State Of Vulnerability Research Articles

SELF CARE TRAININGS FOR NCD MANAGEMENT IN OLD AGE IN INDIA

Abstract With over 100 million older people, India has the second largest elderly population in the world. Older people in many parts of India, especially in the rural settings live in vulnerable conditions with limited facilities and with an overall poor health status. GRAVIS has been working actively in the Thar Desert of India to address older people’s health. It has multi-layered health intervention combining medical services, public health activities and research component. Self-care training is integral part of our work with older people. With help of locally designed contents, GRAVIS team trains older people on healthy ageing. The curriculum includes 10 modules focusing on basics of human body and biology of ageing, Common diseases in old age, prevention of common diseases, management of common diseases and useful information on Government health programmes. Older people in groups of 12-15 attend trainings once in 15 days. To provide service to older people and to take self care education further, GRAVIS also works with a cadre of Village based Health Workers (VHWs). The impact of our self-care training interventions has been quite positive. The trainings are well received within the community. Over 1,500 older people have been trained and over 85% report a significant increase in their knowledge levels. GRAVIS has been able to draw the attention of local health authorities and hopes that the trainings could be scaled up further. Self care and improved health knowledge are critically important for older people to stay healthy, particularly in remote and resource scarce settings.

Social vulnerability in communities of reformation and his relation with the stress

The article constitutes a result attained of the study accomplished from the Center Especializado in Servicios Educacionales of the municipality San Miguel of the Census to the 19 communities of reformation that are characterized for his conformation with originating residents of communities with socioeconomic unfavorable conditions, with risk factors in the behavior of the same, generated for internal emigration. He shows himself to be transit to new communities still when they improve the socioeconomic conditions of life, they keep on carrying conditions of social vulnerability, in front of lack of legal capacity and conscience of the communal in the solution of his problems of social cohabitation. They examine a set of factors that they have an effect on the prevalence of social vulnerability and relation with the stress that they generate the insecurity, the aggressiveness and the crowding accepts her

Assessing Climate Disaster Vulnerability in Peru and Colombia Using Street View Imagery: A Pilot Study

Community and household vulnerability to natural hazards, e.g., earthquakes, hurricanes, and floods, is a concern that transcends geographic and economic boundaries. Despite the abundance of research in this field, most existing methods remain inefficient and face the challenge of data scarcity. By formulating and investigating the correlation between the household vulnerability and street view images of buildings, this research seeks to bridge the knowledge gap to enable an efficient assessment. Especially in developing countries, the widespread prevalence of outdated or inadequately enforced building codes poses a significant challenge. Consequently, a considerable portion of the housing stock in these regions fails to meet acceptable standards, rendering it highly vulnerable to natural hazards and climate-related events. Evaluating housing quality is crucial for informing public policies and private investments. However, current assessment methods are often time-consuming and costly. To address this issue, we propose the development of a rapid and reliable evaluation framework that is also cost-efficient. The framework employs a low-cost street view imagery procedure combined with deep learning to automatically extract building information to assist in identifying housing characteristics. We then test its potential for scalability and higher-level reliability. More importantly, we aim to quantify household vulnerability based on street view imagery. Household vulnerability is typically assessed through traditional means like surveys or census data; however, these sources can be costly and may not reflect the most current information. We have developed an index that effectively captures the most detailed data available at both the housing unit and household level. This index serves as a comprehensive representation, enabling us to evaluate the feasibility of utilizing our model’s predictions to estimate vulnerability conditions in specific areas while optimizing costs. Through latent class clustering and ANOVA analysis, we have discovered a strong correlation between the predictions derived from the images and the household vulnerability index. This correlation will potentially enable large-scale, cost-effective evaluation of household vulnerability using only street view images.

