Tagged / collaborative research

High five! New FishE papers support the evidence base for conserving threatened species and habitats

Providing the evidence base to support conservation actions that protect species and habitats in aquatic ecosystems is a key task in the Fish Ecology and Conservation Research Cluster (FishE). This week, five articles published or accepted for publication will contribute strongly to this evidence base, with the work co-created with a number of funders and collaborating organisations.

Sotiris Meletiou’s PhD is on the conservation biology and management of the critically endangered European eel in Cyprus – which is at the eastern edge of their range and far away from their spawning grounds in the Sargasso Sea (Atlantic Ocean). Until now, an eel management plan was not required for Cyprus as any eels present were not believed to metamorphose into adult silver eels and not emigrate back to their spawning grounds. Sotiris’ new paper in the Journal of Fish Biology demonstrates that silver eels are indeed present in Cyprus and do attempt to emigrate to sea, and so should drive the formation of a management plan that should result in greater eel protection and conservation in the eastern Mediterranean.

Simone Cittadino’s research is assessing how freshwater fish respond to saline incursion events from the sea into lowland rivers. these events driven by high spring tides, exacerbated by climate change driven rising sea levels and weather events. His new paper in Hydrobiologia assesses the general movements of a key fish species in the Norfolk Broads, the common bream, highlighting the importance of high habitat connectivity for their movements across this large protected wetland. This work will provide a strong basis for the rest of his PhD research.

Phillip Haubrock, a Marie Curie Incoming postdoctoral Fellow, identified how conservation efforts across the world have been affected by research that is limited by political borders and the restricted availability of data. He and his co-authors argue in Conservation Biology that supra-national and better open-data governance should be capable of overcoming this and lead to better conservation outcomes.

Two articles just accepted for publication this week also contribute strongly to the conservation evidence base. Jonas Palder’s first publication from his PhD was accepted in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, which assessed the increased mortality risk for threatened European shads caused by human constructed barriers within rivers. Robert Britton worked with Gabby Valle, one of our School’s 2024/25 MSc Biodiversity Conservation students, to get her research project data published, which was assessing the risk of a biological invasion in Britain by the globally invasive and ecologically damaging common carp. Their manuscript has also just been accepted for publication in the Journal of Fish Biology.

Congratulations to all involved!

Up2U: New BU academic publication

Congratulations to the interdisciplinary BU team on the publication of the paper ‘Up2U: designing and validating a new evidence-based programme for perpetrators of domestic abuse who want to change’ in Frontiers in Psychology [1].   The new paper is part of the series ‘The Dynamics of Emotion Regulation and Aggressiveness in Gender-Based Violence Contexts’, and it appeared in an Open Access journal and is therefore easily accessible.

Domestic abuse is a pervasive issue rooted in patterns of power and control, contributing to a significant number of high-harm offenses both in the UK and internationally. While programmes have been aiming to disrupt abusive cycles through the understanding and recognition of harm, there is widespread disagreement on what effective interventions should look like. This paper addresses this gap.

The authors of this paper include both psychologists and social workers, as well as a student co-author.  The lead author, Terri Cole, is a Principal Academic in Forensic Psychology.

 

Congratulations!

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

 

Reference:

  1. Cole, T., Oliver, L., Harvey, O., Healy, J., Sperryn, A., Barbin, A. (2025) Up2U: designing and validating a new evidence-based programme for perpetrators of domestic abuse who want to change, Frontiers in Psychology, Volume 16 – 28 Nov.2025 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1676490

New BU midwifery paper

Congratulations to HEMS colleagues on their recently published paper in MIDIRS Midwifery Digest. This new qualitative publication focuses on the ‘Barriers to the uptake of healthy eating messages by Black African immigrant pregnant women living in the UK: midwives’ perspectives’ [1].  The paper grew out of Aniebiet Ekong’s PhD research on this topic which was supervised by Drs. Pramod Regmi, Juliet Wood, and Jaqui Hewitt-Taylor.

 

Reference:

  1. Ekong A, Regmi P, Wood J, Hewitt-Taylor J. Barriers to the uptake of healthy eating messages by Black African immigrant
    pregnant women living in the UK: midwives’ perspectives M
    IDIRS Midwifery Digest, 35(4):  372–383.

New PhD publication on Nepal’s migrant workers

Congratulations to BU postgraduate student Yagya Adhikari, who has just been informed by the editor of the Journal of Immigrant & Minority Health that his paper “Parental migration for work and psychosocial problems among left-behind adolescents in Nepal” [1] has been accepted for publication.  Yagya’s PhD is based in the Faculty of Health, Environment & Medical Science.  He is supervised by Dr. Pramod Regmi and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen with support from Mr. Sudip Khanal, Lecturer in Biostatistics, at Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS) in Kathmandu.  This is the second paper from Yagya’s PhD the first one was published at the start of his PhD studies [2].  Both papers are published in Open Access journals and therefor will be freely available to read by anyone in the world with internet access.

