Financing Disaster Risk Reduction:Exploring the Opportunities,Challenges,and Threats Within the Southern African Development Community Region

The Southern African Development Community(SADC)region,a regional economic body comprised of 16 member states,is one of our planet's most vulnerable regions to natural hazards,and has a complex disaster risk profile.The region has sustained several disasters over the past decades.These events include annual floods in 2004-2019 and extreme droughts(1990-1993);other climate-induced disasters,such as cyclones,also have had devastating impacts,particularly on the Indian Ocean island states and east coast countries.To reduce the risk and impacts of dis asters,governments must invest in disaster risk reduction(DRR).However,interventions aimed at reducing social and economic vulnerability and investing in longterm mitigation activities are often few,poorly funded,and insignificant in comparison with money spent on humanitarian assistance,dis aster relief,and post-disaster reconstruction.This study investigated whether DRR is adequately funded within SADC member states in light of the high stakes in human life,infrastructure,and economic losses and the potential savings involved.The study applied a qualitative research design with data collected through semistructured interviews and focus group discussions.Respondents were selected purposefully and through snowball sampling with a total of 67 respondents from Botswana,Eswatini,Namibia,South Africa,and Zimbabwe participating in the study.The study findings reveal that DRR is inadequately funded in all the member states consulted in comparison to funding allocated to disaster response.In light of the underfunding experienced by DRR activities,this study provides a platform for lobbying and advocacy for adequate funding for DRR.

Community-led total sanitation(CLTS)implementation in West Mamprusi Municipal Assembly in Ghana.What do communities think eleven years on?

Objective Access to improved sanitation is a fundamental human right and an important aspect of Public Health.However,an estimated thousands of people in Ghana especially,the West Mamprusi Municipal Assembly(WMMA)still have no access to adequate toilet facilities.This has brought untold health repercussions to the inhabitants,the community,and the environment at large.To address this menace,the community-led total sanitation(CLTS)was implemented.This study aimed to assess communities’perspectives on the implementation of CLTS and to understand the factors influencing its success and failures.Methods A mixed-method approach involving sequential qualitative and quantitative methods was employed in this study.Participants for the quantitative study were randomly selected and surveyed using questionnaires.The qualitative study employed focus group discussion involving purposively sampled participants including assembly members,opinion leaders,and assembly staff.Results The CLTS program in WMMA realized an apparent use of construction and proper use of household latrines leading to a reduction of open defecation free(ODF)and two communities achieving sanitized status in the history of the study area,enabling the training of latrine artisans and natural leaders to facilitate the CLTS expansion and sustainability,improved sanitation and hygiene,strengthened the enforcement of community rules and regulations and many others.Conclusion The CLTS program has received more widespread acceptance in the study area than the previous government policy of constructing public toilets,which was greeted with massive failures due to poor implementation.To ensure that gains achieved through CLTS implementation are sustained longer,it is recommended that chiefs and opinion leaders should be involved in the CLTS programs to ensure checks and enforcement.The entrenchment of bylaws and more education to address enduring myths and misconceptions will sustain the program.Subsidies in the form of sanitation loans for latrine construction materials by the government and supporting non-governmental organizations(NGOs)will be paramount in sustaining ODF.

Role of Wind-Sand Disturbance in the Formation and Development of Tamarix taklamakanensis Community

Formation, development and degeneration of Tamarix taklamakanensis M.T. Liu community may be affected by wind-sand disturbance. On the basis of field survey and experiments that took eight years from 1994, it was found that the plant community was formed in wet and low-lying land, developed in sand burying land, and died out in the land with strong wind erosion and severe sand burying. In the initial stage of the community formation, the low-lying land that was formed by wind erosion provided a suitable habitat for seed germination and plant rooting, but salt stress from ground water reduced seedling survival rate. In the developing stage of the community, sand burying stimulated vigorous growth of the shrubs. In the degenerative stage of the community, the wind erosion and sand burying resulted in dying out of the shrubs. It is therefore concluded that wind-sand disturbance has a positive role in the formation and development of the community, and is in a close association with the process of the community degeneration. Taking the habitat of T taklamakanensis into account, it may be appropriate to note that, under the conditions of frequent disturbance and severe stress, desert pioneer species are adaptable and able to survive. This might be a supplement to the CSR strategy.