Design Study of a Temporary, Emergencial and Sustentable Shelder in Light Wood Framing and Bamboo

Objective: This article aims to present an architectural proposal for a temporary emergency shelter of a sustainable nature using Wood Frame and bamboo, which allows for easy transport, assembly and disassembly in the event of major tragedies and serves as a shelter for the needy population. Method: This work was developed in two stages: initially data was collected on issues relating to environmental tragedies and their solutions as well as the emergency needs of the victims. In the second stage, a program of these refugees' needs was drawn up, the project was developed and the volumetric model was presented. Theoretical framework: Currently, the socioeconomic conditions in Bolivia, the political instability in Venezuela and the natural disasters in Haiti cause the number of refugees to increase in Brazil. Bolivian immigration to the country has a more continuous flow compared to that from countries like Venezuela and Bolivia. Furthermore, with the increase in natural disasters present in the national territory, it is necessary to promove solutions to aliviate the needs of this population in a state of vulnerability. Results and conclusion: the results presented in this work make up the research project for the development of new materials, products and constructive elements for wooden construction. Implications of the research: along with this discussion, it is expected to expand of the understanding of the concepts and design processes in emergency housing, possible renewable materials application, ease of production and execution to fit vulnerable communities in Brazil. Originality/value: This study explores an important gap in empirical studies carried out in the context of emergency shelter projects for vulnerable communities.

Effect of Ascorbic Acid, Activated Charcoal and Dark Incubation on Browning Intensity of Saurauia bracteosa In Vitro Culture

Saurauia bracteosa, also known as Pirdot, is an endemic woody plant of the Actinidiaceae family with medicinal properties. Its population decline in nature has led to a vulnerable status, prompting conservation efforts, such as in vitro culture. Browning poses a significant challenge in the woody plant in vitro culture. Browning inhibitors such as ascorbic acid, activated charcoal and dark incubation can be used to address this issue. This study aims to determine the effect of ascorbic acid, activated charcoal and incubation conditions on browning inhibition of S.bracteosa. The study employed a Completely Randomized Design with 12 treatments on leaf explants, repeated five times. Observations, including the time of browning formation, percentage of browning, intensity of browning and percentage of live explant were carried out for 30 days and analyzed using ANOVA followed by DMRT. The results showed that the addition of activated charcoal in MS media with dark incubation delayed the browning formation time (12.40 DAI) while the adding ascorbic acid in MS media and dark incubation resulted in the lowest browning intensity (0.22). These research findings can serve as a foundational protocol for browning prevention, supporting the successful in vitro conservation of S. bracteosa.

An index to assess the level of vulnerability to crocodiles in coastal communities


 
 
 
 Human-wildlife negative interactions are a recurring phenomenon worldwide, originating from the shared habitats and resources between both. In several coastal communities, negative interactions occur due to the presence of the American Crocodile (Crocodylus acutus). We have developed an index to assess the level of vulnerability of communities to this reptile. The construction of this index is based on the Approximate SustainabilityIndex developed by Gutiérrez-Espeleta in 1994. The Index of Vulnerability (IVU) is built upon several indicators across four parameters: social, biological-environmental, institutional, and spatial. These indicators are assessed using a performance scale and interpretation. The IVU assigns values to the vulnerability condition, which are presented in a color scale corresponding to defined intervals. For each indicator, reference categories and rating scales are represented with traffic light colors and numerical ratings. The IVU value obtained for a community can be visualized with a map and a corresponding figure, including a table of values for the assessed parameters.
 
 
 

Penentuan Jenis dan Wilayah Prioritas Pelayanan Sistem Pengelolaan Air Limbah Domestik di Kecamatan Rancasari Kota Bandung