 

References:

  1. Adhikari, Y.R., van Teijlingen, E., Regmi, P.R., Khanal, S., Parental migration for work and psychosocial problems among left-behind adolescents in Nepal, Journal of Immigrant & Minority Health (forthcoming)
  2. Adhikari, Y.R., Regmi, P.R., Devkota, B., van Teijlingen, E.R. (2022) Forgotten health and social care needs of left-behind families of Nepali migrant workers. Journal of Health Promotion, 10(1):1–4. https://doi.org/10.3126/jhp.v10i1.50976

BU paper among top 20 most cited papers

The international journal Sociological Research Online ranked a paper written by Bournemouth University academics in its top twenty most cited papers in the past three years.  The methodological paper ‘Using a range of communication tools to interview a hard-to-reach population’ has as lead author Dr. Orlanda Harvey in the Faculty of Health, Environment & Medical Science.

Reference:

  1. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E., Parrish, M. (2024) Using a range of communication tools to interview a hard-to-reach population, Sociological Research Online 29(1): 221–232 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/13607804221142212

New Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health (CMHW) paper on Nepal

Last week the international Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development emailed to tell that our paper ‘Exploring handwashing knowledge and practice among lactating mothers in Kathmandu’s slum communities[1] had been accepted for publication.

It is widely known that poor access to good quality water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) lead to high morbidity in young children. The paper reports on a cross-sectional study conducted with 127 breastfeeding mothers in two slum settlements in Nepal’s capital.  It found that most had a good knowledge of WASH and appropriate washing of hands. However, the prevalence of illness among children whose mothers had only basic education was 26% higher than those whose mothers had completed secondary education. Family income and hand-washing practice were also significantly associated with child health (p < 0.01). Nearly three in four (73.2%) of children had experienced health issues, particularly diarrhoea, in the past half year.

The authors concluded that strengthening maternal hand-hygiene education programmes, particularly for lactating mothers, and improving WASH infrastructure are necessary, as well as promoting affordable hand-washing solutions in urban slums.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

 

Reference:

  1. Devkota, G.P., Sharma, M.K., Sherpa, S., Khanal, T.R., Devkota, B., van Teijlingen, E. (2025) Exploring handwashing knowledge and practice among lactating mothers in Kathmandu’s slum communities, Nepal, Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 15:1-10. doi: 10.2166/washdev.2025.084

BU’s Dr. Iannuzzi editing special issue HEALTHCARE

Dr. Laura Iannuzzi, based in the Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health, is acting as one of the two guest editors of a Special Issue for the international journal Healthcare.  This Special Issue called ‘Advancing Midwifery and Nursing Practice: Equity, Inclusion and Integrated Care’ currently has a call out for contributions. Details can be found by clicking here!

Healthcare is looking for authors to submit papers exploring strategic directions for midwifery and nursing in advancing inclusion, equity, and health.  This Special Issue is open to topics such as integrated care strategies and long-term care models, professional nursing roles, evidence-based interventions, and community-engaged approaches. The proposed theme aligns with Healthcare’s focus on multidisciplinary research and practical solutions that improve health outcomes across populations.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Strategic frameworks and global policy implications for midwifery and nursing;
  • Educational innovations to promote equity and development;
  • Evidence-based clinical practices focused on underserved populations;
  • Community health initiatives and participatory care models;
  • Coordinated interprofessional models and organizational frameworks that promote inclusive and equitable care;
  • Impacts of global crises (e.g., pandemics, conflict) on midwifery and nursing practices.

The Guest Editors are Dr. Simona Fumagalli and Dr. Laura Iannuzzi

Interactive Tangible and Intangible Heritage Applications – BU student work featured in new book chapter

SpringerNature: Interactive Media for Cultural Heritage At the beginning of July, the chapter Interactive Tangible and Intangible Heritage Applications Built on Real-Time Graphics Systems: Heritage Experiences in Desktop CG, Virtual and Augmented Reality by Eike Falk Anderson, Valery Adzhiev, Paul Cheetham, Glyn Hadley, David John, Catja Larsson, Ana-Maria-Cristina Ureche and Mario Romero was published in the volume Interactive Media for Cultural Heritage of the highly regarded Springer Series on Cultural Computing.

