Although U.S. breastfeeding rates have steadily increased since 2000, there continues to be a disparity in breastfeeding rates for African American (AA) women compared to their non-Hispanic White counterparts. A male partner's perception, specifically his positive attitude toward breastfeeding, may influence breastfeeding initiation and duration rates. This study was an exploration of AA male perceptions and attitudes toward breastfeeding and what effect masculinity ideology (gender norms) has on such attitudes. The socio-ecological model (SEM) was used as the theoretical framework to examine the various environmental levels that intersect with one another to influence these attitudes. A mixed methods study design, using (a) an online survey combining the Iowa Infant Feeding Attitudes Scale (IIFAS) and the Male Role Norms Scales (MRNS) (N =206) and (b) 3 focus group sessions (N = 17), was used to collect data. African American men ages 18 and older were eligible to participate in the study. Results of the regression analysis showed a negative correlation between positive breastfeeding attitudes and traditional masculinity ideology. Nvivo analysis of focus group transcripts revealed themes of gender norms, knowledge of breastfeeding, and public opinions. The themes from the focus groups were categorized using the 4 levels of the SEM: Individual, Relationships, Community, and Societal; themes corresponded with Levels 1 (Individual) and 4 (Societal) of the SEM. These results indicate that a gender-transformative approach may be used to strengthen breastfeeding-promotion interventions targeting AA males. The positive social change implications of this research include a paradigm shift in views on gender norms and increased engagement of men in decisions that affect infant and child health and development.

Depuis la baisse de la ressource en eau dans les années 1970, la moyenne vallée du fleuve Sénégal est un espace en forte mutation socio-environnementale. Les politiques publiques ont régulé le fleuve à l'aide de deux barrages, Manantali et Diama, et fait de la vallée une zone d'enjeux pour le développement de l'agriculture irriguée pour l'approvisionnement en riz. Face à cette situation les zones humides de la plaine inondable, les terres de décrue, sont oubliées des politiques de développement. L'objectif de la thèse est de comprendre comment s'intègre ces terres de décrue dans les changements socio-environnementaux, et finalement définir leurs rôles actuels pour les populations locales dans la réorganisation de la moyenne vallée.Le travail s'appuie sur une étude du système socio-écologique de la plaine d'inondation de la moyenne vallée. La méthodologie comporte ainsi plusieurs volets. Une analyse hydrologique et une cartographie de la dynamique des zones inondées par télédétection a montré l'importance des choix de gestion du barrage dans l'allocation en eau pour la crue dans la vallée. Des enquêtes socio-économiques, réalisées dans quatre terroirs villageois à partir d'entretiens semi-directifs, ont mis en avant l'intégration des activités liées aux terres de décrue dans les stratégies des ménages et les fonctions économique, alimentaire et écologique assurées par les différentes unités agro-écologiques de la plaine inondable. Enfin des facteurs de mise en valeur halio-agro-pastorale des terres de décrue ont été identifiées, tels que la diversité des services écosystémiques, la valeur patrimoniale de ces espaces et l'intégration des ménages dans l'irrigation. / Since the decline of water resources in the 1970s, the middle Senegal river valley is a space dealing with many socio-environmental changes. Public policies have controlled the river with two dams, Manantali and Diama, and made the valley the preferred location for the development of irrigated agriculture for the national supply of rice. Faced to this situation, the floodplains wetlands, characterized by a flood/recession rythm, are forgotten by development policies. The objective of the thesis is to understand how these flood recession lands fit into socio-environmental changes, and finally to define their current roles for local populations into the reorganization of the middle Senegal river valley.The work is based on a study of the socio-ecological system of the floodplain of the middle valley. The methodology thus has several components. A hydrological analysis and a mapping of the dynamics of the flooded areas by remote sensing, showed the importance of the management choices of the Manantali dam in the allocation of water for the flood in the valley. Socio-economic surveys, carried out in four village terroirs and using semi-structured interviews, highlighted the integration of flood-recession related activities into household strategies, and define the economic, food supply and ecological functions between the different agro-ecological units of the floodplain. Finally, factors holding flood-recession related activities have been identified at household level, such as the diversity of ecosystem services, the heritage value of these areas and the integration of households in irrigation.

