Economic Alternatives Research Articles

PROYECTO S.O.S MUJERES Y SU IMPACTO SOCIAL

La innegable presencia de la violencia contra la mujer al interior de nuestras sociedades americanas y del Ecuador contemporáneo, constituye una de las razones teóricas que justifican el presente trabajo. Pero más allá de cualquier constructo teórico, motiva el presente acercamiento, la labor de un proyecto como S.O.S Mujeres. Definido por su praxis social a favor de mujeres maltratadas. Por su innegable posicionamiento a favor de buscar y encontrar alternativas sociales, económicas, políticas y culturales para sus mujeres, las mujeres de nuestro Ecuador. Es en virtud de tales aspectos en que el presente trabajo se proyecta, desde una problemática social definida, a un conjunto coordinado de acciones prácticas que aportan a solucionar esta problemática. S.O.S Mujeres constituye un paradigma axiológico que todos soñamos se entronice como una realidad cotidiana en nuestras tierras de América, en nuestro mundo. La Universidad Tecnológica Israel en compromiso con el fortalecimiento de la sociedad y los sectores vulnerables emprende una serie de actividades que aporten al desarrollo desde distintos ámbitos, con el objetivo de dotar de herramientas cognitivas y practicas a familias y especialmente a mujeres mediante la aplicación de varios cursos entorno al área administrativa para las personas asociadas al Colectivo S.O.S Mujeres, para lo cual se aplicó un método mixto cuali – cuantitativo, apoyados en métodos empíricos como la observación con la aplicación de técnicas de recolección de información. Obteniendo la participación de 890 mujeres de 17 barrios de la provincia de Pichincha se hayan beneficiadas hasta la fecha con la adquisición de conocimientos y habilidades, estos se logra con la articulación de apoyo interinstitucional, donde se coordinaron actividades en conjunto de estudiantes, profesores personal administrativo todos en pro de fortalecer a microempresarias que luchan por su bienestar.

Green Assets of Equines in the European Context of the Ecological Transition of Agriculture.

Simple SummaryEquines have a peculiar place in our society. From livestock to sport, through to landscape managers and leisure partners, equines show a wide range of little-known environmental advantages and assets. Today’s wake-up calls about the environment are progressively putting pressure on stakeholders of the agricultural sector, including the equine industry. This study focusses on the main environmental consequences of equine use and possession in Europe based on scientific and technical sources under the lens of five leading sectors where equines show unique impacts as green assets. Now, more than ever before, it is important to highlight the role of equines as a green alternative in political debates and management practices to give them the place equines deserve in the ecological transition of agriculture.Despite the decline of equine populations in the middle of the 20th century, the European horse industry is growing again thanks to economic alternatives found in the diversification of the uses of equines (sports, racing, leisure, etc.). Equines have many environmental advantages, but the fragmentation of the sector and the lack of synthetic knowledge about their environmental impacts do not enable the promotion of these assets and their effective inclusion in management practices and European policies. To highlight the equine environmental impacts, a literature review was carried out to cover the main European stakes. This work led to the identification of five “green assets”, fields where equines show unique environmental advantages compared to other agricultural productions. These green assets are linked to the nature of equines (grazing and domestic biodiversity), to their geographical distribution (land use), and to their use by human beings (tourism and work). Today, when searching for sustainable solutions to modern environmental issues, the use of equines is a neglected green alternative. Better knowledge and use of equine green assets could partly respond to more ecological agricultural needs and contribute to the development of this animal industry, which has a place in regional development and in Europe’s sustainable transition.

Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Ecuador: Good Practices for Adaptive Co-Management

Abstract Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) requires social learning and linkages between actors and levels under Adaptive Co-Management (ACM), especially in landscapes with high biodiversity and vulnerability, such as the Tropical Andes. Methodology: A multicriteria methodology was designed and applied to identify, characterize, select and evaluate the ACM and the constraining and enabling conditions for its effectiveness in EbA actions implemented between 2011 and 2015. Results: 1. The integration of conservation, restoration and sustainable production, and linkage among institutions and sectors through local leadership, enable knowledge coproduction, social learning and innovation. 2. Governance and planning based on a landscape approach, and acknowledgment of the diversity of contexts, promote dialogue, cooperation and institutional innovation. 3. Economic alternatives in production, marketing and local markets, as well as complete and adequate technology transfers, stable and planned funding and monitoring, promote sustainability.

Concerted proton-electron transfer reactions of manganese-hydroxo and manganese-oxo complexes.

The enzymes manganese superoxide dismutase and manganese lipoxygenase use MnIII-hydroxo centres to mediate proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions with substrate. As manganese is earth-abundant and inexpensive, manganese catalysts are of interest for synthetic applications. Recent years have seen exciting reports of enantioselective C-H bond oxidation by Mn catalysts supported by aminopyridyl ligands. Such catalysts offer economic and environmentally-friendly alternatives to conventional reagents and catalysts. Mechanistic studies of synthetic catalysts highlight the role of Mn-oxo motifs in attacking substrate C-H bonds, presumably by a concerted proton-electron transfer (CPET) step. (CPET is a sub-class of PCET, where the proton and electron are transferred in the same step.) Knowledge of geometric and electronic influences for CPET reactions of Mn-hydroxo and Mn-oxo adducts enhances our understanding of biological and synthetic manganese centers and informs the design of new catalysts. In this Feature article, we describe kinetic, spectroscopic, and computational studies of MnIII-hydroxo and MnIV-oxo complexes that provide insight into the basis for the CPET reactivity of these species. Systematic perturbations of the ligand environment around MnIII-hydroxo and MnIV-oxo motifs permit elucidation of structure-activity relationships. For MnIII-hydroxo centers, electron-deficient ligands enhance oxidative reactivity. However, ligand perturbations have competing consequences, as changes in the MnIII/II potential, which represents the electron-transfer component for CPET, is offset by compensating changes in the pKa of the MnII-aqua product, which represents the proton-transfer component for CPET. For MnIV-oxo systems, a multi-state reactivity model inspired the development of significantly more reactive complexes. Weakened equatorial donation to the MnIV-oxo unit results in large rate enhancements for C-H bond oxidation and oxygen-atom transfer reactions. These results demonstrate that the local coordination environment can be rationally changed to enhance reactivity of MnIII-hydroxo and MnIV-oxo adducts.

Rhetorical Hegemony: Transactional Ontologies and the Reinvention of Material Infrastructures

ABSTRACT This article proposes rhetorical hegemony as a new materialist intervention into the production of alternative political economic futures. It problematizes contemporary theories of hegemony that assert affect as beyond rhetorical engagement, suggesting that these accounts fail to produce viable political economic alternatives because they use, but do not reinvent, the prevailing affective relations. Turning to and extending Foucault's middle and late work to forge a different model, the article discusses rhetorical hegemony as the entangled relationships between materiality and power. In conversation with other contemporary theories, it argues for a practice of rhetorical hegemony that materially recapacitates energetic potential and, consequently, the milieu. The article ends by outlining the rhetorical, political, and intellectual implications of this shift.

A prática extensionista e a Economia Solidária na Incubadora de Tecnologias Sociais e Solidárias

