Community Perspectives Research Articles

Assessing community awareness for flood disasters in the UAE through human-centered design

The methodology of human-centered design (HCD) is used in this paper to examine community knowledge of flood disasters in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). With the region's floods becoming more frequent and severe, evaluating and improving the community's preparedness and response procedures is critical. HCD provides a user-centered approach that combines community perspectives and needs, ensuring effective strategies and interventions are created. This paper will use an HCD framework to assess the present awareness levels of the UAE community, identify existing issues in dealing with flooding disasters, and provide first-hand data related to community resilience.

Partnerships in the recovery planning process: lessons from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria and Irma

PurposeTo assess which partnerships were most critical during the recovery planning process following Hurricanes Maria and Irma. We discuss the roles and impact of different types of partners, barriers and facilitators to partnerships and lessons in collaboration during the development of the economic and disaster recovery plan for Puerto Rico.Design/methodology/approachThe Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center (HSOAC) was tasked with assisting the Puerto Rican government with an assessment of damages from Hurricanes Maria and Irma and the development of the Recovery Plan. During the process, a small team compiled and coded a database of meetings with non-HSOAC partners. The team was divided into sector teams that mirrored FEMA’s Recovery Support Functions. Each sector completed two surveys identifying high impact partners and their roles and contributions, as well as barriers and facilitators to partnerships.FindingsA total of 1,382 engagements were recorded across all sectors over seven months. The most frequently identified high impact partners were federal and Puerto Rican governmental organizations partners. NGOs and nonprofits were noted as key partners in obtaining community perspective. Sector teams cited a lack of trust and difficulty identifying partners as barriers to partner engagement. Given the expedited nature of disaster response, establishing partnerships before disasters occur may help facilitate community input. Early networking, increased transparency and defining roles and responsibilities may increase trust and effectiveness among partnerships.Originality/valueTo our knowledge, this is one of the few studies that quantifies and illustrates the partnerships formed and their contributions during recovery planning, and lessons learned.

Community Perspectives in Developing Bat-Cave Tourism in Leang Londrong, Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park: Comparing The Locals & Tourists

Maros-Pangkep karst formation in South Sulawesi is one of the largest karst environments in the world. One cave located in the area is Leang Londrong and is a part of the management of Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park. The Leang Londrong area is known as tourism spot with water-based tourism as the main attraction and it is also known as the main ecosystem service provider in particular as water sources for many areas. This cave is inhabited by some species of bats. Even now the area is designated for water-based tourism, other potential tourism object such bats roosting inside the cave for tourism development has not been explored. Therefore, this study attempts to examine the perception of local community and tourists visiting the area towards nature, cave, bats and its conservation, as well as cave-bats tourism development. The study was conducted between January-April 2022 by distributing questionnaires to 86 respondents consisted of local community, tourists, and government’s representatives. The results indicated that in general the respondents had limited knowledge on nature, cave, bats and its conservation. In particular with bats, the majority of the respondents have not yet been familiar with bats, understood the roles of bats for the environment, and tended to ignore the existence of bats. However, in relation with nature and conservation, bat conservation, and the development of cave and bat tourism in Leang Londrong, all respondents from the tourist’s side agreed to support (>85%) and for the locals, the number was even higher (>90%). Therefore, from the perspectives of local community and tourists, the chance in developing cave and bat tourism in Leang Londrong can be considered possible.

Digital Pathways to Empowerment: Unraveling Women's Journeys in Atmanirbhar Bharat through ICT - A Qualitative Exploration

This qualitative research aims to explore the lived experiences, perceptions, and challenges faced by women in leveraging Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for empowerment within the framework of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, the study seeks to understand how ICT tools and platforms contribute to women's socio-economic empowerment, including their participation in education, entrepreneurship, governance, and employment. By examining individual narratives and community perspectives, the research aims to uncover the nuances of women's engagement with ICT, as well as the barriers they encounter in accessing and utilizing digital resources. The findings of this study are expected to provide valuable insights into the intersection of gender, technology, and development, informing policy and practice for promoting women's empowerment and self-reliance in India. In the framework of Atmanirbhar Bharat, we want to investigate the relationship between ICT and women's empowerment in this qualitative study. By studying women's experiences, obstacles, and opportunities when using ICT resources, we hope to add to the body of knowledge needed to create policies and programs that support gender-inclusive development and enable women to take an active role in empowering themselves and their communities as they work towards prosperity and self-reliance in India.

