Different Types Of Communities Research Articles

Microbial Community Composition and Diversity in Metal Sulfide Mine Water Systems

To understand the characteristics of heavy metal pollution and physicochemical properties caused by mining activities in mine water systems and the response of the microbial community to habitats with different contamination levels, this study selected different types of water (mining area wastewater, spoil heap area wastewater, dressing area wastewater, mine seepage water, and pond water) as the variables related to the mining activities in the water system of the Shizishan mining area in Tongling, Anhui Province. The pollution characteristics and physicochemical properties were compared, and the relationship between environmental factors and the microbial communities were analyzed. The results showed that the content of heavy metals, the physicochemical properties, and the structure and diversity of the microbial community of different types of water were significantly different in different mine areas, among which the most seriously polluted areas were the mining area, the spoil heap area, and the dressing area. There were significant differences in microbial community structure among different functional types of wastewaters, and the diversity and abundance of the microbial community in DW with the heaviest heavy metal pollution were weaker than those in the other four regions. PcoA analysis showed that samples of similar water types had similar clustering. Spearman correlation heat map analysis and canonical correlation analysis (CCA) indicated that heavy metal pollution, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), SO2-4, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) had the greatest effect on the microbial communities in the mine water systems. Moreover, this study found that Proteobacteria, Euryarchaeota, and Bacteroidetes dominated in mine water systems, and their potential use could be explored in the future. Our results provide a better understanding of the different types of water pollution characteristics in mine water systems and the key factors that determine the microbial community structure.

Analysis on the loss path and cooperative protection of global biodiversity based on input-output model

Biodiversity plays a vital role in human survival and development. In the context of economic globalization and increasingly serious global biodiversity loss, the division of global biodiversity responsibilities and cross-regional cooperative conservation are important parts of species conservation. In this paper, an environmentally expanded multi-regional input-output analysis model is used to measure biodiversity loss footprint (overall footprint, internal footprint and external footprint), which not only covers the interference within the region, but also traces the influence out of it. In addition, structural path analysis and social network analysis were used to identify the transmission process and divide the biodiversity protection communities in various countries. The results show that: (1) There are significant differences among countries in terms of biodiversity loss footprint. The top five countries in terms of overall biodiversity loss footprint are Indonesia, China, the United States, Mexico and Brazil, but they have different impact modes on biodiversity; (2) While most of the footprint of biodiversity loss occurs within the region, more than a quarter of the footprint is due to global production chains outside the region. The study concluded that through the global production chain, species will eventually be influenced by the United States, Japan, India and China; (3) Among economic sectors, agriculture has the largest direct biodiversity footprint. Food & Beverages sector has the largest indirect biodiversity footprint; (4) Eight biodiversity protection communities have been formed around the world, including source community and mixed community of biodiversity protection, each four. Among them, the source community is represented by Indonesia, India, Australia, the Philippines and Thailand in South and Southeast Asia, while the mixed community is mainly composed of China, Japan, Cameroon and Vietnam in East Asia and South Africa. In order to protect biodiversity effectively, different strategies are proposed for different types of communities.

Sustainability and interactive network branding in fast‐changing business environments

Sustainability and interactive network branding in fast‐changing business environments

Characteristics of Phytoplankton Communities and Key Impact Factors in Three Types of Lakes in Wuhan

To reveal the characteristics and key impact factors of phytoplankton communities in different types of lakes, sampling surveys for phytoplankton and water quality parameters were conducted at 174 sampling sites in a total of 24 lakes covering urban, countryside, and ecological conservation areas of Wuhan in spring, summer, autumn, and winter 2018. The results showed that a total of 365 species of phytoplankton from nine phyla and 159 genera were identified in the three types of lakes. The main species were green algae, cyanobacteria, and diatoms, accounting for 55.34%, 15.89%, and 15.07% of the total number of species, respectively. The phytoplankton cell density varied from 3.60×106-421.99×106 cell·L-1, chlorophyll-a content varied from 15.60-240.50 μg·L-1, biomass varied from 27.71-379.79 mg·L-1, and the Shannon-Wiener diversity index varied from 0.29-2.86. In the three lake types, cell density, Chla, and biomass were lower in EL and UL, whereas the opposite was true for the Shannon-Wiener diversity index. NMDS and ANOSIM analysis showed differences in phytoplankton community structure (Stress=0.13, R=0.048, P=0.2298). In addition, the phytoplankton community structure of the three lake types had significant seasonal characteristics, with chlorophyll-a content and biomass being significantly higher in summer than in winter (P<0.05). Spearman correlation analysis showed that phytoplankton biomass decreased with increasing N:P in UL and CL, whereas the opposite was true for EL. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that WT, pH, NO3-, EC, and N:P were the key factors that significantly affected the variability in phytoplankton community structure in the three types of lakes in Wuhan (P<0.05).

