Search Results (93)

Carposina sasakii Matsumura is a significant lepidopteran pest in the Carposinidae family, inflicting substantial damage on stone and pome fruit trees such as jujube, peach, and apple. Using MaxEnt, we assessed the worldwide climatic suitability for C. sasakii and its key environmental drivers, evaluating how climate change impacts dispersal risks. Integrating global occurrence records with 37 environmental variables, the model (AUC = 0.982) quantitatively identifies July precipitation (prec7), minimum average temperatures in April and August (tmin4 and tmin8, respectively), and maximum average temperature in May (tmax5) as critical distribution determinants. Among these, prec7 exhibits the highest contribution (threshold approximately 370 mm). The current suitable habitat spans 10.39 × 10² km², concentrated predominantly in East Asia’s temperate monsoon zone (eastern China, the Korean Peninsula, and Japan) and southern North America. Under future climate scenarios, the high-emission pathway (SSP585) will reduce highly suitable areas, while moderately suitable zones expand coastward. In contrast, SSP370 projects a significant, albeit phased, habitat increase with a 19.61% growth rate. Precipitation regimes and extreme temperatures jointly regulate niche differentiation in C. sasakii, whose range shifts toward Southeast Asia and suboptimal regions in Europe and America, underscoring cascading climate change effects. These findings provide a scientific basis for transnational monitoring, early warning systems, and regional ecological governance. Full article

Inclusive education is at the forefront of transnational policy agendas. Yet, normative, deficit-oriented disability discourses and institutional gaps continue to shape how inclusion is enacted in schools, often displacing extensive and unacknowledged labour onto families, especially mothers. Drawing on feminist theories of invisible work, this article critically examines the everyday labour performed by mothers of disabled children as they navigate inclusive education systems in Alberta, Canada. Situated within a broader collective case study, this analysis asks: What forms of invisible work do mothers undertake in pursuit of inclusion within education systems labelled as inclusive? Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine mothers of disabled children. Reflexive thematic analysis illuminated four intersecting dimensions of invisible work: (1) working within the system, (2) working to fit the system, (3) crafting system workarounds, and (4) working above and beyond the system. These forms of work reveal how inclusive education systems rely on mothers to bridge the gap between policy rhetoric and lived experiences. Findings illuminate how mothers’ invisible work simultaneously sustains, negotiates, and resists systemic ableism, highlighting the need to recognize and redistribute this work and reimagine inclusion as a shared structural responsibility rather than an individual, maternal pursuit. Full article

This essay examines how contemporary Anglophone Chinese women writers rewrite the imagery of Chinese snake women through speculative retellings that foreground sisterhood, queer desire, and diasporic identity. Drawing on queer diaspora studies and feminist criticism, I argue that Larissa Lai’s Salt Fish Girl (2002) and Amanda Lee Koe’s Sister Snake (2024) revise the figure of the Chinese snake woman to imagine forms of female intimacy and kinship that transcend heteronormative and patriarchal frameworks. In these works, sisterhood operates both as a familial bond and as an intimate, queer relation charged with affective, physical, and occasionally erotic intensity. The original White Snake legend—one of China’s Four Great Folktales—has long invited queer readings, especially through the complex relationship between White Snake and her companion Green Snake. In dialogue with the Chinese snake myth, Lai and Koe relocate the snake woman into speculative worlds shaped by queer desire, racial marginalization, and transnational migration. In Salt Fish Girl, Lai reimagines the reincarnations of the half-snake Chinese mother goddess Nu Wa across colonial South China and near-future bio-capitalist Canada, portraying a cross-temporal lesbian love between the protagonist and the titular Salt Fish Girl. In Sister Snake, Koe’s protagonists—serpent sisters Su and Emerald, separated between Singapore and New York—disrupt normative family scripts while forging a fragmented but enduring affective bond. Through the motif of the Chinese snake woman, these works construct imaginative spaces in which intimate sisterhood subverts patriarchal and national containment, advancing a queer vision of female togetherness. Full article

