Factors Associated with Levels of Organophosphate Pesticides in Household Dust in Agricultural Communities

Organophosphate (OP) pesticides are associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. Pesticide use data are available for California from the Pesticide Use Report (PUR), but household- and individual-level exposure factors have not been fully characterized to support its refinement as an exposure assessment tool. Unique exposure pathways, such as proximity to agricultural operations and direct occupational contact, further complicate pesticide exposure assessment among agricultural communities. We sought to identify influencing factors of pesticide exposure to support future exposure assessment and epidemiological studies. Household dust samples were collected from 28 homes in four California agricultural communities during January and June 2019 and were analyzed for the presence of OPs. Factors influencing household OPs were identified by a data-driven model via best subsets regression. Key factors that impacted dust OP levels included household cooling strategies, secondary occupational exposure to pesticides, and geographic location by community. Although PUR data demonstrate seasonal trends in pesticide application, this study did not identify season as an important factor, suggesting OP persistence in the home. These results will help refine pesticide exposure assessment for future studies and highlight important gaps in the literature, such as our understanding of pesticide degradation in an indoor environment.

The Future of Rurality: Place Attachment among Young Inhabitants of Two Rural Communities of Mediterranean Central Chile

Rural livelihoods are under threat, not only from climate change and soil erosion but also because young people in rural areas are increasingly moving to urbanized areas, seeking employment and education opportunities. In the Valparaiso region of Chile, megadrought, soil degradation, and industrialization are driving young people to leave agricultural and livestock activities. In this study, our main objective was to identify the factors influencing young people living in two rural agricultural communities (Valle Hermoso and La Vega). We conducted 90 online surveys of young people aged 13–24 to evaluate their interest in living in the countryside (ILC). We assessed the effect of community satisfaction, connectedness to nature, and social valuation of rural livelihoods on the ILC. The results show that young people were more likely to stay living in the countryside when they felt satisfied and safe in their community, felt a connection with nature, and were surrounded by people who enjoyed the countryside. These results highlight the relevance of promoting place attachment and the feeling of belonging within the rural community. Chilean rural management and local policies need to focus on rural youth and highlight the opportunities that the countryside provides for them.

Enhancement of climate-resilient livelihoods in coastal agricultural communities with an emphasis on women

Climate change is causing widespread concerns along the coast, reducing agricultural productivity and destroying livelihoods. A study was conducted in two cyclone-prone districts of Bangladesh, Khulna and Satkhira, with a focus on women, to improve the climate-resilient livelihoods of coastal communities. Participatory rural appraisal techniques were used to collect community perceptions of climate change and variability, as well as adaptation options. A total of 699 participants were involved, where 466 respondents were in the treatment group mostly vulnerable to climate change, and 233 were in the control group similarly matched to the treatment groups. Female respondents were adequately involved in this research and accounted for 63% of the treatment and 60% of the control areas. Climate change was impulsive, according to the findings, and variability has increased over time with no optimistic outlook. The women had an idea about climate change, with 62.7% in the treatment group and 58% in the control group being aware of it. About 55.3% in treatment and 45% in control were willing to take preventative measures against climate change. Natural disasters and difficulty in selling their products impacted agricultural harvests, and as a result, both the treatment and control groups attempted to adapt to the alternative livelihoods in response to climate change. Respondents cited changes in rainfall patterns, cyclones, saline water intrusion, and other factors as causing lower yields and crop damage. To improve the adaptive capacities of their climate-resilient livelihoods, communities adapted to the changing environment by accepting high-yielding salt-tolerant varieties, introducing new technologies, and modifying livelihood options.

Plasmodiophora brassicae in Mexico, from anecdote to fact

For years, the presence of clubroot disease and its causal agent, Plasmodiophora brassicae, in Mexico has been given by granted. However, after a long search in the scientific literature in English and Spanish, as well as grey literature including thesis and government reports, we were not able to find any information regarding the actual detection of the pathogen, hosts affected, areas with the disease, or any real information about clubroot ('hernia de la col', in Mexico). To confirm if P. brassicae was indeed in Mexico, we started a true detective adventure. First, we identified agricultural communities in south-east Mexico known to grow cruciferous crops. Second, we asked to the growers if they have ever seen clubroot symptoms, showing them during the inquires pictures of the characteristic galls that might have been present in their crops. Third, we collected soil from two of the communities with positive response and grew an array of cruciferous in the soil as baits to 'fish' the clubroot pathogen. We detected the presence of galls in the roots of 32 plants and observed the presence of resting spores. Through a P. brassicae specific PCR assay, we were able to confirm the presence of the clubroot pathogen in the samples and in Mexico for the very first time. This study is the first report and identification of P. brassicae in Mexico, opening the doors to understand the genetic diversity of this elusive and devastating plant pathogen.

