Women, environmental changes and forestry-related development : Gender-affected roles of rural people in land degradation and environmental rehabilitation in a dry region of Sudan

The purpose of the present study was to increase understanding of the interaction of rural people and, specifically, women with the environment in a dry area in Sudan. The study that included both nomadic pastoralists and farmers aimed at answering two main research questions, namely: What kinds of roles have the local people, and the women in particular, had in land degradation in the study area and what kinds of issues would a gender-sensitive, forestry-related environmental rehabilitation intervention need to consider there? The study adopted the definition of land degradation as proposed by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), which describes land degradation as reduction or loss the biological or economic productivity and complexity of land in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas. The Convention perceives desertification as land degradation. The dry study area in Sudan, South of the Sahara, has been the subject of land degradation or desertification discussions since the 1970s, and other studies have been also conducted to assess the degradation in the area. Nevertheless, the exact occurrence, scale and local significance of land degradation in the area is still unclear. This study explored how the rural population whose livelihood depended on the area, perceived environmental changes occurring there and compared their conceptions with other sources of information of the area such as research reports. The main fieldwork methods included interviews with open-ended questions and observation of people and the environment. The theoretical framework conceptualised the rural population as land users whose choices of environmental activities are affected by multiple factors in the social and biophysical contexts in which they live. It was emphasised that these factors have their own specific characteristics in different contexts, simultaneously recognising that there are also factors that generally affect environmental practices in various areas such as the land users' environmental literacy (conceptions of the environment), gender and livelihood needs. The people studied described that environmental changes, such as reduced vegetation cover and cropland production, had complicated the maintenance of their livelihoods in the study area. Some degraded sites were also identified through observations during the fieldwork. Whether a large-scale reduction of cropland productivity had occurred in the farmers' croplands remained, however, unclear. The study found that the environmental impact of the rural women's activities varied and was normally limited. The women's most significant environmental impact resulted from their cutting of trees, which was likely to contribute, at least in some places, to land degradation, affecting the environment together with climate and livestock. However, when a wider perspective is taken, it becomes questionable whether the women have really played roles in land degradation, since gender, poverty and the need to maintain livelihood had caused them to conduct environmentally harmful activities. The women have had, however, no power to change the causes of their activities. The findings further suggested that an inadequate availability of food was the most critical problem in the study area. Therefore, an environmental programme in the area was suggested to include technical measures to increase the productivity of croplands, opportunities for income generation and readiness to co-operate with other programmes to improve the local people's abilities to maintain their livelihoods. In order to protect the environment and alleviate the women's work burden, the introduction of fuel-saving stoves was also suggested. Furthermore, it was suggested that increased planting of trees on homesteads would be supported by an easy availability of tree seedlings. Planting trees on common property land was, however, perceived as extremely demanding in the study area, due to scarcity of such land. In addition, it became apparent that the local land users, and women in particular, needed to allocate their labour to maintain the immediate livelihood of their families and were not motivated to allocate their labour solely for environmental rehabilitation. Nonetheless, from the point of view of the existing social structures, women's active participation in a community-based environmental programme would be rather natural, particularly among the farmer women who had already formed a women's group and participated in communal decision making. Forming of a women group or groups was suggested to further support both the farmer women's and pastoral women's active participation within an environmental programme and their general empowerment. An Environmental programme would need to acknowledge that improving rural people's well-being and maintaining their livelihood in the study area requires development and co-operation with various sectors in Sudan.

Social work and complex care systems: The case of people hospitalised with a disability

Health and hospital system reforms prioritise efficiency. However, initiatives can impact on people with new or existing disabilities who require time to maximise functional independence. With greater demands for shorter hospital stays social workers face increasing pressure to facilitate discharge. This paper reports findings from research identifying factors contributing to extended stays for adults with disabilities. We sought to better understand patient characteristics and discharge planning challenges by analysing a clinical data set of 80 patients and qualitative interviews with five experienced hospital social workers. Three key factors are identified: issues around rehabilitation services; assessment and planning for community care; and availability of and access to discharge options. Strategies to reduce length of stay are reported. We argue that building collaborative partnerships and working across multiple, complex systems and disciplines are vital to ensure these patients access appropriate community-based resources within the current health reform environment.

