Digital Commons Network^™

“Putting The Arts In Their Place”: A Case For Map-Making In Art History, Marco Jalla

Artl@s Bulletin

The use of cartography in art history is less than common. Because of its link to the old artistic geography (Kunstgeographie) once used to defend nationalist issues in Nazi Germany, it fell into disfavor until the 1960s and 1970s, when maps regained some attention from a new generation of art historians. Mapping arts indeed proves to be very useful to visualize and organize large dataset and to formulate new hypotheses, both as a descriptive and a prospective tool. The challenge we proposed to the authors was to use maps for questioning the territorial logics, the centers and peripheries of the …

Sustainability Practices In Higher Education: Stakeholder Engagement In Promoting Campus Sustainability, Maria Assunta C. Cuyegkeng, Abigal Marie T. Favis

Journal of Management for Global Sustainability

Universities have a role in changing mindsets toward sustainable development through education, research, and extension work. Despite the ongoing trend in favor of sustainability initiatives, however, they themselves struggle to transform organizational practices in their own contexts, especially when trying to get the administration’s buy-in and establish stakeholder engagement. Ateneo de Manila University in particular used its response to the decrees of General Congregation 35 (Society of Jesus, 2008) of the Society of Jesus to serve as the foundation of its campus sustainability programs, especially with respect to its translation into policies that affect the university’s ecological footprint and stakeholder …

Global Collaborative Advantage: Efforts Toward Decolonization Of Business Ethics And Management Scholarship, Jessica Ludescher Imanaka

Journal of Management for Global Sustainability

The current trend of prescribing and enforcing ethical business constructs, models, and frameworks developed in and by the Global North has become a new form of paternalistic colonizing of the Global South. Such behavior dangerously mirrors historically oppressive movements through colonization and continues extractive and damaging practices. Indeed, the enforcement of Northern constructs, models, and frameworks facilitates the maintenance of an artificial global hierarchy which continues to harm the South to the North’s benefit. They overlook and prohibit any possible inclusion of ethical and philosophical frameworks derived from the wisdoms and traditions of the South. This article advances the goal …

Comparing Levels Of Environmental Literacy Between Stars- And Non-Stars-Rated Universities, Analisa Kathleen Campos

Master's Theses

The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) is a program that measures university sustainability levels. STARS ranks university campuses based on the number of points received from individual specifications such as green buildings, access to mass transit, number of environmental courses, and more. Therefore, the rank a school receives translates directly to its level of sustainability as an institution. Currently, it is unknown if there is a relationship between a campus’s STARS-rating and individual students’ environmental literacy (EL). The purpose of this project was to analyze the impacts of university’s sustainable features on student EL. Surveys were administered to …

Environmental Justice Disparities In Alaska Native Communities, Elizabeth Kovacs

D.U.Quark

No abstract provided.

Storm On The Horizon: Climate Change, Hurricanes, And The Future Of The Eastern Caribbean, Joseph P. Odegaard

Student Theses 2015-Present

Hurricanes are a fact of life in the Caribbean. This meteorological reality has shaped the islands’ development throughout its history. However, in recent years, the Atlantic’s most fearsome storms have been unprecedented, both in strength and number. This paper explores the relationship between climate change and hurricanes and the effect this relationship has on the Eastern Caribbean. Chapter 1 uses quantitative data from a variety of sources, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment of the United Nations, as well as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association and the National Climate Assessment of the United …

Troubling “Technologies”: Exploring The Global Learning Xprize Using The Frameworks Of Skinner And Foucault, Tanya Elias

Current Issues in Emerging eLearning

This work focuses on the question: What might be wrong with large-scale approaches to learning? In posing this question, my purpose is not to suggest that large-scale approaches have no role to play within a complex educational landscape. Rather, I seek to introduce a starting point for more critical and nuanced approaches to achieving proper scale within digital learning, whether big and small. Organized around a series of stories from a train-ride home, I introduce a series of process-based “technologies” as defined by Skinner (1971) and Foucault (1988). After contrasting key concepts of Skinner and Foucault, I apply Foucault’s framework …

Human Dimensions Of Roadside Forest Management To Reduce Utility Infrastructure Vulnerability, Danielle Kloster

