This paper focuses on both expanding and refining the analytical scope of the “social†(or non-economic) aspects of chronic poverty, and thereby, to enhance efforts to respond more effectively to it. The argument in this paper proceeds as follows. In recognizing that poverty is...

In under-resourced settings, where sanitation and safe water are often lacking, breastfeeding can be life-saving. Breastfeeding protects against infectious diseases, especially gastrointestinal infections, which largely contribute to child morbidity and mortality in developing countries (1)....

Singapore is vulnerable to both natural and man-made disasters alongside its remarkable economic growth. One of the most significant disasters is the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003. The SARS outbreak was eventually contained through a series of risk mitigating measures...

This study explored the relationship between the social organization of neighborhoods including informal social control and social cohesion and a current bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) among adolescents and young adults in one U.S. urban setting. Data for the current study were...

There is growing concern that trade, by connecting geographically isolated regions, unintentionally facilitates the spread of invasive pathogens and pests – forms of biological pollution that pose significant risks to ecosystem and human health. We use a bioeconomic framework to examine...

This paper examines the relationship between health aid and infant mortality, using data from 118 countries between 1973 and 2004. Health aid has a statistically significant effect on infant mortality: doubling per capita health aid is associated with a 2 percent reduction in the infant...

Protection against pest invasion is a public good. Yet the nature of private incentives to avoid entry is poorly understood. This work shows that, due to increasing returns or network effects, private actions to avoid entry are strategic complements. This means that compulsory action, at least...

This paper discusses the ways in which the sharply increased danger of bio-terrorism has made infectious diseases a priority in defence and intelligence circles. Against this background, the author sets out a central principle of global public health security: a strengthened capacity to detect...

Why are some countries mired in poverty and ill health? Can policy facilitate their transition to sustained growth and better living standards? We offer answers using a dynamic model of disease and development. Endogenous transmission of infectious disease generates non-ergodic growth where...