International Summit Research Articles

Promoting Equitable and Affordable Patient Access to Safe and Effective Innovations in Donation and Transplantation of Substances of Human Origin and Derived Therapies.

Innovation is a hallmark of organ, tissue, and cell transplantation. The development of new treatments derived from these substances of human origin (SoHO) has rapidly evolved in recent years. Despite the great benefits that these innovative therapies could bring to patients, significant difficulties have arisen in making them equitably and widely accessible. Herein, we identify and address 4 challenges to promote innovation in this field in a collaborative, sustainable, and transparent manner and propose some concrete solutions applicable to SoHO-derived treatments, ranging from cell therapies to solid organ transplantation. Regulators, health policymakers, and government officials are recommended to incorporate specific elements into the regulatory frameworks of their respective jurisdictions, although regulatory convergence and equivalent quality and safety standards applicable to SoHO at a global level would be needed. An innovation-driven regulatory environment, respectful with the human origin and in accordance with the altruistic donation of SoHO, should be encouraged to improve the safety, effectiveness, accessibility, and affordability of SoHO and to promote collaboration between countries and between public and private sectors. This overview is the outcome of a working group focused on "Innovation in the donation and clinical application of SoHO" as part of the international Summit "Towards Global Convergence in Transplantation: Sufficiency, Transparency and Oversight" convened by the Organización Nacional de Trasplantes under the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in November 2023 and cosponsored by the Council of Europe, the World Health Organization, the Transplantation Society, and the European Society for Organ Transplantation.

Analysis of Chinese Political Discourse: The Belt and Road International Summit Forum as an Example

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. This initiative is conducive to exchanges and cooperation among countries, injecting new momentum into world economic growth and opening up new space for global development. And discourse analysis can reveal how people use real language in the process of daily communication, the relationship between social-cultural context and discourse construction, and the linguistic phenomena and features revealed by large units of discourse. The proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative is a new model and new idea to promote international cooperation in the context of globalization and regionalization, which is closely related to China’s excellent traditional culture and the historical continuity of China’s cultural exchanges with the world. Therefore, this paper takes the Belt and Road International Summit Forum as an example, and utilizes discourse analysis to elaborate its impact on China and related countries, so as to provide reference for China to take countermeasures as well as to enhance its own international discourse power.

The production and performance of status: Behind the scenes of an international summit

This article examines how international summits are produced as status symbols, arguing that a host’s successful management of the event maintains summitry as a high-status practice, while hosting itself serves as a means to acquire status, owing to the complexity and risk involved. Drawing on elements of practice and performance theories, it articulates how and why status symbols can be understood as performative practices, reworking how Veblen is predominantly used in International Relations (IR), shifting from a focus on conspicuous consumption to conspicuous performance, while adopting a more expansive conceptualisation of status symbols, as one finds in Goffman. Exploring the manipulability of summitry as a status symbol, the article draws on an ethnography of the 2018 Charlevoix G7 summit, offering a ‘behind the scenes’ look at how a host produces a summit’s constitutive ‘showpiece moments’, zeroing-in on three key elements: a host’s scenario handbook, command centre and media centre. In addition to proposing theoretical and conceptual innovation in the study of international status, the article expands the scope of summit studies beyond a traditional focus on statespeople negotiating agreements, inviting exploration of summitry’s performative and symbolic dimensions.

Spontaneous Compositional-Interfacial Co-Modification Engineering via Ion Exchange Reaction Between Perovskite and Electron-Transporting Layer for Exceptionally Long-Term Stability of Photovoltaics.

