The Experts below are selected from a list of 360 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform

Stefano Ponte - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • integrating poverty and environmental concerns into value Chain Analysis a strategic framework and practical guide
    Development Policy Review, 2010
    Co-Authors: Lone Riisgaard, Stefano Ponte, Simon Bolwig, Andries Du Toit, Niels Halberg, Frank Matose
    Abstract:

    This article aims to guide the design and implementation of action-research projects in value-Chain Analysis by presenting a strategic framework focused on small producers and trading and processing firms in developing countries. Its stepwise approach - building on the conceptual framework set out in a companion article - covers in detail what to do, questions to be asked and issues to be considered, and integrates poverty, gender, labour and environmental concerns.'Upgrading' strategies potentially available for improving value-Chain participation for small producers are identified, with the ultimate purpose of increasing the rewards andsor reducing the risks. Copyright (c) The Authors 2010. Journal compilation (c) 2010 Overseas Development Institute..

  • integrating poverty and environmental concerns into value Chain Analysis a conceptual framework
    Development Policy Review, 2010
    Co-Authors: Simon Bolwig, Stefano Ponte, Lone Riisgaard, Andries Du Toit, Niels Halberg
    Abstract:

    Many policy prescriptions emphasise poverty reduction through closer integration of poor people or areas with global markets. Global value Chain (GVC) studies reveal how firms and farms in developing countries are upgraded by being integrated in global markets, but few explicitly document the impact on poverty, gender and the environment, or conversely, how value Chain restructuring is in turn mediated by local history, social relations and environmental factors. This article develops a conceptual framework that can help overcome the shortcomings in ‘standalone’ value-Chain, livelihood and environmental analyses by integrating the ‘vertical’ and ‘horizontal’ aspects of value Chains that together affect poverty and sustainability.

  • developing a â verticalâ dimension to chronic poverty research some lessons from global value Chain Analysis
    Research Papers in Economics, 2008
    Co-Authors: Stefano Ponte
    Abstract:

    This paper aims at developing an explicit ‘vertical’ dimension to chronic poverty research that focuses on ‘adverse incorporation and social exclusion’ (AISE). an effort is made here to sensitise literatures that are almost exclusively concerned with ‘vertical’ elements of marginalisation (such as global value Chain Analysis) to the need for more systematic attention to the impact of Chain functioning and/or restructuring on marginal groups and/or communities along the various stages of commodity trade. [WP No. 111].

  • developing a vertical dimension to chronic poverty research some lessons from global value Chain Analysis
    Social Science Research Network, 2008
    Co-Authors: Stefano Ponte
    Abstract:

    This paper aims at developing an explicit ‘vertical’ dimension to chronic poverty research that focuses on ‘adverse incorporation and social exclusion’ (AISE). So far, AISE research has been quite successful in unpacking the local, regional and national contexts within which some of the structural and causal elements of chronic poverty play out. Yet, it has been much less concerned with the dimensions of context that go beyond the nation state, with the exception of generic links to the dynamics of contemporary capitalism(s). At the same time, an effort is made here to sensitise literatures that are almost exclusively concerned with ‘vertical’ elements of marginalisation (such as global value Chain Analysis) to the need for more systematic attention to the impact of Chain functioning and/or restructuring on marginal groups and/or communities along the various stages of commodity trade.The four case studies presented in this paper (on wine, cut flowers, sustainable coffee and fish) teach us that integration of people or areas into global value Chains and trading relationships will exacerbate chronic poverty if the ‘normal functioning’ of these Chains is left unchecked. This is especially the case for value Chains that are driven by retailers and branded manufacturers. Where value Chains are less clearly driven from Northern-based actors, integration in even ‘normal’ strands of value Chains can have substantial and positive impacts on poverty, and where appropriate, chronic poverty. In other words, the conditions of inclusion in and/or exclusion from value Chains and trade more generally are more important than inclusion and exclusion per se.

  • Global Commodity Chain Analysis and the French Filière Approach: Comparison and Critique
    Economy and Society, 2000
    Co-Authors: Philip Raikes, Michael Friis Jensen, Stefano Ponte
    Abstract:

    This article reviews two approaches to the study of economic restructuring which focus on commodity-specific dynamics of change. The first is the global commodity Chain (GCC) approach, which has been developed primarily for the Analysis of industrial commodities.The second is the francophone filiere tradition, which has been applied mostly to agricultural commodities originating from former French colonies. The article finds that the GCC approach has a more coherent framework than the filiere approach, although it is still far from constituting a fully fledged 'theory'. The authors provide a number of suggestions for improving some of its key concepts. They also suggest that the GCC approach can be enriched by some of the insights gained in filiere work, especially in terms of improving historical coverage and depth, enlarging the Analysis to agricultural commodities, better handling of regulation issues, and including quality convention issues in analysing commodity Chain structure and restructuring.