Patterns of the red-listed epiphytic species distribution in coniferous-deciduous forests of the Moscow Region

Epiphytes model the diversity of forest communities and indicate the integrity of natural ecosystems or the threat to their existence. The high sensitivity of epiphytic species to the environmental quality makes them good indicators in anthropogenic landscapes. The study deals with the distribution patterns of rare indicator epiphytic species at the border of their range in the broadleaved– coniferous forest zone, in the central part of the East European Plain within the Moscow region. The distribution and abundance of eight lichen species Anaptychia ciliaris, Bryoria fuscescens, B. implexa, Usnea dasopoga, U. glabrescens, U. hirta, U. subfloridana and the epiphytic moss Neckera pennata were studied. The main environmental factors at the regional level were climate variables based on the Worldclim database, water indices based on Sentinel-2 multispectral remote sensing data, and the anthropogenic impact factor in terms of the Nighttime lights of the earth’s surface based on the Suomi NPP satellite system. It was revealed that the vast majority of records were in the western and northern sectors of the region, i.e. in the broad-leaved–coniferous forest zone, while the vast majority of 0-records were in the southern and eastern sectors, in the area of broad-leaved and pine forests and extensive reclaimed wetlands. The association with different types of communities and biotopes, as well as tree species, was assessed at the ecosystem level, using field data. It has been established that the distribution of the studied species is governed by natural-geographic features of the territory. The principal limiting factors are air pollution, ecological restrictions (high humidity requirement of sites), cutting of mature forests and formation of local anthropogenic infrastructure. In perspective the study of ecology and living conditions of the studied rare species will help determine the optimal conditions contributing to biodiversity conservation in forests near large metropolitan areas and optimization of habitat diversity.

Digital Practices by Citizens During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings From an International Multisite Study.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought digital practices and engagement to the forefront of society, which were based on behavioral changes associated with adhering to different government mandates. Further behavioral changes included transitioning from working in the office to working from home, with the use of various social media and communication platforms to maintain a level of social connectedness, especially given that many people who were living in different types of communities, such as rural, urban, and city spaces, were socially isolated from friends, family members, and community groups. Although there is a growing body of research exploring how technology is being used by people, there is limited information and insight about the digital practices employed across different age cohorts living in different physical spaces and residing in different countries. This paper presents the findings from an international multisite study exploring the impact of social media and the internet on the health and well-being of individuals in different countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected via a series of online surveys deployed between April 4, 2020, and September 30, 2021. The age of respondents varied from 18 years to over 60 years across the 3 regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. On exploring the associations of technology use, social connectedness, and sociodemographic factors with loneliness and well-being through bivariate and multivariate analyses, significant differences were observed. The levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who used social media messengers or many social media apps than among those who did not use social media messengers or used ≤1 social media app. Additionally, the levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who were not members of an online community support group than among those who were members of an online community support group. Psychological well-being was significantly lower and loneliness was significantly higher among people living in small towns and rural areas than among those living in suburban and urban communities. Younger respondents (18-29 years old), single adults, unemployed individuals, and those with lower levels of education were more likely to experience loneliness. From an international and interdisciplinary perspective, policymakers and stakeholders should extend and explore interventions targeting loneliness experienced by single young adults and further examine how this may vary across geographies. The study findings have implications across the fields of gerontechnology, health sciences, social sciences, media communication, computers, and information technology. RR2-10.3389/fsoc.2020.574811.

Community organizing during the COVID-19 pandemic: How should we act when it comes to minority communities?

Minority communities have borne a disproportionate burden of adverse health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Notwithstanding, there is a lack of empirical evidence regarding efforts to reduce health inequalities through community organizing. It is also unclear under what conditions professionals act as external assistance providers for community organizing as part of their role. Through multimethod research conducted among social workers who provide services to ultra-Orthodox minority communities in Israel during the pandemic, this study identified that the combination of critical awareness of social justice, weakened social cohesion, and work environment expectations led professionals to assist communities in their community organizing efforts. These strategies include an intercommunity component-building trust in the community and promoting collective efficacy; an interactional component-creating multidimensional platforms that support action; and a behavioral component-increasing the involvement of communities in decision-making spaces in public arenas. The crucial characteristic of providing assistance and support in community organizing lies in the adoption of cultural perspectives. It requires knowledge about and familiarity with the different types of communities within which the professionals operate. This vital understanding can promote critical awareness among a wide range of professionals to promote health equity at the present time when the pandemic is still ongoing.

