'We pledge to improve the health of our entire community'
- Authors: Grant, Carolyn , Nawal, Dipty , Guntur, Sai Mala , Kumar, Manish , Chaudhuri, Indrajit , Galavotti, Christine , Mahapatra, Tanmay , Ranjan, Kunal , Kumar, Gangesh , Mohanty, Sunil , Alam, Mohammed Aftab , Das, Aritra , Jiwani, Safia
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/281179 , vital:55699 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0203265"
- Description: Background: Motivation is critical to health worker performance and work quality. In Bihar, India, frontline health workers provide essential health services for the state’s poorest citizens. Yet, there is a shortfall of motivated and skilled providers and a lack of coordination between two cadres of frontline health workers and their supervisors. CARE India developed an approach aimed at improving health workers’ performance by shifting work culture and strengthening teamwork and motivation. The intervention—“Team-Based Goals and Incentives”—supported health workers to work as teams towards collective goals and rewarded success with public recognition and non-financial incentives. Methods: Thirty months after initiating the intervention, 885 health workers and 98 supervisors completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire in 38 intervention and 38 control health sub-centers in one district. The questionnaire included measures of social cohesion, teamwork attitudes, self-efficacy, job satisfaction, teamwork behaviors, equitable service delivery, taking initiative, and supervisory support. We conducted bivariate analyses to examine the impact of the intervention on these psychosocial and behavioral outcomes. Results: Results show statistically significant differences across several measures between intervention and control frontline health workers, including improved teamwork (mean = 8.8 vs. 7.3), empowerment (8.5 vs. 7.4), job satisfaction (7.1 vs. 5.99) and equitable service delivery (6.7 vs. 4.99). While fewer significant differences were found for supervisors, they reported improved teamwork (8.4 vs. 5.3), and frontline health workers reported improved fulfillment of supervisory duties by their supervisors (8.9 vs. 7.6). Both frontline health workers and supervisors found public recognition and enhanced teamwork more motivating than the non-financial incentives. Conclusions: The Team-Based Goals and Incentives model reinforces intrinsic motivation and supports improvements in the teamwork, motivation, and performance of health workers. It offers an approach to practitioners and governments for improving the work environment in a resource-constrained setting and where there are multiple cadres of health workers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A critical review of sanctioned knowledge production concerning abortion in Africa: Implications for feminist health psychology
- Authors: Macleod, Catriona I , Chiweshe, Malvern T , Mavuso, Jabulile M-J J
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/444212 , vital:74207 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105316644294"
- Description: Taking a feminist health psychology approach, we conducted a systematic review of published research on abortion featured in PsycINFO over a 7-year period. We analysed the 39 articles included in the review in terms of countries in which the research was conducted, types of research, issues covered, the way the research was framed and main findings. Despite 97per cent of abortions performed in Africa being classifiable as unsafe, there has been no engagement in knowledge production about abortion in Africa from psychologists, outside of South Africa. Given this, we outline the implications of the current knowledge base for feminism, psychology and feminist health psychology in Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A gold–chitosan composite with low symmetry zinc phthalocyanine for enhanced singlet oxygen generation and improved photodynamic therapy activity
- Authors: Dube, Edith , Oluwole, David O , Prinsloo, Earl , Nyokong, Tebello
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/233397 , vital:50087 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1039/C8NJ00801A"
- Description: Novel zinc(II) 3-(4-((3,17,23-tris(4-(benzo[d]thiazol-2-yl)phenoxy)phthalocyanine-9-yl)oxy)phenyl)propanoic acid (complex 3) was synthesised. Complex 3 was subsequently reacted with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), chitosan (CT) and a gold–chitosan (AuCT) hybrid to form 3-AuNPs, 3-CT and 3-AuCT, respectively. The conjugates afforded a decrease in fluorescence quantum yield with a corresponding increase in the triplet and singlet quantum yields compared to complex 3. The in vitro dark cytotoxicity and photodynamic therapy activity (PDT) of complex 3 and 3-AuCT composites were investigated against epithelial breast cancer cells (MCF-7) with both the samples showing minimum dark cytotoxicity. They both accounted for a cell viability of ≥90% at a concentration of ≤59.2 μg mL−1. 3-AuCT showed better PDT activity (compared to 3 alone) with less than 50% viable cells at a concentration of ≥29.6 μg mL−1 making it potentially applicable for PDT. On the other hand, AuCT displayed some activity against cancer cells, probably due to photothermal activity since gold is a light absorber, however it had more than 50% viable cells at a concentration of ≤59.2 μg mL−1.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A peaceful revenge: Achieving structural and agential transformation in a South African context using cognitive justice and emancipatory social learning
