| 1. |
- Fast, Stewart, et al.
(author)
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Biofuels: From a win-win solution to a wicked problem?
- 2012
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In: Biofuels. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1759-7277 .- 1759-7269. ; 3:6, s. 737-748
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Current and recent struggles encountered in the development of the transport biofuels sector indicate a significant change in the perception of biofuels. Instead of a win-win solution, transport biofuels have become a major planning challenge. In fact, biofuels can be labelled a wicked problem. The planning studies literature offers some tools to interpret this change and guide future actions. First, by assessing recent experiences of biofuels in the EU and US against the ten characteristics of wicked problems we find biofuels “fit” the profile of such issues. Second, we observe that differentiated strategies will suit the different challenges facing biofuels development. We argue that without recognition and engagement of multiple perspectives on transport biofuels they will remain a wicked problem and we therefore advocate for strengthened approaches to communication and engagement.
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| 2. |
- Leebens-Mack, James H., et al.
(author)
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One thousand plant transcriptomes and the phylogenomics of green plants
- 2019
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In: Nature. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 574:7780, s. 679-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Green plants (Viridiplantae) include around 450,000-500,000 species(1,2) of great diversity and have important roles in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Here, as part of the One Thousand Plant Transcriptomes Initiative, we sequenced the vegetative transcriptomes of 1,124 species that span the diversity of plants in a broad sense (Archaeplastida), including green plants (Viridiplantae), glaucophytes (Glaucophyta) and red algae (Rhodophyta). Our analysis provides a robust phylogenomic framework for examining the evolution of green plants. Most inferred species relationships are well supported across multiple species tree and supermatrix analyses, but discordance among plastid and nuclear gene trees at a few important nodes highlights the complexity of plant genome evolution, including polyploidy, periods of rapid speciation, and extinction. Incomplete sorting of ancestral variation, polyploidization and massive expansions of gene families punctuate the evolutionary history of green plants. Notably, we find that large expansions of gene families preceded the origins of green plants, land plants and vascular plants, whereas whole-genome duplications are inferred to have occurred repeatedly throughout the evolution of flowering plants and ferns. The increasing availability of high-quality plant genome sequences and advances in functional genomics are enabling research on genome evolution across the green tree of life.
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| 3. |
- McCormick, Kes, et al.
(author)
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Global Governance of Biofuels for Transport: Viewpoints of Key Stakeholders?
- 2012
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In the context of the emerging bioeconomy, the production and use of biofuels for transport is expanding rapidly around the world. This development presents both exciting opportunities and significant risks. Not least because biofuels are intimately connected to (and impacting on) food, water, climate and economic systems. The implications of different production chains and the international trade of biofuels is attracting interest from a range of actors across government, industry, society and academia. The purpose of this paper is to explore the viewpoints of key stakeholders (focusing on bioenergy, environmental, and scientific organisations) on the global governance of biofuels for transport. The key stakeholders investigated in this paper include: the World Bioenergy Association and the Global Bioenergy Partnership; Friends of the Earth and the World Wide Fund for Nature; and the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment. This paper explores the governance of biofuels for transport through the analytical problems defined by the Earth System Governance Project, which encompass architecture, agency, adaptiveness, accountability, and allocation and access. With the analytical problems as a foundation, this paper argues that the global governance of biofuels demands critical attention.
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