Intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) play a crucial role in promoting compliance with international norms through fact-finding and on-site monitoring missions. Many of these missions take place in authoritarian regimes, which often employ various tactics to control and suppress critics both domestically and internationally. Yet, in some cases, authoritarian states permit IGO missions to operate with little or no interference and may even establish collaborative relationships in politically sensitive issue areas. This study examines this puzzle by asking why and when IGO on-site monitoring missions can persist and foster collaboration in authoritarian contexts, a dynamic I label a pragmatic partnership. Theoretically, I argue that two key conditions must be met for such partnerships to emerge: international pressure and the development of interpersonal trust. However, I also contend that these partnerships can generate contestation, risk legitimizing autocratic practices, and marginalize pro-democratic forces. Empirically, I illustrate my argument through an in-depth analysis of the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s monitoring mission on child labour and forced labour in Uzbekistan. Methodologically, I employ process tracing covering the period 2005–2022 and draw on multiple sources of evidence. While such partnerships can contribute to incremental compliance with international norms, I also show that they generate contestation, risk legitimizing autocratic practices, and may marginalize pro-democratic forces.

This review considers the current status, and highlights existing knowledge gaps, on Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater biological responses to climate change. Climate change is considered to be one of the major drivers of future ecosystem change in Antarctica. Understanding the biological responses, and associated shifts in biodiversity patterns, biotic interactions and processes, that are likely to occur under continued climate change is fundamental for predicting its consequences for the functioning of Antarctic ecosystems. However, quantifying changes in species abundance, biodiversity, community composition and biotic interactions, and how these are influenced by variations in a multitude of environmental variables, is challenging. All biological groups in the Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater domains currently show low species richness at higher latitudes, indicating that there should be scope for lower-latitude species to expand their distributions southwards under warming conditions. The northern, ‘trailing edge’ or lower altitudinal limits may also shift southwards or upwards, respectively. However, to date, only one report exists of increased diversity within field experimental warming studies, and none exist from the few available long-term monitoring sites. Similarly, while notable plant-cover expansions have been recorded at some localized sites, no clear large-scale vegetation response has been documented within recognized Antarctic biological regions, while organisms living within the vegetation show highly variable responses. There are still many knowledge gaps on this matter for various biological groups across and within Antarctic regions. While it is frequently posited that the potential for climate change-driven range expansion and biodiversity shifts is substantial, the biological responses reported to date indicate that current levels of climate change have not (yet) resulted in large-scale changes in abundance and biodiversity patterns across Antarctica.

While parrots are popular companion animals, many experience significant welfare challenges, often resulting from not fulfilling their behavioural, environmental, and social needs. To address this issue, we developed a welfare assessment tool designed specifically for companion parrot caregivers. We involved a panel of seven experts with extensive working experience with companion parrots and in animal welfare assessment. Using an iterative process consisting of four online surveys and nine focus group meetings, the expert panel was invited to select relevant welfare indicators, rephrase selected indicators into user-friendly questions, identify missing content, and finally review the wording and structure of the tool. A preliminary version of the tool was then evaluated by four additional anonymous external experts and 69 parrot caregivers for its completeness, clarity and practicality through an online survey. Feedback from this stage was incorporated, and the revised version was subsequently reviewed again by the initial expert panel. The resulting tool, PsittaWel (freely downloadable at: https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/psittawel), consists of 75 questions covering 145 welfare indicators and is divided into eight sections covering key aspects of parrot welfare: general information; physical health; housing and physical activity; provision of enrichment and exploration; nutrition and maintenance behaviours; social and reproductive behaviours; parrot-human interactions; maladaptive and fear-related behaviours. Further research is needed to assess the reliability of the indicators. Nevertheless, PsittaWel is already a valuable tool for caregivers to monitor welfare and identify potential room for improvement, ultimately improving the lives of their companion parrot.

