Loading...
8 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 8 of 8
- Nature exposure scale : Psychometric properties, reliability and validity evidence from Azores (Portugal)Publication . Arroz, Ana Moura; Picanço, Ana; Silva, Alexandra R.; Rosário, Isabel Amorim do; Gabriel, RosalinaAlthough exposure to nature has asserted its impact on health and well-being in numerous studies, the way in which it is assessed is still problematic and there are no validated measures for Portuguese-speaking countries. Hence, in this study, we carried out a psychometric analysis of the Nature Exposure Scale (NES), a self-report instrument with four Likert items, from its administration to a convenience sample of 579 adults residing in the Azores (Portugal). Overall, the results of the NES scale show good reliability and adequate divergent and convergent validity. But the understanding of its latent structure must be deepened.
- Guia de atividades pedagógicas : À (re)descoberta da naturezaPublication . Silva, Alexandra R.; Gabriel, Rosalina; Rosário, Isabel Amorim do; Arroz, Ana Moura; Picanço, Ana; Matos, SóniaNum contexto escolar em que os alunos estão menos vezes do que o desejável em contacto direto com ambientes naturais, pretende-se, no âmbito do projeto de investigação Guia de Campo, disponibilizar a professores, pais e jovens um conjunto de atividades de exploração da natureza idealizadas de modo a diversificar os tipos de inteligência, de experiências e de elementos naturais abrangidos. De acordo com a abordagem da aprendizagem situada, que sublinha a relevância da relação entre a aprendizagem e a situação física e social em que ocorre, estas atividades foram desenvolvidas e testadas por jovens escuteiros de diferentes idades no Trilho dos Mistérios Negros, no Parque Natural da Ilha Terceira (Açores, Portugal). A seleção de atividades apresentadas neste guia como materiais de educação ambiental multidisciplinares, foi realizada tendo em conta a identificação de contextos específicos que facilitassem as aprendizagens, promovendo a curiosidade e conhecimento das crianças e jovens sobre os ambientes naturais do local onde vivem. Visava-se aumentar a sua exposição e conexão à natureza e expandir as suas possibilidades de relação (affordances) com ela. Crê-se estar a contribuir, deste modo, para o desenvolvimento da consciência ambiental e de competências cognitivas e metacognitivas, sociais, emocionais e psicomotoras. Para cada atividade encontram-se identificados os anos escolares e as áreas curriculares em que se enquadram de forma mais imediata. É também apresentada informação relativa às áreas de competências consideradas no Perfil dos Alunos à Saída da Escolaridade Obrigatória, bem como aos tipos de inteligência mais diretamente implicados, de acordo com a teoria das inteligências múltiplas.
- Ecosystem services mapping and assessment for policy- and decision-making : Lessons learned from a comparative analysis of European case studiesPublication . Geneletti, Davide; Esmail, Blal Adem; Cortinovis, Chiara; Arany, Ildikó; Balzan, Mario; van Beukering, Pieter; Bicking, Sabine; Borges, Paulo A. V.; Borisova, Bilyana; Broekx, Steven; Burkhard, Benjamin; Gil, Artur José Freire; Inghe, Ola; Kopperoinen, Leena; Kruse, Marion; Liekens, Inge; Lowicki, Damian; Mizgajski, Andrzej; Mulder, Sara; Nedkov, Stoyan; Ostergard, Hannah; Picanço, Ana; Ruskule, Anda; Santos-Martín, Fernando; Sieber, Ina M.; Svensson, Johan; Vačkářů, Dava; Veidemane, KristinaThis paper analyses and compares a set of case studies on ecosystem services (ES) mapping and assessment with the purpose of formulating lessons learned and recommendations. Fourteen case studies were selected during the EU Horizon 2020 “Coordination and Support Action” ESMERALDA to represent different policy- and decision-making processes throughout the European Union, across a wide range of themes, biomes and scales. The analysis is based on a framework that addresses the key steps of an ES mapping and assessment process, namely policy questions, stakeholder identification and involvement, application of mapping and assessment methods, dissemination and communication and implementation. The analysis revealed that most case studies were policy-orientated or gave explicit suggestions for policy implementation in different contexts, including urban, rural and natural areas. Amongst the findings, the importance of starting stakeholder engagement early in the process was confirmed in order to generate interest and confidence in the project and to increase their willingness to cooperate. Concerning mapping and assessment methods, it was found that the integration of methods and results is essential for providing a comprehensive overview from different perspectives (e.g. social, economic). Finally, lessons learned for effective implementation of ES mapping and assessment results are presented and discussed.
