International Policy Priority Research Articles

“Successful” ageing in later older age: A sociology of class and ageing in place

Supporting people to ‘age in place’ – to live independently at home and remain connected to the community – is an international policy priority. But the process of ageing in place is mediated in a socio-cultural context where neoliberal tropes of successful ageing reproduce a pervasive model about ‘ageing well’ by elevating ideals of individualised choice and self-governance.Based on two waves of qualitative interviews and interim observations, we employ a Bourdieusian logic to explore the ramifications of this context on the experiences of 46 people in later older age (80+) ageing in place in North East England. All participants enacted everyday improvisatory practices to render their homes habitable. But our participants – most of whom were located in middle-class social positions – supplemented such improvisions with a strategic disposition to plan for and actively shape their ageing-in-place futures. Our participants conveyed a distinct sense of agency over their ageing futures. Underpinning their orientations to practice was an awareness of the value attached to individually ‘ageing well’ and a distancing from the agedness associated with the fourth age.Our analysis demonstrates the role of capital, accrued throughout the life course, in bringing such future trajectories into effect. The central argument of this paper therefore is that the embodiment of (neoliberal) ideals of successful ageing in place requires the deployment of classed capital. In sum, contrary to the individualising narratives ubiquitous in policy pertaining to ageing well, we show the importance of classed structural moorings in this process.

‘It’s where I belong’: what does it mean to age in place from the perspective of people aged 80 and above? A longitudinal qualitative study (wave one)

BackgroundMost people want to remain at home as they age. Ageing in place – remaining at home and connected to the community – is a national and international policy priority; however, to better understand how policy might be implemented, a more nuanced understanding is required about older adults’ lived experiences of ageing in place, especially the experiences of those aged 80 and above.ObjectiveTo describe and explore the social processes which enable ageing in place from the perspective of community-dwelling older people (80+).MethodsForty-six respondents (80–100+ years) participated in the first wave of a longitudinal qualitative study set in North East England. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in participants’ homes between June 2022 and January 2023. Interviews were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.ResultsParticipants positioned their homes as a place of freedom and as the antithesis of a ‘care home’. Remaining in place was important for all participants; a key priority for them was to remain physically active to enable this. However, many participants faced significant hurdles to remaining in place. These were primarily related to health and mobility issues. Some participants were able to overcome such barriers by drawing on financial resources and available social networks.ConclusionThe home is central to understanding older peoples’ (80+) experiences of ageing. In a socio-political context which promotes ageing in place, the social factors shaping experiences of ageing in place must be considered. This involves attending to the challenges of later life, particularly health and especially mobility and physical function. Currently, those with resources (social and economic) are better equipped to respond to such challenges, thus potentially exacerbating widening inequalities in ageing. By foregrounding the perspectives of those ageing in place alongside social factors shaping their experiences, our study has important implications for policy and health and social care. We show that a more equitable allocation of resources is vital to fulfil the ageing in place policy agenda. Furthermore, we highlight a need to recognise commitments to ageing in place displayed by people aged 80 and above, especially when remaining in place becomes difficult to achieve.

O.6.2-2 Building momentum: lessons learned in the promotion of physical activity in primary healthcare settings

Abstract Purpose Physical activity plays a vital role in promoting and maintaining good physical and mental health, but too many individuals are not meeting recommendations. Policies that support physical activity prescription (PAP) within primary healthcare (PHC) settings are a key tenet of a comprehensive, systems-wide approach to increase physical activity and help prevent and manage many non-communicable diseases, including cancers. The fourth Building Momentum report sets out the emerging evidence for the benefits of promoting physical activity in PHC, and explains why designing and enacting such policies is good for individual health and economies. This is the first known report of its kind, offering a global policy perspective on developments and progress, as well as guidance on foundational policy processes and components. Description Physical activity is a WCRF International policy priority, directly related to our cancer prevention recommendations and MOVING framework and policy database. Research, writing and publication were managed by WCRF International. The current state of evidence and policies were evaluated through a literature review, and interviews conducted with subject-matter experts selected for their knowledge and experience. The report was evaluated through two rounds of review, including by interviewees, physical activity experts, and individuals from the WCRF Network, Policy Advisory Group, and the WHO. The report will be disseminated through an initial online launch event that will showcase the main findings, country reflections and guidance. Further dissemination will be through WCRF International’s health professional and policy networks, social media, and potentially conferences like HEPA. Conclusions The fourth Building Momentum report provides guidance on how to establish successful policies for PAP in PHC. It addresses key issues and potential barriers to adoption, as well as identifying foundational policy processes, including: using the evidence, building shared policy objectives, the importance of local contexts and equity underpinning all policy elements. It also identifies components for designing effective policies, including: PHC professional training, health systems capacity, incentivizing structures, the importance of communication and collaboration, and creating supportive patient environments. Engaging with these findings, as well as examples of national programmes, will enable governments and health systems to enact well-designed policy on physical activity promotion in PHC.

