In this hybrid research seminar on Thursday October 22, 2026, at 12:00 m, we will have have Enrico Nichelatti — will present his research titled "Mangrove Ecosystems as Nature-Based Protection against the Early-Life Mortality Effects of Floods".
Abstract:
The paper examines whether proximity to mangrove ecosystems moderates the relationship between flood exposure during pregnancy and mortality at the earliest stages of life in six developing countries (Cambodia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Philippines and Tanzania) for the period between 2000-2018. We combine georeferenced data Demographic and Health Surveys with spatial data on 40 major flood events and mangrove ecosystems. We focus on three mortality outcomes: death on the day of birth, early neonatal mortality, and neonatal mortality. Our empirical analysis investigates whether the association between prenatal flood exposure and mortality varies with distance to the nearest mangrove ecosystem, controlling for individual and maternal characteristics as well as country and birth-period fixed effects. The results show that the adverse consequences of flood exposure increase with distance from mangroves, with the strongest evidence for mortality occurring at or shortly after birth. In addition, we investigate whether the moderating role of mangrove proximity varies with the timing of flood exposure during pregnancy, distinguishing whether the latest flood occurred during early, middle, or late pregnancy. The findings are subjected to a battery of robustness checks, including leave-one-country-out estimations, regional fixed effects, alternative restrictions on distance to mangroves, unweighted specifications, and alternative measures of flood exposure, including the number and timing of floods during pregnancy. Overall, the findings suggest that mangrove ecosystems can contribute to climate resilience by mitigating the early-life health consequences of flood exposure.
The Zoom link to join the seminar online can be found here. This event is open to the public; all those interested in this topic or the speaker are very welcome to attend. After the presentation, there will be time for questions and discussion.
For any queries related to our UNU-MERIT Seminar Series, please contact Lizeth Melissa Molina Alvarez and Raghav Chakravarthy by sending an email to seminars@merit.unu.edu.
