Understanding a successful obesity prevention initiative in children under 5 from a systems perspective

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND: Systems thinking represents an innovative and logical approach to understanding complexity in community-based obesity prevention interventions. We report on an approach to apply systems thinking to understand the complexity of a successful obesity prevention intervention in early childhood (children aged up to 5 years) conducted in a regional city in Victoria, Australia. METHODS: A causal loop diagram (CLD) was developed to represent system elements related to a successful childhood obesity prevention intervention in early childhood. Key stakeholder interviews (n = 16) were examined retrospectively to generate purposive text data, create microstructures, and form a CLD. RESULTS: A CLD representing key stakeholder perceptions of a successful intervention comprised six key feedback loops explaining changes in project implementation over time. The loops described the dynamics of collaboration, network formation, community awareness, human resources, project clarity, and innovation. CONCLUSION: The CLD developed provides a replicable means to capture, evaluate and disseminate a description of the dynamic elements of a successful obesity prevention intervention in early childhood

Walking on the Border: Walkability and Socioeconomic Placement in El Paso, Texas

This study has two aims: To explore walkability; andTo examine the relationship between walkability and SEP across census block groups in El Paso, Texas. Physical inactivity and related chronic diseases are higher for Latinos than other racial/ethnic groups in the U.S. Socioeconomic placement (SEP) and the built environment are determinants of physical activity. Walkability is a measure of the built environment that indicates how conducive an area is to walking for leisure, access to services, and travel to work. No study has examined walkability and its correlates in a U.S./Mexico border community with a large population of Latinos and high prevalence of obesity and diabetes.https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/gis_poster/1130/thumbnail.jp

Varieties of State Aid and Technological Development : Government Support to the Pulp and Paper Industry, the 1970s to the 1990s

Countries promote the development of pulp and paper industry through industrial, technology and innovation policy measures. Direct interventions and regional and environmental policies, together with more general governmental measures on trade negotiations, taxation, labour policies, and infrastructure development (e.g. roads, energy) have also had an impact on shaping the geographical location of and investments in the pulp and paper industry. This chapter presents an historical overview of government support on pulp and paper industry in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries from roughly the 1970s to the 1990s. As the earlier literature suggests, in countries where this industry was a dominant line of business, attention was paid to create a favourable regulatory environment, as the companies had bargaining power in influencing governmental policies. The Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden and Norway) are the primary examples of this kind of pattern. On the contrary, in countries in which the pulp and paper industry did not play a significant role, state aid played a less important role. State aid also influenced on the technologicalPeer reviewe