Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

This chapter examines long-term regional start-up rates in England and Wales (1981–2020), exploring persistence and mobility in regional entrepreneurship rankings using the ‘regional entrepreneurship league table’. Findings reveal strong persistence but notable mobility for some regions. Econometric analysis highlights factors such as regional industry diversity, human capital, population density, immigration, and wage rates as key drivers for rank mobility. An implication for policy is that improving the performance of low entrepreneurship regions is likely to require sustained and patient interventions. Information on the policy levers that may improve performance can be obtained from a better understanding of the conditions for regional leapfrogging and plunging.

Purpose To present the outcomes of the EGEA Conference on the state of knowledge regarding the contribution of diets rich in fruit and vegetables (FV) to human and planetary health, commonly included in the One Health concept. Methods The 9th edition of EGEA Conference (20–22 September 2023, Barcelona) provided a transversal and multidisciplinary perspective on the contribution of FV to One Health, in particular to the health of individuals, society and the planet. Nearly 150 international scientists and stakeholders discussed the current state of knowledge. These proceedings are based both on a literature review and the scientific studies presented by the speakers. Results Scientific evidence confirms the role of FV in preventing cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes; more evidence is needed on the effects and mechanisms of FV in cancer prevention. FV production and consumption helps ensure territorial cohesion and provides a denser, nutrient-rich diet with less environmental impact (except water use) than other food groups, but use of synthetic pesticides in FV production remains a challenge that could be addressed with agro-ecological solutions. Various factors influence consumer choice and behaviour towards FV consumption across the lifespan, with specific periods being more conducive to change. New research is emerging on the role of FV consumption in regulating gut microbiota and on both mental and brain health; the potential role of FV production and supply in tackling biodiversity loss and climate change; and better monitoring of FV consumption. Conclusion Sufficient evidence confirms the contribution of diet rich in FV to One Health, with some emerging research on this topic. Concerted actions are required towards an increased consumption of FV and a more diversified and environmentally neutral FV production.

Introduction The objective of the study is to describe the adaptation process (with emphasis on cognitive testing) of the Slovenian version of the PaRIS international survey, including two questionnaires to assess patient-reported health outcomes and the experiences of adults living with one or more chronic conditions managed in primary care settings: (1) Patient questionnaire (targets patients aged 45 and older) and (2) Provider questionnaire (targets health care providers working in primary care). Methods The translation process of both PaRIS questionnaires followed a team-based double translation and reconciliation approach. Cognitive interviewing with 29 participants was performed. An analysis grid and debriefing were implemented, and the cognitive testing rating was assessed for each tested question. Cross-national error source typology (CNEST) was used. Results The results of cognitive interviewing revealed difficulties in 30 questions / segments (out of a total of 44 tested) in the Patient questionnaire and difficulties in 23 questions / segments (out of a total of 24 tested) in the Provider questionnaire. In both questionnaires most difficulties were identified as poor source question design. Conclusions Our study showed that cognitive interviewing is a crucial step in questionnaire adaptation, especially while transferring internationally developed questionnaires on Patient Reported Experience Measures and Patient Reported Outcome Measures into different national contexts. Through a rigorous process of translation and cognitive testing, we obtained better quality PREMs and PROMs measures in the Slovenian language. However, the measurement tools need to be piloted, and psychometrically evaluated in future to test reliability and validity.

This study provides representative, cross-country estimates of the artificial intelligence (AI) workforce across the OECD countries. The AI workforce is defined as the subset of workers with skills in statistics, computer science and machine learning who could actively develop and maintain AI systems. For countries that wish to be at the forefront of AI development, understanding the AI workforce is crucial to building and nurturing a talent pipeline, and ensuring that those who create AI reflect the diversity of society. This study uses data from online job vacancies to measure the within-occupation intensity of AI skill demand. The within-occupation AI intensity is then weighted to employment by occupation in labour force surveys to provide estimates of the size and growth of the AI workforce over time. The study finds that the AI workforce in the OECD countries is still relatively small—less than 0.3% of employment—but growing rapidly. Workers with AI skills are not representative of the overall employed population in OECD societies: They tend to be disproportionately male with a tertiary education.

