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Addressing Health Crises Through Courts? Climate Litigation In Latin America, The Right To Health And Vulnerable Populations, Thalia Viveros Uehara

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

As Latin America faces increasing climate-related health crises that disproportionately affect populations experiencing poverty and social exclusion, it becomes increasingly urgent to realize the most vulnerable's right to health. While the region's new constitutionalism (NLAC) has made progress in protecting this right, it has only recently begun to intersect with climate change law through rights-based climate litigation. This dissertation takes a transdisciplinary multi-methods research approach to answer the following question: How do health crises emerge within, and how are they addressed by courts through, domestic climate litigation in Latin America? Specifically, it examines how health concerns for vulnerable populations are …

Increasing Housing Stability Through State-Funded Community Mediation Delivered By The Massachusetts Housing Mediation Program (Hmp) In Fy2022, Madhawa Palihapitiya, David Sulewski, Karina Zeferino, Jarling Ho

Massachusetts Office of Public Collaboration Publications

This report presents findings and recommendations from an evaluation of the Massachusetts Housing Mediation Program (HMP) administered by the MA Office of Public Collaboration (MOPC) at the University of Massachusetts Boston in partnership with 11 Community Mediation Centers (Centers). The program is funded by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and implemented in partnership with the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The program was initially part of the Governor’s Eviction Diversion Initiative (EDI), which ended in the latter half of FY2022 and is continuing as an intervention to support housing stability. The evaluation was conducted by MOPC’s research unit comprised …

Social Security Benefits Continue To Fall Short Of Covering Cost Of Basic Needs For Older Americans, 2021, Jan Mutchler, Nidya Velasco Roldán

Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging Publications

Social Security benefits fall short of what is required to cover the basic cost of living across the United States, according to new estimates based on the Elder Index, a county-by-county measure of the income older adults need to secure an independent lifestyle. Nationally, the average Social Security benefit covers just 68% of basic living expenses of housing, food, transportation, and health care for a single renter in 2021, and 81% for an older couple. The gap between Social Security benefits and what it takes to get by is especially problematic for older adults who rely largely or entirely on …

Vermont: Collaborating To Educate Self-Advocates About Alternatives To Guardianship, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

This promising practice describes Vermont’s statewide self-advocacy organization, Green Mountain Self-Advocates (GMSA), and their partnership with the Vermont Disability Law Project to organize legal clinics for people with IDD. These clinics have enabled self-advocates to get high-quality, easy-to-understand information about alternatives to guardianship they might not get anywhere else.

How To Track Down Your Lost 401(K), Pension Action Center, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Pension Action Center Publications

This fact sheet was produced by the Pension Action Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston in conjunction with the COVID-19 Rapid Response Systems Summer Institute, a joint partnership of Justice Catalyst, the People’s Parity Project, and the Systemic Justice Project.

Protect Your 401k When You Leave Your Job, Pension Action Center, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Pension Action Center Publications

This fact sheet was produced by the Pension Action Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston in conjunction with the COVID-19 Rapid Response Systems Summer Institute, a joint partnership of Justice Catalyst, the People’s Parity Project, and the Systemic Justice Project.

Talking About Casino Gambling: Community Voices From Boston Chinatown, Carolyn Wong, Giles Li

Institute for Asian American Studies Publications

This pilot study examined the casino gambling practices of residents and workers in Boston Chinatown. The aim was to learn about the trajectory and life context of individual participants’ gambling activity, including how individual participants describe their motivation, nature and frequency of gambling, and its effects on self and family. The research was conducted by a university based research team in partnership with the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, and with the assistance of the Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling.

