The impact of corporate social responsibility disclosure on financial performance : evidence from the GCC Islamic banking sector.

This paper examines the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and financial performance for Islamic banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region over the period 2000–2014 by generating CSR-related data through disclosure analysis of the annual reports of the sampled banks. The findings of this study indicate that there is a significant positive relationship between CSR disclosure and the financial performance of Islamic banks in the GCC countries. The results also show a positive relationship between CSR disclosure and the future financial performance of GCC Islamic banks, potentially indicating that current CSR activities carried out by Islamic banks in the GCC could have a long-term impact on their financial performance. Furthermore, despite demonstrating a significant positive relationship between the composite measure of the CSR disclosure index and financial performance, the findings show no statistically significant relationship between the individual dimensions of the CSR disclosure index and the current financial performance measure except for ‘mission and vision’ and ‘products and services’. Similarly, the empirical results detect a positive significant association only between ‘mission and vision’ dimension and future financial performance of the examined banks

The relationship between objectively measured attributes of the built environment and selected cardiovascular risk factors in a South African urban setting

BACKGROUND: Evidence concerning the relationship between objectively-measured attributes of the built environment with cardio-metabolic risk in populations from lower- and middle-income countries is lacking. In this paper, we describe the association between the objectively-measured built environment with body mass index, blood pressure and physical activity in adult South Africans. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 341 adults aged ≥35 years drawn from the Cape Town arm of the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) cohort study. All Cape Town PURE participants were invited to take part in the study. Actigraph GT3X accelerometer and Geographic Information Systems were used to measure physical activity and built environment attributes (community center, shopping center and taxi rank). RESULTS: In age and sex adjusted models (reference 500 m), access to community centers (1000 m) was positively related to body mass index [beta 4.70 (95%CI: 2.06 to 7.34)] and diastolic blood pressure [4.97 (0.00 to 9.95)]. Distance from a community center (1600 m) was positively related to diastolic blood pressure [6.58 (1.57 to 11.58)] and inversely with moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [− 69.30 (− 134.92 to − 3.70)]. Distance to a shopping center (1600 m) was positively related to body mass index [4.78 (1.11 to 8.45)] and shopping center (1000 m) was positively related to systolic blood pressure respectively [76.99 (0.03 to 83.95)]. CONCLUSION: Distance to community and shopping centers were significantly associated with BMI, systolic, diastolic blood pressure and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Future research should include multiple aspects of built environment variables in order to provide for a broader understanding of their effect on cardiovascular risk profile of African populations

The association between neighborhood greenness and cardiovascular disease: An observational study

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated links between cardiovascular disease and physical inactivity and poor air quality, which are both associated with neighborhood greenness. However, no studies have directly investigated neighborhood greenness in relation to coronary heart disease risk. We investigated the effect of neighborhood greenness on both self-reported and hospital admissions of coronary heart disease or stroke, accounting for ambient air quality, socio-demographic, behavioral and biological factors. Method: Cross-sectional study of 11,404 adults obtained from a population representative sample for the period 20032009 in Perth, Western Australia. Neighborhood greenness was ascertained for a 1600 m service area surrounding the residential address using the mean and standard deviation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) obtained from remote sensing. Logistic regression was used to assess associations with medically diagnosed and hospitalization for coronary heart disease or stroke. Results: The odds of hospitalization for heart disease or stroke was 37% (95% CI: 8%, 57%) lower among adults in neighborhoods with highly variable greenness (highest tertile) compared to those in predominantly green, or predominantly non-green neighborhoods (lowest tertile). This effect was independent of the absolute levels of neighborhood greenness. There was weaker evidence for associations with the mean level of neighborhood greenness. Conclusion: Variability in neighborhood greenness is a single metric that encapsulates two potential promoters of physical activity - an aesthetically pleasing natural environment and access to urban destinations. Variability in greenness within a neighborhood was negatively associated with coronary heart disease and stroke. © 2012 Pereira et al.; licensee Biomed Central Ltd

Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city

Although many low-income urban areas are highly walkable by conventional measures such as population density or land use mix, chronic diseases related to lack of physical activity are more common among residents of these areas. Disparities in neighborhood conditions may make poor areas less attractive environments for walking, offsetting the advantages of density and land use mix. This study compared poor and nonpoor neighborhoods in New York City, using geographic information systems measures constructed from public data for US census tracts within New York City (N2,172) as well as field observation of a matched-pair sample of 76 block faces on commercial streets in poor and nonpoor neighborhoods. Poor census tracts had significantly fewer street trees, landmarked buildings, clean streets, and sidewalk cafes, and higher rates of felony complaints, narcotics arrests, and vehicular crashes. The field observation showed similar results. Improving aesthetic and safety conditions in poor neighborhoods may help reduce disparities in physical activity among urban residents. © 2009 Palgrave Macmillan Ltd

The association between neighborhood greenness and weight status: An observational study in Perth Western Australia

Background: Few studies have examined the relationship between weight status and objectively measured neighborhood greenness and no study has examined this relationship across the different stages of adulthood. This research was an investigation of weight status and neighborhood greenness using objectively measured satellite remote sensing for a large population representative sample. Method. Cross-sectional study of 10,208 young adults (16-24 years), mid-age adults (25-64 years) and older adults (65+ years) from a population representative sample for the period 2004-2009 in Perth, Western Australia. Neighborhood greenness was ascertained for a 1600m road network service area around each participant's address using the mean and standard deviation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) obtained from remote sensing. Multiple logistic regression was used to assess associations with weight status (overweight-or-obese, obese) adjusted for socio-demographics and health-related behaviors. Results: The adjusted odds ratio (OR) comparing obesity in the highest to the lowest tertile of mean greenness was 0.78 (95% CI 0.69-0.89). For the same comparison, the OR for overweight-or-obese was similar, 0.84 (95% CI 0.76-0.92). The OR comparing obesity in the highest to lowest tertile of variation in greenness was 0.75 (95% CI 0.66-0.85). For the same comparison, the OR for overweight-or-obese was similar, 0.75 (95% CI 0.68-0.82). Conclusion: Higher levels and greater variation of neighborhood greenness are associated with lower odds of obesity among adults of all ages. Research examining neighborhood characteristics correlated with variability in greenness will help better understand these relationships. © 2013 Pereira et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd