scholarly journals The influence of COVID-19 on air quality in Brasov

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-57
Author(s):  
Larisa Blaga ◽  
Dan Savescu
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Biological Productivity ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Measurement Systems ◽  
Efficient Management ◽  
The City

Population health and air quality represents the objective of nowadays. Environmental pollution represents its deterioration and involves altering the chemical and structural characteristics of the natural and anthropogenic components of the environment, diminishing the diversity or biological productivity of natural ecosystems, affecting the natural environment with effects on quality of life, mainly caused by pollution. Environmental monitoring becomes a systematic and methodical concern, achieved through various measurement systems, in order to ensure the efficient management of all social activities. The Covid-19 pandemic has left its mark on air quality, reducing the amount of harmful compounds. Consequences of "lockdown" caused by the COVID-19 have been studied in the city Brasov, from Romania country, where the amount of suspended particles of 10 microns, respectively 25 microns.

The Quality of the Living Environment versus Natural Factors – the Case Study of Olsztyn

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monika Wasilewicz-Pszczółkowska ◽  
Agnieszka Szczepanska
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
The Social ◽  
Bodies Of Water ◽  
The City ◽  
Mental And Physical Health

Current social requirements concerning the living environment tend to be more and more related to the natural values of the urban space. People are aware of the fact that contact with nature is extremely important for of mental and physical health. Therefore, the quality of the natural environment around the place of living influences the quality of life. The studies confirm that the presence of natural elements in the urban space may expressly affect the improvement of this quality. An example of a city with high quality of life is represented by Olsztyn, the capital of the Warmian- Masurian Province, located within the borders of the functional area of the Green Lungs of Poland, which is characterized by the particularly valuable quality of its natural environment. This is confirmed by the results of the social Diagnosis dated 2015, which put Olsztyn in 4th place among the largest Polish cities in the ranking concerning the quality of life. It is also influenced by the quality of the natural environment, which in the case of Olsztyn is manifested in a large number of green areas and standing bodies of water located within the administrative borders of the city. The aim of this paper is to compare the quality of the living environment of individual boroughs of Olsztyn conditioned by the natural elements (greenery, bodies of water, air, noise) in relation to the received public opinion polling results.

Moving to paradise for the children’s sake

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mari Korpela
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Moral Panic ◽  
Careful Attention ◽  
Lifestyle Choice ◽  
Transnational Mobility ◽  
Children’S Views

Increasing numbers of “Western” families spend several months a year in Goa, India, and the rest of the time in the parents’ passport countries or elsewhere. These “lifestyle migrants” are motivated by a search for “a better quality of life”, and the parents often claim that an important reason for their lifestyle choice is that it is better for the children to be in Goa, where they have enriching experiences and enjoy playing freely outdoors, in a natural environment. This article discusses parents’ and children’s views of this lifestyle. It argues that although the lifestyle sometimes causes moral panic among outsider adults who see regular transnational mobility as a sign of instability, a closer look reveals that there are various aspects of stability in the children’s lives. Paying careful attention to the parents’ and children’s own accounts, and the empirical realities of their lives, enables us to reach beyond normative judgements.

Empresas familiares en zonas marginales. Estrategias de subsistencia y financiación pública en la localidad de ciudad bolívar de Bogotá

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Jenny Paola Cervera Quintero
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Family Business ◽  
City Government ◽  
The Real ◽  
Calidad De Vida ◽  
Institutional Action ◽  
The City

