scholarly journals Agricultural Innovations to Reduce the Health Impacts of Dams

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1869
Author(s):  
Andrea J. Lund ◽  
David Lopez-Carr ◽  
Susanne H. Sokolow ◽  
Jason R. Rohr ◽  
Giulio A. De Leo
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Environmental Flows ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Modern Agriculture ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Climate Resilience ◽  
Livelihood Systems ◽  
Agricultural Innovations ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Dams enable the production of food and renewable energy, making them a crucial tool for both economic development and climate change adaptation in low- and middle-income countries. However, dams may also disrupt traditional livelihood systems and increase the transmission of vector- and water-borne pathogens. These livelihood and health impacts diminish the benefits of dams to rural populations dependent on rivers, as hydrological and ecological alterations change flood regimes, reduce nutrient transport and lead to the loss of biodiversity. We propose four agricultural innovations for promoting equity, health, sustainable development, and climate resilience in dammed watersheds: (1) restoring migratory aquatic species, (2) removing submerged vegetation and transforming it into an agricultural resource, (3) restoring environmental flows and (4) integrating agriculture and aquaculture. As investment in dams accelerates in low- and middle-income countries, appropriately addressing their livelihood and health impacts can improve the sustainability of modern agriculture and economic development in a changing climate.

scholarly journals Phylogenetic and evolutionary analysis reveals the recent dominance of ciprofloxacin resistant S. sonnei and local persistence of S. flexneri clones in India

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dhiviya Prabaa Muthuirulandi Sethuvel ◽  
Ankur Mutreja ◽  
Agila Kumari Pragasam ◽  
Karthick Vasudevan ◽  
Dhivya Murugan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
Evolutionary Analysis ◽  
Genome Sequences ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Genomic Level ◽  
Globally Distributed ◽  
Low And Middle Income

AbstractShigella is the second leading cause of bacterial diarrhea worldwide. Recently S. sonnei seems to be replacing S. flexneri in low and middle-income countries undergoing economic development. Despite this, studies focusing on these species at genomic level remain largely unexplored. Here we compared the genome sequences of S. flexneri and S. sonnei isolated from India with the publically available genomes of global strains. Our analysis provide evidence for the long term persistence of all PGs of S. flexneri and the recent dominance of ciprofloxacin-resistant S. sonnei lineage in India. Within S. flexneri PGs, majority of the study isolates belonged to PG3 within the predominance of serotype 2. For S. sonnei, the current pandemic involves globally distributed MDR clones that belong to Central Asia lineage III. The presence of such epidemiologically-dominant lineages in association with stable AMR determinants results in the successful survival in the community.

Are low- and middle-income countries profiting from fast fashion?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karan Khurana ◽  
S.S. Muthu
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Environmental Cost ◽  
Fast Fashion ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
Low And Middle Income

PurposeIn the last two decades, the fashion value chain traveled to developing parts of the world. To these nations, it paved a path for socio-economic development initially but lately, the aftermath has costed more. This article visualizes the gains and losses of fast fashion to these countries.Design/methodology/approachAn in-depth systematic literature review was performed to analyze the secondary data from academic journals and reports from international organizations. The authors have compiled their empirical journeys in academia, research and industry from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) based on Schon's (1983, 1990) theory of reflective practice. Further on, the article is structured using the value chain analysis (VCA) method which visualizes the aftermath of mass-producing fashion for the developed countries.FindingsIn this research it was found that LMICs have made substantial economic progress in the past two decades, however at a high social and environmental cost. It is the right time to find a balance between economic development and harm caused to the citizens of these nations.Originality/valueAt the moment the existing academic literature talks about unsustainable practices in the fashion sector around the world. This research precisely targets the LMICs where the aftermath is supposed to be much more severe. Further, it provides solutions and urges these nations to bring a substantial change throughout the value chain for a robust future.

scholarly journals A Systematic Framework for Collecting Site-Specific Sampling and Survey Data to Support Analyses of Health Impacts from Land-Based Pollution in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 4676
Author(s):  
Katherine von Stackelberg ◽  
Pamela R.D. Williams ◽  
Ernesto Sánchez-Triana
Keyword(s):  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Health Impact ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Populations At Risk ◽  
Low And Middle Income