The chapter explores different types of interactive heritage experiences that can be built using modern computer games technologies, including museum exhibits, games and mobile apps, providing exemplars for heritage applications in the form of a set of case studies that encompass both tangible and intangible heritage.

Images from the projects described in the chapter. Among the featured case studies are three final year undergraduate student projects that were created at the National Centre for Computer Animation (NCCA) during the 2021/2022 academic year: two projects by Catja Larsson and one project by Ana-Maria-Cristina Ureche. Both alumni co-authored the chapter, demonstrating once again the excellent quality of work produced by NCCA undergraduates.

Academics write for newspaper in Nepal

Yesterday the online newspaper Online Khabar in Nepal published an opinion piece in English written by three Bournemouth University academics working with a colleague in Kathmandu.  This interdisciplinary piece ‘Resilient through experiences: Unlocking the entrepreneurial prowess of Nepal’s left-behind women‘ brings together ideas gained from many different studies and disciplines.  The three authors from Bournemouth University are: Dr. Sukanya Ayatakshi-Endow, Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen, and Dr. Pramod Regmi, and they collaborated with Dr. Rashmee Rajkarnikar who is based at Nepal’s oldest and largest university, Tribhuvan University.  The four authors brings insights from economics, business studies, sociology, women’s studies, migration studies and health.

New paper published on disability in women & girls

Yesterday (25 June) the online journal PLoS One published ‘Life-time experience of violence among women and girls living with disability in Nepal‘ our latest study on disability in Nepal [1].  This cross-sectional study was conducted in 28 municipalities representing all seven provinces as well as all three ecological regions of Nepal. A total of 1,294 women and girls with disability aged 15–59 years participated in  2021. We trained local enumerators using the KoBo application on smartphones or tablets. Both written and oral informed consent was sought from all participants. Cross-tabulations were performed in STATA 18 to determine the distribution of the prevalence of violence. Also, bivariable and multivariable logistic regression models were fitted to establish association between the participants’ characteristics and odds of experiencing violence.

Overall, 457 (35.32%) women living with disabilities had ever experienced violence at a point in their lifetime. Psychological/emotional violence was the most prevalent violence (74.40%) followed by physical violence (31.07%) and denial of services (28.67%). Age was positively associated with the likelihood of experiencing violence. Women belonging to the Brahman/Chhetri ethnic group had reduced odds of violence [AOR = 0.56; 95%CI: 0.37–0.85] compared to Hill Dalits. Divorced or separated women showed a markedly higher likelihood of experiencing violence [AOR = 6.69; 95%CI: 2.31–19.40] compared to currently married women. Participants who had not witnessed violence against other women exhibited significantly higher odds of experiencing violence [AOR = 1.86; 95%CI: 1.20–2.89]. Women living in the Koshi province [AOR = 4.04; 95%CI: 2.54–6.42], Madhesh province [AOR = 2.16; 95%CI: 1.15–4.08] and Bagmati province [AOR = 2.21; 95%CI: 1.41–3.46] reported significantly higher odds of experiencing violence compared to those in Karnali.

The paper concludes oncludes that age, ethnicity, marital status, and provincial residence are significant predictors of violence among women and girls living with disability in Nepal. Interventions aimed at addressing violence against women living with disability in Nepal must prioritize older women and those who were previously married. Also, policy-makers may want to consider giving priority must be given to those provinces where the prevalence and risk of experiencing violence is highest.

The study was funded The United Nations Women Trust Fund,  and the paper is freely available in the Open Access journal.  We previously published on research into disability in Nepal in 2023 [2].

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health

Visiting Faculty, Centre for Disability Studies, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, India.


References:

  1. Simkhada P, Basnet S, Sharma S, van Teijlingen E, Wasti SP, Dahal T, et al. (2025) Life-time experience of violence among women and girls living with disability in Nepal. PLoS One 20(6): e0326659. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0326659.
  2. Simkhada, P, Shyangdan, D, van Teijlingen E, Kadel, S, Stephen, J., Gurung, T. (2013) Women’s Knowledge & Attitude towards Disability in Rural Nepal. Disability & Rehabilitation 35(7): 606-13. http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/09638288.2012.702847

MaGPIE Publishes Collaborative Paper in the IRRC

The MaGPIE (Mass Grave Protection, Investigation and Engagement) team, run out of the Humanities and Law department, have recently had their first collaborative paper published in the International Review of the Red Cross.

 

The paper entitled ‘Mass grave mapping and the protection of the dead gives’ insight into the current research being undertaken within the project, including the ongoing mapping of mass graves globally. It also asks, to what extent mapping can be considered a preventative process.

 

To read the full paper follow the link in the image below: