Alternate Edens: History, Evolution, and Origins in UNESCO's Cultural and Scientific History of Mankind.

In 1963, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) published the first volume of its long-awaited cultural and scientific history of mankind. First announced in 1948, the History of Mankind was envisioned as a comprehensive, universal human history, from the evolution of Homo sapiens to the middle of the twentieth century. This article uses editorial conflicts over the site of the cradle of the human species to explore the position of scientific knowledge in world history writing and to examine tensions between different national traditions of expertise at a moment of political and scientific transition.

Deep learning models for monitoring landscape changes in a UNESCO Global Geopark.

By identifying Earth heritage sites, UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGps) have promoted geo-tourism and regional economic prosperity. However, commercial and tourism development has altered the natural contexts of these geoparks, diminishing their initial value. Before implementing land use policies, spatial landscape parameters should be monitored in multiple dimensions and in real time. This study aims to develop Bilateral Segmentation Network (BiSeNet) models employing an upgraded U-structured neural network in order to monitor land use/cover changes and landscape indicators in a Vietnamese UGGp. This network has proven effective at preserving input image data and restricting the loss of spatial information in decoding data. To demonstrate the utility of deep learning, eight trained BiSeNet models were evaluated against Maximum Likelihood, Support Vector Machine, and Random Forest. The trained BSN-Nadam model (128x128), with a precision of 94% and an information loss of 0.1, can become a valuable instrument for analyzing and monitoring monthly changes in land uses/covers once tourism activities have been rapidly expanded. Three tourist routes and 41 locations in the Dak Nong UGGp were monitored for 30 years using three landscape indices: Disjunct Core Area Density (DCAD), Total Edge Contrast Index (TECI), Shannon's Diversity Index (SHDI), based on the results of the model. As a result, 18 identified geo-sites in the Daknong Geopark have been influenced significantly by agricultural and tourist activities since 2010, making these sites less uniform and unsustainable management. It promptly alerts UNESCO management to the deterioration of geological sites caused by urbanization and tourist development.

Conservation spillover effect of UNESCO World Heritage Sites into surrounding landscapes.

Protected areas (PA) are one of the primary tools for conserving and protecting biodiversity, but their goals have evolved overtime beyond nature conservation to include supporting human communities within and adjacent to the PA. UNESCO World Heritage Sites (WHS) offer a unique perspective on the success of PAs as they fall under three categories, cultural, natural, and mixed heritage sites. The nature of these categories encapsulates the inclusion of human communities in the goals of the WHS. To understand the impact and relationship the WHS has with its surrounding landscape, we assessed changes in three indicators, land use and land cover (LULC), human footprint (HF), and forest landscape integrity index (FLII), across three spatial scales, 1, 10, 100 km from the WHS boundary. We found that there is a conservation spillover effect at least within 1 km of the WHS boundary. In this buffer zone, HF was low and FLII was high. FLII was lower and HF was higher at larger spatial scales. The relationship between the WHS and its surrounding landscape is one reason to support the WHS network, however, management of PAs should be more explicit about this relationship as well as relationships between individual PAs.

Decolonizing Botany: Indonesia, UNESCO, and the Making of a Global Science.

Decolonization created new opportunities for international scientific research collaboration. In Indonesia this began in the late 1940s, as Indonesian scientists and officials sought to remake the formerly colonial botanical gardens in the city of Bogor into an international research center. Indonesia sponsored the Flora Malesiana project, a flora of all of island Southeast Asia. This project was formally centered in Bogor, Indonesia, with participation from tropical botanists from around the world. The international orientation of Indonesian science led to the establishment of one of UNESCO's Field Science Co-operation Offices in Jakarta, and to a period of close collaboration between Indonesian botanists and UNESCO. This paper examines the importance of UNESCO's Humid Tropics research program, which initially provided further opportunities for Indonesian botanists to participate in international scientific networks. The paper concludes by showing that the Humid Tropics program led to the slow erosion of Indonesian agency and authority over tropical botany, and the assertion of Western control and management over tropical botany research.

