Developing Age-Friendly Cities: Case Studies From Brussels and Manchester and Implications for Policy and Practice

Developing environments responsive to the aspirations of older people has become a major concern for social and public policy. Policies and programs directed at achieving “age-friendly” communities are considered to require a wide range of interventions, including actions at the level of the social and physical environment. This article compares the age-friendly approaches of two European cities, Brussels and Manchester, with a particular focus on policies and initiatives that promote active aging in an urban context. The article examines, first, the demographic, social, and multicultural contexts of Brussels and Manchester; second, the way in which both cities became members of the World Health Organization Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities; third, similarities and differences in the age-friendly approaches and actions adopted by both cities; and fourth, opportunities and barriers to the implementation of age-friendly policies. The article concludes by discussing the key elements and resources needed to develop age-friendly cities.     

新型城市化背景下的高职教育与广州经济社会联动发展探析

在全球化浪潮席卷和本土化经营并存态势下,面对广州新型城市化发展、智慧城市建设、产业转型升级、产业融合以及新行业、新岗位(群)不断涌现,作为服务广州经济社会发展的高职教育应积极"响应"和强化人才培养、科学研究与社会服务功能,办出特色,促进学院专业建设、教学质量、科研水平、办学效益再上新台阶。本文以广州城市职业学院为例,结合自身的办学特色和优势,围绕高职教育服务广州经济社会发展的运行规律和客观要求,遵循校企社政四方共建平台原则、高职教育与社会服务互促互进原则,进行新型城市化背景下的高职教育与广州经济社会联动发展研究,并提出相关建议。     

客观性与境域性——道德实在论的收敛

道德实在论是应对道德多元主义而兴起的。它为寻求道德的确定性,收敛到道德的客观性,但这面临着事实和价值之间的矛盾。因而,它又收敛到人类都有关于建立美好社会的愿望的共识,但这种观点不仅面临着理想人以及知识和信仰之间跳跃的问题,而且将其设为目标来追求,还会导致专制和道德虚无主义的困境。只有走出理论思辨,采取局部的实践哲学的方法和根本的存在论境域的方法,才能解决自己的困境。     

Appropriating Care and Hijacking Desire: Thought and Praxis in Human Services Under 21st Century Capitalism

In this article, we trace the rise of neoliberalism and its impacts on the historical role of human services within the academy and the community. We ask whether we can re-think and re-envision a 21st century academy rooted in the material actualities of daily living and connected in very real ways to the struggles of those Human Services was designed to serve. Finally, we propose that Human Services could have a significant role to play in developing new modes of value that could lead to new modes of thought and new avenues of praxis.     

Resilience in low-income African American women living and aging with HIV

Women are living with HIV into middle and older age and are likely to face multiple comorbidities and stressors as they age. This study focused on understanding how women who experience multiple forms of oppression and ongoing adversity are still able to adapt and stand strong. Using a theoretical framework of resilience and a feminist research ideology, interviews of eight middle-aged and older African American women living with HIV were analyzed. Despite experiences of HIV-related discrimination, trauma, and violence, these women demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt and maintain support. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Physical exercise,nutrition and hormones: three pillars to fight sarcopenia

Background: Sarcopenia is a pathophysiological condition diffused in elderly people; it represents a social issue due to the longer life expectancy and the growing aging population. It affects negatively quality of life and it represents a risk factor for other pathologies, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. No silver bullet exists to hinder sarcopenia, but it may be counteracted by physical exercise, nutrition, and a proper endocrine milieu. Indeed, we aim to analyze the scientific literature to give to clinician effective advices to counteract sarcopenia.

Main text: Physical exercise, proper nutrition, optimized hormonal homeostasis represent the three pillars to fight sarcopenia. Physical exercise represents the most effective remedy to face sarcopenia, in particular if it is combined with a proper diet and with an adequate endocrine milieu. Consistency in training, adequate daily protein intake and eugonadism seems to be the keys to fight sarcopenia. The combination of these three pillars might act synergistically.

Conclusions: Optimization of these factors may increase their efficiency; however, scientific data may be sometimes confusing so far. Therefore, we aim to give practical advices to clinician to identify and to highlight the most important aspects in each of these three factors that should be addressed.     

Diaspora and Development? London‐based Nigerian Organisations and the Transnational Politics of Socio‐economic Status and Gender

Diaspora organisations are increasingly being lauded as important actors in the development of their communities and countries of origin. Focusing on London‐based Nigerian organisations and their interventions in Nigeria, this article assesses the particular claims that diaspora organisations reach, benefit and ‘empower’ women and ‘the poor’ at ‘home’. It argues that, while many London‐based Nigerian organisations do connect with and support these groups, they often do so in ways that reinforce rather than transform established gender relations and socio‐economic inequalities. If international agencies are to support the progressive potential of the organised diaspora, it will be necessary to acknowledge the alternative and socially mediated ways in which development might be imagined and enacted both in diaspora and at ‘home’.     

From advocacy to service provision: state transformation and the disability rights movement in Taiwan

This research uses the development of the disability rights movement in Taiwan as a case study to analyze the impact of state transformation, in particular marketization of social welfare policy, on the disability rights movement. First, the institutionalization of the disability rights movement enabled it to expand its organizational structure and become involved in shaping policy. Secondly, when disability rights organizations started to undertake state-funded projects, their focus shifted from advocacy to service provision. Thirdly, competition for limited state-funding gave the organizations led by urban-middle class advocates a significant advantage over small, community-based NPOs and gathered significantly greater resources. Finally, this paper suggests that, in a context in which the state did not provide basic social services for its citizens with disabilities, the institutionalization of SMOs turned advocacy groups into service providers. Although the number of disability civic organizations increased, the voices of advocacy groups were weakened.     

追寻遗失的美好--解读《追风筝的人》中的生态意蕴

《追风筝的人》是阿富汗裔美国作家卡勒德·胡赛尼的第一部小说。这部小说一出版便引起世界范围的关注，胡赛尼也因此获得了联合国人道主义奖。小说中不仅有感人至深的故事情节，还蕴含着作者对战争、社会和人性的思考。本文从生态批评的角度出发，揭示小说中所描绘的战争带给自然的破坏、阿富汗社会存在的问题以及由此产生的精神失衡现象，探讨其中的生态意蕴，探寻作者独特的生态伦理思想。     

HPV vaccine acceptance among a sample of Southern men who have sex with men: A comparison of younger and older men

Objectives: Do short, online educational messages about the human papillomavirus (HPV) influence younger and older men who have sex with men (MSM) differently? Second, what are the HPV knowledge levels and risk perceptions of Southern MSM living outside of major metropolitan areas? Methods: This study draws on participants who completed an anonymous online survey asking about their knowledge, risk assessment, and vaccine acceptance regarding HPV. Results: Knowledge about HPV was low among the MSM in this study. After reading a one-page information intervention, vaccine acceptability increased by a statistically significant amount among both a Younger and Older cohort but risk perception only increased among the younger respondents. Single men regardless of age cohort reported sharper increases in perceived risk after the intervention, but relationship status did not produce significant differences in vaccine acceptability. Conclusion: Online, brief interventions may be effective means of increasing motivation to vaccinate among Southern MSM.