This integrative review on patterns of elder caregiving in Nigeria synthesizes evolving dynamics and determinants of caregiving practices amid demographic and household change. The objective of this review was to identify prevalent patterns of elder caregiving, explore the roles and responsibilities of caregivers, and examine the challenges and support needs within the Nigerian context. Academic Search Complete, CINAHL, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Medline were searched in November 2024. Inclusion criteria were peer-reviewed journal articles published in English focusing on elder caregiving among Nigerians; non-peer-reviewed sources (e.g., dissertations, conference papers, and books) were excluded. Data extraction was performed using a structured matrix, and findings were synthesized thematically. Risk of bias was appraised using SANRA (for narrative reviews) and MMAT (for empirical studies). Twenty studies published between 1991 and December 2022 were included. Analyses were guided by an intersectional conceptual framework spanning five domains: cultural, familial, economic, psychosocial, and policy. The interconnected dimensions illustrate how cultural expectations shape family caregiving roles, which in turn influence economic strain, emotional well-being, and access to institutional support. By emphasizing the interaction among gender, class, and social location within these domains, the framework demonstrates how caregiving operates as a multidimensional and relational process. Thematic synthesis identified six overarching themes: cultural influences, gender differences, family dynamics, economic factors, challenges faced by Nigerian caregivers, and government policies and support. Limitations include reliance on single-reviewer screening and extraction, exclusion of unpublished and non-peer-reviewed sources, restriction to English-language studies, and a focus on the Nigerian context, which may limit generalizability. Findings underscore that elder caregiving in Nigeria is multifaceted and shaped by intersecting gendered, cultural, and economic forces. Policy and practice should prioritize caregiver supports, accessible geriatric services, and gender-sensitive interventions, while future research applies the framework to address gaps in transnational and multilingual evidence. Full article

Background/Objectives: Conversations about end-of-life care or advance care planning are often difficult and emotionally challenging to initiate. Tailoring messages to the specific audiences can make these sensitive discussions more manageable and effective. The Evidence-based Model for the Transfer and Exchange of Research Knowledge (EMTReK), compromising six core components (message, stakeholders, processes, context, facilitation, and evaluation) offers a structured framework for research dissemination and knowledge transfer in palliative and long-term care settings. Knowledge translation bridges research and practice, with its effectiveness depending on stakeholder engagement, tailored communication, and systematic application of evidence in policy and practice. This study explores stakeholder perspectives on a dementia care intervention, using EMTReK as an analytical framework to examine how knowledge transfer and exchange (KTE) actions were implemented across long-term care settings. Methods: A qualitative analysis was conducted on primary data comprising case narratives from multinational research groups involved in the “Caregiver Decision Support” (mySupport) study (2019–2023). Teams from Canada, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom evaluated the mySupport intervention through interviews, with analysis guided by components of the EMTReK model. Results: Facilitated Family Care Conferences were found to be effective mechanisms for supporting knowledge transfer and intervention uptake in dementia care across nursing homes in Europe and Canada. Despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Family Care Conferences adapted through stakeholder engagement, interactive learning, and innovative communication methods. Using EMTReK as an analytical framework, the research team identified key elements that contributed to successful implementation, including the importance of flexibility to accommodate local contexts. Conclusions: The transnational application of the EMTReK model for advance care planning in long-term dementia care highlights the importance of tailored, culturally relevant knowledge translation strategies, which, despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, were successfully implemented through local adaptations and diverse dissemination methods, emphasising the need for further research on their impact on resident and family outcomes. Full article

Evangelical churches increasingly engage in transnational partnerships that shape spiritual identity and moral belonging across borders. This study investigates how such partnerships function not simply as organizational strategies but as lived spatial practices grounded in faith. Drawing on Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of interviews with Canadian and Mexican participants in a long-term church-planting relationship, the article explores how theological commitments, emotional ties, and embodied rituals generate spatial meaning. Participants framed their engagement not through institutional goals, but through metaphors of family, covenant, and companionship, suggesting a grassroots geopolitics rooted in care, hospitality, and spiritual presence. The findings reveal that space is produced not only through ideology or policy, but through practices like shared meals, cross-cultural mentorship, and prayerful presence—acts that reconfigure belonging along theological and affective lines. The article introduces the concept of religeopolitics to describe this phenomenon, arguing that evangelical actors are not merely influenced by global geopolitics but actively create alternative spatial imaginaries through faith. Foregrounding religious subjectivity in spatial production, this article advances scholarship on lived religion and critical geopolitics, highlighting how spiritual communities shape geopolitical belonging through theological imagination, relational duration, and embodied moral practice. Full article