International guidelines for the prevention of sexual violence: A systematic review and perspective of WHO, UN Women, UNESCO, and UNICEF's publications.

BACKGROUND: Sexual violence is a major public health issue worldwide, with a high prevalence and extensive human and financial costs. Implementing prevention programs is complex, requiring not only evidence-based practices and high ethical standards, but also close collaboration with local governments and non-governmental organizations. In order to guide and support all stakeholders necessary to achieve large-scale prevention (e.g., politicians, decision-makers, in-field professionals), it is essential to establish international benchmarks for the prevention of sexual violence. OBJECTIVE: The main goal of this collaborative study was to conduct a systematic review of the frameworks adopted by WHO, UN Women, UNESCO, and UNICEF to help prevent sexual violence worldwide, according to the PRISMA methodology. A secondary objective was to highlight the levels of prevention and determinants of health targeted by these organizations. RESULTS: Overall, 1008 references were identified, of which 50 met the inclusion criteria. All international guidelines were limited to primary or tertiary prevention, and they were not specifically dedicated to sexual violence. In addition, each organization had developed idiosyncratic prevention strategies. Common primary prevention determinants of health were still found across organizations, including education, socio-economic inequalities, and life skills training. Tertiary prevention was poorly developed and polarized between victims and perpetrators. Secondary prevention was never addressed, however, despite the effectiveness of approaches such as helplines for people sexually attracted to children. DISCUSSION: Given these results, an international French-speaking consortium of professional teams, all involved in the secondary prevention of sexual violence, was recently formed with a ratified charter presented here.

Gold mining impairs the biological water quality of a culturally important river and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Nigeria.

The UNESCO World Heritage Sites have special conservation regulations because they are recognized as having significant cultural and/or natural value. One of Nigeria's two UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sites is the Osun River. It has immense biodiversity values, which are currently being threatened due to gold mining activities within its catchment area. Thus, this study seeks to ascertain the current biological water quality of this culturally and internationally important river using ecological and ecotoxicological approaches. Samples were collected from three environmental compartments (i.e., water, benthic sediment, and macroinvertebrates) in both dry and wet seasons from the section of the river that flows through the UNESCO site. Findings revealed that the river's physiochemical water quality has immensely degraded on account of extremely high total suspended solids, extremely low water transparency, and low dissolved oxygen. Three heavy metals exceeded their permissible limits in drinking water; i.e., Cd (364-367 times higher), Pb (75-104 times higher), and As (35-67 times higher). The contamination factor indicated that the benthic sediments were contaminated with Cd and Au, while the geo-accumulation (Igeo) index only indicates contamination on account of Cd, though Au ranks second in order of Igeo. The composition of the river's macroinvertebrate fauna suggests that it has been severely impacted because there was almost no stress-sensitive Ephemeroptera-Plecoptera-Trichoptera taxon present (one taxon and one individual only). Almost all of the chosen heavy metals had bioaccumulated in the three functional feeding guilds of macroinvertebrates. The current levels of heavy metals in the three environmental compartments of the river pose a great risk to both freshwater biodiversity and human health. Thus, a re-channeling of the upstream effluents from the river or any other natural water is advised. Also, a periodic environmental audit of the river should be conducted until it recovers from the pollution stress.

Estudio descriptivo de los recursos sobre Educación Sexual en el ámbito no-formal disponibles en España / Descriptive study about non-formal sex education resources available in Spain

