National State Level Research Articles

Joint COVID-19 and influenza-like illness forecasts in the United States using internet search information

BackgroundAs the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic continues, severe seasonal Influenza (flu) may happen alongside COVID-19. This could cause a “twindemic”, in which there are additional burdens on health care resources and public safety compared to those occurring in the presence of a single infection. Amidst the raising trend of co-infections of the two diseases, forecasting both Influenza-like Illness (ILI) outbreaks and COVID-19 waves in a reliable and timely manner becomes more urgent than ever. Accurate and real-time joint prediction of the twindemic aids public health organizations and policymakers in adequate preparation and decision making. However, in the current pandemic, existing ILI and COVID-19 forecasting models face shortcomings under complex inter-disease dynamics, particularly due to the similarities in symptoms and healthcare-seeking patterns of the two diseases.MethodsInspired by the interconnection between ILI and COVID-19 activities, we combine related internet search and bi-disease time series information for the U.S. national level and state level forecasts. Our proposed ARGOX-Joint-Ensemble adopts a new ensemble framework that integrates ILI and COVID-19 disease forecasting models to pool the information between the two diseases and provide joint multi-resolution and multi-target predictions. Through a winner-takes-all ensemble fashion, our framework is able to adaptively select the most predictive COVID-19 or ILI signals.ResultsIn the retrospective evaluation, our model steadily outperforms alternative benchmark methods, and remains competitive with other publicly available models in both point estimates and probabilistic predictions (including intervals).ConclusionsThe success of our approach illustrates that pooling information between the ILI and COVID-19 leads to improved forecasting models than individual models for either of the disease.

The Bookkeeping System Policy and Literacy Movement in Indonesia

The paper aims to reveal the book system policy in Indonesia and the efforts made to increase interest in reading, including the movement undertaken to improve literacy in Indonesia. Identification and mapping have been executed through the regulatory survey method on the peraturan.go.id database, while slip and analysis have been exercised through content analysis. The paper provides empirical insights into the bookkeeping system and movement undertaken to improve literacy in Indonesia. National policies have supported the bookkeeping system in Indonesia. Meanwhile, to increase interest in reading, a literacy movement was initiated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on November 1, 2007, through the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 43 of 2007. Indonesia's literacy movement is "the national movement for reading fondness." This paper reveals that policy support at the national (state) level also needs to get help at the regional (local) level so that the literacy movement can be implemented up to the regional level. In addition, the central government's commitment is not only in the form of policy support but needs to be followed by several joint movements and incentives.

National Institute of Malaria Research-Malaria Dashboard (NIMR-MDB): A digital platform for analysis and visualization of epidemiological data

A digital dashboard can be an invaluable resource for the research community and can help analyze and visualize data as per the inputs provided by the user. In India, large data sets on malaria are available though presently no digital dashboard is being used to monitor and analyze the malaria data. We have developed a dashboard (National Institute of Malaria Research-Malaria Dashboard (NIMR-MDB)) in R software using 19 different packages within which shiny and ggplot2 are used more intensively. NIMR-MDB can be used offline by running the app on any R software installed computer. Furthermore, NIMR-MDB can be accessed across different computers within an organization using a local server, or it may be made publicly available by publishing it online with secured access. There are two options for publishing the shiny dashboard online 1) via a personal Linux server for hosting this application or 2) by hosting the application on a certified online platform such as ‘shinyapps.io’ at a reasonable cost without setting up a server. The NIMR-MDB is a versatile interface that allows prompt and interactive analyses of malaria epidemiological data. The primary interface of NIMR-MDB is like a web page with 14 tabs (or pages) where each Tab corresponds to a particular set of analysis. Users may move from one Tab to another via icons. Each Tab allows flexibility in correlating various epidemiological parameters like SPR, API, AFI, ABER, RT, malaria cases, deaths, BSC and BSE. The malaria epidemiological data can be analyzed in the required granularity (national level, state level or district level), and its enhanced visualization allows for facile usage and extensive analysis. This NIMR-MDB developed here will play an important role in the analysis of epidemiological data and in strategizing malaria control in India. Researchers and policymakers may use it as a prototype for developing other dashboards for various diseases globally. There is no specific grant received from any funding agency for this work yet.