Institutional Settings and Effects on Agricultural Land Conversion: A Global and Spatial Analysis of European Regions

Spatial planning systems and institutions have a significant role in managing non-agricultural land growth in Europe and the assessment of how their implementation impacts on agricultural land consumption is of great significance for policy and institutional improvement. Reducing the area of agricultural land taken for urban development, or eliminating such conversion, is an international policy priority aiming to maintain the amount and quality of land resources currently available for food production and sustainable development. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of land use planning systems and institutional settings on urban conversion of agricultural land in the 265 NUTS2 level EU27 and UK regions. Taking these regions as the unit of our analysis, the research developed and used global and local econometrics models to estimate the effect based on socio-economic, institutional and land use data for the 2000–2018 period. There is limited research focusing on the impacts of institutional settings and planning types of the European countries on the conversion of agricultural land. Furthermore, existing research has not considered the spatial relationships with the determinants of agricultural land conversion and the response variable, therefore, our research aimed to contribute to the literature on the subject. The results showed that the types of spatial planning systems and institution variables significantly impact the conversion of agricultural land to urban uses. Socio-economic indicators and areas of agricultural and urban land have significant impact on agricultural land conversion for any type of spatial planning system. A further result was that decentralization and political fragmentation were positively associated with agricultural land conversion while quality of regional government and governance was negatively associated. A local regression model was assessed to explore the different spatial patterns of the relationships driving agricultural land conversion. The main empirical finding from this model was that there was spatial variation of driving factors of agricultural land conversion in Europe.

Interventions in Small Island Developing States to improve diet, with a focus on the consumption of local, nutritious foods: a systematic review

IntroductionFood security in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is an international policy priority. SIDS have high rates of nutrition-related non-communicable diseases, including obesity and type 2 diabetes, micronutrient deficiencies and,...

Planning and Food Sovereignty in Conflict Cities

Problem, research strategy, and findings Protracted political conflicts disrupt people's lives, including their ability to feed themselves. Urban planning, operating within the ambit of the state, impacts food systems in conflict cities. We examine the confluence of planning and political misgovernance on food sovereignty in conflict cities. We do so by documenting the experiences of urban growers who cultivate, eat, and distribute indigenous greens (haakh) in the city of Srinagar in the Himalayan belt of Jammu and Kashmir, the site of a protracted conflict. Experiences of growers were analyzed within the context of the city's complex urban planning landscape. Empirical methods included qualitative interviews of urban growers (n = 40) and review of land use plans and policies. We found that haakh production ensured access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally celebrated greens for haakh growing households. That said, intersecting burdens from undemocratic governance and militarism (from India), weak forms of local planning (within Srinagar), and climate change threaten urban growers' work, and imperils food sovereignty. Completing a study in a conflict region was extraordinarily challenging. The study's generalizability is limited by its short duration and small sample size—the inductive findings set the stage for future research. Takeaway for practice Conflict cities are a reminder that urban planning is anything but technical. Planning curricula must prepare future planners for the politics of planning. Planners in conflict cities are in liminal positions—between the state and the public. To the best of their ability, planners in conflict cities such as Srinagar have to protect smallholder growers' control of their food system, especially over land and water. The monitoring, recording, and suspension of contested or undemocratic land conversions, land grabs, or land transfers without full consent of indigenous and local peoples ought to be a local and international policy priority.

Pro-judge study: Nurses' professional judgement in nurse staffing systems.

