Tourism has a particular responsibility to contribute to climate and biodiversity goals because of its intense use of long-range transport and its strong dependence on natural capital as an asset. Tourism is a major contributor to the global economy, but also to greenhouse gas emissions. The severe impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the tourism sector triggered a search for enhanced resilience, replacing the past paradigm of “boosterism”, and the dominant paradigm of “sustainable tourism”. Sustainable tourism is no longer sufficient, and a shift towards a new paradigm of regenerative tourism is needed to address the environmental and societal challenges faced by the tourism industry. Here, the evidence pointing at the rise of regenerative tourism as a new paradigm is reviewed, the differential goals of regenerative, relative to sustainable tourism, are defined and actions along five domains of action are identified that can help tourism destinations embrace the transition toward the regenerative tourism paradigm. Regenerative tourism seeks to enhance the natural, cultural and social capital of destinations while creating net positive benefits for people and the planet. It emphasizes collaboration with local communities and an ambitious and holistic approach to sustainability, going beyond reducing negative impacts to creating positive ones. Regenerative tourism aligns the industry, the Paris Agreement, and the Convention on Biological Diversity, while advancing the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals. The transition to regenerative tourism requires investments in technology and innovation, transparent collaboration, and a holistic focus on well-being for both people and the planet.
The osmolyte glycine betaine (GB) ranks among the few widespread biomolecules in all three domains of life. In corals, tissue concentrations of GB are substantially higher than in the ambient seawater. However, the synthetic routes remain unresolved, questioning whether intracellular GB originates from de novo synthesis or heterotrophic input. Here we show that the genomic blueprint of coral metaorganisms encode the biosynthetic and degradation machinery for GB. Member organisms also adopted the prokaryotic high-affinity carrier-mediated uptake of exogenous GB, rendering coral reefs potential sinks of marine dissolved GB. The machinery metabolizing GB is highly expressed in the coral model Aiptasia and its microalgal symbionts, signifying GB's role in the cnidarian-dinoflagellate symbiosis. We estimate that corals store between 106–109 grams of GB globally, representing about 16% of their nitrogen biomass. Our findings provide a framework for further mechanistic studies addressing GB's role in coral biology and reef ecosystem nitrogen cycling.
Abstract. The Arctic Ocean is considered the most vulnerable ecosystem to ocean acidification, and large-scale assessments of pH and the saturation state for aragonite (Ωarag) have led to the notion that the Arctic Ocean is already close to a corrosive state. In high-latitude coastal waters the regulation of pH and Ωarag is, however, far more complex than offshore because increased biological activity and input of glacial meltwater affect pH. Effects of ocean acidification on calcifiers and non-calcifying phototrophs occupying coastal habitats cannot be derived from extrapolation of current and forecasted offshore conditions, but they require an understanding of the regimes of pH and Ωarag in their coastal habitats. To increase knowledge of the natural variability in pH in the Arctic coastal zone and specifically to test the influence of benthic vegetated habitats, we quantified pH variability in a Greenland fjord in a nested-scale approach. A sensor array logging pH, O2, PAR, temperature and salinity was applied on spatial scales ranging from kilometre scale across the horizontal extension of the fjord; to 100 m scale vertically in the fjord, 10–100 m scale between subtidal habitats with and without kelp forests and between vegetated tidal pools and adjacent vegetated shores; and to centimetre to metre scale within kelp forests and millimetre scale across diffusive boundary layers of macrophyte tissue. In addition, we assessed the temporal variability in pH on diurnal and seasonal scales. Based on pH measurements combined with point samples of total alkalinity, dissolved inorganic carbon and relationships to salinity, we also estimated variability in Ωarag. Results show variability in pH and Ωarag of up to 0.2–0.3 units at several scales, i.e. along the horizontal and vertical extension of the fjord, between seasons and on a diel basis in benthic habitats and within 1 m3 of kelp forest. Vegetated intertidal pools exhibited extreme diel pH variability of > 1.5 units and macrophyte diffusive boundary layers a pH range of up to 0.8 units. Overall, pelagic and benthic metabolism was an important driver of pH and Ωarag producing mosaics of variability from low levels in the dark to peak levels at high irradiance generally appearing favourable for calcification. We suggest that productive coastal environments may form niches of high pH in a future acidified Arctic Ocean.
