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An analytical framework for the systematic comparison of existing soil carbon codes, which could be applied to the analysis of codes in other land uses and habitats. The data includes an application of the framework to identify commonalities and differences in methods, projects, administration and commercialisation and associated code documents for 12 publicly available codes from the UK, France, Australia, USA and international bodies.

Environmental restoration and conservation challenges go beyond what can be financed publicly. There are significant opportunities for private investment in the delivery of public goods, benefitting both commercial organisations whose business relies on ecosystem services, as well as landowners, land managers and the general public. Thus, public-private financing of natural capital improvement presents an opportunity to increase the availability of funding for payments for ecosystem services that provide environmental and societal benefits. Though public-private partnerships for the financing of ecosystem services is in its infancy in the UK. This new report explores the voluntary ecosystem services market in the UK, through identifying key actors involved in payment for ecosystem services schemes, trading platforms and supporting modelling tools. This is achieved by developing an understanding of how these actors operate, and by identifying possible synergies, examples of good practice and challenges to implementation. Topics covered include, understanding how the identified actors account for the social distribution of ecosystem services, how values are attributed to ecosystem services, and the legal obligations linked to ventures’ operation.

The desire for older people to age in place in an intergenerational community is widely recognised. While the literature has long affirmed the link between the biopsychosocial benefits of nature and well-being, there is a gap in the people-environment literature about the needs and aspirations of older people and the impact that health and functional limitation may have on ageing well in place. As home is integral to and inseparable from the neighbourhood, it is essential that locale be considered in context. This qualitative study explores the perceptions of a group of older Australians living independently in the community. Between 2008 and 2010, 30 self-selected individuals (24 females and six males), 65 to 92 years of age, living in suburbs of Sydney, Australia, participated in semi-structured in-depth interviews at their homes. These interviews encompassed a broad-ranging discussion about their experiences of their local environments, including views to the outside to the transitional areas of the home garden and beyond into the neighbourhood. Following the one-on-one interviews, an optional, open-ended mobile interview into the neighbourhood was conducted with most of the participants, either on foot or by motorised mobility scooter (MMS). In addition, a visual method, still colour photography, was used to capture the features discussed and to document the neighbourhood environment. The overarching theme for ageing well at home was found to encompass amenity of place integrated with neighbourhood landscape affordance, which provides an inclusive landscape in everyday life. Neighbourhood amenity is dependent on a predominance of urban nature which in turn, contributes to scenic landscape. This was found to encourage older people to engage in repeated discretionary or optional activity outside of the dwelling. An unexpected outcome was the identification of four mobility-related personas, which are constellations of characteristics representative of my sample of participants who were the focus of my qualitative research. Use of these four personas will enable future researchers to study landscape in relation to older people and will inform the planning and design of residential environments which support healthy ageing in place.

Considerable research effort is invested in the development of evidence to help policy makers and industry deal with the challenges associated with existing and emerging food safety threats. This research aimed to elicit expert views regarding the relationship between the drivers of existing and emerging food safety risks, in order to facilitate their control and mitigation, and to provide the basis for further international policy integration. A Delphi approach involving repeated polling of n = 106 global food safety experts was adopted. The primary drivers of existing and emerging food safety risks were identified to be demographic change, economic driving forces, resource shortages, environmental driving forces, increased complexity of the food supply chain, water security and malevolent activities. The identification of socio-economic and biophysical drivers emphasises the need for a transdisciplinary and systems approach to food safety management and mitigation. The mitigation of hazards on a case-by-case basis is unlikely to have a major impact on food safety hazards but may have unintended effects (where positive or negative) across a broad spectrum of food safety issues. Rather a holistic or systems approach is required which can address both the intended and unintended effects of different drivers and their interactions.

Reductions in the number of dispensed antibiotics and the incidence of respiratory infections presented to GPs and have been reported. Whether this trend applies to skin infections requires further investigation.To examine trends in the incidence of skin infections in relation to trends in dispensed prescriptions for flucloxacillin, topical fusidic acid, mupirocin, and corticosteroids with fusidic acid.Population-based analysis of patients presenting to GPs (1999-2005) contrasted with national prescribing data.A sentinel practice network covering a population of 700,000 in England and Wales.Quarterly incidence rates of skin infections and of impetigo reported over the years 1999-2005 were compared with quarterly data on dispensed prescriptions reported by the Prescription Pricing Authority for England.In children (aged 0-14 years) the incidence of skin infections decreased slightly between 1999 and 2003 and more sharply from 2004 to 2005. In adults (agedor =15 years) incidence was reasonably constant from year to year. In every year examined, and in both age groups, there were autumnal incidence peaks. There were annual increases in dispensed prescriptions for flucloxacillin capsules, but there was little change in the use of flucloxacillin syrups and topical antibiotic prescriptions. All prescribing data sets showed increases in the third quarter: topical corticosteroids with fusidic acid were prescribed more frequently in summer than winter.In spite of slight reductions in the incidence of skin infections, flucloxacillin capsule-dispensed prescriptions have increased, suggesting that doctors have not limited their antibiotic prescribing behaviour for skin conditions.

BACKGROUND: There is good evidence of reduced prescribing of antibiotics in recent years, but the reason for this has not been established. AIM: To study the incidence of respiratory tract infections presenting to general practitioners (GPs) in England and Wales in relation to the incidence of other infections and to the prescription of antibiotics. SETTING: Sentinel practices in England and Wales who contribute to the Weekly Returns Service (WRS) of the Royal College of General Practitioners. DESIGN: Time-series analysis of disease incidence data reported by the practices and of antibiotic prescription data from the Prescription Pricing Authority (PPA) during the years 1994-2000. METHOD: Incidence data reported weekly from 73 practices in England and Wales, serving a population of 600,000, for acute respiratory tract infections, otitis media, infectious mononucleosis, shingles, urinary tract infections, and skin infections, were consolidated into quarterly datasets and examined graphically for evidence of secular and seasonal trends. Trends in antibiotic prescription items (data for England only were supplied by the PPA) were examined for association after adjustment for seasonal variation. RESULTS: The incidence of respiratory tract infections and antibiotic prescribing showed virtually identical seasonal variation, with both declining from 1995: respiratory tract infections by 48% in winter and 38% in summer, and antibiotic prescriptions by 34% and 21%, respectively. Trends in both were very highly correlated. The incidence of shingles and skin infections was constant. The incidence of urinary tract infections declined by 10%. The incidence of otitis media in children and acute bronchitis in the elderly followed the all-age trend in the reduction of respiratory tract infections. CONCLUSION: The considerable reduction in the incidence of respiratory tract infections between 1995 and 2000 is the main reason for the decline in antibiotic prescribing rather than changing prescribing thresholds for antibiotics.