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INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:Industrial byproducts and environmental pollutants (IBP/EP) are associated with development of urothelial carcinoma (UC). While tobacco exposure (TE) is the major risk fa...

Urban planners and scholars have long been concerned about the negative impacts of improper management of waste on the quality of life of urban residents globally. This study therefore examined the socioenvironmental, residential and health impacts of waste dumpsites in Igando-Alimoso area of Lagos Nigeria using a cross sectional design to survey residents around the dumpsite facilities. Results showed that the waste dumpsites/landfill facilities have negative social effects resulting from the discomforting odors that ooze out regularly in the area. There was a perception of the landfills as constituting social nuisance to the community. The residents believed that the landfills were responsible for flooding, groundwater pollution, traffic jams, traffic noise, and residential dissatisfaction in the area. Also, in terms of health, waste landfills at Igando were perceptively linked with many diseases around the area, chief among which are typhoid, malaria, dysentery and cholera. With a Chi-square X2= 72.56, DF=4, p< 0.05, at 95% confidence level, it was established that waste dumpsites were responsible for some illnesses in the study area. This study has strong policy implications for urban planning, real estate and public health in Lagos.

Studies about socio-environmental determinants are recognized as important to better understand the factors that influence health and quality of life, and how they operate to generate inequalities. This article reports the mapping of socio-environmental determinants of health, carried out by community health agents from the community of Paraisópolis, the second-largest slum in the city of São Paulo (state of São Paulo), seeking to analyze potential contributions of this participatory process to urban management and planning. As part of an action research study and following the stages of Paulo Freire’s Research Itinerary (Culture Circles), the mapping was carried out by integrating the Talking Map technique with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), in what has been called Participatory GIS or Geographic Information Systems with Social Participation (PGIS). Positive aspects were recognized and addressed by community agents, as well as several situations of socio-environmental vulnerability as a result of the agglomerated nature of the place, directly related to urban management and planning needs. This shows that, through a participatory mapping process, citizens cannot only better identify, but also more effectively communicate their needs and qualify intervention strategies in the territory. Therefore, it is possible to address the residents’ priorities more representatively, especially in places where traditionally marginalized social groups live. And also, community health agents, who play a central role in this research process because they live and work in the same place, are fundamental to boost, mobilize, and support the complex aspects involved, both in Primary Health Care, as well as in urban management and planning.

Aims: The study explored the socio-environmental factors as determinants of the emotional well-being of adolescents in foster homes in southwestern Nigeria. Study Design: A descriptive survey research of ex-post-facto type was employed. Place and Duration of Study: Foster homes in six states in southwestern Nigeria. Methodology: multi-stage sampling was used in selecting 555 respondents for this study and the data collection was done using a semi-structured questionnaire and data analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The study revealed that peer influence, academic performance and attitude of the foster family were significant to emotional wellbeing. All the components of social factors correlated with the emotional well-being of the fostered adolescents show that appropriate schooling and educational services can strengthen them and are more likely to view their schools as a supportive and safe haven. Therefore, peers, the foster family and the foster adolescents’ exposure to academics either directly or indirectly affects their emotional well-being. It also showed that the majority (54.1%) accepted that they can count on their carers to help them when the need arises. It is also revealed that the foster family attitude is an adolescent’s source of emotional support and their psychological well-being which may increase self-esteem in the fostered adolescents. This study revealed that 44.3% of the respondents confirmed that they always get along well with their carers. Conclusion: Adolescents in foster care face multiple threats to their healthy development, including poor physical health, attachment disorders, compromised brain functioning, inadequate and emotional skills

Infrastructure lies at the heart of many disputes within environmental policy and planning. Take for example recent proposals for massive federal investments in infrastructure in the United States....

A presente pesquisa tem como objeto as relações jurídicas decorrentes do §4º do Art. 225 da Constituição Federal Brasileira, que assegura a proteção dos principais ecossistemas brasileiros. A Constituição quis enfocar algumas partes do território brasileiro para concitar que devem ser utilizadas de modo a assegurar a conservação do meio ambiente, por serem áreas frágeis e detentoras de grande diversidade biológica. A necessidade de proteção ambiental nem sempre foi tratada no Brasil como deveria ser e foi longa a jornada percorrida até o alcance do entendimento de que a proteção ambiental é e sempre será necessária como forma de proteção do homem, atualmente, o centro das atenções quanto a esse assunto. A regra consubstanciada no Art. 225, §4º da CF, inaugura, no Direito Ambiental Brasileiro, um tipo de comando constitucional que necessita compreender o Patrimônio Nacional. O texto é pedagógico ao dizer que essas áreas integram o Patrimônio Nacional e indicam que os regionalismos não devem sobrepor-se aos interesses nacionais. O Cerrado, mesmo sendo um dos biomas brasileiros, não foi mencionado no Texto Constitucional. O objeto desta pesquisa é uma análise comparativa com o Bioma Floresta Amazônica, de modo a verificar qual a diferença jurídica quanto à proteção entre esses dois biomas. Dentro dessa temática, este trabalho tem por finalidade conceituar juridicamente o Art. 225, §4º da Constituição e apresentar critérios objetivos capazes de melhor compreender essa regra constitucional especificamente sobre o meio ambiente, embora se considere que o dispositivo constitucional citado não impede a utilização pelos próprios particulares dos recursos naturais existentes nas áreas sujeitas ao domínio privado, desde que observadas as prescrições legais e respeitadas as condições necessárias à conservação ambiental. A pesquisa apresenta técnicas, critérios e métodos de decisão para se procurar entender o objetivo almejado pela norma constitucional do Art. 225, §4º. A linha de pesquisa escolhida é a de conservação dos recursos naturais e desenvolvimento sustentável. O método científico adotado é o dedutivo e, quanto aos meios, a pesquisa foi a bibliográfica e documental com consulta à doutrina, legislação, jurisprudência, periódicos, tratados internacionais, revistas e documentos ostensivos, disponibilizados pelas autoridades federais, estaduais e municipais. Quanto aos fins, a pesquisa é qualitativa.