Patients with physical debility undergoing subacute physical rehabilitation following an acute hospital admission demonstrated improvement in cognitive functional task independence

Background: Hospitalised older adults often experience a decline in physical functioning and mobility in the lead up to (or during) an acute hospital admission. During acute illness and hospitalisation, older adults may also experience a decline or fluctuation in their cognitive functioning. Previous studies have demonstrated that patients with or without reduced cognitive functioning on admission to subacute inpatient rehabilitation have considerable potential to improve their physical functioning and quality of life.

Crime Justice and Social Democracy: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference, 9-10 July 2015

We are pleased to present these selected papers from the proceedings of the 3rd Crime, Justice and Social Democracy International Conference, held in July 2015 in Brisbane, Australia. Over 350 delegates attended the conference from 19 countries. The papers collected here reflect the diversity of topics and themes that were explored over three days. The Crime, Justice and Social Democracy International Conference aims to strengthen the intellectual and policy debates concerning links between justice, social democracy, and the reduction of harm and crime, through building more just and inclusive societies and proposing innovative justice responses. In 2015, attendees discussed these issues as they related to ideas of green criminology; indigenous justice; gender, sex and justice; punishment and society; and the emerging notion of ‘Southern criminology’. The need to build global connections to address these challenges is more evident than ever and the conference and these proceedings reflect a growing attention to interdisciplinary, novel, and interconnected responses to contemporary global challenges. Authors in these conference proceedings engaged with issues of online fraud, queer criminology and law, Indigenous incarceration, youth justice, incarceration in Brazil, and policing in Victoria, Australia, among others. The topics explored speak to the themes of the conference and demonstrate the range of challenges facing researchers of crime, harm, social democracy and social justice and the spaces of possibility that such research opens. Our thanks to the conference convenor, Dr Kelly Richards, for organising such a successful conference, and to all those presenters who subsequently submitted such excellent papers for review here. We would also particularly like to thank Jess Rodgers for their tireless editorial assistance, as well as the panel of international scholars who participated in the review process, often within tight timelines.

iPSL: Enabling rehabilitation of deaf community in Pakistan

This paper presents an initiative taken in Pakistan for the rehabilitation of the deaf community, enabled by the use of technology. iPSL is a system that primarily aims at facilitating communication between the hearing and the deaf community in Pakistan. There is a twofold approach to achieve this. The first dimension is to implement a system that can translate signs made by deaf into natural language sentences. The second dimension is to implement tools that enable hearing people to understand and learn sign language by converting natural language sentences into sign language. This paper presents the progress made in the project so far in terms of design, implementation and evaluation. © ACM 2009.

Selection of Postacute Stroke Rehabilitation Facilities: A Survey of Discharge Planners From the Northeast Cerebrovascular Consortium (NECC) Region.

The process of determining the level of care and specific postacute care facility for stroke patients has not been adequately studied. The objective of this study was to better understand the factors that influence postacute care decisions by surveying stroke discharge planners. Requests were sent to discharge planners at 471 hospitals in the Northeast United States to complete an online survey regarding the factors impacting the selection of postacute care. Seventy-seven (16%) discharge planners completed the online survey. Respondents were mainly nurses and social workers and 73% reported ≥20 years healthcare experience. Patients and families were found to be significantly more influential than physicians (P < 0.001) and other clinicians (P = 0.04) in influencing postdischarge care. Other clinicians were significantly more influential than physicians (P < 0.001). Insurance and quality of postacute care were the factors likely to most affect the selection of postacute care facility. Insurance was also identified as the greatest barrier in the selection of level of postacute care (70%; P < 0.001) and specific postacute care facility (46%; P = 0.02). More than half reported that pressure to discharge patients quickly impacts a patients' final destination. Nonclinical factors are perceived by discharge planners to have a major influence on postacute stroke care decision making.

