Perceptions of Local Residents toward Impacts of Agro-tourism in Da Lat, Vietnam

Master of Science (Community Ecotourism Management), 2018Vietnam has the abundant potential of tourism similar to some countries of the South-east Asia region and most the population living in rural areas based on agriculture production as a primary livelihood, however, the local authorities and scholars have paid less attention to participate in agro-tourism development. Meanwhile, most studies within the situation are done in developed countries, the developing countries have not had much attention paid to them, a few studies were carried out in Malaysia, Thailand, China. There are no sufficient studies investigating residents’ perceptions toward agro-tourism impacts, and its effects on community participation in support of agro-tourism. Therefore, to address an aforementioned notable gap, the study about perceptions of local residents toward the impacts of agro-tourism was conducted in Da Lat, Vietnam. The aimed study was to identify the perceptions of local residents toward agro-tourism impacts on the economy, socio-culture, environment; as well as their community participation in support of agro-tourism. Moreover, to determine the effects of socio-demographic factors on the residents’ perceptions toward impacts of agro-tourism, and on their community participation in support of agro-tourism; to explore which factors of residents’ perception toward agro-tourism impacts influenced on their community participation in support of agro-tourism. Data obtained from a survey of 300 samples in Thai Phien village, Phuong 12 sub-district, Da Lat district, Lam Dong province, Vietnam based on the random sampling method. This study used descriptive statistics, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA analysis, and linear regression to analyze the data. Results revealed that agro-tourism mostly brings positive impacts that outweigh the negative ones on the local community. In terms of residents’ perception toward positive economic impacts, for instances, offering new livelihood chances to locals, attracting investment to infrastructure improvement, contributing to diversifying local economic activities, providing an opportunity for direct sales of agricultural products to tourists. As regards positive socio-cultural impacts, local residents perceived that agro-tourism provides more recreational areas, opportunities for cultural exchange and educating visitors about agriculture, the motivation for the preservation of cultural identify and the pride of community in agricultural production. Concerning positive environmental impacts, residents also perceived that agro-tourism enhances the appearance of the community’s landscape and influences positively on the perceptions of both local community and local authorities to preserve the natural environment and community resources as well. Notwithstanding agro-tourism contributes significantly to the well-being of the community, also brings negative impacts. Most revenues of agro-tourism end up with the tour operators and individuals outside the locality, while the community has received a low salary from these activities. In addition, the increasing number of agro-tourists, leading to putting pressure on infrastructures and public services, in particular, resulting in overcrowding, traffic congestion, and lack of parking lot in the community. This study also pointed out that there were significant differences between the socio-demographic characteristics of residents and the residents’ perceptions of local residents toward impacts of agro-tourism, and the community participation in support of agro-tourism development as well. Particularly, level of education, net household income, farm size, farm type, number of family member participated in agricultural production were significant differences with both the residents’ perception toward agro-tourism impacts and their community participation in support of agro-tourism. Moreover, the findings of linear regression model indicated that the residents’ perceptions toward the positive impacts of agro-tourism on both economic and socio-culture influenced positively on their community participation in support of agro-tourism, whereas the residents’ perceptions toward the negative impacts of agro-tourism on socio-culture showed a negative effect. Therefore, the residents’ perceptions toward agro-tourism impacts played a crucial role, thereby affecting on perceptions of local residents toward impacts of agro-tourism and their community participation in support of its development in the area

College Enrollment, Attainment, and Persistence Among Immigrant Youth: Generational Differences Between and Within Racial/Ethnic Groups With a Focus on Asian Immigrants

Thesis advisor: Eric DearingThe education and successful integration of immigrant youth are imperative for the U.S. economy. Indeed, first- and second-generation immigrants are estimated to account for 93% of the nation’s working-age population growth over the next three decades (Pew, 2013). However, existing empirical work on postsecondary outcomes among immigrant youth mainly focuses on differences between pan-racial/ethnic categories, potentially masking within-group differences (e.g., ethnic/regional variations) arising from unique pre- and post-migration contexts and experiences. This dissertation aims to uncover heterogeneity within and between immigrant racial/ethnic groups’ trajectories in higher education. A special focus is placed on Asian immigrants, a pan-racial group that represented about 28% of the immigrant population in 2018 but comprised several distinct ethnic and regional groups with considerable variation in pre- and post-immigration experiences (Pew, 2018). The dissertation also helps advance current knowledge by simultaneously examining variations by ethnic/regional groups and generational statuses for Asian youth. Utilizing data from the High School Longitudinal Study 2009, the first part of the dissertation explores enrollment, attainment, and persistence differences among pan-racial/ethnic groups and, in turn, disaggregated analyses specifically for Asian ethnicities and regions. Second, the dissertation examines variations in postsecondary outcomes as a function of immigrant generation (i.e., first, second, or third generation, focusing on both within– and across–racial and ethnic group differences). For this second aim, variations within and between Asian ethnicities and regions are closely examined. The findings indicate that pan-racial/ethnic differences follow patterns previously highlighted in the literature; however, evidence of generational differences within and between groups in this study extends the existing literature. For example, there was evidence of generational advantages in educational outcomes for first- and second-generation youth compared with the third generation for Asian and Black youth. On the other hand, there was evidence of disadvantage among first-generation Latinx youth. The disaggregated analyses for Asian immigrants also revealed several important findings. For example, the second-generation advantage found at the pan-racial level for Asian immigrants persisted for Southeast Asians and partially for Chinese and South Asian immigrants. However, it disappeared for other Asian ethnic/regional groups for several outcomes. These findings have implications for the discourse around immigrants by challenging current pervasive pan-racial/ethnic narratives. In particular, for Asian immigrants, often stereotyped as the “Model Minority,” the immigration and assimilation process is not monolithic. Therefore, postsecondary outcomes reflect these complex and heterogeneous processes.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education.Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology

Heat Stress Affects Seed Set and Grain Quality of Vietnamese Rice Cultivars during Heading and Grain Filling Period

Environmental stress trigger a variety of rice plant response, ranging from alters seed set, grain yield and grain quality during flowering and grain filling stage.  Efforts are required to improve our understanding of the impact of heat stress on rice production, which are essential strategies in rice cultivation. This article investigated the seed set, yield components and grain yield of Vietnamese rice cultivars (Indica germplasm) under high temperature environment during the flowering and grain filling stage. Six rice cultivars, including popular cultivars and new cultivars of Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute, and one popular extraneous cultivar with differences in maturing time, were grown in pots at high temperature (HT) and natural temperature condition as control (CT). All rice cultivars were subjected to the high temperature starting from the heading stage to the harvest maturity, applied by greenhouse effect. The greenhouse has about 25 cm window opening on 3 sides for air ventilation. The seed set rate of the heat-sensitive rice genotypes decreased significantly under HT, leading to a significant reduction in grain yield. The lowest seed set was recorded in “OM4900” (44.3%) and “OM18” (39.9%) under high temperature environment. The lower yield in all rice cultivars at an elevated temperature resulted in a dramatic decrease of filled grains and contributed to a loss of 1000-grain weight. ‘“OM892” is a potential rice cultivar for heat tolerant breeding program due to the seed set percentage was above 80% in both HT and CT conditions. High temperature during the grain filling stage resulted in a decreased amylose and increased chalkiness for all OM cultivars

In vitro bioactivities of Codonopsis javanica root extract from Kon Tum province, Vietnam

