额尔齐斯河流域河谷林可持续发展的问题与对策

围绕着河谷林现状及在可持续发展中存在的一些问题,探讨了河谷林保护与发展对策,一是必须重新认识河谷林的重要地位;二是必须调整河谷林林分结构增加有林地面积提高河谷林质量;三是必须提高全流域社会经济发展水平,四是在额河流域必须走农林牧协调发展的道路。     

室内空气污染对人体健康的影响与保护对策

本文首先介绍了室内空气污染的定义、室内空气中常见的污染物及其主要来源,分析 了室内空气中主要污染物对人体健康的影响,从而提出了保护室内环境的对策。     

Integrating corporate social responsibility,health improvement,and community support in development programmes: a case for enhancing the application of health impact assessment in programme implementation in the Niger Delta region

Transnational corporations (TNCs) invest enormous resources in their corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. However, the effectiveness and mode of execution of these CSR activities have been subjects of continuing debate. This research was therefore carried out to elicit the perspectives of members of four local communities about the impact of the CSR interventions in the areas of health improvement and participation by members of the communities in the Niger Delta. Semi-structured questionnaires were self-completed by 182 members of the local communities in the Niger Delta; the respondents gave detailed feedback about community feelings for TNCs and their CSR efforts. The findings showed that the people generally have negative views towards the CSR practices of the TNCs. The result of a two-paired t-test showed this to be true for both men and women (P =?.888, CI 95). While 69.8% of the respondents felt that the TNCs did not bring any development to their community, 87.9% had high fear of getting a disease due to the community they live in; interestingly, 90.1% wanted to be involved in decisions concerning their communities. This research therefore proposes the increased use of health impact assessment as an approach to integrate health considerations and community participation into the evaluation and implementation of development programmes in the Niger Delta. Such an approach has the potential to make CSR initiatives more effective, transparent, and minimise the tensions between communities and TNCs.     

Multiple environmental burdens and neighborhood-related health of city residents

Urban living environments are known to influence human well-being and health; however, little is known about the multidimensionality of different environmental burdens. The aim of this study is to examine the relations between multiple burdens and self-rated health of city residents in Berlin. A spatial analysis was conducted to determine neighborhood street blocks with high versus low levels of three environmental burdens (traffic noise, air pollution, lack of public green space) as study sites for a cross-sectional household questionnaire. Burden level served as a dichotomous predictor to compare residents' self-reports of neighborhood satisfaction, life satisfaction, health behavior, and psychological and physical health symptoms. Residents from high-burden blocks appraised the environmental conditions more stressful, reported poorer health behavior and were less satisfied with their neighborhood than residents from low-burden blocks. However, they did not differ in regard to more general health symptoms. Three other burdens (behavior-related noise, litter and dirt in public space, lack of urban vegetation), which could not be varied objectively, were assessed by their perceived intensity. Regression analyses of the relations between the perceived levels of all six burdens and outcomes in the total sample revealed the following: Neighborhood satisfaction could be predicted from multiple stressors and resources that co-occur independently, while more general health symptoms were related only to perceived air pollution. The results have implications for both urban planning and public health.     

Using social resilience and resource dependency to increase the effectiveness of marine conservation initiatives in Salum,Egypt

The social and economic ramifications of marine conservation strategies such as marine protected areas (MPAs) are important to consider prior to their implementation to ensure that they do not exceed the resilience of resource-users and that resource protection might be maximised through compliance and low resistance. This paper presents a framework in which the human dimensions can be more easily and usefully integrated into the design and delivery of conservation initiatives. The framework espouses quantifying (1) the level of dependency on the resource; (2) perceptions towards conservation initiatives; and (3) social resilience. The framework is applied in Salum, Egypt, which is the site of a prospective MPA.     

Stretching “smart”: advancing health and well-being through the smart city agenda

ABSTRACT

Contemporary smart cities have largely mirrored the sustainable development agenda by embracing an ecological modernisation approach to urban development. There is a strong focus on stimulating economic activity and environmental protection with little emphasis on social equity and the human experience. The health and well-being agenda has potential to shift the focus of smart cities to centre on social aims. Through the systematic and widespread application of technologies such as wearable health monitors, the creation of open data platforms for health parameters, and the development of virtual communication between patients and health professionals, the smart city can serve as a means to improve the lives of urban residents. In this article, we present a case study of smart health in Kashiwanoha Smart City in Japan. We explore how the pursuit of greater health and well-being has stretched smart city activities beyond technological innovation to directly impact resident lifestyles and become more socially relevant. Smart health strategies examined include a combination of experiments in monitoring and visualisation, education through information provision, and enticement for behavioural change. Findings suggest that smart cities have great potential to be designed and executed to tackle social problems and realise more sustainable, equitable and liveable cities.