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Medicinal plants (MP) provide an opportunity for profitable farming, agricultural diversification, and sustainable livelihoods in Bangladesh. This study aims to examine the business sustainability of MP production under risks, i.e., price, yield and market absorption. Data were collected from 196 individual farms that cultivate Aloe vera (L), Bombax ceiba (L) root, and Withania somnifera (L) . The business viability analysis was carried out by evaluating the net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), benefit-cost ratio (BCR), return on investment (ROI), and real option value (ROV) of selected MP. The results indicated that the NPV was positive, the BCR was greater than 1, and the IRR exceeded the prevailing bank rate. It also found that the production of MP faces three major risks: pricing, yield, and market absorption. The simulation analysis’s findings indicated that MP producers will eventually experience losses with embedded risks. On the other hand, the ROV finding indicated that NPV increases with option value over time. Farmers may receive profit from their investments in A. vera, B. ceiba root, and W. somnifera , and their farming business will eventually become sustainable in the long run. Thus, farmers should plan for producing MP in the long run and policy should be triggered on tackling risk reduction strategies through introducing marketing contract.

Bangladesh is a country of natural disasters and climatic hazards, which frequently affect its inhabitants’ lives and livelihoods. Among the various risks and disasters, floods are the most frequent hazard that makes haor households vulnerable. Therefore, this study was undertaken to estimate livelihood vulnerability to flooding within the flood-prone haor ecosystem in Bangladesh. Primary data were collected from 100 haor households each from Kishoreganj, Netrokona, and Sunamganj districts (N = 300) by applying a multistage random sampling technique. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a pretested structured questionnaire. The Livelihood Vulnerability Index (LVI) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) framework of vulnerability were applied to compare vulnerabilities among the selected haor-based communities. The empirical results revealed that haor households in Sunamganj district were more vulnerable to flood hazard and natural disaster in terms of food, water, and health than households in the other two districts. Taking into account the major components of the LVI, the IPCC framework of vulnerability indicated that households in Sunamganj district were the most vulnerable due to their lowest adaptive capacity and highest sensitivity and exposure. These findings enable policymakers to formulate and implement effective strategies and programs to minimize vulnerability and enhance resilience by improving the livelihoods of the vulnerable haor households of Bangladesh, especially those in Sunamganj district.

Nearly all epidemiologic studies have involved patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Few authors have investigated the characteristics of patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE). To describe the clinical and pathologic characteristics of a series of patients diagnosed with CLE. This is a descriptive retrospective cross-sectional study carried out using the consecutive registered records of 218 patients attending the 'Lupus Clinic' in Chittagong Medical College Hospital during the period between 2010 and 2020. The activity and damage of CLE were assessed according to the Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus Disease Area and Severity Index (CLASI). There were 187 (85.8%) females and 31 (14.2%) males, with the female:male ratio being 6 : 1. The mean age was 30.0 ±11.7 years. The chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CCLE) patients numbered 154 (70.6%), followed by acute cutaneous lupus erythematosus (ACLE) = 46 (21.1%), and subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus (SCLE) = 18 (8.3%). In LE-specific skin lesions, the most common manifestation was photosensitivity, 198 (90.8%), followed by discoid rash, 155 (71.1%) and maculo-papular lupus rash, 55 (25.2%). Among LE-nonspecific skin lesions, the most common manifestation was non-scarring alopecia, 123 (56.4%), followed by livedo reticularis, 18 (8.3%), Raynaud's phenomenon, 17 (7.8%), vasculitis, 15 (6.9%), periungual telangiectasia, 7 (3.2%), erythema multiforme, 6 (2.7%) and leg ulcers, 5 (2.3%). Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) were the most common type of autoantibody ( = 132, 60.5%) followed by anti-ds DNA ( = 91, 41.7%) and anti-phospholipid antibodies ( = 9, 4.1%). CCLE was the most common subtypes of CLE. Photosensitivity was the most common clinical manifestation, whereas ANA were the most frequent autoantibodies of the LE patients of this region. Patients with different subtypes of CLE have distinct clinical and pathological characteristics.