Aim of this study is to better understand the role of nurses' professional judgment in nurse staffing systems. Qualitative comparative case study design of nurse staffing systems in England and Wales. Data will be collected through a variety of sources: individual interviews, observations of relevant meetings and analysis of key documents. Ethical approval for the study was granted in August 2020 from The Healthcare Research Ethics Committee (SREC reference: REC741). Data generation will be informed by science and technology studies and practice theories. Ensuring adequate numbers of nurses are available to care for patients in response to shifting demand is an international policy priority. Emerging evidence on the use of formal workforce planning methodologies across the developed world highlights both the centrality of nurses' professional judgement in nurse staffing methodologies and the urgent need for theoretically informed research to better understand and conceptualise its contribution to decision-making. This study is designed to address this gap in understanding. It takes advantage of nurses' experiences of managing the service and staffing impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and differences in strategic approaches to nurse staffing systems between England and Wales. The research will: make visible the knowledge and skills that underpin professional judgement in nurse staffing decisions and provide a conceptual language with which to articulate this; lay the foundations for evidence-based programmes of nurse education and continuing professional development; furnish the evidence to inform the development of nurse-led decision support tools to augment professional judgement; and generate wider insights into the effectiveness of nurse staffing systems in practice.

Scientific contributions of the Mangrove Macrobenthos and Management (MMM) conference series, 2000–2019

The conservation of mangrove forests has become an important international policy priority in recent decades, and is mirrored by a large increase in research interest. Multiple disciplines now use mangroves as a study system, from molecular biology to social science. The variety of research conducted in mangroves is exemplified by the Mangrove Macrobenthos & Management (MMM) conference series, the world's largest gathering of researchers and practitioners dedicated to the science and conservation of the mangrove ecosystem. Established in 2000, MMM is a useful barometer with which to identify and measure research trends over the last 20 years. This study describes the history of the MMM conference series, and analyses the research presented in this series as a potential proxy of how the broader mangrove research field has changed through time. Presentations in early MMM conferences were dominated by macrobenthos studies, reflective of the origins of MMM as a forum specifically for mangrove macrobenthos research. However, later conferences have come to reflect the broader interests of the mangrove research field, and have tracked the emergence of blue carbon and other ecosystem services. Mangrove forests continue to be a rich and diverse ecosystem of study, and future MMM conferences will continue to provide a platform for impactful research and management.

Behavioral Facilitation of a Transition to Energy Efficient and Low-Carbon Residential Buildings

Reducing carbon emissions from the building sector is an international policy priority, as a consequence of the Paris Climate Accord obligations. The challenge for policy makers is to identify and deploy effective policy instruments targeting this sector. Examining the mechanics of policy operation in the residential sector is particularly instructive, because of the high level of building activity, diverse stakeholders, and complex policy considerations—involving both consumers and industry stakeholders. Energy policy initiatives undertaken by the European Union provide pertinent case studies; as does the operation of Australia’s national building code. The paper builds upon earlier research examining the application of socio-economic transition theory to the regulation of the building sector. Here, building policy options are examined from a behavioral economics perspective, where stakeholder actions in response to strategic initiatives are considered in socio-psychological terms. The application of behavioral economics principles to building policy has the potential to impact all of the stages of the building lifecycle, from design through construction to operation. The analysis reveals how decision-making by building industry stakeholders diverges substantially from the assumptions of conventional economics. Significant implications then arise for the framing of building sector climate and energy policies, because behavioral economics has the potential to both contribute to the critical re-appraisal of current policies, and also to provide innovative options for refining interventions at key stages in the building lifecycle.

Towards energy efficiency: case of Morocco

A major challenge for humanity in the twenty-first century is to combine energy with respect for the environment. During the Rio Earth Summit (2012) the issue of sustainable development was clearly demonstrated. One of the major battles this century for the planet's survival is to include energy efficiency as an international policy priority in order to achieve a significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions. In this paper, we have presented the current state and outlook of energy efficiency in the transport, residential and industrial sectors, as well as its policy for each sector in Morocco. New strategies implemented by the government for sustainable development were reviewed and discussed. Through these strategies, the shift to energy efficiency is at the forefront of national policy implications for energy security and a low-carbon economy.

Can control of invasive vegetation improve water and rural livelihood security in Nepal?

