The internal brain drain: foreign aid,hiring practices,and international migration

Building on empirical material gathered in Haiti, this paper advances a new and innovative understanding of the internal brain drain phenomenon—the poaching of local skilled workers by international organisations (IOs) or international non-governmental organisations (INGOs)— by conceptualising it as an equilibrium. This equilibrium is composed of two sets of tensions: (i) those between the salary conditions in the public sector and those on offer to local personnel working for IOs and INGOs; and (ii) those inherent in the dual salary scale used by IOs and INGOs for local and international staff. These two sets of tensions contribute in their specific ways to international migration, and, as such, the internal brain drain has a bearing on external brain drain dynamics. In addition, the paper addresses the difficult policy choices facing development and humanitarian organisations, since every set of policies that impacts on one side of the equilibrium is bound to affect its other side.     

Building work engagement: A systematic review and meta‐analysis investigating the effectiveness of work engagement interventions

Low work engagement may contribute towards decreased well‐being and work performance. Evaluating, boosting and sustaining work engagement are therefore of interest to many organisations. However, the evidence on which to base interventions has not yet been synthesised. A systematic review with meta‐analysis was conducted to assess the evidence for the effectiveness of work engagement interventions. A systematic literature search identified controlled workplace interventions employing a validated measure of work engagement. Most used the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). Studies containing the relevant quantitative data underwent random‐effects meta‐analyses. Results were assessed for homogeneity, systematic sampling error, publication bias and quality. Twenty studies met the inclusion criteria and were categorised into four types of interventions: (i) personal resource building; (ii) job resource building; (iii) leadership training; and (iv) health promotion. The overall effect on work engagement was small, but positive, k = 14, Hedges g = 0.29, 95%‐CI = 0.12–0.46. Moderator analyses revealed a significant result for intervention style, with a medium to large effect for group interventions. Heterogeneity between the studies was high, and the success of implementation varied. More studies are needed, and researchers are encouraged to collaborate closely with organisations to design interventions appropriate to individual contexts and settings, and include evaluations of intervention implementation. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Organizational Behavior published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Myths and assumptions about human-wildlife conflict and coexistence

Recent extinctions often resulted from humans retaliating against wildlife that threatened people's interests or were perceived to threaten current or future interests. Today's subfield of human-wildlife conflict and coexistence (HWCC) grew out of an original anthropocentric concern with such real or perceived threats and then, starting in the mid-1990s, with protecting valued species from people. Recent work in ethics and law has shifted priorities toward coexistence between people and wild animals. To spur scientific progress and more effective practice, we examined 4 widespread assumptions about HWCC that need to be tested rigorously: scientists are neutral and objective about HWCC; current participatory, consensus-based decisions provide just and fair means to overcome challenges in HWCC; wildlife threats to human interests are getting worse; and wildlife damage to human interests is additive to other sources of damage. The first 2 assumptions are clearly testable, but if they are entangled can become a wicked problem and may need debunking as myths if they cannot be disentangled. Some assumptions have seldom or never been tested and those that have been tested appear dubious, yet the use of the assumptions continues in the practice and scholarship of HWCC. We call for tests of assumptions and debunking of myths in the scholarship of HWCC. Adherence to the principles of scientific integrity and application of standards of evidence can help advance our call. We also call for practitioners and interest groups to improve the constitutive process prior to decision making about wildlife. We predict these steps will hasten scientific progress toward evidence-based interventions and improve the fairness, ethics, and legality of coexistence strategies.     

Predicting support for non‐pharmaceutical interventions during infectious outbreaks: a four region analysis

Non‐pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) are an important public health tool for responding to infectious disease outbreaks, including pandemics. However, little is known about the individual characteristics associated with support for NPIs, or whether they are consistent across regions. This study draws on survey data from four regions—Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States—collected following the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak of 2002–03, and employs regression techniques to estimate predictors of NPI support. It finds that characteristics associated with NPI support vary widely by region, possibly because of cultural variation and prior experience, and that minority groups tend to be less supportive of NPIs when arrest is the consequence of noncompliance. Prior experience of face‐mask usage also results in increased support for future usage, as well as other NPIs. Policymakers should be attentive to local preferences and to the application of compulsory interventions. It is speculated here that some public health interventions may serve as ‘gateway’ exposures to future public health interventions.     

Whose marginalisation? Politics around environmental injustices in India's Chilika lagoon

The article examines marginalisation in small-scale fishing communities in a large lagoon system. It explores what marginalisation looks like from the fishers' point of view, and examines the extreme discrepancy between the official government account of the lagoon's resources, and the fishers' account. We analyse two major drivers of marginalisation: (1) role of aquaculture development in the loss of resource access rights and decline of local institutions, and (2) ecological displacement and livelihood loss brought about by the opening of a new (2001) “sea mouth”. We consider evidence collected through household- and village-level surveys combined with a host of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The fishers' point of view, and the data obtained using this point of view as a guide, presents a more complex, multidimensional concept of marginalisation, not simply as a state of being but as a process over time, impacting social and economic conditions, political standing, and environmental health.     

