Ethnic Communities

The present study aims to explore the water, sanitation and hygiene practices among ethnic communities in Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. This study included all three districts, Rangamati, Khagrachhari and Bandarban of the area. From ten selected villages across all three districts 250 participants, 156 male and 94 female, were selected based on three criteria's, (i) their belonging to ethnic groups in hill tracts, (ii) permanent inhabitance in the hill tracts and (iii) their association with the 'Jhum' agriculture practice. Data were collected from the participants deploying both qualitative (key informant interview and transect walks) and quantitative (questionnaire survey) methods. The result illustrates that the ethnic people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts have limited access to safe drinking water, while their sanitation and hygiene practices were also deplorable. The data reveal that poor water, sanitation and hygiene practices have negative impacts not only on the ethnic people's health as they often suffered from diverse health issues such as diarrhoea, scabies and dysentery but also on their socioeconomic lives as they reported often losing income and forced to more expenditure for treatment. The data also show that the mean prevalences' of unhygienic practices among the ethnic people across all the districts were 54.30 per cent (Khagrachhari), 52.20 per cent (Bandarban) and 52.10 per cent (Rangamati), while the mean impacts of unhygienic practices on their health were respectively 44 per cent (Khagrachhari), 42.30 per cent (Rangamati) and 41.30 per cent (Bandarban).

Abstract. In the introduction, the relevance of the study of ethnodemographic processes is justified, source base
and the historiography of the study are examined, and the purpose of the work is to identify the peculiarities
of the change in the number and resettlement of ethnic communities in Belarus at the end of the 20th
and beginning of the 21st centuries. In the main part, the dynamics of the number of ethnic groups is examined,
the reasons for the changes in their quantitative composition are revealed, the features of their origin and territorial
location are shown. It is proved that the ethnic communities in Belarus were heterogeneous in origin, among
them were autochthons and immigrants, and the time of residence of the latest ranged from several centuries
(Byelorussian Tatars) to several decades (Azerbaijanis, Turkmens, etc.). The urbanization in the second half
of the 20th century led to the fact that more than 3/4 of representatives of ethnic communities lived in towns
at the beginning of the 21st century. In the conclusion, it is noted that at the end of 20th – beginning of 21st
centuries the ethnodemographic situation was characterized by two opposing trends: a decrease in the number
of the largest ethnic communities of the country (Russians, Poles, Ukrainians, Jews) and an increase in the
number of representatives of relatively small ethnic groups, mostly immigrants from the former Soviet republics –
the Caucasus and Central Asia. Nevertheless, the most numerous remained those ethnic communities that had
a long tradition of living on Belarusian lands: Russians, Poles, Ukrainians, Jews, Tatars, Lithuanians, and this
fact contributed to the preservation of stable interethnic relations in the society. The materials of this research
can be used studying history of ethnic communities in the Republic of Belarus, carrying out a comparative
analysis of the demographic situation in different countries, mainly CIS and Baltic countries, and analyzing
the ethnopolitics of the Belarusian authorities.

“Vesnik Hrodzenskaha Dziarzhaunaha Universiteta Imia Ianki Kupaly.
Seryia 1. Historyia i Arkhealohiia. Filasofiia. Palitalohiia”. - 2018, Vol. 10, No. 1,  pp. 31-39.

The article considers conceptual approaches to community media studies. According to the authors, the dominant society centered and media centered approaches need to be clarified and in some cases revised. On the material of ethnic communities' digital media, the conclusion was done that the community centered approach may be relevant in this case, and such an approach deserves special development in research. For empirical study, digital media of Russian-speaking communities were taken, 3 from Finland and 3 from Lebanon.

The article considers conceptual approaches to community media studies. According to the authors, the dominant society centered and media centered approaches need to be clarified and in some cases revised. On the material of ethnic communities’ digital media, the conclusion was done that the community centered approach may be relevant in this case, and such an approach deserves special development in research. For empirical study, digital media of Russian-speaking communities were taken, 3 from Finland and 3 from Lebanon.

While Western planning emphasizes the importance of genuine meaningful citizen participation, the conventional public meeting approach fails to truly engage with the public. Studies have revealed the limitations of this approach to engage and positively impact ethnic communities. However, research has been limited to investigating the inefficiency of the participatory framework from the experts’ perspective. It has not addressed the issue of the lack of ethnic diversity in participatory processes nor have made concrete recommendations for policymakers. The purpose of this research is to explore the urban governance contradiction regarding the attainment of meaningful engagement. This goal is achieved through uncovering how ethnically diverse citizens engage with and are engaged by the municipal participatory framework to understand to what extent this approach meets their needs. The research is conducted through a case study of the eight Scarborough Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs), which comprise an important share of diverse ethnic groups. This study reviews the NIAs’ participatory process and policies and analyses the output of interviews with representatives of the Scarborough communities, representatives of neighbourhood agencies, and the City to examine participatory processes and uncover ethnic groups’ perspectives concerning the municipal participatory approach.

Series editors: Anna Triandafyllidou and Usha George

Key Words: citizen participation, meaningful public engagement, citizen empowerment, ethnic communities, the City of Toronto participatory framework

This Special Issue on “Migrant Youth, Intercultural Relations and the Challenges of Social Inclusion”, reports recent cutting edge research into the complex nature of migrant youth settlement in multicultural émigré societies. Drawing on multidisciplinary research, it explores the latest intersecting theories on cultural diversity, intercultural relations and multiculturalism in the context of globalised cities where access to and sharing of public spaces is becoming a highly contested issue.

Timber is one of the most important resources in the life of ethnic communities and villagers. Timber resources are used by the ethnic communities and the villagers for various purposes i.e. house construction, furniture, and agricultural implements; for making walking sticks, musical instruments and packing cases etc. Timber is the most important forest resource along with shelter, food and clothes used by any community in Himachal Pradesh as well as in any part of the country and it has contributed a lot in the development of various civilizations from time immortal. This paper deals with the 61 timber resources of H.P. belonging to 47 genera and 26 families as well as their various uses by the ethnic communities and villagers. The timber resources have been divided in all the three ranges of ‘Himachal Himalayas’.