Urban Environ Research Articles

Evaluating factors promoting waste scavenging and its implications in a growing urban environ in Nigeria.

Despite the inherent risks associated with waste scavenging, it is surprising to note the age group involved in this activity. This study aimed to assess the motivating factors driving teenagers and youths to participate in waste scavenging, using a sample of 247 scavengers. The data underwent analysis using frequency counts, percentages, and factor analysis techniques. The findings revealed that all respondents were male and aged between 12 and 45years. The primary sources of waste were dumpsites (61%), roadsides, and gutters (26%). Participants predominantly cited lack of formal education requirements and financial gain (93%) as key motivators for their involvement in waste scavenging. Additionally, 96% of scavengers were from northern Nigeria, with the remaining 4% from southern Nigeria. The factor analysis yielded significant results with a Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure and Bartlett's test value of 67.770%, significant at p < 0.05. Four distinct factors emerged as significant motivators: (i) Lack of formal education (31.784%), (ii) Financial incentives (22.912%), (iii) Availability of wastes (14.297%), and (iv) Industrial demand for wastes (13.495%), in descending order of influence. Together, these factors accounted for 82.487% of the motivating factors behind youth engagement in waste scavenging in the study area. This outcome highlights potential challenges for the prospects of young individuals involved in scavenging unless substantial interventions are implemented. It is recommended that policies be developed to discourage scavenging activities while simultaneously promoting access to education and social welfare for this demographic. Such initiatives are crucial for redirecting young people away from scavenging and toward more sustainable livelihood options, ensuring a brighter future for them and contributing to overall societal development.

PECULIARITIES OF INFLUENCE OF TRADE AND INDUSTRIAL AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE FORMATION OF URBAN ENVIRON THE MIDDLE VOLGA REGION IN THE SECOND HALF OF XIX CENTURY

The purpose of article is determination of the impact of economic indicators of the region such as trade turnover, industrial development and agriculture, on the development of the urban environ of the Middle Volga in the second half of the XIX century. The novelty of the article is represent in the collection and systematization of regional archival materials; also determine the dynamics of economic indicators during the second half of the nineteenth century. In the study, the urban environ of the Middle Volga region in the second half of the nineteenth century was characterize by a stable growth of industry and trade relations in combined with underdeveloped of agriculture. Most of the cities of the Middle Volga to the end of XIX century will acquired urban features: first, the majority of residents work in industrial production, secondly, trade relations acquire basic features of market relations instead of fairs relations , and, thirdly, each city has its specialty. There is the second half of the XIX century was a turning point in the history of the development of the urban environ of the Middle Volga.

Environment health and intraspecific biodiversity in T. tubifex: a preliminary analysis of a population from Apennines springs

The cosmopolitan freshwater oligochaete Tubifex tubifex is an important health indicator of the aquatic environment. Water pollutants can affect the intraspecific biodiversity grade of local Tubifex colonies. A genetic profile of specimens collected in an environment with reduced anthropic presence is particularly important to define genetic variability in unperturbed Tubifex popu- lations, and it is still missing in the international literature. Therefore, it has been performed the analysis of lineage composition in a T. tubifex colony from high mountain spring ponds in Central Italy, characterized by a very low concentration of heavy metals. The sampling was per- formed during spring 2010 and 2011, in the Sett'acque valley (1,900 m above mean sea level), within the town- ship of Lucoli. Data presented in this work depicted a peculiar composition of the population, characterized by a reduced complexity compared to other urban environ- ments, and with no specimens belonging to the lineage I, largely described in many European populations. Interest- ingly, lineage 2e, previously discovered only in a natural reserve, results to be the most common lineage in this population. Considerations on environmental health and genetic evolution are discussed.

Snake parasitism in an urban old-growth forest

Urban-associated changes can have immediate or long-term consequences on animal populations. Such changes may be assessed through parasite prevalence and abun- dance in wildlife hosts, as urbanization can influence parasitism and disease transmission in wildlife. Snakes are widespread and diverse vertebrates that often persist in urban environ- ments; however, parasitism of snakes in urban environments has yet to be studied, leaving the roles of snakes in parasite transmission uncharacterized. Field ecology, microscopy, molecular techniques, and geographic information science (GIS) were integrated to charac- terize parasitism of snakes in an urban old-growth forest park. The species, sex, mass, length, location, and prevalence of ecto-, hemo-, and fecal parasites were determined for 34 snakes of 6 species. Ectoparasites (mite), hemoparasites (Hepatozoon spp.), and fecal para- sites (Entamoeba spp., Trichomonas spp., Strongloides spp., and an unidentified helminth) were detected in snakes and 64.7 % of snakes were infected by at least one of these parasites. Parasite infections were generally not related to the sex, age, or body condition of snakes. The locations of infected snakes were used to produce risk maps indicating where parasite prevalence is predicted to be greatest. The analysis of these maps indicated that snakes with fecal parasites were closer than non-infected snakes to the edge of the forest. This study confirms that snakes may be important parasite hosts or reservoirs in parasite transmission pathways in urban environments and it provides an integrative multidisciplinary approach that may be used to monitor parasitism dynamics in other urban wildlife areas.