Rancasari Subdistrict is located in Bandung City, comprises four urban villages, encompassing 0,19 km2 with six blocks of light slum areas. Slum areas are areas that tend to have more vulnerable environmental conditions due to the minimal availability of environmental infrastructure, one of which is sanitation facilities. Based on this, Rancasari subdistrict needs to determine the type of domestic wastewater management system service and priority service areas. Determination of the service type of domestic wastewater management system is determined based on Attachment 1 of Regulation of the Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Number 4 of 2017, while priority areas are determined based on Bandung City Regional Regulation Number 5 of 2022, Regional Regulations Bandung City Number 10 of 2015, and the area of slum settlements in each village. Rancasari Subdistrict is suitable for on-site system, while the main priority area is Manjahlega Village, then Mekarjaya, Derwati, and Cipamokolan. It is necessary to develop domestic wastewater management system facilities in the main priority area in the form of development of existing communal septic tanks and communal wastewater treatment facility, as well as the closure of piped domestic wastewater disposal facility leading to the Cidurian River to stop open defecation.

“Evidence and its Valuation as an Element of Protection of People in Vulnerable Conditions”

“Evidence and its Valuation as an Element of Protection of People in Vulnerable Conditions”

Networked feminism in a digital age—mobilizing vulnerability and reconfiguring feminist politics in digital activism

AbstractIn what ways can we understand the productive tensions and complexities of digital feminist activism? This paper explores the increase of networked feminism, which focuses attention on digital activism and its relation to transformative social change. It suggests that we need a better understanding of how digital feminist activism might be changing the shape of transnational feminist resistance and praxis, and how feminist politics are created and enacted in digitally mediated environments. These result in new forms of feminist consciousness built on affective and embodied engagements. The paper explores the complex and ambivalent role of affective politics and embodied ethics to explore conditions of vulnerability. Using illustrative, global cases to show the nuances across digital activism, the paper contributes to understanding the complexities and differential effects of online environments, the mediation of feminist politics through digital knowledge cultures and the possibilities, challenges, and productive tensions that lie in the ever‐increasing use of digital environments.

Coordinated cyber-physical attack on power grids based on malicious power dispatch

This paper proposes a new mode of cyber-physical attack based on injecting false commands, which poses an increasing risk to modern power systems as a typical example of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). Such attacks can trigger physical attacks by driving the system into vulnerable states. To address the critical issues arising from this new mode, we define an inverse-community (IC) in power flow distribution and evaluate it using inverse-modularity. To identify the most vulnerable state of the IC that represents the inherent vulnerability of the system, we employ a full malicious power dispatch problem. We also analyze an example of the proposed mode, where a partial malicious power dispatch that maximizes inverse-modularity is combined with physical attacks aimed at disconnecting vulnerable IC boundary lines, making cascading failures highly likely. To demonstrate the potential impact of this coordinated cyber-physical attack, we use the IEEE-118 and IEEE-300 bus systems for simulation. The results show the effectiveness of this attack strategy and provide a new perspective to analyze cyber-physical security issues in modern power systems.

Spatiotemporal variations of eco-environmental vulnerability in Shiyang River Basin, China

Eco-environmental vulnerability reflects the unfavorable degree of the ecological environment presented by external disruptions. The Shiyang River Basin, as a typical desert interior river basin in Northwest China, plays crucial ecological roles. Exploring eco-environmental vulnerability's spatial and temporal evolution is vital to maintaining ecosystem stability. We utilized the ecological sensitivity-resilience-press (SRP) model to create a complete evaluation index system of eco-environmental vulnerability using meteorological, remote sensing, and statistical data. The cloud theory improved analytic hierarchy process (CM-AHP) was used to calculate the subjective weights, the entropy weight method (EWM) was used to estimate the objective weights, and the comprehensive weights of the indicators were determined using the least square method, which combined the subjective and objective weights. From 2000 to 2020, the spatial-temporal features of eco-environmental vulnerability in the research area were analyzed. The results indicate that surface temperature, land use, and monthly precipitation are key factors impacting the state of eco-environmental vulnerability. The basin's potential-vulnerable and light-vulnerable areas are predominantly located in the south and southwest, whereas the northern and eastern areas are classified as severe-vulnerable and extreme-vulnerable. Extreme-vulnerable areas declined from 8.59% in 2000 to 4.3% in 2020, while potential-vulnerable areas climbed from 2.11% in 2000 to 8.08% in 2020. The eco-environmental vulnerability as a whole has evolved in a benign direction. The research results can serve as a theoretical groundwork for the restoration of the Shiyang River Basin's ecological environment and long-term development.