- Authors: Burt, Jane C , James, Anna
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/392049 , vital:68717 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14767430.2018.1550312"
- Description: This is an account of the emancipatory struggle that faces agents who seek to change the oppressive social structures associated with neo-liberalism. We begin by ‘digging amongst the bones’ of the calls for resistance that have been declared dead or assimilated/co-opted by neoliberal theorists. This leads us to unearth, then utilize, Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Steve Biko’s Black Consciousness and Shiv Visvanathan's ideas; which are examples of Roy Bhaskar’s transformative dialectic. We argue, using examples, that cognitive justice – a concept common to each of our chosen theorists – is vital in enabling emancipatory social learning. By embracing cognitive justice, the agents gained confidence, which led to their increased ability to champion community and non-academic knowledge. It also uncovered structural tensions – attendant in neoliberalism – around privilege. By articulating these tensions, the participants were able to ‘come closer together’. Such processes, initiated by ensuring cognitive justice, are possible steps in achieving universal solidarity; which is likely to be a necessary step along the path of achieving emancipation.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A preliminary study of minimal-contention locks
- Authors: Machanick, Philip , Mbiyavanga, Mamana
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/439093 , vital:73544 , https://doi.org/10.1145/3278681.3278713
- Description: As multicore CPUs become more common, scalable synchronization primitives have wider use and ideas previously used in large-scale computation are worth re-opening for wider use. In this paper I explore one approach to scalable synchronization, a minimal-contention lock (M-lock). The key idea is to avoid spinning on a global variable but instead for each blocked task (process or thread) to spin on a local lock representing the task that immediately preceded it in attempting to acquire the lock. This creates an ordering based on the order in which tasks attempt to acquire the lock, preventing starvation. The only globally shared variable is a pointer to the next local lock to be contended for. Each contending task swaps the value of this pointer for a pointer to its own variable. It spins on the variable previously pointed to by the global pointer. Each waiting task spins on a lock only seen by itself and the owner of that lock variable. While a task is spinning, the lock variable can be held in its local cache until invalidated by the lock owner when it unsets the lock. Consequently, the amount of bus traffic is considerably less than with a spinlock, which has the pernicious feature that the task releasing the lock is delayed by all the other bus traffic arising from contention for the lock. An MCS lock has similar properties but is more complicated and requires more memory contention-causing operations. This paper outlines the design of the M-lock and provides a preliminary performance analysis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
A song for the South: also defining birdsong in global terms
- Authors: Bonnevie, Bo T , Craig, Adrian J F K
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/448759 , vital:74758 , https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12627
- Description: The article presents information on the importance of birdsongs, highlighting the structured vocalization required for mate attraction and defending of territory by male birds. Topics include the variations of themes in birdsongs during intraspecific communication, song acquisitions by the songbirds, and the impact of song learning by birds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
African men and feminism: Reflections on using African feminism in research
- Authors: Chiweshe, Malvern T
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/453293 , vital:75243 , https://doi.org/10.1080/10130950.2018.1460088
