The distortion and dissolution of the concept of person has led to hideous atrocities,such as annihilation of the Jews in the previous century,the continued oppression of the Palestinian people,the massacre of Moslems...The distortion and dissolution of the concept of person has led to hideous atrocities,such as annihilation of the Jews in the previous century,the continued oppression of the Palestinian people,the massacre of Moslems in Srebrenica,the Rwandan genocide,racial discrimination,the manifold manipulations of man through science and technology,barbarous and iniquitous laws(such as the legalization of abortion,etc.),the horrendous killings by Islamic terrorists(such as ISIS in Syria and the Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria),the increasing biomedical researches as in stem cell,etc.This paper seeks to make it clear that man occupies a central place in the created order.From this perspective,man enjoys a special status and should not to be treated as mere object.Thus,it is arguable that the ontological basis for a substance being denominated as person is its special dignity,which separates it from a mere thing.Human dignity,therefore,is an intrinsic quality of all human beings.Among other things,this paper will strive to investigate various violations of human dignity and the role of philosophy in sustaining the dignity of human person in the 21st century.展开更多
This study was undertaken to help highlight the negative impacts of economic activities on wetlands in East Africa with a specific focus on Mara Bay and Masirori wetlands, Tanzania, a region where the local communitie...This study was undertaken to help highlight the negative impacts of economic activities on wetlands in East Africa with a specific focus on Mara Bay and Masirori wetlands, Tanzania, a region where the local communities still harness wetland resources for economic sustenance. Key economic activities and the negative impacts of the income-generating activities on the wetlands are identified, including the main goods harnessed, level of dependency of the locals to the wetlands, and the level of environmental knowledge of the locals on the wetlands’ ecosystem services. Both qualitative and quantitative tools and techniques viz.: questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, market surveys and spreadsheet analysis were used in this study. The proportion of wetland users involved in papyrus harvesting, food crop cultivation and fishing was 30%, 25% and 24%, respectively while charcoal/firewood and grass for livestock accounted for 12% and 7%, respectively. Significant differences in incomes for charcoal (p < 0.05) across the four villages were recorded but farming, fishing, mat making, herding and fish mongering were non-significant. About 6% of those interviewed had some considerable knowledge on wetland ecosystem services, while the rest (94%) lacked information. Issues identified as having detrimental impacts on the wetlands’ ecosystem services included conversion of sections of the wetlands into farmlands, grazing, charcoal burning, unsustainable fishing, overharvesting of papyrus and brick-making. Farming was found to be a major income-generating activity within the two wetlands. Other important economic activities were charcoal burning, fishing, mat making and fish mongering. The findings from the research are useful for devising appropriate strategies for wetland conservation. Such measures may include assigning wetland ecologists to the village governments, valuation of the wetlands, commissioning of a price and resource regulatory board for the wetland goods, creation of wetlands monitoring program, a fining regime system and a roll-out of mass environmental education in the wetlands regions.展开更多
文摘The distortion and dissolution of the concept of person has led to hideous atrocities,such as annihilation of the Jews in the previous century,the continued oppression of the Palestinian people,the massacre of Moslems in Srebrenica,the Rwandan genocide,racial discrimination,the manifold manipulations of man through science and technology,barbarous and iniquitous laws(such as the legalization of abortion,etc.),the horrendous killings by Islamic terrorists(such as ISIS in Syria and the Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria),the increasing biomedical researches as in stem cell,etc.This paper seeks to make it clear that man occupies a central place in the created order.From this perspective,man enjoys a special status and should not to be treated as mere object.Thus,it is arguable that the ontological basis for a substance being denominated as person is its special dignity,which separates it from a mere thing.Human dignity,therefore,is an intrinsic quality of all human beings.Among other things,this paper will strive to investigate various violations of human dignity and the role of philosophy in sustaining the dignity of human person in the 21st century.
文摘This study was undertaken to help highlight the negative impacts of economic activities on wetlands in East Africa with a specific focus on Mara Bay and Masirori wetlands, Tanzania, a region where the local communities still harness wetland resources for economic sustenance. Key economic activities and the negative impacts of the income-generating activities on the wetlands are identified, including the main goods harnessed, level of dependency of the locals to the wetlands, and the level of environmental knowledge of the locals on the wetlands’ ecosystem services. Both qualitative and quantitative tools and techniques viz.: questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, market surveys and spreadsheet analysis were used in this study. The proportion of wetland users involved in papyrus harvesting, food crop cultivation and fishing was 30%, 25% and 24%, respectively while charcoal/firewood and grass for livestock accounted for 12% and 7%, respectively. Significant differences in incomes for charcoal (p < 0.05) across the four villages were recorded but farming, fishing, mat making, herding and fish mongering were non-significant. About 6% of those interviewed had some considerable knowledge on wetland ecosystem services, while the rest (94%) lacked information. Issues identified as having detrimental impacts on the wetlands’ ecosystem services included conversion of sections of the wetlands into farmlands, grazing, charcoal burning, unsustainable fishing, overharvesting of papyrus and brick-making. Farming was found to be a major income-generating activity within the two wetlands. Other important economic activities were charcoal burning, fishing, mat making and fish mongering. The findings from the research are useful for devising appropriate strategies for wetland conservation. Such measures may include assigning wetland ecologists to the village governments, valuation of the wetlands, commissioning of a price and resource regulatory board for the wetland goods, creation of wetlands monitoring program, a fining regime system and a roll-out of mass environmental education in the wetlands regions.
