Population dynamics and environmental linkages

In recent decades, environmental concerns have evolved considerably before the multiplicity of aspects which are now incorporated in this theme. Likewise, the idea of ​​environmental impact matured, no longer just limited to physical consequences of human activity, incorporating the social, economic and cultural analysis at various scales. The concept of environment is multifaceted and, increasingly, has been seized from different perspectives. In the universe of interdisciplinary approaches, demographics has increased its participation in discussions on environmental issues by offering new tools and new questions for the theme. In a world seemingly free of population explosion, this study seeks to reflect on the major concerns of demography in relation to contemporary environmental impacts. If the rate of population growth has been slowed by the demographic transition, environmental problems in the world does no longer exist and have built a new range of issues. If nothing else the sheer volume of accumulated environmental problems that need to be solved, the world must prepare for the new challenges arising from increased levels of development and consumption in capitalist societies.

Child health is a key indicator of the quality of life in developing countries and also it is a global burning issue. Healthy children contribute to the security, economic growth and civic stability of nations. Child health status is considered to be very sensitive indicators of human development. Fishing is one of the oldest means of subsistence of mankind. It has acquired such importance in the modern world that the survival of human race demands adequate attention on it. The objective of the study is understand the association between SES, hygiene and sanitation practices with child health in the fishing community and to understand the occupational pattern and time spent on employment and child care in the selected study area. Data is used purely primary that is focus group discussions (FGD) in the selected state, West Bengal and Orissa. This FGD is conducted in the fishing community.

The objective of this paper is to analyse the effects of migration on the factors of ecological resilience at the household level in two Ecuadorian provinces with a focus on three communities. The attributes of resilience that are treated here are: the diversity of interrelations (with redundancy of supply chains.), the tight feedbacks loops which control ecosystem services, the modularity seen as the ability to maintain its vital activities with local resources in case of systemic shock and the connectivity as the ability to trade at larger scales to cope with local systemic shocks. We assume that the whole interactions between socio-ecological systems and the rural households are modified by the departure of at least one of its member to abroad: decrease of the workforce, remittances, transfers of knowledges. The sources of data used are the census of INEC (2011), a qualitative survey (2010) and a quantitative survey (2011). Statistical tests are realized at the household level. We observe strong links between migration and left-behinds' lifestyle. These links appear in favour of a clear differentiation of left-behinds in terms on the ecological resilience: more diversity of sources of consumption, more connectivity but also a loss of modularity and therefore less resilience to shocks at the global scale.

This research investigates the household level relationship between human capital and access to safe water and examines how different degrees of urbanisation affect this association. Previous evidence showed that education has a positive impact on health outcomes; however little attention has been paid to understanding the role of human capital on households’ access to safe drinking water particularly in the context of urbanization. Multilevel regression analysis is carried out using household level data from 35 Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) to examine the association between human capital and access to safe drinking water, adjusting for relevant predictors including contextual/structural variables. The main predictors include household human capital measured in terms of weighted average of years of schooling of the household members in working ages (18-65), and indicators that represent household conditions. The results confirm significant positive influence of human capital on access to safe water with differential effect of urban residence. While overall urban residence and macro-level urban growth have a positive effect on this association, the study finds that the impact of these indicators varies depending on the countries’ level of development.

Rice production sustainability depends on two vital factors, namely nature phenomena (climate change) and demand shift (structural change). The research aims to identify impacts of climate change to rice production and farmers’ adaptation technology; to analyze factors affecting technology use and marketing means; and to analyze impact of climate change on farmers’ wealth. The research combines two research approaches . First stage, regional level research uses inductive approach (secondary data, interview, PRA) to generate hypotheses regarding change condition. Second stage, research in farmers level uses positive approach, testing hypotheses with probabilistic samples on specific sampling frame to develop farmer decision model in selecting marketing means and technological adaptation.
This research concludes several points. First, generally farmers were not accurately recognize climate change. However, farmers’ awareness towards climate change has increased in the last ten years. Secondly, some factors influence the use of adaptation technology by farmers. Hindering factors in using technology are lack of capital, followed by lack of information and knowledge towards climatic issues. Thirdly, relatively, farmer income has been increasing in the last ten years, due to the use of modern cultivation techniques.

