Farmers’ Knowledge and Awareness towards the Use of Agrochemicals in Vegetable Cultivation, Fako Cameroon

Agrochemicals are contemporary, omnipresent tool used in vegetable cultivation. Farmers’ knowledge and awareness of the proper usage of agrochemicals are critical for mitigating the negative effects on human health. This cross-sectional study was aimed at assessing the usage knowledge, risk awareness of toxicological and chemical classes, proper handling and use practices for agrochemicals homologated for use in vegetable farming, and the occurrence of health-related symptoms as a result of exposure among these farmers. The study included 93 vegetable growers from agricultural hotspot towns in Fako, southwest Cameroon. The field study, ran from November 2021 to December 2023, using a questionnaire to collect information on farmers demographic, and their knowledge of pesticide classes, and the related risk of associated with the handling of agrochemicals. Results show that all vegetable farmers, particularly those engaged in agribusiness, employ pesticide inputs to maximize production. Six pesticides, two fertilizer types, and one unknown substance were identified. While 23 active compounds were found, the most utilized were abamectin, emamectin (10.46%), dimethoate (9.30%,) and ethoprophos (8.13%). Two active chemicals, dimethoate and methalaxyl, are illegal yet remain in circulation. Toxicological classes I and II, with the greatest harmful effect on human health, were the most commonly utilized (64.27%). Thirty-nine percent of farmers never use personal protection equipment when working with agrochemicals, demonstrating a significant gap in knowledge and awareness of agrochemicals and their various applications and handling procedures in the field. The government should implement an intensive specialized educational program for on-field farmers with incentives in order to promote sustainable agriculture methods that ensure environmental and human safety.

Internet Financial Risks and Investors’Risk Awareness--Evidence from Transaction Data of Online Lending Platforms

For the first time,this paper uses the operation data of 575 online P2P lending platforms to test whether investors have a strong risk awareness of online lending products.It is found that investors’behavior shows a certain risk awareness,both for the individual risk of specific platforms and for the overall market risk of the industry.On the one hand,raising interest rates and shortening the term does attract more investment,but for potentially problematic platforms,the effect of attracting investment is significantly worse,with excessive interest rates on the platforms even causing investors to invest less.On the other hand,when there are more online lending platforms in the market,investors will behave more cautiously.

Participatory Risk Governance for Seoul,South Korea's Flood Risk Management

Risk governance is a widely used framework in natural and societal risk management research.Risks from natural hazards in urban areas call for the establishment of rigorous and participatory urban risk governance.In this study,we examined participatory risk governance(PRG)of flood risk management(FRM)in Seoul,South Korea.We conducted key informant interviews and implemented a survey with citizens,to explore perceptions of flood risks and risk management,and to examine prospects for improving PRG in Seoul.We found a gap between the perceptions of key informants and citizens.Key informants believed that citizens'low awareness of flood risks hinders PRG.Yet our research found that citizens'risk awareness was not low,and risk awareness may not be the main barrier to participation in PRG.Instead,we found that citizens lacked knowledge of FRM actions,and they assigned government bodies a high level of responsibility for FRM,compared to the level of responsibility that citizens assigned to themselves.Moreover,the actors involved in FRM tended not to trust each other,which implies a lack of mutual understanding.To increase the eff ectiveness of PRG,we suggest a polycentric governance structure anchored by a leading actor group,and active promotion of the participation of actors at multiple levels of governance.Communication between government and citizen participants,designed to foster improved understanding and recognition of one another's roles and contributions to FRM,will enhance trust and improve the implementation of PRG in Seoul.

Estimating Risk-aware Flexibility Areas for Electric Vehicle Charging Pools via AC Stochastic Optimal Power Flow

This paper introduces an AC stochastic optimal power flow(SOPF)for the flexibility management of electric vehicle(EV)charging pools in distribution networks under uncertainty.The AC SOPF considers discrete utility functions from charging pools as a compensation mechanism for eventual energy not served to their charging tasks.An application of the AC SOPF is described where a distribution system operator(DSO)requires flexibility to each charging pool in a day-ahead time frame,minimizing the cost for flexibility while guaranteeing technical limits.Flexibility areas are defined for each charging pool and calculated as a function of a risk parameter involving the uncertainty of the solution.Results show that all players can benefit from this approach,i.e.,the DSO obtains a riskaware solution,while charging pools/tasks perceive a reduction in the total energy payment due to flexibility services.

Risk-aware Distributed Optimal Power Flow in Coordinated Transmission and Distribution System

Active distribution grids cause bi-directional power flow between transmission system(TS)and distribution system(DS),which not only affects the optimal cost but also the secure operation of the power system.This paper proposes a hybrid coordination method to solve the risk-aware distributed optimal power flow(RA-DOPF)problem in coordinated TS and DS.For operation risk evaluation,the weather-based contingencies are considered in both TS and DS.A hybrid coordination method is developed that entails analytical target cascading(ATC)and Benders decomposition(BD).Moreover,the risk-aware optimal power flow(RAOPF)in TS and risk-based security-constrained optimal power flow in DS have been performed using the BD method considering basic optimal power flow as a master problem,whereas N-1 and N-2 contingencies are considered as sub-problems.Different case studies are performed using the IEEE 30-bus system with generation reserves as a TS and a 13-bus system as a DS.The results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method.

Awareness of Age-related Macular Degeneration and Its Ris Factors among Beijing Residents in China

Background： Age-related macular degeneration （AMD） is a major cause of irreversible blindness, and awareness of this disease is important in the prevention of blindness. However, lack of public awareness of AMD was sbown in previous studies, and there was no report of AMD awareness in the Mainland of China. Therefore, the aim of our study was to assess the awareness of AMD and its risk factors among Beijing residents in China. Methods： A cross-sectional, computer-assisted, telephone investigation was conducted to measure the awareness of AMD among Beijing residents. All the contacts of potential respondents were randomly generated by computer. Only those above 18 years of age and willing to participate in the study were included. The questionnaire for the study was moditied from the AMD Alliance International Global Report. Pearson＇s Chi-square test and binary logistic regression analysis were used to identify the factors that affected the knowledge of AMD. Results： Among 385 Beijing residents who agreed to participale, the awareness of AMD was 6.8%, far below than that of cataract and glaucoma. Participants who were above 30 years of age （odds ratio [OR] 6.17, confidence interval [el] 1.44-26.57）, with experience of health-related work （OR 8.11, CI3.25-20.27）, and whose relatives/friends or themselves suffering from AMD （OR 32.18, CI11.29-91.68） had better AMD awareness. Among those familiar with AMD, only 35% of them identified smoking as a risk factor, and only 23.1% of the residents believed that smoking could lead to blindness. Conclusions： The sample of Chinese population had limited knowledge of AMD. Educational programs need to be carried out to raise public awareness of AMD.

Why People Live in Flood-Prone Areas in Akuressa, Sri Lanka

To investigate why people live in areas at high risk of floods, a qualitative case study was carried out in the areas around Akuressa, in southwest Sri Lanka. Data collection consisted mainly of semistructured interviews with local residents and government officials. The purpose was to study why people live in areas at high risk of floods, by looking beyond the purely physical aspects of living with hazards and exploring the underlying social factors. Four main factors were identified: an overall good living situation; a sense of place; difficulties relocating; and being well-adapted to the situation. The analysis also examined whether government officials shared the views of local residents. The findings highlighted both areas of consensus and discrepancies related to risk awareness, and the efficiency of risk reduction measures that had been implemented by the government. The case study identified and explored underlying social factors, such as risk normalization, risk trade-offs, and push-and-pull processes, which seem to influence the decision to live in a high-risk area.