A Incubadora de Tecnologias Sociais e Solidárias – ITESS é um setor da Pró-Reitoria de Extensão e Assuntos Comunitários voltados para o fomento e incubação de empreendimentos em Economia Solidária, pautados nos pilares de Autogestão, Gestão Científica, Incubação, Formação Cidadã, Segurança Alimentar, Agroecologia e Produção Orgânica e Questões de Gênero. Para Singer (2002) as formas alternativas de economia surgiram ainda no final do século XIX com o empobrecimento dos artesãos devido aos graves danos sociais causados pelo capitalismo industrial. Sendo que estas ações são fortemente pautadas na educação popular, cabe às Universidades fortalecer estes grupos, oferecendo qualificação técnica, em diversas áreas desde a gestão até às áreas técnicas de produção, como produção de alimentos desde a terra até o consumo (aspectos nutricionais). Diante disso os projetos desenvolvidos atualmente estão atrelados também à Agricultura Familiar. A metodologia de trabalho da Incubadora é dinâmica e se adapta a partir das demandas sociais, oportunidades de financiamento e parcerias com organizações dos diversos setores – sempre através de projetos de extensão, sendo que em todas as perspectivas de alternativa social e econômica se mantém. Muitos são os desafios da prática extensionista, mas podem-se destacar três principais no modelo da ITESS: 1) a infraestrutura ofertada para que os grupos sociais iniciem sua atividade produtiva é adaptada de um espaço de ensino, e como tal, possui limitações físicas, bem como limitações de investimento e financiamento; 2) Pela característica de incubação através de projetos, muitas demandas dos grupos sociais e da comunidade acadêmica envolvida surgem depois do início das atividades, o que provoca a necessidade de ajustes no projeto inicial, ou a submissão de novos projetos para atender novas demandas, antes não previstas. E por fim, 3) ainda são pouco conhecidas as práticas da ITESS/UFGD pela comunidade interna e externa, apesar de alguns projetos incubados se destacarem. Destaca-se este último desafio, pois o aumento da procura pelos serviços da incubadora, inclusive como oportunidade de extensão pelo público universitário, possibilitaria o efetivo compromisso da extensão universitária, colocando os acadêmicos em contato com a comunidade e colocando em prática e desenvolvendo seus conhecimentos. Observa-se ainda que as cooperativas - que foram o primeiro tipo de empreendimento a romper os paradigmas de Capital e Trabalho - ainda não são um público atendidos pela ITESS/UFGD sendo, portanto, uma oportunidade para projetos futuros.

Pemberdayaan pengelolaan desa wisata berkelanjutan di Desa Tanjung Lanjut Kecamatan Sekernan Kabupaten Muaro Jambi

Desa Tanjung Lanjut kecamatan Sekernan kabupaten Muaro Jambi memiliki potensi di sektor wisata indah yang berwujud berupa danau Tangkas. Danau tersebut memiliki daya tarik tersendiri dengan tumbuhnya pohon Putat berbunga Flanconia Valida berwarna merah yang mekar dan gugur sekitar bulan Juli hingga Agustus setiap tahun. Potensi objek wisata kawasan ini telah dikelola oleh Badan Usaha Milik Desa, akan tetapi belum dikelola secara berkelanjutan yang berdampak pada peningkatan pendapatan bagi masyarakat. Berdasarkan permasalahan di atas, maka rumusan solusi yang diimplemetasikan pada kegiatan pengabdian adalah pendampingan pengelolaan objek wisata dan promosi objek wisata. Pemberdayaan pengelolaan objek wisata dilakukan dengan cara: 1). Transfer pengetahuan pengelolaan berkelanjutan (mencakup aspek ekonomi, sosial dan lingkungan). 2) Pelatihan dan pendampingan peningkatan kemampuan. Berdasarkan hasil kegiatan pengabdian menunjukkan bahwa adanya peningkatan pengetahuan, motivasi, kemampuan manajerial dan kecakapan teknis dalam pengelolaan potensi wisata berkelanjutan yang berdampak pada peningkatan jumlah pengunjung. Bertambahnya jumlah wisatawan melahirkan sumber perekonomian baru atau alternatif bagi masyarakat setempat yang selama ini hanya bergantung pada sektor perkebunan dan pertanian. Temuan lain menunjukkan bahwa pengelola danau Tangkas belum memiliki kemampuan kerjasama dan jejaring yang cukup baik dengan berbagai level mitra, dengan demikian perlu dilakukan pendampingan lebih lanjut dalam peningkatan kemampuan kerjasama dan berjejaring.

