ABSTRACT This article explores the relationship between the Amadiba Crisis Committee (ACC), a rural movement from Xolobeni, South Africa, and a non-governmental organisation, Sustaining the Wild Coast (SWC). The ACC was able to successfully prevent mining and other extractivist development projects in Xolobeni which they believed threatened existing livelihoods in the area. Their mobilisation was supported by civil society allies such as the SWC. The SWC’s support has included facilitating access to media and civil society networks located in urban areas and using these networks to access information and other resources. Other studies of the relationships between social movements and NGO allies highlight several risks involved in such collaboration such as depoliticisation or deradicalisation. We argue that in the case of the ACC and SWC, these risks were mostly averted. We explore how the SWC was able to support the ACC’s activism by facilitating access to information, building networks, providing oppositional research, helping articulate an alternative vision for development and maintaining separation between the ACC and SWC. We conclude that the SWC’s involvement has been supportive of the ACC and helped to establish it as a powerful force with the ability to shape local development, policy and public discourse.

ABSTRACT Multi-variety and small-batch production is widely used in modern manufacturing. Monitoring the machining process in such systems is crucial for improving efficiency and reducing costs. However, most existing monitoring methods rely on intrusive sensors which often require equipment modifications and increase costs. Additionally, many methods can only determine the machining state after all operations on a machine are completed, making real-time monitoring difficult. The small sample size characteristic also limits the effectiveness of conventional machine learning approaches.Therefore, a real-time machining state monitoring method based on transfer learning and power signal is proposed. The input power of the machine tool is used as the original data, whose acquisition is non-intrusive. The power signal is segmented using the Bayesian online change point detection algorithm and converted into recurrence plots for state monitoring model. A transfer learning–based model is then developed to identify machining steps and processes using only a small amount of training data. Power signal features are extracted using frequency domain analysis and recurrence quantification analysis. Finally, machining anomalies are detected using a Z-score variant algorithm. Case studies show the proposed method achieves a monitoring accuracy of 97.1%, enabling effective real-time state monitoring in multi-variety and small-batch production systems.

The greening of cement industry has become a necessity and obligation in many countries and the Global Green Cement market is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 9.9% in the 2024-2032 period. The race for more sustainable concretes includes a number of key strategies, such as the substitution of cement/clinker with other cementitious materials. In the current research a CEMI (complying with EN197-1:2011) based industrial mix of self-compacting concrete (SCC) is modified with an experimental mix based on CEMII/B-M(P-W-L)42.5N conforming to EN 197-1:2011. The experimental mix presents a dual reduction in CO2 footprint, since not only it is formulated with CEMII, instead of CEMI, but it also contains 320 kg of CEMII/m 3 instead of 420 kg of CEMII/m 3 , by substituting the remaining mass of binder with emery powder. nanoparticles of silicon dioxide (nanosilica) and 12 mm polypropylene fibres were also added. The 7-day compressive strength reached 45 MPa and the 28-day strength reached 51 MPa, marginally lower than that of the industrial mix (60.3 MPa). The performance of nanosilica is discussed. Selected fresh properties in terms of density, slump-flow, air entrainment and strength testing, coupled with surface morphology observations with the use of stereo microscopy shed light into the potentials of such sustainable SCC mixes.

Purpose Building a healthy city that is conducive to improving residents' mental health is a current hot topic in the field of urban research on human health issues. The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive summary of research on the associations between the urban environment and mental health on the basis of bibliometrics. Design/methodology/approach VOSviewer software is used to analyze 129 publications from the Web of Science core dataset. Findings (1) Urban environmental exerts its health benefits by increasing exposure levels, providing ecological service functions and additional benefits. (2) Meditation, as an active intervention factor, reinforces the health benefits by strengthening the human-nature connection and enhances the effects of nature exposure. (3) There are some contradictions between existing examples of meditation-space cases and theoretical knowledge. Originality/value Some evidence has shown that more research is needed to understand the internal principles when meditation and the environment are superimposed, including examining the specific composition of environmental elements and clarifying the impact of environmental preferences on the willingness to meditate. The theoretical basis can then be fed back into urban design to improve mental health through active intervention.