Sub-national patterns and correlates of depression among adults aged 45 years and older: findings from wave 1 of the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India

Depression is a major public health challenge linked with several poor health outcomes and disabilities among adults aged 45 years and older in India. We aimed to describe the prevalence of depression and its association with a variety of sociodemographic correlates and co-existing health conditions for this age group in India and its states. In this prospective cohort study, data from wave 1 (baseline) of the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India were used to estimate the national and subnational state level age-standardised prevalence of depression-major depressive episodes-using the internationally validated Composite International Diagnostic Interview-Short Form (CIDI-SF) scale. Hierarchical mixed effect multivariate logistic regression models were used to study the sociodemographic correlates and co-existing health conditions of major depressive episodes among the nationally representative sample of 72 250 adults aged 45 years and older from 35 states or union territories (except the state of Sikkim). Associations between depression and self-rated health, co-morbid conditions, functional health, and life satisfaction measures were also examined. A total of 40 335 (58·3%) females and 29 407 (41·7%) males aged 45 to 116 years (median age 58 years) participated. The overall age-standardised prevalence of depression based on CIDI-SF scale was 5·7% (95% CI 5·5-5·8) compared with 0·5% (0·5-0·6) self-reported prevalence of depression among adults aged 45 years and older in India. Wide sub-national variations were seen in depression prevalence, ranging from 0·8% (95% CI 0·3-1·3) in Mizoram state to 12·9% (11·6-14·2) in Madhya Pradesh. Prevalence was higher in females (6·3% [95% CI 6·1-6·6] vs 4·3% [4·1-4·6]) for India, and this higher prevalence was more pronounced in some of the northern states. The risk of depression was higher in those residing in rural areas, widowed, with no or low education, and in the poorest quintile. Depression showed a strong positive association with poor self-rated health (OR 2·39 [95% CI 2·21-2·59]; p<0·0001), with one or more limitations in the activities of daily living (ADL; OR 1·60 [1·46-1·75]; p<0·0001), instrumental ADL limitations (OR 1·51 [1·40-1·64]; p<0·0001), and low cognitive judgment of life satisfaction (OR 1·94 [95% CI 1·78-2·10]; p<0·0001). Despite the substantial burden, depression remains undiagnosed and strongly linked with poor health and wellbeing outcomes in adults aged 45 years and older in India. The ageing population of India and the subnational variations amplify the implications of this new evidence to address the substantial gaps in prevention and treatment of depression. LASI was funded by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the National Institute of Ageing, USA and the United Nations Population Fund, India.

COVID-19-Pandemiekrisenstäbe: Organisation, Befugnisse und Herausforderungen – Strukturelle Gegebenheiten verstehen und nutzen