An Institutional Model for Collaborative Disaster Risk Management in the Southern African Development Community(SADC) Region

This article presents and argues for a collaborative model for disaster risk management in the Southern African Development Community(SADC).The research employed a qualitative study through a literature review and empirical research through focus group interviews to realize its objectives.As a key theory of multinational collaboration,neoliberal institutionalism—a subset of the international relations theory—was used to develop the SADC institutional collaborative model.The model combined the theoretical,political,and technical dimensions of collaboration to enhance buy-in for the disaster risk management and reduction function of governments.The model demonstrates the need for a multidisciplinary approach to achieving disaster risk management and reduction in the SADC and elsewhere,if the developmental objectives of disaster risk reduction are to be realized without interference in the domestic affairs of the member countries.This model is therefore grounded in seeking consensus and cooperation among cooperating states in a quest to ensure national implementation of the regional framework on disaster risk reduction.

Perceived Adverse Effects of Separating Government Institutions for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation Within the Southern African Development Community Member States

Integration of disaster risk reduction(DRR)and climate change adaptation(CCA)is widely recognized as a solution for reducing the risk and impacts of disasters.However,successful integration seems elusive,and the two goals continue to function in isolation and in parallel.This article provides empirical insights into the perceived effects of separating government institutions for DRR and CCA within the Southern African Development Community member states.A mixed method research design was applied to the study.A total of 40 respondents from Botswana,Eswatini(until April 2018 Swaziland),Madagascar,Malawi,Namibia,South Africa,Tanzania,Zambia,and Zimbabwe participated in face-to-face interviews or an online survey.Five major effects of separating the organizations for DRR and CCA that impede efforts to reduce disaster risk coherently were identified:duplication of services,polarization of interventions,incoherent policies,competition for the same resources,and territorial contests.Given the continued fragmentation of institutions for DRR and CCA,highlighting these effects is important to emphasize the need for integrated approaches towards the reduction of disaster risk.

Impact Measurement of Community Development Using the Development Wheel： A Case of Madhuwani VDC, Lumbini, Nepal （With Reference to Rural Tourism）

Recent trend on ongoing changes has unfolded the truth that people are the actors of environmental and social changes. The decade following the restoration of multi-party democracy witnessed a number of economic reforms and development initiatives. The adoption of a liberal, market-oriented development strategy led by private sector has helped to stimulate investment and growth. Nonetheless, development efforts have been largely unsuccessful in integrating the vulnerable and marginalized groups. The governance system has remained non-functional because deeply rooted processes of exclusion have compounded failures at the institutional level and in implementation process. The impacts of development may be measured by several means. This research is an earnest effort to bring new innovations in impact measurement of social inclusion programs. The rigorous processes of finding changes over a period of time and assessing the changes in a ＂wheel＂ are interesting parts of the people lead development in the twenty-first century. Indicators of the development wheel are designed by development professionals of Nepal and rating is done by local stakeholders of Lumbini themselves. The study is based on exploratory and descriptive research design. It follows sequences of appreciative inquiry and development wheel preparation to compare the changes that are in vogue in Nepal. The changes are quantified in three continua that depict the community development programs implemented from 2003 through 2006. This measurement invites rigorous planning and inputs （man, money and time） but it is quite easy for local stakeholders that where they are （in development） and in which direction the currently available and future resources should be streamlined.

Examining the Impacts of Key Influencers on Community Development

In this research,we aim to identify and investigate the impacts of key influencers on community formations and developments.We assess the impacts of key influencers by analyzing the activities and structure of the social media presence of a local community.Results of our analysis show that key influencers play important roles in connecting the community,transferring information,and improving overall sentiment of the community members.Our findings suggest that community practitioners can apply social network analysis to identify value-added influencers and discover strategies for improving the community and keeping leadership roles.

Cultural Relevance for Rural Community Development in China: A Case Study in Bai, Jingpo and Huyaodai Communities of Yunnan Province

A three-year study over the Bai, Jingpo and Huayaodai communities in Yunnan Province reveals that the community development is significantly influenced in various ways by such cultural factors as the concepts of development; concepts and traditions of inter-community relationships, consumption, mar- riage and gender; patterns of decision-making and production, resource and income allocation; as well as the role of information dissemination systems, religion and ritual. Based on the analysis over the interactive relevance between each factor and community development, some strategies and methods for dealing with such a cultural relevance in development projects are recommended.

Is Tourism the (Only) Best “Choice” for Community Rehabilitation and Development?

Economic conditions,societies,and current changes make many communities in Thailand face changes in occupation and life,especially suburban communities which face loneliness and sluggishness.With this problem,renovation and development of communities ensue.Many communities have changed their image to be the“tourism community”,the result of which is generally perceived as either failure or success.According to this phenomenon,the author would like to present a story through a case study of Pak Nam Prasae Community,Klaeng District,Rayong Province.The author had an opportunity to conduct a participatory action research with collaboration for the main objectives which are to support knowledge body that leads the community out of loneliness and sluggishness and to create tourism activities.Nowadays,this community has become a popular tourist attraction,which is promoted as part of the national tourism by Tourism Authority of Thailand.The author would like to present both sides of the development through the tool called“tourism”which was employed by the community as a new approach to maintain,renovate,and develop the community.Even though in the initial stage,promotion and support from the external network were important,the most important thing is the cost of community in certain aspects that support the community to insist,improve,and connect to new networks by itself.On the other hand,the community will have to face with new different issues and challenges,especially in terms of management and share of benefit gained from using the local resources to develop the tourism in the community.According to these two pieces of information,after all,whether“tourism”is the best tool for development is an important issue that the community has to consider.

Local Community Participation in Homestay Program Development in Malaysia

The tourism industry is the second largest economic contributor in Malaysia, following the manufacturing sector. In 2008, recorded tourist arrivals reached 22.05 million and resulted in RM49.6 billion （USD13.4 billion） in revenue. The government has recognized the tourism industry in Malaysia as an engine for economic, social, political and ecological development, especially in rural areas. The Homestay Program is actively promoted by the Ministry of Tourism as a type of community based tourism in Malaysia. It is realized by the government as a catalyst for rural community development, particularly from a socio-economic perspective. The benefits of community based tourism can be further developed through the participation of women, youth and retired people. To realize the potential of the Homestay Program, the Malaysian Rural Tourism Master Plan 2001 was formulated. In the Malaysian Plan （2006-2010）, one of the points of focus by the government is on community development; rural tourism is one of the mechanisms. By June 2009, there had been 3,264 participants in 140 Homestays. Recently, the Ministry of Tourism has given the Homestay Program special emphasis. Under the 9th Malaysia Plan, a total of RM40 million was allocated to the ministry for upgrading infrastructure and facilities in participating villages. Developing the capabilities of local communities is an important component in ensuring the tourism development project benefits them; without supporting the communities in their endeavors, the physical development means nothing to them. If local communities are not equipped to actively participate, third parties could easily manipulate them, resulting in external domination of tourism development. Therefore, this descriptive study explores the motivation of local communities involved in the Homestay Program and the readiness among the local communities, as well as the appropriateness of training provided by government agencies aimed towards empowering local communities. Sixty-two respondents from local communities actively involved in operating the Homestay Program participated in this study. Respondents were from the district of Muar, Johore, Malaysia （Homestay Kg. Parit Bugis, Homestay Kg. Satang Buaya, and Homestay Kg. Melayu Baharu, Bt 28 Lenga）.

Does Size Matter？ How Firm Size Affects Social Externalities and Community and Regional Development

This study shows how family firm size affects the extent to which bus and coach operators in Australia interact with and contribute to their community by quantifying the value of eight social externalities and presenting the results, using the number of staff and the number of buses per operator as the denominators. The study highlights how a transaction between the government, as buyer, and the bus operator, as seller of services, can affect an external factor that being community and regional development. The results suggest that the small- and medium-sized family firm bus operators are the governance models most likely to contribute toward achieving community and regional development outcomes, which in turn, highlights the importance placed on the achievement of the non-financial goals of family firms and the socio-emotional wealth of the community in which it is embedded. This study suggests that it is possible that contracting bus-services for social value, rather than just lowest price, would create greater benefit for the community and this would offset any gains in economic efficiency achieved by large and non-family firms.

The Development of Community Tourism： A Relational View of Development Economics

By adopting the research method of documentary research, combining the related theory of development economics, and starting with the concept of community tourism, this paper brings forward the ＂Dual Structure＂ and the Kuznets Hypothesis of community tourism, and defines ＂the game theory＂ between the residents of community and tourists, as well as the increasing relationship between the per capita tourism income of community and the Geordie Modulus of community. Conclusively it puts forward the way of developing the tourism and community harmoniously, namely, taking the human as the dominant factor and being joined by the community.