The operation of Indonesian schools abroad reflects broader tensions between national identity formation and the cultural forces shaping transnational education. Yet, insufficient attention has been given to how multicultural learning is negotiated in diaspora early childhood settings. This study interrogates the implementation of multicultural education at Sekolah Indonesia Kuala Lumpur (SIKL), examining the mechanisms by which teachers strategically integrate local Malaysian wisdom into the character formation of Indonesian kindergarten students while maintaining core national values. Employing a qualitative case study design, the research draws on participant observation of classroom routines, in-depth interviews with teachers, and systematic document analysis, with data interpreted through the interactive framework of Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña to capture processes of cultural mediation. The findings reveal a pedagogical formation conceptualized as blended habituation, in which teachers function as cultural brokers who mediate the dialectical relationship between Indonesian cultural values and Malaysian local wisdom, navigating nuanced sociocultural differences while enabling the coexistence of Indonesian moral frameworks with Malaysian public norms, such as disciplined queuing and regulated collective silence. These dynamics cultivate a functional hybrid identity aligned with the notion of Cross-Cultural Kids (CCKs), positioning transnational early childhood environments as formative sites for cosmopolitan nationalism and underscoring the imperative for diaspora curricula to move beyond preservation toward deliberate cultural accommodation in fostering adaptive competence.

Gazi Street, located in the historic Sur district of Diyarbakır, has served as the centre of the city's commercial and social life for many years. This study examines the street's historical development, spatial design, and the renovation and transformation processes that have shaped its contemporary identity. The main objective of the research is to determine analytical criteria that can be applied to street rehabilitation in historical areas and to evaluate the applicability of these criteria using the example of Gazi Street. Due to its historical and cultural values, Diyarbakır was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2015 under the title ‘Diyarbakır Castle and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape’. In this context, the conservation of areas such as Gazi Street is not limited to the conservation of physical fabric; it also encompasses the sustainability of the social, cultural, and economic dynamics that constitute the city's living heritage. In this regard, the research prioritises the conservation of architectural authenticity and the development of pedestrian-oriented spatial arrangements. Methodologically, the study utilized literature review, archival document analysis, and GIS-based spatial and functional assessments. The findings reveal that the Gazi Street renewal initiative exemplifies a context-sensitive conservation approach based on balancing the conservation of historical identity with the adaptable requirements of contemporary urban life.

Integrated behavioral health (IBH) is an evidence-based approach to addressing mental health in primary care settings. It typically involves augmenting a primary care team with a behavioral health professional (e.g., psychologist, licensed clinical social worker) who sees patients for brief, focused concerns; can function as a bridge to specialty care; and provides medical providers with support and education about patient behavioral health concerns. IBH has slowly begun to disseminate across the United States, but practices encounter significant implementation barriers. How IBH is implemented has not been systematically studied outside of trials, yet this study could provide a rich foundation for selecting and optimizing implementation strategies that can increase the speed of IBH scale-up. Using rapid ethnographic assessment (REA), we conducted site visits, interviews, and surveys at a stratified sample of five primary care clinics in three different healthcare systems in two Midwestern states. We coded the data in a primarily deductive analysis approach using Stephens' IBH Cross-Model Framework (CMF) to characterize the IBH intervention; the Practical, Robust Implementation and Sustainability Model (PRISM) to characterize implementation barriers and facilitators; and the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) taxonomy of implementation strategies. Using a matrixed multiple case study design, we identified implementation strategies that clinics found effective in implementing and sustaining IBH. Despite geographic variability, the clinics primarily served low-income and-resource populations. A strong pattern emerged regarding common IBH aspects targeted for internal implementation support, associated barriers, and strategies used for them. Successful implementation strategies included accessing additional funding for start-up, creating new clinical teams, revising professional roles, promoting adaptability, facilitating relay of data to clinical providers, and purposely reexamining the implementation process. The Normalization Process Theory (NPT) mechanisms of coherence, cognitiveparticipation, collective action, and reflexive monitoring were all clearly identified in successful implementations. Implementation of IBH is an ongoing process of implementing, maintaining, and improving many specific processes. People with knowledge of the IBH practice model and desire to implement and sustain it are critical, as are policies and programs that support initial and ongoing implementation, and an organizational culture that embraces IBH as its standard of practice.