This research analyses attitudes to urban green spaces within the framework of compact city development models, using Uppsala as a case study and investigating the tension between growth and preservation. Compact city literature strongly promotes the importance of green space within urban environments for both social and ecological wellbeing and highlights what becomes an increasing requirement for this as populations within urban areas are densified, which is a concomitant goal of compact city models. Yet in Uppsala, a contradiction appears whereby the municipality has firmly embraced a compact city model of development yet urban green areas are still being developed. This thesis first provides an environmental history of development and planning within Uppsala, highlighting the socio-ecological forces that co-create urban environments. An examination of the comprehensive planning policy documents over the last thirty years is performed which aligns the plans of Uppsala Municipality with the key features of the compact city model. Interviews were also conducted with three relevant actors from the municipality and the discourse was analysed. A combined analysis of the plans and the interviews results in an understanding and interpretation of the approach of the municipality to urban green spaces along with the creation of narratives around development and planning that look to explain Uppsala’s decisions around urban green spaces. The conclusions are that growth appears to take precedence over preservation of green space, both discursively and practically, and that the balance is towards the socio-economic in defining development. This is discussed in relation to ideas of hegemony, neoliberalism, andsustainable development.

No description available.

Western studies have established that men from African descent are disproportionally affected by prostate cancer (PCa). Annual incidence rates in this population vary from 1.5 to 2 times when compared to their counterparts from other racial groups. They also record the worse outcomes in terms of prognosis. Additionally, with the rise of PCa in Subsaharan Africa, new cancer control policies and programs are increasingly demanded. Understanding therefore, factors that underpin racial inequality in distribution and especially why the disease preferentially niches in African males can help better address PCa in both Western and Subsaharan countries. There is also the potential to develop new therapeutic options. A genetic susceptibility was first hypothesized, however available data suggest that they only account for less than 20% of the cases. Current findings from epidemiological and molecular investigations suggest an important role of complex and dynamic environmental interactions involving the different levels of calcium regulation. Using a multi-method design, this research aims at developing an integrative mechanistic model of PCa. We argue that given the versatile and ubiquitous role calcium plays in nutrition, physical environment, and in key cellular processes, that mineral cation is central to prostate tumorigenesis and in shaping its populational distribution. Thus a tree-level investigation was conducted: (i) a critical analysis and synthesis of empirical evidence on calcium interactions with cancer mechanisms (ii) a population-wide prospective cohort study of calcium intake patterns in a group of Subsaharan males in Côte d’Ivoire, namely the African Prostate Cancer Study (APCS) (iii) a proteomics research investigating the responses of prostate cancer cell lines when exposed to a high affinity synthetic calcium binding peptide. This monograph describes the research methods, instruments design and validation and the preliminary findings of the ongoing research, portions of which have already been published, presented at two international cancer seminars or under review. Findings at this stage include: mechanistic models of prostate cancer differential distribution and outcomes, a novel calcium questionnaire specific to African diet, synthesis of a high affinity calcium-binding peptide (Peptide#1). New concepts and constructs related to prostatic carcinogenesis have been developed as well.

Thirty (30) years have passed since the cod collapse in Newfoundland and Labrador. The cod collapse left fifteen thousand (15,000) people who made a living off harvesting and processing cod without jobs, and almost eliminated a singular fish species from Newfoundland and Labrador (Bavington, 2010). The cod collapse created many policy changes and ripples of generational disruption in individual livelihoods and inshore/coastal fishing practices among families. Harvesting cod from the waters of Newfoundland goes back for hundreds of years, and many fishers and coastal communities still depend on it today. A significant amount of research on the history of cod fishing, the 1992 cod collapse, and the almost annihilation of a species (Bavington, 2010); but there is room to further explore how local fishers and fishing communities live today. I argue that there is a need to increase local consultation during inshore/coastal fishery policy amendment processes and local engagement with environmental assessment methods in Newfoundland specifically. The thesis critically breaks down industrial ecological systems and looks at how industrial fishing has created a series of policies, regulations, and systems that have historically influenced the contingency of the inshore/coastal fishery. The local stories captured in this thesis represent hopeful futures that reconcile ways to resolve problems within regulatory fishing systems and highlight individual and collective frustrations with licensing, fishing regions, catch quotas, and environmental assessments that inform policy.

This thesis seeks to forge a conversation between two schools of contemporary political-economic thought - degrowth and modern monetary theory. With today's urgent, multiple, and interlinked socio-ecological crises, the degrowth school of thought has become increasingly relevant. While the degrowth movement has proposed a range of policies and visions for a post-capitalist future, the structural growth imperatives of capitalist states make degrowth visions politically and economically challenging to realize. Thus far, degrowth policies that aim to weaken society's growth imperative and start building a post-capitalist society have largely been raised from the assumption that governments are limited in budgetary terms, implicitly informed by the hegemonic neoclassical economics lens. However, modern monetary theory (MMT) has recently permeated the public debate, offering an alternative take on public spending, deficits, and the government’s fiscal policy space. MMT argues that monetary sovereign states are not fiscally constrained in the same way that households and non-sovereign entities are - instead, the actual limitations to spending are the resources available to a given nation. Yet, MMT theorists give insufficient attention to ecological considerations, exemplified by their tendency to take continued economic growth for granted and overlook ecological limits, particularly from a global justice perspective. Using an Ecological Political Economy lens, this thesis initiates a conversation between the degrowth and MMT scholarship, finding that while there are both distinct tensions between the two schools, there are also many synergies and possibilities for further cross-fertilization between them within the normative goal of socio-ecological sustainability and justice.