FUNDAMENTOS: La educación sexual (ES) es fundamental para una vida plena y segura. Actualmente, la educación es entendidamás allá de lo que ocurre dentro de las aulas. El objetivo de este trabajo fue describir y comparar los materiales disponibles en lasdistintas webs oficiales de las comunidades y ciudades autónomas de España (CC. AA.) sobre ES y que puedan ser utilizados encontextos educativos no-formales. MÉTODOS: Se realizó una revisión de las webs oficiales de las CC. AA. relacionadas con salud, educación, juventud, familia y/o igual-dad. Se seleccionaron 216 recursos para su análisis descriptivo. Siguiendo las Orientaciones Técnicas de la Organización de las Nacio-nes Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura (UNESCO), se clasificaron los recursos en función de los temas que abordaban.RESULTADOS: El 64% de los recursos estaba dirigido a jóvenes/adolescentes. El 80% trataba algún tema en específico, siendo losmás frecuentesReproducción,Violencia yGénero. Los temas:Valores y derechos relacionados con la sexualidad,Habilidades para lasalud y bienestar yConducta sexual fueron contenidos raramente tratados. Sólo 6 CC. AA. contaban con un perfil en redes socialesrelacionado con ES. Las CC. AA. con mayor diversidad de temas abordados fueron Andalucía, Asturias y Canarias.CONCLUSIONES: La homogeneidad en el tipo de recursos y la disparidad de temáticas revela potenciales inequidades en el ac-ceso a la ES en España. Potenciar medios de aprendizaje fuera de las escuelas puede lograr una promoción de la salud más efectiva.Las orientaciones de la UNESCO pueden servir para clasificar los contenidos e identificar las instituciones que mejor han integradoel actual paradigma que la ES propone.(AU)

BACKGROUND: Sex education (SE) is a fundamental element of a fulfilling and safe life. Currently, education is understood beyondwhat happens inside the classroom. The aim of this research was to describe and to compare sex education resources available inofficial webs of Autonomous Communities of Spain (ACS) that to could be used in non-formal educational context.METHODS: A review of the ACS official web pages related to healthcare, education, youth, family and equality was made. Finally,216 resources were selected for descriptive analysis. The resources were classified based on United Nations Educational, Scientific andCultural Organization’s (UNESCO) Technical Guidelines.RESULTS // 64% of resources were targeted at young people/adolescents. 80% dealt some specific issues, the most frequentbeingReproductive Health,Violence andGender.Values and Rights related to sexuality,Skills for Health and Well-being andSexualbehaviour are issues rarely addressed. Only 6 ACS were a social network profile related to SE. ACS with the widest diversity of issuesaddressed were Andalusia, Asturias and the Canary Islands.CONCLUSIONS: Homogeneity in the kind of resources and issues disparity reveals potential inequities in SE access in Spain. Toenhance out-of-school environments learning can provide better successful health promotion. UNESCO’s guidelines can be used toclassify educational resource content and to identify the institutions that have best integrated actual SE paradigm.(AU)

Classification of the Effort Index and Biomechanical Overload in Natural Trails of UNESCO Global Geoparks-A Network Perspective of Trails of the Araripe UGG (NE Brazil).

Natural trails in UNESCO Global Geopark territories show strong salutogenic, inclusive and interactive characteristics as potentials and opportunities for ecosystem health. It is essential to provide information to inform the hiker as to the characteristics of the environment and the attractions and challenges of the route. Based on a network analysis methodology we aimed to identify the indicators of centrality and strength of connection in order to classify the effort index and biomechanical overload of the Araripe UNESCO Global Geopark trails in Brazil. The results showed strong connection and centrality of the variables related to the biomechanical overload in the effort index. In the trail of Pontal de Cruz the altimetric variation and the surface of the ground are highlighted in the biomechanical overload that presented a horizontal course equivalent 2.6 times larger than the presented distance. In Sítio Fundão trail, the surface of the ground also stood out, increasing the exposure in 36% of the presented distance. On the Missão Velha Waterfall trail, the variable that stood out was the biomechanical overload on the knee, equivalent to a horizontal increase of 28% of the measured distance. The methodology presented sought to optimise the mapping, management and consolidation of a network of natural trails aggregated to a high geotouristic, scientific, educational, cultural and well-being potential as presented in the Araripe UGG territory.

Fire risk management in Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex as a UNESCO World Heritage Site: 2009-2019 experiences.

Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex (THBC) is one of the historical monuments of Iran. It has been registered in the list of The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites. However, the destructive power and frequency of fires are the main threat to this bazaar. This research examined the factors affecting the fire in THBC and the key components affecting the fire risk management based on the 2009-2019 experiences. The obtained findings showed that 25 components in economic, physical, socio-cultural, technical, and managerial dimensions were effective in the occurrence of fire in this bazaar. There were many fires during national-religious ceremonies. The highest rate of fire in leather shops was during carpet sales. Also, the highest rate of fire was from 22 to 3 at midnight, especially in winter. The results also showed that out of 26 components affecting fire risk management, 10 components were vital factors, the most important of which were modern equipment, control of electrical equipment, and night guards and activity monitoring. Finally, according to the obtained results, practical suggestions were offered to focus on modern equipment and the use of patrol forces.

Analysis of UNESCO ESD Priority Areas' Implementation in Romanian HEIs.

Higher education institutions (HEIs) are adopting sustainable development (SD) in their strategies for the future. The roadmap by UNESCO is the path to follow to reach success. The approach is different for every HEI, thus the objective of this paper is to analyze the current state of education for sustainable development activities provided by HEIs through the eyes of the academic community (responders category: professors, researchers, associate professors). The method to conduct the study was an interview that had 40 enclosed questions and a free part at the end where the responders could bring additional information to the study if they considered it necessary. All the interviews were transcribed and given a code (e.g., RHEI1, RHEI 29) in order to perform the analysis using descriptive statistics with the help of the program MS Office EXCEL. The results showed some areas where the activities provided by HEIs need improvement and also revealed promising aspects through partnerships. Making the values of SD known to the academic and local community will help fulfill the true potential for change and future development. Moreover, the analysis showed the need to educate educators and improve their digital skills and teaching methods/techniques in order to achieve sustainable development. Another result revealed the need for improvements in HEI curricula that will contribute to gaining those skills/abilities that emerging jobs should have.

BREMi-A New Tool for the Evaluation of UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Management Effectiveness: Case-study in the Arab Man and Biosphere (ArabMAB) Regional Network.

Scholars and practitioners have been striving to develop straightforward and effective tools to measure protected area management effectiveness (PAME). UNESCO Biosphere Reserves (BR), with their unique functional and zonation schemes are monitored according to their compulsory 10-year Periodic Review (PR), which is useful for UNESCO's evaluation purposes but lacks comprehensiveness and utility for adaptive management. Based on existing PAME methodologies, we develop and propose the first quantitative tool for the evaluation of BR management effectiveness, that would enhance and complement the currently used qualitative PR report, and serve the rapid evaluation needed for BR managers to monitor, evaluate, and adapt their management approach to achieve the three functions of BRs. The tool consists of 65 indicators, embodied within the 6 elements of the World Commission on Protected Areas Framework. We then tested this tool, named Biosphere Reserve Effectiveness of Management index (BREMi) to evaluate management effectiveness across the Arab Man and the Biosphere Reserve network involving 17 BRs spanning 8 countries of the Middle East and North Africa. BREMi scores ranged from 4.43 to 8.65 (on a scale between 0 and 10), with a mean of 6.31 ± 1.040. All indicators were considered valuable measures of progress by our respondents, as well as by independent experts. We discuss our findings in light of available literature concerning the Arab region and through the conceptual frames of adaptive management and resilience. Finally, we discuss where the BREMi tool would be most useful for BR management authorities in the iterative process of evaluation and adaptive management.

UNESCO biosphere reserves show demand for multifunctional agriculture.

Sustainable landscape management of protected areas in UNESCO-biosphere reserves (BR) has become an increasingly important topic for academics and environmental practitioners, yet it remains unclear how this can be operationalized in actual regional circumstances. To achieve positive and measurable sustainability impacts, effective BR management on the ground requires supplementary methods to conceive the unique territorial, political, economic and social characteristics of each case while also considering the needs and visions of different stakeholder groups. In this study, we used the Framework for Participatory Impact Assessment (FoPIA) to assess future projections of current land management strategies and possible alternatives in five BR in Germany. The FoPIA method helped identify major differences in the regional BR contexts, including defining the sustainability problem and sustainability challenges. It also proved suitable for fostering stakeholder dialog with regard to current and future sustainable land use management, particularly for the BR transition zones. Our results predict multiple negative impacts resulting from of a continuation of current practices, which are compared against the assessed outcomes of alternative multifunctional pathways. We use these findings to discuss recommendations and challenges for sustainable management of biosphere reserves, the potential of implementing the FoPIA in BR, and perspectives for further research needs.

