Digital Commons Network^™

Risky Business: Sustainability And Industrial Land Use Across Seattle’S Gentrifying Riskscape, Troy D. Abel, Jonah White, Stacy Clauson

Troy D. Abel

This paper examines the spatial and temporal trajectories of Seattle’s industrial land use restructuring and the shifting riskscape in Seattle, WA, a commonly recognized urban model of sustainability. Drawing on the perspective of sustainability as a conflicted process, this research explored the intersections of urban industrial and nonindustrial land use planning, gentrification, and environmental injustice. In the first part of our research, we combine geographic cluster analysis and longitudinal air toxic emission comparisons to quantitatively investigate socioeconomic changes in Seattle Census block-groups between 1990, 2000, and 2009 coupled with measures of pollution volume and its relative potential risk. Second, we …

A Household-Level Approach To Staging Wildfire Evacuation Warnings Using Trigger Modeling, Dapeng Li

Dapeng Li

The Process Geography Of Law (As Approached Through Andalucian Gitano Family Law), Susan G. Drummond

Susan G. Drummond

Comparative law and legal anthropology have for long theorized on the basis of a traditional geography which saw states, regions, locales and social fields as having durable boundaries containing stable and homogenous cultures. This idea of place is now undergoing a massive transformation in response to the effects of and theories about globalization. The emerging ‘process geography’ rejects these traditional ideas, arguing that they are not, and indeed have never been aspects of reality, which is better represented by an imagery of processes. However, it is argued here that globalization is not a synonym for homogenization, nor has place suddenly …

Prolegomenon To A Pedestrian Cartography Of Mixed Legal Jurisdictions: The Case Of Israel/Palestine, Susan G. Drummond

Susan G. Drummond

The relationship between cartography and law provides a unique focus through which to examine mixed legal jurisdictions. Through an exploration of the various uses of law, cartography, and nation building, the author postulates that mixed legal jurisdictions are created through the subtle incorporation of the originally unfamiliar “Other”. In Canada, European settlers asserted sovereignty through the mapping and naming of territory in ways that did not accord with traditional Aboriginal patterns of usage or conceptualizations of space. The eventual creation of a legal middle ground between these peoples, as articulated by Richard White, is the basis of the author’s analysis …

Decision Science For Housing And Community Development: Localized And Evidence‐Based Responses To Distressed Housing And Blighted Communities, Michael P. Johnson Jr., Jeffrey Keisler, Senay Solak, David Turcotte, Armagan Bayram, Rachel B. Drew

Michael P. Johnson

Mahogany Intertwined: Enviromateriality Between Mexico, Fiji, And The Gibson Les Paul, Jose E. Martinez-Reyes

Jose E. Martinez-Reyes

This article builds a theory of enviromateriality through a global ethnography that engages both the material culture and materiality of a tree species, Honduran mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), and the global political ecology of forest conservation. The author seeks to understand what Adorno calls the ‘constellation’ between people and mahogany by tracing human–nature relations through the global commodity chain focusing on one particular artefact, the Gibson Les Paul, an iconic solid wood electric guitar made primarily of mahogany grown in Mexico and Fiji. Enviromateriality considers three phases in which to examine the material and materiality in a variety of processes that …

A Modeling Approach To Determine The Impacts Of Land Use And Climate Change Scenarios On The Water Flux Of The Upper Mara River, L. M. Mango, Assefa Melesse, M. E. Mcclain, Daniel Gann, S. G. Setegn

Daniel Gann

With the flow of the Mara River becoming increasingly erratic especially in the upper reaches, attention has been directed to land use change as the major cause of this problem. The semi-distributed hydrological model Soil and Water Assessment Tool 5 (SWAT) and Landsat imagery were utilized in the upper Mara River Basin in order to 1) map existing field scale land use practices in order to determine their impact 2) determine the impacts of land use change on water flux; and 3) determine the impacts of rainfall (0%, ±10% and ±20%) and air temperature variations (0% and +5%) based on …

Quantitative Comparison Of Plant Community Hydrology Using Large-Extent, Long-Term Data, Daniel Gann, Jennifer H. Richards

Daniel Gann

Large-extent vegetation datasets that co-occur with long-term hydrology data provide new ways to develop biologically meaningful hydrologic variables and to determine plant community responses to hydrology. We analyzed the suitability of different hydrological variables to predict vegetation in two water conservation areas (WCAs) in the Florida Everglades, USA, and developed metrics to define realized hydrologic optima and tolerances. Using vegetation data spatially co-located with long-term hydrological records, we evaluated seven variables describing water depth, hydroperiod length, and number of wet/dry events; each variable was tested for 2-, 4- and 10-year intervals for Julian annual averages and environmentally-defined hydrologic intervals. Maximum …

Remote Sensing Supported Vegetation Detection In The Hole-In-The-Donut Restoration Areas Report, September 2014, Daniel Gann

Daniel Gann

No abstract provided.

Persistent Low Wages In New Orleans’ Economic Resurgence: Policies For Improving Earnings For The Working Poor, Marla Nelson, Laura Wolf-Powers, Jessica Fisch

Marla Nelson

Despite New Orleans’ economic resurgence post-Katrina, many workers remain stuck in low-wage jobs. Nearly 60 percent of jobs in the region fail to pay high enough wages to cover the post-Katrina cost of living. In 40 census tracts in Orleans Parish, 80 percent or more of working residents are employed in low-wage jobs. Among the region’s low-earners, almost half commuted long distances to jobs outside of their home parish for work. This essay lays out specific policies to alleviate working poverty and lift the working poor into the middle class. Clearly, the task of improving outcomes for low-earning workers is …

Data And Analytics For Neighborhood Development: Smart Shrinkage Decision Modeling In Baltimore, Maryland, Michael P. Johnson Jr., Justin Hollander, Eliza D. Whiteman

Michael P. Johnson

Many older cities in the United States confront the problem of long-term decline in population and economic activity resulting in blighted conditions that make conventional revitalization initiatives unlikely to succeed. Smart shrinkage, a planning approach that emphasizes alternative land uses while preserving quality of life, offers a way for cities to remain desirable places to live and work. However, there is little research on empirical methods to support planning decisions consistent with smart shrinkage. We present results from two studies with planners from the City of Baltimore that provide novel insights regarding ways in which planners can perform vacant property …

Social Capital And International Migration From Latin America, Douglas S. Massey, Maria Aysa-Lastra

Maria Aysa-Lastra

We combine data from the Latin American Migration Project and the Mexican Migration Project to estimate models predicting the likelihood of taking of first and later trips to the United States from five nations: Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Peru. The models test specific hypotheses about the effects of social capital on international migration and how these effects vary with respect to contextual factors. Our findings confirm the ubiquity of migrant networks and the universality of social capital effects throughout Latin America. They also reveal how the sizes of these effects are not uniform across settings. Social …

Prof. Vibhuti Patel Safe Cities And Gender Budgeting Jdmc, Professor Vibhuti Patel

Professor Vibhuti Patel

Abstract Urbanisation often goes hand in hand with a rise in urban violence and crime that manifests in terms of street harassment of women and girls, stalking, sexual violence, blackmailing and extortion rackets. Children and women are seen as soft spots who can be victimized by predators. One such incident in the city is enough and the feeling of insecurity is spread like wild fire. It not only frightens girls and women, it controls every act they consider doing then onwards (UN Women, 2015). Smart cities have to be Safe cities. Town planners, policy makers and budget experts need to …

It's Who You Know: Factors Driving Recovery From Japan's 11 March 2011 Disaster, Daniel P. Aldrich

Daniel P Aldrich

The 11 March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake affected dozens of coastal communities along the shore of Japan’s Tohoku region. Following the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdowns, utilities, businesses and schools in some towns have bounced back to pre-disaster capacity while other municipalities have lagged behind. The question of which factors accelerate the recovery of business, infrastructure and population after the disaster remains unanswered. This article uses a new dataset of roughly 40 disaster-affected cities, towns and villages in the area to identify the factors connected with recovery. More than tsunami damage, spending on disaster mitigation, population density, economic conditions …

The Geography Of Reception: Why Do Egyptians Watch Turkish Soap Operas?, Necati Anaz

Necati Anaz

No abstract provided.

Strengthening Families: Exploring The Impacts Of Family Camp Experiences On Family Functioning And Parenting, Barry A. Garst, Sarah Baughman, Nancy K. Franz, Richard W. Seidel

Barry A Garst

Research suggests that family camp experiences can enhance family relationships. Families often participate in family camp experiences for a vacation, as part of a therapeutic and/or intervention strategy, or to gain general enrichment or engagement. To better understand the impacts of family camp experiences on family functioning, a mixed-methods study was conducted with 60 families across 18 camps. Respondents shared that family camp experiences benefit families because of the positive impacts of the camp staff, parenting reinforcement, and enhancement of family relationships, with 60% of respondents indicating that family camp experiences reinforced good parenting and 86% of respondents indicating that …

An Assessment Of Air Quality In And Around Gwagwalada Abattoir, Gwagwalada, Abuja, Fct., John Yakubu Magaji Phd

Abuja Journal of Geography and Development

This work attempted an assessment of air quality in and around Gwagwalada abattoir. Air samples were collected from six points around the abattoir and recorded insitu for analysis. The following parameters were investigated; Particulate Matter (PM), Carbon monoxide (CO), Sulphur dioxide (SO2), Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), Ammonia (NH3), Chlorine (CL2) and Hydrogen cyanide. The statistical test employed was the Student t-test in verifying the hypothesis. Based on the data collected and the analysis made, it was observed that the mean values of the parameters varied from points to points and at different time of the day. Also, the mean values of …

Why Getting People To Write An Emergency Plan May Not Be The Best Approach, Neil Dufty

