Breathing Space Research Articles

Organic Metalogue Across Spaces and Places to Rethink Species Relationships in a Community of Practice

AbstractHow can we work with diverse cultures and diverse ways of knowing whilst enabling space for diversity? Metalogues can help to avoid (or remedy) misunderstanding, leaving ideas out, speaking for or over others. It provides breathing space between the stimulus of engagement and the process of coming up with an agreed upon output or outcome. This postcolonial and non-anthropocentric approach is rooted in collegiality and a recognition of our hybridity and interconnectedness with many species; as such it celebrates ‘entangled life’ (Sheldrake 2021) with Indigenous and non Indigenous academics, leaders and community practitioners, including farmers. The paper discusses the dynamic process. Could this process be considered multispecies neuroscience in action?

The Unproductive “Overconstitutionalization” of EU Copyright and Trademark Law – Fundamental Rights Rhetoric and Reality in CJEU Jurisprudence

In EU copyright and trademark law, the protection of the right to intellectual property is the rule, and breathing space for competing fundamental rights, such as freedom of expression and the right to a healthy environment, is the exception. While formally recognizing the need to balance protection interests against other fundamental rights and values, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) fails to use competing fundamental rights productively. Instead, the Court has developed a meaningless fundamental rights rhetoric that produces the false impression that there is sufficient room for all competing rights and interests within the existing copyright and trademark systems. However, the current configuration of EU copyright and trademark law fails to offer users the chance of meeting right holders as equals, even if their fundamental rights are of equal ranking in the Charter. By adding fundamental rights cosmetics to imbalanced protection systems, the CJEU only cements and further stabilizes the existing rule/exception edifice that is strongly in favour of right holders. Introducing the mantra of internal balancing – requiring the reconciliation of competing rights and interests within the confines of secondary copyright and trademark legislation – the Court has even created a considerable risk of sacrificing competing fundamental rights on the altar of the EU harmonization agenda. By letting the harmonization objective reign supreme, the CJEU has also given the three-step test in copyright law and the honest practices proviso in trademark law a quasi-constitutional status. As a result, these open-ended provisions undermine limitations of exclusive rights that could support competing fundamental rights. To remove the imbalances in current EU copyright and trademark law, it would be necessary to introduce upfront gatekeeper requirements that prevent illegitimate infringement claims from the outset when competing fundamental rights are at stake.

Complementary schools as ‘breathing spaces’: identity, multilingualism and critical pedagogies in heritage language education

Whilst mainstream schools in England may encourage multilingualism by insisting on the study of foreign languages, multilingual children are not always provided with support for the maintenance of their heritage languages and cultures. In response to this shortcoming, communities organise themselves to support their young members by setting up extra-curricular education institutions or associations, also called complementary schools, which contribute to the cultural and linguistic maintenance of minority communities. Through emblematic extracts from a fourteen-month ethnographic research in an Italian complementary school in London, this article examines how HL learners engage in and reflect on their multilingual practices and how they develop agency in their learning environment. The findings illustrate how critical modes of teaching and learning that make space for multilingualism can provide children with unique opportunities to discover, explore and experiment with their multilingual and multicultural selves, which, in turn, permit them to access linguistic resources and legitimise multilingual learner identities. Expanding on Fishman’s notion of ‘breathing space’, the article suggests that complementary schools represent a space where minority languages but also pedagogical practices can breathe and develop.

Uptake and engagement of a clinically moderated digital peer support platform to support the mental well-being older adults: a qualitative investigation.

The uptake of traditional mental health services among older adults remains low. Digital peer support offers older adults a resource for engaging with others to independently support their mental well-being. This qualitative study explored the uptake and engagement of a clinically moderated digital peer support platform (Breathing Space) for older adults with depressive symptoms and alcohol use concerns. Semi-structured interviews with 30 participants aged 60-80 years explored participants' uptake and engagement with Breathing Space, a novel, moderated, private, and anonymous peer support platform. Data were analysed using reflective thematic analysis and are discussed with reference to the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology2. Three themes were constructed to characterize participants' experiences: (i) navigating the complexities of peer-peer online engagement; (ii) the function of anonymity in online connection; and (iii) experiences of app features and content. Future development of digital peer support for older adults would benefit from the following: (i) co-design with older adults; (ii) providing choice over anonymity and increased options for interacting with peers; (iii) streamlining the basic functionality with popular platforms; (iv) providing options for users to curate their digital experience; and (v) providing telephone support for troubleshooting technical difficulties. Future research should explore the use of digital peer support among older adults who experience social exclusion challenges.