Nepal’s predominantly rural population depends on the ecosystem services of heterogeneous mountainous landscapes that are degrading under changing climate and development pressures. Invasive alien plants (IAPs) compound threats to ecosystem services including water resource security from mid-hill springs, though implications for Nepal’s water resources are under-researched. South Africa’s Working for Water (WfW) programme addresses linked policy priorities related to IAP management including water, biodiversity and employability. We use the STEEP (Social, Technological, Environmental, Economic, Political) framework to explore success criteria behind WfW and their potential translation into the geographically, culturally and politically different Nepali context, including local considerations at three sites in Kavrepalanchok district. An adapted WfW approach could potentially contribute to water, food, biodiversity, forest, soil, gender equity, community development and security outcomes in Nepal, delivering national and international policy priorities. Evidence from study sites suggests four priority IAPs – Lantana camara, Ageratina adenophora, Chromolaena odorata and Pinus roxburghii – of differing characteristics, extents of invasion and perceived impacts at selected sites requiring control. These initial observations warrant trial management of IAPs in a test area with monitoring to evaluate outcomes for water, food and livelihood security, with potential for subsequent regional or national roll-out of a management programme.

Child Sexual Abuse: Ethics and Evidence

Child Sexual Abuse: Ethics and Evidence

‘I wonder what you know … ’ teachers designing requests for factual information

Optimizing the quality of early childhood education (ECE) is an international policy priority. Teacher-child interactions have been identified as the strongest indicator of quality and most potent predictor of child outcomes. This paper presents ethnomethodological and conversation analysis of an interaction between an early childhood educator with two children as they engage in Web-searching. Analyses shows that question design can elicit qualitatively different responses with regard to sustained interactions. Understanding the design of teacher questions has pedagogic implications for the work of the teacher and for the broader quality agenda in early childhood education.

Te Pākeketanga: living and dying in advanced age--a study protocol.

BackgroundThe number of people dying in advanced old age is increasing rapidly and building the evidence base regarding end - of - life care for older people has been identified as an international policy priority. The unique opportunity to link longitudinal studies of ageing with studies exploring the end of life circumstances of older people remains under-exploited internationally. Very little is known about the specific circumstances, cultural needs and care preferences of indigenous older people, including Māori, at end - of - life and the needs of their whānau/ extended family carers.MethodsWe will use rigorous qualitative methods to conduct post-bereavement interviews with bereaved whānau and family of 50–60 people who died >80 years; approximately half of participants will be Maori. The older decedents were participants in the first longitudinal study of older people involving a specific indigenous cohort internationally: Te Puāwaitanga O Ngā Tapuwae Kia Ora Tonu, Life and Living in Advanced Age: a Cohort Study in New Zealand (LiLACS NZ). Prior to death, they completed a questionnaire regarding their end-of-life preferences and nominated a family or whānau member to participate in this separate study exploring end-of-life circumstances of those in advanced age.DiscussionRecommendations to improve care will be formulated in collaboration with participants and their local hapū (sub-tribe). Ultimately this study has the potential to inform better outcomes for the growing numbers of people dying in advanced old age both in New Zealand and internationally, as well as their whānau and family caregivers. It also highlights the ability to generate an in-depth understanding of end-of-life circumstances by appending studies of palliative and end-of-life care onto existing longitudinal studies.

The Conflict-Development Nexus: A Survey of Armed Conflicts in Sub-Saharan Africa 1980-2005

This paper surveys the nexus between development and armed conflict in sub-Saharan Africa from 1980 to 2005. It focuses on war trends, impact of war on development, socio-economic structures as war risks, and policy responses. Several findings emerge that challenge widely held state-centric assumptions that underpin contemporary analyses, data collection and policy priorities. These wars defy conventional analytical frameworks as they commingle state and non-state actors and political with economic and private motives. As the findings illustrate, the state is not a sufficient unit of analysis: more research, data collection and policy attention should be directed to non-state actors and wars and sub-national and cross-border impacts. War is development in reverse, yet in many of these wars, the national economy continued to grow and social indicators improved. At the same time, the destructive impacts were localised, implying that development gaps and horizontal inequalities worsened. Structural risk factors – horizontal inequalities, youth bulge and unemployment, environmental pressure and natural resource dependence – have played a causal or perpetuating role in the wars surveyed. Economic, social and governance reform policies can play a role in conflict prevention by addressing these risk factors, yet at present national and international policy priorities do not systematically address these risks.