- Description: The role of African men in African feminism is a precarious one. At the core are debates on whether African men can be feminist. Using my personal experiences as a starting point I navigate these debates. I delve into the politics of the term feminist and conclude, as Ratele and Botha (2013) did, that African men cannot be feminists but pro-feminists. The use of the identifier pro-feminist assists in not silencing African women’s voices. The adaptation of the identifier does not mean African men have no role to play in African feminism; in these spaces African men, acting as collaborators, can apply African feminist methods in their work as it provides rich analysis on the postcolonial position of women in Africa. I use my experiences of doing a PhD on abortion (a highly stigmatised research area in Africa) to illustrate how African feminist methods can enrich our analysis when researching Africa. I propose that it is only through collaborations between African women and men that issues of gender can continue to be addressed on the continent. African feminist methods provide useful tools for African men to challenge and problematise masculinities. I also warn against the danger of not reflecting on male privilege within the research space and how this can lead to a silencing of women’s voices.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi persist in dying Euphorbia ingens trees
- Authors: Vivas, M , Crous, C J , Dames, Joanna F , van der Linde, J A , Coetzee, M P A , Roux, J
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/440465 , vital:73784 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2017.12.009
- Description: Forest declines have been reported with increasing regularity during the last decade and are expected to increase due to the ongoing environmental changes. During adverse environmental conditions, plant symbioses with mycorrhizas can help to reduce plant stress. Mycorrhizas are symbiotic associations between fungi and roots of living plants. Plants offer carbohydrates to the fungus and the fungus improves the acquisition of nutrients and water to the plant. Specifically, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are the most abundant mycorrhizas. In South Africa, there are increasing reports describing the decline of native Euphorbia ingens trees. This study analysed the presence and abundance of AM fungal colonisation in the roots of E. ingens trees, and the number of AM fungal spores in the surrounding soil, with the aim to improve the understanding of the rapid decline of these trees. AM fungal colonisation and spores in relation to the soil properties were also analysed. Soil and root samples were collected from different rates of declining E. ingens trees at three sites in South Africa. AM fungal colonisation of the roots was assessed and fungal spores in the surrounding soil were enumerated. Soil phosphorus, mineral nitrogen and pH were analysed from the soil samples. The results showed that AM fungi are associated with E. ingens trees. AM abundance was influenced by site specific properties and not by E. ingens health. Moreover, the level of soil NO3− and soil texture significantly influenced AM colonisation in roots and the number of spores enumerated. These preliminary findings provide background information for further research into the large-scale decline of E. ingens populations in South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Avian thermoregulation in the heat: is evaporative cooling more economical in nocturnal birds?
- Authors: O'Connor, Ryan S , Smit, Ben , Talbot, William A , Gerson, Alexander R , Brigham, R Mark , Wolf, Blair O , McKechnie, Andrew E
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/441518 , vital:73895 , https://journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/221/17/jeb181420/19595/Avian-thermoregulation-in-the-heat-is-evaporative
- Description: Evaporative cooling is a prerequisite for avian occupancy of hot, arid environments, and is the only avenue of heat dissipation when air temperatures (Ta) exceed body temperature (Tb). Whereas diurnal birds can potentially rehydrate throughout the day, nocturnal species typically forgo drinking between sunrise and sunset. We hypothesized that nocturnal birds have evolved reduced rates of evaporative water loss (EWL) and more economical evaporative cooling mechanisms compared with diurnal species, permitting nocturnal species to tolerate extended periods of intense heat without becoming lethally dehydrated. We used phylogenetically informed regressions to compare EWL and evaporative cooling efficiency [ratio of evaporative heat loss (EHL) and metabolic heat production (MHP); EHL/MHP] among nocturnal and diurnal birds at high Ta. We analyzed variation in three response variables: (1) slope of EWL at Ta between 40 and 46°C, (2) EWL at Ta=46°C and (3) EHL/MHP at Ta=46°C. Nocturnality emerged as a weak, negative predictor, with nocturnal species having slightly shallower slopes and reduced EWL compared with diurnal species of similar mass.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Avian thermoregulation in the heat: phylogenetic variation among avian orders in evaporative cooling capacity and heat tolerance
- Authors: Smit, Ben , Whitfield, Maxine C , Talbot, William A , Gerson, Alexander R , McKechnie, Andrew E , Wolf, Blair O
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/440517 , vital:73789 , https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.174870
