Search Results

Tree in multi-use, the argan tree is also in multifunction : economic, social and environmental. He(it) was, and it is still, an important element of the local agrarian system and participates in the preservation of a particular biodiversity. As it always configured and gave rhythm to the life of the populations of the arganraie because it was (or one of its products) always present in their culinary, festive or sociocultural activities. However, the boom of the market of the argan engendered multiple consequences on the socioeconomic and cultural life of these populations. To understand and analyze these evolutions and the new local dynamics which take place there, we realized an empirical study in the region of Essaouira at the level of two rural districts. What allowed us, besides the historic analysis, to compare the dynamics which are in progress at the level of these two municipalities Our main results show that the craze for the products of the argan tree and the fit of their prices (in particular the oil) have re-configured the local socioeconomic and cultural life : new actors appeared, a market insufficiently structured and not rather profitable in premises was set up, the local know-how affects, new modes of food made their appearance, customs and traditions are endangered, etc.

Keywords: Arganier, Essaouira, valeurs socioculturelles, dynamiques locales, savoir, Maroc, agriculture, Argan tree, Essaouira, sociocultural values, local dynamics, knowledge, agriculture, Morocco

This work seeks to understand how the network of a new manager facilitates the strategy of the rapid and sudden internationalization of a SME, after several years of activity on the national market. The specificity of the behavior of these companies stems from the local context, which is characterized by institutional constraints, weak resources and a lack of information on foreign markets. Empirical research on the strategic behavior of Romanian SMEs in a transition country is limited and does not study the role of the manager's network in this context. The combination of internationalization theory and network theory provides a comprehensive theoretical framework for understanding the behavior of Born-again Globals (BAG) in this context. The case study of a Romanian SME, ELJ Automotive, now BAG, was conducted through life stories and exploratory interviews. The diachronic and thematic analysis shows that territorial and community networks do not contribute to the internationalization of Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) SMEs. It provides lessons on the strong links that the manager must establish with personal, professional, and influential networks in order to accelerate internationalization while circumventing institutional constraints.

Keywords: PME, Réseau, Dirigeants, Liens forts et faibles, SME, Networks, Managers, Strong and weak links, PyME, Redes, Líderes, Vínculos fuertes y débiles

The affirmation of the primacy of state justice stems from the idea that there is an integral link between law and state, where the social reality of the law is only that which is assigned to it by the state―an idea that leaves no room for legal pluralism. The presence of international treaties on fundamental rights, and the plurality of norms, rationales and mechanisms of justice have repudiated this idea. State law can no longer ignore other normative orders without undermining principles such as the dignity of actors, and the legitimacy of their personal identity. In this context we intend to assess the reception of Muslim values and norms by central actors in the legitimization of any foreign law: the judges. We study nine judicial decisions in Quebec rendered between 1997 and 2009 about kafálah, a Muslim legal institution to take care of abandoned children.

Entering the 21st century, the question facing mankind is whether we will be able to find, agree upon and activate solutions adequate to resolve world problems which have plagued the 20th century and which increasingly threaten the 21 st. The central argument presented here is that it is only by taking concrete steps at the world level that we can hope to reduce or eliminate the threat to survival which these problems represent.In order to provide a framework from which prospects for the future of the world organization can be analysed, the "world order" perspective is compared with a more traditional perspective. The challenges that world problems and crises pose for the world organization are examined. Using the fundamental changes undergone by both the League of Nations and the United Nations as an historical basis for scrutinizing the future, the changes that increasingly complex problems may force on the world organization are explored. Changes such as a "reinforced United Nations" (without delegation of sovereignty), a "World Authority" (with partial delegation of sovereignty) or a "World Government" (with major delegation of sovereignty) are evaluated in terms of the world organization' s ability to handle potential world crises and problems.The conclusion establishes that there is a pressing need for immediate political action which would aim towards a coalition of all groups researching solutions to world problems and would be based on the "world order" ideology of the majority rather than the "world-oriented" ideology of a self-interested minority.

AbstractAs many others, these two straits are places of transit which concern both the bordering states and the Great Powers, and which hold two prime functions, as ocean gateways, and as cross gateways. As ocean gateways, these two straits have symmetrical functions giving access to the seas bordering Europe, common functions on the ocean route between Asia and the main harbours of Northern Europe, and their particular functions. As cross gateways, the Pas-de-Calais (or Strait of Dover) has much higher flows than the Strait of Gibraltar, although on this last place, they are growing fast. With this plurality of functions, these straits appear as true cross-roads, and they are also places of geopolitical conflicts, because of very high migrating pressures, and attempts for a geopolitical control of these straits, by the presence of enclaves, especially on the Strait of Gibraltar.