PERAN GALERI INVESTASI SYARIAH BURSA EFEK INDONESIA (GIS BEI) IAIN BENGKULU DALAM MENINGKATKAN LITERASI PASAR MODAL (Studi Kasus Masyarakat Sumur Dewa Air Sebakul)

The purpose of this study was to find out how the role of the Indonesian Stock Exchange Islamic Investment Gallery (GIS BEI) IAIN Bengkulu Gallery in improving Capital Market literacy in the Community thus encouraging an increase in fraudulent investment fraud. This study uses descriptive qualitative methods. The data used are primary data and secondary data. Data collection techniques used were interviews, observation, and documentation in accordance with the problems studied, and data analysis techniques using the Miles and Huberman models. The results of this study reveal that the IDX Investment Gallery concept of 3 in 1 which is a collaboration between the IDX, Universities and Securities Companies is expected not only to introduce the Capital Market from the theoretical side but also the practice. The existence of the IDX Investment Gallery is expected to provide mutual benefits to all parties so that the dissemination of capital market information is on target and can provide optimal benefits for students, economic practitioners, investors, capital market observers and the general public in the surrounding areas both for socialization and education purposes / capital market education as well as for economic interests or investment alternatives to avoid fraudulent investment fraud.

Biosourced organic materials for latent heat storage: An economic and eco-friendly alternative

This work deals with the study of bio-sourced organic Phase change materials (BO-PCM) to replace petroleum-based ones currently in use in an installation coupling a Heat Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) system with a module of Thermal Energy Storage (TES). The most adapted ones are selected to reduce their cost and their environmental impact while ensuring a satisfactory operation and an excellent energy efficiency of the building in which they are integrated. The screening step leads to the identification of the BO-PCM criteria of interest, their non-comprehensive listing relying on an accelerated screening based on infrared thermography and the refinement of the results obtained with Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). Two eutectic mixtures of fatty acids (88% capric acid and 12% palmitic acid) and another one (83% capric acid and 17% myristic acid) are identified as promising economic and eco-friendly alternatives. Presenting crystallization/meting temperatures in the 24.58–26.10 °C and 21.36–24.14 °C range respectively, these 2 BO-PCM could compete with petroleum-based ones as latent heat storage material in the HVAC-TES prototype due to their interesting thermophysical properties, their low-cost, their low hazard, their renewable origin and their energy density in the range of the three petroleum-based PCM currently in use in this prototype.

Encaminad@s al desarrollo humanista: Gestión sostenible de los recursos naturales. El Realejo, Chinandega.

Los vínculos cada vez más estrechos y complejos entre la Madre Tierra y los sistemas económicos nos obligan a buscar y pensar alternativas a nuestros modos de vida, alternativas que sean sostenibles y que tengan como bases las capacidades humanas y medioambientales, que reconozca los límites y que inicialmente aproveche el actual sistema para encaminar el proceso de transformación hacia otras formas de vida. En este caso analizaremos el contexto socioeconómico de El Realejo municipio de Chinandega, que posee importantes recursos naturales como extensiones de tierra fértil, bosques de manglar y ríos de agua dulce, sin embargo su economía actual depende en gran medida de actividades extractivas como resultado de las dinámicas en la tenencia de la tierra que está en manos de empresas que mono cultivan maní o caña de azúcar y de otras que se dedican a la crianza de camarones, por otro lado existen otros factores como la carencia de alternativas económicas según los habitantes, en este panorama pensaremos las acciones y las instituciones necesarias para promover cambios hacia la gestión sostenible de los recursos naturales y la economía sostenible como primeros pasos hacia el desarrollo humanista. El método para realizar este análisis tuvo las bases en la etnografía, la observación directa e indirecta y la investigación documental en periodos no consecutivos en 2016, 2017 y 2019.

