Coupling remote sensing and eDNA to monitor environmental impact: A pilot to quantify the environmental benefits of sustainable agriculture in the Brazilian Amazon.

Monitoring is essential to ensure that environmental goals are being achieved, including those of sustainable agriculture. Growing interest in environmental monitoring provides an opportunity to improve monitoring practices. Approaches that directly monitor land cover change and biodiversity annually by coupling the wall-to-wall coverage from remote sensing and the site-specific community composition from environmental DNA (eDNA) can provide timely, relevant results for parties interested in the success of sustainable agricultural practices. To ensure that the measured impacts are due to the environmental projects and not exogenous factors, sites where projects have been implemented should be benchmarked against counterfactuals (no project) and control (natural habitat) sites. Results can then be used to calculate diverse sets of indicators customized to monitor different projects. Here, we report on our experience developing and applying one such approach to assess the impact of shaded cocoa projects implemented by the Instituto de Manejo e Certificação Florestal e Agrícola (IMAFLORA) near São Félix do Xingu, in Pará, Brazil. We used the Continuous Degradation Detection (CODED) and LandTrendr algorithms to create a remote sensing-based assessment of forest disturbance and regeneration, estimate carbon sequestration, and changes in essential habitats. We coupled these remote sensing methods with eDNA analyses using arthropod-targeted primers by collecting soil samples from intervention and counterfactual pasture field sites and a control secondary forest. We used a custom set of indicators from the pilot application of a coupled monitoring framework called TerraBio. Our results suggest that, due to IMAFLORA's shaded cocoa projects, over 400 acres were restored in the intervention area and the community composition of arthropods in shaded cocoa is closer to second-growth forests than that of pastures. In reviewing the coupled approach, we found multiple aspects worked well, and we conclude by presenting multiple lessons learned.

Técnicas y estrategias implementadas en la intervención con familias en temas de crianza / Techniques and Strategies Implemented in the Intervention With Families on Parenting Issues

Resumen Este artículo distingue algunas estrategias y técnicas privilegiadas por los profesionales del área psicosocial (psicología, trabajo social, desarrollo familiar y terapia familiar) que trabajan con familias que consultan por temas relacionados con la crianza. Bajo un enfoque metodológico cualitativo y el uso del análisis de contenido como método principal, los resultados dan cuenta de estrategias y técnicas dirigidas a familias, niños y padres o cuidadores, en correspondencia con el modelo clínico de enfoque sistémico y conductual; el modelo educativo (informativo, instructivo) y el modelo comunitario. Se concluye la importancia de fomentar la autobservación en el ejercicio profesional, en el cual es vigente el acompañamiento familiar de múltiples formas, como intervenciones focalizadas, interdisciplinares y domiciliarias, con talleres, el uso de preguntas circulares y el genograma, entre otras técnicas que requieren implementaciones responsables, en el marco de conversaciones reflexivas.

Abstract This article distinguishes some strategies and techniques chosen by professionals in the psychosocial area (psychology, social work, family development, and family therapy) who work with families consulting on issues related to parenting. Under a qualitative methodological approach and the use of content analysis as the main method, the results show strategies and techniques directed to families, children, and parents or caregivers, in correspondence with the clinical model of systemic and behavioral approach, the educational model (informative, instructive), and the community model. It is concluded the importance of promoting self‑observation in professional practice, in which family companionship in multiple forms is in force, such as focused, interdisciplinary, and home-based interventions, workshops, the use of circular questions, and the genogram, among other techniques that require responsible implementations, within the framework of reflective conversations.