Situated at the junction of two canyons, one north–south and one east–west, Tijeras Pueblo (LA 581) is within easy reach of a number of different ecoregions as well as on a boundary between two dis...

The material discarded by past mining extractive activities is exposed to the action of different environmental agents and constitutes the beginning of a problem that, inevitably, involves the population and the conditions of the environment where it is deposited. Bearing this in mind, a study of the Copaquilla-Chile valley was carried out with a focus on the socio-environmental conflict produced by the accumulation of abandoned mining waste in its vicinity. The objectives were to identify the role of the different actors and the main causes that originated the conflict and to characterize the physical-natural factors that conditioned the susceptibility and physical vulnerability of the studied environment. The methodological approach combined a set of qualitative and quantitative techniques, using participatory action research techniques (PAR) and multi-criteria evaluation models (MCE) through a geographic information system (GIS). The evaluation of the study area revealed quite severe levels in terms of the indices of susceptibility to processes of mass removal and vulnerability of the aquifer, which led us to infer that the morpho-climatic and hydrogeological characteristics of the sector generated the appropriate conditions to produce large damage to the complex socio-ecological system of the Copaquilla territory. This study generated participatory material, a chronology of the conflict, a database of the physical environment of the Copaquilla valley interpreted in thematic cartographies, and physicochemical soil and water samples to monitor contamination levels.

With the growing global recognition that environmental and social crises are pushing systems of social and ecological reproduction to their breaking points, governments, philanthropists, and the private sector are proposing a variety of strategies that aim to shift the social and environmental role of finance capital from an extractive process to a reparative one. A frequent refrain is that only finance capital promises the scale of investment necessary to address Earth’s complex social and environmental problems, and that trillions of private investment dollars wait in the wings ready to mobilize for the right kinds of projects. A hallmark of these approaches is their promise of “triple bottom line” outcomes, with social, environmental, and financial benefits—what the industry refers to as “responsible investing.” This symposium interrogates the political dynamics and financial mechanisms underlying ongoing experiments in so-called responsible finance, including various forms of impact investing and financial “solutionism” to social and environmental problems. We develop the term “reparative accumulation” to conceptualize the divergent forms and continuities in how these new financial devices function across sectors, what types of futures the industry is attempting to create, the effects on socionatures, and what resistance might look like both within and outside these systems.

Ending hunger and ensuring food security are among targets of 2030’s SDGs. While food trade and the embedded (virtual) water (VW) may improve food availability and accessibility for more people all year round, the sustainability and efficiency of food and VW trade needs to be revisited. In this research, we assess the sustainability and efficiency of food and VW trades under two food security scenarios for Iran, a country suffering from an escalating water crisis. These scenarios are (1) Individual Crop Food Security (ICFS), which restricts calorie fulfillment from individual crops and (2) Crop Category Food Security (CCFS), which promotes “eating local” by suggesting food substitution within the crop category. To this end, we simulate the water footprint and VW trades of 27 major crops, within 8 crop categories, in 30 provinces of Iran (2005–2015). We investigate the impacts of these two scenarios on (a) provincial food security (FSp) and exports; (b) sustainable and efficient blue water consumption, and (c) blue VW export. We then test the correlation between agro-economic and socio-environmental indicators and provincial food security. Our results show that most provinces were threatened by unsustainable and inefficient blue water consumption for crop production, particularly in the summertime. This water mismanagement results in 14.41 and 8.45 billion m3 y−1 unsustainable and inefficient blue VW exports under ICFS. “Eating local” improves the FSp value by up to 210% which lessens the unsustainable and inefficient blue VW export from hotspots. As illustrated in the graphical abstract, the FSp value strongly correlates with different agro-economic and socio-environmental indicators, but in different ways. Our findings promote “eating local” besides improving agro-economic and socio-environmental conditions to take transformative steps toward eradicating food insecurity not only in Iran but also in other countries facing water limitations.

Typhoid fever was estimated to produce 17.8 million cases each year among low-and-middle-income countries of the world. This study aimed to identify the socio-environmental factors that influence care-seeking preferences for typhoid fever treatment among students of Secondary Schools. The study adopted a cross-sectional design guided by behavioural theories that employed quantitative methods of data collection. A multistage sampling technique was used to select five (5) schools from five wards in the study area. A total of 422 students were recruited for this study but only 417 questionnaires were correctly and completely analysed. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection and the data was analysed using, descriptive statistics, chart, mean, standard deviation and inferential statistics of correlation, and multiple regression. The respondents’ ages ranged from 10-19 years with a mean of 15.3 ± 1.7 years. Results demonstrated that the socio-environmental factors that influence the respondents’ health-seeking behaviour for typhoid treatment were the decision of parents on the type of treatment they can receive as well as the cost of the treatment The study further revealed that of the respondents who have had typhoid fever in their lifetime, less than half sought treatment in hospitals. This study recommends that good healthcare-seeking behaviour health promotion programmes should be targeted at parents since they are stakeholders in the healthcare-seeking decision-making of adolescents.