AbstractOlive mill wastewater (OMWW) generated by the olive oil extraction process is the main waste product of this industry. These effluents have been characterized, followed by an experimental study of the elimination of organic matter (chemical oxygen demand (COD), phenolic compounds, suspended solids (SS) and colour), mineral matter (phosphate and ammonium nitrogen) and heavy metals (zinc and iron) using an electrocoagulation technique with aluminum electrodes. It was found that an increase in electrolysis time and voltage improved treatment significantly. However, a simultaneous increase in electrode and energy consumption was observed.The results of these analyses showed that the olive mill wastewater (OMWW) effluent, diluted five times, is acidic (pH 4.2), has a very high organic matter concentration (chemical oxygen demand (COD) 20,000 g•L‑1) and is high in salts (Electric Conductivity E.C = 3.6 mS•cm‑1), ammonium nitrogen (NH4+) (32 mg•L‑1) and orthophosphate (PO43‑) (22 mg•L‑1). The OMWW also contains considerable amounts of heavy metals, in particular zinc (3.69 mg•L‑1) and iron (13.80 mg•L‑1).The trend in physicochemical parameters during the electrocoagulation treatment shows that, after 15 minutes of electrolysis using an electrical voltage of 20 volts (corresponds to 250 A•m‑2), the discolouration of the OMWW, diluted five times, lay between 96-99%, the reduction of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) was approximately 80-85%, the reduction of phenolic compounds was approximately 75‑80%, the elimination of colloidal material (suspended solids) reached 7-8 kg•m‑3, the reduction of orthophosphates was 94-99% and the reduction of ammonium was 80-85%. The reduction of zinc was 70-75%, the reduction of iron was 71-76%, the electrode consumption was 0.6-0.7 kg•m‑3 and the amount of energy consumed was 12-14 kWh•m‑3. Under these optimal operational conditions, acceptable degradation of the OMWW was achieved.

Keywords: Margine, caractérisation, électrocoagulation, électrodes en aluminium, décoloration, DCO, polyphénols, olive mill wastewater, characterization, electrocoagulation, aluminium electrodes, chemical oxygen demand, discolouration, phenols

Agriculture has always been a sector in which the tasks requiring few qualifications mean that labour supply remains high. And so it is that this labour supply is often made up of newly arrived immigrants, as many of the natives have given up the drudgery of this type of work which is badly paid and unrewarding. We shall analyze the extreme difficulty in which these seasonal migrant workers find themselves in Spain. In order to do this, we shall bring to light the stories of two of these immigrants, the first from Morocco and the second from Mali, and demonstrate how they became literal prisoners of the agricultural industry, powerless to build—or even imagine—any measure of a future. This type of situation has been exacerbated since 2008 and the economic crisis.

Keywords: immigration, politiques sociales, Espagne, agriculture, travail saisonnier, immigration, social policies, Spain, agriculture, seasonal employment

In Morocco, water availability is becoming a national priority for the agricultural sector. In this context, the stakeholders try continuously to improve strategies of water irrigation management, on one hand, and to assess vegetation water content status, on the other hand, in order to improve irrigation scheduling and prevent water stress that affects yield adversely. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of two spectral indices, calculated from SPOT-5 high resolution visible (HRV) data, to retrieve the vegetation water content values of wheat in an irrigated area. These indices were the normalized difference water index (NDWI) and the moisture stress index (MSI). The values of these indices were compared with corresponding values of in situ-measured vegetation water content in 16 fields of wheat during the 2012-2013 cropping season. Good correlations were found between observed vegetation water content values and NDWI and MSI values during the crop growth period from anthesis to grain filling. These results were validated using the k-fold cross validation method and showed a good stability of the proposed regression models with a slight advantage for the NDWI. Based on these results, the NDWI was chosen to map the spatial variability of vegetation water content of wheat at the east of the Beni-Moussa irrigated perimeter. These results proved that the indices based on near and shortwave infrared band (NIR and SWIR) are able to monitor vegetation water content changes in wheat from anthesis to the grain filling stage. These indices could be used to improve irrigation and crop management of wheat at both the field and regional levels.

Keywords: Normalized difference water index, moisture stress index, vegetation water content, wheat, semi-arid, irrigated area, Indice de l'eau, indice du stress hydrique, teneur en eau de la végétation, blé, semi-aride, zone irriguée