La vinculación con la sociedad como eje multidisciplinario en el desarrollo de capacidades locales en turismo y la hospitalidad. Caso de estudio: Parroquia de Cangahua

En la parroquia de Cangahua, existe un turismo incipiente. Los factores incidentes en este problema son el desconocimiento del potencial turístico del territorio, los productos y servicios deficientes, la concentración de actividades económicas en agricultura y ganadería, y la poca gestión de instituciones públicas inherentes al territorio. Esta situación tiene como efectos la escasa diversificación de alternativas productivas y económicas, la subutilización de recursos, el poco aprovechamiento de los atractivos naturales y culturales, así como el escaso posicionamiento de los emprendimientos turísticos, hoteleros y gastronómicos. Como una alternativa de solución a este problema, la Universidad (``"UTE'') presentó el proyecto de vinculación con la sociedad ``Propuesta de desarrollo turístico sostenible en la parroquia de Cangahua'', en el que la Dirección de Vinculación con la Sociedad y las Facultades de Hospitalidad y Servicios, Comunicación, Artes y Humanidades, y Arquitectura y Urbanismo se encuentran trabajando con miras al desarrollo local. En tal sentido, la presente investigación, hace referencia a aspectos del proyecto que tienen que ver con el desarrollo integral de la comunidad, el mejoramiento de la calidad de vida y la participación comunitaria e institucional dentro del desarrollo de capacidades locales.

Effect of a precautionary management measure on the vulnerability and ecological risk of elasmobranchs captured as target fisheries

The impact of fisheries on elasmobranch populations has been widely documented; however, baseline information on shark and batoid management remains limited, particularly in tropical areas and in developing countries. The use of precautionary measures and data-poor methods have been recommended as valuable tools to guide the management and conservation of marine taxa when information is scarce and the effect of fisheries on populations is evident. A Productivity Susceptibility Analysis (PSA) and intrinsic rebound potential (r) estimates were used to evaluate the vulnerability and resilience of elasmobranchs before and after a precautionary measure (closure of the fishery) was implemented in the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, Colombia (Seaflower Biosphere Reserve). We identified locally large information gaps, specifically on the demographic and life history parameters of the 15 elasmobranch species (13 sharks and 2 rays) evaluated for the Archipelago. Including fishing effects, nine large commercial shark species were identified as the most vulnerable and with the lowest intrinsic rebound potential, while the least vulnerable species was the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), which presented the third highest value of r2M. Once the fishery was closed, the vulnerability of large sharks decreased greatly. Our findings highlight the importance of: involving communities to achieve effective management processes; implementing precautionary measures for high impact and targeted fisheries; and using valuable data-poor tools for the study of populations as an alternative for evaluating and suggesting management measures. Finally, based in PSA and intrinsic rebound potential results, it is suggested to maintain the fishing ban in consensus with the fishermen, and to evaluate economic alternatives already being generated in the area such as recreational diving and ecological tourism, among others.

Theorizing diverse economies in the context of racial capitalism

This paper engages geographic literature on diverse economies by foregrounding an analysis of racial capitalism. Prevailing conversations on diverse economies aptly point out that there exist economic formations that do not adhere to capitalist modes of production. However, these same conversations lack an explicit engagement with the ways in which establishing non-capitalist economies entails attending explicitly to the question of race.Ignoring how racialization underlies capitalism runs the risk of inadequately understanding the role that race plays in configuring alternatives to capitalist formations.Thus, the authors argue that analysis of diverse economies must explicitly attend tothe fact that both capitalism and its alternatives are shaped by racial difference. After discussing prominent geographical work on diverse economies, the authors explore racial capitalism as an analytic for interrogating present-day capitalism. They argue that racial capitalism shows how the marginalization of racialized populations is a central component of capitalist reproduction. The second half of the paper draws on empirical examples from Canada and the United States to demonstrate how Black and Indigenous communities both recognize the role that their oppression plays in capital accumulation and find ways to create economic alternatives to those forms of accumulation. Specifically, the authors discuss public housing initiatives among Indigenous communities in Winnipeg and Minneapolis and the creation of urban commons by Black communities in Detroit and Jackson. By emphasizing the racialized nature of capitalism and showing how racialized communities create economic alternatives to capitalism, this paper offers a nuanced approach to discussing the possibilities of diverse economies.

