Deborah Balk
Biographic Data
| ID | 280890 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Deborah Balk |
| GIVEN NAMES | Deborah |
| FAMILY NAME | Balk |
| SIGNATURE | BALK D |
| AFFILIATIONS | Baruch College |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9028-7898 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 389 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1991 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
Extreme Weather and Mortality of Vulnerable Urban Populations
Highlights This is the first study to examine the link between extreme temperatures and unclaimed deaths in New York City. Daily air and wet-bulb temperatures were paired with public burial records. A 1°F hotter 7-day summer period predicts 1.2% more unclaimed deaths. Decedents on extreme heat days in NYC were up to three times as likely to go unclaimed
Understanding deep disadvantage at the end of life
A framework for ageing and health vulnerabilities in a changing climate
Is rapid urbanization of low-elevation deltas undermining adaptation to climate change? A global review
Climate change is putting low-lying coastal zones at increased risk, through higher sea levels and changes in the weather. Deltas are subsiding, compounding such risks. Confirming past research, we find roughly 10 per cent of the world’s population and an even higher share of its urban population are located in coastal areas under 10 metres in elevation (LECZ10), with Asia dominating these statistics. However, according to our estimates for 2015,…
The importance of classification schema choice in internal mobility
A large number of Censuses and surveys around the globe only measure ‘migrations’ crossing particular politico‐administrative boundaries, most commonly ‘major’ areas like states. These moves, in turn, are often assumed to be representative of all long‐distance or, in some settings, urban–urban moves. While important because such boundaries signal relevant policy environments, little research has tested these assumptions and, more broadly, the imp…
Built environment as a risk factor for adult overweight and obesity
Indonesia has nearly doubled its urban population in the past three decades. In this period, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Indonesia has also nearly doubled. We examined 1993–2014 panel data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS) to determine the extent to which the increase in one’s built environment contributed to a corresponding increase in adult overweight and obesity during this period. We estimated longitudinal regressi…
The importance of reclassification to understanding urban growth
An improved understanding of reclassification as a sociodemographic component of urban growth is important for urban planning and sustainable development. However, empirical assessments of the effect of reclassification on urban population dynamics are lacking, especially in countries in the later stage of the urban transition. Using recently available data on spatial reclassification of rural and urban land areas and population, and adopting mul…
Nature inequity and higher Covid-19 case rates in less-green neighbourhoods in the United States
Urban nature—such as greenness and parks—can alleviate distress and provide space for safe recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, nature is often less available in low-income populations and communities of colour—the same communities hardest hit by COVID-19. In analyses of two datasets, we quantified inequity in greenness and park proximity across all urbanized areas in the United States and linked greenness and park access to COVID-19…
Urbanisation and differential vulnerability to coastal flooding among migrants and nonmigrants in Bangladesh
Like much of Asia, Bangladesh will see an urban transition in the coming decades. Yet, its urbanisation will be unprecedented in terms of climate vulnerabilities. Little is known about urbanisation and migrants, in the context of these vulnerabilities, in part because demographic inquiry and training (with a few notable exceptions) has only begun in the last decade to embrace new, spatial data and methods of analysis—especially those involving ea…
The spatial allocation of population
Population data represent an essential component in studies focusing on human–nature interrelationships, disaster risk assessment and environmental health. Several recent efforts have produced global- and continental-extent gridded population data which are becoming increasingly popular among various research communities. However, these data products, which are of very different characteristics and based on different modeling assumptions, have ne…
Investigating demographic processes using innovative combinations of remotely sensed and demographic data
Water on an urban planet
Urban growth is increasing the demand for freshwater resources, yet surprisingly the water sources of the world's large cities have never been globally assessed, hampering efforts to assess the distribution and causes of urban water stress. We conducted the first global survey of the large cities’ water sources, and show that previous global hydrologic models that ignored urban water infrastructure significantly overestimated urban water stress. …
What Is Urban? Comparing a Satellite View with the Demographic and Health Surveys
