• Energy Research
• natural sciences close
• 13. Climate action close
• 14. Life underwater close
• 7. Clean energy close
• French close

Energy is an essential factor regarding the economic development and for providing a high standard of living to the population of any country. Because energy is produced mainly using classic fuels (coal, oil and gas) for a few decades there are signals regarding their exhaustion. Therefore, mankind should concern more about finding viable alternatives to replace the classical fuels. This way the use of nuclear fuels appeared, then the force of the wind, of the tides and of the photovoltaic cells. However, there are still enough energy resources for further growth of the global energy production. The great consumers are both the major energy producers, only their hierarchy has changed and changes over time. The paper presents all these countries, and also Romania, including its specific developments in recent years.

Les Sherpa de la région de l'Everest au Népal expérimentent des transformations importantes de leur environnement et notamment des variations du climat. Notre ambition est de comprendre les perceptions que les habitants ont des modifications des phénomènes atmosphériques et météorologiques, et de voir s'ils relient ces variations locales à un changement climatique plus global. Notre recherche en géographie humaine, menée en immersion longue sur un terrain himalayen et basée sur des données qualitatives recueillies lors d'entretiens, fait ressortir des grandes tendances au niveau des transformations environnementales ressenties autour de la diminution de la neige, de la plus grande variabilité des pluies de mousson et de l'augmentation d'événements extrêmes. Ces observations, collectées au niveau du territoire de Pangboche sur le sentier de l'Everest, varient selon l'âge des personnes interrogées, et font apparaître des problèmes d'échelle et de temps avec un décalage entre la vision alarmiste globale du changement climatique et son appréhension locale. Le climat est à considérer en interaction avec d'autres facteurs de changements socio-économiques dans une région profondément marquée par le tourisme, la présence d'étrangers, les échanges et la circulation des discours. Mots clés : Perception du climat, perception de la météorologie, changement climatique, facteurs de changement, distinction générationnelle, marqueurs environnementaux, Sherpa, Everest. A wind of change is blowing on Everest : the multiple facets of Sherpa perceptions of weather and climate. Sherpa people of the Everest region in Nepal are experiencing local environmental change and particularly climatic variation. Our objective is better to understand how villagers perceive atmospheric and meteorological changes, and how they relate local phenomena to possibly global climate change. Our research in human geography, carried out through long-term immersion in a Himalayan area and based on qualitative data collected during interviews, reveals major trends in relation to the decreasing amount of snow, the greater variability in monsoon rains, and the increase of extreme weather events. These observations, gathered in Pangboche territory on the trail to Everest, vary according to the age of the respondents and reveal problems of scale and time, with a gap between the global alarmist vision of climate change and its local understanding. Thus, we argue, climate should be viewed in interaction with other factors of (socio-economic) change in a region deeply marked by tourism, the presence of foreigners, and the exchange and circulation of discourse on nature and the environment. Keywords : Perception of climate, perception of meteorology, climate change, drivers of change, generational differences , environmental indicators, Sherpa, Everest.

Rising greenhouse gas levels due to human activity are already having an impact on climate by increasing the atmospheric temperature. The current concentration of carbon dioxide released by industrial activity is the highest it has been for more than one million years. The oceans are warming and becoming more acidic. This climate change is causing radical changes to ecosystems, plants, marine life and wildlife, not to mention humans for whom agricultural resources and fresh water are becoming scarcer and coastal homes are under threat. There is still time for us to change our lifestyles.

Climate change is set to be the most important determinant of health in the coming years. Like greenhouse gases, air pollution is a result of human activities. It leads to acute and chronic respiratory, cardiovascular, neurological, renal and tumoural diseases. Acting on global warming will help to reduce the emission of pollutants into the air and protect public health.

In order to assess the impact of crustacean zooplankton on phytoplankton and protozoan ciliates in the Sahela reservoir under semi-arid climate, we conducted experiments during the period from July to December 1999 at the deepest point in the lake (15 m). Samplings and measurements were carried out in diffusion chambers submerged in situ over a period of 7 h without (control chambers) and with (experimental chambers) crustacean zooplankton. During these experiments, counts were conducted on phytoplankton and ciliates to determine the abundance and the mortality of these organisms due to zooplankton in each diffusion chambers at t = 0 and t = 7 h of incubation. The study showed that the growth rates of phytoplankton and ciliates populations varied between 0.02 and 0.05 h-1 and from 0.01 to 0.07 h-1, respectively. The mortality caused by zooplankton grazing fluctuated from 0.07 to 0.2 h-1 of phytoplankton and from 0.01 to 0.2 h-1 of ciliates. These mortalities were significantly and positively correlated with the growth rates (r = 0.8; p < 0.02; n = 9). Moreover, the heavy predation by the crustacean zooplankton was exerted on small-sized phytoplankton and ciliates and we demonstrated the relationships between protozoans and zooplankton for the transfer of matter and energy in aquatic food webs. Furthermore, the crustacean zooplankton metabolism was different, whether zooplankton was present in diffusion chambers or in the lake.