Green Infrastructure in Urban Settings: Bringing Together the Forest and Concrete Jungle

Landscape is a crucial part of any breathing space an urban area has. In this research paper, we go through a new wayof looking at landscapes integrating landscape at various levels in the urban fabric integrating vegetation on upperlevels which are accessible by escalators and lifts just like a metro station. Since most of the ground space has alreadybeen utilized the higher levels of urban space will be used for landscaping. these structures will be created of RCC andmodern precast units. where nature will take over and vegetation will be planted. They can be worked out to imitateforests and agriculture. So there will be no bias between the prehistoric world and the modern concrete jungle. Thiswill act as an overlap between the natural and manmade world. i.e. it will fall between the living and nonliving. Theimportance of research is to guide the traditional practices in a new way of looking at providing landscaping in urbanareas. It will no longer be a monotonous horizon. In some places sky will be visible and in some places it won’t be.there will be levels to it. Most visibility will be at the higher levels.

Breathing space amidst the permanence of racism in the academy

ABSTRACT This paper presents evidence that sheds light on both the limitations and the possibilities of race-focused staff forums that have formed across UK higher education as part of a response to equality legislation. Based on interviews conducted with 13 staff of color across two universities, this paper foregrounds critical race theory presenting evidence that these staff forums are often performative and fail to address needed structural changes. Despite this, there is also evidence of agency among members to struggle for an anti-racist university. This paper reveals varying perceptions and meanings to these forums, highlighting a tension. On the one hand, staff recognize the performativity of these initiatives. On the other, they also often value them as spaces of respite. The paper concludes that further examination of the perspectives and situated knowledge of members of these forums can offer valuable insights that can impact the creation and implementation of such spaces.

Role of Fluid Dynamics in Infectious Disease Transmission: Insights from COVID-19 and Other Pathogens

The spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 depends on complex fluid dynamics interactions between pathogens and fluid phases, including individual droplets and multiphase clouds. Understanding these interactions is crucial for predicting and controlling disease spread. This applies to human and animal exhalations, such as coughs and sneezes, as well as bursting bubbles that create micron-sized droplets in various indoor and outdoor environments. By exploring case studies in this regard, this study examines the emerging field of fluid dynamics in disease transmission, focusing on multiphase flows, interfacial flows, turbulence, pathogens, human traffic, aerosol transmission, ventilation, and breathing microenvironments. These results indicate that increased ventilation rates and local ventilation methods can effectively reduce the concentration of SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols in the immediate breathing spaces between individuals. In a displacement-ventilated room, both neutral and unstable conditions were more effective in removing breathed SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols from the air, regardless of the presence of test subjects. However, stable conditions may increase the risk of infection in individuals living in confined spaces. Thus, the findings of this study are useful for providing practical guidance for managing the spread of airborne infections. HIGHLIGHTS Fluid dynamics affect the transmission of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 This study explored multiphase fluid flow, aerosol dispersion, and respiratory zones Increased ventilation and local methods reduce SARS-CoV-2 aerosol concentration Displacement ventilation eliminates SARS-CoV-2 aerosols under unstable conditions Cramped and damp living environments can increase the risk of transmission of infection GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

380 Creating seamless clean breathing spaces for workers and communities: Impractical dream or a feasible reality?

380 Creating seamless clean breathing spaces for workers and communities: Impractical dream or a feasible reality?

Breathing space in a compact city: Impacts of urban re-densification on Mumbai's low-income housing environment

Redevelopment of low-income settlements by re-densifying cities is a common approach in the Global South to improve living conditions and tackle the housing shortage. However, the effectiveness of the housing design in redevelopment schemes remains to be questioned. This study evaluates a proposed design of a slum redevelopment project in Mumbai, India, by comparing the environmental performance of three design schemes: the existing low-income housing, the redevelopment scheme proposed by the local government and a hypothetical design (modified scheme) that aligns with positive environmental outcomes identified in the current literature. The environmental factors such as the natural airflow, incident solar radiation and daylighting parameters were assessed by computational simulations and validated by a wind tunnel experiment. These factors were associated with direct and indirect density metrics of the three design schemes to inform better policymaking for slum redevelopment projects that seek to re-densify housing for the urban poor. The results indicated that the design performance of the redeveloped scheme is less preferable due to the unclean indoor air and inadequate daylighting conditions requiring large-scale demolition of the existing buildings. The modified plan requires minimal demolishment and demonstrates relatively better environmental performance. The study revealed that indirect density measures - building geometry factors and urban form parameters - are essential in affecting the ecological performance of housing. Considering these factors in design standards and policymaking for high-density redevelopment schemes can enable the “Goldilocks density” that significantly improves the quality of living while densifying the cities.