ZusammenfassungHintergrund und ZielIm föderalen Deutschland sind Krisenstäbe zentrale Instrumente der Pandemiebewältigung. Das Ziel dieses Artikels ist es, Strukturen und Befugnisse von COVID-19-Pandemiekrisenstäben zu beschreiben, die während einer Studie zur Versorgung Schwerkranker und Sterbender in Pandemiezeiten (PallPan) exploriert wurden. Der Schwerpunkt liegt auf gesundheitsbezogenen Krisenstäben von Bund und Ländern (Makroebene), von Landkreisen, kreisfreien Städten und Kommunen (Mesoebene) sowie auf den Krisenstäben einzelner Einrichtungen der Gesundheitsversorgung (Mikroebene).MethodenDie Mitglieder der Krisenstäbe wurden mittels qualitativer semistrukturierter Interviews (10/2020–02/2021) befragt. Die Auswertung erfolgte mittels qualitativ strukturierender Inhaltsanalyse.Ergebnisse42 Personen berichteten über 43 Krisenstäbe in 14 Bundesländern. Einheitliche Regelungen hinsichtlich der Initiierung, personellen Zusammenstellung, Aufgaben, Zuständigkeiten und Befugnisse von Krisenstäben gibt es in Deutschland nicht. Auf Makroebene werden rechtliche und finanzielle Voraussetzungen zur Pandemiebewältigung geschaffen. Die Hauptverantwortung für die Umsetzung von Maßnahmen zum Schutz der Gesundheit liegt bei den Krisenstäben der Meso- und Mikroebene selbst. Die Vorgaben der Gesundheitsämter sind dabei maßgeblich für die Krisenstabsarbeit. Zentrale Aufgaben und Maßnahmen bezogen sich auf die Informationsbereitstellung und die Beschaffung und Verteilung von Ressourcen.DiskussionDie gewonnenen Erkenntnisse zu Strukturen und Befugnissen von Krisenstäben können Interessenvertretungen dabei helfen, die Anliegen zur Aufrechterhaltung der Gesundheitsversorgung spezifischer Bevölkerungsgruppen, wie beispielsweise schwerkranker und sterbender Menschen, in Pandemiezeiten gezielter zu adressieren.

КРИЗИС НАЦИОНАЛЬНО-СТРАТЕГИЧЕСКИХ PR: ОПЫТ ФАКТОРНОГО АНАЛИЗА

The article is devoted to the organization of strategic relations with the public in international relations in the face of global challenges. The aim of the study is to analyze the crisis in the practice of public relations, based on considering the infrastructure components (factors) that determine the strategy, nature, and methodology of PR at the national-state level. The objective of the study is to identify and generalize the main components (factors) of “national-strategic public relations”, such as: the political system of the country, the level of economic development of the state and the level of social activity of citizens.

Comparison of endurance, agility, and core strength between national and state level female football players

Objective: The present research was undertaken with the aim of evaluating and comparing the levels of performance in terms of aerobic endurance, agility, and core strength among female National and State level football players.Methodology: Using a convenience-sampling method, 65 female football players were recruited in this study. These players were further divided into two groups: national level female players (N = 30) and state level female players (N = 35). Aerobic endurance was checked through Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test Level 1 (YYIRTL1), agility was measured through the change of direction ability test, and core strength was evaluated by the Plank test.Results: Using YYIRTL1, we found that national level players (Mean = 16.67, standard deviation [SD] = 2.01) had greater aerobic endurance than state level players (Mean = 14.63, SD = 1.59). The national players (Mean = 15.81, SD = 1.71) had better agility than the state players (14.67, SD = 1.54). The duration of prone posture was longer in national players (86.93, SD 4.82) than in state players (79.89, SD 4.65).Conclusion: Findings showed that state level players have low aerobic endurance, low agility, and less core strength as compared to national level players.

Does Accreditation Symbolise Quality in Public Healthcare Delivery? An Investigation of Hospitals in Kerala

Accreditation has become an important benchmark for healthcare organisations, and accordingly, many government hospitals in Kerala got accredited with national level (National Accreditation Board for Hospitals &amp; Healthcare Providers [NABH]) and state level (Kerala Accreditation Standards for Hospitals [KASH]) accreditation programmes. This study examined the quality of public healthcare delivery in these accredited hospitals while having a comparison with the non-accredited hospitals. It also compared the impact of national and state-level accreditation programmes in Kerala public healthcare settings. This cross-sectional study conducted between July 2017 and July 2018, employing a positivist approach using stratified random sampling. In total, 621 samples were collected from inpatients of both accredited (NABH and KASH) (312) and non-accredited (309) public healthcare institutions in Kerala. Nine constructs overarching the quality of healthcare delivery and patient satisfaction construct are used in the study. The study found that patient satisfaction is identical in both accredited and non-accredited hospitals ( M = 4.28). Patient satisfaction in NABH accredited hospital ( M = 4.27 ± 0.67874) is lower than that of KASH accredited hospital ( M = 4.30 ± 1.25417). The mean score of six constructs of quality healthcare delivery of KASH accredited hospitals is higher than NABH accredited. The study revealed that accreditation brings improvement in certain dimensions of healthcare delivery but does not bring a holistic change. The study concluded that if accreditation has to symbolize quality healthcare delivery, infrastructural and interpersonnel components of healthcare delivery must be improved.

