After earning her MA in Public Policy from Hebrew University, Danielle completed a doctorate at the University of Texas at Dallas in the School of Economic, Political, and Policy Sciences. Her doctorate focused on the way differences in medical examiner and coroner systems impact mortality statistics in the US. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the National Research and Knowledge Center for Emergency Readiness, at the University of Haifa. Her research interests include emergencies, public health, and research design.

Dr. Ravit Alfandari conducted her PhD studies at the Department of Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), UK and her post-doctoral training at the School of Social Work and the School of Business Administration at the University of Haifa, Israel. She has teaching experience in Israel (at Hadassah Academic College and Ariel University) and the UK (at LSE and Ulster University, Northern Ireland). Today, she holds a lecturer position at the University of Haifa's School of Social Work. She is also a research fellow at the Centre for Research and Study of the Family and the Centre for the Study of Organizations & Human Resources Management, at the University of Haifa. Ravit, is a qualified social worker with solid experience in direct service delivery, programs development and conducting research related to vulnerable children and families. Her empirical investigation focuses on decision-making and risk assessment in the field of child protection. She is a Core Member at COST Action network, multisectoral responses to child abuse and neglect in Europe (Euro-CAN).

Bibliographic details:

Giachino, C., Bollani, L., Truant, E., & Bonadonna, A. (2022). Urban area and nature-based solution: Is this an attractive solution for Generation Z?. Land Use Policy, 112, 105828.

Abstract:

Finding solutions for the careful management of our natural heritage is fundamental to sustaining humanity on the planet. In this sense, nature-based solutions (NBS), which are useful initiatives aimed at addressing socio-environmental challenges to achieve a relatively more natural environment, can be a fundamental tool for reaching this goal in an urban context. However, there is no evidence that having NBS in urban cities could attract the young generations. The present study investigates Generation Z’s interest in NBS and explores the possibility of them considering a city that offers NBS as a possible tourism destination. This study uses different NBS initiatives implemented in the metropolitan area of Turin. Using quantitative approaches to qualitative responses, that is, multiple correspondence analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis, a hierarchical cluster structure was designed and gradually explored to identify main groups of respondents and subsequently deeper partitions. The results show that Generation Z perceives NBS initiatives as important for safeguarding and enhancing the cultural and natural heritage of the urban areas involved, which can improve their touristic and leisure value. This study is particularly relevant since it can help institutions to consider a new approach to stimulating proximity tourism in urban cities and their surroundings, by valorizing NBS as a possible attraction for Generation Z.

Webpage: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837721005512

Bibliographic details:

Lalal, N., Mishal, S., Padhi, A., Sharma, A., Audhkhasi, A., Arora, P., ... & Samar, S. (2022). Eco-Anxiety: Impact on Generation Z’s Mental Health and the Contemporary Significance of Environmental Awareness and Education. International Journal of Policy Sciences and Law, 2(02”), 3313-3331. 

Abstract:

The escalating impacts of climate change and global warming are jeopardizing humanity’s future on earth. Lack of action against the matter has proliferated the occurrence as well as the intensity of natural calamities. Moreover, several species around the world are undergoing a decline in their population, suggesting that the 6th mass extinction is well underway. Owing to such devastating repercussions of climate change and the persistent human interference with nature, environmental concerns are now affecting the mental health of most human beings. “Eco-anxiety”, the persistent worry about the future of earth due to the ongoing climate crisis, global warming, and environmental degradation, is very much prevalent today. This paper dives deep into the matter by predominantly focussing on the impact of climate change on Generation Z’s mental health, as they are the upcoming leaders who will be running the world in the near future. Through shedding light on past events that have brought about the current status quo, the paper discusses a brief timeline of climate change and environmental degradation. The latter part of the paper particularly focuses on how the youth is coping with environmental degradation and climate anxiety, and what significance can environmental awareness and education have on guaranteeing them a safe future have then been analysed. After meticulous evaluation, the authors discuss potential solutions that can help relieve the burden youth feel to take care of our precious environment. The subject matter aims to comply with three of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) put forth by the United Nations, namely: SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 4 (Quality Education), and SDG 13 (Climate Action)

Webpage: https://ijpsl.in/index.php/volume-2-issue-2/

Other: https://ijpsl.in/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Eco-Anxiety-Impact-on-Generation-Zs-Mental-Health-and-the-Contemporary-Significance-of-Environmental-Awareness-and-Education-merged.pdf

Bibliographic details:

Swim, J. K., Aviste, R., Lengieza, M. L., & Fasano, C. J. (2022). OK Boomer: A decade of generational differences in feelings about climate change. Global Environmental Change, 73, 102479.