An Assessment of Strategies for Cultural Heritage Management and Tourism Development in the Eyasi Basin, Northern Tanzania

This paper assesses the manner in which a local community has been incorporated into the management and utilization of cultural heritage resources in the lake Eyasi basin, northern Tanzania, in order to reduce poverty. One of the most important programs used to encourage rural developments is the outlay of cultural tourism. Lake Eyasi region is one of the few regions in Tanzania with brilliant cultural heritage resources including archaeological sites and distinctive indigenous cultural traits that cannot be seen in other places across Eastern Africa. Archaeological records of this region exhibit the earliest evidence for hominin morphological change from archaic to modem humans. It is also coherent key development traits including complex lithic technologies and artistic imaginations as it is the case for all living people. Ethnographic research in the region sheds light on the living standards of a modem foraging community that has consistently relied on wildlife resources for several decades. Both archaeological and ethnographical aspects have made this region an enduring attraction for tourists to seek a unique experience and gain an appreciation for the past. Even though there are positive impacts of tourism on rural development, there are potential challenges that need immediate attention.

Toward a Child-Friendly Community:Analytical Framework,Typical Cases,and Strategies

Building a child-friendly community is becoming an important part of the overall blueprint of China’s urban renewal and community development.As the 14 th Five-Year Plan(2021-2025)puts forward goals and content friendly to children for the first time,the corresponding theoretical research should be done in time.This research applies the analytical framework of"public spaces-neighborhood relations"and summarizes four types of childfriendly communities:participation for exploration,gathering for communication,spatial absorption,and disassociation.Four communities in the H District of T City are used as typical cases to present the status quo and characteristics of each type.The three major strategies for building a child-friendly community in the future include adding or transforming emotional community infrastructure for children,providing extensive community cultural supplies for children’s gamified participation,and proactively promoting organizational coordination and institutional guarantee for community development.

Feeding prehistoric coastal community:A study of marine faunal remains at the Jingtoushan site

This article examines the abundant marine mollusc,and fish remains at the Jingtoushan shell midden(8,300 to7,800 cal a BP)in Zhejiang Province,China,to investigate the fishing economy,community development,the palaeoenvironment,and their interactions among the prehistoric populations in the lower Yangtze River Basin and southeastern coastal China.It also attempts to explore the prosperity and decline of coastal settlements in China during the Neolithic Age and the potential reasons for their rise and fall,respectively.Based on the ecological and biological principles of marine animals,standard zooarchaeological methods and radiocarbon dating analysis are used for sampling,identification,measurement,and quantification.Results show that at least 11 mollusc taxa and 14 fish taxa can be identified from the Jingtoushan faunal assemblage.The ancient Jingtoushan residents possibly lived in a settlement close to the coast and engaged in inshore and offshore fishing,hunting,and gathering as their primary subsistence strategies,with low-level rice cultivation as a supplementary means of sustenance.Eventually,the changes in the coastal environment could be one of the reasons why the Jingtoushan residents abandoned their settlement.The research contributes to Chinese Neolithic archaeology with new evidence of the exploitation of marine resources around 8000 a BP in the eastern coastal areas and the relationship between Neolithic community development and environmental changes.

Gentrifying rural community development:A case study of Bama Panyang River Basin in Guangxi,China

Rural gentrification is deeply characterized by institutional context and spatiotemporal heterogeneity.Based on a diachronic field investigation,this paper constructs an analytical framework for gentrifying rural community development(GRCD)with a“community”theoretical perspective and analytical approach,defines the concept of GRCD,and analyzes the main characteristics,formation mechanism and regulation path of a typical gentrifying rural community in the Panyang River Basin of Bama County,Guangxi.Driven by factors such as the complex flow and heterogeneous living space practices of the host-guest community,the longevity“myth”led by commercial capital and consumption demand,and multiple action logics and desertification community governance,great changes have occurred in the social space and material landscape of the rural longevity community.Such changes include comprehensive reconstruction of the resident population,surface interaction and social separation of the host-guest community,residential structure change and settlement landscape renewal,and delocalization of the healing landscape and lifestyle changes.We propose policy insights in three areas:public and localization institutional arrangements,shared and comfortable gentrifying rural community making,and inclusive and synergistic gentrifying rural community governance.Through these aspects,we provide insights from the Chinese case for the gentrification and community development of rural areas in the Global South.

Application of Mindsets to Health Education and Behavior Change Programs

Successful health promotion programs are characterized in part, by the willingness of audiences to engage, participate, and adopt healthier behaviors. But presentation of messages that reach and resonate with the intended audience remains challenging. This is due in part to the variety of mindsets—viewpoints, attitudes, and beliefs—within a population. These mindsets play an essential role in understanding and predicting behaviors and lifestyle factors associated with health or chronic diseases. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate how a specific survey-based method of mindset segmentation can distinguish predominant mindsets and then be used to create, adapt, and/or market health programs to appeal to these mindsets. Steps in survey construction, distribution, and analysis are described. Interpretation of the results, yielding three primary mindsets, is the critical outcome of this segmentation method. The applications of this interpretation to community health education programs are suggested. This approach has potential to inform, enhance, or customize programs, tailoring activities, methods, and messages to the preferences of the community.

