Hardest Hit Research Articles

Compound Flooding in a Subtropical Estuary Caused by Hurricane Irma 2017

AbstractHurricane Irma affected the Florida peninsula from 10 to 12 September 2017. The peninsula's east coast was hit hardest: the city of Jacksonville flooded around the St. Johns River estuary with storm surge that exceeded 1.5 m and rainfall that surpassed 20 cm in 24 hr. This study used observations such as water and wind velocities, river discharge, and salinity data to determine whether compounding forcings influenced flood levels. Results show that flooding was initiated by the ocean (first punch) and then exacerbated by river discharge (second punch). The 1–2 punch from the ocean and then the river caused record flooding, with impacts lasting through September. Peak storm surge occurred while winds were receding, and river discharge was increasing, rather than at the peak of either process. Compound flood models should consider the phase lag between driving processes, as the individual maxima may not occur simultaneously, yet still exacerbate flooding.

The uneven effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on National Statistical Offices

This paper presents an analysis of how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the operations of National Statistical Offices (NSOs), how NSOs responded and adjusted to the disruptions, and how they are transitioning to a post-pandemic equilibrium. The paper uses four rounds of the Global COVID-19 survey of NSOs conducted by The World Bank and the United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD), in coordination with the UN Regional Commissions. The paper highlights the heterogeneity of the COVID-19 disruptions among NSOs and provides evidence that statistical operations have been hardest hit in low- and lower middle-income countries. We find that NSOs with weaker Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure, and those more impacted by declines in funding tended to be more affected and lag in their recovery trajectory. These NSOs tend to be concentrated in low- and lower-middle income countries. The paper concludes that without targeted action the effects of the pandemic will exacerbate and widen pre-existing data production inequalities, despite the best efforts of NSOs that have in most cases responded to the pandemic with the adoption of innovative solutions and have ingeniously used this crisis as an opportunity to accelerate the modernization of the national statistical systems.

Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on health service utilization across regions of Ethiopia: An interrupted time series analysis of health information system data from 2019-2020.

The spread of COVID-19 and associated deaths have remained low in Ethiopia. However, the pandemic could pose a public health crisis indirectly through disruptions in essential health services. The aim of this study was to examine disruptions in health service utilization during the first nine months of the COVID-19 pandemic across 10 regions in Ethiopia. We analyzed utilization of 21 different health services across all of Ethiopia (except the Tigray region) for the period of January 2019 to December 2020. Data were extracted from the Ethiopian district health information system (DHIS2). Monthly visits in 2020 were graphed relative to the same months in 2019. Interrupted time series analysis was used to estimate the effect of the pandemic on service utilization in each region. We found that disruptions in health services were generally higher in urban regions which were most affected by COVID. Outpatient visits declined by 52%, 54%, and 58%, specifically in Dire Dawa, Addis Ababa and Harari, the three urban regions. Similarly, there was a 47% reduction in inpatient admissions in Addis Ababa. In agrarian regions, the pandemic caused an 11% to 17% reduction in outpatient visits and a 10% to 27% decline in inpatient admissions. Visits for children with diarrhea, pneumonia and malnutrition also declined substantially while maternal health services were less affected. Our study indicates that disruptions in health services were more pronounced in areas that were relatively harder hit by the pandemic. Our results show that the Ethiopian health system has a limited capacity to absorb shocks. During future waves of COVID or future pandemics, the Ethiopian health system must be better prepared to maintain essential services and mitigate the indirect impact of the pandemic on public health, particularly in urban areas.

Takotsubo Syndrome during COVID-19 Pandemic in the Veneto Region, Italy.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, the public health measures of social distancing, the freedom limitations, quarantine, and the enforced homeworking under the lockdown period, as well as medical causes including COVID-19 infection per se, may have caused major emotional distress, especially in the most vulnerable patients. We aimed to evaluate the variations in the number of admissions due to Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Veneto region. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed and analyzed the number of admissions because of TTS in 13 Divisions of Cardiology located in the Veneto region, the northeastern area of Italy, covering a population of more than 2.5 million inhabitants, during the two major pandemic waves of COVID-19 (the first between 15 March and 30 April 2020 and the second between 15 November and 30 December 2020) that occurred in 2020. Results: In total, 807 acute coronary syndromes were admitted in the 13 enrolling hospitals. Among these, 3.9% had TTS. Compared to the corresponding 2018 and 2019 time periods, we observed a significant increase in the number of TTS cases (+15.6%, p = 0.03 and +12.5%, p = 0.04, comparing 2018 to 2020 and 2019 to 2020, respectively). Geographical distribution of the TTS cases reflected the broad spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection with a significant direct relationship between TTS incidence and the number of COVID-19 infections according to Pearson’s correlation (r = 0.798, p < 0.001). Conclusions: The higher incidence of TTS during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic waves, especially in the areas that were hit hardest in terms of morbidity and mortality by the SARS-CoV-2 infection, suggest a strong direct and/or indirect role of COVID-19 in the pathogenesis of TTS.