Structural Organization of Zooplankton Communities in Different Types of River Mouth Areas

The gradients of hydrological, hydrophysical, and hydrochemical conditions form the transition zones in river mouth areas. These areas are considered ecotones in the presence of the edge effect. Our research aimed to identify the main patterns in the structural organization of zooplankton communities in different types of river mouth areas in lowland reservoir tributaries within the Middle Volga basin. A cluster analysis was performed to structure and determine the zooplankton communities. The identified zooplankton communities were characterized by the noticeable heterogeneity in the species structure. We analyzed the spatial distribution of the structural indicators of zooplankton communities and, on the basis of RDA, determined the factors that significantly affect the organization of the ecotone community. An ecotone was found in all types of river mouth areas where the highest density, biomass, diversity, species, and functional richness of zooplankton were noted, as compared to bordering zooplankton communities. As the morphological structure of the mouth areas became more complex, the values of the main structural parameters of zooplankton communities increased. It was demonstrated that conditions in the ecotones are favorable to the development of zooplankton alien species. The major factors determining the species structure of the ecotone zooplankton community were water electrical conductivity (R2 = 21.07%, p-value = 0.001), dissolved oxygen content (R2 = 10.33%, p-value = 0.003), and water transparency (R2 = 9.77 %, p-value = 0.001).

Spatial Multi-Criterion Analysis (SMCA) to Determine the Suitability of Green Open Space (GOS) at Kalurahan Wonokromo, Special Region of Yogyakarta

Rapid urbanization and growth in the Kalurahan Wonokromo, situated in the peri-urban area of Yogyakarta City causes the loss of children's playgrounds while the number of children is increasing. Preserving the remaining space for Green Open Space (GOS) is crucial. Amid the space limit, choosing the right location is one of the keys to ensuring the space functions optimally. We employ the Spatial Multi-Criteria Analysis (SMCA) in selecting several location candidates for the development of GOS using 9 criteria of tree cover, existing open green space, ricefield, social facilities, accessibility, distance to school, presence of small shop, children density, and the riverbank. The SMCA analysis is powered by Analytical Hierarchical Process using expert judgment combined with GIS analysis to yield the weight priority and score for each criterion. As the result, the score for each criterion is 0.3218 for existing open green space, 0.1616 for social facilities 0.1446 for small shops, 0.1265 for roads or accessibility, 0.085 for vegetation, 0.0504 for distance to school, 0.0499 for the riverbank, 0.0367 for the children density, 0.0234 for the ricefield. We obtain 9 candidates for the GOS. The Kalurahan Wonokromo has also planned to build and rehabilitate the open space but needs to acknowledge the needs for GOS from gated communities and pesantren communities as the different types of communities with a different kind of GOS.