Dairy Lead farmers’ approach (LFA) has emerged as a promising strategy for disseminating dairy technologies and improving food security in developing countries like Bangladesh. This study examines the effectiveness of LFA in promoting livestock technologies to ensure food security under the Livestock and Dairy Development Project (LDDP) in promoting dairy technology and enhancing household food security. Data were collected from 280 dairy farming households using a convenience random sampling technique, supplemented by focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Descriptive statistics and the propensity score matching model were employed to analyze the data. The results indicate that the LFA significantly increased the adoption of improved dairy technology practices, including advanced breeding techniques, feed management, and disease control, which in turn enhanced milk and meat production. The PSM analysis revealed that the Average Treatment effect on the Treated (ATT) was 0.276, and the Average Treatment effect on the Untreated (ATU) was 0.198, indicating a substantial positive impact of LFA participation on technology adoption and household food security. The study underscores the critical role of trained Lead Farmers (LFs) as local extension agents who bridge the gap between formal research and smallholder farmers. Evidence from the LDDP suggests that integrating the LFA into national livestock extension systems while addressing its implementation challenges can serve as a scalable model for improving food and nutrition security among rural households. Policymakers and development practitioners are encouraged to invest in and expand the LFA as a strategic tool for sustainable agricultural development in Bangladesh and other developing countries.

Landslides pose a significant risk to the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh, causing severe socio-economic and environmental impacts that threaten the achievement of sustainable land management. In this study, a landslide susceptibility map for the CHT region was created using two machine learning models: Random Forest (RF) and Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt). A total of 15 landslide conditioning factors were considered, including elevation, slope, rainfall, soil texture, and land cover. A landslide inventory dataset comprising 730 landslide events was used for model training and validation. The results indicate that both models successfully classify landslide prone areas, with MaxEnt identifying 79.12% and RF identifying 78% of the study area as high to very high susceptibility zones. Performance evaluation using the Area Under the Curve (AUC) metric revealed that RF (AUC = 0.93) outperformed compared to MaxEnt (AUC = 0.86), demonstrating superior predictive accuracy. RF also exhibited higher overall accuracy (98%) and precision (99%) compared to MaxEnt (87% and 89%, respectively). Maximum rainfall and elevation were the most influential factors in both models for landslide susppectibilty. These findings provide a critical insight into disaster risk management and policy making in the CHT and directly support SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) by improving urban resilience, SDG 13 (Climate Action) by improving adaptation strategies and SDG 15 (Life on the Land) by promoting sustainable land management. By integrating scientific modelling into a global sustainability agenda, the study contributes to the development of risk-informed policies and early warning systems to protect vulnerable communities in the CHT region.

HighlightsIndustrially viable bottom-up spray pyrolysis deposition technique was used to prepare the highly compact TiO2 film, which is a vital element for the multi-layer front contact.The optimization of the front contact is presented by fabricating reproducible and efficient perovskite solar cellsMulti-layer front contact is applied to realize efficient perovskite single-junction and perovskite/perovskite tandem solar cells, where optics and electrical effects of solar cells are studied by optically coupled 3D electromagnetic simulations.The photovoltaic performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) can be improved by utilizing efficient front contact. However, it has always been a significant challenge for fabricating high-quality, scalable, controllable, and cost-effective front contact. This study proposes a realistic multi-layer front contact design to realize efficient single-junction PSCs and perovskite/perovskite tandem solar cells (TSCs). As a critical part of the front contact, we prepared a highly compact titanium oxide (TiO2) film by industrially viable Spray Pyrolysis Deposition (SPD), which acts as a potential electron transport layer (ETL) for the fabrication of PSCs. Optimization and reproducibility of the TiO2 ETL were discreetly investigated while fabricating a set of planar PSCs. As the front contact has a significant influence on the optoelectronic properties of PSCs, hence, we investigated the optics and electrical effects of PSCs by three-dimensional (3D) finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) and finite element method (FEM) rigorous simulations. The investigation allows us to compare experimental results with the outcome from simulations. Furthermore, an optimized single-junction PSC is designed to enhance the energy conversion efficiency (ECE) by > 30% compared to the planar reference PSC. Finally, the study has been progressed to the realization of all-perovskite TSC that can reach the ECE, exceeding 30%. Detailed guidance for the completion of high-performance PSCs is provided.