Aggressive behaviour is a major characteristics among adolescents with mild intellectual disability due to their inability to effectively use verbal communication to express their needs. This study, therefore, investigated the role of parental conflicts, peer influence, and socio-environmental deprivation in predicting aggressive behaviour among the study participants. The theory of planned behaviour, which states that individual behaviour is determined by corresponding expectations, was the theoretical framework used in this study. A descriptive correlational research design was adopted. The sample consisted of 50 participants (43% males, 57% females) aged between 13 and 18 (median of 15.5; the standard deviation of 1.20). The participants were adolescents with mild intellectual disability who lived in the Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria and were conveniently selected for the study. The Children’s Perception of Inter-parental Conflict Scale, Resistance to Peer Influence Questionnaire, socio-environment deprivation scale and Aggressive Behaviour Scale were used for data collection. Analysis of variance was used for data analysis. The results revealed that there was no significant relationship between the independent variables (parental conflicts, peer influence and socio-environmental deprivation) and aggressive behaviour among adolescents with mild intellectual disability. The joint contribution of parental conflict, peer influence and environmental deprivation to the aggressive behaviour was 5.5%. This was not significant. The study has shown that parental conflicts, peer influence and socio-environmental deprivation do not play a role in increasing aggressive behaviour among adolescents with mild intellectual disability. Keywords : aggressive behaviour, adolescents with mild intellectual disability, parental conflicts, peer influence, socio-environmental deprivation. Abstrak Perilaku agresif merupakan karakteristik utama pada remaja dengan disabilitas intelektual ringan karena ketidakmampuan mereka untuk menggunakan komunikasi verbal secara efektif untuk mengungkapkan kebutuhannya. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini menyelidiki peran konflik orang tua, pengaruh teman sebaya, dan deprivasi sosial-lingkungan dalam memprediksi perilaku agresif di antara peserta penelitian. Teori perilaku terencana yang menyatakan bahwa perilaku individu ditentukan oleh ekspektasi yang sesuai merupakan kerangka teori yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini. Sebuah desain penelitian korelasional deskriptif diadopsi. Sampel terdiri dari 50 peserta (43% laki-laki, 57% perempuan) berusia antara 13 dan 18 (median 15,5; standar deviasi 1,20). Para partisipan adalah remaja dengan disabilitas intelektual ringan yang tinggal di Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria dan dipilih dengan mudah untuk penelitian ini. Persepsi Anak-Anak tentang Skala Konflik Antar Orangtua, Kuesioner Resistensi terhadap Pengaruh Teman Sebaya, skala deprivasi sosio-lingkungan dan Skala Perilaku Agresif digunakan untuk pengumpulan data. Analisis varian digunakan untuk analisis data. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa tidak ada hubungan yang signifikan antara variabel independen (konflik orang tua, pengaruh teman sebaya dan deprivasi sosial lingkungan) dengan perilaku agresif pada remaja dengan disabilitas intelektual ringan. Kontribusi bersama dari konflik orang tua, pengaruh teman sebaya dan perampasan lingkungan terhadap perilaku agresif adalah 5,5%. Ini tidak signifikan. Penelitian telah menunjukkan bahwa konflik orang tua, pengaruh teman sebaya, dan deprivasi sosial-lingkungan tidak berperan dalam meningkatkan perilaku agresif di kalangan remaja dengan disabilitas intelektual ringan. Kata kunci: perilaku agresif, remaja dengan disabilitas intelektual ringan, konflik orang tua, pengaruh teman sebaya, perampasan sosial lingkungan.

We propose that facilitation can be used as a research method to improve the collaborative synthesis of interdisciplinary teams’ socio-environmental work. As described in this communication, our approach to facilitation adapts to teams’ practical and conceptual needs as their research develops. Our synthetic practice of facilitating interdisciplinary meetings at the US National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) further emphasizes the importance of process, intentionality, and advance preparation. By combining facilitation fundamentals with research skills, it is possible to create the conditions for effective interdisciplinary integration.

Purpose: This study has analyzed the relationship between process and organizational innovation, performance in product, market and technical innovation and social environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: The data was collected in industrial companies using a questionnaire with a Likert scale and a structural equation model was used to estimate the parameters. Findings: The results indicated that process and organizational innovation mediated by performance in product, market and technical innovation, influence social and environmental sustainability. Practical implications: According to the investigated managers, the practical contributions point to the need of considering innovation elements to achieve a good performance. Subsequently points out that better performing organizations favor practices to seek the global sustainability of the enterprises. Originality/value: The model used in this study, is broader than that applied in previous studies when considering the dimensions of innovation, performance and sustainability concurrently. Thus, it suggests the understanding, by the interested parties, about organizational performance as an influence of good socio-environmental sustainability practices.

