Search results for: poor communities

Authors: Jegede Kehinde Jacob, Ola Akeem Bayonle, Adewale Yemi Yekeen

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The rapid rate of urban growth in most developing countries of the world in recent times is alarming. Mass movement of people from rural areas to the urban centres, the consequence of the uncontrolled rapid urbanisation resulting to many un-conforming environmental challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, land, water and air pollution, poor environmental sanitation, poor and inadequate housing, urban degradation, sprawl and slums, urban violence, crime, robbery and prostitution as well as many other social vices that make the cities unsustainable. The resultant effects of all these are abysmal failure in the management of cities on the part of the governing authorities and other relevant stakeholders as well as unconducive and unwholesome condition of living of the people. This paper attempts to examine holistically the issue of environmental planning management (EPM) process development and management concept with a view for dynamic and interactive approach for various stakeholders as partners in achieving sustainable cities of our dream. The areas of discussion including conceptual and contextual issues, sustainable cities concept, good urban governance including literature review. The paper goes further to examine opportunities and challenges of built environment generally, the nature and context of environmental problems in particular, the role and duties of environmental planning and management (EPM) process in sustainable urban development. The paper further reviewed briefly the various levels of institutionalisation of EPM process with a typical case study of sustainable Ibadan project (SIP). The paper concludes with a list of recommendations to ensure effective and lasting solutions to cities problems through initiation of EPM process achievable in a sustainable manner.

Keywords: built environment, environmental planning, sustainable cities, sustainable development, urbanization

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Authors: Sylvia Mac

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This ethnographic case study examines disaster capitalism, neoliberal market-based school reforms, and disability through the lens of Disability Studies in Education. More specifically, it explores neoliberalism and special education at a small, urban charter school in a large city in California and the (re)production of social inequality. The study uses Sociology of Special Education to examine the ways in which special education is used to sort and stratify disabled students. At a time when rhetoric surrounding public schools is framed in catastrophic and dismal language in order to justify the privatization of public education, small urban charter schools must be examined to learn if they are living up to their promise or acting as another way to maintain economic and racial segregation. The study concludes that neoliberal contexts threaten successful inclusive education and normalize poor, disabled students’ continued low achievement and poor post-secondary outcomes. This ethnographic case study took place at a small urban charter school in a large city in California. Participants included three special education students, the special education teacher, the special education assistant, a regular education teacher, and the two founders and charter writers. The school claimed to have a push-in model of special education where all special education students were fully included in the general education classroom. Although presented as fully inclusive, some special education students also attended a pull-out class called Study Skills. The study found that inclusion and neoliberalism are differing ideologies that cannot co-exist. Successful inclusive environments cannot thrive while under the influences of neoliberal education policies such as efficiency and cost-cutting. Additionally, the push for students to join the global knowledge economy means that more and more low attainers are further marginalized and kept in poverty. At this school, neoliberal ideology eclipsed the promise of inclusive education for special education students. This case study has shown the need for inclusive education to be interrogated through lenses that consider macro factors, such as neoliberal ideology in public education, as well as the emerging global knowledge economy and increasing income inequality. Barriers to inclusion inside the school, such as teachers’ attitudes, teacher preparedness, and school infrastructure paint only part of the picture. Inclusive education is also threatened by neoliberal ideology that shifts the responsibility from the state to the individual. This ideology is dangerous because it reifies the stereotypes of disabled students as lazy, needs drains on already dwindling budgets. If these stereotypes persist, inclusive education will have a difficult time succeeding. In order to more fully examine the ways in which inclusive education can become truly emancipatory, we need more analysis on the relationship between neoliberalism, disability, and special education.

Keywords: case study, disaster capitalism, inclusive education, neoliberalism

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Authors: Edith Kamakune

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As much as Indigenous rights are presumed to be part of the broad human rights regime, members of the indigenous communities have continually suffered violations, exclusions, and threat. There are a number of steps taken from the international community in trying to bridge the gap, and this has been through the inclusion of provisions as well as the passing of conventions and declarations with specific reference to the rights of indigenous peoples. Some examples of indigenous people include theSiberian Yupik of St Lawrence Island; the Ute of Utah; the Cree of Alberta, and the Xosa andKhoiKhoi of Southern Africa. Uganda’s wide cultural heritage has played a key role in the failure to pay special attention to the needs of the rights of indigenous peoples. The 1995 Constitution and the Land Act of 1998 provide for abstract land rights without necessarily paying attention to indigenous communities’ special needs. Basongora are a pastoralist community in Western Uganda whose ancestral land is the present Queen Elizabeth National Park of Western Uganda, Virunga National Park of Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and the small percentage of the low lands under the Rwenzori Mountains. Their values and livelihood are embedded in their strong attachment to the land, and this has been at stake for the last about 90 Years. This research was aimed atinvestigating the relationship between land rights and the right to cultural identity among indigenous communities, looking at the policy available on land and culture, and whether the policies are sensitive of the specific issues of vulnerable ethnic groups; and largely the effect of land on the right to cultural identity. The research was guided by three objectives: to examine and contextualize the concept of land rights among the Basongora community; to assess the policy frame work available for the protection of the Basongora community; to investigate the forms of vulnerability of the Basongora community. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used. a case of Kaseseand Kampala Districts were purposefully selected .138 people were recruited through random and nonrandom techniques to participate in the study, and these were 70 questionnaire respondents; 20 face to face interviews respondents; 5 key informants, and 43 participants in focus group discussions; The study established that Land is communally held and used and thatit continues to be a central source of livelihood for the Basongora; land rights are important in multiplication of herds; preservation, development, and promotion of culture and language. Research found gaps in the policy framework since the policies are concerned with tenure issues and the general provisions areambiguous. Oftenly, the Basongora are not called upon to participate in decision making processes, even on issues that affect them. The research findings call forauthorities to allow Basongora to access Queen Elizabeth National Park land for pasture during particular seasons of the year, especially during the dry seasons; land use policy; need for a clear alignment of the description of indigenous communitiesunder the constitution (Uganda, 1995) to the international definition.