Esta investigación muestra las características y estrategias socioeconómicas identificadas en un grupo de famiempresas de confección en Ciudad Bolívar, localidad de Bogotá, con las cuales logran la permanencia de sus negocios y así la reproducción de la vida y la subsistencia de sus familias. Este primer elemento se contrasta con las políticas de consecución de ingresos desarrolladas por los gobiernos distritales en el período 2000-2013, con el fin de encontrar los elementos comunes y el real aporte con el que las políticas sociales y económicas del Distrito benefician la economía popular de la ciudad, teniendo como referencia el grupo de famiempresas con el que se trabajó. Después de obtener un paralelo entre las políticas socioeconómicas del Distrito y las necesidades reales de las famiempresas, se desarrolla un ejercicio práctico aplicando la metodología de Vester como base para la formulación de recomendaciones dirigidas hacia los gobiernos distritales, en las que se manifiestan las prioridades que esta población objetivo espera de la acción institucional para mejorar el desempeño de sus famiempresas y, por ende, el de su consecución de ingresos para mejor su calidad de vida y la de sus familias.ABSTRACTThis research examines the socio-economic characteristics and strategies pertaining to a group of family business in the apparel sector in Ciudad Bolivar (Bogota), which ensures some stability in the business itself and in their families´ livelihood. This first element is contrasted with the policies of resource allocation pursued by Bogota local administrations in the period 2000-2013, in order to identify the real governmental contributions to thelocal economy. Next, a practical exercise is conducted by applying the methodology of Vester as a basis for the formulation of recommendations addressed to the city government; those recommendations depict the priorities that the targeted population expects from the institutional action to improve the performance of their business and to enhance their income to better their quality of life and that of their families. Fecha de recepción: 23 agosto 2016Fecha de aprobación: 15 noviembre de 2016Fecha de publicación: 6 de enero de 2017

scholarly journals Measurements of Local Sources of Particulates with a Portable Monitor along the Coast of an Insular City

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 261
Author(s):  
Christos Petsas ◽  
Marinos Stylianou ◽  
Antonis Zorpas ◽  
Agapios Agapiou
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Significant Contribution ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Portable Monitor ◽  
Traffic Jam ◽  
Modern Cities ◽  
Anthropogenic Processes ◽  
The City ◽  
Coastal Front

The air quality of modern cities is considered an important factor for the quality of life of humans and therefore is being safeguarded by various international organizations, concentrating on the mass concentration of particulate matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter less than 10, 2.5 and 1 μm. However, the different physical and anthropogenic processes and activities within the city contribute to the rise of fine (<1 μm) and coarse (>1 μm) particles, directly impacting human health and the environment. In order to monitor certain natural and anthropogenic events, suspecting their significant contribution to PM concentrations, seven different events taking place on the coastal front of the city of Limassol (Cyprus) were on-site monitored using a portable PM instrument; these included both natural (e.g., dust event) and anthropogenic (e.g., cement factory, meat festival, tall building construction, tire factory, traffic jam, dust road) emissions taking place in spring and summer periods. The violations of the limits that were noticed were attributed mainly to the various anthropogenic activities taking place on-site, revealing once more the need for further research and continuous monitoring of air quality.

scholarly journals Social Perception and Urbanscape Identity of Flagship Cultural Developments in Szczecin (in the Re-Urbanization Context)

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 398
Author(s):  
Eliza Sochacka ◽  
Magdalena Rzeszotarska-Pałka
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Social Perception ◽  
Local Identity ◽  
Functional Complexity ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
Urban Strategy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Cultural Developments

A growing number of urban interventions, such as culture-led regeneration strategies, has emerged alongside growing awareness of the concept of re-urbanization. These interventions evolve to create a holistic urban vision, with aims to promote social cohesion and strengthen local identity as opposed to traditional goals of measuring the economic impact of new cultural developments. Szczecin’s, Poland urban strategy is focused on the expansion of culture—a condition for improving the quality of life and increasing the city’s attractiveness. This article assesses the potential for re-urbanization of Szczecin’s flagship cultural developments. Questionnaire surveys and qualitative research methods were used to assess the characteristics that distinguish cultural projects in the formal, location-related, functional, and symbolic layers, as well as examining their social perception. The results show that the strength of these indicators of urbanscape identity affects how the cultural developments are assessed by the society. Semiotic coherence and functional complexity of the structures have a significant impact on the sense of identification, while their monumentality and exposure contribute to the assessment of the impact on their surroundings. A development with a firm identity, embedded in the city’s tradition not only preserves the cultural heritage of the city but also makes inhabitants feel association with the new project.

scholarly journals Editorial for the Special Issue on “Experiencing the City: The Relation between Urban Design and People’s Well-Being”