Transient spaces, temporary alliances: harvesting breathing spaces in India’s sugarcane fields

ABSTRACT Marathwada is a historically drought-affected and caste-ridden region in Maharashtra, and a reflection of India’s story of exclusionary economic growth. Poor rainfall, extractive agrarian practices, and social exclusion have forced nearly one million marginal farm families and landless communities to harvest sugarcane in neighbouring districts. They are recruited in pairs, as a koyta, almost universally comprising husband and wife, and live and work on different sugarcane fields for six months a year. This article first describes the asymmetrical power relations and day-to-day practices of gendered public space that shape the lives of female cane harvesters as women, wives, and migrant labourers. It then illustrates the temporary friendships and inter-generational alliances that have emerged in these shared life/work spaces, referred to as ‘breathing spaces’: on their co-ordinated walks to complete morning ablutions in the open fields, in their shared kitchens outside their makeshift homes, and on the tractor-trailers that ferry them from one sugarcane field to another. Here, they express themselves and engage in both casual banter and serious discussion about their alcoholic husbands and abusive labour contractors, sexual and reproductive health problems, and even anxieties and dreams. It is in and through such smaller, transitory spaces within the larger spaces – in the absence of men – that the article presents the myriad ways in which the female koyta workers (re)produce social relations and reclaim their own little pockets of freedom to ensure safety, relief, and recovery. The article is based on a multi-sited ethnographic study, including inter-generational conversations, focus group discussions, stakeholder interviews, and thick field notes documented between October 2020 and August 2021.

Claiming breathing space for anthropology: Ethnographic responsibility in changing times

This article explores the challenges of maintaining ethical ethnographic practices amid the evolving bureaucratic regulations of research ethics. Drawing on the author's fieldwork experiences in Lesvos, Greece, during different periods, including the recent European ‘refugee crisis’, it reflects on the deep ethics inherent in the ethnographic encounter, shaped by long‐term commitments and mutual exposure between the researcher and interlocutors. It critiques the bureaucratization of research ethics, arguing that legalistic guarantees, such as consent forms, undermine the nuanced, context‐dependent nature of ethnographic work. By contrasting engagements with locals, activists and professional humanitarians, the author highlights the tensions between bureaucratic regulation and the need for a flexible, situated approach to ethics, calling for a critical assessment of ethical frameworks to preserve the ‘breathing space’ essential for responsible and insightful ethnography. The article advocates for resistance against one‐size‐fits‐all ethical regulations constraining the rich potential of ethnographic research.

Seismic Snapshots - First Quarter 2024 - PESA News Issue 172

PESA News 172 Seismic Snapshots. AEMO warns dieselpowered electricity looms without new gas supply; Harvester Energy awarded two North Sea blocks to progress patented small-field production system; CGG Aims to Hit High Notes with Hydrogen; New Report Reveals Australia's Material Use and Circular Rate; Finder given breathing space to find farm-in partner; Monitoring success: Shearwater supports production optimisation through award of two 4D seismic projects by Equinor; Shearwater Awarded Seismic Survey for CCS Project.

Crisis management in English local government: the limits of resilience

Research on local government in the UK during the era of austerity has shown that the decisions taken by local councils to cope with financial stresses were often narrated through the discourse of ‘resilience’, referencing their capacity to innovate and transform services, while protecting service provision in core areas. This emphasis on ‘resilience’ focused on the deployment of strategies to overcome funding challenges. However, this earlier research did not question the longer-term risks, trade-offs and negative social implications associated with such decisions, and how, even in circumstances where these practices provided some ‘breathing space’, in the longer-term they risked adding even more strain to the system as a whole. This article fills an important research gap by considering four resilience strategies of two local authorities in England: Leicester and Nottingham. These four strategies are: savings, reserves, collaboration and investment. Applying a meso-level perspective and exploring resilience through the lens of crisis management, it asks in what ways and for whom resilience generates positive, zero and negative-sum outcomes. This research enhances our understanding of the resilience concept by reflecting on its limitations and the risks it poses for local government. It also reveals that, while the concept of ‘resilience’ has been much criticised for normalising crises and generally operating as part of a de-politicising vocabulary, research is lacking on how the practices of resilience produce positive, zero or negative-sum outcomes.