Keywords: cultural identity, land rights, protection, uganda

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Authors: Fiona Gibson

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This study is on sustainable capacity building in tourism management of the touristic destination of forts and castles within the Accra Metropolis, of the Greater Accra Region of Ghana, notably, the Christianbough Castle, the James and Ussher Forts. These forts and castle mentioned above have a rich colonial historical past that emerged from the 17th century onwards on the Gulf Coast of Guinea of the West Africa Sub-Region. Unfortunately, apart from the Christianbough Castle, which used to be the seat of government until recently, the environment of James and Ussher Forts are in a deployable state of decay due to years of neglect. Jamestown and Usshertown fishing communities with historical colonial past of a rich touristic heritage sites are predominantly indigenous Gas who speak only the Ga language, one of the languages of the six local languages spoken in Ghana, as a medium for sustainable tourism management. The purpose of this study is to investigate the reasons for years of decay and neglect, using both qualitative and quantitative research approach for individual interviews, to develop a rich picture of life situational story of the people of James and Ussher Forts environs and finding solutions to their predicaments through internal generated funds for sustainability of tourism management within the communities. The study recommends nation-wide educational campaigns and programmes on culture of maintenance and management for sustainable tourism development and management at all historical heritage sites in the country, specifically with the aim of promoting tourism in Ghana, using the indigenous local languages. The study also recommends formal and informal education for the residents, especially the youth to help them learn skills, either through local training or the formal education and this call for collaboration between the government of Ghana and other local and international bodies.

Keywords: sustainable capacity building, tourism management, forts, castles

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Authors: Carmela Perta

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In Italy the coexistence of standard language, its varieties and different minority languages - historical and migration languages - has been a way to study language contact in different directions; the focus of most of the studies is either the relations among the languages of the social repertoire, or the study of contact phenomena occurring in a particular structural level. However, studies on contact facts in relation to a given sociolinguistic situation of the speech community are still not present in literature. As regard the language level to investigate from the perspective of contact, it is commonly claimed that the lexicon is the most volatile part of language and most likely to undergo change due to superstrate influence, indeed first lexical features are borrowed, then, under long term cultural pressure, structural features may also be borrowed. The aim of this paper is to analyse language contact in two historical minority communities where Francoprovençal is spoken, in relation to their sociolinguistic situation. In this perspective, firstly lexical borrowings present in speakers’ speech production will be examined, trying to find a possible correlation between this part of the lexicon and informants’ sociolinguistic variables; secondly a possible correlation between a particular community sociolinguistic situation and lexical borrowing will be found. Methods used to collect data are based on the results obtained from 24 speakers in both the villages; the speaker group in the two communities consisted of 3 males and 3 females in each of four age groups, ranging in age from 9 to 85, and then divided into five groups according to their occupations. Speakers were asked to describe a sequence of pictures naming common objects and then describing scenes when they used these objects: they are common objects, frequently pronounced and belonging to semantic areas which are usually resistant and which are thought to survive. A subset of this task, involving 19 items with Italian source is examined here: in order to determine the significance of the independent variables (social factors) on the dependent variable (lexical variation) the statistical package SPSS, particularly the linear regression, was used.

Keywords: borrowing, Francoprovençal, language change, lexicon

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Authors: Abraham Kidane

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The study aims at assessing the prospects and challenges of community-based ecotourism development in and around the Guassa Community Conservation Area (GCCA) for the establishment of alternative sources of livelihood for local people and the conservation of natural resources. The Guassa area and its surrounding area are endowed with natural, cultural, and religious tourism resources. The study is descriptive in its design and uses both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Interviews and questionnaires were used as an instrument for data gathering. The interview was undertaken with government officials, NGO officials, and experts, with three local community representatives. The three Kebeles of Guassa were chosen using purposive sampling because of the fact that they are immediate neighbors to GCCA, and hence, 150 questionnaires were administered proportionally to the household numbers in each kebeles. The perspectives of the MoCT, EWCA, and some Tour Operation agencies were uncovered through questionnaires; for each of them, five questionnaires were administered, and all the returns were used in the analysis. Frequency, percentage, average mean, One Way-ANOVA, and independent t-test are used to analyze quantitative data. The findings revealed that food insecurity is commonplace in the study area. The local people's reliance on the conservation area’s resources has been increasing, and the area size is also dwindling from time to time. On the other hand, the local people's levels of awareness about Community-Based Ecotourism (CBET) are low. In addition, the local capacity in relation to conservation and CBET development is also low, even though there is inadequate training offered by the government and NGOs. In general, tourism is not yet considered an alternative source of income and a means of conserving natural resources. In addition, the challenges for CBET development apart from low awareness level about CBET and low capacity, poor infrastructure, and poor tourism facilities were also identified as challenges in the study area.

Keywords: ecotourism, CBET, alternative livelihood, conservation

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Authors: Neha Gupta, Sonika Verma, Seema Puri, Nikhil Tandon, Narendra K. Arora

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The concurrent increasing prevalence of underweight and overweight/obesity among children with changing lifestyle and the rapid transitioning society has necessitated the need for a unifying/multi-level approach to understand the determinants of the problem. The present community-based cross-sectional research study was conducted to assess the associations between lifestyle behavior and food environment of the child at household, neighborhood, and school with the BMI of children (6-12 year old) (n=612) residing in three rural clusters of Palwal district, Haryana. The study used innovative and robust methods for assessing the lifestyle and various components of food environment in the study. The three rural clusters selected for the study were located at three different locations according to their access to highways in the SOMAARTH surveillance site. These clusters were significantly different from each other in terms of their socio-demographic and socio-economic profile, living conditions, environmental hygiene, health seeking behavior and retail density. Despite of being different, the quality of living conditions and environmental hygiene was poor across three clusters. The children had higher intakes of dietary energy and sugars; one-fifth share of the energy being derived from unhealthy foods, engagement in high levels of physical activity and significantly different food environment at home, neighborhood and school level. However, despite having a high energy intake, 22.5% of the recruited children were thin/severe thin, and 3% were overweight/obese as per their BMI-for-age categories. The analysis was done using multi-variate logistic regression at three-tier hierarchy including individual, household and community level. The factors significantly explained the variability in governing the risk of getting thin/severe thin among children in rural area (p-value: 0.0001; Adjusted R2: 0.156) included age (>10years) (OR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.0-4.4), the interaction between minority category and poor SES of the household (OR: 4.4; 95% CI: 1.6-12.1), availability of sweets (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.8-0.99) and cereals (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.8-1.0) in the household and poor street condition (proxy indicator of the hygiene and cleanliness in the neighborhood) (OR: 0.3; 95% CI: 0.1-1.1). The homogeneity of other factors at neighborhood and school level food environment diluted the heterogeneity in the lifestyles and home environment of the recruited children and their households. However, it is evident that when various individual factors interplay at multiple levels amplifies the risk of undernutrition in a rural community. Conclusion: These rural areas in Haryana are undergoing developmental, economic and societal transition. In correspondence, no improvements in the nutritional status of children have happened. Easy access to the unhealthy foods has become a paradox.