Darfur and the failure of the responsibility to protect

When official representatives of more than 170 countries adopted the principle of the ‘responsibility to protect’ (R2P) at the September 2005 World Summit, Darfur was quickly identified as the test case for this new doctrine. The general verdict is that the international community has failed the test due to lack of political will. This article argues that the failure is real but that it is more fundamentally located within the doctrine of R2P itself. Fulfilling the aspiration of R2P demands an international protection capability that does not exist now and cannot be realistically expected. The critical weakness in R2P is that the ‘responsibility to react’ has been framed as coercive protection, which attempts to be a middle way between classic peacekeeping and outright military intervention that can be undertaken without the consent of the host government. Thus far, theoretical and practical attempts to create this intermediate space for coercive protection have failed to resolve basic strategic and operational issues. In addition, the very act of raising the prospect of external military intervention for human protection purposes changes and distorts the political process and can in fact make a resolution more difficult. Following an introductory section that provides background to the war in Darfur and international engagement, this article examines the debates over the R2P that swirled around the Darfur crisis and operational concepts developed for the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) and its hybrid successor, the UN–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), especially during the Abuja peace negotiations. Three operational concepts are examined: ceasefire, disarmament and civilian protection. Unfortunately, the international policy priority o bringing UN troops to Darfur had an adverse impact on the Darfur peace talks without grappling with the central question of what international forces would do to resolve the crisis. Advocacy for the R2P set an unrealistic ideal which became the enemy of achievable goals.

Policy, Education and Conflict

Given the rapid growth of and converging interests in the field of education and conflict, there is a need to bring research, policy and practice more closely together. (Johnson & van Kalmthout, 2006, p. 3) This thematic issue explores the broad theme of ‘policy, education and conflict’. Like many working in the growing field of education and conflict, Johnson & van Kalmthout call for a closer and more collaborative relationship between researchers, policy makers and practitioners in the field. In this thematic issue, education and conflict researchers are invited to explore central policy questions and programming imperatives, and researchers with policy expertise are encouraged to apply their insights to education and conflict. The issue provides space for theoretical and academic inquiry into the nature of policy making and policy implementation in conflict and post-conflict contexts. The contributors illuminate what are often chaotic policy-making arenas and draw attention to the need to analyse and make visible the discourses, assumptions and actors that shape policy-making processes. Finally, in their suggestions – both in terms of potential policy options and in terms of frameworks for the analysis of policy-making processes and their impacts on educational growth and reform – the contributors present avenues towards sound and responsive educational policy in situations affected by conflict. Several central policy concerns have emerged from the research presented herein. Lyndsay Bird’s research in the Great Lakes region of Africa, for instance, demonstrates the need to understand and to include in programming the many informal learning processes upon which vulnerable communities depend. In her study of educational provision during the ongoing conflict in Cote d’Ivoire, Magali Chelpi-den Hamer argues that local educational initiatives are often undervalued and marginalized in policy planning and dialogue between governments and the international community. These locally led initiatives often identify and meet the most urgent educational needs in a way that international policy priorities cannot. In their contribution, Karin Doolan & Mladen Domazet engage with a central question of those interested in policy in situations affected by conflict: what are the implications of the necessary haste involved in emergency policy decisions? Doolan & Domazet argue that major changes to the content of political education in Croatia following independence have not been accompanied by mechanisms to ensure that students and teachers can engage with new concepts of citizenship and democracy. These concerns highlight the importance of context to appropriate policy making and point to difficult tensions at the heart of policy making in situations affected by conflict. The urgency of conflict-affected situations and the presence of a multitude of policy actors, including multi- and bi-lateral donors and international non-governmental organizations, create complex, potentially competitive and chaotic policy arenas. Clare A. Ignatowski and Mikaela Luttrell-Rowland both point to the importance of what Goffman (1974) calls ‘frame analysis’ for understanding policymaking and policy outcomes in such complex circumstances. Ignatowski explores the ‘youth frame’ employed in the policy and programming of the United States Agency for International

Deliberate self‐harm in older adults: a review of the literature from 1995 to 2004