Well-being for all? The social distribution of benefits gained from woodlands and forests in Britain

Well-being is a positive physical, mental and social state and has increasingly become an area of interest to researchers and policy-makers internationally. This paper presents results from research that analyses the well-being benefits gained by different sections of society through viewing, engaging with, and accessing woodlands and forests in Britain. We draw on 31 studies undertaken since 2001 and present a meta-analysis of quantitative data and a meta-synthesis of qualitative data to explore the range of benefits and associated activities in woodlands, and their social distribution. We also present a state-of-the-art typology of well-being benefits for woodlands in Britain. The findings illustrate the wide range of well-being benefits gained by different social groups through various forms of engagement with and activities undertaken in woodlands. We illustrate the wide range of meanings and values attached to trees and woodlands across different social groups. The evidence also illustrates how carefully designed and targeted interventions can be particularly effective in enabling and encouraging people to visit woodland sites, to participate or get involved in new activities and, therefore, to realise a range of well-being benefits.     

Linking perceived land and water resources degradation,scarcity and livelihood conflicts in southwestern Tanzania: implications for sustainable rural livelihood

In Africa, the land and water resources quality are key factors for sustainable development. The degradation of the quality of these resources leads to scarcities and conflicts, which together threaten the sustainability of rural livelihoods. This work investigated and analysed the livelihoods conflicts over the land and water resources and their scarcities, policies that contributed to the land and water scarcities and the livelihood conflicts and linkage of the conflicts to the resources scarcities and degradation. Implications of degradation of the resources, development policies and livelihoods conflicts on sustainable development are discussed. Literature study, visits and discussions, participatory assessments, observations and questionnaire survey were used tools to collect data. Interviews of the 266 households revealed that, those experiencing the land and water scarcities and conflicts over these resources are significantly (p < 0.001) higher than those not experiencing the scarcities and conflicts. Crop-livestock competition, over the land and water resources causes prominent conflicts. A significant, (p < 0.05) associations of livelihoods conflicts to water shortage and period of water shortage for crop and livestock production were found. Improved accessibility to soil and water management technologies, wildlife–livestock co-existence, recognition of needs and land rights for pastoralists are recommended to minimize scarcities and herders versus farmers’ conflicts.     

祁连山北麓生态移民的生计风险与应对策略选择——以武威市为例

生计风险作为移民社会整合的标尺,已成为研究生态移民生计及可持续发展的重要视角。以祁连山北麓的武威市为例,利用Binary Logistic模型分析了移民生计风险对其应对策略的影响机制,以期为制定有效的生计风险防范体系提供科学支撑。结果表明：（1）武威市生态移民的生计类型以非农户为主,纯农户比例不足10%,生计多样化指数仅为1.74且存在显著的区域差异。（2）67.44%的移民面临着多重风险,以经济风险为主,生活开支大、新分棚圈耕地质量差、返贫是主要的风险要素。（3）应对策略主要为向亲朋借钱、银行贷款、外出打工和减少开支,后顾生计则多选择扩大养殖、长期打工和维持现状,不同县区移民的策略选择略有不同。（4）政策、福利和经济风险会显著影响移民对“向银行贷款”“减少开支”及“外出打工”等应对策略的选择,而后顾生计的选择更多受制于生计资本储量,而政策及经济风险的影响较低。移民户的类型对策略选择影响显著,非农型兼业户更倾向于选择“向银行贷款”和“扩大养殖”。     

农地整治对农户生计策略的影响分析——基于PSM-DID方法的实证研究

论文先对农户生计策略类型进行细分,利用倾向得分匹配-双重差分方法（Propensity Score Matching-Difference in Differences,PSM-DID）排除其他混杂因素,探讨农地整治在生计资本差异下对农户生计策略的影响效用,并运用多种匹配方法和反事实检验法对估计结果进行稳健性检验。结果表明：1）农地整治的实施能够显著改变二兼型农户的生计策略,但并不能显著改变专业型或多兼型农户的生计策略;2）农地整治对传统兼业型、现代兼业型、非农兼业型农户生计策略有显著影响,传统兼业型、现代兼业型农户比重显著增加,而非农兼业型农户比重显著减少,说明农户能够通过调整自身生计策略适应农地整治带来的变化,农地整治促进了农户生计多样化;3）通过多种匹配方法及反事实法开展稳健性检验,证实论文主要估计结果是稳健的。建议针对不同类型农户家庭需求制定差别化的鼓励政策;充分利用当地产业特色,依托农地整治与现代农业政策,带动现代兼业型农户发展区域特色农业或休闲农业。     

农牧交错区农户生计分化及其对耕地利用的影响——以宁夏盐池县为例

农户生计与耕地利用之间的关系已经成为理解人地关系的重要切入点。论文以宁夏盐池县为例,在可持续生计框架下,从农户生计资本和生产要素配置两个角度,探讨农户生计分化及其对耕地利用的影响。结果表明：1）盐池县兼业户与非农就业户合计占调查农户的58%,农户非农化现象普遍;2）劳动力越多、人均耕地越少的农户,其家庭非农收入占比越高,生计资本是农户生计分化的“推力”;3）务农机会成本越高的农户其生计分化程度越高,务农机会成本是农户生计分化的“拉力”;4）随着生计分化程度的增加,耕地利用的生产要素投入强度呈递减态势,但是兼业户的耕地利用效率高于纯农户和非农就业户。农牧交错区同时面临着生态保护、农牧业生产、脱贫攻坚等挑战,政策制定需充分考虑当地农户的生计特征与人地关系的演变规律,加强非农就业引导,鼓励农户土地流转,促进农户生计多样化,实现生态、经济、社会效益“共赢”发展。