The analysis of changing the volume of urban cargo flows under conditions of the city transport and road complex development is made, and its danger to the environment is determined. The method of decoding satellite images at different times and cartographic processing the data were applied, the result of which is a simplified and accessible form of visualization and recording a number of changes in road transport networks. In particular, this method enables creating an algorithm for predicting changes in roads and identifying the most dangerous sources of pollution in large-scale urban areas. Chemical analysis of sweep-off samples taken in 2019 for the period of spring cleaning of roads in the city of Astrakhan, in the neighbourhood of people mass gatherings, according to the required indicators was carried out. An algorithm to identify correlations between the content of pollutants in road estimates and anomalies in the intensity of traffic, the choice of chemical reagents used, etc. was developed. As a result of the research, the urgent need for environmental monitoring of the roadbed with recording the results in the database of geo-information systems was identified.

Parasitic diseases are closely related to poor sanitation, lack of good drinking water, improper disposal of human waste, lack of latrines and poor personal hygiene. This study evaluated the prevalence and distribution of polyparasitic infections and the impact of health education and treatment. Stool and urine samples from 350 consented participants were parasitologically examined for parasites. Out of the 350 samples, 150 stool samples were infected with intestinal parasites and 2 urine samples were positive for Trichomonas vaginalis. Out of the infected 152 participants, 40 of them had co-infection (polyparasitism), specifically 5(1.43%) had triple co-infection, 35(10%) had double co-infection.Health education and treatment measures had significant (p

Analysis of the discourse on socio-environmental controversies among peasant family farmers in the Ñuble region of south-central Chile—small organic producers, conventional small producers, agroecological producers, and members of peasant unions—allows the identification of their positions on the controversy between alternatives to development and alternative development. Un análisis del discurso sobre las controversias socioambientales que existen entre las familias campesinas en la región de Ñuble, en el centro-sur de Chile (pequeños productores orgánicos, pequeños productores convencionales, productores agroecológicos y miembros de sindicatos campesinos) permite identificar sus posturas en torno a la polémica entre alternativas al desarrollo y el desarrollo alternativo.

The aim of this article is to retrace a guerrilla episode that occurred in the Amazon region of Araguaia during the military dictatorship in Brazil (1972?1975), opposing a group of militants from the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB) and the National Brazilian Army. Taking advantage of the geographical characteristics of the region, a small group of guerrilla fighters was able to confront a large military contingent for almost three years. As this article demonstrates, appealing to the powerful symbolic potential of the Amazon jungle, the guerrilla created a solid environmental narrative of force and shrewdness supported by the local population. However, as military forces began to better explore the region and to resort to irregular warfare strategies, they managed to curb the guerrilla, exterminating almost every member involved in the fight. Finally, this article looks at the marked socio-environmental scars that the conflict left in the region, and how these influenced social, political and ecological equilibriums during the following decades.

Exposure to daylight has much to offer and should be optimised to maximise its potential. In order to harvest its benefits, any visual discomfort from daylight should be anticipated and minimised. Hence, there is the need to predict discomfort from daylight glare. While more than 20 models for predicting discomfort from daylight glare have been developed, none accurately predict it. The inclusion of additional factors in the models may improve the predictions. One such factor is the socio-environmental context of the observer. This study compares the evaluations of discomfort glare from daylight for office buildings in four socio-environmental contexts: Chile, Belgium, Japan and Switzerland. The evaluations of discomfort glare, each consisting of subjective assessments and physical measurements of a view condition, were collected at the office desks of 401 participants, although only 211 responses were used in the analyses due to exclusion rules. The results do not suggest evidence of an influence of socio-environmental context on discomfort from daylight glare. In other words, the participants in this study perceived discomfort glare similarly, regardless of their socio-environmental context.

Stable economic development, timely neutralization of challenges and threats are the most important prerequisites for economic security of Russia and its regions. Uneven spatial development of the Russian Federation and the increasing differentiation in the regional development are listed as the main challenges and threats to economic security in the Economic Security Strategy of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030. The socio-economic development of the Caspian regions is characterized by significant disparities, which determined the purpose of the research. Particular attention is paid to the study of inter-regional differentiation as a threat to economic security. An analytical review of the indicators of socio-economic development in these constituent territories of the Russian Federation allowed for identification of various risks and threats to economic security. The analysis allowed the author to conclude that when assessing threats to the economic security of the regions, it is necessary to take into account territorial, sectoral features, multi-ethnicity, etc. Hence, it is necessary to enhance the quantitative assessment indicators, complementing them with qualitative level indicators. In order to achieve the necessary objectivity, depth and comprehensiveness in understanding, taking into account the realities of modernity, the author recommends assessing state's economic security in the regions and the policy of ensuring it from an interdisciplinary perspective, relying on economic science as well as on other areas of scientific knowledge.