Appraisal of urbanization trends is limited by the lack of a globally consistent definition of what is meant by urban. This article seeks to identify and explain differences in the definition of "urbanness" as used in two largely distinct research communities. We compare the Global Rural-Urban Mapping Project (GRUMP), which defines urban areas based primarily on satellite imagery of nighttime lights, to the urban classification found in Demograph…
Urban growth, climate change, and freshwater availability
Nearly 3 billion additional urban dwellers are forecasted by 2050, an unprecedented wave of urban growth. While cities struggle to provide water to these new residents, they will also face equally unprecedented hydrologic changes due to global climate change. Here we use a detailed hydrologic model, demographic projections, and climate change scenarios to estimate per-capita water availability for major cities in the developing world, where urban…
Global trends in emerging infectious diseases
The global distribution of infant mortality
We describe the compilation of a spatially explicit dataset detailing infant mortality rates in over 10,000 national and subnational units worldwide, benchmarked to the year 2000. Although their resolution is highly variable, subnational data are available for countries representing over 90% of non-OECD population. Concentration of global infant deaths is higher than implied by national data alone. Assigning both national and subnational data to …
The rising tide
Settlements in coastal lowlands are especially vulnerable to risks resulting from climate change, yet these lowlands are densely settled and growing rapidly. In this paper, we undertake the first global review of the population and urban settlement patterns in the Low Elevation Coastal Zone (LECZ), defined here as the contiguous area along the coast that is less than 10 metres above sea level. Overall, this zone covers 2 per cent of the world's l…
Tsunami Mortality Estimates and Vulnerability Mapping in Aceh, Indonesia
Objectives. We aimed to quantify tsunami mortality and compare approaches to mortality assessment in the emergency context in Aceh, Indonesia, where the impact of the 2004 tsunami was greatest. Methods. Mortality was estimated using geographic information systems–based vulnerability models and demographic methods from surveys of tsunami-displaced populations. Results. Tsunami mortality in Aceh as estimated by demographic models was 131066 and was…
Child hunger in the developing world
A spatial analysis of childhood mortality in West Africa
It is suggested that environmental or geographical factors (e.g. population density, climate and disease environment) play an important role in determining infant and child survival above and beyond that played by individual and household level factors. Only recently, however, have relevant spatial data become available and have demographic survey data systematically recorded geographical location of surveyed households, or has the technology to …
A Guide to Global Population Projections
Interdisciplinary studies that draw on long-term, global population projections often make limited use of projection results, due at least in part to the historically opaque nature of the projection process. We present a guide to such projections aimed
Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh
(1997). Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh: A Social Demographic Analysis. Population Studies: Vol. 51, No. 2, pp. 153-172
Individual and Community Aspects of Women's Status and Fertility in Rural Bangladesh
This paper examines the relationship between women's status and fertility in two regions of rural Bangladesh. Based on individual and household-level survey data, women's status is measured through four constructs. The covariates of these four aspects of women's status vary considerably and confirm the view that women's status is conceptually and operationally complex. For all aspects, however, variation between villages accounts for the largest …
Fertility Transitions, Family Structure, and Population Policy
Part 1 Historical fertility transitions: beyond economic reductionism - the transformation of the reproductive regimes in France and Belgium in the 18th and 19th centuries, Ron Lesthaeghe. Part 2 Transitions in Asia: sociodemographic determinants of the fertility transition in Korea, Doo Sub Kim the social context of fertility decline in Thailand, Philip Guest and Aphichat Chamratrithirong nuptiality patterns in Thailand - their implications for …
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Family Planning Programs in Rural Bangladesh
The Family Planning Health Services Project in Matlab is often seen as more expensive than similar activities carried out by the government of Bangladesh. At the same time, it as been observed that the project is much more effective. The alleged high cost of the project is said to make it difficult to replicate throughout the nation. Previously, the true costs of the project had not been documented. This study systemically examines the cost of th…
The rising tide
Settlements in coastal lowlands are especially vulnerable to risks resulting from climate change, yet these lowlands are densely settled and growing rapidly. In this paper, we undertake the first global review of the population and urban settlement patterns in the Low Elevation Coastal Zone (LECZ), defined here as the contiguous area along the coast that is less than 10 metres above sea level. Overall, this zone covers 2 per cent of the world's l…
Individual and Community Aspects of Women's Status and Fertility in Rural Bangladesh