Oxidized Biochar as a Simple, Renewable Catalyst for the Production of Cyclic Carbonates from Carbon Dioxide and Epoxides

AbstractHard‐ and softwood residues (from birch and pine respectively) of forestry, pulp, and paper industries (e. g. sawdust, branches) were used to prepare biochar, which was then oxidized using nitric acid to produce catalytic carboxylic acid functionalized biochar. This oxidized biochar, ox–bc, in the presence of a co‐catalyst, showed excellent catalytic activity towards the cycloaddition reaction between CO2 and epoxides using mild conditions (CO2 pressure, 10 bar). No differences in catalytic activity were seen between the two types of oxidized biochar despite the hardwood ox–bc having a significantly higher surface area. The catalysts function through activation of the epoxide reagent via hydrogen‐bonding with carboxylic acid groups on the surface. The number of surface acid groups was reduced by reaction with 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane and the resulting material was inactive in the reactions studied. The ox–bc catalysts are sustainable, economic, and renewable alternatives for currently used heterogeneous systems and are also the first carbon‐based materials derived from biomass to exhibit good recyclability (over five runs) with a broad substrate scope for the production of cyclic carbonates from epoxides and CO2.

The ‘souvenirization' and ‘touristification' of material culture in Thailand – mutual constructions of ‘otherness' in the tourism and souvenir industries

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to deal with the effects of touristic imaginations of what is ‘typically’ Thai in terms of the local handicraft production and the souvenir business and its development since the 1960s by using the concept of the so-called mutual gaze as a theoretical frame. In this context, it has to be asked on the producers’ side how touristic conceptions of Thai material culture influence how and what kinds of objects are produced; it also raises the question whether producing and selling souvenirs constitutes a significant and supplementary income for people in peripheral regions with few other economic alternatives. On the consumers’ side the question arises, what attributes tourists actually imagine of being ‘typical’ for Thai material culture. In order to answer these questions, the types and form of production of items sold in contemporary touristic hotspots in the provinces of Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son, Northern Thailand, are analyzed. The findings presented in the present paper are derived from a series of qualitative interviews with producers of souvenirs in handicraft villages and from standardized, questionnaire based interviews with Western tourists in the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar area conducted in 2015 and 2016.

A dehumanization perspective on dependence in low-satisfaction (abusive) relationships

The investment model of close relationships has focused on satisfaction and dependence (as it pertains to viable alternatives) as important indicators of relationship commitment and success. In this review, I apply a dehumanization perspective to understanding why abusive relationships can increase dependence in the context of low relationship satisfaction. I will argue that abusive relationships are likely to continue when (a) perpetrators of abuse fail to self-dehumanize, but continue to dehumanize their partner; (b) victimized partners self-dehumanize, but fail to dehumanize the perpetrator of their abuse; and (c) third-party observers dehumanize victimized partners. This pattern of dehumanization facilitates dependence due to a tendency for (a) perpetrators and victims to justify ongoing abusive behavior, (b) victimized partners to view themselves as unworthy of available relationship alternatives or incapable of developing economic alternatives, and (c) third-party observers to downgrade the social value of victims. Finally, I will review potential precipitators of these dynamics, drawing from research on Dark Triad traits to understand the longer term conditions under which dehumanizing processes may contribute to high levels of dependence under conditions of low levels of satisfaction. Applying a dehumanization perspective to abusive behavior within close relationships opens new lines of inquiry and provides an alternative framework for understanding how people may become entrapped and vulnerable in relationships where maltreatment persists.