Priority setting: Development of the South Australian Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium RoadMap for Action.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) people in South Australia are overburdened by cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. The South Australian Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium (Consortium) was established in June 2017 as a collaborative partnership to lead the implementation of three state-wide chronic disease plans using a strategic approach to identifying key priority areas for action. In 2017-2018, the Consortium Coordinating Centre facilitated a priority setting process, which involved extensive consultation, including a prioritisation survey and stakeholder workshops. The Consortium's Aboriginal Community Reference Group was instrumental in leading the identification of priorities for action. The Consortium RoadMap for Action identified seven across-plan priorities and six condition-specific priorities. It acknowledged that: strengthening social and emotional well-being is central to improving health outcomes; prevention and early detection, acute management and ongoing management are all components of the continuum of care; and improving access to services, strengthening the workforce, and monitoring and evaluation are required across the continuum of care. Widespread implementation failure in the past across the health system and health services implementation and research translation highlights the value of the Consortium approach and its commitment to implementing the state-wide chronic disease plans in a collaborative manner. The Consortium relies on and fosters cross-sectoral alignment, with all key players including all public, private and Aboriginal Community Controlled health services, to progress its priorities and aspirations to improve health outcomes for Aboriginal people using evidence-based strategies. SO WHAT?: Rigorous and transparent priority setting processes that bring together research, clinical practice, health services operations, policy and community perspectives can foster intersectoral collaboration and partnership and support the implementation of shared priorities.

In Solidarity: Undocuqueer Identities and Politics in U.S. Spanish-Language Ethnic Media

ABSTRACT This study presents a critical discourse analysis of the coverage of undocumented LGBTQ people and the Undocuqueer Movement by Spanish-language news media to examine how notions of solidarity and advocacy inform ethnic news narratives. The analysis reveals that Spanish-language news outlets construct undocumented LGBTQ identities around the notions of precarity and activism, affording the community some agency while still highlighting the interlocking oppressions that make undocuqueer life particularly hazardous in the U.S. Additionally, the coverage in Spanish-language media deploys solidarity as a news value, rendering newsworthy the perspectives of the undocumented LGBTQ community, the systemic issues that impact it, and the initiatives that undocuqueer people and their allies have taken to improve their situation. This study suggests that Spanish-language news media, as part of the legacies of ethnic media, are a particularly fertile ground for the development of solidarity reporting, which allows journalists to leverage their belonging to minoritized communities to produce more accurate, fair, impactful, and action-oriented news narratives.

Virtual community engagement: Engaging virtual communities for nation branding through sports

Major sporting events bring a range of social, economic, and reputational benefits for hosting nations and serve as a vehicle to showcase the nation brand. Social media engagement during sport events provides opportunities for community members to cocreate, curate and communicate their nation brand’s attributes. While research in nation branding and community engagement has examined the ways place-based communities contribute to nation branding, little is known about how and in what ways virtual communities contribute to their nation brand. This study addresses this gap by examining the virtual brand community (VBC) surrounding the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Using social network analysis and content analysis, the findings suggest that VBC contributions is dependent on the composition, participation, and cultivation of conversations focusing on the personality traits of a nation brand. Theoretically, the outcomes from this study advance understanding of leveraging the properties of VBCs in making contribution to the production and maintenance of an authentic nation brand, that values community perspectives facilitated through community engagement. For public relations, it extends the current research in digital social-level engagement in virtual settings and outlines future research in participatory approaches to nation branding. The growing use of major sporting events in supporting nation branding goals, particularly in Asian and African continents, suggests the outcome of this study has implications at regional and international levels to guide public relations managers in major events to facilitate sustainable VBCs for authentic place branding outcomes.