In critical adoption scholarship, significant attention has been devoted to the searching and returning transnational adoptee, while those who opt not to search altogether remain largely overlooked. This article addresses this gap by examining the experiences of transnational adoptees who, despite being raised in the 1990s and 2000s amid increasing openness about origins and adoption, choose not to search. Drawing on two anthropological studies with Bolivian adoptees in Belgium and Nepali adoptees in Spain, the article explores how agency and choice are shaped in relation to the decision not to search. It further examines how socio-political, cultural, and historical legacies—such as the enduring secrecy surrounding adoption and the privileging of closed familial models—have shaped adoptees’ convictions toward their origins, including the decision not to search. Foregrounding the perspectives of non-searching adoptees reveals that their position is not merely oppositional to that of the searching adoptee but rather emerges from the very same structural conditions within the adoption system—namely, a system built on silence, erasure, and restrictive notions of belonging. Full article

Intergenerational contact is a key component of the informal support systems that contribute to the wellbeing of older adults. As societies age and migration patterns diversify family structures, understanding how contact is sustained across generations becomes increasingly relevant for health equity and the sustainability of care systems. In this study, we conceptualise sustainability not in environmental terms but as social and health-system sustainability—that is, the long-term ability of families and care systems to maintain intergenerational ties, ensure equitable access to support, and remain resilient under demographic and social pressures. Drawing on theories of intergenerational solidarity and social capital, this study situates contact as both a resource for individual wellbeing and a pillar of care sustainability in diverse societies. We examine the frequency of contact between parents and adult children among adults aged 50 and above, comparing migrant and non-migrant populations across 25 European countries. Using data from Waves 7, 8, and the COVID-19 wave of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), we assess both in-person and digital forms of contact before and during the pandemic. Results show that older migrants have less frequent contact with parents but more frequent contact with children than do non-migrants, with similar patterns attested across repeated cross-sections (2017, 2019, 2021). The strong contact observed in each cross-section, facilitated by digital tools, implies resilient family ties under public-health stress. However, resilience is uneven: weaker contact with parents among migrant populations reflects structural barriers such as visa restrictions, caregiving responsibilities, discrimination, language barriers, and unequal digital access. Moreover, differences in access and proficiency with digital tools suggest that digital contact did not compensate equally across groups. These findings underscore the importance of sustainable and inclusive strategies in ageing and health policy. Specifically, targeted digital literacy programmes for older migrants, policies supporting transnational caregiving, affordable internet access, mobility solutions, and anti-discrimination measures in family visitation are crucial to reducing inequities. Full article

Background: In the 19th century, pulmonary tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in Europe, responsible for up to one-quarter of all mortality. Before Robert Koch’s discovery of the tubercle bacillus in 1882 and the advent of effective therapies, treatment relied on rest, high-caloric diets, and sanatoria. Objectives: This study aims to reconstruct the medical biography of Dr. Șerban Eminovici (1841–1874), Romanian physician and elder brother of poet Mihai Eminescu, and to contextualize his life and death within the broader history of tuberculosis and pre-antibiotic medical practice. Methods: We conducted a historical case study using archival sources, including university registers from Erlangen, Munich, and Vienna, hospital admission records from the Charité Hospital in Berlin, and contemporaneous correspondence. Secondary literature on the history of tuberculosis and the Eminovici family was also reviewed. Results: Eminovici pursued medical studies across Central Europe, obtaining his doctorate in Vienna and later practicing medicine in Berlin, where he was a member of the Berliner Medizinische Gesellschaft. Despite early signs of respiratory illness, treated at spa resorts such as Gleichenberg, his condition progressed to advanced pulmonary tuberculosis with neuropsychiatric complications. Hospital records confirm his admission to the Charité on 10 October 1874, and his death from “Lungenschwindsucht” (pulmonary tuberculosis) on 29 November 1874, at age 33. His trajectory illustrates both the transnational mobility of Romanian intellectual elites and the therapeutic limitations of pre-antibiotic medicine. Conclusions: The case of Dr. Șerban Eminovici highlights the devastating impact of tuberculosis on 19th-century intellectuals, the reliance on lifestyle-based therapies before the discovery of the tubercle bacillus, and the importance of Central European medical networks in shaping Romanian professional identities. Beyond its biographical significance, this case underscores the persistent social and cultural burden of tuberculosis in Eastern Europe. Full article

