Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Lgbtqc: Queer Perspectives On The Illinois-Iowa Quad Cities, Robert Burke

Anthropology: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

Cities are broadly conceived to be queer utopia when compared with rural spaces. While the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa fit this simplistic model in some ways, the region has several unique characteristics that warrant their own investigation. I argue that the social climate of the Quad Cities is generally perceived as welcoming and inclusive by the LGBTQ+ community. However, despite an assortment of community-building institutions, some find socialization and partner-seeking a bit difficult. Many advocate for investment in a variety of physical LGBTQ+ “third places” (public gathering places), which would yield a variety of benefits for this community. …

When Nature Invades: Resident Perceptions Of The Austerity-Driven "Rewilding" Of An Urban Park In Rock Island, Illinois, Christian S. B. Elliott

Anthropology: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

In an era of rapid urbanization, changing climate, and increasing political division, parks represent increasingly important places for urban residents to interact with and feel connected to the natural environment and receive a number of mental and physical health benefits. Unfortunately, in an age of austerity politics, parks and recreation departments in Midwest Rust Belt cities often lack adequate funding to maintain such public spaces. Recently, the business-minded Rock Island, Illinois Department of Parks and Recreation has implemented a creative cost-saving management solution: “naturalizing” sections of its city parks. This interdisciplinary study uses a mixed methods approach to discover how …

Left In The Dust: How Staff At River Heights Assisted Living Facility Adjusts To Change And Covid-19, Victoria Hill

Anthropology Department Scholars Week

“Left in the Dust: How Staff at River Heights Assisted Living Facility Adjusts to Change and COVID-19”, by Victoria Hill

In this study, the Housekeeping and Caregiving Departments at River Heights Assisted Living Facility in Bellingham are being investigated. The initial research was aimed at understanding how the lax regulations of the Housekeeping Department affected its capacity to complete necessary job duties. Collected testimony pointed to the conclusion that specific individuals within the department proved to be problematic which resulted in the overall quality of work to stray from facility standards. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the employees at this facility …

Is The Risk Worth It?, Porter Mcmichael

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This is a video ethnography that includes audio from interviews with alpine climbers and footage from first ascents in the North Cascades. The topic focuses on risk, why the risk is worth it, how they come to terms with increased risk, and how they think about death. The goal of this project is to expand the understanding of how risk is approached by climbers who are pushing the limits of their mortality. The big takeaways of how climbers justify risk can be applied to everyday life and the decisions we make.