Comprehending drivers of land use land cover change from 1999 to 2021 in the Pithoragarh District,Kumaon Himalaya,Uttarakhand,India

The Himalayan region has been experiencing stark impacts of climate change,demographic and livelihood pattern changes.The analysis of land use and land cover(LULC)change provides insights into the shifts in spatial and temporal patterns of landscape.These changes are the combined effects of anthropogenic and natural/climatic factors.The present study attempts to monitor and comprehend the main drivers behind LULC changes(1999-2021)in the Himalayan region of Pithoragarh district,Uttarakhand.Pithoragarh district is a border district,remotely located in the north-east region of Uttarakhand,India.The study draws upon primary and secondary data sources.A total of 400 household surveys and five group discussions from 38 villages were conducted randomly to understand the climate perception of the local community and the drivers of change.Satellite imagery,CRU(Climatic Research Unit)climate data and climate perception data from the field have been used to comprehensively comprehend,analyze,and discuss the trends and reasons for LULC change.GIS and remote sensing techniques were used to construct LULC maps.This multifaceted approach ensures comprehensive and corroborated information.Five classes were identified and formed viz-cultivation,barren,settlement,snow,and vegetation.Results show that vegetation and builtup have increased whereas cultivation,barren land,and snow cover have decreased.The study further aims to elucidate the causes behind LULC changes in the spatially heterogeneous region,distinguishing between those attributed to human activities,climate shifts,and the interconnected impacts of both.The study provides a comprehensive picture of the study area and delivers a targeted understanding of local drivers and their potential remedies by offering a foundation for formulating sustainable adaptation policies in the region.

Cognitive dissonance and mindset perturbations during crisis:“ecosocio-psycho-somatic”perspectives

Mandatory and restrictive health regulations during the corona pandemic caused psychic disorders in many people,which even led to clinically relevant mental disorders.At the same time,there was gradually a polarization of opinions among the population.In order to improve future pandemic management,an integrative understanding of these psychosocial processes therefore seems useful.Here we start theoretically with the mental effects of inconsistencies of the information environment by referring to concepts such as the theory of cognitive dissonance.In a next step,we use the psychodynamic theory to understand the affective-motivational defense mechanisms underlying these cognitive states and processes.However,a broader theoretical framework of psychoanalysis seems to make sense,because self-referential processing also influences the style of thinking.For this reason,we use a more comprehensive psychological systems theoretical framework model to integrate these different perspectives.This integrative view refers in part to basic knowledge of health psychology regarding the resistance of unhealthy ways of thinking and behaviors and the possibilities for interventions for change.We then extend this model to a broader picture that also covers the relationship between men and their environment.This results in the perspective of a multidimensional socioecological theoretical framework,which as a heuristic reference model and related to other ecological approaches could also be helpful for various theoretical questions for public health,and could provide a better public understanding of health issues.In line with this perspective,we hypothesize that with regard to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic,the acceptance of public health narratives could be increased if a more consistent picture of the scientific descriptions and explanations of the pandemic-similar to the model proposed-could be provided,which would enable the understanding of the origin,course and countermeasures,and thus could have positive collective psycho-hygienic effects.

Environmental Data Acquisition, Elaboration and Integration： Preliminary Application to a Vulnerable Mountain Landscape and Village （Novalesa, NW Italy）

Climate conditions play a crucial role in the survival of mountain communities, whose survival already critically depends on socioeconomic factors. In the case of montane areas that are prone to natural haz-ards, such as alpine slope failure and debris flows, climatic factors exert a major influence that should be considered when creating appropriate sustainable scenarios. In fact, it has been shown that climate change alters the availability of ecosystem services （ES）, thus increasing the risks of declining soil fertility and reduced water availability, as well as the loss of grassland, potential shifts in regulatory services （e.g., protection from natural hazards）, and cultural services. This study offers a preliminary discussion on a case study of a region in the Italian Alps that is experiencing increased extreme precipitation and erosion, and where an isolated and historically resilient community directly depends on a natural resource econ- omy. Preliminary results show that economic factors have influenced past population trends of the Novalesa community in the Piemonte Region in northwest Italy. However, the increasing number of rock fall and debris flow events, which are triggered by meteo-climatic factors, may further influence the livelihood and weflbeing of this community, and of other similar communities around the world, Therefore, environmental monitoring and data analysis will be important means of detecting trends in landscape and climate change and choosing appropriate planning options. Such analysis, in turn, would ensure the survival of about 10% of the global population, and would also represent a possibility for future economic development in critical areas prone to poverty conditions.