Background/Rationale: Transnational caregiving may be influenced by religious beliefs and cultural traditions that frame elder care as both a moral and religious obligation. While migration alters caregiving dynamics, religious teachings and cultural expectations remain central in guiding transnational caregiving practices. This study examines how Christian Nigerians who have immigrated to Canada navigate caregiving responsibilities within a transnational context, integrating their religion, cultural values, and the practical realities of crossing borders. Methods: This study employed a predominantly qualitative narrative approach, drawing on in-depth interviews with Nigerian Christian immigrants (N = 10) providing transnational care. Data collection involved a pre-interview survey and semi-structured interviews, providing the opportunity for participants to share their lived experiences. Thematic analysis was used to identify recurring themes related to the role of religion and culture in caregiving, ensuring a comprehensive exploration of participants’ perspectives. Findings: Caregiving is shaped by religious duty and cultural obligation, reinforced by biblical teachings and cultural values. Participants view elder care as a moral responsibility, tied to spiritual rewards and familial duty. Despite migration demands, family-based care remains preferred over institutional care, with social stigma attached to neglecting elders. Conclusions: Religion and culture remain integral to transnational caregiving practices, sustaining caregiving responsibilities despite migration-related realities. While religious teachings provide moral guidance and emotional support, cultural expectations reinforce caregiving as a collective and intergenerational duty. Policies and resources are needed that support transnational caregivers, ensuring they can fulfill their caregiving roles while adapting to new sociocultural environments. Policymakers should prioritize the implementation of policies and programs to support transnational caregivers, including family reunification measures, caregiving-related travel provisions, culturally tailored eldercare services, diaspora–local collaborations, organized caregiver support groups, and financial mechanisms such as tax incentives for remittances dedicated to elder care. Full article

This study examines how U.S. immigration policies enact legal violence and multigenerational punishment through the spousal reunification process, particularly in mixed-status, transnational families. Building on the concept of “deportability,” we introduce “importability” to describe a beneficiary’s potential to secure permanent residency, which varies according to social markers such as race, gender, and region of origin. Drawing from a content analysis of threads on the Immigration Pathways (IP) web forum, we analyze discussions among U.S. citizen petitioners navigating marriage-based green card applications, with a focus on experiences involving administrative processing (AP) (i.e., marriage fraud investigations). Our findings show that couples who do not align with the state’s conception of “proper” family—particularly U.S. citizen women petitioning for Black African partners—face intensified scrutiny, long delays, and burdensome requirements, including DNA tests and surveillance. These bureaucratic obstacles produce prolonged family separation, financial strain, and diminished sense of belonging, especially for children in single-parent households. Through the lens of “importability,” we reveal how legal violence and multigenerational punishment of immigration policies on mixed-status families beyond deportation threats, functioning as a gatekeeping mechanism that disproportionately affects marginalized families. This research highlights the understudied consequences of immigration policies on citizen petitioners and contributes to a broader understanding of inequality in U.S. immigration enforcement. Full article

