Risks and opportunities : understanding climate change in the Nile Delta

The Alexandria Research Center for Adaptation to Climate Change (ARCA) is a policy-oriented centre for research. ARCA’s work focuses on socioeconomic aspects of adaptation in the Nile Delta, which up to this point (2011) has been under researched: only 15 research papers on climate change issues have been produced during the last 25 years. However, current ARCA studies show for instance, that large areas exposed to flooding can be protected through small-scale engineering works along the coastline; 23-26% of the Alexandria area is susceptible to flooding by sea level rise and would be protected with a 4 km long sea wall

A prospective study on prevalence and characteristics of hematologic effects associated with subclinical hypothyroidism

Background: Distinctive types of iron deficiency have been accounted for patients with obvious hypothyroidism with a predominance of up to 47%. Regardless of the fact that vitamin B12, folic corrosive and iron fixations are ordinary, weakness that standardizes in light of thyroxine substitution is found in up to 25% of hypothyroid patients.Methods: Briefly, 50 women with SCH were enrolled in the study. Patients between 18 and 65 years old, with TSH levels more than 5.0 mIU/L, the patients selected has a history of hypothyroidism for more than a year and were on oral levothyroxine. A total of 50 participants were enrolled in the study. Blood samples were collected from 50 selected hypothyroid patients on the basis of a history of a hypothyroidism, persistent Anemia, of these patients all were females.Results: In present study 25 cases of age group 41-65 years  there were almost 10 patients having high thyroid stimulating factor (Tsh) that is more than (0.3-5.0U/Ml), Constitute to be 40% cases in this age category. Hence patients with high age may slower the response towards a levothyroxine hormone and hence have the high risk of developing anemia.Conclusions: Thyroid dysfunctions have an immediate impact on hemoglobin levels and these progressions should be considered in therapeutic consideration by medical practitioner

Adaptation to climate change in African coastal cities

French version available in IDRC Digital Library: Adaptation aux changements climatiques dans les villes côtières africainesWith climatic changes and growing populations, coastal cities are increasingly facing environmental issues such as flooding (storm surges and rainstorms), sea level rise, and ground water salinization. These challenges are magnified by lack of effective planning and provision of basic services, worsening the vulnerability of poor urban people. In response, IDRC research is supporting better urban planning, capacity enhancement for climate change adaptation, and developing coping strategies for flood victims and hard-pressed fishing communities in Africa

Investment Governance in Africa to Support Climate Resilience and Decarbonization

African nations have only marginally contributed to global warming relative to developed and emerging economies in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. However, the African continent will bear a disproportionate burden of the negative impacts of climate change. Climate-related challenges like flooding, drought, and intense heat waves will increasingly confront the continent at a worsening rate. African nations should not be expected to take the lead in addressing a climate emergency they did not create. The priority for Africa is to receive support and investment to build resilience and adapt to climate impacts

Intellectual and entrepreneurial leadership: reflection on Thailand’s emerging middle power diplomacy in the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD)

Thailand’s diplomacy was considerably more active during Thaksin’s premiership than the governments after him. Thailand’s intellectual and entrepreneurial leadership in the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) is characterised as a catalyst, facilitator and manager state as described in the behavioural middle power approach. Utilising the behavioural model of the middle power approaches, this study argues that Thailand is a potential emerging middle power state in Asia for its role in intellectual and entrepreneurial leadership in the ACD. Even though the ACD after 2006 was somewhat negligent due to Thailand’s internal political strife. The ACD remains a significant foreign policy reflecting Thailand’s middle-power status

Religious communities and ecological sustainability in Southern Africa and beyond

Climate change and environmental degradation are threatening livelihoods in many parts of the world. To develop pathways into a sustainable future and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, fundamental socioecological transformations are needed. This process requires not only appropriate policies as well as scientific knowledge, but necessitates radical paradigm shifts and changed mindsets and behaviour. Religious communities are crucial stakeholders for achieving these paradigm shifts: religion shapes social imaginaries and people’s values, and religious communities have the ability to act as agents of socio-ecological transformation. This volume seeks to elucidate the role of religious communities for ecological sustainability with a focus on Southern Africa. The book provides resources for scholars and students of religion and ecological sustainability, religious communities and faith-based organizations as well as policymakers, practitioners and NGOs in the field of sustainable development. It thereby seeks to facilitate knowledge exchange and to spark further engagement on religion and ecological sustainability in Southern Africa and beyond

Vulnerability of the Nile Delta coastal areas to inundation by sea level rise

Sea level changes are typically caused by several natural phenomena, including ocean thermal expansion, glacial melt from Greenland and Antarctica. Global average sea level is expected to rise, through the twenty-first century, according to the IPCC projections by between 0.18 and 0.59 cm. Such a rise in sea level will significantly impact coastal area of the Nile Delta, consisting generally of lowland and is densely populated areas and accommodates significant proportion of Egypt’s economic activities and built-up areas. The Nile Delta has been examined in several previous studies, which worked under various hypothetical sea level rise (SLR) scenarios and provided different estimates of areas susceptible to inundation due to SLR. The paper intends, in this respect, to identify areas, as well as land use/land cover, susceptible to inundation by SLR based upon most recent scenarios of SLR, by the year 2100 using GIS. The results indicate that about 22.49, 42.18, and 49.22 % of the total area of coastal governorates of the Nile Delta would be susceptible to inundation under different scenarios of SLR. Also, it was found that 15.56 % of the total areas of the Nile Delta that would be vulnerable to inundation due to land subsidence only, even in the absence of any rise in sea level. Moreover, it was found that a considerable proportion of these areas (ranging between 32.32 and 53.66 %) are currently either wetland or undeveloped areas. Furthermore, natural and/or man-made structures, such as the banks of the International Coastal Highway, were found to provide unintended protection to some of these areas. This suggests that the inundation impact of SLR on the Nile Delta is less than previously reported