基于碳排放约束的北京市社区生态效率评价

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 基于碳排放约束的北京市社区生态效率评价 DOI: 10.5846/stxb202202170373 作者: 作者单位: 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国家自然科学青年基金项目（72004215）；国家自然科学青年基金项目（72104223） Evaluation of community's ecological efficiency in Beijing based on carbon emission constraint Author: Affiliation: Fund Project: National Natural Science Foundation of China(72004215);National Natural Science Foundation of China(72104223) 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:在"双碳目标"的背景下，社区作为生态文明建设的基本单元，其碳排放核算及生态效率评估尤为重要。基于家庭消费视角，采用碳排放系数法和消费者生活方式法核算社区居民碳排放，并运用超效率DEA模型评估社区生态效率，最后通过计量分析识别生态效率影响因素。研究结果显示：（1）社区居民人均碳排放的评估结果呈现出商品房社区（528.85kgCO2/月）>单位社区（475.66kgCO2/月）>传统社区（368.33kgCO2/月）的关系；（2）生态效率的评估结果呈现出传统社区（111.04%）>商品房社区（108.78%）>单位社区（105.70%）的关系；（3）社区管理工作参与意愿、家庭光照条件会对社区生态效率产生积极影响；此外，年龄结构（中青年人口占比）对商品房社区的生态效率有消极影响，受教育程度的提升则会提高生态效率。进一步提出针对三类社区特点的转型发展策略，为全国不同类型社区生态转型和绿色低碳发展提供参考范式和决策支持。 Abstract:In the context of dual carbon goal, as the basic unit of urban and rural ecological civilization construction, community carbon emission accounting and ecological efficiency evaluation are particularly important. From the perspective of household consumption, this paper adopts the carbon emission coefficient method and consumer lifestyle method to calculate the carbon emission of community residents, and uses the super-efficiency DEA model to evaluate the community ecological efficiency, and finally identifies the influencing factors of ecological efficiency through econometric analysis. The results showed that:(1) the per capita carbon emission of community residents indicated the order of commercial housing community (528.85 kgCO2/month) > unit community (475.66 kgCO2/month) > traditional community (368.33 kgCO2/month); (2) The ecological efficiency presented the traditional community (111.04%) > commercial housing community (108.78%) > unit community (105.70%); (3) Willingness to participate in community management and household lighting conditions had positive effects on community ecological efficiency. In addition, the age structure (the proportion of young and middle-aged population) had a negative impact on the ecological efficiency of commercial housing communities, while the improvement of education level would improve the ecological efficiency. Furthermore, the transformational development strategies based on the characteristics of the three types of communities were proposed to provide a reference paradigm and decision support for the ecological transformation and low-carbon development of different types of communities in China. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

СТРУКТУРНЫЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИХ СООБЩЕСТВ В СОЦИАЛЬНОЙ СЕТИ «ВКОНТАКТЕ»: КОММУНИКАТИВНЫЙ АСПЕКТ

The paper presents a research of structural features of informal and official types of political communities within the VK (VKontakte) social network. To collect data from political communities, the author has developed a script that allows parsing data from the VK by the number of friends of each participant within a community (social capital of community participants), as well as getting data on comments left by participants on public pages. Despite the initially different positioning of the two types of communities, political communities of different types are appeared to have a similar social and communicative structures, owing to the topics of communities and their goals. However, informal communities feature a more uneven distribution of participants: there are several leaders in groups forming their clusters inside the public page, and the number of participants with 1 or 2 friends in a group or no friends at all (“observers”) is much higher there. Simultaneously, official public pages have a high density and a quite high clustering coefficient, which suggests that at the right moment those communities' offline political activity can be used to organize people online. Moreover, unofficial public pages embrace a large number of actors with a high degree of intermediaсу.

Features and methodological approaches to determining the indicators and the level of capacity of the territorial communities of Ukraine

The capacity of territorial communities is the main indicator of the success of the decentralization reform. Applying the current methodology to determine the capacity of communities showed its essential and technical flaws. The methodology was developed at the beginning of administrative decentralization; therefore, it does not reflect the real capacity of communities, but the presence of conditions for their formation. The primary basis for an objective determination of community capacity is the selection of the relevant indicators and methodological approaches to the development of its assessment scale. The article analyses the approaches of academics and practitioners to determining the list of indicators for the assessment of community capacity. It was established that the set of indicators depends on the scientists' interpretation of the concept of "capable community", it is characterized by fragmentation (financial indicators dominate) and is developed without proper reasoning. Considering these features, the study justified the appropriateness of using the econometric methods and the results of monitoring the activities of communities to analyse their capacity. An information base (27 indicators across 25 communities of Poltava, Volyn and Lvov regions) of the study, which can be considered representative in terms of the regional representation and different types of communities, was formed. Based on the application of correlation and factor analyses, ten (three socio-economic, two infrastructural, and five financial) indicators, which are among the most important indicators of community capacity, were identified. These indicators were selected considering the number of significant correlations and the value of factor loadings. The study established that the current approach to determining the level of community capacity does not enable a proper assessment of existing disproportions. The study proposes to determine the level of community capacity by calculating an integral indicator and to develop a scale of criteria taking into account its deviation from the average values for the country.

