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Understanding the ecological and evolutionary processes that occur during range shift or (re‐)colonization is of critical importance for species whose ranges are changing due to human‐induced climate change or species such as New Zealand sea lions where their established colonies are significantly declining due to human impacts.The mechanisms underlying colonization are poorly understood. Observations are required to determine the processes that change individual's behaviour associated with colonization, but such observations are rare.Here, the establishment of a new breeding colony of New Zealand sea lions, Phocarctos hookeri, as they recolonized mainland New Zealand, an area from which they had been absent for ~200 years was investigated.There are differences in breeding location behaviour and population connectivity between established and establishing colonies of New Zealand sea lions. The recolonizing population is more dispersed with breeding locations that change annually and have more connections with other populations compared with established colonies and populations.The establishment of a new colony and the greater numbers of resightings between colonies means that for species' management, considerably more public education, habitat management, and protection is needed to ensure the safe return of New Zealand sea lions back on to mainland New Zealand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Several groups have outlined methodologies for systematic literature reviews of the effectiveness of interventions. The Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) began in 1998. Its mandate is to provide research evidence to guide and support the Ontario Ministry of Health in outlining minimum requirements for public health services in the province. Also, the project is expected to disseminate the results provincially, nationally, and internationally. Most of the reviews are relevant to public health nursing practice.Aims: This article describes four issues related to the systematic literature reviews of the effectiveness of public health nursing interventions: (1) the process of systematically reviewing the literature, (2) the development of a quality assessment instrument, (3) the results of the EPHPP to date, and (4) some results of the dissemination strategies used.Methods: The eight steps of the systematic review process including question formulation, searching and retrieving the literature, establishing relevance criteria, assessing studies for relevance, assessing relevant studies for methodological quality, data extraction and synthesis, writing the report, and dissemination are outlined. Also, the development and assessment of content and construct validity and intrarater reliability of the quality assessment questionnaire used in the process are described.Results: More than 20 systematic reviews have been completed. Content validity was ascertained by the use of a number of experts to review the questionnaire during its development. Construct validity was demonstrated through comparisons with another highly rated instrument. Intrarater reliability was established using Cohen's Kappa. Dissemination strategies used appear to be effective in that professionals report being aware of the reviews and using them in program planning/policymaking decisions.Conclusions: The EPHPP has demonstrated the ability to adapt the most current methods of systematic literature reviews of effectiveness to questions related to public health nursing. Other positive outcomes from the process include the development of a critical mass of public health researchers and practitioners who can actively participate in the process, and the work on dissemination has been successful in attracting external funds. A program of research in this area is being developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to discover public health decision makers' preferences for content, format, and channels for receiving research knowledge, so as to begin development of a comprehensive national public health knowledge transfer strategy. A preliminary knowledge transfer strategy developed in part from the views expressed by public health decision makers in an earlier study ( Dobbins et al. 2002b ) was used as a foundation on which to base discussions. The research team believes strongly that consultation with potential users is crucial to ensure the conduct of relevant and timely research as well as the development of an effective knowledge transfer strategy. Methods: Nine focus groups of five to seven participants were held in seven Canadian cities. Participants included medical officers of health, public health managers and directors, health promotion mangers, and health policymakers at provincial and federal levels. A semi-structured, open-ended interview guide was used to facilitate the discussion. The focus groups were audiotaped, and results were analyzed independently by two members of the research team who then developed key themes through a consensus process. Results: Generally, participants spoke positively about the knowledge transfer strategy to which they were exposed. In addition, they supported the development of a registry of reviews evaluating the effectiveness of public health interventions rated by methodological quality of the evidence, with a summary statement of the reviews highlighting the results along with specific implications for practice. Participants also indicated they wanted to receive personalized updates of new reviews in their area of interest. Finally, the results highlighted a significant challenge related to knowledge management indicating opportunities for ongoing professional development and training. Conclusions: These findings were used to create an online registry of reviews evaluating the effectiveness of public health and health promotion interventions. The registry is one component of a comprehensive national public health knowledge transfer strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim:   To model variables influencing the dissemination of evidence-based practices to addiction service providers and administrators., Design:   A discrete-choice conjoint experiment. We systematically varied combinations of 16 dissemination variables that might influence the adoption of evidence-based practices. Participants chose between sets of variables., Setting:   Canadian agencies (n = 333) providing addiction services to women., Participants:   Service providers and administrators (n = 1379)., Measurements:   We estimated the relative importance and optimal level of each dissemination variable. We used latent class analysis to identify subsets of participants with different preferences and simulated the conditions under which participants would use more demanding professional development options., Findings:   Three subsets of participants were identified: outcome-sensitive (52%), process-sensitive (29.6%) and demand-sensitive (18.2%). Across all participants, the number of clients who were expected to benefit from an evidence-based practice exerted the most influence on dissemination choices. If a practice was seen as feasible, co-worker and administrative support influenced decisions. Client benefits were most important to outcome-sensitive participants; type of dissemination process (e.g. active versus passive learning) was more important to process-sensitive participants. Brief options with little follow-up were preferred by demand-sensitive participants. Simulations predicted that initiatives selected and endorsed by government funders would reduce participation., Conclusions:   Clinicians and administrators are more likely to adopt evidence-based addiction practices if the practice is seen as helpful to clients, and if it is supported by co-workers and program administration., (© 2012 The Authors, Addiction © 2012 Society for the Study of Addiction.)