Quantum cascade laser open-path system for remote sensing of trace gases in Beijing, China

Exploiting several key characteristics of quantum cascade (QC) lasers, including wide tunability and room- temperature operation, the Quantum Cascade Laser Open- Path System (QCLOPS) was designed for the detection of a range of trace gases and for field deployment in urban environments. Tunability over a wavelength range from 9.3 to 9.8 μm potentially provides the capability for monitoring ozone, ammonia, and carbon dioxide, a suite of trace gases important for air quality and regional climate applications in urban environments. The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China drew attention to air quality problems in urban environ- ments. Prior to and during the Olympic games, regional air quality modifications through factory shutdowns, car restric- tions, and construction halts in Beijing and its surrounding areas created a unique test bed for new sensor technolo- gies such as the QCLOPS sensor. We report the design of this novel, open-path air quality sensor and the results of both laboratory tests and field trials during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. C 2010 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumen-

A Commission to Change: The United Methodist Church in Detroit, Michigan, 1950-1980

In the last decade, nonprofit organizations have become the focus of much inquiry and research. Before Reagan's invitation to volunteer, before Bush's Thousand Points of Light, the United Methodist Church in Detroit was behaving as a nonprofit organization bent on changing its urban environ ment. Although sincere attempts were made to influence its community and congregations, the church often responded to external pressures by re adjusting its goals, thereby diminishing the potential for significant, long- lasting social or political change. Like other nonprofit organizations, the United Methodist Church, limited by its size and its dependence on volun tary contributions, organizational democracy, and organizational networks, was more often a respondent to change than an agent of change.

The Urban Catholic School- A Valuable Part of American Education

Affording first hand insights into the urban school environ ment, this writer provides compel ling evidence of the historic and contemporary, mission of service of the Catholic schools in American education.

La situation socio-économique des chrétiens de Malwa (MP), Inde

This article contains the results of an enquiry into social and economic aspects of a Christianity founded in India in the 19th Century. The work takes the form of statistical analysis, interviews and close observation of 100 families in a rural environment and 100 families in an urban environ ment. The author describes, first of all, the history of this Christian Community and then puts forward the major conclusions of the study. It seems clear that, in spite of the fact that for the last ten years the influence of the Church has been constantly declining, the growth in the numbers of Christians is sufficient to ensure the continued existence, in material terms, of the Church's institutions. The annual income per head of 447 Roupees puts the Christian Community of Malwa above the average for India as a whole, but there is a considerable difference, in this as in other aspects, between rural and urban areas. It appears that Christianity is much less firmly rooted in rural areas than it is in the towns ; conversion means much less socially to the country-dweller who lives in an environment where the caste-system, with its religious overtones, is still very influential. The achievement of Independence has made a very con siderable difference to the conditions of missionary work. The Church is no longer the sole means of influence in providing advancement and employment.

Valeurs Religieuses En Milieu Urbain: Formulation D'Hypothèses

The topic has been approached from two angles — the sociological, which leads to some interpretation of modern society, and the socio-reli gious, which lays emphasis primarily on religious factors. The empirical basis of the article is to be found in the considerable work which has been produced by the Centre de Recherches Socio-Religieuses of Louvain, particularly that of its Director, Chanoine Fr. Houtart. The first part of the article contains an outline of the conceptual scheme; in this an attempt has been made to clarify the concepts of urban environ ment and religious values. As far as the first is concerned it could be said that on the basis of three different criteria (statistical, functional, and relations with global society) one could suggest two primary types of urban environment. In the case of religious values, starting from an 'approximate' concept and guided by the work of Talcott Parsons, it is possible to distinguish a definite type of religious value concept. This the author has called 'personal responsibility'. In the second part of the article, the author has proposed a hypothetical framework of relations between the two variables in question. If the religious value is taken as the fundamental variable then the principal object of analysis will be the influence of the urban environment on religious values. In the third part of the article the author has set out to indicate some ways of approaching a new formulation and deeper nsaderstanding of the problem. Particularly important is the necessity, amidst all the phenomena to be considered, and the desirability of interpreting it correctly, to distinguish the sociological point of view from the theological and religious. The author concludes by stating the necessity of introducing an under standing of religious values into sociology, i.e. the development of a sociology of the Christian ethic, in order to promote the development of the sociology of Christianity and the sociology of religion.