Twenty-one year dynamics of vegetation from long-term plots in East European tundra

Twenty-one year dynamics of vegetation from long-term plots in East European tundra

Organization and evolution of the UK far-right network on Telegram

The instant messaging platform Telegram has become popular among the far-right movements in the US and UK in recent years. These groups use public Telegram channels and group chats to disseminate hate speech, disinformation, and conspiracy theories. Recent works revealed that the far-right Telegram network structure is decentralized and formed of several communities divided mostly along ideological and national lines. Here, we investigated the UK far-right network on Telegram and are interested in understanding the different roles of different channels and their influence relations. We apply a community detection method, based on the clustering of a flow of random walkers, that allows us to uncover the organization of the Telegram network in communities with different roles. We find three types of communities: (1) upstream communities contain mostly group chats that comment on content from channels in the rest of the network; (2) core communities contain broadcast channels tightly connected to each other and can be seen as forming echo chambers; (3) downstream communities contain popular channels that are highly referenced by other channels. We find that the network is composed of two main sub-networks: one containing mainly channels related to the English-speaking far-right movements and one with channels in Russian. We analyze the dynamics of the different communities and the most shared external links in the different types of communities over a period going from 2015 to 2020. We find that different types of communities have different dynamics and share links to different types of websites. We finish by discussing several directions for further work.

Harmful Information in Internet Media: The «Overton Window» and Destructive Network Content Interrelationships

The paper is devoted to the analysis of Internet media monitoring for the dissemination of destructive content and the comparison of the identified types of information of aggressive and (auto)destructive nature with legally fixed prohibitions and restrictions on the right to freedom of information dissemination. The author considers the issues of networking and decentralization of destructive communities in Runet and the development of radical movements using the Ingamasi technology. Taking into account the patterns of distribution of various types of destructive content revealed during the study, including the peculiarities of communication in network communities of different types, the refraction of the «Overton window» theory to the media field of the dissemination of destructive information in Internet media was scientifically justified.Despite the existence of a regulatory framework for ensuring the information security of the individual, the realities of the development of communication in the digital environment demonstrate the presence of many gray areas. New communication and content risks require a systemic transformation and updating of the legal regulation of the digital environment in order to ensure the information and ideological security of the individual. Given the trends in the spread of new types of aggressive and depressive-suicidal content discussed in the paper, the author concludes that it is necessary to normalize new types of prohibited and restricted information by making systemic changes to the Federal Law «On Information, Information Technologies and Information Protection», the Federal Law «On the Protection of Children from Information that causes Harm their health and development», the Law of the Russian Federation «On Mass Media», as well as the improvement of administrative and criminal legislation, including through the introduction of new elements of offenses (crimes).

Motivations and barriers towards optimal physical activity level: A community-based assessment of 28 EU countries

Regular physical activity (PA) is one of the most important determinants of a healthy lifestyle and improved physical and mental well-being. Despite the health benefits of regular PA, the studies show low levels of PA among European adolescents and adults. An increase in physical inactivity has been associated with different personal and environmental factors. This study aimed to investigate positive motivation and barriers to community-based PA. Face-to-face interviews were conducted to collect data on PA, positive motivation and barriers to PA, demographic, and socioeconomic factors. Moderate and vigorous levels of PA were assessed. Regression analysis was applied to estimate the associations for positive and negative reasons for meeting PA recommendations. Data were available for 28,031 adults with a mean age of 48.3 (SD = 18.8) and 51.8% women. Significant variations in individual characteristics were seen between different types of communities. The percentage of participants who reported achieving recommended levels of PA was the lowest in rural areas (44.3%). Regression models showed that most motivational factors had a strong positive association with meeting PA recommendations. We observed the effects of interactions between making acquaintances, having fun and the type of community on meeting PA recommendations. The effects of interactions between the type of community and barriers to PA such as price, risk of injury, disability / illness, and a lack of motivation on PA recommendations were observed. In conclusion, the motivational factors and barriers to PA are associated with the physical environment, and community-based programs and policies for encouraging PA participation are needed.

Implementation strategies for sustainable renewal at the neighborhood level with the goal of reducing carbon emission

