Mercy Borbor-Cordova | ESPOL (Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral) (original) (raw)

Papers by Mercy Borbor-Cordova

Ñawi

El Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Medio Ambiente (PNUMA) es el portavoz del medio ambien... more El Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Medio Ambiente (PNUMA) es el portavoz del medio ambiente dentro del sistema de las Naciones Unidas. Su labor abarca evaluar las condiciones y las tendencias ambientales a nivel mundial, regional y nacional. Por tanto, este estudio se enfoca en la creación de material audiovisual para niños de entre 7 y 10 años de edad, con el propósito de difundir una cultura ambiental en las aulas. El proyecto propone la producción de un programa de animación 2D para plataformas digitales y dispositivos físicos, cuyo tema de enfoque es la divulgación del cambio climático dentro de las escuelas. Además, plantea criterios de utilización y ejercicios audiovisuales para los niños y la buena utilización de estos nuevos recursos, herramientas de gran diversidad para la educación actual. Así, analiza de fondo un estudio acerca de la comunicación audiovisual infantil, sus éxitos y sus avances.

Dengue or malaria? Confusion with febrile illness "Once I got dengue, not specifically dengue, bu... more Dengue or malaria? Confusion with febrile illness "Once I got dengue, not specifically dengue, but actually malaria, which I think is somehow related (PA man)."

Emerging Pollutants in the Environment - Current and Further Implications, 2015

Typescript. Thesis (Ph.D.) -- State University of New York. College of Environmental Science & Fo... more Typescript. Thesis (Ph.D.) -- State University of New York. College of Environmental Science & Forestry. Syracuse, NY, 2004. Abstract. Vita. Major Professor : Charles A.S. Hall, Faculty of Environmental and Forest Biology. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-199).

Antarctica is one of the last frontiers of the planet to be investigated for the environmental tr... more Antarctica is one of the last frontiers of the planet to be investigated for the environmental transport and accumulation of persistent organic pollutants. Perfluorinated contaminants (PFCs) are a group of widely used anthropogenic substances, representing a significant risk to wildlife and humans due to their high biomagnification potential and toxicity risks, especially in food webs of the northern hemisphere and Arctic. Because the assessment of PFCs in the Antarctic continent is scarce, questions linger about the long-range transport and bioaccumulation capacity of PFCs in Antarctic food webs. To better understand the global environmental fate of PFCs, sediment, lichen (Usnea aurantiaco-atra), and seabird samples (southern giant petrel, Macronectes giganteus; gentoo penguin, Pygoscelis papua) were collected around the Antarctic Peninsula in 2009. PFC analytes were analyzed by LC/MS/MS, revealing the detection of PFHpA in seabirds’ feather and fecal samples, and PFHxS in lichens....

Background: Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, is a rapidly emerging public health pro... more Background: Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, is a rapidly emerging public health problem in Ecuador and throughout the tropics. However, we have a limited understanding of the disease transmission dynamics in these regions. Previous studies in southern coastal Ecuador have demonstrated the potential to develop a dengue early warning system (EWS) that incorporates climate and non-climate information. The objective of this study was to characterize the spatiotemporal dynamics and climatic and social-ecological risk factors associated with the largest dengue epidemic to date in Machala, Ecuador, to inform the development of a dengue EWS. Methods: The following data from Machala were included in analyses: neighborhood-level georeferenced dengue cases, national census data, and entomological surveillance data from 2010; and time series of weekly dengue cases (aggregated to the city-level) and meteorological data from 2003 to 2012. We applied LISA and Moran's I to analyze the spatial distribution of the 2010 dengue cases, and developed multivariate logistic regression models through a multi-model selection process to identify census variables and entomological covariates associated with the presence of dengue at the neighborhood level. Using data aggregated at the city-level, we conducted a time-series (wavelet) analysis of weekly climate and dengue incidence (2003-2012) to identify significant time periods (e.g., annual, biannual) when climate co-varied with dengue, and to describe the climate conditions associated with the 2010 outbreak.