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2485
Author(s):  
Minou Weijs-Perrée ◽  
Gamze Dane ◽  
Pauline van den Berg
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
The City

Urbanization brings major challenges with regard to livability and the health and quality of life of citizens [...]

scholarly journals Hyperhidrosis: prevalence and impact on quality of life

2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 292-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica Nishida Hasimoto ◽  
Daniele Cristina Cataneo ◽  
Tarcísio Albertin dos Reis ◽  
Antonio José Maria Cataneo
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Cluster Sampling ◽  
Excessive Sweating ◽  
Medical Evaluation ◽  
Primary Hyperhidrosis ◽  
Systematic Cluster ◽  
The City ◽  
Impaired Quality

ABSTRACT Objective: To determine the prevalence of primary hyperhidrosis in the city of Botucatu, Brazil, and to evaluate how this disorder affects the quality of life in those suffering from it. Methods: A population survey was conducted in order to identify cases of hyperhidrosis among residents in the urban area of the city, selected by systematic cluster sampling. In accordance with the census maps of the city, the sample size should be at least 4,033 participants. Ten interviewers applied a questionnaire that evaluated the presence of excessive sweating and invited the subjects who reported hyperhidrosis to be evaluated by a physician in order to confirm the diagnosis. Results: A total of 4,133 residents, in 1,351 households, were surveyed. Excessive sweating was reported by 85 residents (prevalence = 2.07%), of whom 51 (60%) were female. Of those 85 respondents, 51 (60%) agreed to undergo medical evaluation to confirm the diagnosis and only 23 (45%) were diagnosed with primary hyperhidrosis (prevalence = 0.93%). Of the 23 subjects diagnosed with primary hyperhidrosis, 11 (48%) reported poor or very poor quality of life. Conclusions: Although the prevalence of self-reported excessive sweating was greater than 2%, the actual prevalence of primary hyperhidrosis in our sample was 0.93% and nearly 50% of the respondents with primary hyperhidrosis reported impaired quality of life.

scholarly journals Contribution of Local and Transboundary Air Pollution to the Urban Air Quality of Fukuoka, Japan

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 431
Author(s):  
Ayako Yoshino ◽  
Akinori Takami ◽  
Keiichiro Hara ◽  
Chiharu Nishita-Hara ◽  
Masahiko Hayashi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Gaseous Species ◽  
Transboundary Air Pollution ◽  
Local Air Pollution ◽  
The City

Transboundary air pollution (TAP) and local air pollution (LAP) influence the air quality of urban areas. Fukuoka, located on the west side of Japan and affected by TAP from the Asian continent, is a unique example for understanding the contribution of LAP and TAP. Gaseous species and particulate matter (PM) were measured for approximately three weeks in Fukuoka in the winter of 2018. We classified two distinctive periods, LAP and TAP, based on wind speed. The classification was supported by variations in the concentration of gaseous species and by backward trajectories. Most air pollutants, including NOx and PM, were high in the LAP period and low in the TAP period. However, ozone was the exception. Therefore, our findings suggest that reducing local emissions is necessary. Ozone was higher in the TAP period, and the variation in ozone concentration was relatively small, indicating that ozone was produced outside of the city and transported to Fukuoka. Thus, air pollutants must also be reduced at a regional scale, including in China.

How swachh (clean) is urban India today?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhitush Lutra ◽  
◽  
Deepa Karthykeyan
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Public Utilities ◽  
Wide Spread ◽  
Negative Externalities ◽  
Public Supply ◽  
Urban India ◽  
Sachet Water

Where public supply has failed and made unsatisfactory progress in supplying drinking water, the private sector has readily stepped in to supply citizens with drinking water – most often to make big money. Much of the water bottling industry (i) provides a highly inelastic good, (ii) is immensely profitable and (iii) has significant negative externalities on public utilities, the natural environment and the quality of life in urban settings. The wide-spread introduction of a tax on the commercial water extraction and/or bottled or sachet water is ripe. The new mantra must not be “3Rs”, but “4Rs” – reduce, reuse, remunerate, recycle.

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