• Excessive energy consumption has a serious impact on the low-carbon of communities. • There is marked heterogeneity between communities for carbon emission efficiency. • Different types of communities have various carbon mitigation situations. • Proposes an adaptive decision-making framework for neighborhood low-carbon renewal. • Develops multiple implementation strategies and paths of neighborhood renewal. Excessive emissions of CO 2 have become an important factor affecting sustainable urban development. In the existing renewal decision-making, few strategies have been formulated with the goal of promoting the low-carbon development. As a fundamental building block of a city, low-carbon construction in neighborhoods is already the basis for promoting sustainable cities. Therefore, this study develops a carbon accounting methodology and an efficiency assessment model that are applicable at the neighborhood level to measure the carbon emission characteristics and reduction potential. Then, a decision-making framework for sustainable neighborhood renewal is put forward from the perspective of carbon emission mitigation. Through a case study of fifteen communities in Yuzhong District, Chongqing in China, this study reveals the current situation of community CO 2 emission and carbon emission efficiency, and formulates the sustainable renewal paths according to local conditions. Results show that 83.16% (1.68E+08 kg) of the CO 2 in the study communities comes from energy consumption, and CO 2 absorption is only 1.78% (3.62E+06 kg) of the total emission. Meanwhile, the carbon emission efficiency of the fifteen study communities has a significant heterogeneity, with a mean value of 0.7402, and 80% of these communities are ineffective. These communities are ineffective mainly because the resource investment cannot be fully utilized. For example, the average utilization efficiency values for energy, purchased resources, and natural resources are 0.7427, 0.8113, and 0.4384, respectively. Thus, adopting adaptive renewal strategies to integrate the use of resources can effectively promote the construction of low-carbon neighborhoods. In addition, the research results can provide a basis for the organization and management of low-carbon renewal projects and the implementation of plans in other regions.

Assessing Measurement Invariance of a Land Use Environment Construct Across Levels of Urbanicity.

Variation in the land use environment (LUE) impacts the continuum of walkability to car dependency, which has been shown to have effects on health outcomes. Existing objective measures of the LUE do not consider whether the measurement of the construct varies across different types of communities along the rural/urban spectrum. To help meet the goals of the Diabetes Location, Environmental Attributes, and Disparities (LEAD) Network, we developed a national, census tract‐level LUE measure which evaluates the road network and land development. We tested for measurement invariance by LEAD community type (higher density urban, lower density urban, suburban/small town, and rural) using multiple group confirmatory factor analysis. We determined that metric invariance does not exist; thus, measurement of the LUE does vary across community type with average block length, average block size, and percent developed land driving most shared variability in rural tracts and with intersection density, street connectivity, household density, and commercial establishment density driving most shared variability in higher density urban tracts. As a result, epidemiologic studies need to consider community type when assessing the LUE to minimize place‐based confounding.

Investigating concentrated exclusion in telecommunications development: Engaging rural voices from Northern Canada

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, access to adequate, affordable, reliable broadband has become essential to many aspects of modern life. However, while urban centers in Canada already benefit from high-speed broadband services, many rural/remote and Northern communities face increasingly concentrated spaces of exclusion associated with digital divides. Inequalities in broadband services in Northern Canada have long been recognized by the federal government, which has initiated policies, regulations and funding programs to support the deployment of better connectivity infrastructure and services. Historically, many of these initiatives reflect a top-down approach that fails to consider the diversity of the communities and regions they are designed to support. Here, we focus on a case study of a policy consultation held by the national telecommunications regulator in an effort to learn current issues and challenges in the North. Consistent with existing research, our findings revealed that the most frequently reported challenges are the high cost of access, slow speeds, and limited competition. We also point out fewer submissions from smaller rural communities and argue that policymakers and researchers should pay closer attention to place-based challenges identified in different types of communities, and adopt more precise engagement tools and processes to encourage input from community members.

Researcher‐Supported Professional Learning and Development for Instructors in Adult L2 Programs: Factors Leading to Ongoing Communities of Practice

AbstractWe describe a longitudinal (5‐year) researcher‐supported initiative designed to strengthen the research–practice link (RPL) and serve as an effective form of situated professional learning and development (PLD) in adult second language programs. We facilitated the formation of and supported 9 professional reading groups of 6–12 instructors (N = 76). The groups met monthly to discuss peer‐reviewed journal articles to address shared PLD needs. Using retrodictive qualitative modeling, we traced the underlying factors in our RPL initiative that contributed to the rise of ongoing autonomous communities of practice in which instructors continued to engage in monthly cycles of implementing and adapting research knowledge and co‐constructed knowledge and practices gleaned from their reading and group discussions of peer‐reviewed articles. Data included participants’ responses to questionnaires, audio recordings of focus group interviews and reading group discussions, and researchers’ field notes. The results indicated that different types of communities of practice emerged over time through complex dynamic interactions between multiple factors in the RPL initiative (e.g., researchers, practitioners, and institutional and environmental forces). We discuss how researchers can strengthen the RPL by fostering the development of communities of practice that combine both research and practical knowledge to improve and create new educational practices.