Рец. на кн.: Lan Anh Hoang. Vietnamese Migrants in Russia: Mobility in Times of Uncertainty. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2020. 259 p.

The analytical framework of an ethnographic study of the lives of Vietnamese migrants in Russia by Professor Lan Anh Hoang (University of Melbourne) is “uncertainty”. The author understands it as the structural conditions that make the lives of migrants unpredictable and eliminate their ability to influence their choices and the results of their choices. The uncertainty is caused by the migration regime in Russia and xenophobia, pushing migrants into the informal sector of the economy and the zone of invisibility. It is also experienced by migrants as a subjective experience of vulnerability. To reveal the duality of uncertainty as a structural condition and as a subjective experience, Hoang devotes the first part of the book to the main themes of migrants’ lives in Russia: moving to the host country, infrastructure for migrants, work and leisure. The second part of the book is built around traditional anthropological themes: kinship, morality, cultural ideas and how they are determined in structural conditions of uncertainty and vulnerability. Despite the fact that Russia is one of the leading countries in the number of labor migrants, there are very few studies of migration in Russia, and there are practically no ethnographies. The book under review is a rare opportunity to have a glimpse of the life of migrants not from the outside perspective of the host society with its labeling, but from the inside. At the same time, the chosen frame of uncertainty not only sets the logic of the analysis, but also prevents the rich ethnography from disintegrating into separate small research discoveries. The book shows how uncertainty runs deep, how it undermines the foundations of human relationships, and how Vietnamese migrants try to cope with it.

The interrelation between migration and homelessness. Searching for inclusive solutions in the local context

Starting from qualitative research conducted in Italy in the framework of the european H2020 NAME OF THE PROJECT project focused on the migrant's integration through housing, the paper investigates the link between migration and homelessness. Results from the initial research phase will be presented, focusing on the study conducted in the Municipality of Bologna. This study identified the Housing First Project as a potentially innovative model to meet the needs of the population with multiple vulnerabilities. The research also has highlighted how the interrelationship between different needs and the condition of vulnerability of the marginalized population require to reconsider the concept of social inclusion, urging collaborative synergy between institutions and civil society to address social challenges effectively.

Studying Differing Impacts of Various Monetary Aggregates on the Real Economy

Since we are living in a time of multiple crises and geopolitical unrest, it is important to look at how monetary aggregates affect the real economy. This will help us figure out how uncertainty affects the economy and come up with more stable financial and monetary policy measures, especially for EU member states that are not in the euro area. This study aims to determine a dynamic structured monetary policy model, using information from the literature and the study of the evolution of financial elements of macroeconomic aggregates in a non-euro area Member State (Romania). The methods consist of an empirical study of causality in the monetary aggregates in the literature and an analytical approach to the consolidation of dynamic databases over a period of 16 years (2007–2022) and its statistical modeling. This research will examine the impact of uncertainty on Romania’s monetary policy over the period and how this uncertainty alters the dependence relationships between monetary policy indicators and derivatives of the GDP deflator. The results of the two-step modeling, respectively, for the periods 2007–2019 and 2007–2022, will highlight via a comparison the vulnerabilities induced by periods of uncertainty and pandemics on the evolution of monetary policy indicators and will be useful to financial decision makers in correcting monetary policy elements based on the vulnerability picture instrumented as a result of analysis and modeling. The novelty of this study lies in the multidisciplinary and dynamic approach to the evolution of monetary policy indicators and the construction of the dynamic structured model, which is a useful tool for assessing the vulnerability status of a EU Member State economy outside the euro area under uncertainty.