Keywords: transition, food environment, lifestyle, undernutrition, overnutrition

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Authors: Jun Ha Whang

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As New York City weathers a swelling 'affordability crisis' marked by rapid transformation in land development and urban culture, much of the associated scholarly debate has turned to questions of the underlying mechanisms of gentrification. Though classically approached from the point of view of urban planning, increasingly these questions have been addressed with an eye to understanding the role of cultural capital in neighborhood valuation. This paper will examine the construction of an artist-specific affordable housing development in the Spanish Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan in order to identify and discuss several cultural parameters of gentrification. This study’s goal is not to argue that the development in question, named Art space PS 109, straightforwardly increases or decreases the rate of gentrification in Spanish Harlem, but rather to study dynamics present in the construction of Art space PS 109 as a case study considered against the broader landscape of gentrification in New York, particularly with respect to the impact of artist communities on housing supply. In the end, what Art space PS 109 most valuably offers us is a reference point for a comparative analysis of affordable housing strategies currently being pursued within municipal government. Our study of Art space PS 109 has allowed us to examine a microcosm of the city’s response and evaluate its overall strategy accordingly. As a base line, the city must aggressively pursue an affordability strategy specifically suited to the needs of each of its neighborhoods. It must also conduct this in such a way so as not to undermine its own efforts by rendering them susceptible to the exploitative involvement of real estate developers seeking to identify successive waves of trendy neighborhoods. Though Art space PS 109 offers an invaluable resource for the city’s legitimate aim of preserving its artist communities, with such a high inclusion rate of artists from outside of the community the project risks additional displacement, strongly suggesting the need for further study of the implications of sites of cultural capital for neighborhood planning.

Keywords: artist housing, displacement, east Harlem, urban planning

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Authors: Bikram Jung Kunwar

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Forests have central roles in climate change. The conservation of forests sequestrates the carbon from the atmosphere and also regulates the carbon cycle. However, knowingly and unknowingly the world’s forests were deforested and degraded annually at the rate of 0.18% and emitted the carbon to the atmosphere. The IPCC reports claimed that the deforestation and forest degradation accounts 1/5th of total carbon emission, which is second position after fossil fuels. Since 1.6 billion people depend on varying degree on forests for their daily livelihood, not all deforestation are undesirable. Therefore, to conserve the forests and find the livelihood opportunities for forest surrounding people is prerequisites to address the climate change problems especially in developing countries, and also a growing concern to the forestry sector researchers, planners and policy makers. The study examines the role of community based forest management in carbon mitigation and adaptation taking the examples of Nepal’s community forestry program. In the program, the government hands over a part of national forests to the local communities with sole forest management authorities. However, the government itself retained the ownership rights of forestland. Local communities organized through a local institution called Community Forest User Group (CFUG) managed the forests. They also formed an operational plan with technical prescriptions and a constitution with forest management rules and regulations. The implementation results showed that the CFUGs are not only found effective to organize the local people and construct a local institution to forest conservation and management activities, but also they are able to collect a community fund from the sale of forest products and carried out various community development activities. These development activities have decisive roles to improve the livelihood of forest surrounding people and eventually to address the climate change problems.

Keywords: climate change, community forestry, local institution, Nepal

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Authors: Scott A. Abbott

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This paper examines the increase in the occurrence of natural disasters worldwide and the need to support vulnerable communities in post-disaster recovery. Preparation and implementation of post-disaster recovery projects need to be improved to allow communities to recover infrastructure, housing, economically and socially following a catastrophe. With the continual rise in catastrophic events worldwide due to climate change, impacts on construction resources affect the ability for post-disaster recovery to be undertaken. This research focuses on case studies of catastrophic events in Queensland, Australia, to contribute to the body of knowledge and gain valuable insights on lessons learned from past events and how they have been managed. The aim of this research is to adopt qualitative data using semi-structured interviews from participants predominantly from the insurance sector to understand barriers that have previously and currently exist in post-disaster recovery. Existing literature was reviewed to reveal gaps in knowledge that needed to be tested. Qualitative data was collected and summarised from field research with the results analysed and discussed. Barriers that impacted post-disaster recovery included time, cost, and resource capability and capacity. Causal themes that impacted time and cost were identified as decision making, pre-planning, and preparedness, as well as effective communication across stakeholders. The research study applied a qualitative approach to the existing literature and case studies across Queensland, Australia, to identify existing and new barriers that impact post-disaster recovery. It was recommended to implement effective procurement strategies to assist in cost control; implement pre-planning and preparedness strategies across funder, contractor, and local governments; more effective and timely decision making to reduce time and cost impacts.

Keywords: construction recovery, cost, disaster recovery, resources, time

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Authors: Maria Karidakis, Barbara Kelly

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The challenges precipitated by the advent of COVID-19 have brought to the fore the task governments and key stakeholders are faced with; ensuring public health communication is readily accessible to vulnerable populations. COVID-19 has presented challenges for the provision and reception of timely, accessible, and accurate health information pertaining to vaccine health messaging to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore strategies used by Aboriginal-led organisations to improve communication about COVID-19 and vaccination for their communities and to explore how these mediation and outreach strategies were received by community members. We interviewed 6 Aboriginal-led organisations and 15 community members from several states across Australian, and these interviews were analysed thematically. The findings suggest that effective public health communication is enhanced when aFirst nations-led response defines the governance that happens in First Nations communities. Pro-active and self-determining Aboriginal leadership and decision-making helps drive the response to counter a growing trend towards vaccine hesitancy. Other strategies include establishing partnerships with government departments and relevant non-governmental organisations to ensure services are implemented and culturally appropriate. The outcomes of this research will afford policymakers, stakeholders in healthcare, and cultural mediators the capacity to identify strengths and potential problems associated with pandemic health information and to subsequently implement creative and culturally specific solutions that go beyond the provision of written documentation via translation or interpreting. It will also enable governing bodies to adjust multilingual polices and to adopt mediation strategies that will improve information delivery and intercultural services on a national and international level.