- Base de datos de abejas ibéricasPublication . Bartomeus, Ignasi; Lanuza, Jose B.; Wood, Thomas J.; Carvalheiro, Luisa; Molina, Francisco P.; Collado, Miguel Ángel; Aguado-Martín, Luis Oscar; Alomar, David; Álvarez-Fidalgo, Marián; Álvarez Fidalgo, Piluca; Arista, Montserrat; Arroyo-Correa, Blanca; Asís, Josep D.; Azpiazu, Celeste; Baños-Picón, Laura; Beja, Pedro; Boieiro, Mário; Borges, Paulo A. V.; González Bornay, Guillermo; Carvalho, Rafael; Casimiro-Soriguer, Ramón; Castro, Silvia; Costa, Joana; Cross, Ian; De la Rúa, Pilar; de Pablos, Luis MIguel; de Paz, Víctor; Díaz-Calafat, Joan; Ferrero, Victoria; Gaspar, Hugo; Ghisbain, Guillaume; Gómez, José María; Gómez-Martínez, Carmelo; González-Estévez, Miguel Ángel; Heleno, Ruben; Herrera, Jose M.; Hormaza, Jose I.; Iriondo, Jose M.; Kuhlmann, Michael; Laiolo, Paola; Lara-Romero, Carlos; Lázaro, Amparo; López-Angulo, Jesús; López-Núñez, Francisco A.; Loureiro, João; Magrach, Ainhoa; Martínez-López, Vicente; Martínez-Núñez, Carlos; Michez, Denis; Miñarro, Marcos; Montero-Castaño, Ana; Moreira, Bruno; Morente-López, Javier; Noval Fonseca, Nacho; Núñez Carbajal, Alejandro; Obeso, José Ramón; Ornosa, Concepción; Ortiz-Sánchez, Francisco Javier; Pareja Bonilla, Daniel; Patiny, Sébastien; Penado, Andreia; Picanço, Ana; Ploquin, Emilie F.; Rego, Carla; Rey, Pedro J.; Ribas-Marquès, Elisa; Roberts, Stuart P.M.; Rodriguez, Marta; Rosas-Ramos, Natalia; Sánchez, Ana M.; Santamaría, Silvia; Tobajas, Estefanía; Tormos, José; Torres, Félix; Trillo, Alejandro; Valverde, Javier; Vilà, Montserrat; Viñuela, Elisa; Rasmont, PierreLas abejas son un grupo extremadamente diverso con más de 1000 especies descritas en la península ibérica. Además, son excelentes polinizadores y aportan numerosos servicios ecosistémicos fundamentales para la mayoría de ecosistemas terrestres. Debido a los diversos cambios ambientales inducidos por el ser humano, existen evidencias del declive de algunas de sus poblaciones para ciertas especies. Sin embargo, conocemos muy poco del estado de conservación de la mayoría de especies y de muchas de ellas ignoramos cuál es su distribución en la península ibérica. En este trabajo presentamos un esfuerzo colaborativo para crear una base de datos de ocurrencias de abejas que abarca la península ibérica e islas Baleares que permitirá resolver cuestiones como la distribución de las diferentes especies, preferencia de hábitat, fenología o tendencias históricas. En su versión actual, esta base de datos contiene un total de 87 684 registros de 923 especies recolectados entre 1830 y 2022, de los cuales un 87% presentan información georreferenciada. Para cada registro se incluye información relativa a la localidad de muestreo (89%), identificador y colector de la especie (64%), fecha de captura (54%) y planta donde se recolectó (20%). Creemos que esta base de datos es el punto de partida para conocer y conservar mejor la biodiversidad de abejas en la península ibérica e Islas Baleares. Se puede acceder a estos datos a través del siguiente enlace permanente: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6354502
- Teachers’ perspectives and practices on biodiversity web portals as an opportunity to reconnect education with naturePublication . Picanço, Ana; Arroz, Ana Moura; Amorim, Isabel R.; Matos, Sónia; Gabriel, RosalinaBiodiversity loss is a complex issue and a risk that education cannot overlook. Teachers play a crucial role in how biodiversity, and in particular local biodiversity, is understood. To provide insight into how to improve communication on the subject, we investigate teachers’ perspectives and social representations regarding biodiversity, their fluency in terms of Internet use, their familiarity with biodiversity web portals and perceived pedagogical usefulness of technology. A sample of 243 K–12 schoolteachers of multiple scientific domains from eight Azorean islands answered an online survey, including three free-word association tests using inductive terms such as ‘Internet’, ‘biodiversity’ and ‘familiar biodiversity portals’. Overall, the schoolteachers failed to incorporate the multidimensionality of the biodiversity concept (including natural science teachers) or to show technological fluency, and they tended not to use biodiversity web portals as tools to engage students in teaching activities. Our results indicate that teachers’ perspectives about biodiversity need to be broadened and improved and that it is worth exploring whether information and communication technology represents a window of opportunity to do so. As an example, biodiversity web portals, which are widely recognized as trustworthy information repositories, may be used to engage teachers in this endeavour.