The Model for Improvement is a quality improvement (QI) method widely use in health and social care. It comprises two stages: first, the QI project team answers three questions to determine what the issue is, decide how improvement will be measured and collate ideas for change; then second, the team conducts plan, do, study, act (PDSA) cycles to test its ideas. Sufficient understanding of this methodology is essential for nurses, particularly nurse leaders and managers, whose roles include fostering QI. This article describes the Model for Improvement and how it can be applied in practice settings. The methodology is illustrated by a fictional case study on a nurse-led QI project for improving tracheostomy care.

Graphical abstract Source: Authors’ own work A conceptual schematic compares sand and Z O T use for foundations, showing strength gain, carbon dioxide reduction, sustainability, and a cross-waste return to a tailing site. The schematic presents the concept of foundation construction using sand and Z O T material. Sand is shown linked to a foundation grid. Z O T is shown as a recovered resource used for foundation construction and transported by truck. A check mark indicates suitability for foundation use. An upward arrow indicates increased strength. A downward arrow with C O 2 indicates reduced carbon dioxide. Symbols representing environmental sustainability and stakeholder interest are shown above the Z O T scheme. An arrow from Z O T toward a tailing waste site is marked with a cross symbol. The tailing waste site is labelled waste and marked hazardous with a warning symbol. A legend lists foundation, environmental sustainability, stakeholder interest, resource recovery, tailing waste site, and hazardous. Purpose This study aims to assess and compare the environmental impacts of using zinc tailings versus sand as structural filling material. The study also aims to check the effect of transportation distance on the environmental impacts generated by zinc tailings. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a three-step methodology in accordance with the life cycle assessment framework. Environmental modeling of both systems has been done using the OpenLCA software. The results are presented in 11 midpoint and three endpoint environmental impact categories. The study has used primary data from a real-world case study in India and secondary data from the Eco-Invent 3.9.1 database. Monte Carlo simulation has been used to explore the sensitivity of results to transportation distances. Findings The analysis reveals significant environmental advantages of zinc tailing utilization all midpoint and endpoint categories, including a 94% reduction in climate change impact and a 52% decrease in terrestrial acidification compared to sand foundations. Findings indicate that even with varying transport distances, zinc tailing use remains environmentally beneficial overall. Research limitations/implications This study does not compare the economic and social impacts of this repurposing of mining waste. Originality/value This research contributes to the growing body of knowledge on sustainable mining practices and circular economy principles in construction. It demonstrates the potential of repurposing mining waste to address environmental challenges while providing an alternative construction material.

ABSTRACT The translations of the folk literary work entitled The Epic of Baeuqloxdoh have attracted considerable attention in China, with three English-translated versions available. This article probes into their international dissemination, demonstrating that the translations by Australian scholar D. Holm have gained significant recognition in the receiving literary culture, whereas those by Chinese translators remain marginal within the same context. To interrogate this disparity, we integrate insights from Genette’s paratextual theory and Bourdieu’s sociology to explore how paratexts contribute to the reception and how their creation is conditioned by the capital accumulated by patrons and agents. Based on the findings, we suggest that when translating Chinese ethnic minority folk literature, Chinese translators should consider the importance of paratextual mediation for its international dissemination, and domestic patrons and agents should cooperate with foreign counterparts as the latter often possess forms of capital more readily convertible within the target literary field.