A cross-sectional study exploring community perspectives on the impacts of COVID-19 in Nunavut and recommendations for a Holistic Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit approach to emergency response

ABSTRACT The goal of this study was to examine and address critical knowledge gaps and develop an understanding of both the positive and negative societal outcomes resulting from the public health measures associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in Nunavut and the interventions being undertaken to promote positive well-being. Data collection for this study included narrative, in-person interviews in Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, and Cambridge Bay between September 2022 and January 2023. A total of 70 participants were interviewed for this study. Community highlighted challenges, such as crowding and food insecurity, and concern for the collective wellbeing of the community. Strengths included financials supports, food sharing, and maintaining community connections over a distance. Recommendations included a focus on holistic health such as 1) public education and awareness about communicable disease, 2) financial supports, 3) housing, 4) access to healthcare, 5) focus on Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, 6) mental-health and addiction supports, and 7) community spaces. Community members described both strengths and challenges they believe impacted their experiences and service delivery as well as recommendations for the future.

‘She became this liaison’. Perspectives of a preschool community on coaches as brokers of assistive technology access, communication and support for teachers and caregivers of children with disabilities

ABSTRACT While AT has been well-documented as a valuable support for disabled and nondisabled children across developmental domains and settings, several barriers to access and implementation persist. Studies have described heightened barriers for community-based preschools, whose access to AT professional development, AT resources, and practitioners with AT experience may be limited. Researchers in this qualitative inquiry engaged twenty-seven participants (teachers, teacher assistants, caregivers and administrators) to learn about their experiences of an AT intervention programme over a 2-year period. Using Constructivist Grounded Theory Methodology, we analysed data from focus groups and semi-structured interviews, generating five themes. Members of the school community valued the programme’s AT coaches, whose presence, affective style and actions promoted their confidence using AT. While the COVID-19 pandemic impacted both programme delivery and participants’ experiences, the programme and its coaches helped bolster technology and communication access in unanticipated ways. Insights from this inquiry emphasise the important, yet often understated role of building relationships with all participants when delivering community-based preschool interventions, invaluable in meeting the holistic needs of children, as well as the practitioners and families who support them. Notably, AT coaches were perceived as liaisons, building rapport, providing technical assistance, and sustaining connections within a school learning community.

Analisis Kebijakan Sistem Zonasi di SMP Negeri 31 Surabaya

The education equality program is one of the government's efforts to advance education in Indonesia through several policies, one of which is the policy of accepting new students through a zoning system. This zoning system emerged as a form of educational equality and to erase the image of superior schools that has spread in society. With this zoning system, it is hoped that all schools will have the same quality. Minister of Education and Culture Regulation Number 44 of 2019 contains the zoning system policy concerning acceptance of new students from Kindergarten to Senior High School/Vocational High School (SMA/SMK). This policy must be implemented in schools under the auspices of the Regional Government. With this new policy, it cannot be denied that many problems will arise for both the school and the community, namely students. This research aims to reveal the factual conditions of implementing the zoning system policy in accepting new students, especially at SMP Negeri 31 Surabaya, as well as to determine the impact of implementing this policy. This problem was analyzed using policy implementation theory according to George Edward III, namely communication, resources, disposition, and bureaucratic structure. This research method uses a qualitative approach. Data collection methods use interviews, documentation, and observation techniques. The results of this research reveal that communication between policy actors is carried out clearly and consistently, and outreach is carried out to the community. Human and non-human resources have supported all activities in implementing zoning system policies. The disposition in implementing the zoning system policy is excellent, which can be seen from the commitment and attitude of the implementing committee towards the policy. The bureaucratic structure in implementing the zoning system policy is very good, it can be seen from the division of tasks in the PPDB committee, that each committee has the task of accepting new students following standard operational procedures. Meanwhile, from the community or student perspective, different views emerged regarding this zoning policy, namely agreeing and disagreeing.