Integrated landscape approaches to building resilience and multifunctionality in the Kailash Sacred Landscape,China

Climate warming-induced rangeland degradation in arid and semiarid steppe imposes substantial threats to the livelihoods of people.But this dilemma can be solved by combining all sectors of agriculture,animal husbandry and tourism through their complementarity,i.e.by adopting integrated landscape ecosystem-based approaches.A number of experiences and lessons have been achieved in a specific sector for its successful development,but not in the multiple social,economic,and ecological systems.In this study,we use the perspective of integrated ecosystem management to strengthen crop-livestock integration and innovative livelihoods,and propose a multifunctional Kailash Landscape to activate the inter-linkage among agriculture,animal husbandry,and heritage pilgrimage/tourism in order to achieve multiple functions of the socio-ecological system.A case study of Kailash Sacred Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative in China was quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed by land use and land cover change and their consequences on multiple ecosystem services.Integrated landscape management was found to be effective in building resilience of socio-ecosystems by reducing the vulnerability of traditional agriculture in terms of improving crop production and animal husbandry.A multifunctional landscape is expected to be integrated and build a resilient sector complementarity including farming,pastorism,environmental and socioeconomic function.The analyses show that integrated landscape approaches provide an effective perspective for sustainable socio-economic development in this sacred landscape.The findings highlight the importance of landscape-scale ecosystem-based adaptation to environment change.

Hydrological Assessment for Watershed Health in a Headwater Sub-Basin of the Rio Grande de Arecibo, Puerto Rico

The Río Grande de Arecibo (RGA) Watershed is a crucial source of water for the residents of the Island of Puerto Rico, including those living in the San Juan metropolitan area that are supplied by the North Coast Super Aqueduct. It is also significant for forest conservation, with five state forests providing around 10% of the watershed’s protected forest area. However, land cover changes in the region are putting the watershed’s sustainability at risk, as is the case in many places worldwide. This study takes an integrated socioecological approach to examine environmental changes in a headwater sub-basin of the RGA Watershed over a 20-year period (2001-2021). Using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), we assessed the impact of land cover changes on water sustainability. Our findings indicated that the headwater sub-basin of the RGA showed a decrease in both Forest Land and Range Land and an increase in Urban Built-up Land cover 20 years later. The results from SWAT provided the information to establish a “less healthy” condition 20 years later, due to the increase in the surface runoff metric and a decrease in the lateral flow metric. The study provides a baseline for future socioecological watershed studies and sustainable management actions, and its novel approach, combining geospatial analysis with hydrological modeling, could be applied to other watersheds, particularly in the tropics, where such studies are scarce.

Sensor-based physical activity, sedentary time, and reported cell phone screen time: A hierarchy of correlates in youth

Background:Evidence on correlates relies on subjective metrics and fails to include correlates across all levels of the ecologic model.We determined which correlates best predict sensor-based physical activity(PA),sedentary time(ST),and self-reported cell phone screen time(CST)in a large sample of youth,while considering a multiplicity of correlates.Methods:Using sensor-based accelerometry,we assessed the PA and ST of 2179 youths.A χ^2 automatic interaction detection algorithm was used to hierarchize the correlates associated with too much ST(>50th percentile),insufficient moderate-to-vigorous PA(MVPA)(<60 min/day),and prolonged CST(≥2 h/day).Results:Among youth 10-14 years old,the correlates for being inactive consisted of being a girl,not having sport facilities in the neighborhood,and not perceiving the neighborhood as a safe place,whereas in the youth 15-18 years old,the correlate for being inactive was not performing sports(9.7%chance of being active).The correlates for predicting high ST in the younger group was not performing sports(55.8%chance for high ST),and in the older group,the correlates were not owning a pet,perceiving the neighborhood as safe,and having inactive parents(63.7%chance for high ST).In the younger group,the greatest chances of having high CST were among those who were in the last elementary school years,who were girls,and who did not have friends in the neighborhood(73.1%chance for high CST),whereas in the older group,the greatest chance for having high CST was among those who were girls and had a TV in the bedroom(74.3%chance for high CST).Conclusion:To counteract ST and boost MVPA among youths,a specific focus on girls,the promotion of sport participation and facilities,neighborhood safety,and involvement of family must be prioritized.