Yes / Greenspace is important for physical and mental health. Low-income, multi-ethnic populations in deprived urban areas experience several barriers to using greenspace. This may exacerbate health inequalities. The current study explored structural and individual determinants of greenspace use amongst parents of young children in an urban, deprived, multi-cultural area situated in the North of England, UK. Semi-structured in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with 30 parents of children aged 0–3 between December 2016 and May 2017 from a range of ethnic groups. Thematic analyses were informed by the Human Health Habitat Map and the Theoretical Domains Framework. The results show that whilst all families recognised the benefits of greenspaces, use was bounded by a variety of structural, community, and individual determinants. Individual determinants preventing use included lack of knowledge about where to go, or how to get there and confidence in managing young children whilst outdoors. Fear of crime, antisocial behaviour and accidents were the overriding barriers to use, even in high quality spaces. Social and community influences both positively encouraged use (for example, positive social interactions, and practical support by others) and prevented use (antisocial or inappropriate behaviours experienced in greenspace). The built environment was a key barrier to use. Problems related to unsuitable or unsafe playgrounds, no gardens or safe areas for children's play, poor accessibility, and lack of toilets were identified. However, the value that parents and children placed on natural blue and green features was an enabler to use. Contextual influences included external time pressures, difficulties of transporting and caring for young children and poor weather. Multi-sectoral efforts are needed to tackle the uneven playing field experienced by multi-ethnic, urban, deprived communities. Initiatives to increase use should tackle structural quality issues, addressing fears about safety, whilst simultaneously encouraging communities to reclaim their local greenspaces. / received funding through a peer review process from the Big Lottery Fund as part of the A Better Start programme. RM is partly funded by the NIHR CLAHRC Yorkshire and Humber.

Master of Science / Department of Human Nutrition / Koushik Adhikari / Obesity in adolescence is associated with a complex web of ecological, psychosocial, and physiological factors, and many of these factors relate to nutrition and physical activity behaviors. Before interventions are developed, researchers need to know what factors specifically influence an adolescent’s food choices and physical activity within the community context. Cultural norms, school environment, and neighborhood attributes are examples of factors that may vary across different communities, and accounting for this variation can be quite challenging, unless community perspectives are acknowledged. The use of qualitative data from focus groups has shown to be an effective way of gathering community perspectives about the diversity of their views and experiences. The current study used focus groups to reveal facilitators and barriers to healthy eating behavior and physical activity engagement in 6th to 8th grade youth in a low-income community in South-Western Kansas. This methodology enabled community members (adolescents, parents, and teachers) to discuss and articulate their perceptions in relation to 6th to 8th grade youth’s eating habits and physical activity, and assessed available resources, needs, and opportunities for developing effective and sustainable intervention approaches in the community. Using the socio-ecological model, individual influences (e.g., taste preferences), social influences (e.g., parent and peer influences), and larger contextual influences (e.g., school) on early adolescent health were assessed. This information will be used to develop interventions addressing factors at these different levels of influence that are needed to improve eating habits and physical activity of youth in the community.

Questioning GDP as dominant indicator for economic performance has become commonplace. For economists economic policy always aims for a broader array of goals (like income, employment, price stability, trade balance) alongside income, with income being the priority objective. The Stiglitz-Sen-Fitoussi Commission argued for extending and adapting key variables of macroeconomic analysis. International organisations such as the EC, OECD, Eurostat and UN have proposed extended arrays of macroeconomic indicators (see 'Beyond GDP', 'Compendium of wellbeing indicators', 'GDP and Beyond', 'Green Economy', 'Green Growth', 'Measuring Progress of Societies'). Despite these high profile efforts, few wellbeing and environmental variables are in use in macroeconomic models. The reasons for the low uptake of socio-ecological indicators in macroeconomic models range from path dependencies in modelling, technical limitations, indicator lists being long and unworkable, choices of indicators appearing ad hoc and poor data availability. In this paper we review key approaches and identify a limited list of candidate variables and - as much as possible - offer data sources. / Series: WWWforEurope