ABSTRACT This paper critically and comprehensively examines whether gender equality qualifies as a norm of jus cogens within international law. It utilises the Afghan ‘Law on the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, 2024’ as a case study to contend that the global legal conscience increasingly recognises gender equality as a peremptory norm. The study illustrates how gender equality is both widely recognised and ingrained in customary international law through doctrinal analysis and a synthesis of key international legal instruments, such as the UDHR, ICCPR and CEDAW. Further, the paper examines philosophical foundations derived from Rawls’ theory of justice and emphasises the normative dominance of jus cogens over religious and cultural relativism. It is demonstrated how gender equality represents the fundamental principles of the global community by tracing the development of gender rights in state practice and human rights jurisprudence. Conclusively, it is established that recognising gender equality as an emerging jus cogens norm moves discriminatory legislation toward constitutional incompatibility and places an increasing universal obligation on nations to respect and implement this principle. This development strengthens international commitments to justice, human rights, and dignity, while signalling that states must progressively align their legal systems with this evolving peremptory standard.

Globalization and the increasing involvement of cross-national actors in the hospitality industry have created multicultural work environments that require effective intercultural communication. Differences in cultural backgrounds between expatriate management and local employees may generate communication barriers that affect organizational effectiveness. This study aims to explain the forms of intercultural communication barriers that occur between expatriate management and local staff at Bali Garden Beach Resort. The study adopts a qualitative approach using a case study method based on Yin’s case study design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with expatriate and local informants and were analyzed using Edward T. Hall’s Intercultural Communication Theory, particularly the concepts of high-context and low-context culture. The findings indicate that intercultural communication barriers arise from differences in message delivery styles, interpretations of verbal and nonverbal communication, perceptions of hierarchy, as well as orientations toward time and work professionalism. These cultural differences are often not recognized as cultural issues but are instead perceived as individual attitude or performance problems. This study highlights the importance of strategically managing intercultural communication in multicultural hospitality organizations.

Information globalization has fundamentally transformed the structure and practice of political communication in contemporary democracies. Rapid, cross-border digital information flows mediated by global media platforms have weakened the capacity of states and political parties to control public narratives. Political communication no longer operates within centralized and hierarchical spaces, but rather within fragmented and competitive digital public spheres. This study aims to analyze how the Golkar Party, as an established political party, conducts political communication in the context of information globalization and the weakening role of the state. This research employs a qualitative approach within a constructivist paradigm using a case study design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with local Golkar Party elites and document analysis, and analyzed using critical discourse analysis. The findings indicate that Golkar’s political communication functions as a process of mediated meaning negotiation within digital media environments. Political power is no longer derived solely from formal institutional structures, but increasingly depends on media visibility and public trust. The Golkar Party adopts a hybrid political communication strategy by combining organizational structures with adaptive digital communication practices. This study concludes that political communication of established parties in the era of information globalization should be understood as a dynamic and relational arena of mediated power, where political legitimacy is continuously negotiated within digital public spaces.

This article examines the relationship between gender representation in planning authorities and the inclusivity of urban policies, using Newcastle upon Tyne, a rare case of a female-dominated city planning department, as a critical case study. Drawing on feminist urban theory, this research employs a three-phase methodology, a policy review, participatory workshops and expert interviews, investigating how gender identity shapes urban experiences and whether increased female representation at decision-making levels translates into gender-responsive planning outcomes. The findings suggest that, despite shifts in gender composition at leadership levels, institutionalised planning frameworks may still reproduce gendered biases, underscoring the need for structural policy reforms.