The long-term stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is still challenging for commercialization and mainly linked to the life span of perovskite films. Herein, a spontaneous compositional-interfacial co-modification strategy is developed based on the ion exchange reaction by introducing ammonium hexafluorophosphate (NH4PF6) into antisolvent to form gradient structures through a simple one-step solvent engineering. With the assistance of the ion exchange reaction, NH4PF6 forms a multifunctional structure to protect perovskite films from both internal and external factors for the exceptionally long-term stability of photovoltaics. The reason for this is linked to the high hydrophobicity of NH4PF6 for preventing H2O invasion, suppressing ion migration by forming hydrogen bonding, and reducing perovskite defects. The resulting unencapsulated devices show exceptionally long-term stability under standardized the International Summit on Organic Photovoltaic Stability (ISOS) protocols, with over 94%, 81%, and 83% retained power conversion efficiencies after aging tests under N2 (ISOS-D-1I), ambient air (ISOS-D-1), and 85°C (ISOS-D-2I) for 14016, 2500, and 1248h, respectively. These performances compare well with the state-of-the-art stability of inverted PSCs. Further investigations are conducted to study the evolution of macroscopic morphology and microscopic crystal structure in aged perovskite films, aiming to provide evidence supporting the aforementioned improvements in stability.

Recent Developments in the Regulation of Heritable Human Genome Editing

In 2018, the Chinese scientist He Jiankui presented his research at the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in Hong Kong. While it was intended that he facilitate a workshop, he was instead called on to present his research in heritable human genome editing, where he made the announcement that he had taken great strides in advancement of his research, to the extent that he had gene-edited human embryos and that this had resulted in the live births of two children. While his research ethic and methodology was interrogated, he insisted that two children, twin girls, had been born healthy and that there was another pregnancy (at the time) where birth of a third gene edited child would be imminent. This announcement generated a ripple effect in the scientific community and exposed the gaps in regulation and absence of law relating to the technology. This resulted in a flurry of activity and conversation around regulation of the technology, which scientists stated was not ready for human trials. This article reviews the Third Summit which was held in London in March 2023 and comments on the latest developments in the regulation of heritable human genome editing.

Chapter 9. Return to the revision of the bioethics law regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the field of medical imaging.

On the occasion of the sixth AI international Summit (November 22-24, 2023), Professor Daniel Rueckert (Technical University of Munich) replies to our questions on ethical issues raised by the use of artificial intelligence in medical imaging.

Üsküdar University was in the USA for the world’s largest international education summit…

Üsküdar University was in the USA for the world’s largest international education summit…

Evaluation of Ethylene-Vinyl Acetate, Methyl Methacrylate, and Polyvinylidene Fluoride as Encapsulating Materials for Perovskite-Based Solar Cells, Using the Low-Temperature Encapsulation Method in a Cleanroom Environment

In this article, the development of a stable perovskite-based photovoltaic device manufactured in a controlled environment, with humidity between 40 and 65%, and encapsulated is presented. Encapsulation using polymers like ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and EVA combined with polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) was proposed due to the low curing temperatures, insulating properties, and simple deposition processes of these materials. Testing involved subjecting these materials to humidity, temperature, and UV irradiation, following the International Summit on Stability of Organic Photovoltaics (ISOS-T) protocols, and using a 24 W UV lamp. Characterization analyses were carried out using various technologies including digital microscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and electrical simulations. The results indicate that EVA-encapsulated samples displayed higher stability and resistance against external factors compared to PMMA and EVA-PVDF. Specifically, the EVA-encapsulated samples maintained a 15.06% power conversion efficiency (PCE) after the thermal cycles were carried out, reducing only by 0.9% compared to pristine samples. Similarly, after 350 h of UV exposure, they retained a PCE of 13.90%, decreasing by just 9.58% compared to the initial value.

Colonial lessons to learn from Habsburg: Bosnia-Herzegovina, 1878–1918

In 1878, as a consequence of an international Balkan summit in Berlin, Austria–Hungary was given permission to occupy the troubled Ottoman provinces Bosnia and Hercegovina. A gory invasion campaign ensued, followed by four decades of civil administration. Finally, the territories were annexated by the Habsburg Monarchy in 1908 as an appendix of sorts, which almost caused the premature outbreak of a great war in Europe. This article will sketch the background for this last – and lethal – expansion of the empire and pursue the research questions of (a) whether this constitutes a case of colonialism within Europe and (b) what its repercussions were, critically challenging the alleged ‘civilising mission’ that would legitimise the whole undertaking.