Keywords: intercultural communication, qualitative, public health communication, COVID-19, pandemic, mediated communication, first nations people

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Authors: I. Elrouby

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The continued growth of tourism in the future relies on maintaining a clean environment by achieving sustainable development. The erosion and degradation of beaches, the deterioration of coastal water quality, visual pollution of coastlines by massive developments, all this has contributed heavily to the loss of the natural attractiveness for tourism. In light of this, promoting the concept of sustainable coastal development is becoming a central goal for governments and private sector. An ecolodge is a small hotel or guesthouse that incorporates local architectural, cultural and natural characteristics, promotes environmental conservation through minimizing the use of waste and energy and produces social and economic benefits for local communities. Egypt has some scattered attempts in some areas like Sinai in the field of ecolodging. This research tends to investigate the potentials of the North West Coast (NWC) in Alexandria as a new candidate for ecolodging investments. The area is full of primitive natural and man-made resources. These, if used in an environmental-friendly way could achieve cost reductions as a result of successful resource management for investors on the one hand, and coastal preservation on the other hand. In-depth interviews will be conducted with stakeholders in the tourism sector to examine their opinion about the potentials of the research area for ecolodging developments. The candidates will be also asked to rate the importance of the availability of certain environmental aspects in such establishments such as the uses of resources that originate from local communities, uses of natural power sources, uses of an environmental-friendly sewage disposal, forbidding the use of materials of endangered species and enhancing cultural heritage conservation. The results show that the area is full of potentials that could be effectively used for ecolodging investments. This if efficiently used could attract ecotourism as a supplementary type of tourism that could be promoted in Alexandria aside cultural, recreational and religious tourism.

Keywords: Alexandria, ecolodging, ecotourism, sustainability

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Authors: Gift Udoh, Diane S. Rohlman, Benjamin Sindt

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BACKGROUND: There is concern regarding the widespread use of pesticides and impacts on public health. Farmers in Nigeria frequently apply pesticides, including organophosphate pesticides which are known neurotoxicants. They receive little guidance on how much to apply or information about safe handling practices. Pesticide poisoning is one of the major hazards that farmers face in Nigeria. Farmers continue to use highly neurotoxic pesticides for agricultural activities. Because farmers receive little or no information on safe handling and how much to apply, they continue to develop severe and mild illnesses caused by high exposures to pesticides. The project aimed to reduce pesticide exposure among rural farmers in Nigeria by identifying hazards associated with pesticide use and developing and pilot testing training to reduce exposures to pesticides utilizing the hierarchy of controls system. METHODS: Information on pesticide knowledge, behaviors, barriers to safety, and prevention methods was collected from farmers in Nigeria through workplace observations, questionnaires, and interviews. Pre and post-surveys were used to measure farmer’s knowledge before and after the delivery of pesticide safety training. Training topics included the benefits and risks of using pesticides, routes of exposure and health effects, pesticide label activity, use and selection of PPE, ways to prevent exposure and information on local resources. The training was evaluated among farmers and changes in knowledge, attitudes and behaviors were collected prior to and following the training. RESULTS: The training was administered to 60 farmers, a mean age of 35, with a range of farming experience (<1 year to > 50 years). There was an overall increase in knowledge after the training. In addition, farmers perceived a greater immediate risk from exposure to pesticides and their perception of their personal risk increased. For example, farmers believed that pesticide risk is greater to children than to adults, recognized that just because a pesticide is put on the market doesn’t mean it is safe, and they were more confident that they could get advice about handling pesticides. Also, there was greater awareness about behaviors that can increase their exposure (mixing pesticides with bare hands, eating food in the field, not washing hands before eating after applying pesticides, walking in fields recently sprayed, splashing pesticides on their clothes, pesticide storage). CONCLUSION: These results build on existing evidence from a 2022 article highlighting the need for pesticide safety training in Nigeria which suggested that pesticide safety educational programs should focus on community-based, grassroots-style, and involve a family-oriented approach. Educating farmers on agricultural safety while letting them share their experiences with their peers is an effective way of creating awareness on the dangers associated with handling pesticides. Also, for rural communities, especially in Nigeria, pesticide safety pieces of training may not be able to reach some locations, so intentional scouting of rural farming communities and delivering pesticide safety training will improve knowledge of pesticide hazards. There is a need for pesticide information centers to be situated in rural farming communities or agro supply stores, which gives rural farmers information.

Keywords: pesticide exposure, pesticide safety, nigeria, rural farming, pesticide education

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Authors: Mathew Hoyes

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This paper is a collation of data, studies and anecdotes on the way education is funded in New Zealand, the ideals which have lead to this method, as well as the issues it has created when combined with other factors and government policy on education over the last two decades. The purpose of this paper is to provide a historical perspective of this situation and to contribute to the global discussion of how to fund schools in an equitable manner, given that the world has become increasingly more globalised and the perception of widening gaps between the rich and the poor in the western world.

Keywords: education funding equity, egalitarianism, socio-economic, New Zealand colonialism

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Authors: Fatima Taqi, Abrar Alanzi

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Objectives: The objective of this study is to determine and assess the level of knowledge and attitudes of dental patients attending Kuwait University Dental Clinics (KUDC) regarding the infection control protocols practiced in the clinic. The results would highlight the importance of conducting awareness campaigns in the community to promote good oral healthcare in Kuwait. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive survey was carried out among dental patients attending KUDC. A structured questionnaire, in both Arabic and English languages, was used for data collection about the socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge about the dental cross-infection, and attitudes and self-reported practices regarding infection transmission and control in dentistry. Results: A response rate of 80% (202/250) was reported. 47% of respondents had poor knowledge about dental infection transmission, and only 19.8% had satisfactory knowledge. Female participants obtained a higher satisfactory score (14.3%) compared to males (5.5%). Patients with a university degree or higher education had a better level of knowledge compared to patients with a lower educational level (p < 0.05). The majority of participants agreed that the dentist should wear gloves (95.5%), masks (89.6%), safety glasses (70.3%), and gowns (84.7%). Many patients believed that the protection measures are mainly to stop the infection transmission from patient to patient via the dentist. Half of the participants would ask if the instruments are sterilized and might accept treatment from non-vaccinated dentists. Conclusions: Many dental patients attending KUDC have obtained poor knowledge scores regarding infection transmission in the dental clinic. The educational level was significantly associated with their level of knowledge. An overall positive attitude was reported regarding the infection control protocols practiced in the dental clinic. Raising awareness among dental patients about dental infection transmission and protective measures is of utmost importance.

