5. Environment & Health/Environnement et santé

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In contrast to the other themes, the subjects of environment and health are more rooted in the natural sciences. Scientific inquiry led to the development of concepts such as natural capital, intergenerational equity and sustainable development, yet it is also the scientific focus on data and provability that has put pressure on policy process. Grand narratives still shape global agendas, but in everyday life the practitioner is more likely to speak of policy experiments, measurable targets, and development indicators. Science provides tools, yet its influence depends on whose hands it empowers: whether by governments designing smarter health systems, or poor farmers growing more nutritious food.



L’environnement et la santé sont des sujets qui prennent racine dans les sciences naturelles. La recherche scientifique a débouché sur des concepts tels que le capital naturel, l’équité intergénérationnelle et le développement durable; pourtant, c’est aussi la méthode scientifique axée sur les données et la démontrabilité qui a exercé des pressions sur le processus d’élaboration des politiques. Les exposés étoffés façonnent encore les programmes mondiaux mais, au quotidien, le praticien est plus susceptible de parler d’expériences en matière de politiques, de cibles mesurables et d’indicateurs du développement. La science fournit des outils, mais son influence dépend de ceux qui les mettent à profit, qu’il s’agisse de gouvernements qui conçoivent des systèmes de santé plus intelligents ou d’agriculteurs disposant de peu de ressources qui cultivent des aliments plus nutritifs.



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Recent Submissions

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Targeting diseases
    (2013) Oomman, Nandini; Cleghorn, Farley
    Not until the early 2000s has development financing for global health increased dramatically. The chapter argues that specifically targeted funding may have unintended consequences, undermining health systems designed to meet broader public health needs. Discussion of the targeting of three diseases: smallpox, polio, and HIV/AIDS illustrates the advantages and limitations of focusing on a single disease, and the accompanying need for political stability, security, and a functioning health system. Although the greatest gains in health can be achieved with relatively low-cost interventions, funding has continued to target infectious diseases.
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    Global health
    (2013) Evans, Tim
    Over time, there have been distinct waves in thinking regarding linkages between health and development: from a tropical health era focused on diseases endemic to developing countries, to an international era of efforts to control population, improve nutrition, and immunize children. The current global era targets the burden of disease, maternal health, and tackles new pathogens. Looking forward, concerns for equity and security are driving a systemic view of health, particularly in financing (prepaying to avoid catastrophic out of pocket expenses) and governance (with a shift of power from international organizations to non-state actors).
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    Climate adaptation
    (2013) Denton, Fatima
    Governance shapes the opportunities for adaptation in practice, facilitating communication and coordination between local and national-level action. Reversing climate change is essentially about empowering vulnerable communities. This chapter unpacks the concept of adaptation and vulnerability, making a link to governance as the hook that enables adaptation. Climate change in developing countries is made more difficult by weak institutions and governance. These two fundamental ingredients are necessary for transition to a transformative development that will make adaptation more sustainable.
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    Land reform
    (2013) White, Ben; Borras, Saturnino M.; Hall, Ruth
    This chapter uses both classic and contemporary literature to trace how land policies, and particularly land reform, have gained, lost, and regained prominence in development strategies and debates since the Second World War. It introduces contemporary issues and debates on gender and generational issues in land policy and land grabbing involving sometimes spectacularly large corporate land deals, and concluding with reflections on new ideas of food and land sovereignty that drive today’s agrarian movements.
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    Rural transformation
    (2013) Berdegué, Julio A.; Rosada, Tomás; Bebbington, Anthony J.
    About 3.3 billion people live in the rural areas of Africa, Asia and Latin America; an additional 1.3 billion reside in provincial towns. The bulk of land-based global biodiversity lives with or immediately next to these people. This chapter discusses rural transformation, whereby rural societies diversify their economies and reduce their reliance on agriculture, becoming more dependent on distant places to trade and to acquire goods, services, and ideas. While global forces drive this transformation, the interplay of global and local factors are reflected in different outcomes in terms of economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability.
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    Water resources : an evolving landscape
    (2013) Tortajada, Cecilia
    This chapter presents the history of thinking on water resources and how it has evolved over time. It analyzes paradigms proposed by the international community during the last half century in light of their decisive influence on the content (though not the implementation) of water policies in virtually all developed and developing countries. While paradigms have been an important part of global thinking, at the local level they have represented more of a concept than a reality. This may be why, in the second decade of the twenty-first century, formulation and implementation of efficient policies and management practices benefiting humankind and the environment have still not been achieved.
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    Agriculture and food security
    (2013) Sambasivan Swaminathan, Mankombu; Pandya-Lorch, Rajul; Yosef, Sivan
    This chapter reviews the evolution of food security and agricultural development; assesses how agriculture has contributed to improving food security; highlights the experiences of India, China, and Ethiopia; and looks forward to opportunities for leveraging agriculture to improve food and nutrition security. Agricultural growth is a catalyst for broad-based economic growth and development in most low-income countries. Agricultural development strategies need to be tailored to local contexts in order to achieve food security.