Perovskite solar cell technology scaling‐up: Eco‐efficient and industrially compatible sub‐module manufacturing by fully ambient air slot‐die/blade meniscus coating

AbstractThe efficiency gap between perovskite (PVSK) solar sub‐modules (size ≥200 cm2) and lab scale cells (size ˂1 cm2) is up to 36%. Moreover, the few attempts present in the literature used lab‐scale techniques in a glove‐box environment, reducing its compatibility for further product industrialization. Here, we report a PVSK sub‐module (total area 320 cm2, aperture area 201 cm2, 93% geometrical fill factor [GFF]) fabricated in ambient air by hybrid meniscus coating techniques assisted by air and green antisolvent quenching method. To suppress nonradiative recombination losses, improve carrier extraction and control the PVSK growth on such a large surface, we adopted phenethylammonium iodide (PEAI) passivation and PVSK solvent addiction strategies. The high homogeneous and reproducible layers guarantee an efficiency of 16.13% (7% losses with respect to the small area cell and zero losses with respect to the mini‐modules) and a stability of more than 3000 h according to International Summit on Organic PV Stability, dark storage/shelf life in ambient (ISOS‐D‐1). The sustainability of used methods and materials is demonstrated by the life cycle assessment. The scale‐up operation allows for strong impact mitigation in all the environmental categories and more efficient consumption of the resources. Finally, the economic assessment shows a strong cost reduction scaling from mini‐ to sub‐module (about 40%).

Trace Doping: Fluorine-Containing Hydrophobic Lewis Acid Enables Stable Perovskite Solar Cells.

With the rapid developments in perovskite solar cell (PSC), high efficiency has been achieved, but the long-term operational stability is still the most important challenges for the commercialization of this emerging photovoltaic technology. So far, bi-dopants Li-TFSI/t-BP doped hole-transporting materials (HTM) have led to state-of-the art efficiency in n-i-p PSCs. However, such dopants have several drawbacks in terms of stability, including the complex oxidation process, undesirable ion migration and ultra-hygroscopic nature. Herein, a fluorine-containing organic Lewis acid dopant bis(pentafluorophenyl)zinc (Zn-FP) with hydrophobic property and high migration barrier has been employed as a potential alternative to widely employedbi-dopants Li-TFSI/t-BP for PTAA. The resulting Zn-FP-based PSCs achieve a maximum PCE of 20.34% with J-V hysteresis-free. Specifically, the unencapsulated device exhibits significantly advancement of operational stability under the International Summit on Organic Photovoltaic Stability protocols (ISOS-L-1), maintaining over 90% of the original efficiency after operation for 1000 hours under continuous 1-sun equivalent illumination in N2 atmosphere in both forward and reverse J-V scan.

Unraveling the Degradation Pathway of Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells Based on ISOS-D-1 Protocol.

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have shown rapid development recently, whereas nonideal stability remains the chief obstacle toward commercialization. Thus, it is of utmost importance to probe the degradation pathway for the entire device. Here, the extrinsic stability of inverted PSCs (IPSCs) is investigated by using standard shelf-life testing based on the International Summit on Organic Photovoltaic Stability protocols (ISOS-D-1). During the long-term assessment of 1700h, the degraded power conversion efficiency is mainly caused by the fill factor (53% retention) and short-circuit current density (71% retention), while the open-circuit voltage still maintains 97% of the initial values. Further absorbance evolution and density functional theory calculations disclose that the perovskite rear-contact side, in particular for the perovskite/fullerene interface, is the predominant degradation pathway. This study contributes to understanding the aging mechanism and enhancing the durability of IPSCs for future applications.

Beyond Busulfan: Building a Better Conditioner for Bone Marrow Transplantation

Beyond Busulfan: Building a Better Conditioner for Bone Marrow Transplantation

Announcements.

