Environmental Studies Commons^™

Megaloads And Mobilization: The Rural People Of Idaho Stand Against Big Oil, Corrie Grosse

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

From 2011 to 2014 fossil fuel corporations trucked tar sands processing machinery along rural Idaho highways. The machinery was bound for the world's largest deposits of tar or oil sands, a heavy crude oil substance called bitumen, located in the western Canadian province of Alberta. These loads of machinery, what became known as megaloads, encountered much resistance. Throughout Idaho and the surrounding region, a network organized opposition. Neighbors, grassroots organizations, nonprofits, and the Nez Perce and other tribes all collaborated. They held information sessions, protested, waged legal battles, monitored the loads, and blockaded highways. What oil companies hoped would be …

Grassroots Vs. Big Oil: Measure P And The Fight To Ban Fracking In Santa Barbara County, California, Corrie Grosse

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

In 2014, volunteers in Santa Barbara County, California, collected over 20,000 signatures in three weeks to qualify an anti-fracking initiative for the November election. The initiative, Measure P, met over six million dollars in opposition from oil corporations. Despite mobilizing 1,000 volunteers, the proponents of the measure failed to garner enough votes for success. Drawing on 43 in-depth interviews and participant observation with environmental groups before, during, and after the campaign, this article examines the strengths and weaknesses of grassroots organizing behind Measure P. Organizers, especially during the signature drive, successfully garnered broad-based support in the southern part of the …

2017 Nebraska Water Leaders Academy - Final Report, Mark E. Burbach, H. Reiners-Hild

Conservation and Survey Division

Twenty participants completed the 2017 Water Leaders Academy bringing the total number of graduates to 101 since the inception of the program in 2011. Assessment of participants’ transformational leadership skills, champion of innovation skills, water knowledge and engagement, civic capacity, and entrepreneurial leadership behaviors showed a significant increase over the course of the year, from both participants’ and their raters’ perspectives. Feedback from participants was highly positive and constructive. Participant concerns were addressed, and only minor changes are planned for the 2018 Academy curriculum. Results of the program assessment indicate that the curriculum is meeting Academy objectives. Most importantly, Alumni …

Confessions Of A Collaborator: Shoesole And Stewardship Alliance Of Northeast Elko County, Nevada, Robin Boies

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Abstract – The Shoesole Management Team (Shoesole) and the Stewardship Alliance of Northeastern Elko (SANE) are place-based, landowner-organized, natural and human resource conservation initiatives. The Shoesole was organized in 2002 to take a more holistic approach to grazing management issues on two federal livestock grazing allotments. This effort provided the foundation for SANE, which was organized in 2012 by representatives of eight ranches in northeastern Nevada in response to the potential listing of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse). Shoesole and SANE came together voluntarily, as a rancher organized initiative, with a common goal of creating a better …

Wyoming Sage-Grouse Working Groups: Lessons Learned, Thomas J. Christiansen, Lorien R. Belton

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) has been the subject of multiple status reviews under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Wyoming accounts for approximately 38% of the range-wide population. Since 2000, 2 statewide and 8 local citizen working groups have been established in Wyoming to developed conservation plans and advise state policy. The first statewide plan for the conservation of sage-grouse was formally adopted in 2003. The statewide plan established local sage-grouse working groups charged with developing and facilitating implementation of local conservation plans. Those 8 plans were completed in 2007 and 2008, and updated in 2014. From 2005-2017, …

Learning To Live With Wolves: Community-Based Conservation In The Blackfoot Valley Of Montana, Seth M. Wilson, Elizabeth H. Bradley, Gregory A. Neudecker

Human–Wildlife Interactions

We built on the existing capacity of a nongovernmental organization called the Blackfoot Challenge to proactively address wolf (Canis lupus)-livestock conflicts in the Blackfoot Valley of Montana. Beginning in 2007, wolves started rapidly recolonizing the valley, raising concerns among livestock producers. We built on an existing program to mitigate conflicts associated with an expanding grizzly bear population and worked within the community to build a similar program to reduce wolf conflicts using an integrative, multi-method approach. Efforts to engage the community included one-on-one meetings, workshops, field tours, and regular group meetings as well as opportunities to participate in …

Illegal Wildlife Hunting And Trade In Southern Belize: An Assessment Of Impacts And Drivers, Blakely Rice

Capstone Collection

The use of wildlife as a resource is a common practice in all countries around the world, however, illegal activities are contributing to various environmental and social altercations amongst the involved communities and individuals, both directly and indirectly. This has led to the generalized global narrative on illegal wildlife hunting and trade as a “good vs. bad” convention. Although legal frameworks are in place to manage hunting and trade sustainably, governments and organizations often find themselves struggling to protect wildlife from illegal hunters, often facing dangerous situations thus the establishment of militarized conservation units. To date, most of the focus …

Topical, Trista Hurley-Waxali

The STEAM Journal

This is a piece to start the discussion of how the lightening of pigmentation through melanin manipulation evolved from the demands of cover art photography.

Science And Sentiment: Affecting Change In Environmental Awareness, Attitudes, And Actions Through The Daily Nature Project, Elizabeth D. Haynes Poronsky

The STEAM Journal

Knowledge about what motivates pro-environmental behavior is important to organizations that seek to encourage environmental stewardship. Research suggests that targeting emotions and beliefs about nature can be more effective in changing environmental actions than increasing knowledge. Daily Nature, a site on the social media platform Facebook, features a daily nature photograph, a quote from a notable historical person and a related lyrical written passage. The popularity of this site lends credence to the appeal of interdisciplinary formats, and underscores the benefits of encouraging emotional and aesthetic ties to nature.