Doctoral Dissertations

During major storm events in 2011 and 2012 (Tropical Storm Irene, Storm Alfred, Hurricane Sandy), approximately 90% of power outages in Connecticut were caused by falling trees or limbs. The storms brought attention to the vulnerability of utility infrastructure and, in response, more focus was placed on vegetation management. People play a role in each step of the vegetation management process: government and utility officials planning for infrastructure resilience, tree crews conducting the management, and property owners mediating management by consenting or objecting to proposed tree pruning and removal. My research explored the human dimensions of roadside vegetation management. Media …

The University Greening Movement: Is Carbon Neutrality Enough To Avert A Climate Crisis?, Sean R. Finlay

Student Theses 2015-Present

Because of the impact that educational institutions have on the intellect of the American youth, universities play a crucial role in our nation’s path towards sustainability because of their ability to guide educational focus toward the well-being of the environment. Through a unified movement among these institutions called the “University Greening Movement”, or UGM, campuses are utilizing current technological breakthroughs to their advantage by implementing them into the structures and foundations of their campuses to reduce and even eliminate carbon emissions. However, as monumental as these technological advancements and this movement has been, the question arises of whether or not …

After The Storm: How Environmental Racism Impacted The United States' Response To Hurricane Maria, Hadley Ankrum

Student Theses 2015-Present

In September of 2017, disaster struck the territory of Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria made landfall on the island. Although the storm itself caused tremendous damage to both the residents and the environment of Puerto Rico, the inadequate responses of both the United States federal government and local Puerto Rican politicians greatly exacerbated this devastation. This paper examines the efforts of the American government to ameliorate the issues created by the storm through the lens of environmental racism. The introduction will explore the events of the hurricane in order to give the reader context. Chapter 1 draws from the Millennium …

Nothing Is Over: Ftca Claims For Toxic Torts On Native Lands, Jessica Ditmore

American Indian Law Journal

In 1976, Congress passed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) to curtail the growing problem of disposing of hazardous waste and toxic substances generally. Decades prior, Congress established the Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA”) to hold the federal Government liable for tortious conduct the same way a private citizen would be. The federal government assumed the responsibility to ensure the wellbeing of Native Nations (“NN”). This is commonly referred to the “Trust Doctrine.” This duty stems from the settlement of Native American lands, and a recognition of the treaties entered into by the United States with a “moral [obligation] …

􏰀Enough􏰁S Enough􏰂: Protest Law And The Tradition Of Chilling Indigenous Free Speech, Alix H. Bruce

American Indian Law Journal

Indigenous peoples in the United States were not granted the full scope of their rights as citizens under the Constitution until the enactment of the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924. Before that—and after—several state and federal campaigns worked to stifle the civil rights of Indigenous peoples. Many of those unjust and unconstitutional policies were upheld by the Supreme Court. In the current era, the anti-pipeline protests on the edge of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota sparked a new recognition of Indigenous resistance under the First Amendment—and vicious state and federal backlash against Indigenous free speech via the …

Fighting On Behalf Of The Salish Sea, Cloie M. Chapman

American Indian Law Journal

Despite the wealth of data that suggests climate change will disrupt our ecosystems, key political actors have declined to take action to mitigate the anticipated effects. Further, we have seen deeper investment into the fossil fuel industry, an industry that has been a substantial contributor to climate change. Community-led movements have proven more successful in engaging with these issues on the ground. Creative legal strategies could aid in this movement and allow for strengthened enforcement of rights that are closely dependent on the health of the environment.

The Salish Sea is a body of water that reaches from Western Canada …

Rexistência Nas Fronteiras Do Capitalismo/Colonialismo: A Ecologia Política Do Isolamento E Da Soberania, Felipe Milanez

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

Ofereço a perspectiva da ecologia política para rever e atualizar a política de “isolamento” e “não-contato” com base nos conceitos de soberania e necropolítica, sugerindo uma nova proposta de prática política para situações de conflitos em territórios ocupados por povos indígenas que resistem à conquista pela guerra e distanciamento. Da perspectiva do estudo dos conflitos ambientais, a ecologia política questiona a noção de isolamento ao inseri-la como parte do sistema mundo capitalista/colonial. Diante do quadro crescente de fascistização social e violência do Estado, cuja pressão sobre os territórios tornou-se ainda mais intenso, é a morte e a vida destes coletivos …

Minimizing The Dangers Of Air Pollution Using Alternative Facts: A Science Museum Case Study, David H. Lee