- Cultural probes for environmental education : Designing learning materials to engage children and teenagers with local biodiversityPublication . Matos, Sónia; Silva, Alexandra R.; Sousa, Duarte; Picanço, Ana; Rosário, Isabel Amorim do; Ashby, Simone; Gabriel, Rosalina; Arroz, Ana MouraDirect contact with nature is paramount in deepening children’s and teenagers’ interest in biodiversity. Learning materials chosen to convey information and engage participants during outings in nature-rich environments are varied and can support rich learning experiences. For this purpose, learning materials can be acquired "off-the-shelf" or developed for site-specific locations or projects. However, there is little guidance on potential techniques for those wishing to generate contextually relevant materials. With the view of responding to this challenge, we propose the cultural probes technique. We demonstrate that the technique, commonly used in qualitative research to generate novel insights in conversation with participants, can instigate innovative and thoughtful approaches to materials designed for children and teenagers to explore nature. We present a toolkit that draws on the literature on cultural probes, inquiry-based learning, and the value of sensory, emotional, and aesthetic experiences in environmental education for structuring interactions with participants. To test our approach, we applied a descriptive research design and mixed-methods approach for collecting questions from youths between the ages of 10 and 18, inspired by a nature walk and a set of exploratory tasks executed through the toolkit. Specifically, we tested our toolkit along a trail in the Nature Park of Terceira, situated in the Azores, a Portuguese volcanic archipelago in the North Atlantic. Here, we present and reflect on the data collected during one visit organized over two days with two groups of participants and one post-trail activity directed at both groups. Results demonstrate that the open-ended and playful nature of cultural probes offers a novel way to engage youths with nature-rich environments through questioning. This contribution further highlights the potential of cultural probes for instigating encounters that tap into the value of sensory, emotional, and aesthetic experience in nature, with positive outcomes for participants.
- Fichas de Espécies - ArthropodaPublication . Borges, Paulo A. V.; Vieira, Virgilio; Wallon, Sophie; Cardoso, Pedro; Picanço, Ana; Lamelas-López, Lucas; Amorim do Rosário, Isabel; Serrano, Artur; Nunes, Lina; Duarte, Sónia; Soares, António O.; Stüben, Peter E.; Borges, IsabelABSTRACT: Arthropods, and especially certain groupsof insects, due to their enormous specificrichness, abundance and fidelity tocertain habitats, among other factors, area fundamental tool in studies of ecologicalbio-indicators and biodiversity.
- Assessing nature exposure: a study on the reliability and validity of a Portuguese version of the nature exposure scalePublication . Picanço, Ana; Arroz, Ana Moura; Tsafack, Noelline; FUENTES SÁNCHEZ, ANA; Pereira, Enésima; De Benedictis, Marta; Rosário, Isabel Amorim Do; da Luz Melo, Maria; Gabriel, RosalinaIntroduction: Engaging with nature has been widely acknowledged for its positive impact on well-being. Traditionally, assessments of nature exposure focus on estimating green space exposure and outdoor time. However, the Nature Exposure Scale (NES) offers a unique approach by evaluating the quality of nature experiences, encompassing both deliberate and spontaneous encounters. Methods: This study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the NES in the context of Portugal. Exploratory Factor Analysis (PCA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were employed to examine the underlying structure of the scale. Additionally, reliability assessments, along with tests of convergent and divergent validity, were conducted. Data were collected from a sample of 558 adults and 241 adolescents between 2016 and 2018. Results: The findings revealed strong internal consistency of the NES, supported by acceptable correlation values and robust factor loadings within a unidimensional model. The scale effectively predicted variations in nature exposure across diverse professional activities. Discussion: In summary, the 4-item NES emerged as a reliable tool for assessing nature exposure in various settings, effectively bridging a gap in the Portuguese context. The scale demonstrated potential for cross-cultural research and was particularly adept at predicting nature exposure in different professional contexts. The results suggest that the NES can enhance our understanding of the impact of nature on well-being in diverse cultural settings. Conclusion: The study underscores the reliability of the NES in assessing nature exposure in Portugal, paving the way for further exploration in Portuguese-speaking regions. The scale holds promise for advancing research on the relationship between nature and well-being, contributing valuable insights across different cultural contexts.