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Studies are showing that urban community gardening can improve people's psychological and physiological health in myriad ways. Community gardens increase social capital, provide opportunities for altruism, and create accessible and sustainable food sources in urban environments. The purpose of this study was to explore the mental, social, and physical health benefits of participation in an urban community garden in Edmonton, Canada. A focused ethnography was conducted with surveys and semi‐structured interviews. Surveys were sent to volunteers and customers of the Green and Gold Garden (GGG). This was followed by focus group interviews with eight volunteers and four customers. The interview format comprised open‐ended questions that encouraged participants to share their perceptions of the health and well‐being benefits from being at the GGG. Data were coded via inductive coding, and subsequently categorized into themes via an iterative, reflective process. Four health‐related themes were generated from thematic analysis: physical health, social health, mental/emotional health, and connection to the global community. Spending time at the GGG improved the respondents' mental health, even during the COVID‐19 pandemic, as they reported feelings of altruism, serenity, and connection with nature. Their social health was improved through gathering with other garden members in a sheltered urban green space within the city limits. This study supports the idea that participation in an urban community garden confers health benefits and engenders a greater awareness of, and appreciation for, the local environment and expands one's scope of care to incorporate planetary health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A great deal of work argues that the entry of women into public spaces can promote political and institutional change. The COVID‐19 provides an opportunity to investigate whether and under what conditions women's political representation in rural local governments deliver effective local governance? Drawing from two rounds of data collected in 174 local governments and 1051 households in three Indian states, the paper shows that women Pradhans in the Gram Panchayats had no differential impact on the governance response to COVID‐19 compared to the unreserved ones. Analyzing the heterogeneity in these responses suggests that institutional factors like the proportion of women in village council and local entrepreneurship diversity can enhance women Pradhan's capacity to respond to the pandemic. We explore two channels that enable women Pradhan to govern effectively during the pandemic: improving women's participation in the labor force and reducing household's vulnerability to poverty in the pre‐COVID period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is slowly emerging from a series of healthcare, financial, and economic disruptions caused by the Covid19 pandemic. While it is still too early to come to a definitive reckoning of the myriad ways in which our world has been forced to make adjustments in how it operates pre-and-post Covid, it is worth considering at least one aspect of the postCovid reality: its effects on project management practices and theory development. This paper offers my perspective on some implications for current and future practice in project management, as well as the ways in which Covid responses have created the potential for a “new normal” in theory and formulating research questions for project studies. Drawing on the Project Management Institute’s “Global Megatrends 2022” report, I will examine these six trends and their implications for future practice in project-based work, proposing three topics for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acknowledgements We thank the national NTD programmes, regional and district health staff and community health workers for their tireless determination and efforts towards the control and elimination of neglected tropical diseases. Neglected tropical disease elimination is a relay race - let's not drop the baton How has the Ascend programme contributed to strengthening health systems for sustainable country-driven neglected tropical disease programming? Keywords: behaviour change; COVID response; elimination; health systems; neglected tropical diseases; supply chains; West and Central Africa EN behaviour change COVID response elimination health systems neglected tropical diseases supply chains West and Central Africa ii1 ii6 6 10/14/22 20220902 NES 220902 Background The timelines for eliminating neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are relatively short in comparison to the millennia that these diseases have plagued communities, yet within our lifetime, several countries have successfully eliminated diseases through focused and concerted public health campaigns. [Extracted from the article]

The world is slowly emerging from a series of healthcare, financial, and economic disruptions caused by the Covid19 pandemic. While it is still too early to come to a definitive reckoning of the myriad ways in which our world has been forced to make adjustments in how it operates pre-and-post Covid, it is worth considering at least one aspect of the post-Covid reality: its effects on project management practices and theory development. This paper offers my perspective on some implications for current and future practice in project management, as well as the ways in which Covid responses have created the potential for a “new normal” in theory and formulating research questions for project studies. Drawing on the Project Management Institute’s “Global Megatrends 2022” report, I will examine these six trends and their implications for future practice in project-based work, proposing three topics for future research.

This article focuses on public management reform in Pakistan and how the reform trajectory has evolved over the past couple of decades. Reforms in Pakistan represent a mix of reform ideas and elements that continually evolve and respond to globalization and current reform trends with donor influence. The article is divided into three sections. The first section introduces the recent salient reform initiatives. The second section discusses the key challenges for Pakistan over the next years in terms of reform implementation and how they can be addressed. Finally, implications for research on public management reforms in developing countries are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to strict measures intended to limit people's movement and slow viral spread. The subsequent need for social distancing when traveling has driven many cities to reduce public transport services, as urban residents simultaneously stay at home and avoid crowded spaces. As a result, cities are turning to cycling to meet the mobility needs of their inhabitants, particularly those who lack access to a private vehicle. Infrastructure plays a critical role in encouraging cycling by protecting cyclists and providing safe and comfortable conditions for users of various confidence levels. Due to the pandemic, this infrastructure has been rapidly constructed, in many cases, as pop-up or temporary installations. In this article, we present and examine the design methods and community response to an emergent bike lane along Avenida Guadalupe in Zapopan, México during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through this examination, the paper distills and highlights the key features of a successful emergent bike lane in the urban Global South and identifies gaps in need of filling. The emergent intervention is 4.2 km and includes a number of traffic calming elements such as bollards and markings, connecting the peripheral part of the city to the existing cycle infrastructure. This case study shall contribute to a greater understanding of emergency mobility planning practices during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as future directions for the expansion of cycling infrastructure and networks, especially in Latin America and the broader Global South.

