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In January 2024, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) announced the adoption of the term "favelas and urban communities" to refer to different popular territories in the country. Formed from specific geographical, historical and cultural processes, these territories have been marked by stereotypes and stigmas related not only to their material conditions, but also to their populations. The nomenclature "subnormal agglomerations", in force for approximately four decades, was changed after deep institutional reflection and dialog with social actors. The aim of this article is to discuss the process of changing the official nomenclature, taking as a starting point the process of constitution of these territories in the social imagination, and the challenges inherent in the change made by the Institute. The aim was also to point out the mechanisms of power underlying discursive constructions, especially when they come from state institutions such as the IBGE. It was concluded that the position taken by the agency met the historical demands of the social groups linked to these territories and represented the assumption of a political commitment by the Institute towards these actors in order to fulfill its institutional mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malaria is a devastating parasitic disease across the world particularly in Nigeria. This study investigates the prevalence and distribution of falciparum malaria in Orita Obele and Gbogi communities of Akure, Southwestern Nigeria. Standard parasitological method of thick and thin smear was employed and the malaria parasites were identified through microscopy. Overall prevalence of 171 (57.0%) was recorded. Sex related prevalence showed that more males were infected with 79 (60.8%) than females with 98 (57.6%). The differences in prevalence between males and females was significant (P<0.05). Individuals within the age group of less than 10 had the highest rate of infection 38 (76.0%) while individuals within the age group of 51 to 60 had the least rate of infection 10 (37.0). Furthermore, Orita Obele had a higher malaria prevalence (58.6%) compared to Gbogi (53.9%). Conclusively, there is need for sustainable interventions and awareness campaign among the residents of Orita Obele and Gbogi in order to enhance reduction of malaria parasite to the desired zero level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on two premises --the consolidation of the "common" as a political interlocutor with its own agenda and discourse, for which fiscal matters had important implications in terms of legitimacy, and the constitution of cities as key spaces for fiscal negotiations with the Castilian Crown during the Late Middle Ages- this article aims to analyse the "voice" of the common in the construction of consensus/dissent and the configuration of the fiscal structure of the state during the reign of Isabella I. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study attempts to investigate personal masculine names throughout three successive generations (grandfathers, fathers, and sons) among an urban community in Jordan. It aims at investigating the sociolinguistic implications of the names and pointing out the factors influencing the process of name-giving among the people of such communities. Analysis of 300 school students' names of the elementary stage together with their fathers and grandfathers' names indicated that naming has different social reasons and cultural backgrounds. However, no significant differences in this regard was noticed across the urban generations. The names among these different categories have almost the same implications and backgrounds. They center on either the religious or the societal values dimensions. The most frequent names in each of these generations turned out to have the same motives. The only difference, albeit slight, was the existence of a few foreign names in the sons' category, and days' names in the fathers' category opposed to none in the other categories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the communicative practices of citizens, carried out in the public space of Minsk and transforming the urban environment by working with small architectural forms and contributing to both the creative self-realization of local residents and the formation of local urban communities. Through the narrative and intertext analysis, communication strategies such as palimpsest and intertext are identified as contributing to self-organization, identification, nominalization, symbolization and mobilization of these communities. Based on the material of announcements, leaflets, posters and alternative press (in the format of telegram channels and printed materials), the role of communicative design tools as a means of marking the territory and interacting with various social actors is shown. The use of these technologies contributes to the actualization of ideas about the historical past of urban places (such as the military town of Masyukovshchina in Minsk) in the memory of local residents, informing, enlightening and mobilizing them to form their local identity within the framework of narratives of memory and protest as an unofficial historical policy pursued by the civil activists regardless of the position and actions of the city authorities. The analysis of these cases and situations reveals the peculiarities of the implementation of the historical "policy of me mory" and the preservation of the historical heritage of the Great Patriotic War in the public space of Minsk, indicating the possibilities of more or less active public participation in resolving conflicts and interfering with the situation at the local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the perspective of "general health", the "integration of sports anti medicine" is the booster of the construction of "healthy China". It is an important measure to implement the "healthy China 2030" planning outline to carry out the health promotion service of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities in China. By combing the summary of urban communities in China and the current situation of the construction of health promotion system of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities in China, the health promotion service system of "integration of sports and medicine" in China's community from the perspective of "general health" is constructed. The health promotion service system of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities in China is constructed from the following three dimensions: innovating the operation mechanism of health promotion service system of "sports medicine integration" in urban communities of China, building the health promotion service platform of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities of China, and improving the talent system of health promotion service of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities of China. It is expected to be beneficial to the construction of "integration of sports and medicine" in urban communities in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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From the late twelfth century onwards, the German law became a universal organisational pattern of urban communes spread across Central Europe. Yet, the type of urban commune developed under the German law exceeded the limes of Latin Europe and the bounds of Central Europe, and extended to the area of Rus' -- notably, the Halyč-Volhynian Principality -- in as early as the thirteenth century. The new communal forms emerged as a group law for the arrivals fl owing in from the West, mainly the Germans. These organisations, alien to Rus', emerged within the former, and still functioning, vernacular urban layouts -- in the large political and commercial centres of Halyč-Volhynian Rus'. Their development in multiple forms can be traced: initially, settlement of a group of comers from the West -- as in Chełm after 1240; a commune of foreign guests, led by an alderman -- as in Przemyśl and Lemberg (Lwów, L'viv) before 1300; a self-governed commune -- as in Volodimer before 1324; a law-based city -- as in Sanok in 1339. These new developments were refl ected in the terms used to describe the new realities: it was then, in the thirteenth century, that the word městič ('burgher') appeared in Old Rus'ian, a derivative of město (initially denoting a 'locus' later on, 'urbs'). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical approaches to the smart city concept are used to begin highlighting the promises of makerspaces, that is to say, those emerging urban sites that promote sharing practices; exercise community-based forms of governance; and utilize local manufacturing technologies. A bird’s-eye-view of the history of makerspaces is provided tracing their roots back to the hacker movement. Drawing from secondary sources, their community-building, learning and innovation potential is briefly discussed. Makerspaces, this essay argues, can serve as hubs and vehicles for citizen-driven transformation and, thus, play a key part in a more inclusive, participatory and commons-oriented vision of the smart city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban flooding has been an alarming issue over the past years in Asia and other countries. Pakistan has been experiencing such flooding with associated damages regularly. Understanding the degree of vulnerability and risk are essential to work out risk reduction measures. It is equally important to measure the risk perception vis-à-vis actual risk for successful implementation of preparedness initiatives. The main purpose of this paper is to understand the variation as well as the relationship between actual and perceived risk. Three cities (Rawalpindi, Sialkot and Muzaffargarh) with different population size situated in high risk flood zones of Pakistan were selected for empirical investigation. Household survey was conducted in three urban communities highly impacted by flood for actual and perceived risk assessments with well-defined indicators. Results revealed that due to poor socioeconomic conditions of households living in flood prone community of metropolitan city, they were more vulnerable as compared to other cities. In three cities, about 14% households live at high risk against 10% households with high-perceived risk. Significantly differential risks exist among the cities. Similar results have been observed in terms of perceived risk. Comparative analyses have revealed that both actual and perceived risk levels are significantly different among the cities but reflect a positive correlation in all three cities. This implies that the perceived risk increases with respect to actual risk. In the absence of hard data for actual risk assessment, perceived risk may be a good substitute for working out risk reduction measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined a school- and home-based mental health service model, Links to Learning, focused on empirical predictors of learning as primary goals for services in high-poverty urban communities. Method: Teacher key opinion leaders were identified through sociometric surveys and trained, with mental health providers and parent advocates, on evidence-based practices to enhance children's learning. Teacher key opinion leaders and mental health providers cofacilitated professional development sessions for classroom teachers to disseminate 2 universal (Good Behavior Game, peer-assisted learning) and 2 targeted (Good News Notes, Daily Report Card) interventions. Group-based and home-based family education and support were delivered by mental health providers and parent advocates for children in kindergarten through 4th grade diagnosed with 1 or more disruptive behavior disorders. Services were Medicaid-funded through 4 social service agencies (N = 17 providers) in 7 schools (N = 136 teachers, 171 children) in a 2 (Links to Learning vs. services as usual) x 6 (pre- and posttests for 3 years) longitudinal design with random assignment of schools to conditions. Services as usual consisted of supported referral to a nearby social service agency. Results: Mixed effects regression models indicated significant positive effects of Links to Learning on mental health service use, classroom observations of academic engagement, teacher report of academic competence and social skills, and parent report of social skills. Nonsignificant between-groups effects were found on teacher and parent report of problem behaviors, daily hassles, and curriculum-based measures. Effects were strongest for young children, girls, and children with fewer symptoms. Conclusion: Community mental health services targeting empirical predictors of learning can improve school and home behavior for children living in high-poverty urban communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the relationships between place of residence, living in a threatened place and the subsets of place attachment: place identity and place dependence. Six hundred participants living in south-west Western Australia in rural and urban areas with varying degrees of bushfire risk responded to surveys asking about their reasons for living in their local area, their place attachment and their socio-demographic details. MANOVAs revealed a significant effect of place of residence on place identity with rural residents reporting higher place identity than urban dwellers. Urban dwellers reported lower place dependence than rural dwellers except when they lived in a fire prone area, in which case their place dependence was on par with that of rural residents. Socio-demographic predictors of both place identity and place dependence to the home and local area were also explored, these included length of residence, education, and owning one's home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Police officers living in the community where they patrol is a compelling point of social discourse in America. Particularly because overwhelmingly police officers who patrol in urban communities where the residents are predominately African American reside outside of the community where they patrol. Using a three-item community-relationship rating scale, this study examines the perceived relationship between police officers and people who live in the communities where the police officers patrol. The findings from this study's multivariate analysis barely missed the threshold for confirming that police officers who live in the neighborhood where they patrol have a better relationship with the people in the community than do those who do not live in the community. However, a closer assessment of the findings brings other questions to light, for example, police officers who patrol middle- and working-class communities have a better relationship with the people in those communities and are more likely to live in those communities than in poor communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Lehen is the largest district of City of Salzburg, close to the city centre and with high quality of infrastructure of public transport. Since the last decades the district was confronted with essential changes. The use of the area of the former utility means a huge potential for further development of the district. High share of renewable energy should be the main focus of the project, considering existing heat supply with district heating. High standards of buildings and large-scale solar system are the main elements of the energy concept. The use of a heat pump ensures an efficient increase of solar gains and leads to low primary energy demand resp. CO2-emissions. The new building area was also seen as a chance for modernization activities in existing building stock around. Energy efficient pumps and lightning as well as PV modules in the facades ensure high share of renewable energy also for electricity demand. First results show the way for further projects – concerning effective steering of complex processes and technologies to achieve total CO2-reductions in urban areas. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A Youth Outreach Worker (YOW) program was initiated to raise marginalized youth's awareness of available community services, engage them in community programs, and strengthen partnerships among the organizations that served them. This process evaluation included records of contacts and referrals for the first year of the program, 3 youth focus groups, and 36 interviews with youths, family members, youth outreach workers, and community organizations. The results indicated that the program had a positive impact, especially for those youths who formed a positive working relationship with their youth outreach worker. The qualitative results support a positive youth development view of youth outreach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Requirements for the assessment tools of buildings have increased, assessing of building components or separate buildings is not enough. Neighbourhoods, built environment, public transportations, and services, should be considered simultaneously. Number of population living in urban areas is high and increasing rapidly. Urbanisation is a major concern due to its detrimental effects on the environment. The aim of this study is to clarify the field of assessment tools for urban communities by analysing the current situation. The focus is on internationally well known assessment tools; BREEAM Communities, CASBEE for Urban Development and LEED for Neigborhood Development. The interest towards certification systems is increasing amongst the authorities, and especially amongst the global investors and property developers. Achieved certifications are expected to bring measureable publicity for the developers. The assessment of urban areas enables the comparison of municipalities and urban areas, and notably supports decision making processes. Authorities, city planners, and designers would benefit most from the use of the tools during the decision making process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article looks at political trust in rural and urban China. Particular focus is given to the roles of so-called strong ties, which are based on shared social characteristics, and weak ties, which are not, in building and maintaining such trust. Details on the relationship between social cooperation and institutional trust are also presented. According to the authors, trust among poor urban populations and the middle class in local authorities is produced largely through social participation and the provision of social security. It is suggested that village elections in many rural areas have also produced better public goods provision and greater political trust. Topics discussed include shequ, or neighborhood communities, and the local institutions known as Residents' Committees (RC).

In this paper I propose a multidisciplinary model of urban development which goes beyond the notion of ecological sustainability, by building on the concept of ecoanthropic compatibility. First of all I will sketch the historical development of human aggregations and I will underline the difference between ancient and modern aggregations. On the basis of this analysis, I will take into consideration the notion of sustainability and its possible application to present conurbations. I will underline several limits of the notion of sustainable development and I will propose a multidisciplinary model grounded on a broader and new notion: the eco-anthropic compatibility. Using this notion, which includes the idea of sustainability, it is possible to handle, within the model, the human factors and human living conditions inside an urban aggregation. Finally, I will state that the actual urban model is decaying and therefore, sooner or later, we will have to face the end of urban civilization; for this reason we can start imagining new future ways for human aggregations on the planet based on the notion of eco-anthropic compatibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the architecture of partnerships as part of policy initiatives Great Britain. The author reflects that partnership offers pre-existing structure to the new labor government of Great Britain for urban policy making that is ideally suited to the Third Way that it promotes. He analyzes eight urban partnerships' architecture and presents his doubts on the purported administrative and democratic values that is typically present in partnerships.

There is a current upsurge of climate-related disasters globally with urban centres emerging as hotspots for climate risks such as floods, underlain by population growth and urbanization challenges. Yet, the literature on urban floods suggests limited estimates of "perceived vulnerability", the latter increasingly gaining acceptance in climate change and disaster knowledge communities. Subsequently in this article, the effects of socio-demographic characteristics of households in underestimating their perceived vulnerability to flooding in Ghana is analysed, for informed flood disaster risk reduction. The findings show female headed households and those with college education as relatively more likely to underestimate their vulnerability to floods, compared to male headed households and those with no education, respectively. The age of male household heads determined their underestimation of floods yet the relatiowas non-linear. Additionally, the perceived vulnerability of a household to floods and ability to estimate its status depends on the sex of household head, to potentially influence decision-making and choice of adaptation. In conclusion, differences in the effects of households' background characteristics on perceived vulnerability and capacity to estimate the outcome suggest context specific measures or social interventions in addressing attitudes towards floods disaster risk, and subsequently in formulating disaster risk reduction strategies and policy interventions. • Studies assessing households' vulnerability to floods significantly ignore the element of underestimation. • The concept of "Perceived Vulnerability" enhances the value of assessing flood risks. • Gender differences of household heads exist in Perceived Vulnerability to urban floods. • Age among male household heads determined underestimation of floods although non-linear. • Households' migration status influences estimation of vulnerability to floods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]