This paper examines the relationship between women's status and fertility in two regions of rural Bangladesh. Based on individual and household-level survey data, women's status is measured through four constructs. The covariates of these four aspects of women's status vary considerably and confirm the view that women's status is conceptually and operationally complex. For all aspects, however, variation between villages accounts for the largest …
Water on an urban planet
Urban growth is increasing the demand for freshwater resources, yet surprisingly the water sources of the world's large cities have never been globally assessed, hampering efforts to assess the distribution and causes of urban water stress. We conducted the first global survey of the large cities’ water sources, and show that previous global hydrologic models that ignored urban water infrastructure significantly overestimated urban water stress. …
Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh
(1997). Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh: A Social Demographic Analysis. Population Studies: Vol. 51, No. 2, pp. 153-172
What Is Urban? Comparing a Satellite View with the Demographic and Health Surveys
Appraisal of urbanization trends is limited by the lack of a globally consistent definition of what is meant by urban. This article seeks to identify and explain differences in the definition of "urbanness" as used in two largely distinct research communities. We compare the Global Rural-Urban Mapping Project (GRUMP), which defines urban areas based primarily on satellite imagery of nighttime lights, to the urban classification found in Demograph…
The global distribution of infant mortality
We describe the compilation of a spatially explicit dataset detailing infant mortality rates in over 10,000 national and subnational units worldwide, benchmarked to the year 2000. Although their resolution is highly variable, subnational data are available for countries representing over 90% of non-OECD population. Concentration of global infant deaths is higher than implied by national data alone. Assigning both national and subnational data to …
Child hunger in the developing world
A spatial analysis of childhood mortality in West Africa
It is suggested that environmental or geographical factors (e.g. population density, climate and disease environment) play an important role in determining infant and child survival above and beyond that played by individual and household level factors. Only recently, however, have relevant spatial data become available and have demographic survey data systematically recorded geographical location of surveyed households, or has the technology to …
Nature inequity and higher Covid-19 case rates in less-green neighbourhoods in the United States
Urban nature—such as greenness and parks—can alleviate distress and provide space for safe recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, nature is often less available in low-income populations and communities of colour—the same communities hardest hit by COVID-19. In analyses of two datasets, we quantified inequity in greenness and park proximity across all urbanized areas in the United States and linked greenness and park access to COVID-19…
Tsunami Mortality Estimates and Vulnerability Mapping in Aceh, Indonesia
Objectives. We aimed to quantify tsunami mortality and compare approaches to mortality assessment in the emergency context in Aceh, Indonesia, where the impact of the 2004 tsunami was greatest. Methods. Mortality was estimated using geographic information systems–based vulnerability models and demographic methods from surveys of tsunami-displaced populations. Results. Tsunami mortality in Aceh as estimated by demographic models was 131066 and was…
A Guide to Global Population Projections
Interdisciplinary studies that draw on long-term, global population projections often make limited use of projection results, due at least in part to the historically opaque nature of the projection process. We present a guide to such projections aimed
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Family Planning Programs in Rural Bangladesh
The Family Planning Health Services Project in Matlab is often seen as more expensive than similar activities carried out by the government of Bangladesh. At the same time, it as been observed that the project is much more effective. The alleged high cost of the project is said to make it difficult to replicate throughout the nation. Previously, the true costs of the project had not been documented. This study systemically examines the cost of th…
The importance of classification schema choice in internal mobility
A large number of Censuses and surveys around the globe only measure ‘migrations’ crossing particular politico‐administrative boundaries, most commonly ‘major’ areas like states. These moves, in turn, are often assumed to be representative of all long‐distance or, in some settings, urban–urban moves. While important because such boundaries signal relevant policy environments, little research has tested these assumptions and, more broadly, the imp…
The importance of reclassification to understanding urban growth
An improved understanding of reclassification as a sociodemographic component of urban growth is important for urban planning and sustainable development. However, empirical assessments of the effect of reclassification on urban population dynamics are lacking, especially in countries in the later stage of the urban transition. Using recently available data on spatial reclassification of rural and urban land areas and population, and adopting mul…