Implementing Rapid Climate Action: Learning from the ‘Practical Wisdom’ of Local Decision-Makers

A global goal to limit dangerous climate change has been agreed through the 2015 Paris Accords. The scientific case for action has been accepted by nearly all governments, at national and local or state level. Yet in all legislatures, there is a gap between the stated climate ambitions and the implementation of the measures necessary to achieve them. This paper examines this gap by analysing the experience of the following three UK cities: Belfast, Edinburgh, and Leeds. Researchers worked with city officials and elected representatives, using interviews and deliberative workshops to develop their shared understandings. The study finds that local actors employ different strategies to respond to the stated climate emergency, based on their innate understanding, or ‘phronetic knowledge’, of what works. It concludes that rapid climate action depends not just on the structures and mechanisms of governance, but at a deeper level, the assumptions, motivations and applied knowledge of decision-makers.

Information-Seeking Patterns During the COVID-19 Pandemic Across the United States: Longitudinal Analysis of Google Trends Data.

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has impacted people’s lives at unprecedented speed and scale, including how they eat and work, what they are concerned about, how much they move, and how much they can earn. Traditional surveys in the area of public health can be expensive and time-consuming, and they can rapidly become outdated. The analysis of big data sets (such as electronic patient records and surveillance systems) is very complex. Google Trends is an alternative approach that has been used in the past to analyze health behaviors; however, most existing studies on COVID-19 using these data examine a single issue or a limited geographic area. This paper explores Google Trends as a proxy for what people are thinking, needing, and planning in real time across the United States.ObjectiveWe aimed to use Google Trends to provide both insights into and potential indicators of important changes in information-seeking patterns during pandemics such as COVID-19. We asked four questions: (1) How has information seeking changed over time? (2) How does information seeking vary between regions and states? (3) Do states have particular and distinct patterns in information seeking? (4) Do search data correlate with—or precede—real-life events?MethodsWe analyzed searches on 38 terms related to COVID-19, falling into six themes: social and travel; care seeking; government programs; health programs; news and influence; and outlook and concerns. We generated data sets at the national level (covering January 1, 2016, to April 15, 2020) and state level (covering January 1 to April 15, 2020). Methods used include trend analysis of US search data; geographic analyses of the differences in search popularity across US states from March 1 to April 15, 2020; and principal component analysis to extract search patterns across states.ResultsThe data showed high demand for information, corresponding with increasing searches for coronavirus linked to news sources regardless of the ideological leaning of the news source. Changes in information seeking often occurred well in advance of action by the federal government. The popularity of searches for unemployment claims predicted the actual spike in weekly claims. The increase in searches for information on COVID-19 care was paralleled by a decrease in searches related to other health behaviors, such as urgent care, doctor’s appointments, health insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid. Finally, concerns varied across the country; some search terms were more popular in some regions than in others.ConclusionsCOVID-19 is unlikely to be the last pandemic faced by the United States. Our research holds important lessons for both state and federal governments in a fast-evolving situation that requires a finger on the pulse of public sentiment. We suggest strategic shifts for policy makers to improve the precision and effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions and recommend the development of a real-time dashboard as a decision-making tool.

Comparative study on selected anthropometric measurement of athletes at different level

The purpose of the study was to compare selected anthropometric measurement of athletes at different level. Forty (40) National level and State level junior athletes of which twenty of each level (age ranging-14-19 y.) was selected from North region of India especially from SAI complex of Patiala. Players were selected from Sprint, Long jump, Shot put, Javelin and Long distance running events where four athletes from each event. Subjects Height, Body weights were measured by ‘Stadiometer’ and ‘Weighing’ machine whereas Thigh Girth, Leg length, Hand length were measured by ‘Freeman Steel Tape’ as an anthropometric measurement. To find out the significant differences of collecting data were calculated by applying students “t” test at 0.05 level of confidence. Result of the study showed that significant difference has been noticed on Height, Leg length and Thigh Girth whereas no significant difference was found in case of Body weight, and hand length.