Post-Conflict reconstruction, forced migration & community engagement: the case of Aleppo, Syria

ABSTRACT The war in Syria, and the rise of non-state radical actors placed a spotlight on the scale and intensity of destruction of cultural heritage sites in Syria. The Ancient City of Aleppo, a World Heritage Site was particularly hard hit by the conflict and when the city was re-unified in late 2016, several national and international organisations started to plan its post-war reconstruction. However, despite the fact that the war in Syria is now approaching its end, the prospects of finding a sustainable route for heritage reconstruction in Aleppo are far from good. This article sets out to critique the top-down governmental approach to the reconstruction of Syria’s cultural heritage. By drawing upon empirical data collected from a survey conducted with people from Syria and Iraq, this article argues that if cultural heritage assets are to provide a unifying force for reconciliation, reintegration of displaced people, and future social cohesion then such an approach should be opposed and replaced by a bottom-up participatory approach, which gives voice to and builds consensus among all members of Syrian society.

Labor market impact of COVID‐19 on migrants in South Korea: Evidence from local outbreaks

AbstractDespite the growing importance of migrants and their role in the South Korean economy, how much and in which ways COVID‐19, as an adverse labor market shock, has affected them has received too little attention, with no single study published to date yet. Motivated by such a paucity, this paper investigates the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic crisis on employment for migrants in South Korea, with special emphasis on quantifying the magnitude of its causal effect. In doing so, this study exploits the unique fact that only one specific region in South Korea had a substantial number of COVID‐19 infections in the early stage of the pandemic so that estimations can be made using a difference‐in‐differences (DD) model. The DD estimates suggest that COVID‐19 lowered migrants’ overall employment probability by 2.5 to 3.2 percent points. However, strong heterogeneity between the genders is apparent: the pandemic severely hurts female migrants’ employment, with male migrants weathering it relatively unscathed. Furthermore, female migrants seem considerably harder hit than female host populations. Heterogeneity analyses reveal that (i) a duration of stay exceeding 5 years and (ii) fluency in Korean (as a local language) protect migrants from being heavily affected by the COVID‐driven employment shock.

The prevalence of insomnia in different COVID-19 policy phases: Longitudinal evidence from ITA.LI – Italian Lives

BackgroundThis study investigated changes in the prevalence of insomnia in Italy during COVID-19, starting from the first lockdown period (8 March 2020). We hypothesized that lockdown precipitated increased prevalence of insomnia symptoms relative to the pre-pandemic period; b) the gradual relaxation of containment measures – post-lockdown period (Phase 2 and Phase 3) – reduced insomnia severity, leading to a relative recovery of pre-pandemic levels; and c) we tested age-related heterogeneity in sleep responses, with an expected higher increase in insomnia in younger and middle-age groups.MethodsAnalyses drew on a subsample (N = 883) of respondents to ITA.LI – Italian Lives, a recently established panel study on a probability sample of individuals aged 16 + living in Italy. To estimate patterns of change in insomnia, we first fitted a random-effects ordered logistic model on the whole sample. We then added an interaction term between policy phases and the respondent age to test whether the relationship between insomnia and policy phases differed across age groups. Analyses accounted for survey non-response weights.ResultsThe fraction of respondents reporting moderate (“somewhat” + 0.159, S.E. 0.017) or severe (“very much” + 0.142, S.E. 0.030) sleep disturbances significantly increased during Phase 1. The prevalence of insomnia followed an inverted U-shaped curve across policy phases, with further increases from baseline levels (“somewhat” + 0.168, S.E. 0.015; “very much” + 0.187, S.E. 0.030) during Phase 2, followed by a relative reduction in Phase 3, although it remained significantly higher than in the pre-pandemic period (“somewhat”, + 0.084, S.E. 0.016; “very much”, + 0.045, S.E. 0.010). There were significant age-related differences in insomnia patterns, as the discrete change from pre-pandemic levels in the probability of not suffering from insomnia was negative and significant for the younger age group (− 0.269, S.E. 0.060) and for respondents aged 35–54 (− 0.163, S.E. 0.039).ConclusionThere is reason to believe that the emergency policy response to the COVID-19 crisis may have had unintended and possibly scarring effects in terms of increased prevalence of insomnia. The hardest hit were young adults and, to a lesser extent, the middle-aged; however, older respondents (55 +) remained resilient, and their insomnia trajectory bounced back to pre-pandemic levels.