Neglected tropical diseases risk correlates with poverty and early ecosystem destruction

Background Neglected tropical diseases affect the most vulnerable populations and cause chronic and debilitating disorders.Socioeconomic vulnerability is a well-known and important determinant of neglected tropical diseases.For example,poverty and sanitation could influence parasite transmission.Nevertheless,the quantitative impact of socioeconomic conditions on disease transmission risk remains poorly explored.Methods This study investigated the role of socioeconomic variables in the predictive capacity of risk models of neglected tropical zoonoses using a decade of epidemiological data(2007–2018)from Brazil.Vector-borne diseases investigated in this study included dengue,malaria,Chagas disease,leishmaniasis,and Brazilian spotted fever,while directly-transmitted zoonotic diseases included schistosomiasis,leptospirosis,and hantaviruses.Environmental and socioeconomic predictors were combined with infectious disease data to build environmental and socioenvironmental sets of ecological niche models and their performances were compared.Results Socioeconomic variables were found to be as important as environmental variables in influencing the estimated likelihood of disease transmission across large spatial scales.The combination of socioeconomic and environmental variables improved overall model accuracy(or predictive power)by 10%on average(P<0.01),reaching a maximum of 18%in the case of dengue fever.Gross domestic product was the most important socioeconomic variable(37%relative variable importance,all individual models exhibited P<0.00),showing a decreasing relationship with disease indicating poverty as a major factor for disease transmission.Loss of natural vegetation cover between 2008 and 2018 was the most important environmental variable(42%relative variable importance,P<0.05)among environmental models,exhibiting a decreasing relationship with disease probability,showing that these diseases are especially prevalent in areas where natural ecosystem destruction is on its initial stages and lower when ecosystem destruction is on more advanced stages.Conclusions Destruction of natural ecosystems coupled with low income explain macro-scale neglected tropical and zoonotic disease probability in Brazil.Addition of socioeconomic variables improves transmission risk forecasts on tandem with environmental variables.Our results highlight that to efficiently address neglected tropical diseases,public health strategies must target both reduction of poverty and cessation of destruction of natural forests and savannas.

Bright spots for inland fish and fisheries to guide future hydropower development

Hydropower production is one of the greatest threats to fluvial ecosystems and freshwater biodiversity.Now that we have entered the Anthropocene,there is an opportunity to reflect on what might constitute a‘sustainable’Anthropocene in the context of hydropower and riverine fish populations.Considering elements of existing practices that promote favorable social-ecological outcomes(i.e.,‘bright spots’)is timely given that there are plans to expand hydropower capacity in previously undammed rivers,intensify dam development in some of the world's largest river systems,and re-license existing facilities.We approach this from a pragmatic perspective:for the foreseeable future,hydropower will likely remain an important source of renewable electricity.To offer support for moving toward a more‘sustainable’Anthropocene,we provide syntheses of best practices during the siting,design,construction,operation,and compensation phases of hydropower development to minimize impacts on inland fish.For each phase,we offer positive examples(or what might be considered‘bright spots’)pertaining to some of the approaches described within our syntheses,acknowledging that these projects may not be viewed as without ecological and(or)societal detriment by all stakeholders.Our findings underscore the importance of protecting critical habitat and free-flowing river reaches through careful site selection and basinscale planning,infrastructure designs that minimize reservoir effects and facilitate safe passage of fish,construction of hydropower plants using best practices that minimize long-term damage,operating guidelines that mimic natural flow conditions,and compensation that is lasting,effective,inclusive,and locally relevant.Learning from these‘bright spots’may require engagement of diverse stakeholders,professionals,and governments at scales that extend well beyond a given site,river,or even basin.Indeed,environmental planning that integrates hydropower development into broader discussions of conserving regional biodiversity and ecosystem services will be of utmost importance.

The biogeography of group sizes in humpback dolphins(Sousa spp.)

Humpback dolphins(Sousa spp.)are obligate shallow-water and resident species,and they typically live in fission–fusion societies composed of small-sized groups with changeable membership.However,we have scant knowledge of their behavioral ecology,starting with potential factors influencing inter-population variability of their group sizes.Here,we compiled a new global dataset of humpback dolphin group sizes based on 150 published records.Our data indicated an inter-specific consistency of group-living strategy among the 4 species in the Sousa genus,as these species preferred living in small-sized groups with a mean size of mostly no more than 10,a minimum size of single individual or small pairs,and a maximum size of several tens or≈100.In addition,we clearly showed the geographic variations in group sizes of humpback dolphins at a global scale.We found that the geographic variations in humpback dolphin group sizes were primarily associated with the latitude,sea surface temperature,and abundance.To conclude,our findings provide insights into social dynamics and socioecological trade-offs of humpback dolphins,and help better understand how these resident animals adapted to their shallow-water habitats from the perspectives of biogeography and socioecology.