Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Alaska National Parks And Indigenous Peoples: Collaboration For A Protected Future, Siobhan Mctiernan

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This research examines the relationships between National Parks and Indigenous communities across the state of Alaska. National Parks as a government agency can be perceived in a negative way; but in Alaska, while there are issues and limitations, parks are going beyond policy guidelines to work with communities and help build a resilient future for both the parks and the local people. This work dives into the National Parks policies and practices, projects resulting from engagement of community stakeholders, perceptions of engagement, community capitals, and sustainable development. In particular, the study investigates how these policies, practices, and interactions ultimately contribute …

Festivals As A Sustainable Development Tool: Case Study Of Teriberka, Russia, Maria Monakhova

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Sustainable development refers to positive economic, social, and environment changes brought both locally and globally, creating a better world for individuals and future generations. Sustainable development in the Arctic shares the same approach, yet the smallness and remoteness of the Arctic regions often present a challenge to its implementation (Larsen & Huskey, 2015). I believe that the remarkable beauty, culture, history, and geography of these territories may generate positive returns for sustainable development through the organization of festivals. This paper examines the Teriberka festival taking place in a small same-name village in the Russian Arctic. The questions raised are what …

Evaluating Livelihood Vulnerability Of Farming Communities To Winter Storms In Iowa, Yiyi Zhang

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Driven by unusually warm air in the Arctic, severe winter weather moves southward to mid-latitude areas, indicating the complexity in the ways that climate change may affect local weather extremes. The vulnerability of farming communities to climate risks and differential response capabilities have drawn much research attention. Winter storms are recognized as one of the common catastrophic events leading to agricultural damage and loss. However, research is notably lacking in understanding the consequences extreme winter weather could bring in farmer livelihood.

This study is concerned with the vulnerability patterns of farming communities shaped under varying climate and socio-physical conditions. Focusing …

Celebrating 100 Years Of The National Park System In The Classroom, Kailyn Louise Bettle

Honors Program Theses

This research evaluates the effects of a curricular tool on students in a social studies and upper elementary classroom. Consisting of a text set, a compilation of varying primary and secondary resources such as letters and maps at varying reading levels, focused around an interesting central topic. The research employs text sets created for fourth and seventh grade on the topic of US national parks and focuses on the history of national parks, curricular materials already available on national parks, creation of the text sets, and the importance of disciplinary literacy and interdisciplinary connections between geography and literacy. The text …

Understanding The Long-Term Spatiotemporal Dynamics Of The Taimyr Reindeer Herd During The Summer Concentration Period, Matthew D. Cooney

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study was part of a larger research effort devoted to investigation of spatiotemporal patterns and dynamics of the Taimyr Reindeer Herd (TRH) migration under changing climate and environmental conditions. The research aimed to systematize and analyze available historical (archival) data on wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus L.) migration and ecosystems change in the Taimyr Peninsula, Russia. The summer concentration patterns of the TRH as observed from 1969-2009 were investigated through the utilization of existing and innovative spatioanalytic methods and advanced GIS technologies not previously used to examine R. tarandus migration in the Russian Arctic. The project applied and tested the …