Assessing the effectiveness of Minimum Income (MI) schemes in poverty alleviation is challenging. Studies based on survey microdata are usually subject to bias because households tend to underreport benefit receipts. Studies based on microsimulation models tend to overestimate these benefits mainly due to high non‐take‐up rates. In this paper, we tackle these challenges by calibrating the simulation of MI schemes in the microsimulation model EUROMOD to match official expenditure results for each European Union (EU) Member State's scheme. We use this calibrated model to evaluate the poverty‐alleviating effects of existing MI schemes and explore the impacts of possible reforms toward eradicating extreme poverty. Our results show that MI support varies widely across EU countries, with most failing to reach half of households in extreme poverty or provide adequate support, particularly for larger families. Reforms aimed at improving coverage and adequacy could eradicate extreme poverty at a relatively low budgetary cost.

Context: Promoting rural development can pose numerous policy and governance challenges. However, rural proofing offers a vital solution. It helps policymakers create strategies that cater to rural needs, which is particularly relevant to health care. It involves making policy decisions based on evidence on rural dynamics available in a timely fashion to enable changes and adjustments. Issues: Governments should consider rural proofing health sector policies and strategies because making health policies rural-friendly encourages innovation and ensures access to services in rural and remote communities. Lessons learned: Effective rural proofing mechanisms give policymakers the necessary information and data to assess how policies affect rural areas, allowing for timely adjustments early in the policy design phase. The key to this process is timing, evidence and flexibility - one size does not fit all. The rural proofing requires experimentation to find the best solutions and modalities that fit a country's context.

We explore the role of global value chains (GVCs) in the design of preferential trade agreements (PTAs). We propose a theory that focuses on firms involved in GVC activities to identify the main actors pushing for deep trade integration. To address the critical issue of endogeneity of GVC trade flows for trade policy, our identification strategy exploits a transportation shock: the sharp increase in the maximum size of container ships, which more than quadrupled between 1995 and 2017. The key variation in our instrument hinges on the fact that only deep-water ports can accommodate these new larger ships. Armed with this instrument, we find that GVC trade increases the probability of forming deep PTAs that include provisions regulating both trade-related policies and domestic regulatory regimes. GVC trade is a driver of deep preferential trade liberalization.

This article presents a framework for food security and sustainability research, developed by industry, academia, and public sector experts. Key priorities for collaborative research include reassessing food system contexts and drivers, adapting food system activities, transforming food system outcomes, developing and applying food system methodologies, and adopting an ethical and just lens. The framework emphasises the need for coordinated action across multiple scales and sectors, focusing on synergies and trade-offs as opposed to isolated food activities, to address complex challenges in food security and sustainability.

Background Strong primary care (PC) services are the foundation of high-performing health care systems and can support effective responses to public health emergencies. Primary care practitioners (PCPs) and PC services played crucial roles in supporting global health system responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, these contributions have come at a cost, impacting on PC services and affecting patient care. This secondary analysis of data from an integrative systematic review across international PC settings aimed to identify and describe burdens and challenges experienced by PCPs and PC services in the context of their contributions to COVID-19 pandemic responses. Methods We conducted an integrative systematic review and narrative analysis, searching PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Proquest Central and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, plus reference lists of key publications. Included studies were published in peer-reviewed English or Chinese language journals, and described collective responses to COVID-19 undertaken in PC settings or by PCPs. Narrative data regarding impacts on PC services and challenges experienced by PCPs were extracted and analysed using inductive coding and thematic analysis. Results From 1745 screened papers 108, representing 90 countries, were included. Seventy-eight contained data on negative impacts, challenges or issues encountered in PC. Ten ‘pressure points’ affecting PC during COVID-19 were identified, clustered in four themes: demand to adopt new ways of working; pressure to respond to fluctuating community needs; strain on PC resources and systems; and ambiguity in interactions with the broader health and social care system. Conclusions PCPs and PC services made critical functional contributions to health system responsiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, both practitioners and PC settings were individually and collectively impacted during this period as a result of changing demands in the PC environment and the operational burden of additional requirements imposed on the sector, offering lessons for future pandemics. This study articulates ten empirically derived ‘pressure points’ that provide an initial understanding of burdens and demands imposed on the international primary care sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of these contributions should inform future pandemic planning, guided by involvement of PCPs in public health preparedness and policy design.