Mapping of community perspectives on land acquisition for biofuel investment in northern Ghana

We apply Q methodology, a model with a qualitative background, albeit with rigorous quantitative analysis, to map community perspectives (concerns, attitudes, beliefs, opinions, and perceptions) towards the acquisition of communal land for a biofuel project in northern Ghana. We extracted four community perspectives, in the order of importance as follows: (1) pro-biofuel project, but pessimistic (2) against the biofuel project (pro-environmental) (3) strong against and (4) optimistic. Taken together, the perspectives suggest the local people believe the biofuel project has no potential to improve their livelihoods, meanwhile, there is a consensus that the project destroyed trees of economic importance and provided poor working conditions for the local employees. We recommend (1) the establishment of enforceable economic and social contracts between the employees, local land users and the biofuel investors (2) direct monetary compensation for the affected communal land users (3) investigation of allegations of late or partial-payment of salaries of the biofuel project’s employees (4) future considerations for acquiring communal land should include broad community consultations and incorporate the local land users’ interests, concerns, and viewpoints and (5) the local bioenergy policy of the government of Ghana must include checks on communal land sale decisions, which directly or indirectly impact the welfare of the people.

Modeling Dynamics of Human Gut Microbiota Derived from Gluten Metabolism: Obtention, Maintenance and Characterization of Complex Microbial Communities.

Western diets are rich in gluten-containing products, which are frequently poorly digested. The human large intestine harbors microorganisms able to metabolize undigested gluten fragments that have escaped digestion by human enzymatic activities. The aim of this work was obtaining and culturing complex human gut microbial communities derived from gluten metabolism to model the dynamics of healthy human large intestine microbiota associated with different gluten forms. For this purpose, stool samples from six healthy volunteers were inoculated in media containing predigested gluten or predigested gluten plus non-digested gluten. Passages were carried out every 24 h for 15 days in the same medium and community composition along time was studied via V3-V4 16S rDNA sequencing. Diverse microbial communities were successfully obtained. Moreover, communities were shown to be maintained in culture with stable composition for 14 days. Under non-digested gluten presence, communities were enriched in members of Bacillota, such as Lachnospiraceae, Clostridiaceae, Streptococcaceae, Peptoniphilaceae, Selenomonadaceae or Erysipelotrichaceae, and members of Actinomycetota, such as Bifidobacteriaceae and Eggerthellaceae. Contrarily, communities exposed to digested gluten were enriched in Pseudomonadota. Hence, this study shows a method for culture and stable maintenance of gut communities derived from gluten metabolism. This method enables the analysis of microbial metabolism of gluten in the gut from a community perspective.

'You are making it sound like you are talking to a child': exploring community sentiment on developing and disseminating tailored sexual health education resources for migrants.

Health communication is a critical component of public health, which includes health education resources. Resource effectiveness is improved where health literacy demands, including the cultural appropriateness of resources, match the intended audience. International guidelines support the tailoring of resources for migrants from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (CaLD). Five focus groups (n = 18) and interviews (n = 9) with people from CaLD migrant backgrounds explored community perspectives on sexual health resources developed by a state department of health, specifically clarity, comprehensiveness, cultural appropriateness and strategies for dissemination. We identified three major thematic areas relating to simplicity, cultural norms and beliefs and dissemination. Participants recommended resource delivery in different formats as part of a broader intervention. Generally, sexual health information was deemed appropriate and easily understood. However, the resources used simplified language that participants reported was vague and inaccurate at times, potentially contributing to misinformation and reinforcing stigma relating both to the status of being a migrant and sexual health. Findings suggest the need for more nuanced health resource development beyond translation and language simplification. Resources developed in different formats, including different health literacy demands, using approaches that engage the target group in design and dissemination and contextualized within a comprehensive health promotion project, are likely to be more effective.

