Changing Food Consumption Patterns and Land Requirements for Food in the Six Geopolitical Zones in Nigeria

Research on food consumption in Nigeria has mainly focused on food intake, household diversity, and purchasing power. We investigated a knowledge gap for food consumed by households and the land requirements for food resulting from household consumption patterns. The food consumed and the household size determine the land requirement for food. Therefore, a quantity-based analysis and a land demand methodology were applied to derive household food quantity and land requirements for food respectively. The results show that a greater percentage of household income is spent on cereals and starchy roots as the main source of calories and that cowpea is a secondary food option for households. In addition, households are changing their dietary intake from rice to maize and rice to cassava and yams as a cheaper alternative and experts’ measurements of food security at the household level indicates that households in our study are moderately food insecure. Other findings showthat the country’s specific and per capita land requirements for food have gradually increased between 2000 and 2018. Across the six geopolitical zones, Northern regions with higher populations have high land requirements for food, especially for rice and maize (cereals), while Southern regions have high land requirements for cassava and yams (starchy roots) due to their respective consumption and household sizes. In addition, from our study, the land requirements for food show the actual cropland area of South South fed 5000 households. Consequently, a scenario analysis shows that the land requirements for food in our study exceeds the entire geographical area of Nigeria. Therefore, continued population growth without improved living standards and adequate food production output per hectare will further exacerbate food insecurity and land shortage in Nigeria.

Landscape Sub(Vert.)Urbanity: a model for integrating gardens, as an architectural device, into higher density housing to encourage New Zealanders to live in the inner city

<p>New Zealanders continue to resist higher density housing as a way of living. The detached house in the suburbs remains the preferred housing choice for most. This proposal addresses the key attributes required for higher density living adoption as identified by the Centre for Housing Research, Aotearoa New Zealand (2011). Furthermore, this central Wellington proposal includes additional design features that increase the desirability of this type of housing to the suburban market. Combined, these and other drivers create a new typology of higher density housing in which vertical and other garden types bring a verdant living option to inner city Wellington. Key considerations include creating high levels of amenity: gardens, solar access and privacy to produce a vertical neighbourhood that balances collective and private amenity. The proposal provides three housing typologies (maisonettes, terraces, park houses) to accommodate household diversity to target various stages of the family cycle. This inner city proposal also demonstrates how public amenity access can be used to offset the (perceived) loss of amenity when moving from the suburbs. By drawing from the public amenity-rich city, the need for private amenities is minimised. Furthermore, just as the surrounding city contributes amenity to these dwellings, this proposal illustrates that this kind of development can in turn contribute back to the city.</p>

Landscape Sub(Vert.)Urbanity: a model for integrating gardens, as an architectural device, into higher density housing to encourage New Zealanders to live in the inner city

<p>New Zealanders continue to resist higher density housing as a way of living. The detached house in the suburbs remains the preferred housing choice for most. This proposal addresses the key attributes required for higher density living adoption as identified by the Centre for Housing Research, Aotearoa New Zealand (2011). Furthermore, this central Wellington proposal includes additional design features that increase the desirability of this type of housing to the suburban market. Combined, these and other drivers create a new typology of higher density housing in which vertical and other garden types bring a verdant living option to inner city Wellington. Key considerations include creating high levels of amenity: gardens, solar access and privacy to produce a vertical neighbourhood that balances collective and private amenity. The proposal provides three housing typologies (maisonettes, terraces, park houses) to accommodate household diversity to target various stages of the family cycle. This inner city proposal also demonstrates how public amenity access can be used to offset the (perceived) loss of amenity when moving from the suburbs. By drawing from the public amenity-rich city, the need for private amenities is minimised. Furthermore, just as the surrounding city contributes amenity to these dwellings, this proposal illustrates that this kind of development can in turn contribute back to the city.</p>