Keywords: dental infection, knowledge, dental patients, infection control

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Authors: Amani Waheed, Adel Mishriky, Rasha Farouk, Essam Abdallah, Sarah Hussein

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Background: Occupational stress plays a crucial role in professional drivers' health. They are exposed to high workloads, low physical activity, high demand and low decisions as well as poor lifestyle factors including poor diet, sedentary work, and smoking. Dyslipidemia is a well-established modifiable cardiovascular risk factor. Occupational stress and other forms of chronic stress have been associated with raised levels of atherogenic lipids. Although stress management has some evidence in improving lipid profile, the association between occupational stress and dyslipidemia is not clear. Objectives: To assess the relational between occupational stress and lipid profile among professional drivers. Methodology: A cross-sectional study conducted at a large company in Ismailia City, Egypt, where, 131 professional drivers divided into 44 car drivers, 43 bus drivers, and 44 truck drivers were eligible after applying exclusion criteria. Occupational stress index (OSI), non-occupational risk factors of dyslipidemia were assessed using interview structured questionnaire. Blood pressure, body mass index (BMI) and lipid profile were measured. Results: The mean of total OSI score was 79.98 ± 6.14. The total OSI score is highest among truck drivers (82.16 ± 4.62), then bus drivers (80.26 ± 6.02) and lowest among car drivers (77.55 ± 6.79) with statistically significant. Eighty percent had Dyslipidemia. The duration of driving hours per day, exposure to passive smoking and increased BMI were the risk factors. No statistical significance between Total OSI score and dyslipidemia. Using, logistic regression analysis, occupational stress, duration of driving hours per day, and BMI were positive significant predictors for dyslipidemia. Conclusion: Professional drivers are exposed to occupational stress. A high proportion of drivers have dyslipidemia. Total OSI score doesn't have statistically significant relation with dyslipidemia.

Keywords: body mass index, dyslipidaemia, occupational stress, professional drivers

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Authors: Andrea Corsale

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The historical and geographical regions of Banat and Crişana in Western Romania have long been characterized by a high degree of ethnic diversity. However, this traditionally complex cultural, linguistic, and religious mosaic has undergone a progressive simplification during the past century due to deportations, emigration, and assimilation, and both regions now have a large Romanian-speaking majority population. This contribution focuses on Jewish heritage in the two largest cities of these two regions, Timişoara (Banat) and Oradea (Crişana). The two cities shared some historical events but also went through different experiences, despite their relative geographic proximity. The Jewish community of Timişoara survived the Holocaust basically intact, an almost unique case in Central-Eastern Europe, but largely left the city after the war. Instead, the Jewish community of Oradea was almost completely deported and killed in Auschwitz, and a renewed post-war community gradually emigrated abroad in the following decades. The two Jewish communities are now very small in size but inherited a vast tangible and intangible heritage (synagogues, cemeteries, community buildings, characteristic architecture, memories, local traditions, and histories), partially restored and recovered in recent years. The author’s fieldwork shows that local Jewish stakeholders are aware of the potential of this heritage in terms of cultural and economic benefits, but significant weaknesses and concerns exist, as the small dimension of these communities, and their financial constraints, challenge their future role in the eventual promotion and management of this heritage, which is now basically in the hands of the non-Jewish public and private stakeholders. Projects, experiences, and views related to Jewish heritage conservation and promotion in these two contexts will be portrayed and analysed in order to contribute to a broader discussion on representations and narratives of minority heritage within cultural tourism development dynamics.

Keywords: Jewish heritage, ethnic minorities, heritage tourism, Romania

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Authors: Nditsheni Ramakuela, Sonto Maputle, Base Khoza, Augustine Tugli

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Inadequate health literacy can cause difficulties in understanding and compliance to treatment plan. With diabetic condition, self-care activities include behaviours of following a diet plan, avoiding high fat foods, increased exercise, self-glucose monitoring, and foot care. Patients with poor health literacy have difficulty interpreting medication warning labels, following directions on a prescription label and identifying their medications. Difficulties in understanding and performing self-care and health-related activities may ultimately lead to poor health outcomes. The study explored and described factors affecting health literacy and self-care to diabetic regimen by female patients at selected hospital in Limpopo Province of South Africa. Qualitative and explorative research design was used. Female patients who were admitted and diagnosed with diabetes in female medical ward constituted the study population. Non-probability, purposive sampling was used to select 20 female patients diagnosed with diabetes, who were above 18 years and admitted during April–November 2014. An in-depth face-to-face, unstructured interview was used to collect data. Data were analysed using open coding method. Measures to ensure trustworthiness and ethical considerations were adhered to. Findings revealed factors affecting health literacy for diabetic self-care activities amongst patients were; patient, family, disease and facility related. Proposed recommendations were; to strengthen diabetes education and patient-provider partnership. This is important and must be transferred to strengthen self-care activities to fully benefit the patient.

Keywords: compliance, diabetes mellitus, diabetic regimen, health literacy, self activities

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Authors: W. S. Barber, S. L. King

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This paper reports on a pilot project to develop a collaborative partnership between a community college in rural northern Ontario, Canada, and an urban university in the greater Toronto area in Oshawa, Canada. Partner institutions will collaborate to address learning needs of university applicants whose goals are to attain an undergraduate university BA in Educational Studies and Digital Technology degree, but who may not live in a geographical location that would facilitate this pathways process. The UOIT BA degree is attained through a 2+2 program, where students with a 2 year college diploma or equivalent can attain a four year undergraduate degree. The goals reported on the project are as: 1. Our aim is to expand the BA program to include an additional stream which includes serious educational games, simulations and virtual environments, 2. Develop fully (using both synchronous and asynchronous technologies) online learning modules for use by university applicants who otherwise are not geographically located close to a physical university site, 3. Assess the digital competencies of all students, including members of local, distance and Indigenous communities using a validated tool developed and tested by UOIT across numerous populations. This tool, the General Technical Competency Use and Scale (GTCU) will provide the collaborating institutions with data that will allow for analyzing how well students are prepared to succeed in fully online learning communities. Philosophically, the UOIT BA program is based on a fully online learning communities model (FOLC) that can be accessed from anywhere in the world through digital learning environments via audio video conferencing tools such as Adobe Connect. It also follows models of adult learning and mobile learning, and makes a university degree accessible to the increasing demographic of adult learners who may use mobile devices to learn anywhere anytime. The program is based on key principles of Problem Based Learning, allowing students to build their own understandings through the co-design of the learning environment in collaboration with the instructors and their peers. In this way, this degree allows students to personalize and individualize the learning based on their own culture, background and professional/personal experiences. Using modified flipped classroom strategies, students are able to interrogate video modules on their own time in preparation for one hour discussions occurring in video conferencing sessions. As a consequence of the program flexibility, students may continue to work full or part time. All of the partner institutions will co-develop four new modules, administer the GTCU and share data, while creating a new stream of the UOIT BA degree. This will increase accessibility for students to bridge from community colleges to university through a fully digital environment. We aim to work collaboratively with Indigenous elders, community members and distance education instructors to increase opportunities for more students to attain a university education.

