Child health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa: A comparison of changes in climate and socio-economic factors

We compare changes in low birth weight and child malnutrition in 13 African countries under projected climate change versus socio-economic development scenarios. Climate scenarios are created by linking surface temperature gradients with declines in seasonal rainfall sea along with warming values of 1 °C and 2 °C. Socio-economic scenarios are developed by assigning regionally specific changes in access to household electricity and mother's education. Using these scenarios, in combination with established models of children's health, we investigate and compare the changes in predicted health outcomes. We find that the negative effects of warming and drying on child stunting could be mitigated by positive development trends associated with increasing mothers’ educational status and household access to electricity. We find less potential for these trends to mitigate how warming and drying trends impact birth weights. In short, under warming and drying, the risk of more malnourished children is greater than the risk of more children with low birth weights, but increases in child malnutrition could be averted in regions that increase access to educational resources and basic infrastructure.     

A multi-level perspective on climate risks and drivers of entrepreneurial robustness – Findings from sectoral comparison in alpine Austria

Recent works on organizational adaptation to climate change have repeatedly stressed that – despite concerns about large-scale impacts of climate change on supply chain networks – studies on climate change adaptation in manufacturing industries are still surprisingly scarce. The following study develops a systemic analytical framework based on which climate risks for manufacturing industries are reviewed and drivers (defined as supportive factors) of entrepreneurial robustness are examined. The analysis builds upon a case study in the alpine Austrian state of Tyrol where an intense regional rise of average temperatures occurs, going along with increased risks of natural mountain hazards and exposed settlement structures. In this climate-sensitive setting the authors conducted a survey on risk perceptions among 102 managers from manufacturing firms. Based on a comparison of the sectors metal and engineering, timber products, and construction, the authors argue that drivers of entrepreneurial robustness can be subsumed under five major strategic principles: (a) the deployment of slack resources, (b) vertical supply chain integration, (c) manufacturing flexibility, (d) material efficiency, and (e) technological risk prevention. Departing from the empirical results, the authors argue that across these principles the development of drivers depends on an interplay of structural prerequisites and human decisions on the levels of the focal firm, the supply chain network, and the political, economic, and geographic environment. In this sense, the authors conceptualize different forms of contingencies – thus effects influencing the development of drivers – within an ontology which may support further system-oriented analysis of climate change adaptation in industry.     

Mitigating Risks From Fracking-Related Earthquakes: Assessing State Regulatory Decisions

Public concern about earthquakes linked to wastewater injection from fracking operations is rising. However, few have examined how “induced seismicity” is acted upon by state officials. For some, an incremental response to smaller quakes can be viewed as an acceptable risk policy orientation because of the sizeable economic benefits that accompany drilling activities while others prefer risk mitigation policies (such as the use of “threshold policies”) as a better way to address quake-related problems. To account for state response to induced seismicity impacts, we examine three factors: the emergence of quakes as focusing events, the economic importance of oil and gas to state jobs and revenue, and selected characteristics of earthquakes as a policy issue, i.e., complexity and categorical precedence. Using information drawn from documentary sources, we consider which factors are most helpful in accounting for agency decisions aimed at reducing seismic risks linked to nearby injection wells.     

The Geography of Malnutrition

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of an emerging theme within the subfield of nutritional geography we call the geography of malnutrition. Work relating to malnutrition is a high-priority research topic, with growing relevance to geographical concepts, but there is no overview of geographical approaches to this theme. Using keyword searches in Google Scholar and Web of Science to obtain relevant publications, we identified the major foci of work within this theme: undernutrition, diseases that cause malnutrition, the nutrition transition, and critical and feminist approaches to malnutrition. We review these foci, provide examples of prominent work, and identify areas of research concerning malnutrition that are highly spatial but have yet to be effectively studied using geographic techniques.     