Data Mining for the Study of the Epidemic (SARS- CoV-2) COVID-19: Algorithm for the Identification of Patients (SARS-CoV-2) COVID 19 in Mexico

The importance of the working document is that it allows analyzing the information and status of the cases associated with (SARS-CoV-2) COVID-19 as open data at the municipal, state and national levels, with a daily registry of patients, according to age, sex, co-morbidities, for the condition of (SARS-CoV-2) COVID-19 according to the following characteristics: a) Positive, b) Negatives, c) Suspects. Likewise, it presents information regarding the identification of an outpatient and / or hospitalized patient, attending to their medical development, identifying: a) Recovered, b) Deaths and c) Assets, in Phase 3 and Phase 4, at the national state and municipal level in Mexico, the data analysis is carried out by applying an algorithm of data mining, which provides the information, fast and timely, required for the estimation of Scenarios for Medical Care of the (SARS-CoV-2) COVID-19. The Algorithm for the identification of patients (SARS-CoV-2) COVID-19 in Mexico allows to analyze at the municipal, state and national level, the registry of patients, according to age, sex, comorbidities, for condition of (SARS-CoV-2) COVID-19 according to the following characteristics: a) Positive, b) Negative, c) Suspicious, as well as presenting information on the identification of an outpatient and/or hospitalized patient, attending to their medical development, identifying: a) Recovered, b ) Deaths and c) Assets, in Phase 3 and Phase 4, in a fast and timely manner, to support public decision-making in health matters.

Propuesta conceptual: la producción social del espacio local alrededor de megaproyectos de infraestructura de transporte en Colombia

Por medio del análisis socioespacial se busca comprender el espacio producido por las grandes infraestructuras en su complejidad, generando procesos que involucran actores a diferentes escalas. Mientras los actores a escala internacional-global producen espacio promoviendo, asesorando y ejecutando megaproyectos de infraestructura (como la multinacional Odebrecht), y los actores a escala estatal-nacional subordinan el territorio, produciendo espacio concebido, los actores locales producen espacios vividos, generando acciones para la inclusión en la promesa de desarrollo implícita en los megaproyectos de infraestructura en transporte. El enfoque cualitativo sustentado en el trabajo de campo, las fuentes primarias y la investigación documental, permitió evidenciar las tensiones generadas por la intervención del espacio y cómo los habitantes defendieron su territorio por medio de acciones normativas y simbólicas, generando espacios de esperanza.

Взгляды Ю.Ф. Самарина на народное представительство в контексте славянофильской и либеральной политической мысли России

In the article the author analyzes the views of Yu. F. Samarin, – one of the leaders of Slavophil trend, on the popular representation, comparing his views with those of other Slavophiles and moderate Westerners on this problem, thus making up for certain deficiency in Russian political science. The article shows the evolution of Slavophiles’ views on the issue of popular representation: from the appeal for organizing local self-administration without forming at that representative power at the national State level, and to the initiatives to organize the representative power that could serve as counterweight to the reforms of Alexander II, and to the subsequent idea of recreating the specific Russian historic institution – Zemsky Sobor. However, Yu. F. Samarin turned out to be the most conservative one among Slavophilism ideologists regarding the popular representation. He was almost the only one who considered Russian monarchy of the 19th century to be in full compliance with the principle of nationality while retaining solid unity with the people. Accordingly Samarin was a consistent defender of absolute autocracy and did not consider it necessary to supplement it with representative institutions.

