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Trees that characterized many agricultural landscapes across Europe are declining, despite the recent revival of agroforestry research and increasing direct payments for their maintenance. Therefore, in addition to field experiments, there is a need for transdisciplinary research in close alliance with local farmers. This paper proposes a three-step participatory design and assessment approach, incorporating local innovation and scientific evidence. To our knowledge, this is the first participatory and bioeconomic analysis of farmer-designed agroforestry systems in Europe. First, an exploratory survey of farmers' innovations in Switzerland was conducted together with a literature review. Based on the survey, 14 representative agroforestry practices were defined for the bioeconomic assessment, focusing on walnut ( Juglans hybr.) and wild cherry ( Prunus avium) . The predictions of long-term yields were made with the Yield-SAFE model, and the profitability was assessed using the Farm-SAFE model. The survey results suggested a lack of local knowledge on key ecosystem services provided by agroforestry. It is therefore recommended to apply the concept of ecosystem services, in order to support the design of multifunctional agriculture and to increase the willingness to pay for its services. According to our yield predictions, mixing trees and crops was commonly more productive (12 out of the 14 options, land equivalent ratio = 0.95-1.30) than growing them in separate forestry or arable systems. This result contradicts the widespread view among modern Swiss farmers that agroforestry is unproductive. In terms of profitability, 68 % of the 56 financial scenarios for the agroforestry practices, particularly those linked to innovative marketing of fruit or receiving payments for ecosystem services, were found to be more profitable than the business as usual reference systems. These results demonstrate that there is a need and a value in bridging the gap between scientists and farmers, in order to coproduce applied knowledge for the design of productive agroforestry practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the development of research in the Swiss non-university higher education sector and frames it in the debate on the organization of higher education systems in Western Europe and on the dynamics between university and non-university sector. It shows that, in the Swiss case, the applied research mandate has been used to differentiate these institutions from universities and that this endeavor has been to a large extent successful in technology, while it has been a source of major tensions in the other domains. I conclude that the development of research in the non-higher education leads to complex dynamics of convergence and of differentiation and that this process is strongly influenced by the specificities and differences between different subject domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary This paper explores the possibility of using ring-width measurements derived from string instruments as a potential source of palaeoclimate information. From a data-base of 1800 measured series, we have identified two sub-sets that compare well with living high elevation spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst) chronologies from the Bavarian Forest and Austrian Alps. The problems of using historical tree-ring data for dendroclimatic purposes are addressed and by combining the living and historic ring-width data from these two regions, a preliminary proxy of past June/July mean temperatures is developed. This proxy summer temperature record shows striking similarities with a tree-ring based temperature reconstruction for the Central Eastern Alps, the CLIMHIST June/July temperature record from Switzerland and glacial records from the Austrian Alps. This explorative study demonstrates that ring-width series from string instruments may allow the identification of generalised source regions of wood used for instrument making and, most importantly, provide a new unique source for palaeoclimate information at a variety of both temporal and spatial scales for high elevations in central Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Laparoscopic gastric banding (LGB) is currently the most popular purely restrictive bariatric operation in Europe and many other countries. It has a low operative morbidity, but is associated with a substantial late complication rate. Many late complications have been attributed to technical errors or to the learning curve. The aim of this paper is to present our results with gastric banding after the learning curve in order to disclose the true incidence of long-term complications.Methods: LGB was introduced in our department in December 1995. Thirty patients were operated on until June 1997 using the early banding technique (band within the lesser sac), at which time the surgical technique was slightly modified in order to place the band above the lesser sac. Then another 300 patients underwent LGB using either the Lapband or the SAGB system. This report focuses on the latter patients. All the data were collected prospectively.Results: The series includes 300 patients (257 women and 43 men) with a mean age of 38.3 years (19-64). The mean initial weight was 119.2 kg (57-179), initial body mass index (BMI) was 43.3 kg/m2 (21-64), and initial excess weight was 96.5% (0-191). The mean duration of surgery was 90 min, decreasing over time to a mean of 75 min for the last 50 cases. Early overall morbidity was 6.6%. Major complications occurred in 7 patients (2.3%). Excess weight loss (EWL) was at least 50% in 66% of the patients after 2 years, averaging 60%, with no substantial change until 4 years, and the BMI stabilized between 30 and 31 kg/m2. Forty-nine patients developed a total of 52 long-term complications, of which 23 (7.6%) were related only to the port or catheter. Band erosion occurred in 17 (5.6%), pouch dilatation with slippage in 8 (2.6%), and infection in 4 (1.3%) patients. Fifty-five reoperations were necessary. Twenty-five of these were related only to the port. The band was removed from 26 (9%) patients, of whom 17 were converted to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.Conclusions: LGB gives satisfactory results in terms of weight loss in about two-thirds of the patients. Even beyond the learning curve, the long-term morbidity is not negligible, but is acceptable compared to other procedures such as vertical banded gastroplasty. Conversion to gastric bypass is possible when complications occur and can be performed when the band is removed in most cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]