O turismo tem sido duramente criticado pelo fato de ser uma atividade socioeconomica que tem a capacidade de degradar a propria base de recursos da qual depende. Os impactos ambientais negativos do turismo tem se manifestado, em maior ou menor grau, tanto em destinos turisticos de paises desenvolvidos quanto subdesenvolvidos. Ao mesmo tempo, e talvez como uma tentativa de resposta, diversos tipos de turismo alternativo vem crescendo. Muitas iniciativas tem apresentado propostas com base na nocao de desenvolvimento sustentavel. Esse e o caso dos meios de hospedagem, desde grandes complexos na forma de resorts ate pequenas unidades hoteleiras, sob diversas denominacoes, que vem incorporando estrategias de responsabilidade socioambiental as suas praticas, as quais incluem medidas de gestao ambiental, mas que podem se estender a muitas outras esferas, tais como apoio ao artesanato local e a iniciativas de colaboracao. Este trabalho analisa as praticas adotadas por 10 pousadas associadas ao eixo do turismo alternativo, localizadas em um trecho de 23 km do litoral Norte do Estado de Alagoas, denominado localmente de Rota Ecologica. O objetivo foi analisar ate que ponto as referidas pousadas adotam procedimentos de responsabilidade socioambiental. A metodologia foi de cunho qualitativo e incluiu triangulacao para a coleta de dados. O estudo constatou que, apesar da necessidade de maiores avancos, as 10 pousadas da Rota Ecologica adotam procedimentos associados a nocao de responsabilidade socioambiental.

A presente pesquisa resulta de um Projeto Permanente de Iniciacao Cientifica, tendo como proposta analisar o territorio fluvial urbano de Petrolina/Pernambuco e o avanco da erosao fluvial, bem como a intensidade, as causas e consequencias destes ao meio ambiente e a (in) sustentabilidade a nivel local por conta da falta de aplicabilidade da legislacao ambiental que trata da preservacao e conservacao das margens dos rios e suas respectivas matas ciliares. O referido trabalho esta subdividido em duas etapas: a primeira etapa ja foi concluida onde se fez esse mesmo estudo na margem baiana do Rio Sao Francisco e, a segunda etapa, que se encontra em andamento, onde se estuda a mesma problematica, desta feita, nos territorios fluviais urbanos da Bahia e suas implicacoes antropogenicas, bem como, o uso e a ocupacao dos solos fluviais. O objeto dessa investigacao foi basicamente uma area fluvial com cerca de 100 metros de extensao horizontal, do territorio fluvial de Petrolina e, o problema investigado foram os impactos ambientais naturais e antropogenicos nesses locais, buscando compreender os principais efeitos geomorfologicos fluviais decorrentes de multiplos processos nas margens do rio Sao Francisco, no trecho, foco dessa pesquisa. Elencou-se como objetivo principal, analisar a intensidade dos processos erosivos e suas respectivas implicacoes para o meio ambiente, visando compreender suas causas e consequencias para a sustentabilidade local. Para realizacao de tal pesquisa utilizou-se como metodologia a observacao in loco no territorio fluvial petrolinense, num periodo de um ano, e a colocacao de pinos de erosao para delimitacao e observacao da area a ser analisada. Mediante os resultados preliminares e possivel afirmar que ha um elevado processo erosivo, onde a erosao antropogenica sobrepoe-se a natural.

The issue of waterborne diseases, which has been at the center of scientific debate for several decades, is still relevant, especially in low-income countries. This paper garners sociological approaches to understand and explain the relationship between socio-environmental vulnerabilities, water management and the consequences of Dracunculiasis / Guinea worm disease in rural area of Chad. Data were collected from November 2019 to January 2020 in five (5) departments, namely: Aboudeia, Barh koh Lac Iro, Loug-chari and Mayo Lemie. The following survey techniques were used: qualitative and quantitative, with instruments such as questionnaire, interviews, life stories and direct observations. SPSS version 25 software was used to process the quantitative data (n = 769). For the qualitative data (n = 50), data collected through the dictaphone was transcribed then analysed using content analysis. The study used the theory of social representations (Jodelet, 1989) to analyse the phenomenon. The results indicate that 90.51% of respondents in the endemic areas were aware of the Guinea worm disease. 64.29% of respondents stated that they did not have access to potable water. The results also indicate that 84.00% of respondents travel more than 10 km to access health facilities. The eradication of Dracunculiasis is fraught with multiple vulnerabilities, including economic, environmental, educational, and health-related, which the rural communities affected by this endemic face. In addition to these bottlenecks observed at the community level, institutional difficulties have also been noted, such as the unsmooth implementation of the multisectoral approach and the inefficiency of awareness-raising strategies. The disseminated of information by agents deployed in the field does not have a considerable impact. All these factors have contributed to the recurrence of Dracunculiasis/Guinea worm disease in several villages.

Background: Autism is a complex disorder resulting from the combination of genetic and environmental factors. Though various genetic factors are involved in expression of autism, exogenous factor can modify and control gene expression. Objectives: To find out the socio-environmental factors which may contribute to early development and expressions of autism in children of Bangladesh. Materials &Methods: Autism cases (n=652) were diagnosed clinically and by applying ICD10 criterions in Child Development Centers (CDCs) of 15 tertiary medical college hospitals of Bangladesh. A retrospective analysis was done on collected data of detailed history and clinical notes of those children. Results: Among total 652 children with autism, 71.9% were from 2-5 years’ age group at diagnosis, with a male predominance (79%). Seventy-two percent were from middle to higher income family groups, 68% from urban areas and maximum children from nuclear families (77.5%). ‘Less interactive family’ was found in 67.50%. Play opportunity was absent in 60.60%. All the children watched TV and 85.6% watched TV for more than 2 hours/day. Conclusion: Children from urban area, higher income and nuclear family, lack of interactive play opportunity may play important role to develop autism in Bangladeshi children. Bangladesh J Child Health 2020; VOL 44 (2) :78-81