Publications and Research

A science museum exhibition about human health contains an exhibit that minimizes health impacts of air pollution. Relevant details, such as the full range of health risks; fossil fuel combustion; air quality statutes (and the local electrical utility’s violations of these statues), are omitted, while end users of electricity are blamed. The exhibit accomplishes this, not through outright falsification, but through selected “alternative facts” that change the focus and imply misleading alternate explanations. Using two classical rhetorical concepts (the practical syllogism and the enthymeme) allows for the surfacing of missing evidence and unstated directives underlying multimodal rhetoric. By stating multimedia …

Integrating Equity Into Mpo Project Prioritization, Kristine M. Williams, Jeff Kramer, Yaye Keita, Lucy Deba Enomah, Tia Boyd

Transportation Planning, Policy, and Processes (TP3) Final Reports

Transportation investments shape communities and quality of life by influencing the ability of residents to safely and conveniently access employment, health care, recreation, shopping, and other services. When identifying needs and selecting projects for funding, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) must consider multiple factors and balance their investments among competing interests and priorities. Achieving an equitable balance among these factors and interests is critical because of the competitive nature of MPO planning and programming processes and the importance of each factor in enhancing the transportation system of the region. Identifying and selecting projects that promote equity and access to opportunity is …

Cercla Cleanup 2019.12.13 Letter To Epa On Its November Comments To The Draft Fyr Addendum For Soil, Golden Gate University School Of Law

Environmental Law and Justice Clinic - Hunters Point Naval Shipyard Documents

December 13, 2019 letter to EPA providing additional comments on the Fourth Five Year Review and related documents which must analyze whether the cleanup is protective of human health and the environment: the Navy’s risk assessment should consider consumption of produce grown on the former shipyard; the Navy must provide rationale for the remedial goal used for radium-223; the retesting must use adequate sensitivity to detect radioactivity far below the current remedial goals which are not protective, and; the Navy continues to make unfounded assertions about the protectiveness of the remedy. (6 pages)

The Rockaway Project - Townes, Diara Jepris D. Townes

Capstones

The Rockaway Project is a story-driven website that provides information on the government response to Superstorm Sandy recovery on the Rockaway peninsula in Queens, New York. Dozens of climate resiliency projects have been delayed or remain unfinished, despite millions of dollars in funding and six years of promises. The website hosts audio, visual and digital content, gathered through interviews and data collection.

Link to capstone project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAq2BeR4bS0&t=1s

A Geographical Analysis Of Gentrification And The Changing Foodscape In Seattle 2010-2017, Alice Tiffany, Michele Romolini

Honors Thesis

Anguelovski defines food privilege as “the exclusive access to desirable ‘natural’ and fresh food thanks to one’s economic, cultural, and political power” (Anguelovski 2015a). Previous studies have demonstrated that access to fresh, healthy, affordable food is correlated with socioeconomic status (LA Food Policy Council 2017; Walker et al. 2010; Alkon & Agyeman 2011; Raja et al. 2008). However, as is being increasingly noted, the introduction of environmental amenities, such as farmers markets and community gardens, can have unintended consequences and trigger environmental gentrification (Kern 2015; Pearsall 2010; Eckerd 2011; Curran & Hamilton 2012; Wolch et al. 2014; Alkon & Cadji …

Visualization And Analysis Of Environmental Data, Sean Macdonald

Publications and Research

The virtual exploration of place has been employed in a variety of learning environments across many disciplines, creatively expanding upon the experience of place. This chapter explores the value of mapping environmental data as a tool that can enhance students’ virtual exploration of place as they investigate local environmental policies and problems within their own urban surroundings. This visualization project engages students in making meaningful connections between the theoretical study of local and global environmental problems and the “observation” and investigation of these data using mapped data. The virtual learning environment is viewed as one that is interactive, exploring how …

Air Pollution & Asthma Prevalence: Hotspot Analysis On Environmental Injustice In Buffalo, New York, Zuveria Shaguphta

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This research aims to focus on the historical impacts of segregation in these communities (with Census Bureau data) and whether we see that these are the areas with continued segregation and a disproportionate number of TRI facilities. The third part of this research will be to investigate the presence of asthma in these neighborhoods as documented by the New York State Health Department. Asthma is a chronic disease in which the airways are inflamed due to some kind of external factor causing this reaction. Literature shows that there is a relationship between outdoor air pollution from combustion of fossil fuels …

Air Quality And Environmental Justice: An Analysis Of County-Level Data In The United States, Alyssa Tittle

Honors Theses

This paper analyzes the relationship between air pollution and poverty and race/ethnicity at the county level in the United States. Using air pollution data from the Environmental Protection Agency and population characteristics data from the Census Bureau to model relationships in RStudio, results show that race/ethnicity, population, and median value of owner-occupied housing units are the most statistically significant variables associated with air quality.

