Environmental Studies Commons^™

Spatiotemporal Change Detection Of The Alpine Meadows At Holcomb Valley, San Bernardino Mountain National Forest, Using Gis And Remote Sensing Techniques, Rama Ewing

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Holcomb Valley, with a general elevation between 2200-2257m, is in the Northeast of Big Bear Lake in the San Bernardino Mountains. Holcomb Valley is covered by Alpine meadows, unlike most mountain landscapes, which are rarely found in Mediterranean climates such as California. The cultural-environmental history of the San Bernardino Mountains in the past century speaks of intense anthropogenic activities such as timbering, grazing, gold mining, and extreme climate changes (i.e., drought, fires, floods). A study is conducted to identify and calculate the changes in the Alpine meadows at Holcomb Valley. The climatical data has been acquired to compute and visualize …

From Fast Fashion To Sustainable Slow Fashion, Isabel Agatha Millward-Pena

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The objective of this thesis is to express a need for sustainability within the fast fashion industry, in the form of cultural movement that acts as alternative to the current means of production, consumption, and philosophies. Sustainability within current popular discourses is often human-centered and lacking authenticity, thus I aim to highlight an alternative that is opposite of that. In doing such, I bring to light the negative effects of the industry through a case study on the fast fashion company SHEIN, who claim to be making sustainable efforts. I analyzed SHEIN’s 2021 Sustainability and Social Impact Report (SSIR), focusing …

Identifying Associations Between Human-Environmental Factors And Water Quality Trends Observed At Perennial Headwater Streams Of The San Bernardino National Forest, California, Anna Frey

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Anthropogenic factors related to landscape activities, infrastructure, and alterations, coupled with severe climatic fluctuations (i.e., droughts and extreme hydrological events) are increasingly impairing the quality of surface water resources across multiple geographic scales, warranting the need for comprehensive investigations of the cumulative effects of human-environmental stressors at multiple scales within a watershed. This study assessed three perennial headwater streams of the San Bernardino National Forest, California. The streams were tested for one year from October 2019 to September 2020 for conductivity, dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, turbidity, temperature, ammonium (NH₄+), nitrate (NO₃-), total coliform (TC), Escherichia coli …

Assessing Urban Canopy Program In Redlands California, Joseph Angel Rocha Iv

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Climate change can cause major environmental and human health issues especially in lower income and minority communities (Ros et al. 2020; Bethel et al. 2022). Although studies note tree coverage alone cannot solve all climate related problems (Pataki, et al. 2021; Ross, 2021), tree coverage does provide alleviation for climate change related factors (Free-Smith, et al. 2004). Some ways trees can combat climate change is through improved air quality, improved water quality, and decreasing impacts of Urban Heat Island Effect (UHIE) (Nowak et al. 2018; Liu, Liu, 2021; Wang, Zhao, et al 2017). Although throughout the United States there is …

Integration Of Blockchain Technology Into Automobiles To Prevent And Study The Causes Of Accidents, John Kim

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Automobile collisions occur daily. We now live in an information-driven world, one where technology is quickly evolving. Blockchain technology can change the automotive industry, the safety of the motoring public and its surrounding environment by incorporating this vast array of information. It can place safety and efficiency at the forefront to pedestrians, public establishments, and provide public agencies with pertinent information securely and efficiently. Other industries where Blockchain technology has been effective in are as follows: supply chain management, logistics, and banking. This paper reviews some statistical information regarding automobile collisions, Blockchain technology, Smart Contracts, Smart Cities; assesses the feasibility …

Dead Fish In The Desert: A Brief Photo-History Of The Salton Sea, Alicia Gutierrez

History in the Making

Located around 150 miles to the east and south of Los Angeles lies an unburied treasure and an ecological hotbed of debate. While you may not find the treasure in the archetypal sense, you’ll find it in a still, stagnant, and salty body of water in the middle of the desert, the Salton Sea. Considered by many to be an ecological disaster, or a big puddle of sewage, few people take the time to see or smell past all these negative characteristics and find the history behind it. The Salton Sea was once a human-made desert Riviera, but now, it’s …

