Widespread homelessness is at crisis levels amongst advanced capitalist nations, indicating that the promise of neoliberal prosperity is deeply flawed. While Canada’s Liberal tradition is ineffective in combatting homelessness, Finland, a Social Democratic tradition, has successfully decreased its homeless population. This research paper evaluates the possibility of policy adoption between liberal and social democratic traditions to reduce homelessness by employing a political-economy-informed, comparative welfare state analysis. I argue that we must proceed with caution as policies do not always travel well because of the varying political and economic contexts arising from the histories of class struggle. I also argue that policies to solve homelessness are relatively limited because of the crisis-prone and contradictory nature of capitalism and the subsequent welfare state. My findings suggest that Finland’s robust working-class power resources, expressed in parliamentary and extra-parliamentary power, have been vital in homelessness reduction policy development but will inevitably meet their limits.

The influx of Chinese miners in Ghana’s small-scale gold mining sector has encouraged a large body of research examining the deleterious impacts of gold mining on the environment. However, there is sparse literature concentrating on the health impacts of gold mining. This research therefore examines the health impacts of local and Chinese small-scale gold mining operations on Ghanaian communities. The research employs both qualitative and quantitative data and utilizes the theory of environmental justice as the framework for analyzing and creating ways to explore the health impacts of local and Chinese small-scale gold mining operations. The study found that both large-scale and small-scale gold mining are highly associated with environmental pollution in mining communities. The Chinese introduction of high-tech machines to quicken the production of gold has exacerbated the rate of environmental pollution in mining communities. Also, both scales of gold mining, in addition to Chinese mining activities, have negatively impacted the health of mining communities. Inhabitants of mining communities bear the brunt of poor sanitation, pollution, diseases, injuries and deaths. The research illuminates the environmental and health impacts of gold mining engendered by both local and Chinese miners in Ghanaian communities.

When laws are enacted, the state paints the picture that it is for the betterment of everyone. Before now, advocates clamored for laws to protect the rights of gender non-conforming people. When these laws were finally made, the states were applauded for having these people in mind. People do not realize that the supposedly 'best' laws, when further analyzed and scrutinized, show that they tend to favor some people more than others. This paper exposes the inequities in the health system by analyzing how the Medicaid program in the United States of America has limited trans individuals from accessing health care services and how the woes of some individuals are further deepened because of their race, age, sex and income. The paper also proposes some recommendations on how the Medicaid program can widen its scope of support.