Stanley S Levinson - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • serum free light Chain Analysis may miss monoclonal light Chains that urine immunofixation electrophoreses would detect
    Clinica Chimica Acta, 2009
    Co-Authors: Saad Paul Shaheen, Stanley S Levinson
    Abstract:

    Abstract Background A nephelometric assay for identifying free light Chains (FLC) of immunoglobulin in serum is commercially available. Although this assay is not specific for monoclonal FLC, an abnormal κ/λ ratio is thought to presumptively identify monoclonal FLCs. It has been proposed that serum FLC assays can replace urine immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE) for routine detection. This proposal seems to be based upon testing of samples retrospectively drawn from patients mostly with myeloma or known primary amyloidosis—conditions that are less frequently observed in general laboratory practice. Methods Prospective Analysis of 5 patient samples by standard care techniques with serum/urine IFE compared with serum FLC nephelometric assay. Rather than classical myeloma, cases were selected on the basis of unusual or equivocal atypical serum protein electrophoresis patterns. Results In all 5 cases, the nephelometric method for free light Chains was negative by virtue of serum FLC κ/λ ratio being within the reference range, contrasting with monoclonal proteins or free light Chains detected by serum/urine IFE. Conclusions Since peculiar or unusual patterns are more commonly observed in general practice, these cases illustrate the pitfalls of relying solely on the serum free light Chain Analysis method in order to establish the presence of monoclonal FLC.

Eduardo Saliby - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • supply Chain Analysis supply Chain Analysis spreadsheet or simulation
    Winter Simulation Conference, 2002
    Co-Authors: Leonardo Chwif, Marcos Ribeiro Pereira Barretto, Eduardo Saliby
    Abstract:

    In the last few decades, a lot of company effort has been spent in the optimization of internal efficiency, aiming at cost reduction and competitiveness. Especially over the last decade, there has been a consensus that not only the company, but the whole supply Chain in which it fits, is responsible for the success or failure of any business. Therefore, supply Chain Analysis tools and methodologies have become more and more important. From all tools, spreadsheets are by far the most widely used technique for scenario Analysis. Other techniques such as optimization, simulation or both (simulation-optimization) are alternatives for in-depth Analysis. While spreadsheet-based Analysis is mainly a static-deterministic approach, simulation is a dynamic-stochastic tool. The purpose of this paper is to compare spreadsheet-based and simulation-based tools showing the impacts of using these two different approaches on the Analysis of a real (yet simplified) supply Chain case study.

  • supply Chain Analysis spreadsheet or simulation
    Winter Simulation Conference, 2002
    Co-Authors: Leonardo Chwif, Ribeiro Pereira M Barretto, Eduardo Saliby
    Abstract:

    In the last few decades, a lot of company effort has been spent in the optimization of internal efficiency, aiming at cost reduction and competitiveness. Especially over the last decade, there has been a consensus that not only the company, but the whole supply Chain in which it fits, is responsible for the success or failure of any business. Therefore, supply Chain Analysis tools and methodologies have become more and more important. From all tools, spreadsheets are by far the most widely used technique for scenario Analysis. Other techniques such as optimization, simulation or both (simulation-optimization) are alternatives for in-depth Analysis. While spreadsheet-based Analysis is mainly a static-deterministic approach, simulation is a dynamic-stochastic tool. The purpose of this paper is to compare spreadsheet-based and simulation-based tools showing the impacts of using these two different approaches on the Analysis of a real (yet simplified) supply Chain case study.

David J Kuter - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • serum free light Chain Analysis
    American Journal of Hematology, 2010
    Co-Authors: Matthew S Davids, Mandakolathur R Murali, David J Kuter
    Abstract:

    In a variety of hematologic malignancies, immunoglobulin light Chains (LC) are overproduced clonally and circulate without being linked by disulphide bonds to the immunoglobulin heavy Chain. The recent development of a robust assay known as κ and λ "free" LC (FLC) to quantify the levels of these unbound LC in the serum, and thereby determine their ratio, has led to an explosion of studies that demonstrate its utility in a wide range of hematologic disorders. This article summarizes laboratory testing for serum FLC, with a particular focus on clinical applications for the test.

Saad Paul Shaheen - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.

  • serum free light Chain Analysis may miss monoclonal light Chains that urine immunofixation electrophoreses would detect
    Clinica Chimica Acta, 2009
    Co-Authors: Saad Paul Shaheen, Stanley S Levinson
    Abstract:

    Abstract Background A nephelometric assay for identifying free light Chains (FLC) of immunoglobulin in serum is commercially available. Although this assay is not specific for monoclonal FLC, an abnormal κ/λ ratio is thought to presumptively identify monoclonal FLCs. It has been proposed that serum FLC assays can replace urine immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE) for routine detection. This proposal seems to be based upon testing of samples retrospectively drawn from patients mostly with myeloma or known primary amyloidosis—conditions that are less frequently observed in general laboratory practice. Methods Prospective Analysis of 5 patient samples by standard care techniques with serum/urine IFE compared with serum FLC nephelometric assay. Rather than classical myeloma, cases were selected on the basis of unusual or equivocal atypical serum protein electrophoresis patterns. Results In all 5 cases, the nephelometric method for free light Chains was negative by virtue of serum FLC κ/λ ratio being within the reference range, contrasting with monoclonal proteins or free light Chains detected by serum/urine IFE. Conclusions Since peculiar or unusual patterns are more commonly observed in general practice, these cases illustrate the pitfalls of relying solely on the serum free light Chain Analysis method in order to establish the presence of monoclonal FLC.