Unconventional Avenues for Public Participation: A Case Study from Rural Egypt

When traditional avenues for learning and participation become inaccessible for less-advantaged people to learn and participate, people tend to develop other unconventional avenues to learn and participate in decisions that affect their lives. There are two distinct research approaches in the study of political participation. One approach, which had been historically predominant, focuses on individual characteristics such as education level, income and class, and the other, social network approach focuses on the influence of context and social networks in the political socialization and mobilization of men and women in democracies and authoritarian polities. This paper fits into the second approach and makes a contribution to it. The paper turns the focus of public participation away from classical, formal Tocquevillian understandings to the unconventional avenues of participation that have remained outside of the scope of some research. It examines how young women in authoritarian contexts utilize self-created social networks as unconventional avenues to learn and advance their political participation. It uniquely places the question of the pedagogical and political consequences of social capital into an analysis of women’s social interactions within social networks. Utilizing constructivist qualitative research conducted in three rural villages in Egypt, this study penetrates disadvantaged women’s realities and capture their unique forms of political participation and sets the groundwork for future study to examine political participation beyond the conventional civic and political activities aimed at marginalized groups in developing democracies around the globe

Preserving History in a Modern Setting "An Adaptive Redesign of Lawang Sewu for Sustainable Development and Architectural Heritage Conservation

This study focuses on the adaptive redesign of Lawang Sewu, a prominent landmark in Semarang, Indonesia. The building, constructed in the early 20th century, has witnessed historical events and changes throughout its existence. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in preserving and revitalizing Lawang Sewu as a cultural heritage site. However, the adaptive redesign is not without challenges, including structural instability, environmental degradation, functional obsolescence, aesthetic discordance, and social resistance. This research essay aims to explore the adaptive redesign of Lawang Sewu from various perspectives and propose strategies for achieving energy efficiency and sustainability objectives. The essay is organized into chapters that provide an overview, literature review, case study analysis, discussion of historical and socio-environmental aspects, examination of visual impact, and a conclusion. The study also discusses the concept of authenticity in heritage conservation and presents a design proposal for Lawang Sewu's acoustic enhancement. The results of the case study analysis highlight the complexity of the adaptive redesign project and its cultural context and project site in Semarang

Risk factors for work-related asthma in health workers with exposure to diverse cleaning agents in two African health care settings