Dangshen Codonopsis javanica exhibits invaluable medicinal properties in herbal remedies; however, there has currently not been much specific analysis of the phytochemicals and bioactivities of this plant. The root ethanol extract of C. javanica contains substances such as saponins, phenolic acids, terpenoids, and alkaloids. It displays an antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus cereus with the IC50 values of 150, 100, 150, and 90 μg/mL, respectively. The antioxidant capacity of the root extract was also observed with an IC50 value of 46.8 ± 6.8 μg/mL. Furthermore, the extract exhibits activity on human cancer cell lines HepG2 (IC50 = 83.6 ± 2.7 μg/mL) and MCF-7 (IC50 = 95.3 ± 2.3 μg/mL). Hence, this study provides the basic data for further research on the bioactivities of natural compounds of Dangshen C. javanica for the first time

Habenaria diphylla (Nimmo) Dalzell (Orchidaceae), new record for the flora of Vietnam

Habenaria diphylla (Nimmo) Dalzell is reported for the first time as a new discovery for the flora of Vietnam based on the specimens collected in Binh Chau-Phuoc Buu Nature Reserve, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. The present study provided the detailed characteristics of the species including detailed photographs of the morphological characteristics, the cross section of the leaf, inflorescence axis and root. Furthermore, the information about the species, including distribution, habitat, ecology and conservation status were also provided

Development of a one-step multiplex (RT)-PCR for simultaneous detection of virus-induced respiratory disease complex in dogs in Vietnam

Canine infectious respiratory disease (CIRD) viruses, particularly canine distemper virus (CDV), canine adenovirus type 2 (CAV-2), and canine parainfluenza virus (CPIV), are the primary agents responsible for respiratory diseases in dogs. A dog can be infected with a single or multiple viruses with similar clinical signs. Although CIRD is globally prevalent in dogs, investigation into the causative viruses in Vietnam remains limited. This study aims to identify the presence of CIRD virus(es) in dogs via molecular detection. Three primer sets were newly designed and applied into (RT)-PCR reaction to detect viral genes of CDV, CAV-2, and CPIV in a commercial vaccine (Vanguard® Plus 5/L, Zoetis, USA). Both simplex and multiplex (RT)-PCR reactions using the three primer sets could detect the presence of CAV-2, CDV, and CPIV in the vaccine sample. Subsequently, the applicability of the one-step multiplex (RT)-PCR was demonstrated to test for 27 clinical nasal swab samples collected from dogs suspected of having CIRD. The results showed that our (RT)-PCR could detect CIRD virus(es) in all tested clinical samples. PCR amplicons for each representative CAV-2, CDV, and CPIV were selected for sequencing and showed high genetic similarity to respective field viruses. In conclusion, this study successfully developed a one-step multiplex (RT)-PCR reaction to detect and differentiate causative viruses of CIRD in dogs

Quantifying antimicrobial access and usage for paediatric diarrhoeal disease in an urban community setting in Asia.

OBJECTIVES: Antimicrobial-resistant infections are a major global health issue. Ease of antimicrobial access in developing countries is proposed to be a key driver of the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) epidemic despite a lack of community antimicrobial usage data. METHODS: Using a mixed-methods approach (geospatial mapping, simulated clients, healthcare utilization, longitudinal cohort) we assessed antimicrobial access in the community and quantified antimicrobial usage for childhood diarrhoea in an urban Vietnamese setting. RESULTS: The study area had a pharmacy density of 15.7 pharmacies/km2 (a pharmacy for every 1316 people). Using a simulated client method at pharmacies within the area, we found that 8% (3/37) and 22% (8/37) of outlets sold antimicrobials for paediatric watery and mucoid diarrhoea, respectively. However, despite ease of pharmacy access, the majority of caregivers would choose to take their child to a healthcare facility, with 81% (319/396) and 88% (347/396) of responders selecting a specialized hospital as one of their top three preferences when seeking treatment for watery and mucoid diarrhoea, respectively. We calculated that at least 19% (2688/14427) of diarrhoea episodes in those aged 1 to <5 years would receive an antimicrobial annually; however, antimicrobial usage was almost 10 times greater in hospitals than in the community. CONCLUSIONS: Our data question the impact of community antimicrobial usage on AMR and highlight the need for better education and guidelines for all professionals with the authority to prescribe antimicrobials