Free AccessAnnouncementsPublished Online:June 02, 2023https://doi.org/10.1027/0227-5910/a000913PDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInReddit SectionsMoreThe Annual Meeting 2023 of the International Society for the Study of Self-Injury (ISSS) is taking place in Vienna, Austria, June 21--23, 2023. For more information go to https://www.meduniwien.ac.at/web/ueber-uns/events/2023/isss-2023-annual-conference/The 32nd World Congress of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) is taking place September 19–22, 2023, in Piran, Slovenia. For more information go to https://www.iasp.info/piran2023/ Abstract submissions are now open: https://www.iasp.info/piran2023/abstract-submission/The 2023 IASR/AFSP International Summit on Suicide Research is taking place in Barcelona, Spain, October 15–18, 2023. For more information go to https://suicideresearchsummit.org/The 20th European Symposium on Suicide and Suicidal Behaviour will take place in Rome, Italy, August 27–30, 2024. Further information will be provided 2023.The IASP Pan-American Conference will take place in Orlando, FL, USA, November 9–11, 2024. For more information go to https://www.iasp.info/panamericaconference2024/TO BE AT THE FOREFRONT OF GLOBAL SUICIDE PREVENTION EFFORTSJoin as an individualJoin as an organizationBenefits include: Special Interest Groups, Membership Network, IASP Early Career Group, Congresses, Conferences, Symposiums & Workshops, the Crisis journal, and the IASP AwardsIASP is a nonprofit organization for those interested and working in suicide prevention. The membership consists of individuals (clinicians, researchers, crisis workers, volunteers and people who have lost a family member or friend to suicide) and community, national and international organizations. The membership currently extends over 80 countries and is affiliated with the World Health Organization as the key organization concerned with suicide prevention.IASP membership is open to all individuals and organisations interested in suicide prevention: from academics, clinicians, volunteers, and survivors to community, national, and international organizations.Sign up now at www.iasp.info/become-a-member-or-renewIASP Executive Committee 2023–2026PresidentProf. Rory O'Connor (UK) 2021–2024Vice President 1Prof. Thomas Niederkrotenthaler (Austria) 2021–2024Vice President 2Prof. Jo Robinson (Australia) 2023–2026Vice President 3Prof. Lai Fong Chan (Malaysia) 2023–2026General SecretaryProf. Annette Erlangsen (Denmark) 2021–2024TreasurerProf. Maurizio Pompili (Italy) 2023–2026IASP Council of National Representatives 2023–2026Co-ChairsProf. Charity Akotia (Ghana) 2021–2024 & Associate Professor Vita Postuvan (Slovenia) 2023–2026For a current listing of the IASP Council of National Representatives please refer to www.iasp.info/iasp-national-regional-representatives/FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 44Issue 3May 2023ISSN: 0227-5910eISSN: 2151-2396 InformationCrisis (2023), 44, pp. 255-256 https://doi.org/10.1027/0227-5910/a000913.© 2023Hogrefe PublishingPDF download

MAPPING INDIA’S POSITION IN UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCES (UNFCCC) – WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO COP-26

One of the crucial challenges of the 21s century is Climate Change that has severe impact all over the world. It is a universal phenomenon with local effects. So, the issue should be determined by collective efforts. The United Nations voiced concern about this in the 1970s and called for an international summit in Stockholm, which caused in the establishment of global environmental governance in 1972 and the creation of the United Nations Environment Program (UNDP).Later, The First Global Climate Conference was planned for in 1979. From October 29 to November 7, 1990, Geneva hosted the Second International Climate Conference. Its primary duty was to evaluate the WCP (World Climate Program) that WCC-1 had established. It was an important phase towards a inclusive climate accord. The WCC-2 called for the establishment of a climate convention along with foster international efforts to address climate change that led to the establishment of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) in 1992 that implemented in 1994 by singing of 154 countries. Since then from 1995 onwards Parties to the Convention, i.e, called Conference of Parties (COP), the ultimate body have met annually to access and review in dealing with climate change. Significantly, from the starting, India has been very concern in the environmental degradation and took part every global environmental conferences with binding coomitments. However, this paper seeks to study India’s Response in United Nations Climate Change Conferences in General and trying to analyse India’s stance in COP – 26 that was held in Glasgow, Scotland in particular.

Üsküdar University attended the world’s biggest international education summit

Üsküdar University attended the world’s biggest international education summit NAFSA.