An economic assessment of the impact of climate change on the Gambia’s agriculture sector: a CGE approach

PurposeClimate change and its imminent threat to human survival adversely impact the agriculture sector. In an impoverished country like The Gambia, economic costs of climate change are colossal. This study aims to establish a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for The Gambia’s agriculture sector to examine the effects of climate change on crops, livestock and sea-level rise.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a CGE model with other climate change impact models to compute the impacts of climate change on The Gambia’s agriculture sector. The social accounting matrix calibrates the results from the various models, thereby generating the baseline results which exemplify a “steady-state” and policy shock results illustrating the medium- and long-term effects of climate change on the country’s agriculture sector.FindingsThe baseline results indicate the status quo showing the neglect of the agriculture sector due to limited investment in the sector. Hence, the sector is the “hardest hit” sector as a result of climate change. When the model factored in climate change in the medium term (2055) and long term (2085), the macroeconomic indicators of gross domestic product, national savings, wages, disposable income and consumer price index deteriorated, elucidating the vulnerability of the economy to climate change. The consumption of groundnuts, cattle and fish will decline by 5%, 5% and 4%, respectively, in the long term. However, the production of all agricultural commodities will decline by an average of 35% for the same period. The results for international trade show that exportation would decline while importation will increase over time. The general price level for agricultural commodities would increase by 3% in 2055 and 5% in 2085. Generally, the results manifest the severity of climate change in the agriculture sector which will have a multiplier effect on the economy. The impact of climate change would result in agriculture and economic decline causing hunger, poverty and human misery.Originality/valueThe caveat of this study revealed the nuances not captured by previous Gambian climate change studies, thus the novelty of the study.

Did the COVID-19 Recession Increase the Demand for Digital Occupations in the United States? Evidence from Employment and Vacancies Data

This paper investigates whether the COVID-19 recession led to an increase in demand for digital occupations in the United States. Using O*NET to capture the digital content of occupations, we find that regions that were hit harder by the COVID-19 recession experienced a larger increase in the share of digital occupations in both employment and newly-posted vacancies. This result is driven, however, by the smaller decline in demand for digital workers relative to non-digital ones, and not by an absolute increase in the demand for digital workers. While our evidence supports the view that digital workers, particularly those in urban areas and cognitive occupations, were more insulated during this recession, there is little indication of a persistent shift in the demand for digital occupations.

Uncertain Behaviors and Attitudes of Specialty Crops Growers Amidst Covid-19 Pandemic

The Specialty Crop Industry was hard hit after Covid-19 was declared a pandemic. Concerns of the future of the industry triggered the initiation of a Qualtrics survey to investigate growers&amp;rsquo; attitude and behaviors amidst Covid-19, identify new production practices and cost analysis going into the fall crop season. The results of the survey conducted from June 10-July 02, 2020 will also be useful to Extension professionals in other regions and Policymakers in determining financial assistance programs for growers who suffered from Covid-19 pandemic. Results depicted that 62.5% of farmers will plant the same acreages in the fall of 2020 amidst the pandemic.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on End-of-Life Prescribing in Ontario Nursing Homes.

ObjectivesOur preliminary work revealed significant variations in the prescribing of end-of-life symptom management medications in nursing homes prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we sought to explore whether the prescribing of end-of-life medications in nursing homes changed with the onset of the pandemic.&#x0D; ApproachThis was a retrospective cohort study of nursing home residents age 65+ who died in Ontario, Canada, divided into two time periods based on death date: pre-COVID-19 (January 1st, 2017 – March 17th, 2020) and during COVID-19 (March 18th, 2020 – March 31st, 2021). Using routinely collected health administrative data and our evidence-based end-of-life medications list, we linked resident data to prescription claims to identify whether residents were prescribed these medications in the last 14 days of life. We grouped homes into quintiles according to the proportion of decedents who received ≥1 prescription and examined changes in prescribing before and during COVID-19.&#x0D; ResultsNursing homes in the lowest prescribing quintile prescribed, on average, 11.5% fewer end-of-life symptom management medications during COVID-19 compared to pre-pandemic. Conversely, homes in the highest quintile prescribed an average of 13.7% more medications during COVID-19. Nursing homes in the lowest quintile had more COVID-19-positive residents (33% of residents) compared to homes in the highest quintile (9% of residents). Additionally, nursing homes in the lowest prescribing quintile spent more time with active COVID-19 outbreaks compared to homes in the highest quintile (mean 72.7 days versus 24.1 days, respectively, standardized difference 0.819).&#x0D; ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted nursing homes across Canada. Our findings suggest that nursing homes with low rates of prescribing of end-of-life medications prior to the pandemic had even lower prescribing rates during the pandemic. These homes were also harder hit by COVID-19 infections and outbreaks.

