In April 2015, Chile passed a gender quota law as part of a larger reform to the country’s election laws. Quotas are not new to Latin America, and Chile is, in fact, one of the last countries in the region to adopt such a law. Yet, expectations for success must be tempered by what scholars know about making quotas effective for increasing women’s legislative representation. Analysis of gender quota laws in Latin America suggests that Chile’s quota may be less effective than proponents hope.
Texas loses between five to six million acre-feet of water per year to evaporation from surface water supply reservoirs. Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR), whereby water supplies are stored underground, may provide a useful strategy for managing and protecting water supplies.
The ties binding the Arab Gulf states into the global economy are both deep-rooted and long predate the discovery and extraction of oil in the 20th century. In this research paper, Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, fellow for the Middle East, assesses the multifaceted reasons behind the Gulf states’ uneven record of integration into the world economy.
Boko Haram may be reaching its bitter end in Nigeria as the the country's military, with the support of Niger, Cameroon, and Chad, plans a massive ground invasion of the insurgents’ long-controlled safe zone, the Sambisa Forest. Outgoing Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has refused the offer of the United Nations to send troops, expressing confidence in the regional Multinational Joint Task Force's (MNJTF) ability to rout Boko Haram before the May 29 handover to the new president. However, Boko Haram remains deadly as long as sharia is the precondition for political and economic gains to the Muslim north.
The Center for the Middle East at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy announces a
new annual grant program to support outstanding students conducting innovative fieldwork in the Middle East or North Africa. Apply by May 15, 2015, to receive up to $3,000 (undergraduates) or up to $5,000 (graduate students). Download the PDF for more information.
The percentage of Texans without health insurance dropped 31 percent since enrollment began in the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) Health Insurance Marketplace, according to a new report released today by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and the Episcopal Health Foundation.
Though health education cost-effectively reduces the incidence, morbidity and mortality of chronic conditions such as obesity, currently there is no consistent, systematic method by which Americans are educated about their health. This paper discusses proven approaches to positively change poor behaviors such as overeating and a sedentary lifestyle — key factors that lead to obesity. Health problems related to obesity are thereby reduced, cutting health care costs.
Increasing evidence links the major neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) to a significant adverse impact on both human and economic development, especially for the major helminth infections, i.e., hookworm and the intestinal helminth infections, schistosomiasis and lymphatic filariasis. Helminth Elimination in the Pursuit of Sustainable Development Goals: A "Worm Index" for Human Development
Peter J. Hotez, Jennifer R. HerricksApril 30, 2015
As the implementation of Mexico’s historic energy reform gets underway, the debate has tended to overlook a key question at the intersection of technology and the new legislation: How can Mexico create an institutional framework supported by policies, laws and organizations to facilitate technology transfers and foster local innovation? Simply put, how will international oil companies transfer technology to Mexican companies and research facilities?