The stories told by participants illustrate multiple and overlapping risk factors for problem gambling. Our conceptual approach took into account the …

Supporting Employment Consultants In Their Work With Job Seekers. A Longitudinal Study, Alberto Migliore, John Butterworth, Oliver Lyons, Kelly Nye-Lengerman, Paul Foos, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

BACKGROUND: A key step for increasing the employment outcomes of job seekers with disabilities includes ensuring that employment consultants who assist them have the tools to succeed, including feedback about how they are performing. OBJECTIVE: Supporting employment consultants in their work with job seekers by providing feedback about the implementation of the support strategies recommended in the literature. METHODS: Sixty-one employment consultants completed a daily survey for one year, on their smartphones. RESULTS: Providing supports that lead to hire represented 30% of the employment consultants’ work time. When providing supports that lead to hire, most of the primary interactions were …

State Employment First Policies #3: Investing In Training And Technical Assistance To Build Capacity In Integrated Employment, Jennifer Bose, Jean Winsor, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

For more than a decade, many states have been developing policies that prioritize integrated employment as the first choice and preferred outcome for individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD). Collectively, these actions have been united under the framework of Employment First, a commitment by states and state IDD agencies to the propositions that all individuals with IDD (a) are capable of performing work in typical integrated employment settings, (b) should receive as a matter of state policy employment-related services and supports as a priority over other facility-based and non-work day services, and (c) should be paid at minimum or prevailing wage …

The Essential Characteristics Of Successful Organizational Transformation: Findings From A Delphi Panel Of Experts, Oliver Lyons, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons, Allison Cohen Hall, Stephanie Leblois, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

BACKGROUND: Federal legislation has called for the phasing out of sheltered workshops and the transition to integrated employment, causing providers to struggle with how to adapt their model towards providing community integration services.

Bringing Employment First To Scale: Support Coordination Strategies That Impact Employment Outcomes And Services For Individuals Served By State Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities Agencies, Barbara Brent, Rie Kennedy-Lizotte, Mary Lee Fay, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

Leadership from NASDDDS and ICI worked together to determine topics for a series of white papers on policies that influence employment outcomes for individuals with IDD. This white paper is the third in a series of five. It provides an overview of strategies that support coordinators, or case managers, use to influence employment outcomes for individuals with IDD who are receiving state funded services.

Bringing Employment First To Scale: Pushing The Integrated Employment Agenda: A Case Study Of Maryland’S High-Performing Employment System, Jean Winsor, Cady Landa, Allison C. Hall, Caro Narby, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

This brief summarizes data collected from key informants in Maryland about the state’s efforts to support integrated employment for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). It highlights features that contribute to the effectiveness of Maryland’s collaborative structures that have resulted in the state’s success in achieving integrated employment outcomes for individuals with IDD across three state systems: IDD, vocational rehabilitation (VR), and education. Presentation of these features is organized by the seven elements of the Higher-Performing States Employment Framework. These elements have been found to be important in achieving higher rates of competitive integrated employment outcomes for people with …

Introduction: Developing Strategies For Stability And A Sustainable Shared Development In Euro-Mediterranean Migrations, Emanuela C. Del Re

New England Journal of Public Policy

This special issue on migration offers a collection of contributions from prominent scholars, academics, and researchers from Europe, Africa, and the United States who provide a unique multilevel and prismatic analysis of this fundamental social phenomenon.

Strategies For Stability And Sustainability In Euro-Mediterranean Migrations, Emanuela C. Del Re

New England Journal of Public Policy

In this article, the author provides a wide and vivid picture of the several dimensions of migration flows in the current global scenario and, in particular, in the Mediterranean. She proposes new interpretations of this complex phenomenon, analyzing its multiple aspects and characteristics and the push factors and policies and responses of the countries of origin, transit, and destination. She suggests new approaches and strategies to deal with the issue of migration, urging the EU member states and EU institutions to develop management policies for stability and sustainability that are welcoming and that respect human rights.

North African Regular And Irregular Migration: The Case Of Libya, Mustafa O. Attir

New England Journal of Public Policy

Because of its geographical size and location, Libya has for centuries been a transit county for human movement across the region. Thus, its experience with immigrants has a long history. In the early 1970s, Libya became a destination for foreigners seeking jobs. Some entered the country legally, others illegally. All came to work, live, and send remittances back to their families. During the 1990s, when many migrants used Libya as a transit country for crossing the sea to Europe, the European Union started negotiating with the Libyan government to curb the flow of irregular migrants. In 2011, the country joined …