Application of early aberration reporting system (EARS) to seasonal influenza weekly report in Mexico (2007–2014)

Purpose: Seasonal influenza is a serious re-emerging acute infectious diseases with its social and health impact. Understanding its temporal characteristics in different spatial perspectives is a priority in public health and disease surveillance due to its annual recurrent episodes causing significant health burden. However, national and state-level influenza temporal trends are not fully investigated yet. Therefore, we applied EARS methods o describe temporal trends of seasonal influenza in Mexico from 2007 to 2014 in different spatial level. Methods & Materials: The number of confirmed seasonal influenza cases are reported every week at the state level from 2007 to 2014 (except in 2009) in Mexico. We use Early Aberration Reporting System (EARS) methods (C1, C2, and C3 algorithms) to detect the signals from influenza outbreak as temporal trends investigation in two different spatial level: national level and state level. Results: At national level analysis, C1 method could catch up 22 signals, C2 method could catch up 73 signals and C3 method could catch up 116 signals during 2007–2014 seasonal influenza surveillance. At state-level analysis, C1 statistics could catch up total 570 signals in 32 states. Average number of signals from C1 statistics is 17.8 signals/state ranged from 11 to 28. C2 statistics could catch up total 1612 signals in 32 states. The average number of signals C2 statistics is 50.4 signals/state ranged from 31 to 67 signals. C3 statistics could catch up total 3163 signals in 32 states. The average number of signals from C3 statistics is 98.8 signals/state ranged from 72 to 120 signals.Tabled 1Number of C1 SignalsNumber of C2 SignalsNumber of C3 SignalsMinimum (per year)113173Maximum (per year)2867119Average(SD)17.8(4.09)50.4(10.6)88.5(14.6) Open table in a new tab Conclusion: National level surveillance system and its signals may not meet the state level outbreak signals. Public health professionals should understand the difference of seasonal influenza temporal trends. Public health professionals and governments should apply state-level surveillance system to provide better guidelines for seasonal influenza prevention and control.

ГРАЖДАНСТВО И ПРОБЛЕМА ФОРМИРОВАНИЯ ГРАЖДАНСКОЙ НАЦИИ (ТЕОРЕТИКО-МЕТОДОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ АСПЕКТЫ)

The article aims at examining some theoretical and methodological aspects of the phenomenon of citizenship, which are analyzed at the interdisciplinary level. The author notes that the combination of two mutually complementary “perspectives” – “solidarity” and “conflict” – became the basis for modern studies of the phenomenon of citizenship, the interest in which became topical in modern conditions among thinkers of all parts of the political spectrum. It is emphasized that the new “theory of citizenship” focuses on active citizenship, what is considered by nowadays political theorists as an argument in favor of the developing a sense of the national identity, based on a common language, history and social institutions. At the same time, it is noted that in the modern discourse of citizenship there is a refusal to understand it as comparable only to the national state level: that leads to a shift in the focus of real policy in the field of citizenship from the diversity of subjects to a variety of levels and forms, as well as places and spaces of its “production”. The author notes that the new trends in the development of the institution of citizenship, in particular the idea of “differentiated citizenship”, are closely related to the issue of shaping a civic nation that is relevant for the modern Russian state.

Владно-ресурсні аспекти геополітики і формування ризиків стосовно країн Латинської Америки і Карибського басейну.

In this paper, an attempt is made to raise the question of the nature of modernity as such, with an understanding of the key development trends and the characteristics of political processes at the global and regional levels with a description of future risk issues. In the framework of the research vector, the insufficient study of the issue of the qualitative content of geopolitics was emphasized in connection with the completion of the US approval of neo-liberal hegemony and the corresponding reformatting of the world with the beginning of the introduction by the United States of America of a political and economic strategy for national development. It has been recorded that in the context of the implementation by other actors of world politics of the intentions of a new contouring of a multipolar world, a range of issues is being updated regarding the formatting of political and economic processes at the national-state level and awareness of the risks of the future, the search for ways to minimize them. Thus, the article analyzes the power of resource aspects of geopolitics, offers a vision of the nature and content of prospects, identifies risk zones in the context of the implementation of today's strategies in general terms and, in part, in relation to the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. It is concluded that under the conditions of “fluid modernity” and the establishment of a multi-polarity of the world with centering of the poles based on resource understanding of modern infrastructural power, the nature of the transformation of the “poles of the world” is fleeting, that is, the process of struggle to expand zones of influence, “territories of responsibility” is being updated, the risks of conflict are growing, with a separate problem of the forms and extent of social conflict. In the Latin American context, in particular, the significance of the very definition, production and distribution of risks, awareness of its “level by conditional score of the scale of values” It is emphasized that the prospects for formatting the world and regional changes largely depend on the development of processes in the USA, the leader of the democratic world and world economy.