In this article we present our findings regarding the systemic impacts of the Environmental Education for the Communities (ECOA) program, an educational program sponsored by the Alcoa Institute. The program, which was developed from 2014 to 2016 in Brazil, involved one corporation (Alcoa Institute), one educational consulting firm (Evoluir), seven Municipal Departments of Education and 30 schools and its surrounding communities. The program promoted environmental awareness following a project-based learning approach: first the students became aware of certain socio-environmental problems in their areas, and then they developed projects to address these problems with support of local communities and guidance from teachers and Evoluir’s educators. Our research objective was to understand the impacts of the program. We followed a qualitative research approach, collecting data by means of document analysis and interviews, unveiling the recurrent themes and analyzing the connections between them by means of a systemic analysis. Our main findings were: 1) The use of the PBL approach, involving schools and communities in joint planning and execution processes, promoted environmental awareness and strengthened the ties between the schools and local communities. 2) The PBL approach challenged the students to solve real-life problems, improving their critical thinking, their communications and problem-solving skills, leading to the improvement of their self-confidence and in their interest in learning. 3) The PBL approach empowered the teachers, motivating them to study and to make connections with community partners, thus changing the ways the courses were conducted and the relationships between school and local communities.

O rompimento de barragens que ocorreram no Brasil nos últimos anos provocou impactos ambientais irreparáveis que não podem passar despercebidos. Nesse contexto, torna-se importante discutir na escola as consequências socioambientais provocadas por esses acidentes. Nesse artigo apresenta-se uma prática pedagógica envolvendo a pedagogia de projetos que teve como objetivo investigar sua contribuição na compreensão dessas consequências. A metodologia utilizada foi a pesquisa qualitativa. Participaram dessa prática 75 alunos do Ensino Médio Integrado ao Técnico em Edificações. Os alunos foram divididos em grupos e desenvolveram seus projetos tendo como referência as etapas propostas por Nogueira (2008). O processo avaliativo foi processual e diagnóstico, ou seja, perpassou todas as etapas do projeto. Os resultados dessa avaliação evidenciaram que a pedagogia de projetos contribuiu não só para a compreensão dos impactos socioambientais dos acidentes envolvendo barragens, mas também desenvolveu autonomia e contribuiu para a construção de conhecimento para tratar dessa temática.

This work has as its proposition, to present a project whose main goal is to suggest the establishment of a flow with detailed stages, from the moment that it is defined the discarding of an electro- electronic equipment used in hospital environment until the reuse of possible material to the manufacturing of new equipment. The suggestion is applying to all the equipment electro-electronic used in the hospital (be the biomedical, electro-mechanic in general, computer, refrigerator, air conditioner etc.). And thus contributing to issues socio-environmental, as well as economic – financial, through an appropriated discarding process

espanolEn este articulo se presentan los resultados de un estudio exploratorio y descriptivo realizado con el objetivo de conocer la situacion del periodismo ambiental que se desarrolla en Mexico a traves de medios digitales independientes especializados, y de identificar las iniciativas mas solidas en este rubro. Se encontro que, del universo de medios digitales que difunden informacion ambiental, existen tres que generan sus propios contenidos mediante una practica profesional con perspectiva de complejidad, contextualizada, proxima a la identidad cultural y ecosistemica de las regiones en las que operan. Para lograr una comprension cualitativa de estas iniciativas periodisticas, se hicieron entrevistas a los directores de tres de ellos, con el fin de conocer su perspectiva sobre las problematicas socioambientales del pais, el papel del periodismo ambiental en la visibilizacion de los temas ambientales en el ambito social, asi como los desafios y las posibilidades de consolidacion de este quehacer. Los directores de estos sitios son periodistas de vasta experiencia que procuran ofrecer contenidos utiles para la comprension, la reflexion y la toma de decisiones por parte de las audiencias acerca de problemas locales. Se concluye que, frente al desinteres de otros actores por generar informacion ambiental util para la toma de decisiones a escala social y politica, es necesario fortalecer este tipo de iniciativas, pues constituyen un referente del tipo de periodismo ambiental requerido para las condiciones del pais y su replicacion es deseable para favorecer la accion social en los asuntos ambientales a nivel local. EnglishThis article presents the results of an exploratory and descriptive study made with the purpose of knowing the reality of environmental journalism in Mexico, through specialized digital media, and of identifying the most solid initiatives in this field. It was found that, of the spectrum of digital portals that divulge environmental information, there are three who produce their own content through a professional practice with a complex and contextualized perspective, close to the cultural and ecosystemic identity of their respective regions of operations. In order to achieve a qualitative comprehension of these journalistic endeavours, interviews were made with the editors of three of them, aiming to know their views on socio environmental issues in the country, the role of environmental journalism in the visibility of environmental topics in the social sphere, and the challenges and possibilities of consolidation of this profession. The editors of these sites are veteran journalists who seek to offer contents that are useful for comprehension, reflection, and decision-making by audiences on local issues. It is concluded that, against the disinterest of other actors to generate useful environmental information for social and political decision-making, it is necessary to strengthen these kind of initiatives, for they constitute a referent to the kind of environmental journalism that is required by the conditions of the country and their replication is desirable in order to favour social action in environmental issues on a local scale.

