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Clean, safe energy for rural areas is an important component of green growth and sustainable development. Biogas could be an important contributor, if its record in reality lives up to its expected potential. This paper provides a preliminary assessment of biogas use by smallholder farmers in rural China, using data collected from 2,700 households in five provinces. The authors find that user satisfaction is high, and environmental and economic benefits appear tangible. There are strong indications of reduced use of wood and crop residues for fuel. Less time is spent on collecting fuel wood and cooking, which is especially beneficial to women. Adopters also save on fertilizers, because of the use of biogas residues. Moreover, problems with suspension of biogas use, whether due to technical or human factors, remained limited. However, few tangible benefits to respiratory health were detected. Overall, these findings are grounds for optimism about the potential for of smallholder biogas to contribute to more sustainable development, in China and beyond.
Biogas --- Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases --- Energy and Environment --- Energy Production and Transportation --- Engineering --- Fuel switching --- Household energy --- Indoor air pollution --- Poverty Reduction --- Renewable Energy --- Renewable energy --- China
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This paper develops a methodology for regional disaggregated estimation and mapping of the areas that are ex-ante the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and variability and applies it to Tajikistan, a mountainous country highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The authors construct the vulnerability index as a function of exposure to climate variability and natural disasters, sensitivity to the impacts of that exposure, and capacity to adapt to ongoing and future climatic changes. This index can inform decisions about adaptation responses that might benefit from an assessment of how and why vulnerability to climate change varies regionally and it may therefore prove a useful tool for policy analysts interested in how to ensure pro-poor adaptation in developing countries. Index results for Tajikistan suggest that vulnerability varies according to socio-economic and institutional development in ways that do not follow directly from exposure or elevation: geography is not destiny. The results indicate that urban areas are by far the least vulnerable, while the eastern Region of Republican Subordination mountain zone is the most vulnerable. Prime agricultural valleys are also relatively more vulnerable, implying that adaptation planners do not necessarily face a trade-off between defending vulnerable areas and defending economically important areas. These results lend support to at least some elements of current adaptation practice.
Adaptation --- Adaptation to Climate Change --- Agriculture --- Climate Change --- Climate Change Economics --- Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases --- Population Policies --- Science of Climate Change --- Vulnerability Assessment --- Central Asia --- Tajikistan
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This paper develops a methodology for regional disaggregated estimation and mapping of the areas that are ex-ante the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and variability and applies it to Tajikistan, a mountainous country highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The authors construct the vulnerability index as a function of exposure to climate variability and natural disasters, sensitivity to the impacts of that exposure, and capacity to adapt to ongoing and future climatic changes. This index can inform decisions about adaptation responses that might benefit from an assessment of how and why vulnerability to climate change varies regionally and it may therefore prove a useful tool for policy analysts interested in how to ensure pro-poor adaptation in developing countries. Index results for Tajikistan suggest that vulnerability varies according to socio-economic and institutional development in ways that do not follow directly from exposure or elevation: geography is not destiny. The results indicate that urban areas are by far the least vulnerable, while the eastern Region of Republican Subordination mountain zone is the most vulnerable. Prime agricultural valleys are also relatively more vulnerable, implying that adaptation planners do not necessarily face a trade-off between defending vulnerable areas and defending economically important areas. These results lend support to at least some elements of current adaptation practice.
Adaptation --- Adaptation to Climate Change --- Agriculture --- Climate Change --- Climate Change Economics --- Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases --- Population Policies --- Science of Climate Change --- Vulnerability Assessment --- Central Asia --- Tajikistan
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Negative attitudes toward groups in society are widespread and underpin systematic processes of social exclusion that marginalize people and deny them opportunities and dignity. This paper looks at the processes underlying social exclusion. It uses data covering Eastern Europe and Central Asia to study the responses to a simple hypothetical survey question about which specific groups respondents would not like to have as neighbors. Unwelcoming attitudes toward groups such as immigrants, ethnic minorities, the poor, HIV+ individuals, and others are surprisingly common. These attitudes fall into three distinct clusters: intolerance for the poor and for different lifecycle stages; intolerance toward stigmatized attributes and behaviors; and intolerance toward specific identity groups. An empirical analysis of the determinants of attitudes shows that country-specific factors are far more important than socio-economic characteristics. These findings could have important implications for theories about exclusion and for the design of appropriate social inclusion policies. The authors argue that strategies to address social exclusion need to consider ways to change social norms, attitudes, and behaviors toward disadvantaged groups. The paper explores potential entry points for change within formal and informal institutions.
Attitudes --- Disability --- Discrimination --- Health Monitoring & Evaluation --- Health, Nutrition and Population --- Inclusion --- Informal Institutions --- Lits --- Marginalization --- Population Policies --- Poverty --- Race in Society --- Social Development --- Social Exclusion --- Social Inclusion & Institutions --- Social Protections and Labor --- Stigma --- Values
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The Development Marketplace 2009 focused on adaptation to climate change. This paper identifies lessons from the Marketplace and assesses their implications for adaptation support. The findings are based on: statistical tabulation of all proposals; in-depth qualitative and quantitative analysis of the 346 semi-finalists; and interviews with finalists and assessors. Proposals were fuelled by deep concerns that ongoing climate change and its impacts undermine development and exacerbate poverty, migration and food insecurity. Proposals addressed both local poverty and climate change challenges, and offered a wide range of approaches to render local development more resilient to current climate variability. Therefore, support to community-based adaptation should: exploit its strong local grounding and synergies with development; help connect local initiatives to higher levels; and use complementary approaches to address policy issues.