A Focused DNA-Encoded Chemical Library for the Discovery of Inhibitors of NAD+-Dependent Enzymes.

DNA-encoded chemical libraries are increasingly used in pharmaceutical research because they enable the rapid discovery of synthetic protein ligands. Here we explored whether target-class focused DNA-encoded chemical libraries can be cost-effective tools to achieve robust screening productivity for a series of proteins. The study revealed that a DNA-encoded library designed for NAD+-binding pockets (NADEL) effectively sampled the chemical binder space of enzymes with ADP-ribosyltransferase activity. The extracted information directed the synthesis of inhibitors for several enzymes including PARP15 and SIRT6. The high dissimilarity of NADEL screening fingerprints for different proteins translated into inhibitors that showed selectivity for their target. The discovery of patterns of enriched structures for six out of eight tested proteins is remarkable for a library of 58 302 DNA-tagged structures and illustrates the prospect of focused DNA-encoded libraries as economic alternatives to large library platforms.

Phyllosticta capitalensis and P. paracapitalensis are endophytic fungi that show potential to inhibit pathogenic P. citricarpa on citrus

Citrus black spot (Phyllosticta citricarpa) is an economically important disease of citrus in Australia. A closely related endophyte, P. capitalensis, also occurs on citrus in Australia, and the two fungi are known to co-exist in orchards. The diversity of other species of Phyllosticta on Citrus in Australia is unknown. Citrus black spot is managed by fungicide treatment and options such as biological control may be better economic alternatives. We studied the diversity of Phyllosticta on Citrus in Australia with a phylogenetic species hypothesis. We report P. paracapitalensis for the first time and confirm the presence of P. capitalensis in Queensland. Many examined isolates of Phyllosticta previously identified as P. capitalensis were reidentified as P. paracapitalensis. We also provide evidence through Koch’s postulates that the two endophytic species are non-pathogenic on citrus fruit. In addition, disease incidence and severity of citrus black spot was significantly reduced when fruit were pre-inoculated with one of the endophytes 14 days prior to pathogen inoculation on the same fruit. Our results indicate these endophytes may have potential antagonistic effects against P. citricarpa under field conditions.

After Agonistic Liberalism: Milbank and Pabst’s Relentless Pursuit of Radical Anglican Thomism

Milbank and Pabst’s account of liberalism as rooted in ontological violence picks out the secret commonalities of left-leaning rights-based and right-leaning market-based liberalisms with considerable shrewdness, and their elaboration of associationist and civil economic alternatives contains many strikingly expansive and novel elements. However, their totalising account of liberalism prevents them from engaging the strengths of the liberal era with sufficient generosity, and so impedes their efforts to articulate a way forward that is substantially and not just chronologically post-liberal.

Economic Evaluation of Biodegradable Plastic Films and Paper Mulches Used in Open-Air Grown Pepper (Capsicum annum L.) Crop

Black polyethylene (PE) is the most common mulching material used in horticultural crops in the world but its use represents a very serious environmental problem. Biodegradable films and paper mulches are available alternatives but farmers are reluctant to adopt them because of their high market prices. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the economic profitability of eight biodegradable mulching materials available for open-air pepper production. The economic evaluation is based on a four-year trial located in a semi-arid region of Spain. Three scenarios of PE waste management are examined: (i) absence of residues management, (ii) landfill accumulation, and (iii) total recycling. The inclusion of the costs of waste management and recycling under the current Spanish legislation only reduced the final net margin by 0.2%. The results show that an increase in subsidy rates of up to 50.1% on the market price would allow all biodegradable films to be economic alternatives to PE. The study supports the mandatory measures for the farmers to assume the costs of waste management and recycling. Despite savings in field conditioning costs, high market prices of biodegradable materials and papers are not compensated by the current level of subsidies, hampering their adoption in the fields.