Amidst increased global migration and the close geographic proximity of Poland and Ireland, there exists a significant number of Polish speaking families in Ireland today. This study examines family language policy (FLP) within Polish transnational families in Ireland and addresses a gap in the literature by exploring the influence of forces outside of the family domain on children’s language socialisation and FLP negotiation. These forces include children’s peer groups, school, and societal dominance of English in Irish society. Data were gathered through a combination of a focus group with parents, semi-structured interviews with parents and children, and children’s reflective language diary entries. The findings reveal that, over time, Polish speaking children’s engagement with education, society, and their peers contributes to their English language socialisation. We argue that family members demonstrate an acute awareness of children being socialised into English language use and, as a result, engage in FLP negotiation and language use adaptation within the home. This study demonstrates the significance of the wider sociolinguistic context within which the families are situated, and highlights the influence of multiple forces, outside of the home, on FLP formation and negotiation within the home. Full article

The landmark Philippine Supreme Court case Llorente vs. Llorente illuminates the complex intersections of transnational migration, inheritance law, and colonial legacies in the Philippines. The case centers on Lorenzo Llorente, a Filipino US Navy serviceman whose estate became the subject of a fifteen-year legal battle between his first wife Paula and his second wife Alicia. Lorenzo returned from the battles of World War II to find his wife in Nabua living with his brother and pregnant with his brother’s child. Lorenzo obtained a divorce in California in 1952. He later returned to the Philippines and married Alicia, naming her and their three adopted children as heirs in his will. Upon his death in 1985, Paula challenged the validity of the US divorce and claimed rights to Lorenzo’s estate under Philippine succession laws. While lower courts initially favored Paula’s claims by rigidly applying Philippine laws that are rooted in the colonial era and privileged blood relations, the Supreme Court ultimately upheld Lorenzo’s will in 2000, recognizing his right to divorce as a US citizen. This case reveals how postcolonial Philippine legal frameworks, still heavily influenced by Spanish colonial law, often fail to accommodate the complex realities of transnational families and diverse kinship practices, instead imposing rigid interpretations that fracture rather than heal family relations. Inheritance, previously a highly shared and negotiated process mediated by the elders, can now escalate to family disputes which play out in the impersonal space of the courtroom. Full article

The Catholic Church in Denmark hosts several migrant communities, with the Polish-speaking group among the largest and most visible. Institutionally, Catholic priests from Poland serve as chaplains for migrant congregations, accompanying these mobilities and providing educational practices (e.g., family guidance, biblical teaching). This paper examines how perspectives on Catholic scriptural authority differ between the Church’s institutional representatives and its members, revealing tensions between biblical authority, social accommodation, and family values in a migratory setting. Based on 20 months of fieldwork in a Polish Catholic community in Copenhagen, this paper highlights the dynamic interplay of how Church members assess scriptural authority as evaluative engagement in their transnational lives in the Danish public sphere, illustrated through interconnected ethnographic excerpts. This article illustrates how scriptural engagement offers a productive lens to explore divergent notions of Polish Catholic diasporic life and the tensions between transnational religion, national belonging, and moral navigation. Full article

The experience of loneliness in old age has gained relevance for social gerontology due to its association with the adverse biopsychosocial health status of the elderly, significantly impacting quality of life in old age. Therefore, the objective of this study was to understand the experiences of loneliness, analysing the perception of its risk and protective factors, as well as the coping strategies used by older people in Chile and Spain, through a transnational qualitative approach, with a view to identifying the influence of cultural variables in the presence of this problem. This research was a descriptive study which used qualitative methodologies for data collection and analysis. The research participants were 30 older people of both sexes who participated in a semi-structured interview about their experiences of loneliness. The main results showed that loneliness in old age was experienced as an emotional disconnection and lack of intimacy and company, mainly in family relationships. Among the most prominent risk factors were old age, gender roles, widowhood, economic limitations, and loss of autonomy. Protective factors included active social participation, religious practice, and participation in meaningful social activities. As for coping strategies, these ranged from strengthening relationships to using digital tools and accepting loneliness as part of life. The findings of this study underline the importance of designing interventions focused on social inclusion and subjective well-being in old age, which contribute to preventing the experience of loneliness at this stage of the life cycle. Full article