Household Diversity and the Impacts of COVID-19 on Families in Portugal

Throughout the world, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted family routines, relationships, projects and sociability, threatening the health, income, social cohesion, and well-being of individuals and their families. Lockdown restrictions imposed during the first wave of the pandemic challenged the theories, concepts, and methods used by family sociologists and the intersecting fields of gender and social inequality. By restricting physical interactions to co-resident family members, the household regained a privileged role as a crucial social laboratory for studying the impact of COVID-19 on family life. The difficulties encountered by individuals in maintaining and dealing with close relationships across households and geographical borders, in a context in which relational proximity was discouraged by the public authorities, exposed the linked nature of family and personal relationships beyond the limits of co-residence. The main aim of this article is to investigate the social impacts of the pandemic on different types of households during the first lockdown at an early stage of the pandemic in Portugal. Drawing on an online survey applied to a non-probabilistic sample of 11,508 households between 25 and 29 March 2020, the authors combined quantitative and qualitative methods, including bi-variate inferential statistics, cluster analysis and in-depth case studies. The article distinguishes between different household types: solo, couple with and without children, extended, friendship, lone-parent families, and intermittent arrangements, such as shared custody. A cross-tabulation of the quantitative data with open-ended responses was carried out to provide a refined analysis of the household reconfigurations brought about during lockdown. The analysis showed how pre-existing unequal structural living conditions shaped the pathways leading to household reconfiguration as families sought to cope with restrictions on mobility, social distancing norms, and other lockdown measures. The findings stress that, in dealing with a crisis, multilevel welfare interventions need to be considered if governments are to cater to the differentiated social needs and vulnerabilities faced by individuals and families.

RÓŻNORODNOŚĆ SPOŁECZNO-KULTUROWA SZWECJI W PODRĘCZNIKACH DO NAUKI JĘZYKA SZWEDZKIEGO

The paper discusses specific features of the Swedish sociocultural reality and the way the sociocultural diversity of the country is presented in language textbooks for Swedish language learners. The analysis is longitudinal in nature i.e. it concerns two editions of textbooks published in Sweden between 1996 and 2014. The presentation of Swedish sociocultural diversity is both explicit and implicit in nature, with changes in ethnic diversity, household diversity, and family diversity being the most dynamic ones. However, a number of differences between both textbooks are noticeable: in the older version information is presented mainly in an explicit form while its newer counterpart demonstrates the diversity of Swedish society both explicitly and implicitly.

On-Farm Variation and Household Diversity of Pigeon Pea Landraces in Kachorwa, Nepal

Farmers value the diversity because of diverse environments both in production and consumption. On-farm morphological variation on pigeon peas (2n = 2x= 22 or 4x, 6x?) was studied at Kachorwa, Bara, Nepal to assess the household categories that have maintained diversity. Household diversity Index (HDI) of 10 different farmer categories was estimated based on Shanon-Weaver method. Eighteen quantitative and qualitative (quant-qualitative) traits were used for on-farm variation and HDI studies. On farm ANOVA was generated on eight quantitative traits. Highest diversity (HDI, 0.265) was maintained by farmer of medium wealth category who grows pigeon pea in upland bund. Pigeon pea grown in khet (low land) bund with Pajawa landrace expressed least diversity (HDI, 0.079). Pigeon pea growing in monoculture was more diverse (HDI, 0.224) for 18 traits than in other production environments. Maximum variation was observed in growth habit followed by seed color pattern. The highest grain yield among the Chanki growers was produced by the farmer of medium wealth category growing pigeon pea in upland bund. Significance variation among farmers in quantitative traits indicates the intra varietal diversity in pigeon pea. Diversity varied with respect to wealth category and production environments. Farmer who has maximum diversity on pigeon pea could able to receive the higher grain yield. Result related to where and who maintain the diversity may be useful for development of on-farm conservation strategy. Possibility of developing good varieties exits using Pajawa and Chanki landraces. Nepal Agric. Res. J. Vol. 8, 2007, pp. 23-28DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/narj.v8i0.11567