Background/Question/Methods Climate change is projected to increase the prevalence of mosquito-bo... more Background/Question/Methods Climate change is projected to increase the prevalence of mosquito-borne disease epidemics by expanding the geographic range of mosquitoes. Dengue fever (DF), a virus transmitted to humans by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, is one of the most significant and rapidly spreading vector-borne viruses. With no vaccine currently available, an estimated 2.5 billion people in over 100 countries are at risk for DF, yet few studies have empirically modeled the effect of climate on the distribution of A. aegypti on a fine scale. The objective of this research was to develop a climate-driven, geographical model of the distribution of A. aegypti in Ecuador to test the hypothesis that projected changes in climate will increase the potential range of the mosquito. Using GIS, raster grids of climate (1x1 km) were developed from meteorological data from over 100 weather stations provided by the National Meteorological and Hydrological Institute of Ecuador (1982–2005). The his...

Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, has increased in distribution, prevalence and sever... more Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, has increased in distribution, prevalence and severity throughout the tropics and subtropics. In this study, we explore the use of local oceanographic variables to predict dengue transmission in the southern coastal of Ecuador. We hypothesize that local oceanographic conditions, such as invasion of warmer water masses from the Panamá Bay and strengthening of the cold Humboldt Current, interact with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) to influence local climate and dengue transmission. We evaluated the influence of local oceanographic variables (sea surface (SST) and subsurface temperature in front of Puerto Bolívar and other coastal localities, ENSO, and local climate) on the dengue standardized morbidity ratio of El Oro Province (monthly SMR, 1995-2013). We found that precipitation in Machala City, Oceanic Niño Index – ONI 3.4 (3-month lag), SST at Puerto Bolívar (6-month lag) and sea subsurface temperature (15 m depth) registered i...

Research in Urban Sociology, 2012

BMC Public Health, 2014

Background: The growing burden of dengue fever and the lack of a vaccine or specific medical trea... more Background: The growing burden of dengue fever and the lack of a vaccine or specific medical treatment have increased the urgency of the public health sector to identify alternative management strategies. A prevailing trend in Latin America has been a shift towards decentralized vector control programs with integrated management strategies, requiring significant intersectoral coordination, community engagement, and knowledge of the local social-ecological system (SES). Community perceptions and responses are a critical component of this system, since perceptions shape actions, and thus govern behavioral responses and acceptance of shifts in policy and management. Methods: We investigated perceptions, misconceptions, and local SES risk factors for dengue in high risk communities located at the urban periphery and center in Machala, Ecuador. We facilitated twelve focus group discussions with community members using semi-structured question guides and causal diagrams. Focus groups were recorded, transcribed, and coded to identify emergent themes using qualitative methods for theme analysis. To estimate the relative importance of the themes in each study area, we tabulated the number of focus groups in which each theme was present. Household surveys (n = 79) were conducted to further explore these themes, and we compared survey responses from the two areas using descriptive statistics. Results: We identified thirty biophysical, political-institutional, and community-household risk factors for dengue. People at the periphery identified a greater number of risk factors. Dengue control required considerable investment of time and resources, which presented a greater challenge for women and people at the periphery. Common misperceptions included confusion with other febrile diseases, lack of knowledge of transmission mechanisms, and misconceptions about mosquito behavior. People perceived that dengue control programs had been limited by the lack of inter-institutional coordination and lack of social cohesion. Conclusions: There is a need for local, policy-relevant research that can be translated to strengthen the design, implementation, and evaluation of new dengue management strategies. This study contributes to a growing body of research in this area. Based on these findings, we identify key policy and management recommendations that will inform the ongoing transition to a decentralized dengue control program in Ecuador and other dengue endemic countries.

