Factors associated with youth gang membership in low and middle-income countries: a systematic review.

Youth gang membership is associated with delinquency, violent crime and trafficking – and gang members are themselves frequently the victims of these offences. Yet youth gangs can also provide a form of social capital, a sense of belonging and purpose to disenfranchised youth. This review identifies the factors associated with young people joining gangs, and the differences between gang-involved and non-gang-involved youth. Understanding these associations is essential to reduce the levels of gang membership and the incidence of related violence

Accelerating the transition toward a triple-impact economy through sustainable public procurement (SPP) : final technical report

The project revealed that the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region still faces major technical, political, regulatory, and budgetary roadblocks preventing LAC countries from being able to handle sustainability criteria more smoothly. Most officials involved in public procurement institutions in LAC were not familiar with the concept of triple-impact economies nor with purpose-driven businesses. Activities and results of the project are outlined, with country-specific details. Activities included training members of the Inter-American Network on Government Procurement (INGP) to position public procurement as a tool for sustainable development in the region. Evidence shows the region is characterized already by substantive work on social sustainability

Managing development in the hillsides of Trinidad and Tobago using geoinformatics

An increase in the unmanaged development of hillsides is causing environmental, social and economic problems in Trinidad and Tobago. Improved environmental awareness and deepening environmental concerns in recent years have focused attention on the need to move towards a more sustainable pattern of development. Scientific criteria for managing hillside development do not seem to exist and attempts in this regard are seriously compromised amongst other things by the lack of effective and reliable information base for decision making, i.e. information poverty. This paper advances a geoinformatics based methodology for determining suitability for built development on hillsides and to develop and implement a simple scientific criterion strategy for managing hillside development in Trinidad and Tobago whilst enduring information poverty. Additionally, a case study is presented to highlight the applicability of the concept to Tobago. The results showed all potential areas suitable for hillside development in Tobago and also identified areas not suitable and the reason(s) for disqualifying these areas. The proposed approach is adaptable, scientifically justifiable and open to scrutiny, and will lend itself to public acceptance. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.