Estrategias de Acompañamiento Educativo y Familiar en la Educación Inicial: una revisión teórica / Strategies for Educational and Family Accompaniment in Early Education. A theoretical review / Estratégias de Educação e Acompanhamento Familiar na Educação Precoce. Uma Revisão Teórica

Resumen Introducción: El primer capítulo dará cuenta de las percepciones sobre educación inicial y su relación con los ámbitos familiar y escolar y cómo inciden en el desempeño escolar en la infancia. El segundo capítulo referencia los estudios relacionados con las responsabilidades y obligaciones de la familia y la escuela en el acompañamiento educativo de los niños y finalmente se desarrolla un apartado que indaga las estrategias de acompañamiento educativo en el contexto familiar y escolar. Objetivo: Realizar una revisión bibliográfica sobre las estrategias de acompañamiento educativo y familiar y su incidencia en el proceso formativo en la infancia. Materiales y Métodos: El enfoque privilegiado, es cualitativo a partir de una estrategia de revisión documental. Se presenta un estudio analítico de artículos de investigación, lo cual permite evidenciar el grado de profundización que ha tenido el tema en los últimos tiempos. Resultado: Carencia de estrategias de acompañamiento en el entorno familiar que sean exitosas y favorezcan el proceso educativo de los niños. Conclusión: Las instituciones gubernamentales continúan apostándole a la vinculación familia y escuela, pero la realidad muestra una brecha entre ellas que afecta de manera indirecta el proceso educativo en la infancia.

Abstract Introduction: The first will give an account of the perceptions about initial education and its relationship with the family and school environments and how they affect school performance in childhood. The second chapter refers to the studies related to the responsibilities and obligations of the family and the school in the educational accompaniment of children and finally a section is developed that investigates the educational accompaniment strategies in the family and school context. Objective: To carry out a bibliographic review on the strategies of educational and family support and their impact on the formative process in childhood. Methodology: The privileged approach is qualitative based on a document review strategy. An analytical study of research articles is presented, which shows the degree of deepening that the subject has had in recent times. Result: Lack of support strategies in the family environment that are successful and favor the educational process of children. Conclusion: Government institutions continue to focus on family and school ties, but reality shows a gap between them that indirectly affects the educational process in childhood.

Resumo Introdução: O acompanhamento educativo a nível escolar e familiar é o tema que pretendemos explorar em profundidade através da revisão documental das principais categorias deste estudo. O tema surge da necessidade observada nos centros educativos relativamente às estratégias utilizadas para acompanhar as curianas e à forma como as famílias são assertivamente envolvidas nos mesmos processos para benefício da formação académica dos seus filhos. O Objectivo deste artigo é realizar uma revisão bibliográfica das estratégias educativas e de acompanhamento familiar e do seu impacto no processo formativo na infância. Materiais e métodos: O enfoque é qualitativo, com base numa estratégia de revisão documental, é apresentado um estudo analítico de artigos de investigação, o que permite demonstrar o grau de estudo aprofundado do tema nos últimos tempos. Os resultados indicam uma falta de estratégias de apoio bem sucedidas no ambiente familiar que favorecem o processo educativo das crianças. Conclusões que as instituições governamentais continuam a concentrar-se na ligação entre a família e a escola, mas a realidade mostra um fosso entre elas que afecta indirectamente o processo educativo na infância.

Priority regions for research on dryland cereals and legumes.

Dryland cereals and legumes  are important crops in farming systems across the world.  Yet they are frequently neglected among the priorities for international agricultural research and development, often due to lack of information on their magnitude and extent. Given what we know about the global distribution of dryland cereals and legumes, what regions should be high priority for research and development to improve livelihoods and food security? This research evaluated the geographic dimensions of these crops and the farming systems where they are found worldwide. The study employed geographic information science and data to assess the key farming systems and regions for these crops. Dryland cereal and legume crops should be given high priority in 18 farming systems worldwide, where their cultivated area comprises more than 160 million ha. These regions include the dryer areas of South Asia, West and East Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, Central America and other parts of Asia. These regions are prone to drought and heat stress, have limiting soil constraints, make up half of the global population and account for 60 percent of the global poor and malnourished. The dryland cereal and legume crops and farming systems merit more research and development attention to improve productivity and address development problems. This project developed an open access dataset and information resource that provides the basis for future analysis of the geographic dimensions of dryland cereals and legumes.