In protected areas (PAs) in Bangladesh, as policies shift from net deforestation, conservation initiatives and various management plans have been implemented to reduce deforestation and include public participation at multiple levels. However, the interactive effect of land-related policies on deforestation in PAs is poorly understood. In this study, land-use change analysis using geographic information system data was performed to investigate how policies affected land use and land cover change in Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary (RKWS), particularly the National Forest Policy (1979~), National Land Policy (2001~), and Agricultural Land Policy (1999~), using a series of Landsat images captured at different times. Our analyses showed that the total forest area increased in the 1994–2005 period when a plantation program was implemented, and also that many forest areas were replaced with noncommercial agricultural land areas in the 2005–2013 and 2013–2018 periods, when land zoning and co-management programs were implemented under different land-related policies. Commercial and non-commercial agricultural land expansions were the main drivers of deforestation, suggesting that several programs under the different land-related policies could have had synergetic effects on deforestation even in PAs. Our findings emphasize the importance of considering the undesirable effects of land-related policies in Pas, and the need to support the community for forest conservation.

Extensive research on fault diagnosis is essential to detect various faults that occur to different photovoltaic (PV) panels to keep PV systems operating at peak performance. Here, we present an impact analysis of potential induced degradation (PID) on the current–voltage (I-V) characteristics of crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar cells. The impact of parasitic resistances on solar cell performance is highlighted and linked to fault and degradation. Furthermore, a Simulink model for a single solar cell is proposed and used to estimate the I-V characteristics of a PID-affected PV cell based on experimental results attributes. The measured data show that the fill factor (FF) drops by approximately 13.7% from its initial value due to a decrease in shunt resistance (Rsh). Similarly, the simulation results find that the fill factor degraded by approximately 12% from its initial value. The slight increase in measured data could be due to series resistance effects which were assumed to be zero in the simulated data. This study links simulation and experimental work to confirm the I-V curve behavior of PID-affected PV cells, which could help to improve fault diagnosis methods.

Tungsten oxide (WOx) thin films were synthesized through the RF magnetron sputtering method by varying the sputtering power from 30 W to 80 W. Different investigations have been conducted to evaluate the variation in different morphological, optical, and dielectric properties with the sputtering power and prove the possibility of using WOx in optoelectronic applications. An Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), stylus profilometer, and atomic force microscope (AFM) have been used to investigate the dependency of morphological properties on sputtering power. Transmittance, absorbance, and reflectance of the films, investigated by Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, have allowed for further determination of some necessary parameters, such as absorption coefficient, penetration depth, optical band energy gap, refractive index, extinction coefficient, dielectric parameters, a few types of loss parameters, etc. Variations in these parameters with the incident light spectrum have been closely analyzed. Some important parameters such as transmittance (above 80%), optical band energy gap (~3.7 eV), and refractive index (~2) ensure that as-grown WOx films can be used in some optoelectronic applications, mainly in photovoltaic research. Furthermore, strong dependencies of all evaluated parameters on the sputtering power were found, which are to be of great use for developing the films with the required properties.

This study aims to determine the price premium at which consumers are willing to pay (WTP) for pesticide-free brinjal and tomatoes, as well as the factors influencing WTP. The convenience sampling technique was employed to acquire primary data. The data were collected from 150 consumers by applying a Double Bounded Dichotomous Choice (DBDC) contingent valuation technique. The findings showed that the mean WTP value for brinjal was BDT. 7.08/kg and for tomato BDT. 8.97/kg. To compensate for the high nutritional value of safe vegetables, the maximum WTP value for brinjal and tomato was approximately BDT. 12.5/kg and BDT. 16.5/kg, respectively. The results also revealed that age, religion, family size, marital status, educational attainment, and income level were important factors influencing consumers’ WTP. Therefore, to develop a niche market for safe vegetables, government line departments and other stakeholders should pay more attention to consumer attitudes toward pesticide-free vegetable (PFV).