Cost of start-up activities to implement a community-level opioid overdose reduction intervention in the HEALing Communities Study

BackgroundCommunities That HEAL (CTH) is a novel, data-driven community-engaged intervention designed to reduce opioid overdose deaths by increasing community engagement, adoption of an integrated set of evidence-based practices, and delivering a communications campaign across healthcare, behavioral-health, criminal-legal, and other community-based settings. The implementation of such a complex initiative requires up-front investments of time and other expenditures (i.e., start-up costs). Despite the importance of these start-up costs in investment decisions to stakeholders, they are typically excluded from cost-effectiveness analyses. The objective of this study is to report a detailed analysis of CTH start-up costs pre-intervention implementation and to describe the relevance of these data for stakeholders to determine implementation feasibility.MethodsThis study is guided by the community perspective, reflecting the investments that a real-world community would need to incur to implement the CTH intervention. We adopted an activity-based costing approach, in which resources related to hiring, training, purchasing, and community dashboard creation were identified through macro- and micro-costing techniques from 34 communities with high rates of fatal opioid overdoses, across four states—Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York, and Ohio. Resources were identified and assigned a unit cost using administrative and semi-structured-interview data. All cost estimates were reported in 2019 dollars.ResultsState-level average and median start-up cost (representing 8–10 communities per state) were $268,657 and $175,683, respectively. Hiring and training represented 40%, equipment and infrastructure costs represented 24%, and dashboard creation represented 36% of the total average start-up cost. Comparatively, hiring and training represented 49%, purchasing costs represented 18%, and dashboard creation represented 34% of the total median start-up cost.ConclusionWe identified three distinct CTH hiring models that affected start-up costs: hospital-academic (Massachusetts), university-academic (Kentucky and Ohio), and community-leveraged (New York). Hiring, training, and purchasing start-up costs were lowest in New York due to existing local infrastructure. Community-based implementation similar to the New York model may have lower start-up costs due to leveraging of existing infrastructure, relationships, and support from local health departments.

Evaluation of rural ecological resilience from the perspective of communities and farmers: a study on Laochehe ethnic minority village in China

The ecological problems of tourism villages in the context of globalization cannot be ignored. Rural tourism has destroyed the rural ecological environment, and it is of great significance to explore the ecological resilience of tourism villages to achieve sustainable development. This study introduces an analytical framework with which to assess the ecological resilience of rural tourism locales, focusing on micro-level perspectives involving communities and farmers. Ecosystem service values and a comprehensive index are utilized as proxies to characterize ecological resilience, and its evolutionary characteristics and mechanisms are investigated. The results are as follows. (1) From the community perspective, rural land use has changed significantly from the agricultural function to the tourism compound function. During this transition, the ecological resilience index has decreased by 2.05 × 106. (2) From the perspective of farmers, the rural ecological resilience index and various dimensional indices have altogether increased. Notably, the transformation capability index has increased by 30.34%, the interference capability index has increased by 21.78%, and the response capability index has increased by 14.72%. The ecological resilience indices for different livelihood types, from highest to lowest, are ranked as follows: tourism-oriented farmers (0.4412), tourism-participating farmers (0.4274), and migrant-oriented farmers (0.4066). (3) Socio-economic factors and farmers’ livelihoods lead to the imbalance of the rural social ecosystem. The adaptive transformation of tourism villages has facilitated the dynamic evolution of ecological resilience. This study contributes to the enrichment of ecological resilience research perspectives and may offer valuable insights for the sustainable development of tourism villages in similarly developing countries around the world.

Organ Donation: Willingness, Attitude, and Knowledge among General Population of Western India – A Cross-sectional Study

Background: The issue of organ donation is complex and multifactorial involving ethical, legal, medical, organizational, and societal factors. There is a wide gap between the required number of donations and actual donations in India. There is a need to identify the reasons for this wide gap from the community perspective. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done among relatives of patients attending the outpatient department at a tertiary care center. Data were collected using a pre-designed semi-structured questionnaire. For the assessment of knowledge, relevant questions were asked. Attitude toward organ donation was assessed using 22 items on a 5-point Likert scale. Data were entered into Excel sheet and analyzed using SPSS software. Average knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were calculated and compared with religion, gender, and other sociodemographic variables. A Chi-square test of association was applied between sociodemographic variables and their willingness to sign the donor card. P <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Their suggestions for improving organ donation practices were also documented. Results: The average knowledge score among participants was 8.06. Good, average, and poor attitude toward organ donation were found among 3 (0.77%), 339 (87.37%), and 46 (11.86%) participants, respectively. Good, average, and poor practice toward organ donation were observed among 1 (0.26%), 65 (16.75%), and 322 (82.98%) participants, respectively. Discussion: When deciding whom to donate their organs, 156 (40.21%) said that the health status of the recipient and his/her chances of survival will be the most important factor. Age and poor health status were the major barriers toward organ donation among participants. Still, many participant’s motivation toward organ donation was that they want to help others and 190 (49.0%) participants were willing to be part of awareness group and promote organ donation activity in the society. Solving their barriers/reasons for refusing organ donation may help to improve organ donation in the society. Conclusion: Knowledge has an impact on changing person’s attitude and practice; even our study has shown significant results of association between knowledge and attitude, knowledge and practice as well as attitude to their practice toward organ donation. Age and poor health status were the major barriers toward organ donation among participants.

Social resilient networks for improving animal evacuation in emergencies: rural/isolated community perspectives

Effective animal evacuation strategies are imperative for comprehensive emergency management in rural and isolated communities. Community resilience significantly influences the success of these strategies. This research examined the critical role of social resilience networks to improve evacuation of livestock and community resilience in rural and isolated communities. The study took a qualitative approach to studied community members and animal emergency management stakeholders during 3 focus group discussions and workshops. These workshops were conducted in Moorland, Whittingham and the MidCoast Council area of the Hunter Region in New South Wales. The research confirmed that communities with existing strong and cohesive networks and relationships often create a safe and supportive environment when emergencies arise and evacuation is required. The themes from community-led initiatives encompass social connections, communication management, preparedness, sensitisation and situational awareness. Establishing networks for mutual aid, involving the community in planning, promoting animal welfare and improving preparedness through education are recommended. These recommendations facilitate smooth animal evacuation and safeguard animals and the community. Creating an inclusive, participatory evacuation plan that takes into consideration community networks enhances emergency preparedness and evacuation.

Community perspectives on the effectiveness of watershed management institutions in the Himalayas

Community perspectives on the effectiveness of watershed management institutions in the Himalayas

506 Integrating community and patient perspectives into kidney research

506 Integrating community and patient perspectives into kidney research

Fostering planetary health in polluted environments: lessons from the Xonacatlán Indigenous Council in Mexico

BackgroundThe communities of El Salto and Juanacatlán face negative impacts on human and ecosystem health due to their proximity to the second-largest industrial area in Mexico. Despite living in a region negatively impacted by high levels of pollution, these communities have organised to foster planetary health by reforesting with native plants, campaigning to stop further industrial development, and founding the Xonacatlán Indigenous Council (XIC) to reclaim traditional ways of living. This research project seeks to advance insights on the implications of fostering planetary health from the perspective of communities facing adverse socioeconomic and environmental conditions. MethodsThis qualitative study draws from participatory action research, Indigenous storywork, and ethnography. The XIC acted as the community advisory board of this research project and two XIC members are part of the research team. We investigate whether the stories and practices of community members associated with XIC contribute to fostering planetary health. Research activities will include 40–60 participants in storytelling interviews, story-making workshops, and participant observation in XIC activities. Data collection started on Nov 20, 2023, and will be finalised in August, 2024. FindingsOur ethnographic analysis investigates local understandings of the relationships between human and ecosystem health. Anticipated findings include stories about the rejection of narratives of industrial progress due to environmental damage, the reconnection with Coca identities and traditional ways of relating to the land, and the use of direct action to counteract the negligence of the state-sponsored public health system and assert local planetary health needs. InterpretationBy assessing grassroots Coca Indigenous action as a site of collective expertise on planetary health, we expect that this research project will bring attention to how people living in polluted environments can inform the conceptual development of planetary health and expand the range of practical initiatives that are considered fundamental to sustaining human and ecosystem life. FundingNone.