Although some important features of genetically modified (GM) crops such as insect resistance, herbicide tolerance, and drought tolerance might seem to be beneficial for small-scale farmers, the adoption of GM technology by smallholders is still slight. Identifying pros and cons of using this technology is important to understand the impacts of GM crops on these farmers. This article reviews the main opportunities and challenges of GM crops for small-scale farmers in developing countries. The most significant advantages of GM crops include being independent to farm size, environment protection, improvement of occupational health issues, and the potential of bio-fortified crops to reduce malnutrition. Challenges faced by small-scale farmers for adoption of GM crops comprise availability and accessibility of GM crop seeds, seed dissemination and price, and the lack of adequate information. In addition, R&D and production costs in using GM crops make it difficult for these farmers to adopt the use of these crops. Moreover, intellectual property right regulations may deprive resource poor farmers from the advantages of GM technology. Finally, concerns on socio-economic and environment safety issues are also addressed in this paper.

Achieving food security is one of the most important sustainable development goals and is a major global concern, specifically in remote and rural areas of the developing world where high biodiversity can be found and many protected areas are located. The goals of food security and biodiversity conservation are two of the most critical challenges of our time. This study aims to better understand the state of research on protected areas and food security through a methodological lens. The literature search was conducted in the Web of Science core collection and the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CAB) abstracts database. The search results indicate that this is an understudied topic with only nineteen articles published in various research domains. The findings reveal that studies were explanatory research rather than confirmatory and most studies had a snapshot design with no control or baseline. National parks were the main category of protected areas reported in studies. Data collection commonly employed a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods at a household level. We also found that spatial data and methods are important yet underutilized.

This perspective article provides an overview of the interaction between food security and conservation as two of the most important challenges of our time. To provide a better understanding of the topic, a conceptual framework for the possible pathways of positive and negative impacts of protected areas (PAs) on four dimensions of food security is proposed. Considering the importance of hunting and shifting agriculture in food security and the challenges caused by them in conservation, the cases of hunting and shifting agriculture were explored. Finally, the rights-based approaches in conservation and food security, as a new approach with the potential to protect people and the planet as a synergistic approach is discussed.

Homelessness, affecting over half a million Americans, significantly elevates the risks of mental and physical health issues, consequently diminishing life expectancy when compared with the general population. Homelessness is a critical public health issue, and efforts are needed to address lack of housing as a social determinant of health. Transitional housing (TH) programs emerge as vital interventions, offering a place to stay with various support services to facilitate the transition to permanent residency. Nearly half of the unhoused population in the country and over 90% in New York live in TH or shelters. Despite the high utilization rates of TH, engagement with support services and opportunities for improvement remain poorly understood. This study aimed to fill this gap by examining the factors influencing support service usage and opportunities for enhancement through semi-structured interviews with TH residents in New York City to capture their lived experiences and perspectives. Analysis of the interviews (n = 20) revealed five main factors affecting service engagement that aligned with constructs of the socioecological model: intrapersonal (self-efficacy, chronic health conditions, mental health), interpersonal (parenthood and well-being of children with special needs, individual staff interactions, and communication), institutional (bureaucratic challenges, administrative burden, and living facilities), community (social isolation and educational opportunity), and policy (challenge meeting basic needs and undocumented status). Recommendations for bridging service gaps primarily arose at the institutional and community levels, offering critical insights for administrators to tailor services more effectively to TH residents’ needs, thus contributing to the broader goal of advancing health equity among the unhoused.