Study on the rare waterbird habitat networks of a new UNESCO World Natural Heritage site based on scenario simulation.

As a newly established World Natural Heritage site, the conservation of rare waterbird habitats in the Yancheng coastal wetlands has attracted wide international attention. In view of the importance of this area in international biodiversity conservation and waterbird habitat conservation, the study of the current situation of rare waterbird habitat networks with spatial isolation features of great demonstration significance to improve the habitat conservation quality of the heritage site. Based on the data obtained from habitat suitability assessments of rare waterbirds, this paper used complex network theory, ecological stepping-stone theory and circuit models to analyze the current status and robustness of rare waterbird habitat networks in the Yancheng coastal wetlands. The results showed that the stepping stones of the red-crowned cranes and the Oriental storks were mainly distributed around important habitat areas, including aquaculture ponds and reed marshes, with areas of 1275.68 hm2 and 1247.74 hm2, respectively, while the stepping stones of Saunders's gulls were mainly distributed within the Tiaozini habitat site, with an area of 1180.76 hm2. The stability and connectivity of the habitat networks of red-crowned cranes and Oriental storks in the northern habitat area were better. At the Tiaozini habitat site, there was spatial isolation and low connectivity among the habitats and stepping stones of Saunders's gulls. In the optimal protection scenario, the stability and connectivity of the habitat network structure of red-crowned cranes and Oriental storks were the best, and the networks tended to exhibit assortativity. In the random destruction scenario, the connectivity of the habitat networks of Saunders's gulls was the lowest, and the network structure was the most fragile. Finally, the optimization and restoration patterns of habitat network based on improving the support capacity of important habitat nodes and the enhancement of the stability and connectivity of the stepping-stone networks were proposed.

Spatio-Temporal Evolution and Obstacle Factors Analysis of Tourism Ecological Security in Huanggang Dabieshan UNESCO Global Geopark.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Global Geoparks (UGGp) and geotourism activities not only improve people's scientific quality by popularizing geoscience knowledge, but also play important roles in protecting precious geoheritages and promoting the development of regional economies. However, tourism activities also have a negative impact on the local ecological environment, placing the regional ecological system under great pressure. Therefore, this paper constructed a tourism ecological security evaluation indicator system suitable for geoparks by using the "Driving-Pressure-State-Impact-Response" (DPSIR) model. The spatial autocorrelation and obstacle degree model are used to analyze the spatio-temporal characteristics and influencing factors of the tourism ecological security index (TESI) of Huanggang Dabieshan UGGp in 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2018, respectively. The results indicate that the TESI of the study area has gradually improved from 2000 to 2018. Spatially, the level of TESI presents a gradient distribution from the townships where the main scenic spots are located to the surrounding townships. The main obstacle factors affecting TESI include: per capita tourism income, proportion of comprehensive tourism revenue in GDP, per capita net income of rural residents, proportion of tertiary industry in GDP, coverage of nature reserves, planning integrity of geopark, informatization of geopark, growth rate of tourists, comprehensive utilization rate of solid waste, etc. The influencing factors of TESI varied from time to time. Balancing the conflict between local tourism activities and environmental protection, encouraging the participation of local communities, and strengthening science popularization for the local public will effectively improve the tourism ecological security of geoparks.

Phototrophic and fungal communities inhabiting the Roman cryptoporticus of the national museum Machado de Castro (UNESCO site, Coimbra, Portugal).