THE JOURNEY SO FAR IN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL ENROLMENT OF GIRLS AND PERFORMANCE IN GHANA: THE CASE OF KASSENA-NANKANA EAST MUNICIPALITY

Empowering the girl child has long been the goal of many countries especially countries hard hit by gender disparity in education. Ghana, just like other countries in sub-Saharan Africa, has implemented policies to help address gender disparity in education. This study sought to assess factors that limit female enrolment and performance despite policies and programmes put in place to solve gender disparity in education. Using a quantitative research approach, questionnaires were administered to 1,070 students and 170 teachers. Secondary data on enrolment and performance were also acquired from the Kassena-Nankana East Municipal office of the Ghana Education Service. The study revealed that though enrolment in senior high schools increased for both boys and girls from 2010/2011 to 2019/2020 academic years, girls still lagged behind boys in enrolment and performed inversely in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination. Poor parental control, peer pressure, teenage pregnancy, poverty, early marriage and betrothal, and gender roles, still have significant effects on female enrolment. Access to money for upkeep affects the concentration of girls in school while policies and programmes put in place to help address gender disparity, are riddled with limitations. The way forward is to ensure that policies meet their goals as well as encouraging girls to take education serious through initiatives such as rewarding brilliant students and enhancing mentorship in schools. Keywords: Girl child, Enrolment, Performance, Senior high school, Challenges.

COVID-19-related stigma and its impact on psychological distress: A cross-sectional study in Wuhan, China.

Background and AimsHealth‐related stigma arises from the perceived association between a person or group of certain characteristics and a specific disease. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) has brought about stigma targeted at individuals and groups who are perceived to be connected with the virus. Wuhan of China was not only the locale where the first COVID‐19 cases were detected in the world but was also the hardest hit across China.MethodsUsing new data (N = 1153) from a survey conducted in Wuhan in August 2020, this cross‐sectional study aims to reveal the stigma experienced by residents in Wuhan during the COVID‐19 pandemic and the impact of this experienced stigma on psychological distress, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder.Results69.47% (95% confidence interval (CI): 66.81%─72.13%) of the surveyed Wuhan residents have experienced some forms of stigma related to COVID‐19. The average posttraumatic stress disorder score based on the impact of event scale–revised is 20.28 (95% CI: 19.096─21.468) out of 88. In particular, 27.75% (95% CI: 25.17%─30.34%) of the respondents display clinically significant distress symptoms. Moreover, this stigma not only aggravates individuals' posttraumatic stress disorder score by 10.652 (95% CI: 8.163─13.141) but also elevates the chance of developing clinically significant distress symptoms. Specifically, the probability of clinical distress is significantly higher (p < 0.001) among those who have experienced stigma (33.66%) than those who have no such experiences (12.62%).ConclusionThe public should be aware of the distress‐inducing impact of stigma related to COVID‐19 and prevent it from causing more harm to certain individuals and groups.

Creating a Better World: Towards Better Management of Distress and Trauma in the Workplace

Emotional distress is a common occurrence in workplaces, with up to a third of the working population suffering from poor psychological health. With the emergence of the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic, concerns surrounding psychological health in the workplace are particularly relevant. The effects of the pandemic have been felt widely across society, and have significantly changed the ways that people engage in their work. While much of the current research on workplace distress focuses on the causes and consequences of distress, little research investigates this process in “ordinary” workplaces, many of which were hit hardest by the pandemic. To consider this topic, we have assembled a panel of scholars who study distress and well-being within organizations. Together, these panelists will shed light on distress in the context of ordinary workplaces, as well as how suffering emerges in organizational contexts, and the types of behaviours that employees engage in to recognize, make sense of, and communicate about their own and others’ distress

Of pandemics, penury and philanthropy in South Africa: lessons from Islamic humanism

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to consider cultural ethos of philanthropy that has proved effective in minimising the plight of the vulnerable in general and particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. By discussing the divergent philanthropic approaches that have been adopted to counter the challenge of the pandemic, this article fulfils one of comparative laws' crucial tenets to improve the local environment by learning from other jurisdictions.Design/methodology/approachAn exploratory and qualitative method through categorical and theoretical analysis of recent and historical scholarship on the Islamic culture is undertaken. An extensive use of journalistic and editorial reports on the South Af rican context is explored to demonstrate the plight of the vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic.FindingsThe COVID-19 pandemic has exposed how economically and structurally fragmented South African society is. More specifically, it has reinforced the existence of an “invisible” group of people – the poor and vulnerable – who have been hit harder by the government's responses aimed at containing the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The depiction of an unequal and uncaring society has spurred extensive rhetoric and reflection centred on the need to regain society's conscience as regards the plight of the poor. This article finds that much as there has an awakening towards societal inequality and vulnerability, there are, however, no concrete suggestions upon which change of attitude can be founded. Further, it can be argued that the plight of the vulnerable could have been softened had society cherished a culture of charity. Taking a cue from Islamic culture, this article avers that there is a need to embed philanthropy within society's cultural norms so as to forge effective bonds and maintain social cohesion.Social implicationsThe practical implications of this article relate to the need for the revaluation of the moral campus of South African communities. It supports calls for the alignment of community attitudes with humanity so as to improve the lives of the less privileged members of the society. Additionally, this discussion adds value to the scholarship, which aims to engender community-based welfare schemes for the benefit of the vulnerable.Originality/valueBy highlighting socio-economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the vulnerable and highlighting the Islamic approaches to ameliorating the condition of the poor, it is hoped that this article will stimulate debate that can bring change for marginalised groups. The analysis provides some crucial discussions for potential societal interventions, which could assist in revisiting how society takes care of the poor and vulnerable.

Atmospheric deposition of microplastics in the megalopolis (Shanghai) during rainy season: Characteristics, influence factors, and source

Urban areas are the hardest hit by microplastic pollution, and deposition is an important part of microplastic migration and transport in the atmosphere, therefore, the study of microplastics in an urban atmospheric deposition is of great significance. This study aims to investigate the deposition characteristics of atmospheric microplastics in megapolis, to clarify the influence of meteorological and anthropogenic factors, and to analyze the sources of atmospheric microplastics. Six sampling sites in Shanghai were selected to collect atmospheric deposition samples during the rainy season. The mean deposition flux of microplastics was 3261.22 ± 2847.99 P·m−2·d−1 (median: 2559.70 P·m−2·d−1), and the types were mainly polyamide (PA, 27.79 %), polyethylene terephthalate (PET, 27.29 %), polypropylene (PP, 16.95 %), and polyvinyl fluoride (PVF, 12.88 %). The microplastic with the particle size of <1000 μm accounted for 88.23 %, and the shape was mainly fiber (73.55 %). The results of correlation analysis and variance analysis of microplastic characteristics with meteorological and anthropogenic factors (land-use, atmospheric pollutants, and urban indicators) showed that wind and precipitation had effects on deposition flux, size and shape, and were more significant at small scales (individual cities), while at large scales, the population was the main influence of microplastics. Atmospheric microplastics in Shanghai may be dominated by exogenous sources, through a combination of microplastic characteristics, wind and backward trajectories. This study further reveals the fate of urban atmospheric microplastics, which has implications for the study of global microplastic pollution.

Strategies and inequities in balancing recreation and COVID exposure when visiting green spaces

Green spaces are beneficial for physical and mental health, especially during and after disasters. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, created a trade-off: parks could be therapeutic but also could expose people to infection. This paradox posed inequities as marginalized populations often have less access to parks and were hit harder by the pandemic. We combined cellphone-generated mobility data with demographic indicators, a neighborhood survey, and local infection rates to examine how residents of Boston, MA, navigated this trade-off in April–August 2020. We hypothesized that they adopted strategies for mitigating infection exposure—including fewer park visits and prioritizing parks that might have lower infection risk, including larger parks with more opportunity for social distancing and parks near home with fewer unfamiliar faces—but that marginalized populations would have less opportunity to do so. We also introduce a novel measure of exposure per visit based on the volume of other visitors, infection rates, and park size. Bostonians made fewer park visits relative to 2019 and prioritized larger parks and parks closer to home. These strategies varied by community. Experiences of the pandemic were influential, as communities that perceived greater risk or had more infections made more park visits, likely because they were a relatively safe activity. Communities with more infections tended to avoid nearby parks. Inequities were also apparent. Communities with more Black residents and infections had greater infection exposure per visit even when controlling for the types of parks visited, highlighting difficulties in escaping the challenges of the pandemic.