Willows in the farming landscape: a forgotten eco-cultural icon

Recent studies have revealed a largely forgotten rural landscape in which Salix (willow) species were a characteristic, iconic, and utilitarian feature. In former wetlands, now largely removed by massive drainage schemes since the 1600s various willow species were distinctive features of the landscape and of major value to agricultural communities that inhabited those places. From lowlands to uplands across the British countryside willows dominated much wetter and more extensive landscapes. Remnant upland willow woods (now present as ‘shadow woods’) exist as isolated remnants in small wet habitats in an often desiccated landscape fragmented and drained. In the lowlands, especially former fenland areas, willows were present in extensive wet (carr) woodlands and in cultivated beds of withies or osier holts, and as coppices and pollards on boundaries and in field edges across the countryside. The economic driver of withy beds survived in the main English fenlands until the mid-twentieth century. Today these once extensive and important landscapes are mostly forgotten and derelict; and furthermore, the eco-cultural resource of the willows is currently under threat with unrecorded veteran trees being actively removed by farmers. This paper introduces the significance of the willow landscapes, the history of the eco-cultural resource, and the implications of neglect for future conservation.

The Economic History of South Africa before 1948

Starting from the time settled agricultural communities first emerged in South Africa, around 400, this chapter describes and analyses economic changes from the precolonial era, through the colonial period, into the first half of the twentieth century. It looks at how agriculture developed and how 19th century mineral discoveries changed the economy and ushered in the modern state. When accommodative spaces for socially engaged entrepreneurs expanded, so did the drivers of long-term economic change. Unfortunately, accommodations in the context of colonialism and racial oppression produced economically and socially destructive labour policies, drastically undermined the prospects for black commercial farmers, and produced segregated, unjust land allocations. The rise of manufacturing represented a huge challenge to the viability of this system, which created new political challenges and eventually resulted in the establishment of the Apartheid system in 1948.

Development of a Scale to Remove Farmers’ Sustainability Barriers to Meteorological Information in Iran

Even with significant breakthroughs in the production and delivery of meteorological information, most farmers are not able to utilize such information properly and pertinently. Up to the present time, a standardized scale has not been developed to examine farmers’ sustainability barriers to meteorological information use (BMIU). Furthermore, there is no doubt that identifying indicators and dimensions of sustainability barriers to meteorological information and weather forecasts’ usage by farmers can play a major role in their adaptation and resilience to the risks of climate change. Therefore, the present study aimed to generate and validate a scale for BMIU by farmers through an eight-step approach. Accordingly, the statistical population included 9006 Iranian farmers, 368 of whom were selected as study samples. The principal component factor analysis (PCFA) and second-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were further practiced to develop the scale for meteorological information and weather forecasts’ use. Factor analysis also led to the emergence of five latent factors including “educational–communicative barriers (ECBs)”, “normative barriers (NBs)”, “informational barriers (IBs)”, “infrastructural–political barriers (IPBs)”, and “professional–economic barriers (PEBs)”. The second-order CFA correspondingly confirmed these five factors and their 25 related indicators. Given the challenges facing academic scholars, decision makers, and authorities in the application and facilitation of meteorological information, the developed multidimensional scale in this study along with its implementation steps can be effective in examining the limitations of utilizing such information and measuring its impacts in different agricultural communities.

Environment and chronic kidney disease in farmers

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been on the rise worldwide. Epidemiological studies performed primarily in Central America and South Asia have reported high prevalence of CKD among young and middle-aged men working in agricultural communities. The clinical features do not appear linked to any classical CKD risk factors, such as hypertension, diabetes, or chronic nephritis. The disease develops and progresses as interstitial nephritis, without showing noticeable symptoms or high levels of proteinuria. Pathologically, the disease essentially represents chronic interstitial nephritis and is termed chronic interstitial nephritis in agricultural communities (CINAC). The potential causes of CINAC include: (1) heat stress-related factors associated with increased ambient temperatures resulting from global warming; and (2) factors connected with exposure to agrochemicals and/or pesticides. Global warming and environmental pollution will undoubtedly pose a significant health risk to farmers, and heat stress during farm work could easily result in the development and progression of CKD. Japanese agricultural regions evidently will not be spared from global environmental changes. For future epidemiological studies, researchers should establish a more comprehensive analytical method that can incorporate additional risk-factor variables, such as occupational history (including agricultural work) and ambient temperature.

The role of entrepreneurship in reducing poverty in agricultural communities

Purpose Entrepreneurship has increasingly become a subject of interest for scholars and policymakers in an attempt to reduce poverty in agricultural communities across the world, especially in Africa. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of entrepreneurship in reducing poverty in agricultural communities of Lower Gweru, Zimbabwe. Design/methodology/approach Exploratory research design informed the data collection and analysis in this study. In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 owners of agribusinesses from various socio-economic backgrounds. The collected data from the field were analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings The results revealed that entrepreneurship plays a catalytic role in poverty reduction in agricultural communities through food security, skill transfer, employment creation, income generation and a decrease in food costs. Research limitations/implications This study focused on four agricultural communities in Lower Gweru which can limit the generalizability of the results to other contexts. Furthermore, this inquiry is a cross-sectional study that did not capture the longitudinal factors that can affect entrepreneurship and poverty reduction in agricultural communities. Practical implications The research outcomes have some practical implications for the Zimbabwean government and microfinance institutions in designing policies and programs to reduce poverty in marginalized agricultural communities. The findings are also useful for non-governmental organizations in designing, monitoring and evaluating poverty reduction programs in agricultural communities. Originality/value This study advances, contextualizes and enriches the body of knowledge concerning agricultural entrepreneurship and poverty reduction in the under-researched setting of agricultural communities. Notably, this study captures the African flavor in the agricultural entrepreneurship and poverty reduction discourse by focusing on the unique Zimbabwean context.