Syrian Refugees In Turkey: A Security Perspective, Federico Donelli

New England Journal of Public Policy

This study investigates the nexus between the mass movement of people and security and foreign policy behaviors. The assertion is that refugee flows intensify security issues among decision makers and members of society; consequently, new fears and wider perceptions of threats have several implications for foreign policy agenda. The article focuses on the theoretical analysis of the securitization of migration and its impact on foreign policy and security policy. It also analyzes, from a security perspective, the effect on Turkey of the refugees who arrived en masse from Syria during the past six years. The article concludes with an analysis …

The Mediterranean Refugee Crisis: Heritage, Tourism, And Migration, Marxiano Melotti

New England Journal of Public Policy

The Mediterranean Sea has become a huge cemetery: many thousands of migrants have lost their lives trying to cross it in search of a better future. In 2015, more than a million migrants and refugees reached Europe through irregular means, but almost 4,000 went missing and probably drowned. In 2016, 364,000 arrived in Europe and more than 5,000 were lost en route. The arrivals in Italy by sea were 181,436 in 2016 and 119,369 in 2017. While UN organizations and EU governments seem unable or unwilling to face this epoch-making drama, the culture industry has begun to exploit it. Migrant …

Response And Responsibilities Of The Republic Of Macedonia In The Migrant And Refugees Crises, Toni Mileski

New England Journal of Public Policy

The Republic of Macedonia has had a long history of dealing with migrants and refugees. Since the late nineteenth century, conflicts, including the Balkan Wars (1912–1913), the First and Second World Wars, the Greek civil war (1945–1949), the Kosovo conflict, and the 2001 internal security crisis, have caused successive waves of migration. More recently, armed conflict in the Middle East, especially in Syria, caused a migrant and refugee crisis that has deeply affected the country. This article analyses how the Republic of Macedonia has responded to this crisis. It examines the initial period of the crisis, the measures, activities, and …

Managing Migration: The Balkans United Against Refugees, Hedvig Morvai, Dragan Djokovic

New England Journal of Public Policy

In 2015, alone, almost a million refugees sought to reach Northwestern Europe by traveling from Turkey, through Greece and Macedonia, and then across Serbia, Hungary, or Croatia, following what became known as the Balkan route. Despite the numerous problems associated with this route, it remained functional until March 8, 2016, when the EU member states reached a deal with Turkey that has put a stop to this particular migrants’ itinerary.

Like the member states of the European Union, the Balkan countries have been dealing with migration problems in an obsolete manner. Wars and their attendant difficulties in Serbia, Croatia, and …

Immigration As A Domestic Policy Issue: What Strategy To “Save” Europe?, Germano Dottori

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article analyzes the influence of political orientations in the development of migration policies in the European Union. It lists the forces shaping the political orientations regarding mass migration across Europe and shows how they combine and affect the policies being adopted. The article focuses on the economic and political positions underpinning progressive, liberal options for an open-door policy and the opposing views.

European Immigration Controls Conforming To Human Rights Standards, Yannis Ktistakis

New England Journal of Public Policy

The European continent has for some years been facing increased pressure from migration. In 2010, Europe, in comparison with the other continents, was expected to host the largest number of migrants: 69.8 million migrants representing 32.6 percent of the total flow of migrants (213.9 million international migrants). This pressure has caused the two main European organizations, the Council of Europe and the European Union, to act decisively for the protection of migrants. Although the European legal order offers a high standard of human rights protection—having adopted, over the decades, the relevant instruments and developed effective mechanisms—the two European organizations have …

Migration And Conflict, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

The United Nations is ill-equipped to prevent, much less end, intrastate conflicts. Today’s conflicts and an explosive mix of other interrelated causes—including violence, famine, extreme poverty, climate-related disasters and political oppression—have led to a global migration and population-displacement crisis. This article examines the intersection of conflict and migration. It presents the data on migrants, refugees, and internally displaced persons (IDPs) and exposes the rise of extreme nationalist tendencies in the West—in particular, Europe, where several measures to stem the flow of refugees have been imposed. The article concludes with a warning about global poverty and marginalization—a prescription for violent conflict …

Gendering Migration: Women, Migratory Routes And Trafficking, Nicolamaria Coppola

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article examines international migration from a gender perspective. It asserts that migration can be empowering for women, and at the same time it may exacerbate their vulnerabilities, including abuse and trafficking, particularly when migrants are low skilled or irregular.