Abstract:

The emergence of concern about and evidence of climate change has been argued to create a cultural milieu unique to the Millennial generation (born between 1981 and 1996) and iGeneration (aka iGens or Generation Z born after 1997). The present research tested a) claims of unique angst about climate change among younger versus older generations, b) growing generational discrepancies over time in emotions about climate change, c) generational differences for several emotions about climate change, and d) the implications of these emotions for motivating people to discuss climate change with others, potentially aiding coping with climate change and facilitating action to address climate change. Survey data gathered from 2010 to 2019 of a representative sample of United States residents (N = 22,468) document greater increases in worry about climate change and, to a lesser degree, anger and guilt about climate change, within the two youngest generations relative to changes among Generation X, Baby Boomers, and the Silent and Greatest Generations. Although generational differences were small and suggest overstatements of unique effects for younger generations, increases in younger generations’ emotions transform into the two youngest generations reporting the strongest emotions in 2019. Over ten years, these differential shifts in emotions explain more substantial increases in the frequency of discussing climate in the youngest generations.

Webpage: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0959378022000176

Bibliographic details

Lewin, A.C., Shamai, M. & Novikov, S. Surviving in Crisis Mode: The Effect of Material Hardship and Social Support on Emotional Wellbeing Among People in Poverty During COVID-19. Soc Indic Res (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-022-03011-7

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a sudden economic crisis that led to increases in hardshipThe COVID-19 pandemic triggered a sudden economic crisis that led to increases in hardshipand poverty. Motivated by the concern that people living in long-term poverty havefew reserves to draw upon in times of crisis and may experience severe consequences,this study focuses on the association between material hardship and emotional wellbeingamong people in poverty. The data were collected in two waves of telephone surveys duringthe pandemic (n = 88). Participants for the study were recruited through social servicedepartments in six cities in Northern Israel. The findings show that COVID-19 increasedmaterial hardship, and that material hardship has detrimental effects on the four measuresof emotional wellbeing selected (stress, anxiety, depression, and physical symptoms).Informal social support has positive effects on emotional wellbeing but it does not counterthe negative effects of material hardship. Policy implications are discussed.

Webpage: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11205-022-03011-7#citeas

Bibliographic details

Segal, E., Feitelson, E., Goulden, S., Razin, E., Rein-Sapir, Y., Kagan, E. J., & Negev, M. (2022). Residential seismic retrofitting: Contextualizing policy packages to local circumstances. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 81, 103264.

Abstract
Seismic retrofitting is the most effective way to reduce casualties from earthquakes. Yet, seismic retrofitting of vulnerable residential structures faces many impediments. As no single policy measure can overcome these obstacles, seismic retrofitting requires that multiple policy measures be applied in tandem and therefore policy packages are necessary. As seismic threats are spread over multiple locales, differing in their characteristics, no single policy package is likely to fit all settings. Indeed, efforts to promote seismic retrofitting in California, New Zealand and Israel show high variability in success across different locales. Our study builds upon previous work which outlined three potential policy packages for seismic retrofitting, led by market forces, local government and central government respectively. In this study we advance an asymmetric decentralization approach to match the most appropriate policy package to local conditions. We combine this with seismic vulnerability assessment to prioritize the national allocation of retrofitting funds. The approach is applied to the Israeli case, a country that is prone to infrequent large earthquakes and in which there is a large, substandard housing stock.

Webpage: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212420922004836

Bibliographic details:

Vigoda-Gadot, E., Mizrahi, S., Cohen, N. et al. Citizens’ reactions to global crises: a longitudinal study during the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel. SN Soc Sci 3, 24 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-023-00610-0

Abstract:
This paper investigated citizens’ reactions to global crises using the COVID-19 pandemic as a natural experiment. Theories in this field are controversial and thus knowledge on such reactions, their evolution, drivers, and consequences is limited. Building on several socio-psychological foundations such as trust building theories, the fear appeal theory, the theory of planned behavior, and the spillover theory, we explain developments in three major human responses: (1) perceptual and attitudinal responses such as trust in governance and interpersonal trust; (2) emotional responses such as fear of crises; and (3) behavioral responses such as civic engagement. Using a longitudinal design, we tracked the attitudes and behaviors of Israeli citizens over 22 months (7/2019-3/2021) and at four points in time (t1–t4). Findings are based on a time-lagged analysis of 3527 participants (n1 = 602; n2 = 750; n3 = 970; n4 = 1205), and a more focused analysis of panel data (n1–4 = 256). In accordance with our theoretical foundations and specific models, we revealed a reaction pattern of shock→recognition→adjustment→reframing. We maintain that our findings improve understanding of citizens’ reactions to government policies. They provide unique empirical evidence for resilience among citizens and across social structures which testify to bouncing-back capacities from global crises in various ways. Its lessons may thus direct future studies on the relationship between citizens and governments in other global crises and emergencies.