December 4, 2019 Faculty Senate Minutes, University Of South Carolina

Faculty Senate

No abstract provided.

The Disposition Of Nature: Environmental Crisis And World Literature [Table Of Contents], Jennifer Wenzel

Literature

How do literature and other cultural forms shape how we imagine the planet, for better or worse? In this rich, original, and long awaited book, Jennifer Wenzel tackles the formal innovations, rhetorical appeals, and sociological imbrications of world literature that might help us confront unevenly distributed environmental crises, including global warming.

The Disposition of Nature argues that assumptions about what nature is are at stake in conflicts over how it is inhabited or used. Both environmental discourse and world literature scholarship tend to confuse parts and wholes. Working with writing and film from Africa, South Asia, and beyond, Wenzel …

Quantifying The Variability In Heavy Metal Concentrations In Produce Grown In Metals-Rich Soil, Harris Lowell Byers

Theses and Dissertations

Childhood Pb exposure is associated with a multitude of poor health outcomes. In food-insecure areas, growing fresh produce in residential backyard gardens is one option for parents; however, commonly grown crops are known to accumulate Pb in consumable tissues when grown in metals-rich soils. A variety of produce representing a continuum of consumable tissues were grown in soils collected from two residential vegetable gardens, a former metal foundry, and commercial topsoil purchased from a local hardware store. The concentrations of heavy metals in crop tissues were measured with custom wavelength dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (WD-XRF) spectroscopy and portable energy dispersive X-ray …

Creating An Independent Organization For Lewiston/Auburn Trails, Ava Gulino, Nelly Junesand, Kassandra Wilson

Community Engaged Research Reports

Maine lends itself to many outdoor activities with its varied geography. Many communities around the state have acknowledged this asset and designed trail systems that allow for people to experience the outdoors. In Maine, many trail organizations are nonprofits as it allows them to provide critical services that contribute to economic stability and mobility in surrounding communities without being dependent on local governments (National Council of Nonprofits 2019a). The nonprofit community in Maine has been successful throughout the years in creating a robust and vibrant community of citizens that help protect the environment, educate children, and inform the government (Maine …

Cultural Heritage And Local Ecological Knowledge Under Threat: Two Caribbean Examples From Barbuda And Puerto Rico, Rebecca Boger, Sophia Perdikaris, Isabel Rivero-Collazo

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

While the impacts to the infrastructures in Barbuda and Puerto Rico by Hurricanes Irma and Maria have received attention in the news media, less has been reported about the impacts of these catastrophic events on the tangible and intangible cultural heritage of these Caribbean islands. This report provides an assessment of the impacts on the cultural heritage by these storms; tangible heritage includes historic buildings, museums, monuments, documents and other artifacts and intangible heritage includes traditional artistry, festivities, and more frequent activities such as religious services and laundering. While the physical destruction was massive, the social contexts in which these …

Eyes Focused On The Light, Kimberly Flint-Hamilton

Journal of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium

Letter from the Editor

Let’S Be Friends: Black Theology, Climate Change, And Trust, Nathaniel Holmes Jr.

Journal of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium

Climate change is a worldwide issue with ramifications for all ethnic groups. Yet, there is a dearth of engagement of climate change issues by Black theology and Black churches, even though the effects of climate change are predicted to affect African Americans and other racial minorities to a greater extent than other groups. Given the history of mistrust of the uses of scientific research and practices that have themselves caused negative impacts within the African American communities (e.g., Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment), this disconnect is not surprising. Furthermore, some view the attention given to anything other than criminal justice reform, police …

6th Annual Sustainability Report, Saint Mary's College Of California

Sustainability Report

Highlights from the past year include reviving the Sustainability Living Learning Community in South Claeys (formerly called the “Green LLC”) with double the anticipated enrollment, representing Saint Mary's at Al Gore's Climate Reality Leadership Training in Minneapolis, and launching several new paid Sustainability Student Leadership positions.