This qualitative research aimed to study the effectiveness of the local health constitution in controlling the spread of COVID-19. It reports the role of local communities, government agencies, and healthcare providers in implementing and enforcing local health constitutions and how their engagement can be improved to enhance surveillance. We also reported factors that influence compliance and strategies for improving compliance. We also evaluated the long-term sustainability of local health institutions beyond the pandemic. The population and sample group consisted of key members of the local health constitution teams at the provincial, sub-district, and village levels in the rural area of Ubon Ratchathani. Participants were purposively selected and volunteered to provide information. It included health science professionals, public health volunteers, community leaders, and local government officials, totaling 157 individuals. The study was conducted from December 2022 to September 2023. Our research shows that local health constitutions can better engage and educate communities to actively participate in pandemic surveillance and prevention. This approach is a learning experience for responding to emergencies, such as new infectious diseases that may arise in the future. This simplifies the work of officials, as everyone understands the guidelines for action. Relevant organizations contribute to disease prevention efforts, and there is sustainable improvement in work operations.
African air transport is expected to take off after the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) launch in January 2018. Unfortunately, this seems not to be the case, particularly in West Africa, where adequate direct local flight is highly difficult to find. Hence, the fundamental question is: what levers should be activated for an effective revival of this sector? This paper aims to analyze West African air transport competitiveness factors by collecting data physically through surveys in various West African airports (Abidjan, Cotonou, Accra, Lome) also by interviewing professionals in the sector (Air traffic controllers, Air Navigation Service Providers, Air transports Managers, etc.) and among others, SAATM reports to appreciate its implementation. We were able to survey 435 actors (individuals and key informants) from January to July 2023 to evaluate quality of service, airline performance, safety, customer satisfaction etc. Airline operating costs were analyzed to understand the associated bottlenecks. The results show that SAATM is not yet well implemented in all contracting states, travelers are not satisfied with the air supply (airlines, infrastructure and fares) and taxation excessively increases ticket prices. The main factors for West African air transport take-off are liberalization, taxation and infrastructure investments.
Pattaya City is a well-known tourist destination in Thailand, famous for its beautiful beachfront, lively nightlife, and stunning natural scenery. Since 2019, the Eastern Special Development Zone Act, the so-called EEC (Eastern Economic Corridor), has positioned the city as a focal point for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE), boosting its tourism-driven economy. Infrastructure improvements in the region have accelerated urban development over the past decade. However, it is uncertain whether this growth primarily comes from development within existing areas or the expansion of urban boundaries and what direction future growth may take. To investigate this, research using the Cellular Automata-Markov model has been conducted to analyze land use changes and urban growth patterns in Pattaya, using land use data from the Department of Land for 2013 and 2017. The findings suggest an upcoming city expansion along the motorway, indicating that infrastructure improvements could drive rapid urbanization in coastal areas. This urban expansion emphasizes the need for urban management and strategic land use planning in coastal cities.
Landscape architects, who guide planning and design decisions by understanding the socio-cultural expectations, functional needs, and social behaviors of the community, create ideal spaces for people by integrating natural, social, cultural, and aesthetic factors with a holistic design approach in urban public areas. Public open green spaces are important urban areas that have a positive impact on people’s physical, mental, and emotional health. In this context, the concept of personal space, its impact on individuals, and related perception studies have been examined. In landscape design, criteria that affect individuals’ personal space distances and personal space perceptions have been identified, providing a basis for sustainable landscape design projects in public open and green spaces.
This study examines the economic feasibility of the environment-friendly farmland use policy to improve water quality. Conventional highland farming, polluting the Han River basin in South Korea, can be converted into environment-friendly farming through land acquisition or application of pesticide-free or organic farming practices. We estimate the welfare measures of improvement in water quality and the costs of policy implementation for economic analysis. To estimate the economic benefit of improvement in water quality experienced by the residents residing in mid-and-downstream areas of the Han River, the choice experiment was employed with a pivot-style experimental design approach. In the empirical analysis, we converted the household perception for water quality grades into scientific water quality measures using Water Quality Standard to estimate the value of changes in water quality. To analyze the costs required to convert conventional highland farmlands into environment-friendly farmlands, we estimated the relevant cost of land acquisition and the subsidy necessary for farm income loss for organic agricultural practice. We find that the agri-environmental policy is economically viable, which suggests that converting conventional highland farming into environment-friendly farming would make the improvement in water quality visible.
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