Examining Preference Heterogeneity in Best-Worst Scaling: Case of Preferences for Job Opportunities in Artisanal Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) Communities in Indonesia.

This research empirically examines the preferences for job-related attributes among rural villagers living close to artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in Indonesia. Based on hypothetical scenarios in which a private company collaborates with the local government to establish a food processing industry in these villages, a questionnaire survey designed with best-worst scaling (BWS) was administered to households to determine their preferences. Additionally, the heterogeneity among the villagers was examined by applying a latent class logit (LCL) model.

Evaluation of the Total Mercury Weight Exposure Distribution Using Tree Bark Analysis in an Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Area, North Gorontalo Regency, Gorontalo Province, Indonesia.

It is well known that atmospheric mercury (Hg) contaminates air, water, soil, and living organisms, including trees. Therefore, tree bark can be used for the environmental assessment of atmospheric contamination because it absorbs heavy metals. This study aimed to establish a new biomonitoring for the assessment of atmospheric Hg pollution.

Effect of measles prevalence and vaccination coverage on other disease burden: evidence of measles immune amnesia in 46 African countries.

Background: Measles is highly infectious that leads to a high disease burden among the vulnerable population, especially in developing countries, despite the availability of highly effective measles vaccine. Immune amnesia, the resetting of the immune systems of infected patients, has been observed in developed countries. This paper is the first to use various African countries to evaluate the extent of immune amnesia.

Aerosol Loading and Radiation Budget Perturbations in Densely Populated and Highly Polluted Indo-Gangetic Plain by COVID-19: Influences on Cloud Properties and Air Temperature.

Aerosols emitted in densely populated and industrialized Indo-Gangetic Plain, one of the most polluted regions in the world, modulate regional climate, monsoon, and Himalayan glacier retreat. Thus, this region is important for understanding aerosol perturbations and their resulting impacts on atmospheric changes during COVID-19 lockdown period, a natural experimental condition created by the pandemic. By analyzing 5 years (2016-2020) data of aerosols and performing a radiative transfer calculation, we found that columnar and near-surface aerosol loadings decreased, leading to reductions in radiative cooling at the surface and top of the atmosphere and atmospheric warming during lockdown period.

Element Rich Area Associated with Human Health Disorders: A Geomedical Science Approach to Potentially Toxic Elements Contamination.

(1) Background: Geomedical science focuses on the relationship between environmental impact and human health. The abundance of elements in a geographic area is reflected accumulation of these elements in humans. This study aims to describe the relationship between concentrations of geologic elements and accumulations in the human body as well as element-related symptoms.

COVID-19 pandemic and sudden rise in crop residue burning in India: issues and prospects for sustainable crop residue management.

The seasonal burning of crop residue significantly affects the environment, leading to poor air quality over Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) in India. Hence, there have been significant efforts to minimize crop residue burning through policy, innovations, and awareness measures. However, an abrupt increase in paddy residue burning was observed over IGP during 2020.

Monthly direct and indirect greenhouse gases emissions from household consumption in the major Japanese cities.

Urban household consumption contributes substantially to global greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions. Urban household emissions encompass both direct and indirect emissions, with the former associated with the direct use of fossil fuels and the latter with the emissions embodied in the consumed goods and services. However, there is a lack of consistent and comprehensive datasets outlining in great detail emissions from urban household consumption.

Interploidy gene flow involving the sexual-asexual cycle facilitates the diversification of gynogenetic triploid Carassius fish.

Asexual vertebrates are rare and at risk of extinction due to their restricted adaptability through the loss of genetic recombination. We explore the mechanisms behind the generation and maintenance of genetic diversity in triploid asexual (gynogenetic) Carassius auratus fish, which is widespread in East Asian fresh waters and exhibits one of the most extensive distribution among asexual vertebrates despite its dependence on host sperm. Our analyses of genetic composition using dozens of genetic markers and genome-wide transcriptome sequencing uncover admixed genetic composition of Japanese asexual triploid Carassius consisting of both the diverged Japanese and Eurasian alleles, suggesting the involvement of Eurasian lineages in its origin.

Community capability building for environmental conservation in Lake Biwa (Japan) through an adaptive and abductive approach.

Unlabelled: In the south basin of Lake Biwa, Shiga, Japan, overgrown aquatic weeds (submerged macrophytes) impede cruising boats and cause unpleasant odors and undesirable waste when washed ashore. To address this socio-ecological problem, Shiga Prefectural Government implemented a public program to remove overgrown weeds and compost them ashore to conserve the lake environment, while coastal inhabitants and occasional volunteers remove weeds from the beaches to maintain the quality of the living environment. However, these effects are limited because of disjointed social networks.

Transdisciplinary Online Health Assessment of an Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar.

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has a known negative effect on the community's health; therefore, assessment to monitor community health is essential to detect any issues and enable early treatment. Because ASGM-related health issues are complex and cannot be addressed effectively with a traditional one-time health assessment alone, both long-term and regular health assessments using a transdisciplinary approach should be considered. In response to this need, we designed an online health assessment tool as a reference for a future long-term health assessment system.

Last glacial temperature reconstructions using coupled isotopic analyses of fossil snails and stalagmites from archaeological caves in Okinawa, Japan.