Syrian Refugees In Europe: Migration Dynamics And Political Challenges, Leila Hudson

New England Journal of Public Policy

After 2011 the Syrian conflict caused growing numbers of residents to flee to escape escalating regime brutality and deteriorating economic conditions. In addition to a population of up to eight million internally displaced residents, at least four million Syrians fled to neighboring Arab states and Turkey. Conditions in those countries ranged from desperate to uncomfortable, and between 2014 and 2016 up to a million refugees continued on to seek asylum in Europe. In addition to the trauma of displacement the refugees experienced, the migration left traces on the host and transit countries in the form of economic and infrastructural challenges, …

State Employment First Policies #2: Engaging Stakeholders In Development And Implementation, Jennifer Bose, Jean Winsor, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

This brief is the second in a series focusing on Employment First implementation as it relates to one of the seven elements within the High-Performing States in Integrated Employment model. It looks at the interagency collaboration and partnership element in depth. Interagency partnership and collaboration includes interagency agreements and relationships, provider collaboration, and outreach to stakeholders to ensure that integrated employment is a shared goal.
Case study data was collected for a sub-sample of seven states: Connecticut (CT), Delaware (DE), Kansas (KS), Minnesota (MN), Missouri (MO), Tennessee (TN), and Washington (WA). These states were selected because they represent a wide …

Bringing Employment First To Scale: Writing For Families: Tips To Increase The Impact Of Training Materials, Jennifer Bose, John Kramer, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

This brief covers some of the lessons learned in reviewing literature designed to engage with families about employment. It suggests some tips and strategies to use with families to increase effective involvement and collaboration.

Bringing Employment First To Scale: State Of The Science As A Knowledge Translation Strategy, John Kramer, Caro Narby, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

To synthesize our findings to date, the ThinkWork team at ICI developed 3 draft papers that captured the core themes from our RRTC on Advancing Employment for Individuals with Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities (IDD). We asked experts in the field to weigh in on these papers, and then broadly disseminated the papers to multiple audiences. Our primary goal was to engage with a diverse group with a range of perspectives and experiences, including fellow researchers, state agency employees, rehabilitation providers, and individuals with IDD and their families. To reach this goal we used a Knowledge Translation (KT) process. KT has …

Strengthening Employment Services For Job Seekers With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities (Bringing Employment First To Scale, No 15), Alberto Migliore, Kelly Nye-Lengerman, Oliver Lyons, John Butterworth, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

Strengthening the effectiveness of employment services for job seekers with disabilities is key for improving their employment outcomes and their financial self-sufficiency. The purpose of this brief is to examine the quality of employment services available to job seekers with disabilities, and to offer recommendations for improvement. Findings are from a longitudinal study that involved 61 employment 37 employment programs in 17 states. Data were collected through a survey employment specialists, delivered to the job developers, or participants’ business developers. smartphones every work day for one year. Based on these findings and the literature about effective employment support practices, we …

Getting Power Back: Court Restoration Of Executive Authority In Boston City Government (1985), Marcy Murninghan

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article, originally published in 1985, is based partly on the author’s experience with the Boston school desegregation case, but goes beyond it. It chronicles some of the events that occurred when a state and a federal court attempted to disengage from active jurisdiction over two Boston public systems: the Boston Public Schools and the Boston Housing Authority. It makes three proposals, which, if enacted, would help to keep the courts out of day-to-day management of municipal operations. It also makes some generalizations about the court-agency interplay that are relevant to the post-remedial phase of institutional reform litigation. The author …

Behind The Numbers: Conditions Of Schooling In Boston (1981), Marcy Murninghan

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article includes portions of a report on the structure, governance, operations, and effectiveness of the Boston School Committee that was commissioned by the Boston Municipal Research Bureau in 1980. The passages provide an overview of the mandate, background, and recommendations, examining how a set of prominent professionals and citizens viewed the problem facing school department governance, including its isolation and the longstanding credibility gap fueled by patronage politics. It also looks at continued tensions between “equality” and “quality,” which occupied the heart of court-ordered desegregation; rising demands on a system that lacked the capacity to serve a broad array …