Graphene is the first 2D atomic crystal, and its isolation heralded a new era in materials science with the emergence of several other atomically thin materials displaying multifunctional properties. The safety assessment of new materials is often something of an afterthought, but in the case of graphene, the initial isolation and characterization of the material was soon followed by the assessment of its potential impact on living systems. The Graphene Flagship project addressed the health and environmental aspects of graphene and other 2D materials, providing an instructive lesson in interdisciplinarity – from materials science to biology. Here, the outcomes of the toxicological and ecotoxicological studies performed on graphene and its derivatives, and the key lessons learned from this decade‐long journey, are highlighted.

Toxicological test methods generate raw data and provide instructions on how to use these to determine a final outcome such as a classification of test compounds as hits or non-hits. The data processing pipeline provided in the test method description is often highly complex. Usually, multiple layers of data, ranging from a machine-generated output to the final hit definition, are considered. Transition between each of these layers often requires several data processing steps. As changes in any of these processing steps can impact the final output of new approach methods (NAMs), the processing pipeline is an essential part of a NAM description and should be included in reporting templates such as the ToxTemp. The same raw data, processed in different ways, may result in different final outcomes that may affect the readiness status and regulatory acceptance of the NAM, as an altered output can affect robustness, performance, and relevance. Data management, pro­cessing, and interpretation are therefore important elements of a comprehensive NAM definition. We aim to give an overview of the most important data levels to be considered during the devel­opment and application of a NAM. In addition, we illustrate data processing and evaluation steps between these data levels. As NAMs are increasingly standard components of the spectrum of toxi­cological test methods used for risk assessment, awareness of the significance of data processing steps in NAMs is crucial for building trust, ensuring acceptance, and fostering the reproducibility of NAM outcomes.

On occasion of the DNT5 meeting in Konstanz, Germany (April-2024), participants brainstormed on future challenges concerning a regulatory implementation of the developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) in vitro test battery (DNT-IVB). The five discussion topics below outline some of the key issues, opportunities and research directions for the next several years: (1) How to contextualize DNT hazard with information on potential maternal toxicity or other toxicity domains (non-DNT)? Several approaches on how to use cytotoxicity data from NAMs were discussed. (2) What opportunities exist for an immediate or near-future application of the DNT-IVB, e.g. as a prioritisation step or add-on to other information? Initial examples are already emerging; the data can be used even if the battery is not converted to a defined approach. (3) How to establish data interpretation procedures for multi-dimensional endpoints that reduce dimensionality and are suitable for classification? A decision framework is required on how to use the DNT-IVB in a regulatory context. Machine-learning (AI-approaches) may provide novel classification models. (4) How can a battery of molecular initiating events (MIEs) be smartly linked to the DNT-IVB? At what tier of an overall strategy would MIEs be evaluated, and how would one optimally balance cost vs information yield. (5) What is the way forward to scientific validation of DNT NAMs and the DNT-IVB? A large set of animal data would be required for conventional approaches, while mechanistic information may establish relevance in other ways

The exposure to extreme heat at workplaces poses substantial threat to human effort and manual labour. This becomes more prominent due to the global dispersion of labour-intensive production activities via trade. We combine a climate model with an input–output model to quantify the risks associated with trade-related occupational extreme heat exposure. Here we show an 89% surge in trade-related labour exposure to extreme heat, escalating from 221.5 to 419.0 billion person-hours between 1995 and 2020. Lower-middle-income and low-income economies constituted 53.7% and 18.3% of global exposure but only 5.7% and 1.0% of global labour compensation. In countries highly susceptible to extreme heat conditions, workers perform tasks in heated conditions for up to about 50% of their working hours. The disproportionate trade effects in redistributing global benefits and costs leads to the inequality in heat exposure between developed and developing economies. In striving for equitable and safe work conditions, workers vulnerable to heat extremes in developing economies should be protected by climate adaptation infrastructure, given their critical roles in the global production system.