Background: Health workers (HWs) are exposed to a wide range of chemicals used for cleaning and disinfection. This has been largely attributed to the ever-increasing demand for effective cleaning and disinfection in hospital settings in an effort to prevent healthcare associated infections. Over the last two decades, there has been increasing evidence linking cleaning agents to adverse work-related health effects such as rhinitis, asthma and contact dermatitis. There is however little information on the specific cleaning agents and tasks associated with various asthma-related outcomes. Furthermore, limited information exists regarding exposure-response relationships between the frequency of exposure to specific cleaning agents and asthma-related outcomes. This study investigated the prevalence and risk factors for work-related asthma (WRA) among HWs exposed to diverse cleaning agents in two academic tertiary public hospitals in southern Africa - South Africa and Tanzania. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 699 HWs was conducted. Exposure assessment included systematic workplace observations, environmental sampling for aldehydes (orthophthalaldehyde-OPA, glutaraldehyde and formaldehyde) and urine biomonitoring for chlorhexidine. Environmental sampling for aldehydes was conducted more extensively in the South African hospital (SAH). A pilot sampling in the Tanzanian hospital (TAH) revealed very low detectable levels of OPA and glutaraldehyde and as a result extensive measurements were not done. In the SAH, a total of 269 full-shift passive personal samples were collected from 164 HWs randomly selected from 17 different clinical departments. Passive sampling used TraceAir® AT580 monitors (Assay Technology, Livermore, CA). Biomonitoring for chlorhexidine was only conducted in the SAH since none of the HWs in the TAH used chlorhexidine. For the health outcome assessment, a total of 697 HWs completed interviews using the ECRHS questionnaire adapted for occupational contexts, which contained in-depth information on asthma, as well as detailed information on tasks and chemicals used during the course of their work. Sera was successfully collected from 682 HWs and analysed for specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) antibody reactivity to common aero-allergens (Phadiatop) and specific occupational allergens (NRL - Hevea brasiliensis (Hev b5, Hev b6.02), chlorhexidine and OPA). Methacholine challenge tests (MCT) were performed on all South African HWs (n=318), based on standard inclusion criteria. Spirometry, accompanied by a post-bronchodilator (post-BD) test was conducted on all Tanzanian HWs (n=329) and a small proportion (n=25) of South African HWs where MCT was contraindicated. All HWs from both hospitals (n=654) underwent fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) testing during the working day prior to spirometry. Results: The prevalence of current asthma was 10% (atopic asthma 6%, non-atopic asthma 4%), while 2% had WRA. The prevalence of atopy was 43%, with 4% of workers being sensitised to OPA, 2% to NRL and only 1% to chlorhexidine. Environmental sampling demonstrated that OPA was detectable in 6 (2%) samples, all samples (Geometric mean (GM) = 0.010 ppm) being higher than the ACGIH exposure limit (0.0001 ppm). Workers with detectable OPA were found to have a longer duration of OPA use (OR = 1.28; 95% CI: 1.10 – 1.50). Formaldehyde was detectable in 103 (38%) samples (GM = 0.005 ppm), with 1% of samples having levels higher than the NIOSH TWA exposure limit (0.016 ppm). Asthmarelated outcomes (increasing asthma symptom score and FeNO) demonstrated consistent positive associations with certain medical instrument cleaning agents (OPA, QACs and enzymatic cleaners) and tasks (pre-cleaning of medical instruments, changing sterilisation solutions and manual disinfection of medical instruments) as well as certain patient care activities (disinfection prior to procedures, cleaning/disinfecting wounds, application of wound dressing, usage of adhesives and adhesive removing solvents). A particularly pronounced dose-response relationship was observed between work-related ocular-nasal symptoms and medical instrument cleaning agents (OPA, glutaraldehdye, QACs, enzymatic cleaners, alcohols and bleach; OR range: 2.50 – 12.08) and tasks (OR range: 2.58 – 3.97). Furthermore, a strong association was observed between higher asthma symptom scores and use of more sprays than wipes for fixed surface cleaning activities (mean ratio = 3.00; 95% CI: 1.50 – 5.98). Conclusion: This study has demonstrated that detectable exposures to OPA are higher and more isolated to certain departments than the more widespread low-level formaldehyde exposures present throughout the hospitals. Furthermore, cleaning agents have replaced NRL as important causes for WRA in health settings. Finally, specific cleaning agents such as OPA, quaternary ammonium compounds and enzymatic cleaners associated with medical instrument cleaning/disinfection as well as patient care activities and the use of sprays for fixed surface cleaning, are important environmental risk factors for various asthma-related outcomes among HWs in health care settings

Vibration Behaviour of Pedestrian Bridges with Different Construction Systems

The design of pedestrian bridges is continuously being developed and the mechanical properties influence the dynamic properties in the SLS. Pedestrian induced vibrations have been a major concern regarding design criteria and construction. The opening of the Millennium bridge in London in 2000 made headlines regarding the matter and several researchers and papers have been assessing vibrations on pedestrian bridges due to pedestrian loading. Thus, the main goal of this thesis is to contribute to the global community researching the matter with the implementation of field tests and numerical solutions with the use of FE-modelling. The procedure in this thesis involved field tests on two bridges with different systems and materials. The field tests estimated natural frequencies, mode shapes and their respective damping ratios. Results from the field test modal analyses were used to validate a FE-model and the verified model employed to perform a parametric study that showed the development of frequencies and modes as the span changed. Following the modal analyses time-history response analyses computing the Vibration Dose Values (VDV) and Root Mean Square (RMS) were evaluated and compared with the ISO 10137. The accelerations recorded in the field tests were then compared to calculated accelerations in different national and international guidelines. The guideline compared in this thesis includes Statens Vegvesens Handbook N185, the Eurocodes, the UK-NA to Eurocode 1, ISO 10137, SÉTRA, and the JRC. The modes in both running and walking corresponded both in terms of mode shapes and natural frequencies. The frequency discrepancies were low for both activities resulting in acceptable results. Very good correspondence was also achieved between test and FE results. Furthermore, the calculated running accelerations were more in line with the limits of all guidelines. The walking acceleration did not satisfy all the guideline within the same margins. However, the damping ratios in the respective guidelines, implemented in the guideline calculations were not correspondent with the effective damping ratios from the field results, resulting in high accelerations