Indoor pollution control based on surrogate model for residential buildings

Individuals typically spend most of their lives indoors, predominantly in spaces like offices and residences. Consequently, prolonged indoor exposure underscores the critical significance of maintaining optimal indoor air quality (IAQ) to safeguard one's health. The primary impediment to attaining efficient regulation of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is the challenge of monitoring the IAQ parameters, particularly within the immediate vicinity of an individual's breathing space. Current heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems lack the ability to rapidly predict and optimize the quality of indoor air. The objective of this study is to acquire the distribution features of indoor pollutants and precise indoor environment data in order to efficiently forecast and enhance the IAQ. To achieve this objective, a proposed surrogate model was developed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Notably, the Kriging surrogate model can rapidly predict IAQ while using a limited number of CFD runs. CFD are widely used as numerical simulation methods to obtain the accurate information. Surrogate models can rapidly forecast indoor environmental conditions using CFD simulation data simultaneously. Optimization algorithms can efficiently achieve desirable indoor ambient conditions, offering highly effective and intelligent control techniques for indoor atmospheric ventilation.

Breathing space for distressed businesses: a reconsideration of provisional supervision in Hong Kong

ABSTRACT Financially distressed companies may have a better chance of survival if there is a trusted and effective way of debt restructuring. However, Hong Kong lacks a statutory corporate rescue scheme, despite its rescue culture for struggling companies. Discussions on reforming Hong Kong's formal corporate rescue regime began in the 1990s, with several attempts to introduce a provisional supervision scheme. However, due to challenges in satisfying employees' entitlements, no legislative proposal on provisional supervision was enacted. This article proposes a novel solution by reforming Hong Kong's unemployment insurance regime to provide better protection for the unemployed and address the ongoing challenge of balancing the interests of employees and creditors. Additionally, the feasibility of introducing a debtor-in-possession option to Hong Kong's provisional supervision regime is examined to enhance the attractiveness and practicality of the corporate rescue rule for businesses in Hong Kong.

Are Formal and Informal Home Mindfulness Practice Quantities Associated With Outcomes? Results From a Pilot Study of a Four-Week Mindfulness Intervention for Chronic Pain Management.

The association between home mindfulness practice quantity in standard length mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and chronic pain outcomes is variable. Few studies focus on abbreviated MBIs (< 8weeks) and distinguish between formal guided practices and informal practices in daily life. To characterize home mindfulness practice and explore associations between home practice quantity and pre-to-post-outcome changes after an MBI for chronic pain. In this single-arm study, 21 adults with chronic pain (mean age = 54years, 81% White, mean pain duration = 7years) completed an MBI with four weekly group sessions. Pre and post self-report measures of pain intensity/interference, physical function, depression, anxiety, positive affect, sleep disturbance (all PROMIS measures), and pain acceptance, catastrophizing, perceived stress and mindfulness were completed, along with daily surveys of formal (mindfulness of breath, body scan) and informal (breathing space, mindfulness of daily activities) practice. Bivariate correlations and multivariable regression models were used to assess the association between days and minutes of practice and change in outcomes. On average, formal practice was completed on 4.3days per week and 13.5minutes per day. Informal practice was completed on 3.5days per week and 8.6minutes per day. Formal practice was not significantly correlated with outcomes (Spearman's ρ = |.01|-|.32|), whereas informal practice was correlated with multiple outcomes (ρ = |.04|-|.66|). Number of days practiced informally was associated with improved pain interference, physical function, sleep disturbance, and catastrophizing (p's ≤ .05). Number of minutes practiced informally was associated with improved pain interference, anxiety, positive affect, and catastrophizing (p's ≤ .05). Informal home practice quantity, but not formal practice quantity, is associated with improved outcomes during an abbreviated MBI for chronic pain. For these MBIs, it is important to evaluate the distinct roles of formal and informal practice. NCT03495856.