The effects of the pandemic have affected and continue to affect education methods every day. The education methods are not immune to the pandemic periods we are facing, so teachers must know how to adapt their methods in such a way that teaching, and its quality, is not negatively affected. This study provides an overview of different types of teaching methodology before, during, and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study describes the different types of teaching (e.g., presence learning, blended learning, and distance education) used in two Spanish Universities (i.e., one private and one public) during the pandemic. A new teaching methodology is proposed. The purpose of this study report is to share what we learned about the response to COVID-19. Results provide a basis for reflection about the pros and cons of teaching and learning modalities in higher education. The current situation demands that we continue to rethink what is the best methodology for teaching so that the education of students is not affected in any way. This study is useful for learning about different teaching methods that exist and which ones may suit us best depending on the context, situation, and needs of our students.

The effects of the pandemic have affected and continue to affect education methods every day. The education methods are not immune to the pandemic periods we are facing, so teachers must know how to adapt their methods in such a way that teaching, and its quality, is not negatively affected. This study provides an overview of different types of teaching methodology before, during, and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study describes the different types of teaching (e.g., presence learning, blended learning, and distance education) used in two Spanish Universities (i.e., one private and one public) during the pandemic. A new teaching methodology is proposed. The purpose of this study report is to share what we learned about the response to COVID-19. Results provide a basis for reflection about the pros and cons of teaching and learning modalities in higher education. The current situation demands that we continue to rethink what is the best methodology for teaching so that the education of students is not affected in any way. This study is useful for learning about different teaching methods that exist and which ones may suit us best depending on the context, situation, and needs of our students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After months of school closures, a variety of educators were surveyed with the goal of understanding their lived experience of teaching during a pandemic and the supports they needed to be successful during this challenge. The educators span different grade levels, school districts, and states. Their responses were illuminating for educational leaders when planning for a new school year. The purpose of this research brief was to collect real time responses from educators as they attempted to meet the varied challenges of educating during a pandemic. The questions focused on strengths needed by the educator, characteristics observed in successful students, and school supports that were helpful to gain successful outcomes. A variety of educators, spanning from kindergarten through high school, were surveyed. All participants were asked the same questions, and their responses were collected, coded, and organized around different educational leadership themes: teacher efficacy, school culture, and student resiliency. The goal of this research brief was to gain crucial information while educators were facing the pandemic and use their responses to frame a conversation for educational leaders as they plan for upcoming challenges they may face. From this research brief, characteristics of success begin to emerge. What does an educator need to focus on to be successful? What can we learn from our most successful students? What role can a school’s culture play, even when no one is there?

The New Zealand public service faced an unprecedented challenge in 2020. The focus of this article is on what the Covid-19 experience can tell us about the strengths of the public service, and whether the course that we have set for the future, enshrined through the Public Service Act 2020, is the right one. The established directions of public service change helped the Covid response: functional leadership made a definite contribution; dispersed leadership roles proved their worth; the deepening experience of inter-agency collaboration over the past decade cannot be proved to have contributed, but it seems reasonable to conclude that it did. Public servants proved willing to behave as participants in a single service rather than employees of a single agency, living up to the more complete view of human motivation reflected in the Public Service Act. The article concludes with some observations on the importance of interoperability for the future public service, and on the implications the strong Mäori response to Covid-19 may have for the public service of the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID pandemic has affected all aspects of life including academic libraries. While many are now open, services have changed to accommodate social distancing such as limiting guests to those within the university community and requiring face coverings for those who enter and study. To determine a library's COVID policy, users may examine the library website, but is this information easy to find? In a study of library websites from 132 "R2" academic libraries, it was found that most libraries displayed COVID-related services and hours directly on the library's webpage or one click away. Opening status and hours were readily displayed on library webpages, however, user populations accepted in the library and face covering requirements were not as easily discovered. During this time of uncertainty, it behooves libraries to make their COVID policies clear on their websites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In early March 2020, the whole world was startled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Amidst the crisis, a private medical college relentlessly worked toward sustaining the academic momentum and contributing to the mitigation of COVID-19. The areas of involvement were as broad as it had its roots. Educating the larger public through schools, colleges, and primary health-care centers was initiated. The hospital was operationally segregated into COVID and non-COVID zones. The screening centers and isolation wards were made operational. The health-care personnel were trained and motivated. The outreach and public health activities were in tandem with district health priorities, namely mass screening, health system strengthening at district COVID hospital, answering public queries, panel discussions, webinars, and TV shows. Apart from these activities, teaching and learning went on, as usual, using online platforms. Research, innovations, and publications were accomplished without interruption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May, 2020, unemployment rates had grown to levels last seen during the Great Depression and some utilities proactively suppressed their normative comparison (NC) insights in their home energy reports to customers. The Oracle Utilities Opower research team found that the NC algorithm continued to persist savings for utilities in aggregate and to individual customers in various regions of the country. In fact, the personalized insights could provide a much-needed way to lower energy costs for consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]