Caves are oligotrophic environments, characterized by constant temperatures, high humidity and low natural light. However, microbial shifts can still happen in such environments, especially with the increase in tourist activity and implementation of artificial lights, making caves even more susceptible to environmental changes. As a result, proliferation of phototrophic organisms can increase dramatically, leading to their settlement on stone surfaces, which in turn facilitates the development of heterotrophic organisms, such as fungi and bacteria. The Roman Cryptoporticus of the National Museum Machado de Castro, erected by the Romans in the 1st or second century, is one of the most emblematic buildings in the city of Coimbra. However, the majority of the rooms that constitute this monument show signs of biodeterioration by microalgae and cyanobacteria as well as of fungi. The aim of this study was to characterize the phototrophic and fungal communities at this site, employing culture-dependent and-independent methodologies. Culture-dependent results showed that the phototrophic communities were mainly composed of green microalgae, whereas the culture-independent showed that cyanobacteria were the most dominant. As to the fungal communities, both approaches identified various entomopathogenic fungal species. In addition, the culture-independent analysis also allowed to verify the presence of animal reads, suggesting the hypothesis that animal vectored dispersion can play an important role in the development of fungi at this environment.

Antecedentes de la formación archivística en Costa Rica / Antecedents of the archivistic formation in Costa Rica

Resumen El artículo tiene como objetivo centrar su atención en el análisis, para darlo a conocer a la comunidad archivística costarricense, de los principales antecedentes que dieron origen a la formación archivística universitaria en Costa Rica; es decir, se investigó sobre la antesala de lo que 1978 dio origen al Diplomado en Archivo Administrativo en la entonces Escuela de Historia y Geografía de Facultad de Ciencias Sociales de Universidad de Costa Rica. Por lo tanto, el trabajo corresponde a una investigación histórica y exploratoria; en el primer caso porque se analiza e interpreta un proceso en perspectiva histórica y el segundo porque es un tema poco estudiado por la historiografía archivística costarricense. La metodología para la realización del trabajo fue el análisis documental, a partir de fuentes de información bibliográficas y documentos de archivos, que quedan reflejados en apartado de referencias bibliográficas. Así las cosas, el artículo presenta un recorrido por el origen de la Archivística en Costa Rica y los diferentes acontecimientos que antecedieron a la creación del Diplomado en Archivo Administrativo. Se concluye, entre otras cosas, que el Proyecto Piloto de la Unesco sentó las bases para el desarrollo archivístico costarricense, la modernización de los archivos y el origen de la formación archivística reglada en el país.

Abstract The article has the objective to center your attention in the analysis, to be known by the Costa Rican archivistic community, of the main antecedents that gave birth to the university archivistic formation in Costa Rica; meaning that an investigation was developed in the anteroom of 1978 with origin of the diploma in administrative archive in the old School of Geography and History of the Faculty of Social Science of the Costa Rican University. The work belongs to an historical and exploratory investigation, cause analyses one process in an historical perspective, and the second one, because it has been little studied by the Costa Rican archivistic historiography. The methodology applied for the work was the documentary analysis based on bibliographical information, and documents from archives that are reflected in the bibliographical references. The article shows a travel around the origins of the archive studies in Costa Rica, and the different events before the creation of the degree in Administrative Archive. To conclude this, the pilot project of the UNESCO, has created the bases for the archivistic development in Costa Rica, the modernization of the archives and the origins of the current archive formation rules in the country.

Quantifying the impacts of non-carbonic acid (NCA) stress on dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) generation in the granitic-hosted watershed, Huangshan UNESCO Global Geopark, China.