Adaptation to Climate Change --- Biodiversity --- Capacity Building --- Civil Society Organizations --- Climate Change --- Climate Change Economics --- Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases --- Climate Risk Management --- Cyclones --- Deforestation --- Desalination --- Desertification --- Developing Countries --- Electricity --- Energy Production --- Environment --- Environmental Disasters & Degradation --- Extreme Weather Events --- Feasibility --- Forests --- Gender Issues --- Glaciers --- Global Environment Facility --- Global Warming --- Greenhouse Gases --- Heat Waves --- Hurricanes --- Indigenous Peoples --- Lakes --- Land Management --- Macroeconomics and Economic Growth --- Migration --- Natural Resources --- Nutrition --- Population Growth --- Precipitation --- Rainfall --- Rainwater Harvesting --- Rural Development --- Social Development --- Storms --- Surface Water --- Temperature --- Tropical Storms --- Vulnerable Groups
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What did the global food, fuel, and financial crises of 2008-11 mean to people living in the developing world? How did people cope with the crisis and how effective were they at averting major impacts? These are the questions addressed by this book, which emerged out of qualitative crisis monitoring initiatives carried out by IDS and the World Bank. As such, this is not a book about the causes of the crisis or how to prevent future crises. Instead, this book is about how people lived through the severe economic turmoil of recent years, how they were affected, and what they did to cope, present
Financial crises -- Social aspects. --- Poor --- Cost and standard of living --- Financial crises --- Global Financial Crisis, 2008-2009 --- Business & Economics --- Economic History --- Social aspects --- Poor. --- Cost and standard of living. --- Social aspects. --- Global Economic Crisis, 2008-2009 --- Subprime Mortgage Crisis, 2008-2009 --- Crashes, Financial --- Crises, Financial --- Financial crashes --- Financial panics --- Panics (Finance) --- Stock exchange crashes --- Stock market panics --- Comfort, Standard of --- Cost of living --- Food, Cost of --- Household expenses --- Living, Cost of --- Living, Standard of --- Standard of living --- Disadvantaged, Economically --- Economically disadvantaged --- Impoverished people --- Low-income people --- Pauperism --- Poor, The --- Poor people --- Economic conditions --- Crises --- Consumption (Economics) --- Home economics --- Households --- Quality of life --- Wealth --- Luxury --- Prices --- Purchasing power --- Wages --- Persons --- Social classes --- Poverty --- Surveys
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Mongolia was hit hard by the global economic recession, notably the fall in commodity prices. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted by 1.6 percent in 2009 after growth of 8.9 percent in 2008. The country is narrowly specialized in production of a few primary goods with minerals comprising 70 percent of total exports. Since mid-2008, the prices of main export goods, including copper, zinc, crude petroleum, combed goat-down and cashmere dropped by close to or more than 50 percent, though prices of coal and gold held strong. Furthermore, construction activity fell sharply in 2009 as both the public and private sectors reduced investments and bank loans became less accessible. The research was conducted in urban and rural areas of Mongolia and involved interviews and focus group discussions with about 500 people total (over the four rounds of data collection) belonging to groups identified as particularly exposed to the impacts of the crisis. The primary impacts of the crisis were observed through: 1) labor market effects (e.g. reduced salaries, increased discrimination in the labor market, intensified competition for jobs and a reduction in profitability of small businesses of the poor), 2) price shocks, and 3) social changes (e.g. increase in crime and alcohol abuse). These impacts were particularly significant for the poor.
Access to Health Services --- Agriculture --- Animal Feed --- Cash Transfers --- Commodity Prices --- Conflict --- Dairy Products --- Disasters --- Discrimination --- Domestic Violence --- Economic Conditions and Volatility --- Economic Opportunities --- Employment Opportunities --- Expenditures --- Food Consumption --- Health Insurance --- Herders --- Household Consumption --- Job Creation --- Labor Market --- Labor Markets --- Livestock --- Livestock & animal Husbandry --- Living Standards --- Macroeconomics and Economic Growth --- Malnutrition --- Meat --- Migrant Workers --- Mobility --- Natural Disasters --- Nutrition --- Poverty Reduction --- Remittances --- Resettlement --- Roads --- Rural Population --- Rural Poverty Reduction --- Savings --- Skilled Workers --- Social Development --- Social Protections and Labor --- Social Safety Nets --- Technical Assistance --- Transport Costs --- Unemployment --- Urban Areas --- Vulnerable Groups
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This paper surveys qualitative crisis monitoring data from sites in 17 developing and transition countries to describe crisis impacts and analyze the responses and sources of support used by people to cope. These crises included shocks to export sectors as a result of the global financial crisis, as well as food and fuel price volatility, in the period from 2008 to early 2011. Respondents reported the crisis had resulted in significant hardships in the form of foregone meals, education, and health care, food insecurity, asset losses, stress, and worsening crime and community cohesion. Although the export-oriented formal sector was most exposed to the global economic downturn, the crises impacts were more damaging for informal sector workers, and some of the adverse impacts will be long-lasting and possibly irreversible. There were important gender and age differences in the distribution of impacts and coping responses, some of which diverged from what has been seen in previous crisis coping responses. The more common sources of assistance were family, friends, and community-based and religious organizations; formal social protection and finance were not widely cited as sources of support in most study countries. However, as the crisis deepened, the traditional informal safety nets of the poor became depleted because of the large and long-lasting shocks that ensued, pointing to the need for better formal social protection systems for coping with future shocks.
Agriculture --- Coping --- Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Financial crisis --- Food crisis --- Qualitative research --- Social Development --- Vulnerability
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