COVID-19 AND THE MIGRANT POPULATION: THE RESILIENCE OF SOUTH ASIANS

Migration has appeared as a constitutive aspect of global reality today. While the COVID-19 pandemic has spared no single community, the migrant population has been the hardest hit. The woes of this population have been exacerbated by imposed immobility, restrictions, xenophobic treatment, residential status, poor living conditions, and limited access to health and protection. Millions of jobs have vanished. Millions of migrants got stranded either in their destination or origin countries and are unsure if they can return to their work. Against this backdrop, they try to stand up by seeking resilience. This study looks into how migrants in varying situations—those who returned home, those trapped in transit, and those who remained in the host nations—gain stability in the devastating pandemic. While a wealth of literature has been generated, the issue of migrants’ resilience has received little attention. This article employs content analysis to examine the gravity of the impact of the pandemic on the migrants and the process of developing their resilience. This article contributes to the broader debate about the dynamics of migration, COVID-19, and resilience. This research has implications for the policymakers of both the receiving and sending countries.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA’S INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS: POLICY, PRACTICE AND COVID-19 IMPLICATIONS

The rise of informal settlements in the global south during the latter part of the twentieth century led to the role of disaster management being recognized as a crucial aspect of urban planning. As a result of this, the United Nations called for all the world’s governments to develop and integrate proactive and preventative disaster management policies into their respective countries’ development plans while integrating informal settlements in their urban planning initiatives in a bid to create inclusive cities. South Africa, being one of the countries that are heavily impacted by informal settlements, was swift to embrace these international recommendations, especially from a policy making perspective. The implementation of these policies has however been overshadowed by lacklustre government performance with respect to reducing the disaster risks associated with informal settlements or the inclusion of these areas in urban development. (hazards and lack of services aggravating disaster vulnerability) This article, therefore, explores the policy-practice realities that have given birth to the challenges faced by South Africa’s post-apartheid disaster management initiatives, especially with regard to the disaster vulnerability of informal settlement dwellers. By assessing how international best practice recommendations have influenced the country’s disaster management policy, the article proceeds to analyse the implementation inadequacies that have induced the existing policy-practice disjuncture, and the resultant safety and socio-economic concerns that arise for the country’s informal settlement dwellers. Also, with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic triggering a state of national disaster in the country, the article analyses the aggravated vulnerability of contacting and spreading of the virus amongst informal settlement residents, along with the socio-economic implications that the national lockdown restrictions have had on these areas. The findings of this article suggest that, although South Africa’s disaster management policy and legislation has comprehensively developed the necessary guidelines for all the spheres of government to play their respective roles in the country’s disaster reduction and recovery initiatives, Information from the government’s databases suggests that the implementation of risk preventative disaster management approaches has been extremely sporadic in informal settlements, despite these areas accounting for 75 per cent of where the country’s disasters events take place. Findings also suggest that South Africa’s informal settlement dwellers have been the hardest hit by the Covid-19 disaster, intensifying the levels of exclusion in these areas.

Can Restoration of the Commons Reduce Rural Vulnerability? A Quasi-Experimental Comparison of COVID-19 Livelihood-based Coping Strategies among Rural Households in Three Indian States

India has been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the context of a larger quasi-experimental impact assessment, we assess the pandemic’s effects on household coping behavior in 80 villages spread across four districts and three states (n = 772). Half of these villages were targeted by a largescale common land restoration program spearheaded by an NGO, the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES). The other half are yet to be targeted but are statistically similar vis-à-vis FES’s village targeting criteria. Analyzing the results of a phone survey administered eight to ten months into the pandemic and its associated lockdowns, we find that the livelihood activities of households in both sets of villages were adversely impacted by COVID-19. Consequently, most households had to resort to various negative coping behaviors, e.g., distressed asset sales and reduced farm input expenditure. From the same mobile survey data, we construct a Livelihoods Coping Strategies Index (LCSI) and find that households in villages targeted by FES’s common land restoration initiative score 11.3% lower on this index on average, equating to a 4.5 percentage point difference. While modest, this statistically significant effect estimate (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05) is consistent across the four districts and robust to alterative model and outcome specifications. We find no empirical support that our observed effect was due to improved access to common pool resources or government social programs. Instead, we speculate that this effect may be driven by institutional factors, rather than economic, a proposition we will test in future work.