To better understand the impacts of non-carbonic acid (NCAs, including sulfuric, nitric and organic acids) stress on DIC generation during chemical weathering, this study investigated the water chemistry and stable isotope composition (δ13CDIC) from a granitic-hosted watershed at Huangshan UNESCO Global Geopark, China. The results show that the dissolved loads of the watershed are dominated by both silicate and carbonate weathering. As a region with greatly distributed acid soil and high occurrence of acid rain, the evolution of the dissolved loads and δ13CDIC show that DIC generation in carbonate dissolution is promoted by H2SO4, reduced by HNO3 and little disturbed by organic acids. The reduction is due to CO2 release in carbonate weathering by strong nitric acid formed by nitrification in acid soil. New participating proportions of NCAs in rock weathering yielded by the multiple linear regressions between major ions, DIC and δ13CDIC are introduced into calculations of DIC yields. The overestimated DIC yields by silicate and carbonate weathering by NCAs account for about 34% of total DIC yields calculated with the assumption that all carbonates and silicates are dissolved by H2CO3 alone during a year. The results imply that the modifications of DIC generation by NCAs, especially HNO3 formed in acidic silicate soil, could consequently partly counterbalance the natural CO2 sink in the granitic-host region.

A Qualitative Assessment of Community Learning Initiatives for Environmental Awareness and Behaviour Change: Applying UNESCO Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Framework.

This study uses qualitative research methods of text mining to elucidate the potential and prospects for community-based learning opportunities for raising environmental awareness and bringing about healthy behaviour change among university students and local residents. In particular, we focus on the importance of community-based learning in raising environmental awareness and inspiring action to support healthy living and harmony with nature. The three groups were triangulated using semi-structured questionnaires to model the ways in which education for sustainable development (ESD) can contribute to the promotion of environmental education in local communities. In order to collect in-depth data, the authors themselves were present at the study sites and collected textual data based on semi-structured questionnaires in a participatory observation framework, where they had a common experience to understand the observations. Analysis was carried out using NVivo12. The two community learning initiatives studied were in Okayama and Tokyo, which are leading ESD policy areas. The two case studies are both university student-led projects that aim to raise environmental awareness in local communities through environmentally conscious behaviour change and the creation of a foundation for healthy living. This study focuses on "youth" and "community" among the five priority areas proposed in the 2015 ESD report and discusses the potential and prospects for community learning initiatives and the triggering of the nudge effect on environmentally conscious behaviour change and health behaviours. The results of the textual analysis with triangulation show that, while policymakers and teachers and leaders driving the initiative acknowledge the importance of ESD in a comprehensive way, their attention is more focused on the design of specific projects and curricula. In contrast, university students engaged in ESD activities rated the social education facilities (local community centres, community learning centres) as "lively" and "motivating". It was found that there are high expectations for "public living rooms", which are important as a base for learning to promote healthy and sustainable communities and environmentally conscious behaviour change.

Introducing Petrachlorosaceae fam. nov., Petrachloros gen. nov. and Petrachloros mirabilis sp. nov. (Synechococcales, Cyanobacteria) Isolated from a Portuguese UNESCO monument.

The Synechococcales is a large cyanobacterial order comprising both unicellular and filamentous forms, with parietal thylakoid arrangement. Previously, this order has been the subject of taxonomic revisions with new families being erected. During studies of the phototrophic communities on the limestone walls of the Old Cathedral of Coimbra (UNESCO monument), a coccoid Aphanocapsa-like cyanobacterium was isolated. It was characterized using a polyphasic approach, based on morphology, 16S rRNA phylogenetic and phylogenomic analyses, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) secondary structure, and ecology. The 16S rRNA phylogenetic analyses showed that this strain is placed in a separate and highly supported family-level clade, as part of a large group comprising the families Prochlorococcaceae and Prochlorotrichaceae, with Lagosinema as the closest (although quite distant) taxon. Additionally, the phylogenomic analysis also placed this strain in a separate lineage, situated distantly apart from the family Thermosynechococcaceae, but with strains assigned to Acaryochloris marina MBIC 11017 and Aphanocapsa montana BDHKU210001 as the closest taxa. Based on these data, as well as on the results from the secondary ITS structure, morphology, and ecology, we here propose the establishment of Petrachlorosaceae fam. nov., along with the description of Petrachloros gen. nov. and Petrachloros mirabilis sp. nov. We also address additional considerations regarding some cyanobacterial taxa within the order Synechococcales, which we believe deserve further revisions.