How Globalization, Sustainability, And Human Impacts Are Affecting Two Major Mexican Cities: Mexico City And Guadalajara, Cristina Sedano

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Mexico is one of the richest countries in the world, not in terms of economic stability but in terms of natural resources, culture, and atmosphere. When people think of Mexico, they usually think of the high-tension relationship with the United States, their neighboring country to the North. Although there are many diverse historical and present-day characteristics of Mexico, most associate the county with the high levels of crime due to narco and cartels, the high levels of poverty in regional areas, and to some just a party destination. Unbeknownst to many is the thousands year old culture that is passed …

Participatory Water Resource Management: Advancing Engagement In Disadvantaged Communities Across The Santa Ana River Watershed, Jennifer B. Alford

Geography and Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

Santa Ana River Watershed, California, Proposition 1 Integrated Regional Water Management, Disadvantaged Community Involvement Program

The Santa Ana River (SAR) Watershed is the largest, most populated and fastest urbanizing watershed in Southern California, draining an estimated 2,700 square miles of diverse landscape and hydrological features. Headwater streams of the SAR Watershed are located in the San Bernardino National Forest near Big Bear Lake, the San Gabriel Mountains, and the San Jacinto Mountains. These streams traverse the coastal sage habitat through numerous water infrastructure features in the Inland Empire before terminating into the Pacific Ocean at the City of Huntington Beach. …

Envisioning Indigenous Models For Social And Ecological Change In The Anthropocene, James Fenelon, Jennifer Alford

Sociology Faculty Publications

Indigenous societies provide alternatives to hegemonic social institutions that global capitalism spread around the world, contributing to human caused environmental degradation called the Anthropocene, coterminous with the development of the modern world-system. In this work we describe Indigenous communities using ten social spheres, that balance human needs through ecological mindfulness, including spirituality, and then we model how these social spheres can be adapted to contemporary world-systems using a radical imaginary, building off Indigenous works by Fenelon (2015; 2016), social perspectives of Pellow (2017) and Norgaard (2019), and environmental geospatial sciences (Lui, Springer, and Wagner 2008; Jankowski 2009). We identify four …

Campus As A Living Lab: Community Centered Environmental Service Learning, Jennifer Braswell Alford

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

During the Fall Quarter of 2018, California State University San Bernardino (CSUSB) students (GEOG 390) partnered with the Inland Empire Resources Conservation District (IERCD) to assists the CSUSB Housing and Residence Life program to develop educational programs aimed at promoting sustainable agriculture and water resource management. The purpose of this initiative was for students to learn how collaborative partnerships and shared expertise and resources can assist with educating the public through environmental stewardship and service based learning activities that collectively aim to reduce human impacts to Earth systems and related resources. This is an important component of supporting campus and …

Geospatial Applications For Identifying Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (Cafos) And Impaired Streams In California, Jennifer B. Alford, Jocelyn Perez

Geography and Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

The objective of this study is to identify and spatially illustrate the location of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations in California, their proximity to impaired surface waters listed on the US Environmental Protection Agencies (EPAs) 303(d) list and communities defined as “Pollution Burden” (i.e. affected by and vulnerable to multiple pollution sources) by the CA Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) CalEnviroScreen tool.

Measuring Sustainability (Geog 100 Intro To Human Geography), Michal Kohout

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

Sustainability is a complex measure of the correlation between economic, social and environmental factors. Using students' campus experiences as well as those from their communities we construct measures of sustainability, and create a sustainability index.