Abstract Democratic innovations have gained popularity in Finland, especially during the last 15 years, at the national and subnational level. However, research on Finnish democratic innovations is still fragmented, focusing on isolated methods, case studies, and experiments. Our article aims to provide a first comprehensive outlook of the diffusion of democratic innovations in Finland. From the 1980s onwards, we identify five legislative milestones that illustrate the gradual institutionalisation of various innovations. Furthermore, we trace the historical roots of three sets of innovations – direct democratic instruments, participatory budgeting, and deliberative mini-publics – and describe their scope and patterns of dissemination. Our inspection shows that democratic innovations have created truly novel channels for citizen influence, but their impact varies greatly. While policymakers still have doubts of citizens’ competences, our analysis suggests a growing role for democratic innovations in Finnish politics, supported by their institutionalisation as well as pragmatic adaptation.

Microbial bioactivators for the accelerated composting of agricultural wastes: a case study on sugarcane bagasse

Active retrieval leads to better learning outcomes than passive study. This perspective, in which we analyze 23,850 publications, reveals an increasing focus on the educational applications of this testing effect but limited attention to subpopulations with learning disabilities. Using dyslexia as a case study, we identify theoretical grounds to question whether testing effects generalize universally, highlighting the need for empirical research. Future research should examine benefits of testing in neurodiverse learners to develop tailored interventions.

In multicolor painting for interior and exterior building finishes, a topcoat is often applied to protect the surface. Because topcoats are transparent, it is difficult to confirm whether one has been applied visually. However, Korean courts use empirical methods to determine whether topcoats have been applied in housing defect litigation. Typical empirical methods include observing gloss and assessing water-repellent properties. Pencils, water-based pens, and computer pens are used to assess graffiti-prevention properties. However, these empirical methods rely solely on appraisers’ experience and visual inspection, lacking standardized methods or detailed criteria. Furthermore, it is not even known whether each empirical method produces identical results. This study aimed to identify these inconsistencies by applying and comparing all known empirical methods to physical buildings. After assessing four locations in two apartment complexes, gloss was not found in any of the cases. The water-repellent and pencil tests showed a correlation coefficient of −1, demonstrating exactly opposite trends. The water-based pen test showed a correlation coefficient of 0.745 for black and blue, but none for red. The computer pen test results differed significantly from the other tests, and no correlation was found. These findings confirm that current empirical methods for detecting a topcoat in multicolor painting are inconsistent and should not be used.

Digital technology is driving the transformation of cultural heritage communication towards interactive, experiential digital storytelling. The "generational gap" between young people and traditional culture, along with the risk of cultural content weakening in digital communication, makes it an important issue to explore how digital storytelling can revitalize cultural heritage and build deep cultural identity among youth. This paper takes the "Cloud Tour Dunhuang" mini-program as a case study and, based on the Lasswell 5W model, systematically analyzes its digital storytelling practice from five dimensions: communication subject, content, channel, audience, and effect. The study finds that the mini-program effectively promotes youth cultural identification on cognitive, emotional, and behavioral levels through implicit authority of the subject, contextualized content, lightweight channels, and audience participatory design using multimodal storytelling. However, it also has limitations such as superficial narrative, insufficient multimodal coordination, and a lack of deep audience engagement. Based on this, the paper suggests strengthening the systematic design of cultural depth, enhancing deep multimodal integration, and guiding deep audience participation to balance technological interaction with cultural content transmission, promoting the transformation of youth from shallow experiences to deep cultural identification.

Big data technologies have caused the volume, velocity, and variety of data generated by enterprise information systems to grow exponentially. It has thereby rendered traditional approaches to data management no longer effective. This paper focuses on data storage, management, and analysis strategies for information systems within big data environments and searches for pathways to maximize value. Employing a combined literature review and case study methodology, it systematically reviews existing data management frameworks while integrating corporate practical experience through case studies. The findings indicate that data management activities of an existing information system experience problems, like storage resource management efficiency, the lack of standardized data governance, and inefficient use of analytical technologies. The proposed strategy involving data management hierarchies, data governance, and intelligent analytics can significantly increase the capacity of an information system in creating value from existing data. The research is beneficial and can offer significant help to existing and running enterprises on how they can improve data management practices and gain a competitive edge.