- Description: Little is known about the phylogenetic variation of avian evaporative cooling efficiency and heat tolerance in hot environments. We quantified thermoregulatory responses to high air temperature (Ta) in ∼100-g representatives of three orders, namely, the African cuckoo (Cuculus gularis, Cuculiformes), lilac-breasted roller (Coracias caudatus, Coraciiformes) and Burchell's starling (Lamprotornis australis, Passeriformes). All three species initiated respiratory mechanisms to increase evaporative heat dissipation when body temperature (Tb) approached 41.5°C in response to increasing Ta, with gular flutter observed in cuckoos and panting in rollers and starlings. Resting metabolic rate and evaporative water loss increased by quantitatively similar magnitudes in all three species, although maximum rates of evaporative water loss were proportionately lower in starlings. Evaporative cooling efficiency [defined as the ratio of evaporative heat loss (EHL) to metabolic heat production (MHP)] generally remained below 2.0 in cuckoos and starlings, but reached a maximum of ∼3.5 in rollers. The high value for rollers reveals a very efficient evaporative cooling mechanism, and is similar to EHL/MHP maxima for similarly sized columbids which very effectively dissipate heat via cutaneous evaporation. This unexpected phylogenetic variation among the orders tested in the physiological mechanisms of heat dissipation is an important step toward determining the evolution of heat tolerance traits in desert birds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Bearing Witness to ‘Irreparable Harm': Incorporating Affective Activity as Practice into Ethics
- Authors: Barker, Kim , Macleod, Catriona I
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/434185 , vital:73037 , ISBN 978-3-319-74720-0 , https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-74721-7_12
- Description: Research with individuals who have experienced trauma requires careful consideration. In preparing the ethics protocol for an ethnographic study of an anti-rape protest, we gave careful consideration to the potential ethical challenges in accordance with the University ethics code. However, this process did not prepare the first author for the dynamic and reciprocal positioning she encountered in relationships in the field or the ‘ethically important’ moment-by-moment decision-making which this required of her. Drawing on the philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas, a feminist reading of the contemporary ‘turn to affect’, and examples from our research, we show how ethical decision-making in ethnographic research is always relational and dialogical, both in our direct interactions with participants and in the ways in which we approach our ‘data’.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Bird responses to land use change: Guild diversity in a Kenyan coastal forest and adjoining habitats
- Authors: Chiawo, David O , Kombe, Wellington N , Craig, Adrian J F K
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/448820 , vital:74763 , https://doi.org/10.1080/01584197.2018.1431052
- Description: Land use change can have profound effects on forest ecology, particularly on the avian community. Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, one of the Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in Kenya, is under threat due to ongoing land use change in the surroundings that could affect species composition of many bird guilds. However, information on the response of different guilds in tropical land use systems is sparse in Africa. We examined the effects of land use on bird guilds in primary forest (Arabuko-Sokoke Forest), adjoining plantations, and neighbouring farmland. Point counts were distributed equally in the three land use systems to survey bird populations. A total of 2600 bird observations was recorded, representing 97 species in five main feeding guilds (frugivores, nectarivores, insectivores, carnivores, and granivores). Granivores were most abundant and diverse in farmland, while carnivores (primarily raptors) utilised all habitats. Insectivores were most diverse in primary forest where vertical heterogeneity of the vegetation and the presence of large fruiting trees significantly influenced their occurrence. Specialist nectarivores were most frequent in primary forest, whereas occasional nectarivores were less abundant there. Contrary to expectation, frugivore diversity showed no significant effect of land use.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Characterization and computational studies of a co-crystal of 2-aminobenzimidazole and 2-[(benzoylcarbamothioyl) amino] propanoic acid
- Authors: Odame, Felix , Hosten, Eric C , Betz, Richard , Lobb, Kevin A , Tshentu, Zenixole R
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/447030 , vital:74578 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1134/S0022476618050268"
- Description: A novel co-crystal of 2-aminobenzimidazole and 2-[(benzoylcarbamothioyl)amino] propanoic acid is synthesized and characterized by spectroscopy, elemental analysis, GC-MS, and single crystal XRD. A computation of the structures involved in the formation of the co-crystal are carried out and their contribution to reactivity is explained.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Click chemistry electrode modification using 4-ethynylbenzyl substituted cobalt phthalocyanine for applications in electrocatalysis