Parks In The Sky: How Urban Rejuvenation Is Re-Writing Wilderness, Sarah Anne Mercurio

Theses Digitization Project

This thesis will examine the implications of urban wilderness, what representations of urban wilderness will look like, and whether we have, or can, move away from the archaic notion of wilderness that has prevailed since being defined in the Wilderness Act. While ecocritical theorists have not yet fully engaged in urban ecocritical analysis, the emerging trend to consider the city as a wild place is a direct result of a shift in cultural perspective, as is evidence through the development of natural and artificial place-making, such as the High Line Park in New York City.

Media And Corporate Blame: Gate Keeping And Framing Of The British Petroleum Oil Spill Of 2010, Kudratdeep Kaur Dhaliwal

Theses Digitization Project

This study will focus on the coverage of the 2010 BP oil spill at Macondo Bay in the Gulf of Mexico, when 4.9 billion barrels of oil were sent gushing into the ocean. This study provides insight into how media frame an environmental disaster and construct blame under influence of certain political economic indicators such as circulation, competition, advertising, and ownership. Studying the relationship between journalists' framing of blame for the BP oil spill in the Gulf in American and circulation and ownership type of the newspapers which published those articles helps to validate past research and provide new insights …

Eco-Math: Creating A Model Curriculum For Teaching Mathematics In The Context Of Environmental Education, Christina Joy Merz

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of developing this project was to show teachers that environmental education themes and activities can be effectively integrated with mathematics concepts in upper elementary and middle school classroom settings. Teachers are expected to meet with increased demands, state and national standards, and raise the levels of student achievement, yet they are given few resources with which to do so.

Ground Water In The Morongo Basin: A Community College Curriculum, Lisa Michele Rosati

Theses Digitization Project

Ground water resources in the Morongo Basin are threatened by overdraft and nitrogen pollution from septic systems. Education about the current threats to ground water resources is of great importance to residents of the Morongo Basin. This project was an exploratory study designed to assess local students' knowledge and opinions on the state of the ground water. Eight laboratory activities were designed to educate the students.

Environmental Attitudes And Knowledge In Urban, Latino Youth, Jeffery Brian Chapman

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this thesis was to evaluate an environmental education program at the Audubon Center at Debs Park to examine if the program improved participants' knowledge and attitudes about the environment. Located just minutes from downtown Los Angeles, The Audubon Center conducts programs primarily for urban, low income, and ethnic minority children. The majority of these children are Latino.

The Use Of An Environmental Education Service Learning Project To Enhance Student Motivation In A Secondary School, Mary Frances O'Connell-Hershey

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this project was to show any possible variations in environmental education awareness and changes in student motivation among secondary students. In this study two student cohorts from two separate classes completed assignments based on a traditional approach of education and environmental science service-learning project.

Teacher Perceptions Of Environmental Education: An Exploratory Assessment, Joye Charlotte Marika Cantrell

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to initiate an exploratory assessment of teacher knowledge, values, and environmental education practices at a local urban high school to gain general perception of a staff's readiness to yet embrace another teacher certification requirement.

United States Forest Service: A Resource For California's Education And Environment Initiative, Summer Kristine Pearson

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the employees of the U.S. Forest Service believe the Forest Service is qualifiedto act as a resource for California's Education and Environment Initiative (EEI). This study sent a survey to various recreation and resource employees about their knowledge and training in environmental themes and curriculum and evaluated whether individuals within the Forest Service view themselves as conservation or environmental educators and as resources for teachers and classrooms.

Docent Knowledge And Attitudes Following An Environmental Education Workshop On A Local Endangered Species, Keri Frances Dearborn

Theses Digitization Project

This study considers a direct relationship between increased levels of environmental knowledge, environmentally friendly behavior, and ecoscientific attitude. If focused environmental education can increase docent knowledge of local ecosystems and wildlife issues, it may also enhance the complexity of their motivational attitude toward the environment.

