John Briscoe

Bio: John Briscoe is an academic researcher from Harvard University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Water supply & Sanitation. The author has an hindex of 32, co-authored 61 publications receiving 3723 citations. Previous affiliations of John Briscoe include University of Texas at El Paso & University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Estimating the willingness to pay for water services in developing countries: a case study of the use of contingent valuation surveys in southern Haiti.

Abstract: Progress in improving the quality and quantity of water used by people in rural areas of the developing world has been unsatisfactory in two respects: (1) supplies that have been built are frequently neither used correctly nor properly maintained and (2) extension of improved service to unserved populations has been slow. Though this poor record is not the result of a single factor, a major impediment to improved performance is inadequate information on the response of consumers to new service options. The behavioral assumptions that typically underlie most rural water supply planning efforts are simple. It is commonly assumed that so long as financial requirements do not exceed 5% of income, rural consumers will choose to abandon their existing water supply in favor of the "improved" system. Several reviews by the World Bank, bilateral donors, and water supply agencies in developing countries have shown, however, that this simple model of behavioral response to improved water supplies has usually proved incorrect.1 In rural areas many of those "served" by new systems have chosen to continue with their traditional water use practices.

Breast-feeding and diarrheal morbidity.

Abstract: This study used a unique longitudinal survey of more than 3000 mother-infant pairs observed from pregnancy through infancy. The sample is representative of infants from the Cebu region of the Philippines. The sequence of breastfeeding and diarrheal morbidity events was carefully examined in a longitudinal analysis which allowed for the examination of age-specific effects of feeding patterns. Because the work controlled for a wide range of environmental causes of diarrhea the results can be generalized to other populations with some confidence. The addition to the breastmilk diet to even water teas and other nonnutritive liquids doubled or tripled the likelihood of diarrhea. Supplementation of breastfeeding with additional nutritive foods or liquids further increased significantly the risk of diarrhea; most benefits of breastfeeding alone or in combination with nutritive foods/liquids became small during the 2nd 1/2 of infancy. Benefits of breastfeeding were slightly greater in urban environments. (authors)

India's Water Economy: Bracing for a Turbulent Future

Abstract: India faces a turbulent water future and the current water development and management system is not sustainable.Unless dramatic changes are made and made soon in the way in which government manages water, India will have neither the cash to maintain and build new infrastructure, nor the water required for the economy and for people. This Report examines the evolution of the management of India's waters, describes the achievements of the past, and the looming set of challenges. The Report suggests what changes should be considered and how to manage the transition from the ways of the past to the ways of the future in a principled but pragmatic manner. This report focuses on two basic issues-the major water-related challenges facing India, and the critical measures required to address them. It calls for a reinvigorated set of public water institutions to sustain water development and management in India. The study examines the evolution of water management in India, describes the achievements of the past, analyses the challenges ahead, and suggests ways of evolving a sustainable water management system.

Underlying and proximate determinants of child health: the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Study.

Abstract: Between 1983-1985 researchers analyzed socioeconomic data and diarrhea incidence during the 1st year of life from 17 urban areas in metropolitan Cebu the Philippines using a new methodology. This model integrated socioeconomic behavioral and biomedical models to illustrate how policy makers may use it to assess determinants of infant morbidity mortality and growth. They demonstrated that standard statistical procedures (e.g. ordinary least squares or logistic regression) do not correctly estimate the effect of risk factors on health when some variables are endogenous. Further these techniques do not consider the fact that mothers do indeed identify health risks and act to reduce the effects of these risks. In the model which ignores endogeneity (standard analysis) only the variable total calories was statistically significant (alpha=.01) with diarrheal incidence but it was not significant in the model accounting for endogeneity (instrumental variable analysis). Further the standard analysis did not identify certain behaviors (improved excreta disposal preventive health care and exclusive breast feeding) as having an effect on diarrhea incidence yet the instrumental variable analysis confirmed that they did indeed have a significant protective effect (alpha=.01- .05). In addition when the standard analysis indicated the same statistically significant estimates as the instrumental variable analysis (e.g. water quality) the values were substantially biased toward the null. The new analysis also showed that maternal education reduced diarrhea incidence because of improved excreta disposal practices (about 4%) and increased caloric intake (1.23%). It also caused an offsetting increase in diarrhea because of a reduction in the number of mothers who breast fed (exclusive breast feeding 2.08%; any breast feeding 1.66%).