Exemple d’une initiative issue de la communauté scientifique :la déclaration de Dublin des scientifiques sur le rôle sociétal de l'élevage

The Dublin Declaration was initiated by some members of the Organizing Committee of the "International Summit on the Societal Role of Meat" which was held on 19 and October 20, 2022 in Dublin. The Dublin Declaration insists more broadly on the societal role of livestock, highlighting the advantages and benefits of livestock farming sys-tems, while proposing solutions for the necessary improvements. The Declaration can only be signed by scientists who carry out research, teaching, publication or representation activities, and who are in some way affiliated with a university or a research-oriented organization. This Declaration aims to give a voice to the many scientists around the world, who carry out their research with diligence, honesty and success in different disciplines in order to propose a balanced vision on the future of animal productions. A discussion is then carried out on the state of scientific "controversy" around farming, with a greater development concerning the consumption of meat in de-bates between scientific communities.

The societal role of meat: the Dublin Declaration with an Australian perspective

It is clear that the societal role of meat is being challenged with ideological and simplified logic without substantiation from robust data-driven science. With this background, the international summit titled ‘The societal role of meat – what the science says’ was held in Dublin, Ireland, during October 2022, to provide evidence-based evaluations and the Dublin Declaration was signed by over 1000 scientists. In this paper, we provide a synopsis of the summit and then give context for evaluating the societal role of meat in Australia. The key themes of the summit were the essential roles of meat in (1) diet and health, (2) a sustainable environment and (3) society, economics and culture. Evidence clearly showed the role of meat as a nutrient-dense source of high-quality protein and micronutrients that can be safely consumed by humans. Further, the complementary role of livestock in agricultural systems was highlighted with both plant- and animal-based agriculture reliant on each other to maximise the efficient production of food. Thus, from both an Australian and world perspective, very little food considered to be human-edible is fed to livestock. The role of livestock in rural societies across the world was emphasised to underpin regional and national economies, with particular importance in those countries with developing economies to facilitate growing wealth to ‘step out’ of poverty and provide gender equality. Meat production, particularly from ruminants, is a critical part of Australian primary production and it is concluded that the Dublin Declaration is highly relevant to Australia. Finally, concern regarding future funding and organisation of research and extension is discussed. There is a need to continue funding highly collaborative programs that bring a broad range of disciplines together, in conjunction with undergraduate and postgraduate teaching to underpin the social license to operate for meat and livestock production.

The Gene-Edited Babies Controversy: Reactions in the Scientific Community, Social Media, and the Press.

This chapter analyzes how the gene-edited babies controversy sparked by He Jiankiu has unfolded in three spheres: the scientific community, the press, and social media. Across these spheres, there is a multilayered debate: scientific and technical aspects are discussed, as much as legal frameworks, ethics, responsibilities, politics, and social issues. But beyond these similarities, there are three notable differences. The first concerns (geo)politics. At the 2018 international summit on human gene editing, we observe efforts of self-regulation and demarcation to protect the moral and epistemic authority of the scientific community and to critique - and eventually "excommunicate" - He Jiankui. While the 2018 summit drew a clear line between "good science" and "bad science," in the press, the dichotomy is rather expressed in terms of "good countries" versus "bad countries" regarding their ethics and regulation (a dichotomy much less visible in social media). The second difference concerns emotions and affect. Despite the scientific community's strong condemnation of He Jiankui, it nevertheless expressed its criticisms in an unemotional and factual way. In the press and social media, however, various emotions are visible - fear, anger, pride, hope, rejoicing, disgust, and shame - and the discussion is more dramatic. Third, the use of positive terms is notable: while virtually absent in the scientific sphere and the press, there are positive assessments in social media.

Nuclear safety: a global challenge in the context of the war in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has challenged the nuclear safety of Ukraine, Europe and the world. This article examines the problems of nuclear safety in Ukraine and outlines some solutions to this ongoing crisis, as well as improvements to international norms where required. In addressing these issues, there is a critical need to revise the existing standards of nuclear safety to prevent nuclear terrorism, create and authorise a special United Nations (UN) Commission to mediate between the warring parties, and hold an international summit on nuclear security to oversee the fulfilment of obligations by member states of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the UN.