Risk-based prioritization of pharmaceuticals in the natural environment in Iraq

Numerous studies have demonstrated the occurrence of pharmaceuticals in the natural environment, raising concerns about their impact on non-target organisms or human health. One region where little is known about the exposure and effects of pharmaceuticals in the environment is Iraq. Due to the high number of pharmaceuticals used by the public health sector in Iraq (hospitals and care centres) and distributed over the counter, there is a need for a systematic approach for identifying substances that should be monitored in the environment in Iraq and assessed in terms of environmental risk. In this study, a risk-based prioritization approach was applied to 99 of the most dispensed pharmaceuticals in three Iraqi cities, Baghdad, Mosul and Basrah. Initially, information on the amounts of pharmaceuticals used in Iraq was obtained. The top used medicines were found to be paracetamol, amoxicillin and metformin with total annual consumption exceeding 1000 tonnes per year. Predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) and predicted no-effect concentrations (PNECs), derived from ecotoxicological end-points and effects related to the therapeutic mode of action, were then used to rank the pharmaceuticals in terms of risks to different environmental compartments. Active pharmaceutical ingredients used as antibiotics, antidepressants and analgesics were identified as the highest priority in surface water, sediment and the terrestrial environment. Antibiotics were also prioritized according to their susceptibility to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria or to accelerate the evolution and dissemination of antibiotic-resistant genes in water. Future work will focus on understanding the occurrence, fate and effects of some of highly prioritized substances in the environment

Union formation and partner choice of the second generation of Turkish origin in Europe: The influence of third parties and institutional context

Liefbroer, A.C. [Promotor]Valk, H.A.G. de [Promotor

Gender-role behavior of second-generation Turks: the role of partner choice, gender ideology and societal context

This study explores and compares gender-role behavior of second-generation Turks in six European countries. On the individual level, we study the role of gender ideology and consequences of (transnational) partner choice on four aspects of gender-role behavior; childcare, routine household tasks, financial matters, and income contribution. Furthermore, we ask whether welfare state regimes and policies have a similar effect on the gender-role behavior of the second generation across countries, as they have on the majority populations. Analyzing data from the survey The Integration of the European Second Generation (TIES, 2006-08), we find that the gender-role behavior of secondgeneration Turks follows a typology based on gender relations and predominant family models, but mainly for the traditionally female domain of childcare and routine household tasks. Our results show that contributing to the household income is clearly shared in Sweden, but less so in the other countries. Taking care of financial matters follows no clear country pattern and women are twice as likely as men to indicate this as a shared task. The findings underline the importance of policies in shaping gender-role behavior also for migrants and their descendants. Intra-group comparison points to the strong influence of gender ideology on behavior and to the fact that men choosing a partner from Turkey live in couples where the division of labor is the most traditional. Keywords: Gender-role behavior; second generation; Turks; partner choice

Does social embeddedness influence union formation differences among the Turkish and Moroccan generation in the Netherlands?

So far, most studies have examined the role of peers in school achievement, language acquisition and ethnic identity of second-generation migrants.This paper contributes to the literature first of all by studying how non-family networks influence union formation decisions of the second generation. Secondly, making a distinction between types of contact adds a new perspective to the study of network influence on union formation whereby strong ties consist of close friends and weak ties of acquaintances. Thirdly, comparing the relative importance of non-co-ethnic networks among men and women of two ethnic groups that share broad cultural and social similarities reveals the importance of these networks for different origin groups. Finally, studying multiple aspects of union formation enables a better assessment of the importance of social embeddedness into non-co-ethnic networks for choices in the family domain. In this paper, four aspects of union formation are covered, namely the timing of first union, timing of the first marriage, the type of union that is chosen and the ethnic origin of the partner

Partner choice patterns among the descendants of Turkish immigrants in Europe

We examine the partner choice patterns of second-generation Turks in 13 European cities in seven countries. We not only compare intermarriage versus endogamous marriage, but also explicitly include the choice of a second-generation partner of the same origin and of a partner of other migrant origin as important alternatives. In Europe, populations are made up increasingly of migrants and their descendants resulting in new alternative partner options not open before. Findings suggest that second-generation Turks who choose a second-generation partner seem to be located between the partner choice of a first-generation and native partner in terms of family values and contact to non-coethnic peers. The choice of a partner of other migrant origin hardly differs in these characteristics from the choice of a native partner. Context variables such as group size and type of integration policies seem to play a role for the likelihood of having a first-generation versus a secondgeneration partner of Turkish origin but not for the likelihood of exogamous partner choice. A second-generation partner is the most popular choice in Germany but represents a minor option in the other countries. Furthermore, a partner of other migrant origin is more common among men but is in some countries more popular than a native partner among Turkish second-generation men and women. Keywords: second generation migrants; intermarriage; Europe; Turks; partner choic