Urbanisation and differential vulnerability to coastal flooding among migrants and nonmigrants in Bangladesh
Like much of Asia, Bangladesh will see an urban transition in the coming decades. Yet, its urbanisation will be unprecedented in terms of climate vulnerabilities. Little is known about urbanisation and migrants, in the context of these vulnerabilities, in part because demographic inquiry and training (with a few notable exceptions) has only begun in the last decade to embrace new, spatial data and methods of analysis—especially those involving ea…
Investigating demographic processes using innovative combinations of remotely sensed and demographic data
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Family Planning Programs in Rural Bangladesh
The Family Planning Health Services Project in Matlab is often seen as more expensive than similar activities carried out by the government of Bangladesh. At the same time, it as been observed that the project is much more effective. The alleged high cost of the project is said to make it difficult to replicate throughout the nation. Previously, the true costs of the project had not been documented. This study systemically examines the cost of th…
Fertility Transitions, Family Structure, and Population Policy
Part 1 Historical fertility transitions: beyond economic reductionism - the transformation of the reproductive regimes in France and Belgium in the 18th and 19th centuries, Ron Lesthaeghe. Part 2 Transitions in Asia: sociodemographic determinants of the fertility transition in Korea, Doo Sub Kim the social context of fertility decline in Thailand, Philip Guest and Aphichat Chamratrithirong nuptiality patterns in Thailand - their implications for …
Individual and Community Aspects of Women's Status and Fertility in Rural Bangladesh
This paper examines the relationship between women's status and fertility in two regions of rural Bangladesh. Based on individual and household-level survey data, women's status is measured through four constructs. The covariates of these four aspects of women's status vary considerably and confirm the view that women's status is conceptually and operationally complex. For all aspects, however, variation between villages accounts for the largest …
Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh
(1997). Defying Gender Norms in Rural Bangladesh: A Social Demographic Analysis. Population Studies: Vol. 51, No. 2, pp. 153-172
A Guide to Global Population Projections
Interdisciplinary studies that draw on long-term, global population projections often make limited use of projection results, due at least in part to the historically opaque nature of the projection process. We present a guide to such projections aimed
A spatial analysis of childhood mortality in West Africa
It is suggested that environmental or geographical factors (e.g. population density, climate and disease environment) play an important role in determining infant and child survival above and beyond that played by individual and household level factors. Only recently, however, have relevant spatial data become available and have demographic survey data systematically recorded geographical location of surveyed households, or has the technology to …
Child hunger in the developing world
The rising tide
Settlements in coastal lowlands are especially vulnerable to risks resulting from climate change, yet these lowlands are densely settled and growing rapidly. In this paper, we undertake the first global review of the population and urban settlement patterns in the Low Elevation Coastal Zone (LECZ), defined here as the contiguous area along the coast that is less than 10 metres above sea level. Overall, this zone covers 2 per cent of the world's l…
Tsunami Mortality Estimates and Vulnerability Mapping in Aceh, Indonesia
Objectives. We aimed to quantify tsunami mortality and compare approaches to mortality assessment in the emergency context in Aceh, Indonesia, where the impact of the 2004 tsunami was greatest. Methods. Mortality was estimated using geographic information systems–based vulnerability models and demographic methods from surveys of tsunami-displaced populations. Results. Tsunami mortality in Aceh as estimated by demographic models was 131066 and was…
Global trends in emerging infectious diseases
The global distribution of infant mortality
We describe the compilation of a spatially explicit dataset detailing infant mortality rates in over 10,000 national and subnational units worldwide, benchmarked to the year 2000. Although their resolution is highly variable, subnational data are available for countries representing over 90% of non-OECD population. Concentration of global infant deaths is higher than implied by national data alone. Assigning both national and subnational data to …
Urban growth, climate change, and freshwater availability
Nearly 3 billion additional urban dwellers are forecasted by 2050, an unprecedented wave of urban growth. While cities struggle to provide water to these new residents, they will also face equally unprecedented hydrologic changes due to global climate change. Here we use a detailed hydrologic model, demographic projections, and climate change scenarios to estimate per-capita water availability for major cities in the developing world, where urban…
What Is Urban? Comparing a Satellite View with the Demographic and Health Surveys