A doação de sangue é um ato espontâneo, baseado em valores humanitários, de natureza altruísta e fundado em conceitos de responsabilidade social. A subsistência dos centros de produção é diretamente relacionada a presença do doador e a otimização de seus custos de produção. Sendo assim, esses dois pontos são os pilares de busca para que a produção ocorra de forma segura e com otimização dos estoques. A presença de técnicas não invasivas com resultados que permitam maior praticidade, maior satisfação, segurança e menor ansiedade para o doador é uma necessidade constante e deve ser buscada para a melhoria dos resultados. Descrever as melhorias percebidas, assim como dificuldades observadas com a implantação da nova ténica de aferição para triagem hematológica no BSST. Em abril de 2020 foi implantado no BSST o dispositivo não invasivo para aferição de parâmteros fisiológicos de triagem para doação de sangue. Descrição de operação do equipamento: TensorTip não-invasivo da Cnoga Medical é um dispositivo pequeno, leve, portátil, destinado para a medição e exibição de pressão arterial (sistólica e diastólica), verificação da saturação de oxigênio (SpO2), Frequência Cardíaca (PPR), Hemoglobina (Hgb), Hematócrito (HCT), Eritrócitos (RBC) e parâmetros biológicos e gráficos adicionais. A medição é executada diretamente no tecido do dedo capilar (com excepção do polegar). O dedo anelar é o local recomendado. Os resultados de cada medição são armazenados na memória do sistema. O dispositivo destina-se para uso no ambiente doméstico e como um suporte adicional em clínicas. Destina-se a ser usado por qualquer pessoa com idade acima de 16 anos de idade O equipamento dispõe de um sensor sensível no espectro IR até banda de 400nm 1200nm, quatro LEDs de luz 625nm, 740nm, 850nm e 940nm, um compartimento para o dedo, e um processador de sinal digital (DSP). Observou-se um aumento na pesquisa de satisfação dos doadores após a implantação da metodologia (de 97,1 % para 99,8%), além de declarações escritas de satisfação pelos doadores de repetição. Identificado uma redução de custo com esta nova técnica (redução no gasto com material que a técnica anterior exigia) de 78%. Deve ser citado ainda os benefícios não quantificavéis diretamente como maior lentidão no processo e também maior risco de acidente biológico para os colaboradores assim como risco de lesão pelo doador. A utilização desse aparelho gerou a necessidade de treinamento específico da equipe de colaboradores de triagem, assim como o desenvolvimento da habilidade de compreensão de fatores de interferência no funcionamento do mesmo. Pois,questões anatomicas do doador (tamanho dos dedos, da unha) e da temperatura ambiente (já que seu resultado é gerado de acordo com a perfusão por feixe de luz) possuem influência na efetividade. Dessa forma, quando há algum sinal objetivo ou subjetivo de uma ou ambas das dificuldades descritas, a equipe de triagem realiza o confirmatório pela técnica antiga de aferição da Hb e não observamos discrepâncias entre os resultados. O fato da redução da inaptidão por Ht baixo observada com este novo método está em análise e acompanhamento contínuo. A implantação da nova tecnologia demonstrou-se segura, gerou grande satisfação nos doadores, assim como otimização do tempo de atendimento e de recursos. Porém, o treinamento da equipe e sua habilidade em lidar com as particulariedades do aparelho se representaram um ponto definitivo para seu uso com segurança.
Automated accessibility evaluation will have an increasingly important role in the near future due to legal requirements to monitor the accessibility of the websites of public bodies in the European Union. However, automated evaluation tools are still limited in the scope of the conformance testing they are able to perform. Future solutions resorting to AI based techniques might help in addressing some of these limitations. In this paper we present an updated version of an algorithm that classifies the quality, from an accessibility perspective, of alternative texts for images in web pages. We evaluated the proposed algorithm on a set of 149 images and their corresponding alternative texts and found improved performance compared to the initial version of the algorithm.