High School Lessons On Human Sprawl In The Inland Empire, Anieno Abasiofiok Ibekwe

Theses Digitization Project

The aim of this project was to develop curriculum that educators could use to assist high school students (ages 14-17 years) in the Inland Empire of Southern California to apply critical thinking skills to understanding the negative effects of uncontrolled urban sprawl. The problems and issues which result from sprawl are emphasized in the learning activites.

Ecological Literacy, Environmental Attitudes And Behaviors Of Residents Adjacent To The Coahcella Valley Preserve, Kathleen Dawn Fleming

Theses Digitization Project

This thesis aims to address the many processes that guide communication between the public and conservation ecologists, and how one's knowledge of the area around them could affect communcation between groups. This thesis researched the dynamics of ecological literacy levels environmental attitudes and frequency of behaviors of the urban, suburban, and rural sub group residents that live in the Coachella Valley of Southern California. It is relevant to the current strategy for designing multiple species reserves through the development of multiple species habitat conservation plans.

The Impact Of Children's Literature On The Environmental Awareness Of A Population Of Second Grade Students, Iris Jackeline Russo

Theses Digitization Project

This project aimed at helping second grade children gain environmental sensitivity and awareness by infusing the existing English Language Arts curriculum with environmental activities. The purpose is to demonstrate how one can infuse the California state's mandated curriculum, Houghton Mifflin, with children's literature in order to promote environmental sensitivity and awareness.

A Rationale, Conceptual Framework, And Initial Curriculum For Teaching Green Building, Jason Ernest Moyer-Schmit

Theses Digitization Project

This project created a rationale and conceptual framework, as well as seminal curriculum, for teaching green building as a vehicle for environmental education in seventh and eighth grades. Green building is the practice of creating sustainable structures, and preserving natural resources and ecological conditions for future generations.

Proposed Activities For An Enrivonmental Education Summer Camp Program, Caitlin Joan Farr

Theses Digitization Project

A proposal was developed for a one week, residential, summer camp program for children 12-15 years to explore the out doors in a safe and fun way and to give children a chance to learn about the environment using hands on lessons and activities. This one week program is planned for future possible implementation at Astrocamp, an outdoor education facility in Idyllwild, California.

The Day The River Ran Away: The Impact Of A Children's Literature Book And Accompanying Curriculum Upon Student Perceptions Of The Salton Sea, Kathryn Ann Schofield

Theses Digitization Project

This project is focused on an author-created children's literature book about the Salton Sea called "The Day the River Ran Away". An accompanying curriculum has been developed for third grade students to increase knowledge of ecological foundations and conceptual awareness

Next Generation Public Service Announcements For The Environment, Danielle Alexis Diaz

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this research was to design new public service announcements (PSAs) for a teenage audience around environmental topics. Using components of constructivist pedagogy and free-choice learning, these PSAs demonstrated how to fuse popular teen culture with environmental education objectives. The design of the PSAs for this project hinged on finding a current popular format that would grab the attention of teenagers in order to successfully communicate information. This was achieved by taking a popular MTV show and twisting it to fit educational purposes. The success of this approach was tested by surveying a group of 50 teenagers. The …

How An After School Environmental Science Club Can Increase Environmental Knowledge: Awareness And Sensitivity Towards The Environment For Third And Fourth Grade Students, Sandra Joyce Jones

Theses Digitization Project

Children today are disconnected from the natural environment around them, sometimes finding it annoying, lacking in excitement, and little use to them. Their attention and focus are spent inside watching TV, playing games on computers or a variety of other electronic devices. The purpose of this project was to see if after-school exposure to an Enirovnmental Science Club on the school grounds can impact student attitudes toward our local environment and to increase these third and fourth grade students' knowledge and awareness of their environment.

Environmental Education Resource For Fifth Grade Science Instruction, Gaelen Kathleen Richer

Theses Digitization Project

The goal of this project was to develop an environmental education resource for fifth grade teachers using the California Science textbook. The goal is for teachers to be able to use this guide as a convenient resource to incorporate environmental education and environmental literature into science instruction.