Although crises provide an opportunity for meaningful institutional change, the results often fall short of expectations because the reforms undertaken are informed by top-down, global-standard blueprints and fail to consider the informal, long-established, functionally credible institutions that exist at the local level. Seeking to explore how the interplay between formal and informal institutions can affect institutional change, the study focuses on Stagiates, a small community that has been struggling for more than 10 years against the uniform implementation of the 2010 administrative reform (prescribed in light of the Greek government-debt crisis), which threatens to dismantle their 350-year-old, functionally credible commons. To this end, the paper uses case study methodology, Historical-Institutional Analysis and Ostrom's Social-Ecological System framework. It concludes by emphasising the need for institutional analysis and policy to look more closely at the dynamic and complex dialectic between formal and informal institutions and the role that community needs, norms and values play in meaningful institutional change, paying due attention (as original institutionalism did) to the informality and the function-based social credibility of institutions.

As a result of the partial privatization and public listing of two large state-owned enterprises in 2001, the Norwegian state became the largest owner at the Oslo stock exchange. A new mode of corporate governance was developed, through which retainment of the corporate headquarters (HQ) of hybrid state-owned enterprises became the sole political goal of continued state ownership in these corporations. This article explores the perceived benefits to the national economy of these company HQ through an investigation of public documents and interviews with key stakeholders. The article argues that the main function of the goal of HQ retainment was to portray national interests and political goals as mere (positive) externalities of HQ location, and that this goal was formalized due to a perceived need to depoliticize the corporate governance of hybrid state-owned enterprises.

Amaranthus species are problematic weeds in snap bean production systems. They reduce crop yields, and their stem fragments contaminate harvested pods. Knowledge of snap bean tolerance to different preemergence herbicides is limited; however, knowing this tolerance is essential for planning a reliable weed management system, breeding herbicide-tolerant cultivars, and registering herbicides for use on minor crops such as snap bean. Field trials were conducted in 2021 and 2022 to determine the tolerance of eight snap bean cultivars to preemergence herbicides with activity on Amaranthus species, including dimethenamid-P, flumioxazin, lactofen, metribuzin, saflufenacil, and sulfentrazone. Snap bean plant density (number of plants per square meter), plant biomass (grams per plant), and canopy biomass (grams per square meter) 21 d after treatment were used to assess crop tolerance to a range of herbicide rates. Linear mixed-effects regression models were fitted to quantify the relationships between preemergence herbicide rate and snap bean cultivar tolerance. Results indicated a high margin of crop safety with dimethenamid-P and lactofen for weed control in snap bean, and a low margin of crop safety with metribuzin and saflufenacil. Results indicated differential cultivar tolerance to flumioxazin and sulfentrazone, which could be driven by genetic variability among cultivars.

In 1976, the Committee of Safety of Medicines (CSM) in Britain authorized the contraceptive injectable Depo-Provera (DP) for short-term use and for two main reasons only: if a woman had received a rubella vaccine or if her partner had just undergone a vasectomy. Although officially authorized on restricted grounds only, the drug appears to have been widely prescribed by doctors of the Domiciliary Family Planning Services (DFPS). This article takes the prescription of DP in the DFPS of Haringey, a multiracial neighbourhood in London, and Glasgow as a comparative case-study to explore the intersections of medical authority, race, and class. Drawing on the archives of the Wellcome Collection, London, and the NHS Archives of the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, we show that the DFPS offered the ideal setting to test and prescribe Depo-Provera widely. In the hands of the medical profession, the drug at times became a tool of violence towards women from disadvantaged backgrounds. In doing so, we contribute to the wider, global history of DP, and illustrate how racist, classist, and ableist prejudices could shape family planning services in the British context.