The workshop titled State of the Science on Assessing Developmental Neurotoxicity Using New Approach Methods was co-organized by University of Maryland's Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN; now called the Human Foods Program), and was hosted by FDA in College Park, MD on November 14-15, 2023. This event convened experts from international organizations, governmental agencies, industry, and academia to explore the transition from traditional in vivo tests to innovative new approach methods (NAMs) in developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) testing. The discussions emphasized the heightened vulnerability of the developing human brain to toxic exposures and the potential of NAMs to provide more ethical, economical, and scientifically robust alternatives to traditional testing. Various NAMs for DNT were discussed, including in silico, in chemico, in vitro, non-mammalian whole organisms, and novel mammalian approaches. In addition to progress in the field, the workshop discussed ongoing challenges such as expectations to perfectly replicate the complex biology of human neurodevelopment and integration of DNT NAMs into regulatory frameworks. Presentations and panel discussions provided a comprehensive overview of the state of the science, assessed the capabilities and limitations of current DNT NAMs, and outlined critical next steps in advancing the field of DNT testing.

Reflecting their weaker labour force attachment and lower earnings, women consistently report feeling greater economic insecurity than men across the Member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD). Similar gender gaps emerge in perceptions of social protection systems: women are far less confident than men in their ability to access benefits and services and receive adequate income support when they need it, both in working age and old age. Results from the cross‐national OECD Risks that Matter (RTM) Survey illustrate that, on average, across countries, about half of women feel that they could not easily receive public benefits if they needed them, compared to 43 per cent of men. This perceived inaccessibility likely reflects gender gaps in perceived “hassle costs” associated with social programme applications and the intra‐household allocations of administrative burden, but it also likely reflects women’s lower social security contributions. This article illuminates gender gaps in the design of social programmes and suggests ways by which governments can better mainstream gender when improving the accessibility and adequacy of social protection.

In this study, MnFe2O4 microspheres were synthesized to activate potassium persulfate complex salt (Oxone) for the degradation of 17β-estradiol (17β-E2) in aqueous solutions. The characteristic of MnFe2O4 was detected by XRD, XPS and SEM-EDS. The experimental results indicated that the degradation of 17β-E2 followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. At 25 °C, 17β-E2 concentration of 0.5 mg/L, MnFe2O4 dosage of 100 mg/L, Oxone dosage of 0.5 mmol/L, and initial pH value of 6.5, the decomposition efficiency of 17β-E2 reached 82.9% after 30 min of reaction. Additionally, free radical quenching experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance analysis demonstrated that SO4⁻• and •OH participated in the reaction process of the whole reaction system, with SO4⁻• being the main reactive oxygen species (ROS). The activation mechanism of the MnFe2O4/Oxone/17β-E2 system is proposed as follows: MnFe2O4 initially reacts with O2 and H2O in solution to generate active Fe³⁺-OH and Mn²⁺-OH species. Subsequently, Fe³⁺-OH and Mn²⁺-OH react with Oxone in a heterogeneous phase activation process, producing highly reactive free radicals. After four cycles of MnFe2O4 material, the removal rate of 17β-E2 decreased by 24.1%.

Using a unique microaggregated data set on firm‐level productivity in 13 countries from 1995 to 2014, this article provides new evidence on technology‐ and knowledge‐diffusion barriers for laggard firms. We show that, although the least productive firms benefit from a catch‐up effect, their speed of catchup is lower in digital‐ and skill‐intensive industries. This is especially true in countries with high skill mismatch, high financing frictions, and low absorptive capacity. These barriers to diffusion, combined with the rising importance of tacit knowledge and intangibles, could help explain the productivity growth slowdown observed in the last decades.

This chapter analyses the prevalence of loneliness in the European Union along several dimensions, exploring vulnerabilities within specific demographic groups and mitigating or triggering factors such as meaningful social connections and life events. The first part of the chapter investigates which demographic and socio-economic groups are more vulnerable to loneliness. In particular, it considers characteristics such as age, gender, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, disability, migration background and population density of the place of residence. The second part of the chapter is devoted to shedding light on the relationship between loneliness and social connectedness. Regression analysis is used to investigate how the risk of feeling lonely is associated with a rich set of variables related to respondents’ social interactions and relationships. Finally, the chapter looks into life events that might trigger loneliness. Major life transitions, such as retirement or leaving the education system, may bring disruptions to people’s social networks and thus increase the risk of feeling lonely.