We applied a new geoarchaeological method with two carbonate archives, which are fossil snails from Sakitari Cave and stalagmites from Gyokusen Cave, on Okinawa Island, Japan, to reconstruct surface air temperature changes over the northwestern Pacific since the last glacial period. Oxygen isotope ratios (δO) of modern and fossil freshwater snail shells were determined to infer seasonal temperature variations. The observational and analytical data confirm that δO values of fluid inclusion waters in the stalagmite can be regarded as those of spring waters at the sites where snails lived.

Consumption in the G20 nations causes particulate air pollution resulting in two million premature deaths annually.

Worldwide exposure to ambient PM causes over 4 million premature deaths annually. As most of these deaths are in developing countries, without internationally coordinated efforts this polarized situation will continue. As yet, however, no studies have quantified nation-to-nation consumer responsibility for global mortality due to both primary and secondary PM particles.

Detection of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Activities and Their Transformation Using Earth Observation, Nighttime Light, and Precipitation Data.

The rapid growth of artificially constructed mining camps has negatively impacted the camps' surrounding environment and the informal communities that have developed inside the camps. However, artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is generally informal, illegal, and unregulated; thus, transformations of the mining activities and potential social-environmental problems resulting from these changes are not revealed. This study assesses the transformation of mining activities in camp-type ASGM sectors in Gorontalo, Indonesia, during 2014-2020 using remotely sensed data, such as Landsat series, nighttime light, and precipitation data obtained through Google Earth Engine.

Harnessing landfill gas (LFG) for electricity: A strategy to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Jakarta (Indonesia).

Due to its increasing demands for fossil fuels, Indonesia needs an alternative energy to diversify its energy supply. Landfill gas (LFG), which key component is methane (CH), has become one of the most attractive options to sustain its continued economic development. This exploratory study seeks to demonstrate the added value of landfilled municipal solid waste (MSW) in generating sustainable energy, resulting from CH emissions in the Bantargebang landfill (Jakarta).

Traditional knowledge of medicinal plants on Gau Island, Fiji: differences between sixteen villages with unique characteristics of cultural value.

Background: Traditional resource management (TRM) systems develop depending on local conditions, such as climate, culture, and environment. Most studies have focused on the TRM system itself, excluding the people who manage the system, and the relationship between the system and the people. The use of resources and people is intimately linked through the practice of TRM systems on Gau Island and this relationship needs to be understood to advance sustainable resource use.

Diagnosing underdetermination in stable isotope mixing models.

Stable isotope mixing models (SIMMs) provide a powerful methodology for quantifying relative contributions of several sources to a mixture. They are widely used in the fields of ecology, geology, and archaeology. Although SIMMs have been rapidly evolved in the Bayesian framework, the underdetermination of mixing space remains problematic, i.

The impact of COVID-19 on alternative and local food systems and the potential for the sustainability transition: Insights from 13 countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major stress test for the agri-food system. While most research has analysed the impact of the pandemic on mainstream food systems, this article examines how alternative and local food systems (ALFS) in 13 countries responded in the first months of the crisis. Using primary and secondary data and combining the Multi-Level Perspective with social innovation approaches, we highlight the innovations and adaptations that emerged in ALFS, and how these changes have created or supported the sustainability transition in production and consumption systems.

Time-Series Assessment of Camp-Type Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Sectors with Large Influxes of Miners Using LANDSAT Imagery.

Mining sites development have had a significant impact on local socioeconomic conditions, the environment, and sustainability. However, the transformation of camp-type artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sites with large influxes of miners from different regions has not been properly evaluated, owing to the closed nature of the ASGM sector. Here, we use remote sensing imagery and field investigations to assess ASGM sites with large influxes of miners living in mining camps in Bone Bolango Regency, Gorontalo Province, Indonesia, in 1995-2020.

Radiocarbon signature reveals that most springtails depend on carbon from living plants.

Terrestrial carbon cycling is largely mediated by soil food webs. Identifying the carbon source for soil animals has been desired to distinguish their roles in carbon cycling, but it is challenging for small invertebrates at low trophic levels because of methodological limitations. Here, we combined radiocarbon (C) analysis with stable isotope analyses (C and N) to understand feeding habits of soil microarthropods, especially focusing on springtail (Collembola).

Association between physical activity and activity space in different farming seasons among rural Lao PDR residents.

Background: Southeast Asia is experiencing a health transition, where non-communicable diseases (NCD) are exceeding communicable diseases. Despite NCDs accounting for roughly 60-85% of deaths in the region, many developing Southeast Asian countries are beginning to address the impacts of a physically inactive lifestyle for the first time. Our study aims to bridge this gap by objectively measuring physical activity in rural Lao PDR to reveal the association among physical activity, activity space, and seasonal variation.

The forest frontier in the Global South: Climate change policies and the promise of development and equity.

Halting forest loss and achieving sustainable development in an equitable manner require state, non-state actors, and entire societies in the Global North and South to tackle deeply established patterns of inequality and power relations embedded in forest frontiers. Forest and climate governance in the Global South can provide an avenue for the transformational change needed-yet, does it? We analyse the politics and power in four cases of mitigation, adaptation, and development arenas. We use a political economy lens to explore the transformations taking place when climate policy meets specific forest frontiers in the Global South, where international, national and local institutions, interests, ideas, and information are at play.

The risk reduction effect of sediment production rate by understory coverage rate in granite area mountain forest.

Ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR) is an important concept to the adaption of climate change for a sustainable life. In Japan, it is anticipated that damages caused by sediment production will be increased as the intensity and amount of rainfall are increased by climate change. Thus, we need to know the Eco-DRR effect of the forest for planning sustainable land use by evidence-based data.