Over the past four decades, pollution and other forms of environmental degradation have radically transformed China’s landscape. So have the ambitious greening policies implemented to tackle these problems. During the same period, an enormous gap in wealth and amenities has arisen between the modernizing cities and rural areas, the latter playing an important, and often ignored, role in China’s environmental project. This paper identifies two paradoxical processes transforming rural environments: the mobilization of rural efforts to green the nation and the ruralization of pollution. While seemingly contradictory, both processes illustrate how the rural is expendable and malleable to state interests. This article proposes the concept of socio-environmental reproduction to theorize the environmental paradox in which many rural communities find themselves in contemporary China, as their environmental work and sacrifices sustain economic and political systems. This concept builds on the work on social reproduction by feminist scholars, particularly those who have sought to integrate the environment into their analyses. This paper proposes to expand the concept to include all the environmental work and sacrifices that certain people are asked to make to fuel the economic system, preserve political stability, and protect privileged spaces from pollution. As a whole, this article shows how China’s rural–urban divide is constitutive of the country’s environmental project and how national greening initiatives enable uneven development. Furthermore, this case foreshadows what will likely occur elsewhere as countries seek to green themselves. As the ecological era unfolds in China and elsewhere, it exposes how deep social divides are mobilized to fulfill environmental objectives. This paper theorizes the environmental work and sacrifices that risk falling on the shoulders of the most vulnerable.

The objective of this work was to analyze the socio-environmental conflict that develops in the community of Rio Carvão, in the municipality of Urussanga, in the south of the State of Santa Catarina. The conflict involves residents of the community and the company UM Urussanga Minérios Ltda. In the locality there are environmental liabilities arising from the activity of mining coal carried out in the past, currently the atmospheric pollution caused by the emission of gases from the processing of coal is directly impacting the lives of residents. The methodology used was based on historicity, temporality, characterization and context, seeking to establish a dialogue with the environmental and social sciences. It was identified that the social actors of the conflict are the Rio Carvão Community Association versus the UM company, with the involvement of the Public Ministry and the municipal government, represented by the city council of Urussanga. The conflict has historical origins in the use and appropriation of natural resources, enhanced by the increase in the emission of gases by the company that found itself in the community due to the harmful way it has been developing its activities.

Africa’s rapid population growth and high urban growth rates have been linked to increasing urbanisation of poverty and adverse urban health outcomes, raising intricate local and global policy ques...

The social and environmental effects of industrial agriculture in the San Quintín Valley of Baja California are closely related. An environmental history of the valley from European contact to the present demonstrates that modern schemes of globalized agricultural production erode biological diversity while fostering labor exploitation. A critical model drawing on the concept of environmental violence— historically structured asymmetrical power relations that are reproduced and maintained to foster capital accumulation—describes how neoliberalism shapes and exploits agro-industrial landscapes and livelihoods in San Quintín to produce a crisis of underproduction. Los efectos sociales y ambientales de la agricultura industrial en el Valle de San Quintín de Baja California están estrechamente relacionados. Una historia ambiental del valle, desde el contacto europeo hasta el presente demuestra que los esquemas modernos de producción agrícola globalizada erosionan la diversidad biológica al mismo tiempo que fomentan la explotación laboral. Un modelo crítico basado en el concepto de violencia ambiental (relaciones de poder asimétricas históricamente estructuradas que se reproducen y mantienen para fomentar la acumulación de capital) describe cómo el neoliberalismo da forma a y explota los paisajes agroindustriales y los medios de vida en San Quintín, augurando hacia una crisis de subproducción.

This article draws a comprehensive map of conflict climate change scholarship. It uses visualizations and descriptive statistics to trace the temporal, spatial, and topical evolution of the field of study via a bibliometric analysis of more than six hundred publications. It then proceeds to summarize findings, theoretical explanations, and methodological approaches. Overall, this systematic review shows a remarkable inconsistency of evidence among publications. As a way forward, this article recommends future research to use computational models, informed by a social-ecological perspective, to better explore the link between climate change and conflict. Resumen En este artículo se traza un mapa integral de la erudición conflictiva del cambio climático. Se utilizan visualizaciones y estadísticas descriptivas para rastrear la evolución temporal, espacial y temática del campo de estudio mediante un análisis bibliométrico de más de seiscientas publicaciones. Luego, continúa con un resumen de los hallazgos, las explicaciones teóricas y los enfoques metodológicos. En términos generales, esta revisión sistemática muestra una notable incoherencia de evidencias entre las publicaciones. En este artículo se recomiendan investigaciones a futuro para utilizar los modelos computacionales, informados con una perspectiva socioecológica, a fin de explorar mejor la conexión entre el cambio climático y los conflictos. Extrait Cet article offre une représentation complète des recherches portant sur les conflits liés au changement climatique. Il utilise des visualisations et des statistiques descriptives pour retracer l’évolution temporelle, spatiale et thématique de ce domaine d’étude via une analyse bibliométrique de plus de six cents publications. Il résume ensuite les constatations, explications théoriques et approches méthodologiques. Globalement, cette synthèse systématique montre une incohérence remarquable des preuves entre les publications. Pour aller de l'avant, cet article recommande que les recherches futures passent par des modèles informatiques éclairés par une perspective socio-écologique pour mieux explorer le lien entre le changement climatique et les conflits.