We sought to assess predictive factors for SARS-CoV-2 infectiousness using a meta-analytic approach. We searched LitCovid, medRxiv, Google Scholar, and the WHO COVID-19 database until June 30 2025, including studies which cultured SARS-CoV-2, relating them to clinico-epidemiologic and laboratory variables and RT-PCR cycle threshold (Ct) values. Using linear mixed-effects regression models, we tested for independent associations with Ct values with 95%CIs and adjusted P-values in a multivariable model. We used a modified QUADAS criteria to assess risk-of-bias. We included 50 studies, with 39 in quantitative synthesis. The percentage of culture-positive specimens decreased with increasing Ct values (subgroup test difference Q = 96.71;P < 0.001) and time since the first PCR test (Q = 26.95;P = 0.0026). Presence of symptoms (Q = 20.1;P < 0.01), gene platform used (Q = 14.89;P = 0.002), being a cancer patient (Q = 24.9;P < 0.0001), and vaccination status (Q = 8.80;P = 0.012) were associated with increased culture-positivity, whereas a rising Ct (adjusted Ct change −6.58[95%CI] -5.30, −7.86;P < 0.001) was strongly associated with culture-negativity. Analysing 186 immunocompetent patients with 1,393 Ct values, 2 consecutive Cts ≥ 30 or a rising Ct value on serial testing demonstrated a sensitivity of 87.5% and specificity of 96.3% using culture positivity as the outcome. Serial Ct monitoring, integrated with clinico-epidemiologic data is a valuable tool for assessing infectiousness, providing objective criteria for discontinuing isolation and guiding clinical decisions.

The development of instrumentation, control and automation (ICA) in water operations during half a century is reviewed, and new challenges are described. The ideal ICA system contains a quality team of people who feel a deep sense of ownership of the system and who are committed to the continuous improvement ethics; an instrumentation system that gathers adequate process variable information; a monitoring system to gather data, process and display the data, detect and isolate measurement faults or process abnormal situations, assist in diagnosis and advice; a control system to meet the goals of the operation.

• • ICA is not one scientific discipline; it combines a multitude of scientific and engineering disciplines, here called a “decathlon” combination.

• • ICA is a hidden technology. It is ubiquitous in most industrial processes, including urban water systems, and reveals how processes are connected. When everything works as intended, it is not noted, but if things go wrong, it will be observed.

• • ICA in the water industry has about 50 years of history and is now well recognized.

• • Computers had become more affordable in the late 1960s. It was recognized that wastewater treatment systems are truly dynamic. All the 14 ICA conferences, from 1973 to 2025, have addressed all aspects of ICA methodology and implementations. The author has had the privilege to participate in all the 14 conferences.

• • Technology push and demand pull not only has led to more advanced operations. The rapid development of process knowledge, machine learning, AI, computing power and communication can realize operation also in a system-wide perspective.

• • There is an increasing demand for water reuse and circular management of water, and ICA has the potential to play an important role. Systems thinking, involving the complete urban water system cycle, is a great issue today. To succeed here, it is necessary to expand cooperation between problem owners, the water industry and methodology researchers in academia.

Surveying nocturnal arboreal mammals in the tropics is challenging. Traditional methods are poorly suited to observing cryptic, often small-bodied mammals in the canopy. Subsequently, little is known about their ecology and behaviour despite the important functional roles they play within tropical forest ecosystems. We describe a method for observing behaviour from an elevated platform using thermal binoculars, evaluating the method against four criteria relating to species detected, field of view, potential disturbance, and richness of data. We surveyed for 205 h across 18 nights, recording 14 nocturnal arboreal mammal species with 126 independent events. Nocturnal arboreal species accounted for 61% of all observations. We found that elevating the observer aided the detectability of mammals by lessening the observation distance and the amount of foliage between the observer and the target. The observer also had a three-dimensional field of view and could follow mammals as they moved around the area. Thermal imaging emits no light source that will reveal the observer’s presence, and so the risk of influencing mammal behaviour is likely to be reduced. This method shows potential to help fill behavioural knowledge gaps in nocturnal arboreal mammals in the tropics. Furthermore, the costs of the approach would make it accessible to many researchers.

Conservation of the Pemba flying fox Pteropus voeltzkowi, endemic to Pemba, Zanzibar, has been a success story. Low numbers last century prompted a local conservation response that likely resulted in a 400% increase in the population. But, with project funding having been gradually reduced over 15 years, it is unclear whether the population has maintained its recovery. Here we report findings from a new survey, in 2024, showing that the population size is that of the recovered population in 2008. However, many P. voeltzkowi have moved to urban centres, probably to avoid disturbance, primarily hunting by children. Only half the people interviewed remembered the earlier conservation campaign, but nearly all would support an environmental education campaign aimed at children in schools.

The legume pod borer, Maruca vitrata F., is a pantropical insect pest causing substantial yield losses in legume crops. The larvae cause significant damage to crops like cowpea, beans, and pigeon pea. Intensive and indiscriminate use of insecticides is practised by legume growers across the world. The field control failures owing to the development of insecticide resistance were suspected in Indian populations of M. vitrata. Hence, the present study investigated the development of insecticide resistance in five field-collected populations of M. vitrata, collected from the Southern states of India. Dose–mortality bioassays indicated varying levels of insecticide resistance across populations as compared to the insecticide-susceptible laboratory-reared population. The estimated resistance ratios were as follows: 30.96- to 81.85-fold for lambda-cyhalothrin, 10.85- to 38.91-fold for emamectin benzoate, 12.02- to 48.55-fold for broflanilide, 8.42- to 54.89-fold for spinosad, and 19.46- to 28.37-fold for indoxacarb. Significant positive correlation was observed between emamectin benzoate and spinosad susceptibility, suggesting potential cross-resistance. These findings highlight the development of insecticide resistance in M. vitrata and underline the need for region-specific resistance management strategies, including insecticide rotation with non-cross-resistant compounds, to ensure sustainable insect pest control.

Historical data and monitoring can provide important information on how landscapes respond to environmental and human-induced change. We re-assessed plants, soils and livestock carrying capacity at a research station in eastern Australia after 42 years. We detected significant declines in the densities of key perennial shrubs (Atriplex vesicaria, Maireana astrotricha, Maireana pyramidata, -78%), an index of groundstorey plant quality (-8%), and the cover of erosion (-43%) between 1980 and 2022. Assessed ‘safe carrying capacity’ declined from 14.5 to 12.4 dry sheep equivalents per 100 ha over that period (-14.6%). These declines were evident in ranges and footslopes, but not on the plains. Shrubs declined by a similar percentage when assessed at a small spatial scale in one paddock. There was no clear indication that sheep stocking rates were driving temporal trends in plants. Rather, we attribute changes over more than 40 years to fluctuations in rainfall, and potentially, greater density of kangaroos and feral goats. Our study provides insights into moderately long-term changes in the biophysical attributes of rangelands and reinforces the importance of using historic data to assess environmental change as large areas of Earth become hotter and drier.

This study proposes a revised agency theory for the nonprofit sector, distinguishes between the extent of agency and the extent of monitoring, and compares the magnitudes of the two impacts. Using panel data for 1998–2003, the paper tests whether monitoring by principal-stakeholders such as donors, clients, the government, and the board reduces the opportunity for executive misconduct such as extravagant spending on compensation and perquisites. Given the theory, the findings show that two effects influence CEO salaries. First, while nonprofit endowments provide a fiscal cushion in tough financial situations, by offering “organizational slack” they also increase the CEO’s opportunity to steal or raise her compensation (i.e., agency effect). Second, donors utilize monitoring mechanisms such as auditing or direct observations, which limit the opportunity for misconduct and reduce executive pay (i.e., monitoring effect). In the final analysis, the monitoring effect is greater than the agency effect, which implies that even if agency problems are present, the monitoring that donors provide offsets them.

Policymaking in the EU requires member states to delegate negotiations to individual ministers. For coalition governments, this creates information asymmetries because parties holding the relevant ministerial portfolio gain privileged access while their coalition partners are sidelined. This paper argues that bicameralism in the EU mitigates this problem: sidelined parties can shadow their coalition partners through the committees of the European Parliament. Committees allow parties to monitor legislative processes and negotiations in the Council, which is particularly attractive for sidelined parties. Analyzing original data on committee and rapporteur assignments between 2004 and 2024, I find that MEPs systematically shadow their coalition partners in policy areas where their national party lacks direct representation in the Council and is misaligned with its coalition partners.