The Ipums-International project : challenges and methods of international census data integration

Aquesta comunicació es va presentar a la Social Science History Association Conference, St. Louis (USA) Octubre 24-27 2002IPUMS-International is a project to inventory, preserve, harmonize and disseminate census microdata from around the world. IPUMS-International makes cross-national census microdata readily accessible and usable. The project facilitates comparative international research based on pooled microdata. A harmonized composite coding system for variables allows comparisons over time and across countries without loss of information. A series of constructed pointer variables allows users to identify relationships among spouses, parents, and children. Extensive documentaton aids in the interpretation of data and highlights major compatibility issues A web-based dissemination system provides convenient and free access to both the microdata and the documentation

Statistical coherence of primary schooling in population census microdata: IPUMS-International integrated samples compared for fifteen African countries

The IPUMS-International project, now in its fifteenth year, integrates and disseminates population microdata for twenty-two African countries (82 countries world-wide) and the number continues to increase as more National Statistical Offices cooperate with the initiative. Statistical quality is a serious concern both for the producers of the microdata as well as the researchers who use them. This paper applies the intra-cohort comparison method to pairs of integrated (harmonized) samples for fifteen African countries to assess statistical coherence using as a benchmark the proportion completing primary school by single years of birth. Samples for six countries show near perfect coherence (R2 > .9, and regression coefficients ~1.0 +/- <0.08). For a second group of five countries, coefficients are only slightly larger (R2 > 0.6 <0.9). Large deviations from 1.0 characterize samples for only four countries. On the whole, the results suggest that samples for the fifteen countries have considerable utility for socio-demographic analysis

GEO-6 assessment for the pan-European region

Through this assessment, the authors and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) secretariat are providing an objective evaluation and analysis of the pan-European environment designed to support environmental decision-making at multiple scales. In this assessment, the judgement of experts is applied to existing knowledge to provide scientifically credible answers to policy-relevant questions. These questions include, but are not limited to the following:• What is happening to the environment in the pan-European region and why?• What are the consequences for the environment and the human population in the pan-European region?• What is being done and how effective is it?• What are the prospects for the environment in the future?• What actions could be taken to achieve a more sustainable future?<br/

ECORISK2050: An Innovative Training Network for predicting the effects of global change on the emission, fate, effects, and risks of chemicals in aquatic ecosystems

By 2050, the global population is predicted to reach nine billion, with almost three quarters living in cities. The road to 2050 will be marked by changes in land use, climate, and the management of water and food across the world. These global changes (GCs) will likely affect the emissions, transport, and fate of chemicals, and thus the exposure of the natural environment to chemicals. ECORISK2050 is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network that brings together an interdisciplinary consortium of academic, industry and governmental partners to deliver a new generation of scientists, with the skills required to study and manage the effects of GCs on chemical risks to the aquatic environment. The research and training goals are to: (1) assess how inputs and behaviour of chemicals from agriculture and urban environments are affected by different environmental conditions, and how different GC scenarios will drive changes in chemical risks to human and ecosystem health; (2) identify short-to-medium term adaptation and mitigation strategies, to abate unacceptable increases to risks, and (3) develop tools for use by industry and policymakers for the assessment and management of the impacts of GC-related drivers on chemical risks. This project will deliver the next generation of scientists, consultants, and industry and governmental decision-makers who have the knowledge and skillsets required to address the changing pressures associated with chemicals emitted by agricultural and urban activities, on aquatic systems on the path to 2050 and beyond

The Ipums-International project : challenges and methods of international census data integration

Aquesta comunicació es va presentar a la Social Science History Association Conference, St. Louis (USA) Octubre 24-27 2002IPUMS-International is a project to inventory, preserve, harmonize and disseminate census microdata from around the world. IPUMS-International makes cross-national census microdata readily accessible and usable. The project facilitates comparative international research based on pooled microdata. A harmonized composite coding system for variables allows comparisons over time and across countries without loss of information. A series of constructed pointer variables allows users to identify relationships among spouses, parents, and children. Extensive documentaton aids in the interpretation of data and highlights major compatibility issues A web-based dissemination system provides convenient and free access to both the microdata and the documentation