Psychosocial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among settled women: A longitudinal study.

to analyze the psychosocial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among Brazilian women from rural settlements. this is a quantitative and longitudinal study conducted with 13 settled women. The data were collected between January 2020 and September 2021 using questionnaires on the perception of the social environment (quality of life, social support, self-efficacy), common mental disorder symptoms and sociodemographic aspects. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, cluster analysis and variance analysis. intersecting vulnerability conditions were identified that possibly intensified the challenges arising from the pandemic. The Quality of Life physical domain fluctuated differently and inversely according to the mental disorder symptoms. As for the psychological domain, at the end of the segment, an increase over time was identified in the entire sample, as the women's perception was better than before the pandemic. worsening of the participants' physical health deserves to be highlighted and, probably, it can be related to the difficulty accessing health services in this period as well as to the fear of contamination. Despite this, the participants were emotionally resilient throughout the period, including signs of improvement in terms of psychological aspects, suggesting a possible effect of the community organization of the settlement.

Identification, relationship and population status of sharks and rays landed at Rigaih Fishing Port as an effort of genetic conservation to endangered biota

Aceh Jaya is one of the potential habitats and migration areas for various types of sharks because of its geographical location directly facing the Indian Ocean. This research was conducted to contribute to shark data collection through molecular genetic approaches. The objectives of this research include: conducting molecular identification of the types of sharks found; Analyzing the kinship relationships of the types of sharks found, and determining the conservation status of the types of sharks found. The results of the research that has been carried out found 6 individuals of sharks and 4 individuals of rays from 6 species of IU and 2 species of rays landed at Rigaih Fishing Port. The results of molecular identification show similarities with morphological identification results with an average percentage of per. ident reaching more than 95% and query cover more than 85%. The results of phylogenetic analysis show that the types of Sphyrna lewini and Rhynchobatus australiae have plesiomorphic characters. Based on references to the IUCN Red List standard unit, it shows that there are 3 species of sharks landed at Rigaih Fishing Port with critical status (CR), 4 species with vulnerable status (VU), and one species with near extinction status (NT). This result is an important finding where so far the status of shark populations landed and traded at Rigaih Fishing Port is unknown and has not been recorded statistically.

From Urban Vulnerabilities to Resilience: Lessons from Messina's Integrated Risk Approach

In the city of Messina, the multiplicity of vulnerable situations is a distinctive feature and is representative of the pervasiveness of the risk conditions present in the Italian territory. The critical residential tissues are part of an extended geography in which, to the conditions of seismic and hydro geomorphological vulnerability, are added additional criticalities including altered natural resources, abandoned infrastructure, brownfields, quarries, and unregulated landfills, etc. Despite this, for Messina, there is still no urban planning tool capable of interpreting in an integrated way the risks present, which instead continue to be addressed on an emergency basis and individually, without considering the interactions that are generated and of further damage. For these reasons, Messina was chosen as a prototypical case study, at the national level, to start an experimentation aimed at developing an urban planning tool capable of a new integrated approach to risk interpretation and management. In this process, a decisive role was aimed at building an updated knowledge of the territory through the identification of widespread critical conditions using multiple GIS tools and thanks to the interaction of some analytical-specialist readings from different sources. The results of this process are represented in a system of maps that are strongly integrated with each other and constitute a working document for the interdisciplinary group drafting the General Urban Plan.

Relationship between the COVID-19 pandemic and structural inequalities within the pediatric trauma population

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic disrupted social, political, and economic life across the world, shining a light on the vulnerability of many communities. The objective of this study was to assess injury patterns before and after implementation of stay-at-home orders (SHOs) between White children and children of color and across varying levels of vulnerability based upon children’s home residence.MethodsA multi-institutional retrospective study was conducted evaluating patients < 18 years with traumatic injuries. A “Control” cohort from an averaged March-September 2016–2019 time period was compared to patients injured after SHO initiation-September 2020 (“COVID” cohort). Interactions between race/ethnicity or social vulnerability index (SVI), a marker of neighborhood vulnerability and socioeconomic status, and the COVID-19 timeframe with regard to the outcomes of interest were assessed using likelihood ratio Chi-square tests. Differences in injury intent, type, and mechanism were then stratified and explored by race/ethnicity and SVI separately.ResultsA total of 47,385 patients met study inclusion. Significant interactions existed between race/ethnicity and the COVID-19 SHO period for intent (p < 0.001) and mechanism of injury (p < 0.001). There was also significant interaction between SVI and the COVID-19 SHO period for mechanism of injury (p = 0.01). Children of color experienced a significant increase in intentional (COVID 16.4% vs. Control 13.7%, p = 0.03) and firearm (COVID 9.0% vs. Control 5.2%, p < 0.001) injuries, but no change was seen among White children. Children from the most vulnerable neighborhoods suffered an increase in firearm injuries (COVID 11.1% vs. Control 6.1%, p = 0.001) with children from the least vulnerable neighborhoods having no change. All-terrain vehicle (ATV) and bicycle crashes increased for children of color (COVID 2.0% vs. Control 1.1%, p = 0.04 for ATV; COVID 6.7% vs. Control 4.8%, p = 0.02 for bicycle) and White children (COVID 9.6% vs. Control 6.2%, p < 0.001 for ATV; COVID 8.8% vs. Control 5.8%, p < 0.001 for bicycle).ConclusionsIn contrast to White children and children from neighborhoods of lower vulnerability, children of color and children living in higher vulnerability neighborhoods experienced an increase in intentional and firearm-related injuries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding inequities in trauma burden during times of stress is critical to directing resources and targeting intervention strategies.

Estimation of Prevalence of Misophonia Among High School Students in India.

Misophonia, an intriguing psychological disorder is characterized by intense emotional responses to specific sounds produced by others, has gained prominence for its distinct attributes and profound impact on individuals' emotional and psychological well-being. This study addresses the scarcity of research on misophonia's prevalence and severity among high school students, aiming to shed light on the unique challenges faced by this demographic in India. The study enrolled 597 high school students, including 269 females and 328 males, aged 14 to 16, with no history of psychological or otological problems or medication use. The Misophonia Assessment Questionnaire questionnaire, consisting of 21 questions with a 4-point Likert scale response, assessed emotional and behavioral reactions to sensitive sounds. Participants' scores categorized them as Sub-clinical, Mild, Moderate, or Severe misophonia. The prevalence of misophonia was 34.67% among high school students, with 52.65% categorized as Mild, 45.41% as Moderate, and 1.93% as severe misophonia. A comparison with a similar study on college students in India revealed a higher prevalence of misophonia among high school students. This discrepancy may relate to adolescents' vulnerable psychological states, marked by limited emotional regulation and significant life transitions. This study significantly contributes to the evolving understanding of misophonia by spotlighting its prevalence and severity among high school students in India. The findings underscore the necessity of recognizing and addressing misophonia's impact during adolescence, a crucial developmental phase.

Investigating the conditions of vulnerability experienced by migrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kerala, India.

This paper analyses findings of the 'PROWELLMIGRANTS'2 project, which qualitatively investigated COVID-19 impacts on migrants' well-being and mental health in Kerala, India. It draws on a novel conceptual framework that combines assemblage-thinking with theories of social contracts in disasters. The paper first explores how past development processes and contemporary migration policies in Kerala, and India more widely, generated conditions of vulnerability for migrant workers in Kerala prior to the pandemic. Next it shows that Government of Kerala interventions, in some cases supported by the central Government of India, temporarily addressed these vulnerabilities during the pandemic. In acknowledging the helpful response of the Kerala government, we problematise its stance on migrant workers during 'normal' times and speculate that permanently addressing these conditions of vulnerability would be a more logical approach. We acknowledge this involves overcoming many wider barriers. Thus, the paper also contains national-level policy implications.