Farm households in developing countries are often involved in a variety of livelihood income-generating activities to achieve basic needs and enhance food security. However, little attention has been given to investigating the effect of livelihood diversification strategies on the adoption of agricultural land management practices. This study explored the nexus between livelihood diversification and Agricultural Land Management (ALM) practices in the Southern Ethiopian Highlands. Data for this study were gathered through a structured questionnaire, interviews, and focus group discussions. A total of 423 sample respondents were selected by using multistage random sampling techniques. The data were analyzed using the Inverse Herfindahl Hirschman Diversity Index (IHHDI), the multinomial logit model (MNL), and the probit regression model. The findings of the study revealed that on-farm income activities are the most dominant livelihood income strategies (69.1%), followed by non-farm (21%) and off-farm (9.64%). The multinomial logit model analysis demonstrated that variables such as sex, education, family size, distance to market, land size, extension contact, membership in cooperatives, and household income were the major drivers of farmers income diversification activities (p<0.05). The results of the probit analysis indicated that income from crop production, daily labor work, rents from farmland, and farm assets have a positive and significant effect on households' decisions to implement ALM practices. In contrast, incomes from remittance and migrant sources have a negative but statistically significant impact on the adoption of ALM measures. The farm household sources of income-generating strategies substantially affected the adoption intensity of ALM measures. Income generated from the on-farm sector alone cannot be considered a core income-generating activity for households or a means of achieving food security. Therefore, land management policies and program implementations should consider farmers’ livelihood diversification and income-generating strategies. In addition, such interventions need to promote sustainable farming practices, enhance innovation, and related measures for the adoption of ALM measures to ensure land sustainability.
This work presents a review of Mexican Higher Education during the decade of education for sustainable development and how today it faces the commitments made for the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030. By portraying the agreements that support the UN’s Development Program in advising higher education institutions, the SDGs which can be served through universities and their by-products, the success stories of some universities are shown. This case study addresses the theoretical value of quality of life and harmony of the environment, remarking on how different universities in Mexico have approached this matter as a key part of their curricula, policy, and research. Showcasing a special emphasis given to the work carried out by the University of Sonora, specifically for their institutional practices for sustainability and the study of sustainability from the perspective of Environmental Psychology.
We report on the measurement of the response of Rhodamine 6G (R6G) dye to enhanced local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) using a plasmonic-active nanostructured thin gold film (PANTF) sensor. This sensor features an active area of approximately ≈ 2.5 × 1013 nm2 and is immobilized with gold nanourchins (GNU) on a thin gold film substrate (TGFS). The hexane-functionalized TGFS was immobilized with a 90 nm diameter GNU via the strong sulfhydryl group (SH) thiol bond and excited by a 637 nm Raman probe. To collect both Raman and SERS spectra, 10 μL of R6G was used at concentrations of 1 μM (6 × 1012 molecules) and 10 mM (600 × 1014 molecules), respectively. FT-NIR showed a higher reflectivity of PANTF than TGFS. SERS was performed three times at three different laser powers for TGFS and PANTF with R6G. Two PANTF substrates were prepared at different GNU incubation times of 10 and 60 min for the purpose of comparison. The code for processing the data was written in Python. The data was filtered using the filtfilt filter from scipy.signals, and baseline corrected using the Improved Asymmetric Least Squares (ISALS) function from the pybaselines.Whittaker library. The results were then normalized using the minmax_scale function from sklearn.preprocessing. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to capture the topography of the substrates. Signals exhibited a stochastic fluctuation in intensity and shape. An average corresponding enhancement factor (EF) of 0.3 × 105 and 0.14 × 105 was determinedforPANTFincubated at 10 and 60 min, respectively.
Community policing has emerged as a vital instrument for combatting crime and enhancing public safety in South Africa. As a result, it has the capacity to go beyond traditional law enforcement functions as a mediator in disputes, fostering improved relationships between the police and the communities where they work. This paper analyses the implementation of community policing strategies by the South African police with the purpose of resolving conflicts. This study aims to address social crime prevention-related concerns through community policing methods in the Galeshewe police area within the Francis Baard policing regions of the Sol Plaatje Municipality, South Africa. The paper examines the tactics that community police employ to enforce the law, avoid social issues, and manage conflict resolution in the communities. A qualitative method and descriptive design were employed. Comprehensive document analysis, semi-structured interviews, and observations were employed as data collection strategies. An inductive reasoning model was used to analysis data. The findings of the study demonstrated that community policing plays an important role in optimizing problem mapping and it increases public knowledge of the importance of upholding security and order in the different police operations that support the community policing program.
This paper aims to develop a holistic framework for the Maqasid al-Shariah in Responsible Investment (MSRI) index for selected publicly listed companies in the Malaysian capital market. To test the validity of the MSRI framework, a sample of 30 publicly listed companies from 2021 was selected using purposive sampling. The framework consists of eight themes with forty-five elements to evaluate companies based on their annual reports, sustainability reports, and public disclosures. The scores are classified into three categories: Shariah compliant, Shariah non-compliant, and Hajiyyat. Out of the 30 selected companies, the summary of MSRI scores concludes that twenty (20) companies were identified as Shariah compliant, while the remaining four (4) were classified as Shariah non-compliant, and six (6) as Hajiyyat. Overall, the results of the analyses show that the sustainability of the company and society has a higher percentage than the wealth preservation of companies. This research differs substantially from prior work by offering a novel approach that develops a holistic framework integrating Maqasid al-Shariah with elements of responsible investment. This study believes it can provide valuable guidance for formulating Islamic investment public policy for selected investment portfolios.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, academic research has primarily focused on the challenges posed by flexible working arrangements. However, there has been a lack of exploration into managers’ intentions to either promote or reject remote work. This paper utilizes a TAM analysis to examine managers’ attitudes and motivations towards implementing telework in a sample of European companies. Our findings reveal that this intention is largely influenced by their perception of its usefulness. Additionally, telework is more likely to be accepted when managerial teams believe that those who hold significance to them also support the implementation of flexible work practices in their companies. Our research contributes to the existing literature by considering the impact of job performance, quality of output, and digital skills on telework adoption. The results confirm that skills related to communication and team building are crucial competencies for successfully implementing telework. The ability of leaders to effectively build, motivate, recognize, and hold accountable teams in virtual environments can make all the difference.
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