Suchergebnisse

Children with disabilities and their families often experience life circumstances that lead to reduced quality of life in low- and middle-income countries. This article describes the development of a curriculum to train community volunteers to provide support to families of children with disabilities in Lusaka, Zambia, using feedback from an advisory board of local stakeholders. Stakeholders had two opportunities to offer input on the curriculum. Reviewer comments focused on three themes – making the manual more Zambian, needing additional content, and simplifying the message. Recommendations were incorporated into the manual – allowing for culturally appropriate alignment with Zambian needs and customs.

AbstractBackgroundPublic stigma, or negative community‐held beliefs, about children with disabilities (CWDs) often leads to negative outcomes for CWD and their families. This study considers the effectiveness of four community‐level interventions to reduce public stigma in two Lusaka, Zambia communities.MethodsThis feasibility study describes four community‐based interventions to provide education to consider whether perceptions of attitudes and stigma towards CWD changed after implementing four educational interventions.ResultsResults revealed that these interventions were achievable. Preliminary multiple regression analyses indicated a significant impact of attending an event on the attitude scale, while no effect on the stigma scale. Presence at multiple anti‐stigma events exhibited no effect for the stigma scale, while the attitude scale showed significance.DiscussionThis study builds on the limited research available in low‐income countries to reduce public stigma towards CWD, with the hope of enhance quality of life for CWD and their families.

United Nations (UN) calls on all countries to limit land consumption to an appropriate level. More specifically, the UN asks all countries "By 2030, to enhance [.] sustainable urbanization [.] and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries", cf. SDG 11.3 To reach this target, it is suggested to use "Ratio of land consumption rate to population growth rate" as an indicator (indicator 11.3.1). Some countries have already implemented strategies or other measures to control land consumption – some have even had it for a long time – while others are considering how to approach the challenge. There are basically two different approaches that can be used: a country can determine quantitative provisions, e.g. land take shall be reduced to "less than 30 ha per day"; or more qualitatively oriented political strategies on the reduction of land consumption can be implemented. Most countries that have already implemented measures to control land consumption appear to have chosen quantitative and technical provisions (e.g. set a target "under 30 ha / d"), while only a few countries have chosen an approach with qualitatively oriented political strategies. The Danish Government has chosen a qualitative approach – starting many years ago. There are definite advantages and disadvantages of both approaches, but the Danish one has turned out to be quite effective. The article will present and analyze Denmark's approach to act as inspiration for countries focussing on SDG 11.3 and indicator 11.3.1.