Keywords: aboriginal, college, competencies, digital, universities

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Authors: Mingaile Jurkute, Vilnius University

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The memory of the Lithuanian partisan war (1944-1953) underwent extremely dramatic transformations. During this war, the image of the resistance and a partisan was one of the key elements of Lithuanian identity. Its importance is evidenced by the extremely large legacy of songs about partisans, no other topic has collected so much folklore in Lithuania. In the Soviet years, this resistance was practically forced to be forgotten. Terror and Soviet laws have forced people to stop talking about the events, even in the family circle. In addition, the Soviets created their own propaganda story, reinterpreting the Lithuanian partisan war, presenting partisans as bandits who brutally tortured and murdered locals. But even in the Soviet years, the memory could neither be completely suppressed, nor completely transformed into wishful shape. The analysis of fiction and cinema shows that the traumatic memory of real events rushed to the surface, thus transforming the very propagandistic narrative. After the restoration of the Republic of Lithuania in 1990, the Lithuanian partisan war was gradually returned to the central place of Lithuanian history. After 2014 the nationalist heroic narrative about Lithuanian partisans became the central narrative of modern Lithuanian history. Nevertheless, interviews I conducted in Lithuanian villages reveal that the memory of local communities and families preserves quite different experiences that do not fit into neither the Soviet narrative nor the heroic one. Such experiences include, for example, partisan violence against local families. This paper is about the efforts of two political ideologies (the Soviet and the Lithuanian patriotic) to use the history of the Lithuanian partisans for their own needs, and the attempts of small communities (mostly families) to resist these efforts. The research reveals that family memory, even when opposed to aggressive state memory policies, can preserve counter-narratives by exploiting unexpected objects beyond the control of the state, such as nature and wildlife. Basically, the paper analyses the limits of the instrumentalization of memory, even by extremely aggressive political regimes.

Keywords: collective memory, post-memory, violence, military conflict, family memory

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Authors: Jennifer Isabelle Rios Rendón, Ursula Sanchez, Dana Lee Baker

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Disability Policy in México has witnessed numerous changed throughout the years. Physical disabilities are more often recognized in Mexican culture. However, with an emerging focus on neurological disabilities or differences in individuals’ new policies are needed to serve better and understand the needs of these populations. The need to understand and communicate with local leaders is imperative, as the lens used to analyze autism has historically been from a Western school of thought. We are looking to comprehend the disability policy subsystem in México - specifically how autism is perceived, the language used to describe it, and how it ties to the cultural stigma of disabilities that exist in México. Therefore, to understand this, we seek to interview multiple policy leaders on their experience in autism and disability policy. The goal is to conduct qualitative research through interviews with local autism and disability leaders in México. This methodology aims to answer the questions of what language commonly and culturally is utilized in disability policy, the context of how autism is perceived in México, and in general, the lived experience of the disability policy leaders that take part in this effort in México. Local activists and policy leaders were initially found through an online search then collected using snowball sampling. The interviews were conducted through a series of pre-formulated questions that the policy leader answered via email or a phone conversation with the researchers. Acknowledging the importance of language and accessibility, the need for the content to be in both English and Spanish as well as auditory and visual is essential to take steps in the inclusion of a Neurodiverse group of leaders. This work is a demonstration of the framework of the investigation which hopes to create a more complete understanding of the policy and political culture around autism in México. Results of the project include new insight into the developing relationship between the President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration, disability activists, and neurodiverse communities. The project contributes to denormalizing the legacy of white supremacy in autism related, historically rooted in the assumption that autism occurs predominantly in white communities.

Keywords: autism, disability leaders, disability policy, México, Neurodiversity

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Authors: Sulaiman Rabiu, Muazu Gusau Abubakar, Jafar Usman Zakari

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The consumption of meat is of great importance as it provides a good source of proteins and significant amount of essential trace element to the body. However, contamination of meat and meat products with heavy metals is becoming a serious threat to food safety and public health. Therefore, the present study is aimed to evaluate the concentration of some heavy metals in muscles and entrails of free-ranged cattle, sheep and goats. A total of sixty (60) fresh samples of muscles, liver, kidney, small intestines and stomach of free ranged cattle, sheep and goats were collected from abattoirs of different goldmine communities of Anka, Bukkuyum, Maru andTalata-Mafara Local Government Areas of Zamfara State, Nigeria. The samples were digested using 10 mL of a mixed 70% high grade concentration of HNO₃ and 65% HCl (4:1 v/v); the mixture was heated until dense fumes disappeared forming a clear transparent solution and diluted to 50 mL with deionized water. Actual concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Co, As, Ni, Mn, Pb and Zn were determined using Microwave Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrophotometer (MP-AES). From the results obtained, goat liver had the highest mean concentration of lead, arsenic, cobalt and manganese (12.43± 0.31, 14.25±0.32, 3.47± 0.86 and 12.68± 0.92 mg/kg respectively) while goat kidney had the highest concentration of copper and zinc (10.08±0.61 and 24.16±1.30 mg/kg respectively). The highest concentrations of cadmium and nickel were recorded in sheep kidney (7.75± 0.65 and 2.08±0.10 mg/kg respectively). Cattle muscles had the highest chromium concentration than all the organs analysed. The target hazard quotients (THQs) for all the metals were below 1.0, but TR which is a risk indices for carcinogenicity indicates an alarming result that requires stringent control to protect public health.Therefore, intensive public health awareness on the risk associated with contamination of heavy metals in meat should be advocated.

Keywords: contamination, goldmine, heavy metals, meat

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Authors: Avinash

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Rural Jharkhand has attracted lesser attention in the field of agrarian studies in India, despite more than eighty percent of its rural population being directly dependent on agriculture as their primary source of livelihood. The limited studies on agrarian issues in Jharkhand have focused predominantly on the subsistence nature of agriculture and low crop productivity. There has also not been much research on agrarian social relations between ‘tribe’ and ‘non-tribe’ communities in the region. This paper is an attempt to understand changing agrarian social relations between tribal and non-tribal communities relating them to different kinds of agrarian transitions taking place in two districts of Jharkhand - Palamu and Khunti. In the Palamu region, agrarian relations are dominated by the presence and significant population size of Hindu high caste land owners, whereas in the Khunti region, agrarian relations are characterized by the population size and dominance of tribes and lower caste land owner cum cultivators. The agrarian relations between ‘upper castes’ and ‘tribes’ in these regions are primarily related to agricultural daily wage labour. However, the agrarian social relations between Dalits and tribal people take the form of ‘communal system of labour exchange’ and ‘household-based labour’. In addition, the ethnographic study of the region depicts steady agrarian transitions (especially shift from indigenous to ‘High Yielding Variety’ (HYV) paddy seeds and growing vegetable cultivation) where ‘Non-Governmental Organizations’ (NGOs) and agricultural input manufacturers and suppliers are playing a critical role in agrarian transitions as intermediaries. While agricultural productivity still remains low, both the regions are witnessing slow but gradual agrarian transitions. Rural-urban linkages in the form of seasonal labour migration are creating capital and technical inflows that are transforming agricultural activities. This study describes and interprets the above changes through the lens of ‘regional rurality’.