Bibliographic details

Dai, X., Beenstock, M., Felsenstein, D., Genesove, D., & Kotsenko, N. (2023). 'Traffic light' theory for Covid-19 spatial mitigation policy design. Journal of Spatial Econometrics, 4(1), 3.

Abstract

We suggest the use of outdegrees from graph theory to rank locations in terms of their contagiousness. We show that outdegrees are equal to the column sums of spatial autoregressive matrices, which may be estimated using econometric methods for spatial panel data. In contrast to outdegree, R is invalid for 'traffic light' shading because it fails to distinguish between the export and import of contagion between sub-national locations. Simulation methods are used to illustrate the concept of outdegrees and its structural determinants in terms of centrality, indigenous contagion and spatial contagion. An empirical illustration is presented for Israel. A secondary criterion for traffic light shading involves the stochastic structure of morbidity shocks, which induce 'spiking' through their autoregressive persistence, conditional heteroscedasticity and diffusion jump parameters.

פרופ' פנינה פלאוט ופביאן ישראל מהטכניון; פרופ' ערן פייטלסון ודר יונת ריין ספיר מהאוניברסיטה העברית בירושלים; פרופ' עלי זלצברגר, פרופ' דבורה שמואלי, דר' אלכס אלטשולר, דר' דניאל זייצ'יק ודר' מיכל בן גל מאונ' חיפה

תקציר:

ניתוח השפעות מגיפת הקורונה מתבסס לרוב על השלכות בריאותיות (כגון מספר חולים ומתים) וכלכליות (השפעות על התוצר הלאומי הגולמי -תל"ג). עם זאת ברור לכל שלמגיפה ישנן השלכות רבות נוספות - סביבתיות חברתיות ואישיות כגון השפעות על יחסים חברתיים ולחץ נפשי. היום כבר ברור שהתל"ג אינו מספק כמדד לבחינת איכות חיים כלכלית, וקימת נטייה גוברת להשתמש במערכת מדדים מורכבת יותר לצורך קבלת החלטות מדיניות. כך, במדינות ה OECD פותחה ב-2017 מערכת של 39 מדדי שלומוּת (well-being) והלשכה המרכזית לסטטיסטיקה בישראל מפרסמת מאז 2016 דו"ח שנתי על "איכות החיים קיימות וחוסן לאומי בישראל", המבוסס על כ- 114 מדדים ב-11 תחומים (איכות התעסוקה, ביטחון אישי, בריאות, דיור ותשתיות, חינוך, השכלה וכישורים, מעורבות אזרחית וממשל, סביבה, רווחה אישית וחברתית, רמת חיים חומרית, פנאי, תרבות וקהילה וטכנולוגיות המידע .

מטרתו של מחקר זה היא לזהות את מדדי השלומוּת המושפעים ממשבר הקורונה ומשפיעים עליו, לבחון השפעות אלה בישראל, לזהות כלי מדיניות שיש ביכולתם להפחית את ההשפעות השליליות ולגבש "חבילות מדיניות" שיאפשרו להתמודד עם החיים בצל הקורונה. החלק הראשון של המחקר נערך בשיתוף עם (IIASA (International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis במסגרת ההסכם בין ממשלת ישראל ל-IIASA ובו אובחנו ההשפעות האפשריות בסיוע ניתוח מערכות.

המחקר הנוכחי בא לבחון את ההשפעות באופן אמפירי. הוא מתבסס על סקר אמפירי אשר בחן קבוצה נבחרת של מדדים לפני משבר הקורונה ולאחריו, ומנתח את המדדים המשפיעים ביותר. מחקר המשך גם יציע כלי מדיניות.

ראו מאמר:

Feitelson, E., Plaut, P., Saltzberger, E., Shmueli, D., Altshuler, A., Ben Gal, M., Israel, F., Rein-Sapir, Y., Zaychek, D., 2022. "The Effects of COVID-19 on Wellbeing: evidence from Israel", Sustainability, Special Issue "Economic and Social Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic", Vol. 14, 3750. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14073750

קישור לדו"ח IIASA