Ladakh is a cold desert region in India, the temperature here can vary from −30 ℃ to 30 ℃, the harsh climate in the region inspired locals to come up with building construction practices which are relevant to the culture and climate of the region, these traditional wisdom can be best witnessed through the art and architecture of the region, the author has tried to document some features of these traditional knowledge, it is an ongoing research and would take a couple of months to completely relate the indigenous practices with the sustainable development goals, but some of them are highlighted in the visual essay. The author had been working in the region for the past five years now primarily as architect and has conducted various research workshops with students, and additionally he has been part of some of the institutes and organization working in the domain of built environment, heritage, ecology, and archeology. The people of Ladakh have a repository of indigenous knowledge and indigenous techniques that can help build the research to inform planning and design processes specially related to the SDG goals. The visual essay will also take help from two architectural projects done by the author. The first project Dolkhar resort was designed as a boutique resort reusing materials, form and spatial layout of the previously built traditional house, while old age home was built after the flash flood of 2015, it is now home to around sixty old age people, the challenge in both the project was to make it habitable all-round the year using traditional methods, and in addition the research benefitted from numerous studies done by scholars, authors, and travelers in the region but none on the importance of these indigenous knowledge system.

Drought has exacerbated morbidity and mortality worldwide. Here, a time series study was conducted in northern Bangladesh to evaluate the impact of drought on selected causes of mortality during 2007–2017. Rainfall and temperature data from six meteorological stations were used to analyze drought and non-drought periods and to categorize mild, moderate, severe, and extreme drought based on the 3-month and 12-month Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Standardized Precipitation Evaporation Index (SPEI). A generalized linear model with Poisson regression with log link, a negative binomial with log link, and a zero-inflated Poisson model were used to determine associations between drought severity and mortality. The SPI and SPEI produced slightly different analysis results. Compared with the SPEI, the SPI showed a stronger and more sensitive correlation with mortality. The relative risk for respiratory disease mortality was high, and Saidpur was the most vulnerable area. Health care expenditure was negatively associated with mortality. High temperatures during the drought period were associated with suicide-related mortality in Rajshahi. The impact of drought on mortality differed with small changes in climate. The findings of this study improve our understanding of the differences between the two most used drought indicators and the impact of drought on mortality.

Background Drought has been a considerable problem for many years in northern Bangladesh. However, the health impacts of drought in this region are not well understood. Methods This study analyzed the impact of drought duration and severity on select causes of mortality in northern Bangladesh. Rainfall data from three meteorological stations (Rangpur, Dinajpur and Nilphamari) in northern Bangladesh were used to assess drought and non-drought periods, and the Standardized Precipitation Index was used to categorize mild, moderate, severe, and extreme drought. Mortality data from 2007 to 2017 for the three areas were collected from the Sample Vital Registration System, which is a survey of 1 million people. The generalized linear model with Poisson regression link was used to identify associations between mortality and the drought severity and 1-month preceding SPI. Results Only severe and extreme drought in the short-term drought periods affected mortality. Long-term drought was not associated with natural cause mortality in Rangpur and Nilphamari. In Dinajpur, mild and moderate drought was associated with circulatory- and respiratory-related mortality. Conclusion The impact of drought on mortality varied by region. This study improves our understanding of how droughts affect specific causes of mortality and will help policy makers to take appropriate measures against drought impacts on selected cause of mortality. Future research will be critical to reduce drought-related risks of health.

Examining health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in a rural setting can be beneficial for improving rural household policies and fostering public health promotion. The objective of this study was to measure the HRQOL and associated socioeconomic characteristics as well as test the reliability of the Amharic version of SF-8 (eight-item short form of HRQOL survey). A cross-sectional study was employed in three agroecologically different sites in rural Ethiopia, involving 270 household heads (218 male and 52 female) with a mean age ± standard deviation of 49 ± 12.88 years. The survey material consisted of a structured questionnaire for socioeconomic characteristics and SF-8 for HRQOL. The mean physical and mental component summary score of the whole sample was 30.50 ± 12.18 and 34.40 ± 7.26, respectively, well underneath the instrument average of 50. The SF-8 items showed excellent internal consistency in terms of both Cronbach’s α coefficients and item–total correlation. In stepwise multiple linear regression, the low-income group had worse self-perceived physical health than the higher-income groups. Likewise, a diversified livelihood had a profound influence on positive self-perceived physical health. These findings imply that developing and distributing wide-ranging socioeconomic and public health policies is crucial for effective health promotion in rural communities.

TPS 723: Low and middle income countries: sanitation infections and other health effects, Exhibition Hall, Ground floor, August 26, 2019, 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM Background: Most Mongolians are known to have low vitamin D levels because of low availability and lack of dietary habit of vitamin D-rich foods, including fish and mushrooms. Moreover, solar radiation is inadequate to induce cutaneous synthesis of pre-vitamin D in winters because of Mongolia's high latitude and highland location. This study aims to determine the spatial status of vitamin D in Mongolians. Methods: Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], the most abundant vitamin D metabolite in circulation, was measured in 541 healthy subjects (age: 10–64 years) living in six Mongolian provinces and capital, Ulaanbaatar. Furthermore, blood samples were collected between September and December 2016. Results: The mean (± standard deviation) serum 25(OH)D concentration was 16.6 (± 7.0) ng/mL (recommended value, ≥30.0 ng/mL); furthermore, 70.1% of subjects had "deficient" (<20 ng/mL) and 24.2% had "insufficient" (20≤, <30 ng/mL) levels. The 25(OH)D levels were significantly lower in females (14.9 ± 5.9 ng/mL) than in males (19.5 ± 7.8 ng/mL), although no differentiation was noted by age. Subjects from Ulaanbaatar exhibited the lowest levels of 25(OH)D (7.9 ± 2.6 ng/mL) compared with all provinces, with significant differences even if seasonal sampling blood was considered. Furthermore, the 25(OH)D levels were relatively high in provinces in southern Mongolia. Conclusions: Mongolians have deficient vitamin D levels, especially in Ulaanbaatar, which could be partly attributed to the impact of air pollution; Ulaanbaatar is the most air polluted area in Mongolia (annual mean: PM2.5, 6–10 times higher than the safety level), which decreases the amount of ultraviolet-B radiation required for the synthesis of pre-vitamin D. Therefore, a comprehensive policy, including dietary modification and the remedy for air pollution, is warranted.