Neil Dufty

Many government agencies and not-for-profit emergency organisations throughout the world encourage those community members and businesses at risk to write disaster survival or emergency plans. In Australia, community flood education and engagement programs such as FloodSafe promote the preparation of home and business emergency plans. In some cases, agencies use the writing of these plans as an indicator of community preparedness. There has been little research conducted into the efficacy of personal or business emergency plans, although there is evidence to show that business damages could be reduced by having an emergency plan. On the other hand, some social research …

New Horizons: Libraries, Space, And People — A Ttw Guest Post By Jonathan Pacheco Bell, Jonathan P. Bell

Jonathan P. Bell

Tame the Web, April 20, 2015

Work Participation And Income Generation From Sericulture: A Case Study Of Alomtola Village Of Kaliachak-Ii Block In Malda District, West Bengal, Pankaj Roy

Pankaj Roy

“I Wish I Was A Bird To Fly Back And Forth:” Immigrant Women And Their Transnational Families Caring At A Distance: Draft 4/14/15, Sondra Cuban Dr.

Dr. Sondra Cuban

This case study of fifty women immigrants in Washington state focuses on the ingenious emotional strategies they engaged in with their left-behind families to care at a distance and the problematic ways the information and communication technology (ICTs) mediated these relationships across space and time. The study draws on a feminist transnational framework and an extended case method approach to understand the emotional dimensions and meanings of care by separated members and the ways the social technologies, and other factors, shaped these transnational spaces and interactions. The study utilizes ethnographic methods (interviews, informants, journals, focus groups, documentary analysis, and informal …

Ibm's Smart City As Techno-Utopian Policy Mobility, Alan Wiig

Alan Wiig

The Ethics Of Wildlife Control In Humanized Landscapes, John Hadidian, Camilla H. Fox, William S. Lynn

John Hadidian, PhD

The 21st century is witness to an unprecedented and rapid growth of human settlements, from urban centers to wilderness vacation resorts. Concurrent with this has been the growing tolerance and acceptance of many wild animals and humans for one another. This has created an expanding ‘zone’ of human-animal contacts, some number of which invariably result in conflicts. While the vast majority of our interactions with wild animals are undoubtedly benign, it is the conflict between wildlife and people that draws particularly close attention from the public. Animals viewed as vertebrate “pests” range from the small to the large, the timid …

The Political Ecology Of The State: The Basis And The Evolution Of Environmental Statehood, Joshua M. Mullenite

Joshua M. Mullenite

No abstract provided.

الحماية الدستورية لحقوق البيئة في ليبيا, Mansour M. Elbabour

Mansour M Elbabour

No abstract provided.

Slow Scholarship.Pdf, Alison Mountz, Anne Bonds, Becky Mansfield, Jenna Loyd, Jennifer Hyndman, Margaret Walton-Roberts, Ranu Basu, Risa Whitson, Roberta Hawkins, Trina Hamilton, Winifred S. Curran

Winifred S Curran

Historical Repetition And Development Narratives In Guyana's Coastal Drainage And Irrigation System, Joshua M. Mullenite

Joshua M. Mullenite

No abstract provided.

Soundscape In North-Eastern Part Of Iasi City (Sararie – Ticau District), Ana M. Oiste, Florin C. Mihai, Dan A. Chelaru

Florin C MIHAI

This paper presents a complex study of noise levels from road traffic source and the variation during the seasons in an old residential area located in the north-eastern part of Iasi city, an important educational and cultural centre of the country. The study reveal the correlation between noise levels and social activities developed in the area: low number of inhabitants because of the holidays time in August and the resumption of the educational activity in autumn, including school start in September and of the university activity in October. After direct observations, the measurements were made with digital sound –level meter …

An Assessment Of South China Tiger Reintroduction Potential In Hupingshan And Houhe National Nature Reserves, China, Yiyuan Qin, Philip J. Nyhus, Courtney L. Larson, Charles J.W. Carroll, Jeff Muntifering, Thomas D. Dahmer, Lu Jun, Ronald L. Tilson

Philip J. Nyhus

Human-caused biodiversity loss is a global problem, large carnivores are particularly threatened, and the tiger (Panthera tigris) is among the world’s most endangered large carnivores. The South China tiger (Panthera tigris amoyensis) is the most critically endangered tiger subspecies and is considered functionally extinct in the wild. The government of China has expressed its intent to reintroduce a small population of South China tigers into a portion of their historic range as part of a larger goal to recover wild tiger populations in China. This would be the world’s first major tiger reintroduction program. A free-ranging population of 15–20 tigers …

The Use Of Social Media In Countrywide Disaster Risk Reduction Public Awareness Strategies, Neil Dufty

Neil Dufty

Social media has been used extensively in recent disasters by emergency managers particularly to warn people and help in the co-ordination of response and recovery. However, its use in disaster prevention and preparedness is less understood. This article examines the use of social media in disaster risk reduction (DRR) awareness strategies around the world through a literature review and expert opinion. It concludes that it is generally underutilised in major DRR awareness strategies, although there are robust programs operating in some countries with high social media use.