BMC Infectious Diseases, 2014

Social Science & Medicine, 2013

This paper explores whether the health risks related to air pollution and temperature extremes ar... more This paper explores whether the health risks related to air pollution and temperature extremes are spatially and socioeconomically differentiated within three Latin American cities: Bogota, Colombia, Mexico City, Mexico, and Santiago, Chile. Based on a theoretical review of three relevant approaches to risk analysis (risk society, environmental justice, and urban vulnerability as impact), we hypothesize that health risks from exposure to air pollution and temperature in these cities do not necessarily depend on socio-economic inequalities. To test this hypothesis, we gathered, validated, and analyzed temperature, air pollution, mortality and socioeconomic vulnerability data from the three study cities. Our results show the association between air pollution levels and socioeconomic vulnerabilities did not always correlate within the study cities. Furthermore, the spatial differences in socioeconomic vulnerabilities within cities do not necessarily correspond with the spatial distribution of health impacts. The present study improves our understanding of the multifaceted nature of health risks and vulnerabilities associated with global environmental change. The findings suggest that health risks from atmospheric conditions and pollutants exist without boundaries or social distinctions, even exhibiting characteristics of a boomerang effect (i.e., affecting rich and poor alike) on a smaller scale such as areas within urban regions. We used human mortality, a severe impact, to measure health risks from air pollution and extreme temperatures. Public health data of better quality (e.g., morbidity, hospital visits) are needed for future research to advance our understanding of the nature of health risks related to climate hazards.

Environmental Science & Policy, 2013

ABSTRACT This paper examines the opportunities and challenges faced by “Adaptation to the Health ... more ABSTRACT This paper examines the opportunities and challenges faced by “Adaptation to the Health Impacts of Air Pollution and Climate Extremes in Latin American Cities” (ADAPTE). ADAPTE is an issue-driven research endeavor that integrates different disciplinary domains to explore the complex nature of urban vulnerability/adaptive capacity to weather and air pollution in Buenos Aires, Bogota, Mexico City and Santiago. The paper also critically reflects on some of the possible challenges to be encountered, along with the benefits to be gleaned, when doing issue-driven research that seeks to be scientifically robust and socially relevant and is defined by such attributes as integration of heterogeneous research domains, interactivity and reflexivity. ADAPTE's efforts to integrate concepts, methods and data from different disciplines were fundamental in the design of a conceptual framework on urban vulnerability. The integrating research question and the use of quantitative and qualitative methods allowed ADAPTE to shed a slightly different light on the nature and interconnections between the different dimensions of urban vulnerability. However, it has proven difficult for us to fully explore the dynamics of urban vulnerability as well as the issues of scale and context. A set of cultural and communication challenges has arisen, not only from the diverse conceptualization approaches, methods, differing terminologies and mechanisms for analyzing and presenting results that ADAPTE has attempted to integrate, but also from institutional and interpersonal issues affecting team interactions.

Biogeochemistry, 2006

Large-scale changes in land use are occurring in many tropical regions, with significant impacts ... more Large-scale changes in land use are occurring in many tropical regions, with significant impacts on nitrogen and phosphorus biogeochemistry. In this study we examine the relationships between land use, anthropogenic nutrient inputs, and riverine nutrient exports in a major agricultural watershed of the Pacific coast of South America, the Guayas River basin of Ecuador. We present comprehensive nutrient budgets for nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) for the Guayas River basin and 10 sub-watersheds. We quantify the four major anthropogenic nutrient fluxes into and out of the region: N and P fertilizer application, N fixation by leguminous crops, net import/export of N and P in agricultural products (food and feed), and atmospheric deposition. We also estimate inputs of N from biological N fixation in forests and of P from weathering sources in soils and bedrock. The sum of these sources represents net inputs of N and P to each watershed region. Overall, synthetic fertilizers are the largest input to the Guayas Basin for N (53%) and P (57%), and the largest outputs are N and P in crops. Losses of N and P in river export account for 14-38% of total N and P inputs, and there is significant accumulation of N and P, or unmeasured forms of N and P export, in most of the sub-basins. Nutrient balances are indicative of the sustainability of land use practices in a region, where a negative balance of N or P indicates nutrient depletion and subsequent loss of soil fertility, yield, and economic viability. Although the nutrient balance of the entire Guayas Basin is positive, there are negative or near zero balances in two sub-watersheds with extensive banana, coffee and permanent crops. In these basins, degradation of soil quality may be occurring due to these net nutrient losses. Our data show that nutrients are leaving the basin primarily as export crops, with riverine losses of nutrients smaller than crop exports. Nonetheless, there is a direct relationship between nutrient inputs and river outputs, suggesting that agricultural management practices in the basin may have direct impacts on N and P delivery to the highly productive Guayas estuary.