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Empirical research on the relationship between financial inclusion and economic growth has neglected the influence of religion or secularism. This study aims to investigate the effect of financial inclusion on economic growth in religious and secular countries.

The financial inclusion indicators are the number of automated teller machines (ATMs)per 100,000 adults and the number of bank branches per 100,000 adults. These two indicators are the accessibility dimension of financial inclusion based on physical points of service. The two-stage least square (2SLS) regression method was used to analyze the effect of financial inclusion on real gross domestic product (GDP) per capita growth and real GDP growth in religious and secular countries.

Bank branch contraction significantly increases economic growth in secular countries. Bank branch expansion combined with greater internet usage increases economic growth in secular countries while high ATM supply combined with greater internet usage decreases economic growth in secular countries. This study also finds that bank branch expansion, in the midst of a widening poverty gap, significantly increases economic growth in religious countries, implying that financial inclusion through bank branch expansion is effective in promoting economic growth in poor religious countries. It was also found that internet usage is a strong determinant of economic growth in secular countries.

Few studies in the literature examined the effect of financial inclusion on economic growth. But the literature has not examined how financial inclusion affects economic growth in religious and secular countries.

The effects of environmental change are becoming more noticeable in the Lower Mekong Basin, where there is growing pressure on the agriculture-based livelihoods of communities living along the mainstream of the Mekong River. This chapter presents an investigation of temporal seasonal variability in four communities of Kratie Province, Cambodia, including identification of locally developed strategies to adapt to temporal changes in weather patterns. A mixed-methods approach was adopted, combining historical hydrometeorological data with participatory seasonal calendars and daily routine diaries. Seasonal calendars were compiled from nine workshops across four villages in Kratie Province, and daily diaries were collected from seven individuals across three villages. The results indicate that patterns in rainfall, flooding and drought have become more variable due to the impacts of environmental change; a phenomenon that will likely continue into the future. Without effective, locally appropriate adaptation measures, changing weather patterns will likely continue to have adverse impacts on communities in the region due to their reliance on reliable seasonal rainfall and flooding events for crop cultivation. Households and communities in the study region have already developed a number of approaches to mitigate the adverse impacts of environmental change. This research also reiterated the importance of incorporating both local knowledge and scientific data to gain the most accurate understanding of the impacts of environmental change in a given region.