattered in Bala-Hala forest that is a large rainforest with many rare plants and wildlife, occupies a large area at the boundary of Thailand to Malaysia. In Southern Thailand, the Sakai lives in the forest mountains of the Bantad mountain range in the provinces of Phatthalung, Trang and Satun. The area in the region is a tropical rain forest, which is fertile environment with lush vegetation, large trees, vines, herbal plants and abundant wildlife such as monkeys, langurs, flying lemurs, gibbons and wild boars. The biodiversity of the region is currently in danger from illegal logging and land encroachment from humans. Sakai is not wild, they have their own culture from their ancestors. But the difference is their social status and obtaining social welfare have not been attained yet. But they do not claim any rights but also satisfied of their status: a simple way of life in the forest, food from the wild forest and hunting. But what Sakai want more than anything else is the consciousness of the people and life in the city and stop the destruction of forests, to enable Sakai remain with the wild forest. At present, there is a few of the Sakai who lives at this village, the rest of the group has moved to other areas. The main reason that they have to evacuate, lack of food supply, death of someone in the tribe, the biodiversity of the region is currently in danger from illegal logging and land encroachment from humans. These developments are decreasing the amount of forest coverage and reducing food resources disrupting the natural food chain of the region and unrest in the area while the government sector lacks of continues support for them. The essence of this creative artwork is also to understand why after a series of attempts by the Thai government to educate, develop and civilize the Sakai, they still are very much adamant to change and prefer maintaining their long standing culture and primitive way of life. The Sakai have a way of life unique to them only and are strongly attached to their culture that even the advancement of science, technology and innovation cannot deter their ways. This creative art work therefore seeks to provide a better understanding on the tradition and cultural adherence of the Sakai which has brought about social stratification and disintegration in the Southern parts of Thailand. So, the purpose of this creative artwork is to promote the conservation and cultural identities of Sakai that will be presented through 2D animation (short film), to the audience understand their survival and to support them without disturbing their lives. This creative work is followed the production pipeline of a typical animated short that can be divided into three stages; 1. In Preproduction, the phase of further developing ideas and planning prior to the process of production including Visual Design: Character Design, BG Design, Storyboard and Animatic. 2. In Production, the actual work can start, based on the guidelines established during Preproduction. Some major parts are layout, modeling, texturing, lighting, rigging and animation with the techniques of creating 2D animation including Separating elements and line work. 3. Postproduction is the third and final step in animation film creation, it refers to the tasks that must be completed or executed after the filming or shooting ends. Some major parts are production are compositing with the multi-level techniques, sound editing and video editing. Keywords: creative artwork, the creation process, 2D animation, animation pipeline

Networks of protected areas are fundamental for biodiversity conservation, but many factors determine their conservation efficiency. In particular, on top of other human-driven disturbances, invasions by non-native species can cause habitat and biodiversity loss. Jointly understanding what drives patterns of plant diversity and of non-native species in protected areas is therefore a priority. We tested whether the richness and composition of native and non-native plant species within a network of protected areas follow similar patterns across spatial scales. Specifically, we addressed three questions: (a) what is the degree of congruence in species richness between native and non-native species? (b) do changes in the composition of non-native species across ecological gradients reflect a similar turnover of native species along the same gradients ? (c) what are the main environmental and human disturbance drivers controlling species richness in these two groups of species? Species richness and composition of native and non-native plant species were compared at two spatial scales: the plot scale (10 m × 10 m) and the Protected Area scale (PA). In addition, we fit Generalized Linear Models to identify the most important drivers of native and non-native species richness at each scale, focusing on environmental conditions (climate, topography) and on the main sources of human disturbance in the area (land use and roads). We found a significant positive correlation between the turnover of native and non-native species composition at both plot and PA scales, whereas their species richness was only correlated at the larger PA scale. The lack of congruence between the richness of native and non-native species at the plot scale was likely driven by differential responses to fine scale environmental factors, with non-natives favoring drier climates and milder slopes (climate and slope). In addition, more non-native species were found closer to road-ways in the reserve network. In contrast, the congruence in the richness of native and non-native species at the broader PA scale was mainly driven by the common influence of PA area, but also by similar responses of the two groups of species to climatic heterogeneity. Thus, our study highlights the strong spatial dependence of the relationship between native and non-native species richness and of their responses to environmental variation. Taken together, our results suggest that within the study region the introduction and establishment of non-native species would be more likely in warmer and dryer areas, with high native species richness at large spatial scale but intermediate levels of anthropogenic disturbances and mild slope inclinations and elevation at fine scale. Such an exhaustive understanding of the factors that influence the spread of non-native species, especially in networks of protected areas is crucial to inform conservation managers on how to control or curb non-native species.

Exotic and invasive species are considered the second major cause of biodiversity loss in the world. In addition to damage to native biodiversity, impacts caused by exotic species can affect ecosystem services and socioeconomic activities. The Patos-Mirim lagoon system (PMLS) has great ecological importance and supports important socioeconomic activities in southern Brazil. This study aimed to compile historical records of the occurrence of exotic aquatic species in PMLS and to synthesize this bioecological information, means of introduction of such species, main impact mechanisms, and undertaken management measures. The data were obtained by a bibliographical review using the official list of Invasive Exotic Species of the Rio Grande do Sul State, the National Base of Invasive Exotic Species (Hórus Institute), and scientific information. We found records of 26 exotic aquatic species in the PMLS. Actinopterygii was the most representative (11 species), followed by Hydrozoa (three), Malacostraca (two) and Bivalvia (two), and other eight classes with only one species each. In total, nine species that had been registered in the study area were ignored by the official list of exotic species for the region. The main ways of introduction were associated with socioeconomic activities, such navigation and aquaculture. The main impact mechanisms of exotic aquatic species refer to competition (85% of species) and habitat modification (46% of species). Despite the undertaken management measures, occurrence of exotic aquatic species is growing and may seriously threaten native biodiversity and its ecosystem services.

Non-native plant species are being introduced to ecosystems worldwide at an unprecedented rate. Many of these non-native species become invasive by spreading across their introduced ranges and impacting native biota, ecosystems and human societies. However, the impacts of the majority of non-native plant species remain unquantified. Moreover, the mechanisms that underpin the spread and impact of non-native plants are unclear, which hinders our ability to predict and mitigate impacts. The aim of this thesis is to improve our understanding of these mechanisms. To achieve this, experiments were conducted in the lab, greenhouse and field; across local, regional and global scales. The findings of this thesis add to mounting empirical evidence that contradicts prevalent assumptions in invasion ecology. Results showed that invader density is rarely proportional to impact and that changes to soil properties resulting from plant invasion reduced litter decomposition rates, while changes in litter quality had no effect. There was no evidence for belowground enemy release in driving the spread of three widespread invasive grasses in New Zealand, although biogeographic differences in soil biota influenced invasive species responses to nutrient enrichment. There was strong evidence that belowground competition underpinned the impact of a widespread invasive grass on native species, regardless of nitrogen availability. Most surprisingly, dominant native and non-native species did not differ in specific leaf area or leaf %N across natural or nutrient enriched grasslands worldwide. Since these traits are indicative of plant growth strategies, this suggests successful native and non-native grassland species exhibit similar growth strategies. However, non-native species showed higher leaf %P and %K, along with lower leaf %C than native species. These findings have contributed to unpicking some of the complex mechanisms that underlie the spread and impact of invasive plants. They also demonstrate that a more nuanced understanding of plant invasions is needed to protect biodiversity and ecosystem functions in an era of rapid global change.