BURA Collection:

Invisibility problem: why current economic evaluations understate the value of sexual and reproductive health and rights, and three strategic shifts to address it

2026-10-20T00:00:00Z

Title: Invisibility problem: why current economic evaluations understate the value of sexual and reproductive health and rights, and three strategic shifts to address it Authors: Narasimhan, Manjulaa; Rasanathan, Jennifer JK; Allotey, Pascale; Ahmed, Sayem; Crankson, Shirley; Banstola, Amrit; Pokhrel, Subhash Abstract: Summary box: • Most economic evaluations of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) interventions capture only health-sector benefits, rarely accounting for cross-sectoral returns in education, labour, justice and social protection. • A 27% reduction in global SRHR financing in 2023, compounded by donor withdrawal since 2025, driven mainly by geopolitical pressures, is undermining progress across health, education, economic development and equity goals. • Better evidence is unlikely to reverse decisions made on economic grounds, but evaluations that make cross-sectoral returns visible give ministries beyond health a demonstrable stake in SRHR investment and standing to defend it. • We propose three strategic shifts to make the broader returns on SRHR investments more visible: adopting multisectoral and societal rather than a uniquely health-sector perspective; embedding life-course and intergenerational analysis and applying disaggregated approaches to address equity concerns, including those enabled by emerging analytical methods. Description: Data availability statement: Supplementary data is available from Reference 16. Ahmed S, Crankson S, Banstola A, et al. Summary data tables: a rapid scoping review of economic evaluations of sexual and reproductive health and rights. Brunel University of London 2025; doi:10.17633/rd.brunel.33455722

Developing Critical Posthumanist Pedagogical Praxis for Youth and Community Work

2026-10-07T00:00:00Z

Title: Developing Critical Posthumanist Pedagogical Praxis for Youth and Community Work Authors: Cooper-Levitan, Mika Neil; Alldred, Pam; Martin, Wendy Abstract: Youth and community work in the United Kingdom has an important role in responding to social challenges in young people’s lives such as gender-related violence (GRV). Youth and community work’s rich inheritance from critical pedagogy has inspired it to centre the relationship between youth and community worker and young person, and the principles of voluntary association and being youth-led. However, as feminists have reconceptualised models of violence, we may need to rethink how youth and community work praxis is conceived, especially given the sociomaterial turn. Youth and community work practice and the education of its practitioners often remain rooted in humanist, individualised, and competency-based models that fail to prepare practitioners for contemporary challenges. Drawing on a doctoral study of youth and community work responses to GRV, this article argues that both youth and community work praxis and the education of future practitioners require norm-critical, feminist, queer, and posthumanist pedagogies. It maps a proposed pedagogic framework for a broad youth and community work praxis that cultivates critical pedagogies with sociomaterial attunement, an ethics of care, critical reflexivity, and the capacity to work with discomfort and uncertainty. This critical posthumanist praxis offers future youth and community work practitioners the tools to navigate the complexities of social issues such as GRV and to enact transformative youth and community work. Description: Data Availability Statement: The contributions presented in this article are selected from the data collected for the PhD, some of which is presented in the thesis. The thesis is available on the university archive: https://bura.brunel.ac.uk. Further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.

Roles of Self‐Stigma and Meaning in the Relationship Between Age and Loneliness: A Perspective From Gerotranscendence

2026-07-26T00:00:00Z

Title: Roles of Self‐Stigma and Meaning in the Relationship Between Age and Loneliness: A Perspective From Gerotranscendence Authors: Xiao, Han; Malli, Melina; Qualter, Pamela; Barreto, Manuela; Victor, Christina; Cosco, Theodore D; Zhou, Guangyu Abstract: Drawing on the theory of gerotranscendence, this research aimed to gain a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of the age-loneliness relationship and underlying factors. Data from the BBC Loneliness Experiment (⁢𝑛 = 6875, 67.80% female, M_age = 49.26, Range_age 16–94) were analyzed using polynomial regression and Multi-Group Structural Equation Modeling (MG-SEM) for the quantitative data, and complemented by Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) for free-text data. The results showed: (1) there was a non-linear, inverted 𝑈-shaped relationship between age and loneliness, with an inflection point at 39.2 years of age; (2) in the older age group, loneliness self-stigma and the meaning of loneliness played parallel mediating roles between age and loneliness, whereas no mediating effect was observed in the younger age group; (3) these mediating effects primarily attenuated the loneliness frequency and loneliness intensity rather than loneliness duration; (4) two overarching topics of loneliness (i.e., Limited Social Functions and Unsatisfactory Social Relationships) were identified, with differences between the two age groups. This study further enriches the understanding of gerotranscendence in the loneliness domain and provides suggestions for tailoring precision interventions (i.e., self-stigma, meaning-making) to distinct life stages and specific loneliness dimensions. Description: Data Availability Statement: Access to the dataset is available from the authors upon reasonable request.

ESIC Series: Paper 9 Estimating initial costs of Evidence Synthesis Infrastructure Collaborative solutions: assumptions and overall results

2026-09-21T00:00:00Z

Title: ESIC Series: Paper 9 Estimating initial costs of Evidence Synthesis Infrastructure Collaborative solutions: assumptions and overall results Authors: Pokhrel, Subhash; Hanney, Stephen Abstract: Aim: To estimate the initial costs of implementing the Evidence Synthesis Infrastructure Collaborative (ESIC) solutions and therefore provide funders with a costed menu of options for strengthening global evidence synthesis systems. Background: ESIC was established to enhance the timeliness, relevance, and affordability of evidence synthesis worldwide. Five Working Groups and a Governance Planning Group were tasked with identifying priority solutions to address systemic gaps in infrastructure, capacity, and governance. We were tasked with costing these solutions from a funder’s perspective to inform strategic investment decisions. Methods: We followed a structured approach with planning of the costing occurring concurrently with the solutions being identified by the groups. We identified resource requirements, measured quantities, and applied unit costs. Inputs included personnel, tools, and system requirements, with indirect costs set at 20% of direct costs and an additional 5% for monitoring, evaluation, and learning. Data were gathered through resource-use questionnaires, literature reviews, and consultations with ESIC groups. Salary costs were estimated using a 3×3 matrix of seniority and geographic bands (Global North; Global South—high/upper-middle income; Global South—low/lower-middle income). Sensitivity analyses addressed uncertainties, particularly in salary assumptions. A separate costing exercise was conducted for a Vanguard Suite, a prioritised collection of 100 living evidence syntheses. Results: The total estimated cost for all 40 solutions identified by the groups was US$278.3 million (range: US$257.2–299 million). Employment costs accounted for the largest share, with 80% of staff time and 78% of senior roles allocated to the Global South, reflecting ESIC’s equity goals. Individual group costs ranged from US$9.1 million (Governance) to US$70.5 million (Data solutions). The suite of living evidence syntheses was costed at US$19.2 million. Conclusion This costing exercise provides transparent, equity-focused information to assist funders when selecting scalable solutions aligned with ESIC’s mission. While estimates involve assumptions, they offer a pragmatic basis for investment planning and demonstrate ESIC’s commitment to affordability, inclusivity, and global impact.