Adversities in Interracial Relationships

Within my research I highlight the different adversities interracial couples tend to go through on a day to day basis, or over time within their relationship. From those adversities I analyze how those couples mentioned were able to be resilient despite external challenges that their relationship faced. By breaking down the normal social construct which determines the ways in which people tend to view certain outlooks, this concept is defined by themes and the way in which things have always been. By determining the way in which people think, it is grasped why people are still against mixed race couples. Through the study that was conducted, 25 interracial couples were interviewed to get their take on any external challenges that they may have faced while being together. While many couples face daily challenges within their own relationships, some interracial couples face many different factors that may either strengthen or hinder their relationships. Through the conducted study and those questions, along with first-hand accounts from these couples it was determined the type of trials they went through and continue to go through on a daily basis. It is also highlighted the importance of resiliency and through positive communication indicators, and resiliency practices those contributions within mixed-race couples significantly improved the relationship. The study concludes with conversational pieces and other studies of scholarly work in similar topic fields. Furthermore, as this topic of interest continues to be at the spear head of engagement; going forward I would want to analyze how the normal social construct is a leading and predominate factor in negative feelings or representation of mixed-race couples.https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/arts_and_letters/1001/thumbnail.jp

Determinants of Childhood Stunting in Guinea: Further Analysis of Demographic and Health Survey 2012

ABSTRACT Background: Childhood stunting remains a major public health problem in developing countries because of its association with increased morbidity and mortality. In Guinea, the prevalence of childhood stunting has increased from 30.5% to 31.2% between 1999 and 2012. This study aimed to identify factors associated with stunting and severe stunting among children aged less than five years in Guinea. Methods:The study used a cross-sectional data from the 2012 Guinean Demographic and Health Survey which included 3176 children aged 0-59 months. The 2016 WHO Height-for-age Z-score (HAZ) was used to classify stunting as moderate stunting (HAZ Results: The prevalence of child stunting was higher in boys (32.69%) than in girls (29.12%). Age was a significant determinant of stunting with the highest odds among children aged 24-35 months (Adjusted OR=6.82; 95%CI=4.37, 10.63). Children from Mamou (Adjusted OR=2.17 95% CI 1.16, 4.05) and N’zerekore (Adjusted OR=2.05 95% CI 1.15, 3.66) were more likely to be stunted compared to those from the capital city Conakry. The other factors associated with growth faltering were wealth index (poorest, poorer, and middle), short birth interval (less than 24 months, 24 to 47 months), mother’s low body mass index (less than 18.5 kg/m2) and source of drinking water (unimproved). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that intervention to address childhood stunting in Guinea should focus on poverty alleviation as well as improving women’s nutrition, child feeding practices, household sanitation and family planning

Building National Forest and Land-Use Information Systems: Lessons from Cameroon, Indonesia, and Peru

This working paper examines the institutional, human resources, and financial capacities of three countries that have developed a forest and land-use information system, and highlights common enabling factors and challenges

For Better or For Worse: Gender and the Congo Basin Forests

Abstract Gender is increasingly an element of program design in international development and education. Given its inherent significance in cultures around the world, gender shapes and molds the ways in which we perceive the roles and responsibilities of men and women. This study seeks to understand the intersection of gender and natural resource management in the Central Africa region. In this region, where tradition often guides the roles men and women play both at home and in the work place, it is critical to understand the role of gender and how accounting for it in project design can both support, and unravel, the best of intentions. But what is gender and how is it understood by practitioners in Central Africa? To get to the root of this question, a survey was distributed to over 100 practitioners in the government, non-governmental and private sectors in the Central Africa region to better understand how, or if, gender is a part of their development strategy. The survey asked participants to reflect on their understanding of the concept of gender, to what degree gender is part of their national development strategy and what obstacles development practitioners face as they seek to integrate gender into their work. The responses capture a snapshot of the intersection of gender rhetoric and implementation. The conclusions drawn from these responses offer suggestions for those working at the crossroads of gender and environmental work and how to proceed when seeking to develop programs that offer localized solutions to universal gender concerns. For better or for worse, the title of this study, refers not to whether it is better or worse to consider gender while developing programs but rather to how the notion of gender is incorporated as an element of projects. Do you think there is more to uncover about how gender is perceived and understood by those working and living in the Central Africa region? I do

Impact of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Interventions on Environmental Enteric Dysfunction in Children in Developing Countries: A Systematic Literature Review

Environmental Enteric Dysfunction (EED) is a global disturbance of intestinal structure and function that has its origin in environmental factors (Owino et al. 2016). As a response to prolonged and persistent inflammation, the intestine morphology is altered. EED is an important contributor to poor child cognitive development, child stunting, poor oral vaccine response, acute infections, and childhood mortality globally (Trehan et al. 2016) in developing countries. We hypothesized that WASH interventions could reduce the risk of EED, thereby positively impacting children’s overall health. The Navigation Guide review methodology and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment and Evaluation (GRADE) were followed to conduct this systematic review. Protocol, including exclusion and inclusion criteria, was developed prior to the review to maintain the transparency of the systematic review. PubMed and Scopus were used to search for studies. Lastly, a qualitative analysis was conducted to evaluate the qualifying studies. Four studies met our inclusion criteria. Inventions were: Safe disposal of child feces; household environmental cleanliness; household fecal sludge management; and sanitation (presence of toilets). The studies assessed EED by a laboratory diagnostic. All four studies found a significant reduction of EED in the intervention group compared to the control group. Findings of these studies suggest that WASH could be an effective tool in preventing EED. As prevention is seen to be the only alternative to overcome EED in children, these results also show the need for additional research to determine the most effective WASH intervention

Microfinance, accompagnement des demandeurs de crédits : une analyse économique des contrats alternatifs

Full Text / Article completIn this paper, we analyze the structure of the microfinance credit agreements in the presence of a double asymmetry of information on human capital and effort of the beneficiaries of loans. We study the impact of the accompaniment of project leaders on allocative efficiency and the repayment of loans. We find that in the absence of support, the risk of failure of the investment project is high enough and the increase in the interest rate as an adjustment variable discourages investment and amplifies discrimination access to credit. We also show that when the support is implied the risk of the investment project decreases and thus there is no risk transfer as part of the training and accompaniment of borrowers.Dans cet article, nous analysons la structure des contrats de crédits en microfinance en présence d’une double asymétrie d’information sur le capital humain et sur l’effort des demandeurs de microcrédits. Nous étudions l’impact de l’accompagnement des porteurs de projets sur l’efficacité allocative et sur le remboursement des prêts. Nous trouvons qu’en l’absence d’accompagnement, le risque lié à l’échec du projet d’investissement est suffisamment élevé et l’accroissement du taux d’intérêt comme variable d’ajustement décourage l’investissement et amplifie la discrimination pour l’accès au crédit. Nous montrons également que lorsque l’accompagnement est tacite le risque lié au projet d’investissement diminue et donc qu'il n’y a pas de transfert de risque dans le cadre de la formation et de l’accompagnement des emprunteurs