Description du sujet. La baisse et l’irrégularité des pluies modifient considérablement les saisons culturales, ce qui oblige les paysans à une restructuration du calendrier agricole en s’appuyant sur les savoirs locaux. Objectifs. L’objectif de cette étude est de valoriser les savoirs locaux utilisés par les paysans dans la gestion du calendrier agricole. Les objectifs spécifiques sont, d’une part, d’inventorier les indicateurs biophysiques utilisés dans la définition des calendriers culturaux et, d’autre part, de déterminer les espèces végétales repères communes aux trois zones écologiques étudiées. Méthode. Ce but fut atteint grâce à des interviews semi-directes individuelles et via des focus groups auprès d’un échantillon de 689 agriculteurs répartis dans 65 localités. Résultats. Il ressort que la totalité des paysans enquêtés utilisent des marqueurs temporels dans la définition des calendriers culturaux, surtout dans la reconnaissance des débuts de saison pluvieuse (période de semis) et de saison sèche (période de récolte). Il s’agit principalement des indicateurs biologiques tels que la phénologie des plantes (en saison sèche : Triumfetta rhomboidea Jacq. [floraison], Spathodea campanulata P.Beauv. [floraison], Vitellaria paradoxa C.F.Gaertn. [fructification] et en saison pluvieuse : Millettia thonningii (Schum. & Thonn.) Baker [floraison], V. paradoxa [floraison], Delonix regia (Hook.) Raf. [floraison], Ceiba pentandra (L.) Gaertn. [éclatement du fruit]). Au total, 67 espèces végétales ont été recensées comme indicateurs des variations des saisons agricoles. Outre les espèces végétales, la migration saisonnière des oiseaux (73 %), l’apparition des insectes (48 %), mais aussi des indicateurs abiotiques comme le sens du vent (100 %), les observations des étoiles (82 %) et le déplacement des nuages (69 %) sont utilisés comme repères dans la gestion des périodes agricoles. Conclusions. La connaissance de ces signaux permet aux paysans d’anticiper sur d’éventuelles variabilités climatiques et suivre, diriger et adapter leurs activités culturales. Ces savoirs locaux constituent dès lors une aubaine pour l’adaptation aux changements climatiques.

In order to describe some aspects of the biology of the deep-water shrimp Aristeus antillensis (Crustacea, Decapoda, Aristeidae) in French Guiana (Western Central Atlantic), a total of 84 bottom trawls were carried out at bottom depths ranging from 200 to 900 m on the Guianan slope during four scientific surveys conducted from August 1990 through July 1991. A. antillensis is distributed in muddy grounds from 456 to 818 m with a peak abundance in the 500-600-m-depth stratum where mean catch rates are about 400 g.h-1. In terms of biomass, catches obtained in day time and at night are similar. All samples observed show great predominance of females. The size frequency distribution indicates the existence of three age-classes for females, probably attributed to three annual cohorts. The results of a detailed study of morphometric relationships (length-weight relationships) are also presented.

Climate change, adaptation and sustainable development are inextricably linked. These issues haunt the developing world Parties to the multilateral environmental agreements, who are trying hard to implement policies and plans within their national jurisdictions. These policies are required to be linked with overall economic growth and development objectives. With limited technical workforce and financial capacity, the developing world is facing a grave challenge of attaining inclusive growth and sustainable development, besides developing resilience to climate change. A parallel stream of activities for these three objectives is not the solution for poor countries. Some countries are already on the path of establishing linkages among climate change, development and sustainability activities. However, while grappling with these issues, most are still stuck at different levels of governance. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) have timelines until 2030. At least 60% of the NDCs, mostly those of the developing countries, contain an adaptation component which is closely linked to sustainable development. Convergence of NDC and SDG goals at the national level will assist in financing NDCs through SDG funds for achieving both mitigation and adaptation goals. The paper discusses barriers to good governance around these issues and opportunities available to link them at the national level. This includes improvement of knowledge base, and mainstreaming finance for both, adaptation and sustainable development, besides serving national needs. The trick is to include adaptation and sustainability into the developmental planning. Journal d’Economie, de Management, d’Environnement et de Droit, Vol 3, No 1 (2020)

Africa is classified as the continent with the highest thread caused by changing earth climate. This thread is a result of interaction between diverse stressing factors which are already indicated in local ecosystems. These climatic effects are more visible in Africa than on any other continent or regions in the world. The interactions of climate change and anthropogenic caused environmental influences are specifically distinct like inequalities, education, food security etc. Environmental and agricultural resources are fundamentals for social, economic and ecologic development and essential for countries in Africa. With increased interferences in the ecological balance of ecosystems soil degradation and lack of education are major and most serious effects on booming economies. With indicators like illiteration, poverty, food insecurity / soil fertility etc. the productivity and stability of different regions in Africa can be evaluated. With this evaluation it will be possible to estimate the economic efficiency and therefore concrete potential stabilizing indicators. Against this background, the impact of climate change and soil degradation will be extremely in regions of Africa. Investigations in optimized strategies and examples of successful agricultural production in Africa could be blueprints to reach further global goals. The importance to understand cultural characteristics and to get local experts involved from the beginning is essential for the success of developing strategies in Africa. Journal d’Economie, de Management, d’Environnement et de Droit, Vol 3, No 1 (2020)