Uncovering indicators of adaptive water capacity: A rapid systematic map

The global water crisis is driven by the absence of effective and efficient governance systems.There is a large and growing need to benchmark the current status of water governance in Canada and monitor trends over time. This research seeks to inform the development of a rapid, low cost and consistent indicator framework by reviewing the global literature on water governance indicators. We used a rapid systematic map to identify, screen and review 49 studies and the indicators they use to assess adaptive water governance capacity across 12 dimensions.This research was undertaken thanks, in part, with support from the Global Water Futures Program funded by the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF

Examining the relationship between climate change and migration and its socio-economic implications in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Climate change and migration are two urgent global issues of our time, and their relationship is complex and unpredictable. Understanding the nature and implications of this relationship is crucial for policymakers, practitioners, and scholars seeking to devise effective responses and policies to tackle these “wicked problems.” Drawing on emerging scholarship and primary research, this dissertation sheds light on three interlinked issues related to climate change and migration nexus. First, earlier efforts to reconcile diverse conceptualizations of the climate change and migration nexus have had limited success. So far, despite significant research efforts by a few scholars to develop conceptual frameworks, challenges remain in our ability to gain a holistic understanding of diverse perspectives, knowledge domains, dimensions or scales, and drivers or factors that lead to differing migration decisions under climate change. Current limitations include inadequate comprehension of the migration patterns driven by climate change (e.g., who migrates, who remains, and the underlying reasons behind these choices). Second, our current knowledge about the effectiveness of migration as an adaptation strategy is inadequate, stemming from limited conceptual and empirical investigations conducted on this issue. As such, the extent to which migration can effectively serve as an adaptation response and any potential drawbacks associated with it remain unclear. Third, the significance of gender in shaping migration decisions under climatic conditions remains under-theorized and less comprehensively explored, even though gender plays a crucial role in shaping migration decisions and patterns. The specific ways in which climate change may shape gendered migration in varied contexts are not well understood, as there is no comprehensive review of empirical studies on gender and climate migration. This dissertation aims to contribute to the evolving knowledge of the complex relationships between climate change and human migration by addressing these interlinked issues. Chapter 2 is dedicated to developing an expanded, more holistic, and generally applicable conceptual framework that can be applied to understand migration decisions and different migration patterns in diverse contexts and regions worldwide. Building upon the identified limitations of existing conceptual frameworks and covering extensive theoretical and empirical grounds, this chapter develops a conceptual framework that integrates diverse perspectives and concepts (e.g., vulnerability, agency) to provide a more nuanced understanding of the complex nature of the relationships between multi-faceted climatic conditions and varying migration decisions and their effectiveness. This framework seeks to lay a foundation for further research examining climate migration in diverse forms and sets the tone for the rest of the dissertation. Chapter 3 presents the findings of an empirical case study on post-migration vulnerability situations of climate migrants in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to gain insights into the effectiveness of migration as an adaptation strategy. Based on large-scale household (n = 2,000) survey data and applying principal component analysis (PCA), this chapter assesses the socio-economic vulnerability of the climate migrants and compares that with other migrants and long-term residents by developing a composite vulnerability index (CVI). This chapter also analyzes and compares the longitudinal recall (perception) data on different aspects of their before and after migration situations. Chapter 4 conducts a systematic review of the empirical evidence (n = 33) in South Asia to fill out pertinent gaps in the empirical scholarship of the gender-climate change-migration nexus. This chapter identifies and characterizes different gender-differentiated migration responses under varying climatic conditions, assesses the agency involved in differentiated migration decisions, identifies emerging theories and methodological considerations, and examines how well ideas are distributed among disciplines through a bibliometric analysis. This chapter also highlights pathways through which gendered inequalities in climate migration may occur. Overall, this dissertation contributes to the emerging field of climate migration by offering theoretical, methodological, and empirical insights into these complex issues. By doing so, this dissertation advocates for further transdisciplinary and sustainability-oriented research and expects to guide future research and policy-making efforts aimed at developing effective and sustainable policies and practices for communities affected by climate migration

Industry Perspectives on Water Pollution Management in a Fast Developing Megacity: Evidence from Dhaka, Bangladesh

Industry representatives are key stakeholders in addressing pollution in the rivers surrounding Dhaka, Bangladesh, a fast growing megacity. Drawing on insights from political-ecology and framing water management as a sociotechnical system, we present an analysis of in-depth interviews conducted with representatives from key polluting industries. Three main thematic areas resulting from these interviews relate to the management of effluent treatment plants, the need for enhanced education, both technical and moral, and sociocultural factors that shape attitudes toward water management. In these areas, industrial representatives show multiple ways and realms in which more sustainable water governance in Dhaka may be enacted

Industry Perspectives on Water Pollution Management in a Fast Developing Megacity: Evidence from Dhaka, Bangladesh

Industry representatives are key stakeholders in addressing pollution in the rivers surrounding Dhaka, Bangladesh, a fast growing megacity. Drawing on insights from political-ecology and framing water management as a sociotechnical system, we present an analysis of in-depth interviews conducted with representatives from key polluting industries. Three main thematic areas resulting from these interviews relate to the management of effluent treatment plants, the need for enhanced education, both technical and moral, and sociocultural factors that shape attitudes toward water management. In these areas, industrial representatives show multiple ways and realms in which more sustainable water governance in Dhaka may be enacted

Effects of natural environment on mental health: an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Objectives: To synthesize the evidence on the effects of exposure to natural environment on mental health to inform future policymaking, practice, and research. Methods: A systematic search of nine major databases and additional sources were conducted using relevant keywords for the natural environment and mental health till November 2019. We included systematic reviews or meta-analyses reporting any measures of associations between the natural environment and mental health. The data on study characteristics and research findings were extracted using the JBI data extraction tool and synthesized narratively. Results: Twenty reviews were included in this umbrella review reporting both correlational and experimental studies. Among diverse population groups, the exposure to the natural environment was associated with improvements in depressive symptoms, anxiety, mood disorders, stress, cognitive and emotional functions, affect, happiness, and overall mental wellbeing. Conclusions: The findings of this review inform beneficial mental health outcomes associated with exposure to the natural environment. This umbrella review suggests collaborative policymaking, advanced research, and evidence-based practice protecting the natural environment and improving mental health across populations

Assessing the capacity for adaptation and collaboration in the context of freshwater pollution management in Dhaka, Bangladesh

This paper critically assesses the capacity of water sector actors in Dhaka to further support more collaborative and adaptive approaches to emerging freshwater pollution management challenges. Socio-economic, demographic and environmental changes (e.g., flooding) pose substantial and shifting barriers to effective freshwater pollution management in Dhaka, with direct implications for population health. We draw on the insights from 25 semi-structured interviews with government, non-government, industry and academic key informants to: (1) examine current levels of engagement and collaboration among key stakeholders in the freshwater pollution management context; (2) assess the subsequent capacity of those actors to adapt to challenging conditions and to improve water pollution management; and (3) consider the opportunities to enhance current institutional arrangements in ways that build linkages among key stakeholders across levels and sectors. Our research highlights a general interest among participants for more collaborative and adaptive processes in freshwater pollution management in Dhaka. However, findings also highlight the pressure water sector actors feel about the time required to make progress on water pollution management challenges, and the concern that collaboration will exacerbate those challenges. Furthermore, our findings show the overlapping jurisdictional claims and mandates in Dhaka that make concerted action difficult, and that ultimately undermine clarity for collaborative and adaptive action