Keywords: agrarian transitions, rural Jharkhand, regional rurality, tribe and non-tribe

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Authors: Yibeltal T. Bayou, Yohana S. Mashalla, Gloria Thupayagale-Tshweneagae

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Background: Maternal mortality has been shown to be lower in urban areas than in rural areas. However, disparities for the fast-growing population of urban poor who struggle as much their rural counterparts to access quality healthcare are masked by the urban averages. The aim of this paper is to report on the findings of antenatal adequacy among slum residents in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods and Materials: A quantitative and cross-sectional community-based study design was employed. A stratified two-stage cluster sampling technique was used to determine the sample and data was collected using structured questionnaire administered to 837 women aged 15-49 years. Binary logistic regression models were employed to identify predictors of adequacy of antenatal care. Results: The majority of slum residents did not have adequate antenatal care services i.e., only 50.7%, 19.3% and 10.2% of the slum resident women initiated early antenatal care, received adequate antenatal care service contents and had overall adequate antenatal care services. Pregnancy intention, educational status and place of ANC visits were important determinant factors for adequacy of ANC in the study area. Women with secondary and above educational status were 2.9 times more likely to have overall adequate care compared to those with no formal education. Similarly, women whose last pregnancy was intended and clients of private healthcare facilities were 1.8 and 2.8 times more likely to have overall adequate antenatal care compared to those whose last pregnancy was unintended and clients of public healthcare facilities respectively. Conclusion: In order to improve ANC adequacy in the study area, the policymaking, planning, and implementation processes should focus on the poor adequacy of ANC among the disadvantaged groups in particular and the slum residents in general.

Keywords: Addis Ababa, adequacy of antenatal care, slum residents, maternal mortality

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Authors: Faith Eweluegim Enahoro-Ofagbe

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Water is essential for sustaining life. As a limited resource, effective water management is vital. Water scarcity has become more common due to the effects of climate change, land degradation, deforestation, and population growth, especially in rural communities, which are more susceptible to water-related issues such as water shortage, water-borne disease, et c., due to the unsuccessful implementation of water policies and projects in Nigeria. Since rural communities generate the majority of agricultural products, they significantly impact on water management for sustainability. The development of methods to advance this goal for residential and agricultural usage in the present and the future is a challenge for rural residents. This study evaluated rural water supply systems and irrigation management techniques to conserve water in Kwara State, North-Central Nigeria. Suggesting some measures to conserve water resources for sustainability, off-season farming, and socioeconomic security that will remedy water degradation, unemployment which is one of the causes of insecurity in the country, by considering the use of fabricated or locally made irrigation equipment, which are affordable by rural farmers, among other recommendations. Questionnaires were distributed to respondents in the study area for quantitative evaluation of irrigation methods practices. For physicochemical investigation, samples were also gathered from their available water sources. According to the study's findings, 30 percent of farmers adopted intelligent irrigation management techniques to conserve water resources, saving 45% of the water previously used for irrigation. 70 % of farmers practice seasonal farming. Irrigation water is drawn from river channels, streams, and unlined and unprotected wells. 60% of these rural residents rely on private boreholes for their water needs, while 40% rely on government-supplied rural water. Therefore, the government must develop additional water projects, raise awareness, and offer irrigation techniques that are simple to adapt for water management, increasing socio-economic productivity, security, and water sustainability.

Keywords: water resource management, sustainability, irrigation, rural water management, irrigation management technique

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Authors: Ana C. Sousa, Beatriz C. Santos, Fátima N. Serralha

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The Tagus estuary is heavily affected by industrial and urban activities, making bioremediation studies crucial for environmental preservation. Fuel contamination in the area can arise from various anthropogenic sources, such as oil spills from shipping, fuel storage and transfer operations, and industrial discharges. These pollutants can cause severe harm to the ecosystem and the organisms, including humans, that inhabit it. Nonetheless, there are always natural organisms with the ability to resist these pollutants and transform them into non-toxic or harmless substances, which defines the process of bioremediation. Exploring the microbial communities existing in soil and their capacity to break down hydrocarbons has the potential to enhance the development of more efficient bioremediation approaches. The aim of this investigation was to explore the existence of hydrocarbonoclastic microorganisms in six locations within the Tagus estuary, three on the north bank: Trancão River, Praia Fluvial do Cais das Colinas and Praia de Algés, and three on the south bank: Praia Fluvial de Alcochete, Praia Fluvial de Alburrica, and Praia da Trafaria. In all studied locations, native microorganisms of the genus Pseudomonas were identified. The bioremediation rate of common hydrocarbons like gasoline, hexane, and toluene was assessed using the redox indicator 2,6-dichlorophenolindophenol (DCPIP). Effective hydrocarbon-degrading bacterial strains were identified in all analyzed areas, despite adverse environmental conditions. The highest bioremediation rates were achieved for gasoline (68%) in Alburrica, hexane (65%) in Algés, and toluene (79%) in Algés. Generally, the bacteria demonstrated efficient degradation of hydrocarbons added to the culture medium, with higher rates of aerobic biodegradation of hydrocarbons observed. These findings underscore the necessity for further in situ studies to better comprehend the relationship between native microbial communities and the potential for pollutant degradation in soil.

Keywords: biodegradability rate, hydrocarbonoclastic microorganisms, soil bioremediation, tagus estuary

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Authors: Kamil Jonski

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Last year vividly demonstrated, that populism and political instability can endanger democratic institutions in countries regarded as democratic transition champions (Poland) or cornerstones of liberal order (UK, US). So called ‘illiberal democracy’ is winning hearts and minds of voters, keen to believe that rule of strongman is a viable alternative to perceived decay of western values and institutions. These developments pose a serious threat to the democratic institutions (including rule of law), proven critical for both personal freedom and economic development. Although scholars proposed some structural explanations of the illiberal wave (notably focusing on inequality, stagnant incomes and drawbacks of globalization), they seem to have little predictive value. Indeed, events like Trump’s victory, Brexit or Polish shift towards populist nationalism always came as a surprise. Intriguingly, in the case of US election, simple rules like ‘Bread and Peace model’ gauged prospects of Trump’s victory better than pundits and pollsters. This paper attempts to compile set of indicators, in order to gauge various democracies’ vulnerability to populism, instability and pursuance of ‘illiberal’ projects. Among them, it identifies the gap between consensus assessment of institutional performance (as measured by WGI indicators) and citizens’ subjective assessment (survey based confidence in institutions). Plotting these variables against each other, reveals three clusters of countries – ‘predictable’ (good institutions and high confidence, poor institutions and low confidence), ‘blind’ (poor institutions, high confidence e.g. Uzbekistan or Azerbaijan) and ‘disillusioned’ (good institutions, low confidence e.g. Spain, Chile, Poland and US). It seems that this clustering – carried out separately for various institutions (like legislature, executive and courts) and blended with economic indicators like inequality and living standards (using PCA) – offers reasonably good watchlist of countries, that should ‘expect the unexpected’.