Priorities for Social and Humanities Projects Based on Text Analysis

Purpose:Changes in the world show that the role,importance,and coherence of SSH(social sciences and the humanities)will increase significantly in the coming years.This paper aims to monitor and analyze the evolution(or overlapping)of the SSH thematic pattern through three funding instruments since 2007.Design/methodology/approach:The goal of the paper is to check to what extent the EU Framework Program(FP)affects/does not affect research on national level,and to highlight hot topics from a given period with the help of text analysis.Funded project titles and abstracts derived from the EU FP,Slovenian,and Estonian RIS were used.The final analysis and comparisons between different datasets were made based on the 200 most frequent words.After removing punctuation marks,numeric values,articles,prepositions,conjunctions,and auxiliary verbs,4,854 unique words in ETIS,4,421 unique words in the Slovenian Research Information System(SICRIS),and 3,950 unique words in FP were identified.Findings:Across all funding instruments,about a quarter of the top words constitute half of the word occurrences.The text analysis results show that in the majority of cases words do not overlap between FP and nationally funded projects.In some cases,it may be due to using different vocabulary.There is more overlapping between words in the case of Slovenia(SL)and Estonia(EE)and less in the case of Estonia and EU Framework Programmes(FP).At the same time,overlapping words indicate a wider reach(culture,education,social,history,human,innovation,etc.).In nationally funded projects(bottom-up),it was relatively difficult to observe the change in thematic trends over time.More specific results emerged from the comparison of the different programs throughout FP(top-down).Research limitations:Only projects with English titles and abstracts were analyzed.Practical implications:The specifics of SSH have to take into account—the one-to-one meaning of terms/words is not as important as,for example,in the exact sciences.Thus,even in co-word analysis,the final content may go unnoticed.Originality/value:This was the first attempt to monitor the trends of SSH projects using text analysis.The text analysis of the SSH projects of the two new EU Member States used in the study showed that SSH’s thematic coverage is not much affected by the EU Framework Program.Whether this result is field-specific or country-specific should be shown in the following study,which targets SSH projects in the so-called old Member States.

An Empirical Study of the Content Characteristics of Social Projects （According to In-depth Interviews）

This paper specifies substantial characteristics of social projects at the present stage of development of the Russian civil society. A social project is considered as a project system based on a set of measures of social orientation; has specific objectives; and is located in space and time-restricted. The sample data of 25 in-depth interviews with representatives of the business community, public authorities, and civil society institutions, all active participants in community development in the Voronezh administrative region served as an empirical basis for this paper. The analysis of respondents＇ views on the importance of social projects has enabled to define their descriptive and normative features. The main descriptive features include the following： overcoming specific urgent problems in a society; implementing state social policy; quantitative changes in the material life conditions of an individual or a social group; creating labor markets; implementing social innovations; two-way influence of the quality and quantity of social projects and the level of socio-economic structure （company, region, country）. Normative features include： encouraged development of state institutions; stability of the environment; balanced socio-economic development; formation of a community of reasonable individuals; development of human potential. Conclusions have been made about the nature, characteristics, and goals and objectives of social projects and their role in social and economic development of the region, spheres of social projects implementation significant for Russia, about active participants, success and failure factors of social projects, prospects and intensity of social engineering in the Voronezh administrative region and Russia as a whole. Soft systems methodology has been used for stating and structuring the empirical data. The results obtained have enabled to lay the foundation for finding the concepts and mechanisms to coordinate the participants in community development.

Snakes and Ladders： Lessons From Pacific Health Promotion

This paper focuses on health promotion and community development programmes conducted within Pacific nation locations. A literature review was carried out that identified differences in understanding of the practice of health promotion and community development in Pacific Island communities when compared with the rest of the developed world： Snakes and ladders is a metaphor for process and progress of such programmes whereby health and community gains are made only to collapse and fall back, close to or at, the starting point Reasons for this are discussed, particularly through comparison with health promotion and community development programmes in other non-Pacific countries, and with success factors identified in such programmes. This link between methodological approaches of international funding agencies and the success or otherwise of programmes, is identified. Suggestions are made as to approaches to be used when working within Pacific lsland nations. These approaches involve empowerment of the local community to lead, manage, and evaluate the effectiveness of these health promotion and community development programmes.