Імперативи глобального розвитку: фокус на Global Governance

The paper researches an impact of the world integration processes and a variety of factors on formation of the new system of values and building a system of managing global development. The approaches to global governance that are based on value guides have been determined as a prerequisite for institutional transformations in the modern global community. The objective of the research is substantiation of the essence and specific features of forming the system for managing global development, premised on the global governance concept and multilevel public administration, and the developed global indicator – an integrated global development index – that characterizes its condition, dynamics, and possibilities of regulatory impact on the global development in different countries of the world, with its further application to establishing strategic guides of the development of the national states which have entered upon the path of democratic social transformations and societal market economy. The author emphasizes the need for forming a system of global development indicators and elaborating the integrated global development index, with regard to the correlation of socio-political, socio-humanitarian, and economical and technological components, for achievement of certain coordinated global goals that orient the society to development, foster innovation thinking, promote integration processes and a growth in the scope of investment in resource and intellectual potential, which would provide an opportunity of obtaining specific socially important results, uniting and consolidating the society around the integrating goals and values. Additionally, a special role of the multilevel public administration in fulfillment of the global development objectives at the national state level has been pointed out. In this context, ensuring a transition to the multilevel public administration of the global development requires coordination of public authorities’ activity in all the spheres of social life, and effective forms of cooperation with international intergovernmental organizations and administrating bodies of the sub-national level, stipulating the need for a clear-cut distribution of authority, legally established rules of interaction, inter-agency collaboration, conclusion of agreements and contracts both between public authorities and representatives of the conscious public.

Communicative Support of the Process of Power Decentralization on National-State Level: Analysis of Information Policy of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2014-2018)

All reforms in demoсratic state involve timely and reasoned informing by government about actions and their consequences for all citizens. Such informational and educational activities impact on both the level of confidence in government and the success of reform results in general. If the changes concern the local self-government, public awareness should be one of the principal goals of the government and carried out by various ways. In this aspect, the beginning of the process of power decentralization in Ukraine has become the unique illustration of the widespread information-analytical work by the government. The article presents the results of a government discourse investigation about the process of power decentralization in Ukraine, which posted on the official website of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and in the newspaper “Uriadovy Courier” from April 1, 2014 to June 2018. We analyzed these publications in quantitative correlation as well as separated features of discourse for each respective year. Also, we made attempt to summarize the factors influencing the communicative support of the reform.

Evidence for a recent decline in the distribution and abundance of the New Holland mouse (Pseudomys novaehollandiae) in Tasmania, Australia

The New Holland mouse (Pseudomys novaehollandiae) was recognised to be at threat of extinction at an International, National, and Tasmanian State level in 2008, 2010, and 1995, respectively. The species inhabits the floristically diverse dry heathlands and associated vegetation communities that typically arise from mosaic burns. In this regard the New Holland mouse could be considered a flagship species for healthy heathlands. We present 18 years of search and capture records collected since 1998 from Tasmania to show that there has been a contraction over the last nine years from 16 to 2 in the number of sites from which the species has been detected, and more than a 99% reduction in capture-per-unit-effort. These results raise concern as to the viability of the species in Tasmania. Strength of inference regarding the magnitude and causes of decline in distribution and abundance would be improved by regular and systematic monitoring. The considerable overlap between the potential causes of the New Holland mouse’s decline in Tasmania and regional declines in mammal assemblages nationally, suggest that recovery efforts for the New Holland mouse could have positive outcomes for all species inhabiting lowland dry heathlands in Australia.