URBAN ACUPUNCTURE IN GUMUSSUYU PARK FOR RETHINKING GREEN AREAS WITH RECYCLING

Public spacesare spaces used by all individuals living in the city. For this reason, these areas must be capable of meeting the needs of all user profiles in society. Public buildings, parks, squares, streets, avenues and boulevards are the main urban public spaces. Squares, boulevards and streets are among the most important and dynamic elements of public spaces. These elements connect public spaces and structures, providing access to individuals living in the city, interaction and communication between individuals and make complementary and flexible interventions in public spaces, which are an integral part of the city identity that constantly changes depending on cultural and political changes in ensuring the sustainability of these areas. The literature focusing on the possibility of creating livable and lively spaces with intervention tools recommended by Habermas (2004) and Arendt (2006) presents urban acupuncture as a solution method proposed by Rubió (2008), Hoogduyn (2014), Casanova (2014), Casagrande (2015), Jooshani &amp; Polat (2019) and Nassar (2021). This study aims to develop Gu?mu??suyu Park in Istanbul, Turkey, as a living part of the city again. In this study, the urban acupuncture approach was used to improve the unused area in Gu?mu??suyu Park. The data for the study were collected through observations made during field trips and presented as visuals and documents. Problem definition and visualisation methods were used in the presentation format. The ideas put forward for Gu?mu??suyu Park will become a part of the park's life and a breathing space for people living there or those passing by.

Back in the Soup: Now What?

This article for AJAD presents the outlook for the world rice market as of early September 2023. It builds on my AJAD article from a year ago (Timmer 2022) and on multiple articles in the East Asia Forum (see Editorial Board, ANU 2023a, b). A year ago, the world was facing a severe food crisis. All the ingredients for significant shortages of food grains and vegetable oils were already boiling. An article in this journal at the time asked how to manage such a crisis (Timmer 2022). The answer was a series of steps designed to build confidence in the availability of supplies. Leadership was sought from Indonesia, chair of the G20 in 2022, and soon to be chair of ASEAN. Indonesia delivered (Editorial Board, ANU 2023a). World food markets remained relatively calm, rice prices actually declined for several months, and the world’s consumers breathed a bit easier. But the breathing space was short-lived. A combination of factors, especially the rampedup attacks by Russia on Ukrainian food export infrastructure and the emergence of a vigorous El Niño in Asian rice bowls, has led to renewed concerns about an impending food crisis. This time the focus is on rice, rather than wheat, maize, and vegetable oils. But rice is increasingly the “food of the poor” in Asia and in Africa (Timmer 2013). A spike in rice prices will cause widespread hunger.

Pomeranian language and resistance movements in digital spaces: Facebook pages as “breathing spaces”

Este trabalho apresenta reflexões desenvolvidas a partir de dados provenientes de Tese de Doutorado (Mazzelli, 2022) defendida no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Estudos de Linguagem da Universidade Federal Fluminense. Tem como objetivo apresentar reflexões sobre os movimentos de resistência da comunidade pomerana em ambientes digitais com base nos estudos de Belmar e Glass (2019). A pesquisa segue abordagem qualitativa e de base etnográfica em ambientes digitais (Hine, 2015; Barton, 2013 Fragoso, Recuero; Amaral, 2011), mais precisamente em 33 páginas da rede social Facebook ligadas à causa pomerana. Os resultados apontam que as páginas do Facebook analisadas podem ser caracterizadas como “espaços de respiro”, pois encorajam o uso da língua pomerana, de forma explícita e/ou implícita.

The Civil Society-Military Interface in the Protection of Civilians: the Bangsamoro Case

Abstract The peace process between the Philippine government and the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front provided breathing space for many communities and opportunities for calibrated civilian protection practices by the military and non-governmental organisations (ngo s). While the principle of non-intervention largely kept the imprint of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (asean) to a minimum, Indonesian and Malaysian brokering enabled the establishment of bridging mechanisms such as ceasefire monitoring committees to moderate the armed violence. A more permissive environment allowed ngo s to deliver humanitarian aid and acquire improved capacities for risk mitigation in the Bangsamoro region, aided in part by a shift in the Philippine military’s approach toward putting a premium on civilian consultation and dialogue. Despite these normative gains, the uptick in horizontal violence among rival clans and the military’s preference for the use of artillery fire as a conflict de-escalation strategy create enduring challenges for civilian protection on the ground.