Keywords: illiberal democracy, populism, political instability, political risk measurement

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Authors: Engida Yisma, Berhanu Dessalegn, Ayalew Astatkie, Nebreed Fesseha

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Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends using the partograph to follow labour and delivery, with the objective to improve health care and reduce maternal and foetal morbidity and death. Methods: A retrospective document review was undertaken to assess the completion of the modified WHO partograph during labour in public health institutions of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 420 of the modified WHO partographs used to monitor mothers in labour from five public health institutions that provide maternity care were reviewed. A structured checklist was used to gather the required data. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.0. Frequency distributions, cross-tabulations and a graph were used to describe the results of the study. Results: All facilities were using the modified WHO partograph. The correct completion of the partograph was very low. From 420 partographs reviewed across all the five health facilities, foetal heart rate was recorded into the recommended standard in 129(30.7%) of the partographs, while 138 (32.9%) of cervical dilatation and 87 (20.70%) of uterine contractions were recorded to the recommended standard. The study did not document descent of the presenting part in 353 (84%). Moulding in 364 (86.7%) of the partographs reviewed was not recorded. Documentation of state of the liquor was 113(26.9%), while the maternal blood pressure was recorded to standard only in 78(18.6%) of the partographs reviewed. Conclusions: This study showed a poor completion of the modified WHO partographs during labour in public health institutions of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The findings may reflect poor management of labour and indicate the need for pre-service and periodic on-job training of health workers on the proper completion of the partograph. Regular supportive supervision, provision of guidelines and mandatory health facility policy are also needed in support of a collaborative effort to reduce maternal and perinatal deaths.

Keywords: modified WHO partograph, completion, public health institutions, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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Authors: Nuhu Mohammed Gali, Kenichi Matsui

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Climate change poses a significant threat to agriculture and food security in Africa. The UNFCC recognized the need to address climate change adaptation in the broader context of sustainable development. African countries have initiated a governance system for adapting and responding to climate change in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Despite the implementation limitations, Africa’s adaptation initiatives highlight the need to strengthen and expand adaptation responses. This paper looks at the extent to which South-South cooperation facilitates the implementation of adaptation actions between nations for agriculture and sustainable development. We conducted a literature review and content analysis of reports prepared by international organizations, reflecting the diversity of adaptation activities taking place in Sub-Saharan Africa. Our analysis of the connection between adaptation and nationally determined contributions (NDCs) showed that climate actions are mainstreamed into sustainable development. The NDCs in many countries on climate change adaptation action for agriculture aimed to strengthen the resilience of the poor. We found that climate-smart agriculture is the core of many countries target to end hunger. We revealed that South-South Cooperation, in terms of capacity, technology, and financial support, can help countries to achieve their climate action priorities and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We found that inadequate policy and regulatory frameworks between countries, differences in development priorities and strategies, poor communication, inadequate coordination, and the lack of local engagement and advocacy are some key barriers to South-South Cooperation in Africa. We recommend a multi-dimensional partnership, provisionoffinancialresources, systemic approach for coordination and engagement to promote and achieve the potential of SSC in Africa.

Keywords: climate change, adaptation, food security, sustainable development goals

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Authors: Vanessa G. P. Severino, Eliangela Cristina Candida Costa, Nubia Alves Mariano Teixeira Pires Gomides, Lucilia Kato, Afif Felix Monteiro, Maria Anita Lemos Vasconcelos Ambrosio, Carlos Henrique Gomes Martins

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One of the biomes present in Brazil is known as Cerrado, which is a vast tropical savanna ecoregion, particularly in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins and Minas Gerais. Many species of plants are characterized as endemic and they have therapeutic value for a large part of the population, especially to the rural communities. Given that, the southeastern region of the state of Goiás contains about 21 rural communities, which present a form of organization based on the use of natural resources available. One of these rural communities is named of Coqueiros, where the knowledge about the medicinal plants was very important to this research. Thus, this study focuses on the ethnobotanical survey of this community on the use of Kielmeyera coriacea to treat diseases. From the 37 members interviewed, 76% indicated this species for the treatment of intestinal infection, leukemia, anemia, gastritis, gum pain, toothache, cavity, arthritis, arthrosis, healing, vermifuge, rheumatism, antibiotic, skin problems, mycoses and all kinds of infections. The medicinal properties attributed during the interviews were framed in the body system (disease categories), adapted from ICD 10; thus, 20 indications of use were obtained, among five body systems. Therefore, the root of this species was select to chemical and biological (antioxidant and antimicrobial) studies. From the liquid-liquid extraction of ethanolic extract of root (EER), the hexane (FH), ethyl acetate (FAE), and hydro alcoholic (FHA) fractions were obtained. The chemical profile study of these fractions was performed by LC-MS, identifying major compounds such as δ-tocotrienol, prenylated acylphoroglucinol, 2-hydroxy-1-methoxyxanthone and quercitrin. EER, FH, FAE and FHA were submitted to biological tests. FHA presented the best antioxidant action (EC50 201.53 μg mL-1). EER inhibited the bacterial growth of Streptococcus pyogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, microorganisms associated with rheumatism, at Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of 6.25 μg mL-1. In addition, the FH-10 subfraction, obtained from FH fractionation, presented MIC of 1.56 μg mL-1 against S. pneumoniae; EER also inhibited the fungus Candida glabrata (MIC 7.81 μg mL- 1). The FAE-4.7.3 fraction, from the fractionation of FAE, presented MIC of 200 μg mL-1 against Lactobacillus casei, which is one of the causes of caries and oral infections. By the correlation of the chemical and biological data, it is possible to note that the FAE-4.7.3 and FH-10 are constituted 4-hydroxy-2,3-methylenedioxy xanthone, 3-hydroxy-1,2-dimethoxy xanthone, lupeol, prenylated acylphoroglucinol and quercitrin, which could be associated with the biological potential found. Therefore, this study provides an important basis for further investigations regarding the compounds present in the active fractions of K. coriacea, which will permit the establishment of a correlation between ethnobotanical survey and bioactivity.

Keywords: biological activity, ethnobotanical survey, Kielmeyera coriacea Mart., LC-MS profile

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