Drinking-water quality, sanitation, and breast-feeding: their interactive effects on infant health.

Abstract: The promotion of proper infant feeding practices and the improvement of environmental sanitation have been two important strategies in the effort to reduce diarrhoeal morbidity among infants. Breast-feeding protects infants by decreasing their exposure to water- and foodborne pathogens and by improving their resistance to infection; good sanitation isolates faecal material from the human environment, reducing exposures to enteric pathogens. Taken together, breast-feeding and good sanitation form a set of sequential barriers that protect infants from diarrhoeal pathogens. As a result, breast-feeding may be most important if the sanitation barrier is not in place. This issue is explored using data from a prospective study of 2355 urban Filipino infants during the first 6 months of life. Longitudinal multivariate analyses are used to estimate the effects of full breast-feeding and mixed feeding on diarrhoeal disease at different levels of sanitation. Breast-feeding provides significant protection against diarrhoeal disease for infants in all environments. Administration of even small portions of contaminated water supplements to fully breast-fed infants nearly doubles their risk of diarrhoea. Mixed-fed and weaned infants consume much greater quantities of supplemental liquids, and as a result, the protective effect of full breast-feeding is greatest when drinking-water is contaminated. Similarly, full breast-feeding has stronger protective effects among infants living in crowded, highly contaminated settings.

Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk

Abstract: Considerable advances have occurred in recent years in the scientific knowledge of the benefits of breastfeeding, the mechanisms underlying these benefits, and in the clinical management of breastfeeding. This policy statement on breastfeeding replaces the 1997 policy statement of the American Academy of Pediatrics and reflects this newer knowledge and the supporting publications. The benefits of breastfeeding for the infant, the mother, and the community are summarized, and recommendations to guide the pediatrician and other health care professionals in assisting mothers in the initiation and maintenance of breastfeeding for healthy term infants and high-risk infants are presented. The policy statement delineates various ways in which pediatricians can promote, protect, and support breastfeeding not only in their individual practices but also in the hospital, medical school, community, and nation.

Plant drought stress: effects, mechanisms and management

Abstract: Scarcity of water is a severe environmental constraint to plant productivity. Drought-induced loss in crop yield probably exceeds losses from all other causes, since both the severity and duration of the stress are critical. Here, we have reviewed the effects of drought stress on the growth, phenology, water and nutrient relations, photosynthesis, assimilate partitioning, and respiration in plants. This article also describes the mechanism of drought resistance in plants on a morphological, physiological and molecular basis. Various management strategies have been proposed to cope with drought stress. Drought stress reduces leaf size, stem extension and root proliferation, disturbs plant water relations and reduces water-use efficiency. Plants display a variety of physiological and biochemical responses at cellular and whole-organism levels towards prevailing drought stress, thus making it a complex phenomenon. CO2 assimilation by leaves is reduced mainly by stomatal closure, membrane damage and disturbed activity of various enzymes, especially those of CO2 fixation and adenosine triphosphate synthesis. Enhanced metabolite flux through the photorespiratory pathway increases the oxidative load on the tissues as both processes generate reactive oxygen species. Injury caused by reactive oxygen species to biological macromolecules under drought stress is among the major deterrents to growth. Plants display a range of mechanisms to withstand drought stress. The major mechanisms include curtailed water loss by increased diffusive resistance, enhanced water uptake with prolific and deep root systems and its efficient use, and smaller and succulent leaves to reduce the transpirational loss. Among the nutrients, potassium ions help in osmotic adjustment; silicon increases root endodermal silicification and improves the cell water balance. Low-molecular-weight osmolytes, including glycinebetaine, proline and other amino acids, organic acids, and polyols, are crucial to sustain cellular functions under drought. Plant growth substances such as salicylic acid, auxins, gibberrellins, cytokinin and abscisic acid modulate the plant responses towards drought. Polyamines, citrulline and several enzymes act as antioxidants and reduce the adverse effects of water deficit. At molecular levels several drought-responsive genes and transcription factors have been identified, such as the dehydration-responsive element-binding gene, aquaporin, late embryogenesis abundant proteins and dehydrins. Plant drought tolerance can be managed by adopting strategies such as mass screening and breeding, marker-assisted selection and exogenous application of hormones and osmoprotectants to seed or growing plants, as well as engineering for drought resistance.