The rise of small-scale and localized economic activities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has led to increased exposures to contaminants associated with these processes and the potential for resulting adverse health effects in exposed communities. Risk assessment is the process of building models to predict the probability of adverse outcomes based on concentration-response functions and exposure scenarios for individual contaminants, while epidemiology uses statistical methods to explore associations between potential exposures and observed health outcomes. Neither approach by itself is practical or sufficient for evaluating the magnitude of exposures and health impacts associated with land-based pollution in LMICs. Here we propose a more pragmatic framework for designing representative studies, including uniform sampling guidelines and household surveys, that draws from both methodologies to better support community health impact analyses associated with land-based pollution sources in LMICs. Our primary goal is to explicitly link environmental contamination from land-based pollution associated with specific localized economic activities to community exposures and health outcomes at the household level. The proposed framework was applied to the following three types of industries that are now widespread in many LMICs: artisanal scale gold mining (ASGM), used lead-acid battery recycling (ULAB), and small tanning facilities. For each activity, we develop a generalized conceptual site model (CSM) that describes qualitative linkages from chemical releases or discharges, environmental fate and transport mechanisms, exposure pathways and routes, populations at risk, and health outcomes. This upfront information, which is often overlooked, is essential for delineating the contaminant zone of influence in a community and identifying relevant households for study. We also recommend cost-effective methods for use in LMICs related to environmental sampling, biological monitoring, survey questionnaires, and health outcome measurements at contaminated and unexposed reference sites. Future study designs based on this framework will facilitate consistent, comparable, and standardized community exposure, risk, and health impact assessments for land-based pollution in LMICs. The results of these studies can also support economic burden analyses and risk management decision-making around site cleanup, risk mitigation, and public health education.

The Effect of Economic Development on Women’s Well-Being in the Developing Economies

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-421
Author(s):  
Azmat Gani ◽  
Alia Al-Fori
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
Social Indicators ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Abstract This study aims to investigate the effect of economic development, measured by per capita incomes, on women’s well-being by relating a country’s per capita GDP with several dimensions that affect women’s affluence and well-being within the economic, social, and political context. The analysis is based on the theoretical framework of the modernisation-neoclassical approach. Regression analysis is conducted on data from a sample of the countries in the low- and middle-income category to determine the effect of economic development on several indicators of women’s well-being. The results provide strong evidence that economic growth was associated with improvements in some economic and social indicators of women’s well-being in low- and middle-income countries. However, the results do not reveal any strong association between economic development and women’s political participation. Some policy implications are drawn.

Risk Analysis Approaches to Evaluating Health Impacts from Land‐Based Pollution in Low‐ and Middle‐Income Countries

Risk Analysis ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela R. D. Williams ◽  
Katherine Stackelberg ◽  
Mayra Gabriela Guerra Lopez ◽  
Ernesto Sanchez‐Triana
Keyword(s):  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Low And Middle Income

scholarly journals Mining’s Contribution to Low- and Middle-income Economies

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magnus Ericsson ◽  
Olof Löf
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
Gross Domestic Product ◽  
National Income ◽  
Mineral Resources ◽  
Detailed Data ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Widespread View ◽  
Low And Middle Income

In several low- and middle-income countries with important extractive sectors, gross national income has developed favourably. Africa has benefitted most, particularly West Africa. This chapter provides an up-to-date statistical analysis of the contribution of non-fuel minerals mining to low- and middle-income economies. Using the detailed data available for the minerals sector, an analysis is carried out of the current situation for 2014, and of trends in mining’s contribution to economic development for the years 1996–2014. The contribution of minerals and mining to gross domestic product and exports reached a maximum at the peak of the mining boom in 2011. Although the figures for mining’s contribution had declined for most countries by 2014, the levels were still considerably higher than in 1996. The results of this chapter contradict the widespread view that mineral resources create a dependency that might not be conducive to economic and social development.

scholarly journals Circular economy and environmental health in low- and middle-income countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Caradee Y. Wright ◽  
Linda Godfrey ◽  
Giovanna Armiento ◽  
Lorren K. Haywood ◽  
Roula Inglesi-Lotz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Health ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Main Body ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Responsible Consumption ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Abstract Background The circular economy framework for human production and consumption is an alternative to the traditional, linear concept of ‘take, make, and dispose’. Circular economy (CE) principles comprise of ‘design out waste and pollution’, ‘retain products and materials in use’, and ‘regenerate natural systems’. This commentary considers the risks and opportunities of the CE for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), acknowledging that LMICs must identify their own opportunities, while recognising the potential positive and negative environmental health impacts. Main body The implementation of the CE in LMICs is mostly undertaken informally, driven by poverty and unemployment. Activities being employed towards extracting value from waste in LMICs are imposing environmental health risks including exposure to hazardous and toxic working environments, emissions and materials, and infectious diseases. The CE has the potential to aid towards the achievement of the SDGs, in particular SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). However, since SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being) is critical in the pursuit of all SDGs, the negative implications of the CE should be well understood and addressed. We call on policy makers, industry, the health sector, and health-determining sectors to address these issues by defining mechanisms to protect vulnerable populations from the negative health impacts that may arise in LMICs as these countries domesticate the CE. Conclusion Striving towards a better understanding of risks should not undermine support for the CE, which requires the full agency of the public and policy communities to realise the potential to accelerate LMICs towards sustainable production and consumption, with positive synergies for several SDGs.

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