A Scoping Review of Aging Experiences Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse People in Australia: Toward Better Aging Policy and Cultural Well-Being for Migrant and Refugee Adults.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Australia's population is growing, aging, and becoming more ethnically diverse, resulting in barriers and challenges around social inclusion for non-English-speaking migrants and refugees. This scoping review investigates the experiences of aging within Australia among older adults from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) migrant and refugee backgrounds to identify barriers to social integration. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A scoping review of English language literature and gray literature on the experiences of aging among CALD migrants and refugees living in Australia was conducted from January 2000 to January 2021, according to Arksey and O'Malley's review process. A total of 34 studies were identified for analysis. RESULTS: Three primary themes were identified: (a) sociocultural similarities in settlement experiences, (b) engagement with technology for social connection, and (c) engagement with family and community networks. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Aging, language, sociocultural, and technology contexts shape attitudes to belonging, as well as access to sociomedical services. We argue a cultural well-being framework may assist in developing policy for improved social integration of older CALD adults. As the focus is on social and cultural experiences, all studies with a primary focus on medical and other chronic conditions were excluded. Future studies could include health-related articles to present a more comprehensive approach regarding older CALD adult needs. Follow-up research could focus on the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on the experiences of older adults in Australia, in particular those of CALD backgrounds.

Humanitarian engineering at the sustainability-development nexus: mapping vulnerability and capability factors for communities at risk of water-based disasters.

Access to resources that is equitable and sustainable provides a critical foundation for community harmony and development. Both natural and human-induced disasters present major risks to sustainable development trajectories and require strategic management within regional and local plans. Climate change and its impacts, including intensified storms, flash floods, and other water-based disasters (WD), also pose a serious and increasing threat. Small, remote communities prone to weather extremes are particularly vulnerable as they often lack effective early warning systems and experience energy insufficiency. Humanitarian engineering provides a transdisciplinary approach to these issues, supporting practical development resources such as renewable energy, which can also be adapted for disaster response. This study details an exploratory investigation of community vulnerability and capability mapping (VCM) that identifies communities with high WD risk and limited response capability which may benefit from risk reduction engagement and program co-development. By presenting criteria appropriate for VCM, we highlight the anthropocentric characteristics that could potentially be incorporated within community-led action as part of a comprehensive scheme that promotes sustainable development.

Youth as contested sites of culture: The intergenerational acculturation gap amongst new migrant communities-Parental and young adult perspectives.

BACKGROUND: Immigration often results in changes in family dynamics, and within this process of dynamic relational adjustment youth can be conceptualised as contested sites of culture and associated intergenerational conflicts. This paper considers the experiences of migrant youth in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia using conflict as a useful lens through which to view issues of migrant youth identity and their sense of social connectedness, belonging, and agency. The aim of this study was twofold: 1) to explore how migrant youth cope with acculturative stress and intergenerational conflicts, and 2) to better understand the systemic and family-related factors that facilitate positive settlement experiences for migrant youth. METHODS: A total of 14 focus group discussions, comprising 164 people, were carried out in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. These focus groups targeted newly arrived migrant parents and young adults (aged 18-24) of African, Burmese, Nepalese, Indian, Afghani, Bangladeshi and Iraqi backgrounds. Each focus group was 1.5 hours in duration and was conducted by a team of three people (an experienced facilitator, an accredited interpreter/bilingual worker, and a note taker). Data were collected using a standard interview schedule, and an accredited interpreter/bilingual worker asked the questions in the appropriate language and translated participant responses into English. RESULTS: The findings highlight how youth in new migrant families become contested sites of culture as they try to balance integration into the new culture while maintaining their originating country's cultural values. Two themes and four subthemes emerged from the analysis: Intergenerational acculturation gap (loss of family capital and intergenerational conflicts); and factors that successfully protected positive family values while still allowing young people to integrate (the legal system that disarm authoritarian parenting practices and family rules; and parental use of children's increased knowledge of the new environment to navigate their new environment). Migrant families conceptualised family capital as the social solidarity, influence, and control governing obligations and expectations, intergenerational knowledge transmission and information flow, social norms, and cultural identity. The loss of family capital was characterised by children's refusal to associate with or meet family members, preferring to be alone in their rooms and private space. Migrant youth find themselves caught between and negotiating two cultures, with unwanted negative consequences at the family level in the form of intergenerational conflicts. The new found freedom among children and their rapid transition into the Australian society gives children an increased sense of agency, which in turn threatens parental authority, allowing children to exercise three forms of power: increased assertiveness due to legal protection of children against any corporal punishment; and English language fluency and greater understanding of the functioning of Australian social institutions. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest the need for an inter-generational approach to healthy family dynamics within migrant communities when dealing with youth negotiating the complexity and sensitivity of forging their cultural identity.

Sexual, Reproductive Health Needs, and Rights of Young People in Slum Areas of Kampala, Uganda: A Cross Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: Young people in Uganda face various sexual and reproductive health risks, especially those living in urban slums. The aim of this study was to examine factors associated with comprehensive categories of sexual and reproductive health, including sexual behaviours; sexual education and access to contraceptive services; family planning; prevention of STDs; sexual consent as a right; gender based violence; as well as HIV testing, counselling, disclosure and support. METHODS: The study was cross-sectional in design and was carried out in July 2014 in Makindye and Nakawa Divisions of Kampala City, Uganda. Using systematic random sampling, data were collected on 663 participants aged between 13 and 24 years in Kampala's urban slums. RESULTS: Sixty two percent of participants reported having ever had sex and the mean age of sexual debut was 16 years (95%CI: 15.6, 16.4 years, range: 5-23 years). The odds of reporting ever having had sexual intercourse were higher among respondents living alone (OR: 2.75; 95%CI: 1.35, 5.61; p<0.01) than those living in a nuclear family. However, condom use was only 54%. The number of sexual partners in the last 12 months preceding the survey averaged 1.8 partners (95%CI: 1.7, 1.9; range 1-4) with 18.1% reporting an age gap of 10 years or older. More than three quarters (80.6%) of sexually active participants reported that their first sexual encounter was consensual, suggesting that most young people are choosing when they make their sexual debut. Low prevalence of willing first sexual intercourse was associated with younger age (OR = 0.48, 95%CI: 0.25, 0.90, p<0.05), having a disability (OR = 0.40, 95%CI: 0.16, 0.98, p<0.05), living with non-relatives (OR = 0.44, 95%CI: 0.16, 0.97, p<0.05), and being still at school (OR = 0.29, 95%CI: 0.12, 0.67, p<0.01). These results remained significant after adjusting for covariates, except for disability and the age of participants. The proportion of unwilling first sexual intercourse was significantly higher among women for persuasion (13.2% vs. 2.4%, p<0.001), being tricked (7.1% vs 2.9%, p<0.05) and being forced or raped (9.9% vs 4.4%, p<0.05) than men. A high level of sexual abuse emerged from the data with 34.3% affirming that it was alright for a boy to force a girl to have sex if he had feelings for her; 73.3% affirming that it was common for strangers and relatives to force young females to have sexual intercourse with them without consent; 26.3% indicating that it was sometimes justifiable for a boy to hit his girlfriend, as long as they loved each other. CONCLUSION: This study has explored current sexual practice among young people in a specific part of urban Kampala. Young people's sexual and reproductive health remains a challenge in Uganda. To address these barriers, a comprehensive and harmonised sexual and reproductive health system that is youth friendly and takes into account local socio-cultural contexts is urgently needed.