- Authors: Mpeta, Lekhetho S , Fomo, Gertrude , Nyokong, Tebello
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/187626 , vital:44681 , xlink:href="• https://doi.org/10.1080/00958972.2018.1466118"
- Description: In this work, we report on the synthesis and applications of a new cobalt tetrakis 4-((4-ethynylbenzyl) oxy) phthalocyanine (3) for the detection of hydrazine. The glassy carbon electrode (GCE) was first grafted through diazotization, providing the GCE surface layer with azide groups. Thereafter, the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction, catalyzed by a copper(I) catalyst was used to “click” complex 3 to the grafted surface of GCE. The new platform was then characterized using cyclic voltammetry (CV), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). This work shows that 3 is an effective sensor with sensitivity of 91.5 μA mM−1 and limit of detection of 3.28 μM which is a great improvement compared to other reported sensors for this analyte.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Comparison of physiological responses to high temperatures in juvenile and adult Cape Rockjumpers Chaetops frenatus
- Authors: Oswald, Krista N , Lee, Alan T K , Smit, Ben
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/441559 , vital:73898 , https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2018.1509905
- Description: Concerns about climate change have led to an increase in studies on physiological mechanisms birds possess to cope with increasing temperatures. For range-restricted species such as Cape Rockjumpers Chaetops frenatus, whose population declines are correlated with habitat warming, we identified juvenile physiological responses to high temperature as a potential gap in current knowledge. We compared metabolic rate, evaporative water loss, evaporative cooling efficiency (calculated from evaporative water loss and resting metabolic rate) and body temperature in juveniles (n = 5) with adult birds (n = 10) to a ramped temperature profile (30–42 °C). Although juveniles exhibited no significant difference in cooling efficiency, they had higher evaporative water loss, resting metabolic rate and body temperature. This suggests that while juvenile birds show similar abilities to dissipate metabolic heat evaporatively, they face higher overall water and energy demands, and thus higher thermoregulatory costs in maintaining body temperature as overall temperatures continue to increase.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Comparison of physiological responses to high temperatures in juvenile and adult Cape Rockjumpers Chaetops frenatus
- Authors: Oswald, Krista N , Lee, Alan T K , Smit, Ben
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/448398 , vital:74727 , https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2018.1509905
- Description: Concerns about climate change have led to an increase in studies on physiological mechanisms birds possess to cope with increasing temperatures. For range-restricted species such as Cape Rockjumpers Chaetops frenatus, whose population declines are correlated with habitat warming, we identified juvenile physiological responses to high temperature as a potential gap in current knowledge. We compared metabolic rate, evaporative water loss, evaporative cooling efficiency (calculated from evaporative water loss and resting metabolic rate) and body temperature in juveniles (n = 5) with adult birds (n = 10) to a ramped temperature profile (30–42 °C). Although juveniles exhibited no significant difference in cooling efficiency, they had higher evaporative water loss, resting metabolic rate and body temperature. This suggests that while juvenile birds show similar abilities to dissipate metabolic heat evaporatively, they face higher overall water and energy demands, and thus higher thermoregulatory costs in maintaining body temperature as overall temperatures continue to increase.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Conjugation of isoniazid to a zinc phthalocyanine via hydrazone linkage for pH-dependent liposomal controlled release
- Authors: Nkanga, Christian I , Krause, Rui W M
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/194992 , vital:45517 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-018-0776-y"