Mining extractive companies have extended their operations to other realms, such as the management of media. Thus, from a space of physical intervention, they start to conquer a space of symbolic r...

Resumo Modelos de Responsabilidade Social Corporativa no setor de mineração tem usado de forma crescente os relatórios de sustentabilidade e as práticas ligadas ao modelo da Licença Social para Operar como forma de garantir a legitimidade de suas operações. O caso Samarco desafia o uso destas estratégias no país ao possibilitar que a empresa, considerada referência em práticas de responsabilidade social no setor de mineração, também se tornasse responsável por uma das maiores tragédias socioambientais do Brasil. Por meio do estudo de caso do rompimento da Barragem do Fundão, esta pesquisa buscou evidenciar as contradições do modelo Responsabilidade Social Corporativa da empresa que contribuíram para a emergência da tragédia. A coleta de dados incluiu os relatórios de sustentabilidade da empresa, documentos de órgãos públicos e entrevistas com stakeholders da companhia atingidos pela tragédia, sendo estes dados trabalhados a partir da análise de conteúdo. Os resultados indicam as contradições entre as informações disponibilizadas pela empresa e a percepção de riscos da comunidade. O modelo de responsabilidade social corporativa adotado pela Samarco priorizou o monitoramento da percepção da imagem e reputação da empresa junto a seus diferentes stakeholders, favorecendo a construção de laços de confiança com a população. No entanto, esta estratégia, aliada a dependência econômica do município, encobriu os riscos operacionais da barragem do Fundão resultando na ampliação da vulnerabilidade social da comunidade local.

This article presents research on the socio environmental impact of refugees on their host communities. We assessed the challenges of refuge populations to their host community in north western Tigray, Ethiopia, where the Eritrean refugees are settled,. Primary data was produced from semi-structured questionnaires and a random sampling technique deploying a logistic regression model to describe the relationship between the socio-environmental changes of the host community. Results suggested 96% of the sample respondents confirmed changes of tree species and forest coverage on community farms was observed during the study period. Similarly, change in forest coverage and changes in tree species are strongly and positively associated with the existence of refugees in the study communities. The dramatic change observed on forest coverage and tree species has led to a progressive decline in natural resources. The study concluded that unplanned human population influxes, especially refugee inflows, affected host communities negatively and the socio-environmental situation has been significantly changed in the study areas. The study highlights the need for holistic intervention to ameliorate the negative impacts and to maintain the sustainable management of natural resources so as to improve the socio-environmental impact of refugees on host communities.

Land Use and Land Cover Change (LULCC) studies emphasize the importance of identifying the local and regional drivers of deforestation. This study, based on a cross-sectional survey of over 2,000 s...

The urgent environmental challenges we now face, from climate change to biodiversity loss, involve people and the planet, the social, and the environmental. Teaching students to become effective socio-environmental problem-solvers requires clarity about concepts and competencies needed to understand and tackle these challenges. Here, we propose an educational framework that describes what students should learn and how they should apply this knowledge to address socio-environmental problems. This framework emphasizes the process of problem-solving and is based on socio-environmental (S-E) synthesis, an integrative, transdisciplinary approach to understanding and tackling complex socio-environmental problems. In addition to identifying the knowledge, skills, dispositions, and practices necessary for S-E problem-solving at the undergraduate and graduate levels, we clarify how one draws on such competencies to inquire about problems and generate solutions for them. Our primary goal is to provide a useful tool to help guide development of curricula, teaching materials, and pedagogies for S-E synthesis and interdisciplinary environmental education more broadly.

We introduce the Lake Urmia Vignette (LUV) as a tool to assess individuals' understanding of complexity in socio‐environmental systems. LUV is based on a real‐world case and includes a short vignette describing an environmental catastrophe involving a lake. Over a few decades, significant issues have manifested themselves at the lake because of various social, political, economic, and environmental factors. We design a rubric for assessing responses to a prompt. A pilot test with a sample of 30 engineering graduate students is conducted. We compare responses to LUV with other measures. Our findings suggest that students' understanding of complexity is positively associated with their understanding of systems concepts such as feedback loops but not with other possible variables such as self‐reported systems thinking skills or systems‐related coursework. Based on the provided instructions, researchers can use LUV as a novel assessment tool to examine understanding of complexity in socio‐environmental systems. © 2020 System Dynamics Society

espanolConsiderando los elementos causales de las condiciones de salud de la poblacion, se analiza la presencia de los padecimientos renales cronicos (PRC) en el estado de Sonora en el periodo 1998-2015. La metodologia se basa en un analisis exploratorio para datos de corte trasversal y series de tiempo a partir de microdatos sobre mortalidad y egresos hospitalarios en la ultima decada. Los resultados sugieren la presencia de elementos causales de indole ambiental en la poblacion de estudio y permiten identificar un area de oportunidad para el diseno de politicas publicas preventivas. EnglishThe occurrence of chronic kidney disease is studied for the population in the state of Sonora, throughan environmental causal features approach during the period 1998-2015. The study relies on an exploratory data analysis for two data structures: time series and cross section data.This methodology is applied to hospital admissions and mortality datafor a time period covering the last decade. Results suggest the presence of socio environmental determents consistent with the Mesoamerican nephropathy hypotheses and allow to identify an area of opportunity for policy makers to design preventive control measures.