SPAD combined with hyperspectral sensors can be an alternative approach to traditional laboratory methods for determining the physiological status of trees. The aim of this work was to assess whether the effectiveness of SPAD predictive models using hyperspectral data might be influenced by where the measurements were carried out. Leaves of apricot trees of two varieties (Farbaly and Farlis) were analysed with SPAD and spectroradiometer, and the data were organized in two different ways: (i) overall dataset (OD), collecting total measurements of trees in each variety; (ii) subset of overall datasets (SOD), collecting the measurements performed on the cardinal points of trees in each variety. Prediction models were built using as regressors: (i) spectral data transformed with Continuum Removal (CR) methodology (CR indices); (ii) vegetation indices (VI) linked to chlorophyll and nitrogen content; (iii) reflectance values associated with chlorophyll content and to wavelengths ranges where (CR) methodology was applied; (iv) reflectance values of full spectrum. The best performances belonged to models using wider ranges of spectrum both in ODs and in SODs. The north cardinal point showed prediction models with the best performances in both varieties. No VI and CR indices showed reliable models. All the reliable prediction models were associated with compounds involved in physiological state and metabolism of leaves in apricot tree.

The 2022 Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies (AFS) is the culmination of over 20 years of negotiations within the WTO's Doha Development Round. Although it can be considered a small victory in the fight against declining fish stocks, the Agreement remains unfinished and underdeveloped. Of particular concern is the enforceability of the Agreement. While WTO Members recognize that the AFS was created to deal with a problem that has both socioeconomic and environmental implications, the Agreement relies on established WTO dispute settlement rules, which were created to resolve trade disputes. The paper assesses the difficulties of enforcing the AFS under these rules and considers additional provisions that could be included in subsequent negotiating rounds to ensure an effective and enforceable agreement. Recommendations cover different stages of the dispute settlement process and include alternative means of dispute resolution, measures to expedite proceedings, and retaliation procedures adapted to the AFS.

The scope of environmental impact assessments (EIAs) has traditionally been limited to on-site effects. This approach faces limitations when dealing with intricate value chains. Particularly for projects involving biomass-to-energy facilities, the primary environmental impacts often originate from off-site biomass production. This article considers the resulting limitations of EIAs by using two legal disputes in France as illustrative examples. In the Gardanne and the La Mède cases, French Administrative Courts sought to establish the necessity for project proponents to incorporate supply-related impacts into the EIA process. Strategies aimed at broadening the scope of EIAs, either by expanding the assessed project boundaries or by invoking the concept of cumulative impacts, were not deemed the most relevant approaches. Instead, the concept of ‘indirect impact’ emerged as a valuable tool for incorporating supply-related impacts. However, to prevent the indirect impact concept from being disregarded as too ambiguous or ineffective, it should be complemented by precise criteria to determine whether an impact may be considered indirect. We study these avenues within the broader evolving landscape of EIA laws, and by exploring ways to harmonize EIAs with other regulatory instruments governing value chains.

We aimed to estimate the overall apparent prevalence, true prevalence, and the spatial, temporal, and test-specific burden of bovine tuberculosis in Bangladesh. PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, and BanglaJOL were searched for bovine tuberculosis publications in Bangladesh from 1 January 1970 to 23 June 2023. Of 142 articles screened, systematic review and meta-analysis were performed on 22 (15.5%) articles. The apparent estimated bovine tuberculosis prevalence was 7%. The apparent Bayesian pooled mean bovine tuberculosis prevalences based on caudal fold test and single intradermal comparative tuberculin test were 7.83% and 9.89%, respectively, and the true pooled mean prevalences were 10.39% and 10.48%, respectively. Targeted interventions are recommended for districts with higher prevalence to effectively reduce the bovine tuberculosis burden in those areas. Current diagnostic practices employed in Bangladesh may not accurately reflect the bovine tuberculosis burden. Our findings highlight the need for better diagnostic tools and supplemental testing methods to ensure accurate diagnosis and surveillance. Efforts should prioritize obtaining ‘true’ prevalence estimates corrected for misclassification bias, rather than relying solely on apparent prevalence. Underestimating the bovine tuberculosis burden could result in inadequate resource allocation and hinder the implementation of effective control measures.