The prevention of suicide is a national and international policy priority. Old age is an important predictor of completed suicide. Suicide rates in old age differ markedly from country to country but there is a general trend towards increasing rates with increasing age. In 1996 Draper reviewed critically the evidence on attempted suicide in old age in the 10 years between 1985 and 1994. The review highlighted a need for prospective controlled studies in older people with more representative samples as well as studies examining the interaction of risk factors, precipitants, motivations, psychopathology and response to treatment. The aim of this paper is to update this review and to summarise the advances in our understanding of DSH in later life. We have critically reviewed relevant studies published between 1995 and 2004 to summarise the advances in our understanding of factors associated with deliberate self-harm in later life. The main advances in understanding have been to clarify the effect of personality and cultural factors, service utilisation pre and post attempt, and the (lesser) impact of socio-economic status and physical illness. Methodological weaknesses continue to include inadequate sample sizes performed on highly selected populations, inconsistent age criteria and lack of informant data on studies relating to role of personality. Future studies should include prospective, cross-cultural research with adequate sample sizes and which are population-based. Such approaches might confirm or refute the results generated to date and improve knowledge on factors such as the biological correlates of deliberate self-harm, service utilisation, costs and barriers to health care, and the interaction of these factors. Intervention studies to elucidate the impact of modifying these factors and of specific treatment packages are also needed.

Canadian—American Environmental Relations: Interoperability and Politics

There have been serious tensions in the Canada-United States relationship in recent years, sparked by both a marked divergence in the domestic and international policy priorities in the two countries, particularly under the Bush and Chretien administrations, and an obvious lack of rapport between the two leaders. In the sphere, however, the Canada-U.S. relationship has been minimally affected by such friction. In fact, it is argued here that the environmental interoperability of the two countries has recently broadened and deepened, and this can be traced to three developments. First, there is a high degree of transgovernmentalism, or effective mid-level working relations among officials on both sides of the border that has become entrenched over decades of cooperation on various issues. Moreover, cross-border scientific and technical relationships between Canadians and Americans have been solidified through the implementation of existing agreements and a burgeoning system of continental-level professional interactions. Finally, there is a thickening network of relationships at the subnational and cross-border regional level that is changing the very nature of Canada-U.S. relations. These subnational and regional relationships are driven more by pragmatic concerns about economic interdependence and shared ecosystems, even a sense of bioregionalism, than by national-level politics. While all of these factors contribute to a de-politicization of the Canada-U.S. relationship more generally, national political dynamics do have an indirect impact on interoperability. First, federal electoral outcomes and the ideology of the governing party in both countries has an impact on the priority placed on protection as well as the approach to bilateral relations. Second, cutbacks to federal programs in the U.S and severe budgetary constraints in American states certainly pose challenges for cross-border initiatives. Even so, funding for cooperation in areas such as air quality and climate change has continued, with the Canadian federal government playing a key role in helping to finance new initiatives. In fact, the current minority government situation in Canada is serving to encourage expenditures. Finally, the simmering tension between the Bush administration and states that have been testing the limits of their and transboundary decision-making powers is likely to come to a head, with potential repercussions for some cross-border regional initiatives. Environmental Interoperability in the Canada-U.S. Relationship There can be little doubt that the Canadian-American bilateral relationship has gone through a rough patch over the past few years. Leaving aside the much publicized diplomatic slights, we have seen a marked divergence in international and domestic policy priorities in the two countries, particularly under the Bush and Chretien administrations after September 11. The Bush administration's active support for unilateralism and pre-emption abroad does not sit well with Canada's support for multilateralism, leadership by international institutions, and a focus on human security. Even the philosophical underpinnings of domestic policies in the two countries have taken different paths. Neither country is comfortable with the other's approach to drugs, gay rights, gun control, or abortion, and policies in the area of health care and social supports seem, if anything, to be diverging. Although some of these policy differences are enduring ones, others bear the imprimatur of Bush and Chretien, who certainly did not see eye to eye on most issues. While Prime Minister Martin has made a concerted attempt to personally connect with President Bush, any rapport between the two individual leaders will continue to be strained by such policy differences. Yet, such tensions and differences have had, and are likely to have, little impact on the Canadian-American relationship. …