The onset of climate change is evident from changing weather patterns and prolonged droughts and floods destabilizing the livelihoods of people in many countries. Population dynamics are linked with the effects of climate change, but these linkages are not static. Changing demographic patterns affect the vulnerability of populations to climate change and their ability adapt to it. To develop effective adaptation policies, one must understand the social and spatial differentials of population vulnerability to climate change. Assessing social vulnerability and equity in the context of climate change is a starting point to identify the needs for climate change adaptation and improve upon it. Indonesia and Malawi are two countries most likely to suffer adverse impacts of climate change because of their vulnerable social and natural systems, multiple interacting stresses and low adaptive capacity. This paper aims to assess the vulnerability to climate change in Indonesia and Malawi through the social vulnerability index approach and show how population growth, composition, ageing and urbanization shape social vulnerability to climate change. The results of the study would also help other developing countries with similar geographic and socio-economic conditions to prepare appropriate strategies for responding to climate change.

Rural households in developing countries rely heavily on biomass fuels to provide energy for cooking. While biomass supplies have traditionally been sourced from proximate forests, rapid population growth and high rates of deforestation and degradation are changing the quantity, type and source of fuels households use. We use data from a panel household survey in Uganda to examine the influence of rapid land use change on fuel use. We then explore the effect of biomass fuels of different types and from different sources on the incidence of acute respiratory infection (ARI) for a sample of 1100 women and children. We find that rapid land use change is altering the characteristics of fuel use portfolios. We observe marked differences in how households are responding to land use change across income groups. We estimate a series of probit regression models to understand the influence of biomass fuel portfolios on health outcomes, including models that take into account the joint determination of health outcomes and fuel choices. We find a negative association between fuel harvested from forests and ARI, and a positive association between fuel harvested from non-forest areas and ARI. Our findings have implications for targeting supply side interventions that mitigate the influence of land use change on fuel supplies.

The Vale do Paraíba, Litoral Norte and Serra da Mantiqueira Metropolitan Region – RMVPLNSM was created in 2012 and is composed by 39 municipalities that gathered in 2010, according to 2010 Brazilian Demographic Census, 2.340.891 inhabitants. During the last years the region is facing significant and increasing challenges related with demographic and environmental issues, most of them related with the accelerated economic growth and development processes that are taking place in the region during the last ten years, especially the ones related with the substantial investments that are being made by State and Federal governments into the infrastructure facilities needed to exploit oil and natural gas from the Pre-Salt basin in Caraguatatuba, Jambeiro, Paraibuna, Jacareí, São José dos Campos and Taubaté municipalities that, together with the modernization and upgrading of São Sebastião Seaport and road transportation infrastructure in the region, shall get more than R$ 140 billion (about US$ 70 billion) during 2010’s decade. The main objective of this paper is to identify, to evaluate and to discuss the role the so-called infrastructure megaprojects and the demographic dynamics will play in the future planned scenarios for the region.

Growing populations exert added pressure to their immediate environs and such equations are far more intense in developing country contents. The urban center of Guwahati is the only million city with a hinterland of 255,000 km2 in north east India. Its growing population pressure has had effects not merely within its city limits but in its surrounding areas as well. The Rani-Garbhanga (RG) reserve forests (RFs) on the southern fringe of the city has been one such victim. The city’s spillover population and forest extraction effects are assessed in terms of their effects on the RG forest landscape during 1991-2011. The losses in forest cover, vegetation greenness and quantum of fragmentation are quantified using Landsat data and Fragstats (McGarial et al.,2012) based landscape metrics. A decline of the forest landscape of RG, evidenced by declines in normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values along with an increasingly fragmented forest landscape has occurred with several ramifications. Low levels of governance has enabled illegal tree felling to flourish and certain parties profit from the forests. Protection of scarce resources has not received much priority in this region, its status as one of India’s two biodiversity hotspots notwithstanding.

Abstract

The south Asia region - Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri-Lanka-possesses an extra ordinary diversity of landforms and climatic regimes. Deepening nature of poverty and its impact on the process of environmental degradation is one of the major concerns in this area. In this context, the first part of this paper deals with the state of south Asian economy and environment and the second part examines the linkage between population dynamics and related environmental changes and their implications for regional economic relationship. Results suggested that the principal causes of environmental degradation in the sub continent are: demographic pressure, which has worsened the man-land ratio causing severe strain on the ecological support base and developmental activities. Also, a poor health profile and the low level of human resource development in all the countries with the exception of Sri Lanka will impose severe constraints.

Key words: south Asia, population, health, environment