- Description: Tuberculosis (TB) remains the leading cause of mortality from infectious diseases. Extended TB treatment and frequent adverse effects, due to poor bioavailability of anti-tubercular drugs (ATBDs), represent the main rationales behind liposomal encapsulation for controlled delivery. Liposomes have been reported as potential vehicles for targeted delivery of ATBDs due to their rapid uptake by macrophages, which are known as the main host cells for TB causative agent (Mycobacterium tuberculosis). Additionally, the need for controlled release of ATBDs arises because leakage is part of the key liposome challenges for hydrophilic compounds like isoniazid (INH). In this study, INH was conjugated to a highly hydrophobic photosensitizer, zinc (II) phthalocyanine (PC), through hydrazone bonding. The obtained conjugate (PC–INH) was encapsulated in liposomes by film hydration method. PC–INH loaded liposomes (PILs) were characterized using dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry and UV–Vis absorption spectrometry, which was used also for estimation of encapsulation efficiency (î). INH release was evaluated in different pH media using dialysis. Particle size, zeta potential and î of PILs were about 506 nm, − 55 mV and 72%, respectively. Over 12 h, PILs exhibited 22, 41, 97 and 100% of INH, respectively, released in pH 7.4, 6.4, 5.4 and 4.4 media. This pH-dependent behavior is attractive for site-specific delivery. These findings suggest the conjugation of chemotherapeutics to phthalocyanines using pH-labile linkages as a potential strategy for liposomal controlled release.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Conservation and human livelihoods at the crossroads: Local needs and knowledge in the management of Arabuko Sokoke Forest
- Authors: Chiawo, David O , Kombe, Wellington N , Craig, Adrian J F K
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/448843 , vital:74765 , https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12462
- Description: Arabuko Sokoke Forest is the largest remaining single block of indigenous dry coastal tropical forest in Eastern Africa. Households within a 5 km buffer zone depend heavily on the forest for their livelihood needs, and the pressure on forest resources is on the increase. In May 2015, 109 households were interviewed on resources they obtain from the forest, in terms of the self‐reported level of monthly income. We found household income and farm size significantly positively correlated with benefits from the forest, highlighting the possible influence of household wealth in exploiting forest resources. A large proportion of households (32%) had limited knowledge of local birds, while human–bird conflict was reported by 44% of the households. While many households were keen to participate in conservation projects that maintain the forest, 44% had no knowledge of the forest management plan, and 60% of those interviewed had no idea of how forest zones were designated for particular activities. Drivers for local community participation in conservation projects appear to be sustainable income and fulfilment of basic household needs.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Contesting sexual violence policies in higher education: the case of Rhodes University
- Authors: Macleod, Catriona I , Böhmke, Werner , Barker, Kim , Mavuso, Jabulile M-J J , Chiweshe, Malvern T
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/444275 , vital:74212 , xlink:href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JACPR-05-2017-0295/full/html"
- Description: – In April 2016, students at Rhodes University brought the institution to a standstill as they protested the University’s sexual violence policies and procedures, as well as the “rape culture” that pervades social structures. In response, a Sexual Violence Task Team (SVTT) was formed in an open, participatory, and transparent process. Members of the University community were invited to comment on drafts of the SVTT document. The purpose of this paper is to outline the contestations – arising from both the establishment of the task team and the inputs from University members to drafts of the document – that surfaced concerning managing sexual violence on campuses and sexual offences policies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Contesting the nature of young pregnant and mothering women: Critical healthcare nexus research, ethics committees, and healthcare institutions
- Authors: Feltham-King, Tracey , Bomela, Yolisa , Macleod, Catriona I
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/434199 , vital:73038 , ISBN 978-3-319-74720-0 , https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-74721-7_5
- Description: In this chapter we describe how systemic contradictions complicate ethical site entry and data collection in critical research. We present our ethnographic research within South African antenatal and postnatal clinics as an example. Pregnant and mothering young women are subject to diverging views of minors in different state-produced policies and legislation. In addition, we encountered discrepancies between our research aims and assumptions made by the University Ethical Standards Committee, managers, healthcare providers, teenaged participants, and other service users. These complexities have implications for ethical engagement of researchers and call for nuanced means of data collection and analysis. We discuss how critical researchers can mitigate social injustice by questioning entrenched ways of thinking about participants and negotiating the contradictory positionings of self and others.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018