Art, adolescence and Social Work: Anja, the invisible manager

This article has been written with the intention of being able to analyse the contributions of art —theatre, in this case— to the practice of social work. For this purpose, we have chosen to read the social reality in which we intervene through the lens of social constructionism. This helps us to rescue the social and subjective side of art, and, moreover, to recover the depathologization of the subject in professional intervention. Thus, using a practical case taken from work with adolescents in the German FSJ programme, hand-in-hand with a young girl called Anja we trace the developmental and sociological aspects of adolescence in order to later address certain common points of art and psychosocial work. Art will hence be redefined as a transitional object allowing questions to be addressed relating to (self-) perception, attachment, communication and changes in conduct as the ultimate goal of professional action. Lastly, we note the limitations and risks of art-based intervention, in order to conclude with a final synopsis.

Art as an educative and social tool

Since remote times, certain sectors of society have been exposed to inequality and vulnerability, where adequate intervention processes have become conspicuous because of their absence. Nowadays, current societies have the responsibility of contributing, based on their experience and knowledge, with more efficient policies and programs that improve the life quality of the most disadvantaged. It is here where art and its different tools play a very important role, not only on a physical level, but also as an education tool that allows the development of emotional, mental and communicative skills. The aim of this paper is to make clear the potential of art as an instrument of social and educational intervention. It starts by showing worldwide-collected experience related to education and arts, and then, it acquaints the reader with two parallel intervention projects that worked with youths under social vulnerability conditions. These interventions were developed based on a qualitative research (Grounded theory), using as methodology “The Artistic Mediation” with emphasis on body language. This methodology helped researchers to get close to the participants and to know their experiences and emotions. At the same time, it was possible to evidence the positive effects of educative interventions through art. These workshops were based on an artistic methodology especially focused on body language. Data in this work is qualitative, and as such, it permits a special approach to the personal and emotional experiences of the participants; clearly showing the positive effects of the referenced practice on them.

Cardiac rehabilitation uptake following myocardial infarction: cross-sectional study in primary care

Background Policies suggest that primary care should be more involved in delivering cardiac rehabilitation. However, there is a lack of information about what is known in primary care regarding patients' invitation or attendance. Aim To determine, within primary care, how many patients are invited to and attend rehabilitation after myocardial infarction (MI), examine sociodemographic factors related to invitation, and compare quality of life between those who do and do not attend. Design of study Review of primary care paper and computer records; cross-sectional questionnaire. Setting Northern Ireland general practices (38); stratified sample, based on practice size and health board area. Method Patients, identified from primary care records, 12-16?weeks after a confirmed diagnosis of MI, were posted questionnaires, including a validated MacNew post-MI quality-of-life questionnaire. Practices returned anonymised data for non-responders. Results Information about rehabilitation was available for 332 of the 432 patients identified (76.9%): 162 (37.5%) returned questionnaires. Of the total sample, 54.4% (235/432) were invited and 37.0% (160/432) attended; of those invited, 68.1% (160/235) attended. Invited patients were younger than those not invited (mean age 63?years [standard deviation SD 16] versus 68.5?years [SD 16]); mean difference 5.5?years (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.7 to 9.3). Among questionnaire responders, those who attended were younger and reported better emotional, physical, and social functioning than non-attenders (P = 0.01; mean differences 0.44 (95% CI = 0.11 to 0.77), 0.48 (95% CI = 0.10 to 0.85) and 0.54 (95% CI = 0.15 to 0.94) respectively). Conclusion Innovative strategies are needed to improve cardiac rehabilitation uptake, integration of hospital and primary care services, and healthcare professionals' awareness of patients' potential for health gain after MI.

Rejecting the label: A social constructionist analysis

Research has shown that people often do not claim labels associated with mental retardation or learning difficulties. We discussed the interpretation that this rejection is an example of a denial process, the purpose of which is to protect self-esteem. Alternative explanations for this lack of identification were offered, based on an understanding of the socially constructed nature of diagnostic labels and on the distinction between diagnostic labels and social categories. Some of the problems in using the label as a descriptive or explanatory resource are illustrated using quotes from a study in which people who have been labeled discussed the label.