基于倾向值匹配法的城市建成环境对居民生理健康的影响

伴随着城市化和机动化进程,肥胖及其引致的慢性疾病已成为中国严峻的社会问题。本文利用2010年中国社会综合调查、空间兴趣点POI、道路网等数据,探究城市建成环境对居民生理健康状况的影响,并通过倾向值匹配法控制自选择机制的干扰。研究发现：① 高密度的土地利用对居民总体的身体健康状况具有负向影响,而功能混合、支路网通达的城市肌理、以及充足的健康设施在降低身体质量指数BMI、抑制超重和减少慢性病方面发挥着积极作用。② 各类建成环境特征对中高社会阶层的影响集中在主观的健康感知,对中低阶层人群的影响则主要作用于客观的健康指标。③ 小尺度范围内的建成环境与中低阶层群体的身体健康水平存在更为密切的关联,但这一规律在中高社会阶层并不明显。本研究证明了主动式空间干预手段在促进居民生理健康过程中的有效性,进而就建成环境的优化策略提出了初步建议。     

Big Data Resource Planning for Food Safety: a Preliminary Exploration of the “Environment,Food and Health” Information Chain

Environmental pollution, food safety and health are closely linked. A key challenge in addressing the problem of food safety and protecting public health is building an integrated knowledge base to inform policy and strengthen governance. This requires breaking down the trans-departmental information barrier across the environment, food and health domains to ensure the effective flow of data and the efficient utilization of resources, and facilitate the collaborative governance of food safety. Achieving this will be crucial for the development of health and medical care in China in the era of big data. Currently, the information resources commanded by various departments are incomplete and fragmented. Data resources are also organized in vertical silos and there is a lack of data sharing within and across policy streams. To provide the basis for more effective integrated collection and analysis of data in future, this study summarizes the information resources of various departments whose work relates to interactions between environment, food and health, and presents measures to strengthen top-down design, and establish unified data standards and a big data sharing platform. It also points to the need for increased training of data analysts with interdisciplinary expertise.     

Desertification in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia

The problem of land degradation in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia is not a new phenomenon, but during the last decade it has grown to be a serious threat to the delicate desert ecosystems, and also to the urban and industrial areas, due to an increase in sand movement. The area under investigation is situated on the Gulf coast north of Jubail and is approximately 20 km in width centered along the coastline. The total area is almost 1000 km². Eight vegetation types were classified according to the dominant and co-dominant species. A comparative study of the vegetation in a fenced, non-grazed area and in an open grazed area showed that the impact of grazing and recreational activities have largely reduced the value of the rangelands. The reduction in species diversity and density leads to an increase in wind and sand dynamics. Exposed roots, giant ripples, changes in the extension of inland sabkhas and new active dunes could be observed in many parts of the study area. It could be proved that most inland sabkhas in the area are pure deflational features with considerable dynamic due to the reduction in vegetation cover during the recent years. The monitoring of vegetation density was carried out during helicopter flights with the help of GPS and a video camera. Image processing on a personal computer allowed accurate calculations of vegetation density. Observations on active dune fields in the area showed that the size of the dune fields almost doubled in 15 months. Tests in small enclosures showed that there is a potential for natural recovery even in severely damaged areas. In just one year without grazing and with average precipitation there is a significant difference in vegetation cover. Strict grazing management and camping regulations are required to prevent further degradation and allow the recovery of damaged ecosystems. Community involvement and education is necessary for the development of an understanding of regulations and the need for preservation.     

天气气候与健康——兼论中国气候与中医养生文化

人生活在大气之中,人的健康和疾病深受气象条件影响,我国盛行大陆性季风气候,冬冷夏热和冷干夏湿,这种特殊的气候条件,诞生了中国的特殊医学－中医,中医是中国对人类的巨大贡献,并大大丰富了世界医药文化的宝库。     

城市大气气溶胶的物理化学特性及其对人体健康的影响

根据在北京、重庆、上海等城市大气气溶胶的观测结果和气溶胶中有机化学成分的有关资料,分析城市地区大气气溶胶的浓度、尺度谱分布、日变化规律及其化学成分的谱分布特征,并与干净地区的结果作比较,进而探讨了大气气溶胶对人体健康的影响。     

气象保健、气象治疗与保健舱

气象条件对人类的健康与疾病有着明显的影响。如流行性感冒、心脑血管疾病和风湿性关节炎等发病率与天气变化有密切的关系。这类疾病通常称为气象疾病。恶劣的气象条件会破坏人体的健康状况,带来疾病;适宜的气象条件能保持人体的健康状态,促进机体新陈代谢,增强免疫能力,达到治病、保健的效果。在人类生存环境日益恶化的今天,我们一方面要努力改善、保护大的生态环境,另一方面制作一套人造生活、疗养保健的小气候环境也是简易可行的。为此,设计了一个由计算机自动控制多种气象条件的保健舱方案,如制成产品,推入市场,定能造福于人类。