Appraisal of urbanization trends is limited by the lack of a globally consistent definition of what is meant by urban. This article seeks to identify and explain differences in the definition of "urbanness" as used in two largely distinct research communities. We compare the Global Rural-Urban Mapping Project (GRUMP), which defines urban areas based primarily on satellite imagery of nighttime lights, to the urban classification found in Demograph…
Water on an urban planet
Urban growth is increasing the demand for freshwater resources, yet surprisingly the water sources of the world's large cities have never been globally assessed, hampering efforts to assess the distribution and causes of urban water stress. We conducted the first global survey of the large cities’ water sources, and show that previous global hydrologic models that ignored urban water infrastructure significantly overestimated urban water stress. …
The spatial allocation of population
Population data represent an essential component in studies focusing on human–nature interrelationships, disaster risk assessment and environmental health. Several recent efforts have produced global- and continental-extent gridded population data which are becoming increasingly popular among various research communities. However, these data products, which are of very different characteristics and based on different modeling assumptions, have ne…
Investigating demographic processes using innovative combinations of remotely sensed and demographic data
Urbanisation and differential vulnerability to coastal flooding among migrants and nonmigrants in Bangladesh
Like much of Asia, Bangladesh will see an urban transition in the coming decades. Yet, its urbanisation will be unprecedented in terms of climate vulnerabilities. Little is known about urbanisation and migrants, in the context of these vulnerabilities, in part because demographic inquiry and training (with a few notable exceptions) has only begun in the last decade to embrace new, spatial data and methods of analysis—especially those involving ea…
Nature inequity and higher Covid-19 case rates in less-green neighbourhoods in the United States
Urban nature—such as greenness and parks—can alleviate distress and provide space for safe recreation during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, nature is often less available in low-income populations and communities of colour—the same communities hardest hit by COVID-19. In analyses of two datasets, we quantified inequity in greenness and park proximity across all urbanized areas in the United States and linked greenness and park access to COVID-19…
Built environment as a risk factor for adult overweight and obesity
Indonesia has nearly doubled its urban population in the past three decades. In this period, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Indonesia has also nearly doubled. We examined 1993–2014 panel data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS) to determine the extent to which the increase in one’s built environment contributed to a corresponding increase in adult overweight and obesity during this period. We estimated longitudinal regressi…
The importance of reclassification to understanding urban growth
An improved understanding of reclassification as a sociodemographic component of urban growth is important for urban planning and sustainable development. However, empirical assessments of the effect of reclassification on urban population dynamics are lacking, especially in countries in the later stage of the urban transition. Using recently available data on spatial reclassification of rural and urban land areas and population, and adopting mul…
Is rapid urbanization of low-elevation deltas undermining adaptation to climate change? A global review
Climate change is putting low-lying coastal zones at increased risk, through higher sea levels and changes in the weather. Deltas are subsiding, compounding such risks. Confirming past research, we find roughly 10 per cent of the world’s population and an even higher share of its urban population are located in coastal areas under 10 metres in elevation (LECZ10), with Asia dominating these statistics. However, according to our estimates for 2015,…
The importance of classification schema choice in internal mobility
A large number of Censuses and surveys around the globe only measure ‘migrations’ crossing particular politico‐administrative boundaries, most commonly ‘major’ areas like states. These moves, in turn, are often assumed to be representative of all long‐distance or, in some settings, urban–urban moves. While important because such boundaries signal relevant policy environments, little research has tested these assumptions and, more broadly, the imp…
A framework for ageing and health vulnerabilities in a changing climate
Understanding deep disadvantage at the end of life
Extreme Weather and Mortality of Vulnerable Urban Populations
Highlights This is the first study to examine the link between extreme temperatures and unclaimed deaths in New York City. Daily air and wet-bulb temperatures were paired with public burial records. A 1°F hotter 7-day summer period predicts 1.2% more unclaimed deaths. Decedents on extreme heat days in NYC were up to three times as likely to go unclaimed
Geography (19 works) · Population (18 works) · Demography (16 works) · Demography (10 works) · Economics (10 works) · Sociology (10 works) · Economic growth (8 works) · Socioeconomics (8 works) · Medicine (7 works) · Urbanization (7 works)