Comparison of the partition of biomass among genera within phytoplankton communities in 165 lakes demonstrated a shift from communities with a relatively even distribution of biomass among taxa to community where one, or a few taxa, capitalized most of the biomass, as communities biomass increased. This pattern suggests that interference among co-existing phytoplankton taxa increases as community biomass increases, and provides additional evidence for the biomass-dependence of phytoplankton community structure.
Aerial images of inner Kobbefjord (SW Greenland) were acquired on two occasions in 2018 (2018-09-07 15:06; 2018-09-07 16:00) representing different tidal levels and on one occasion in 2019 (2019-08-26). Images were acquired using a DJI Mavic Air drone. The imagery was acquired in connection with the “Greenland Ecosystem Monitoring Program” “Nuuk Basis” monitoring of marine flora (http://g-e-m.dk/). This drone survey was carried out with the primary goal of documenting and quantifying the area distribution of the tidal vegetation (dominated by the brown macroalga <em>Ascophyllum nodosum</em>) and shallow subtidal vegetation at the monitoring site. Images were processed using Agisoft Metashape Professional to produce high resolution orthomosaics from each UAV survey.
Abstract Aim The interactive effects of increased temperature and ultraviolet‐B (UV‐B) radiation on terrestrial and aquatic biota remain poorly understood. Our goal is to increase knowledge by providing a comprehensive assessment of the combined effects of warming and increased UV‐B on organisms across these domains. Location Global. Time period 1995–2016. Major taxa studied Terrestrial plants and animals, and marine and freshwater microalgae, macroalgae and animals. Methods We examined, using a meta‐analysis based on 1,139 published experimental assessments, the combined effects of temperature and UV‐B across terrestrial, freshwater and marine biota. We characterized the prevailing mode of combined effects (additive, synergistic or antagonistic), and assessed whether these were dose‐dependent or differed between terrestrial, freshwater and marine species, or between organisms growing in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Results Our results show that the two stressors generally acted opposingly, with a significant positive effect of increased temperature and a significant adverse effect of elevated UV‐B radiation. Regarding their interactive impact, additive interactions (84%) appeared to be much more common compared with multiplicative (16%) effects. The frequencies of interaction types differed significantly among the three habitats and different plant functional groups. The proportion of both synergistic and antagonistic effects increased with increasing magnitude of temperature and UV‐B changes, suggesting that additivity is constrained by an organism's thermal and physiological limits. Main conclusions Our analysis demonstrates that due to their mostly opposing nature, elevated temperature, within the thermal limits of organisms, tends to compensate for the negative impact of UV‐B radiation when acting together, while their additive interaction is likely to assist impact prognosis. Our study, therefore, provides new insights into the predictions of the interactive effects of global change drivers across different habitats.
South Korea has made significant commitments to pursuing marine carbon sequestration [including ‘blue carbon’] initiatives as part of its broader environmental and climate strategies. Specifically, the South Korean government has set a target to sequester 1,362,000 tonnes of CO₂ in the ocean by 2050 as part of its national strategy. Here, leveraging available data, we outline potential measures to achieve this goal, and provide critical insights into the scale and feasibility of marine carbon sequestration initiatives to inform policymakers and industry stakeholders. We investigated a wide range of potential approaches, ranging from traditional blue carbon approaches involving conservation and restoration of seagrass meadows and tidal marshes; to emerging strategies involving seaweed farming and mudflat restoration; to geoengineering interventions involving ocean alkalinity enhancement. Overall, we find that the South Korean Government target is achievable, largely through [in order of low to high abatement scaleability]: mudflat and saltmarsh conservation/restoration, seaweed conservation/restoration, seagrass conservation/restoration, seaweed farming and ocean alkalinity enhancement. However, we stress that our estimates are rudimentary and carry numerous assumptions/risks, and, moreover, carbon offset standards are still under consideration and development for some of these abatement approaches. In terms of ‘readiness to implement’, South Korea is strongest in seaweed carbon sequestration research and application, with a track record of successful restoration of tens of thousands of hectares of seaweed habitats over several decades. A coordinated national strategy will be needed to realise and establish South Korea’s marine carbon sequestration potential, supported by policy and finance. Fortunately, the marine carbon strategies proposed align with the country’s broader initiatives to enhance biodiversity, protect coastlines, and mitigate the impacts of climate change.