A Closer Look At Water Quality, Illegal Dumping And Community Engagement In The Coney Island Creek, Molly Nugent

Capstones

According to data science and policy blog I Quant NY, the Coney Island Creek is one of the dirtiest waterways in the city. It’s filthier than the Newtown Creek or the Gowanus Canal, which are both designated as federal superfund sites. The creek is a sanctuary for residents who want it to be cleaner and want to be in the know when it comes to dangerous levels of bacteria in the water.

What my reporting partner and I, Kyle Mackie, found was that the community has largely been kept in the dark. The DEP has been investigating both small and …

Spotlight On Superfund: How Are New York’S Most Toxic Waste Sites Doing Under Trump’S E.P.A?, Sarah Stein Kerr

Capstones

No matter where you venture in New York City, you are never far from toxic pollution. And if you are in Brooklyn or Queens, you may be a stone’s throw from a federal Superfund, our nation’s most polluted sites.

For New York City’s Superfunds– Newtown Creek, the Gowanus Canal and the Wolff-Alport Chemical Company in Ridgewood, Queens – change is underfoot.

In February, President Donald J. Trump appointed former Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency.

Pruitt, who made a career for himself suing and attacking the E.P.A, has already instituted sweeping changes as part of …

Effect Of Metal Ion Substitution On Electrochemical Properties Of Cobalt Oxide For Energy Applications, Dalal Alqahtani

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Metal oxides are being used for various applications, such as batteries, supercapacitors, and catalysts. This research is mainly to produce high-performance energy storage devices capable of working at high temperatures and causing no pollution in the environment. To this end, the effect of metal ion substitution on the electrochemical properties of Co₃O₄ for energy applications was studied. Different metal oxides, such as FeCo₂O₄, MnCo₂O₄, Co₃O₄, NiCo₂O₄, CuCo₂O_4, and ZnCo₂O₄, were synthesized using a hydrothermal …

Gendered Impacts Of Community-Based Conservation Initiatives In Kimana/Tikondo Group Ranch Outside Of Amboseli National Park, Megan Clemens

Master's Theses

Community-based conservation has become a common solution to addressing local communities needs and concerns when it comes to conservation initiatives associated with, or outside the boundaries of national parks. Community-based initiatives associated with Amboseli National Park in southern Kenya mark one of the first attempts to include local communities in conservation initiatives and management as well as establish systems of benefit sharing between conservation and local communities. However, a critique of community-based conservation initiatives points out they often assume community homogeneity. Assumption of community homogeneity leads to inequities in benefits sharing, exclusion of subgroups (women, ethnic minorities) or even exacerbate …

Environmental Impact Assessment Of: Squalicum Creek Restoration Project, Darren Chromey, Ticika Dominick, Ben Knoot, Irene Munger, Isabelle Ranson

College of the Environment Graduate and Undergraduate Publications

The Squalicum Creek Restoration project seeks to increase the health and vitality of a critical salmon habitat. This can be achieved with the removal of a 350 foot concrete channel currently lining the streambed in this section of the creek. Additionally, the project includes either the complete deconstruction of the BNSF railway crossing the creek, or significant modification of this structure, which currently creates a major obstacle impeding successful native salmon runs.

Environmental Impact Assessment: Waypoint Park, Ana Rae Miller, Caleb Brown, Christopher Pieroni, Kamalani Brun, Madeline Hart

College of the Environment Graduate and Undergraduate Publications

The COB plans to develop a park along the Whatcom Waterway called Waypoint Park. The park will include the creation of a beach area, native vegetation, open lawn spaces, pedestrian walkways, a play structure and an Acid Ball art piece from the former Georgia Pacific pulp and tissue mill. Waypoint Park will serve to improve shoreline ecological functions, provide public access and recreation opportunities along the waterfront and connect the waterfront to the central business district (CBD) of downtown Bellingham. The park is part of the Waterfront District Subarea Plan (SAP) approved by the Bellingham City Council in December 2013.

Why Georeferencing Matters: Introducing A Practical Protocol To Prepare Species Occurrence Records For Spatial Analysis, Trevor D.S. Bloom, Aquila Flower, Eric G. Dechaine

Environmental Studies Faculty and Staff Publications

Species Distribution Models (SDMs) are widely used to understand environmental controls on species’ ranges and to forecast species range shifts in response to climatic changes. The quality of input data is crucial determinant of the model’s accuracy. While museum records can be useful sources of presence data for many species, they do not always include accurate geographic coordinates. Therefore, actual locations must be verified through the process of georeferencing. We present a practical, standardized manual georeferencing method (the Spatial Analysis Georeferencing Accuracy (SAGA) protocol) to classify the spatial resolution of museum records specifically for building improved SDMs. We used the …

Media, Family, And Friends: Normative Environment And Global Citizenship Identification, Stephen Reysen Ph.D., Iva Katzarska-Miller Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Prior research has shown that Bulgarian participants report greater global normative environment and identification with global citizens than U.S. participants; it has also shown that the relationship between country sample (U.S. vs. Bulgaria) and global citizenship identification is mediated by the perception that one’s normative environment promotes a global citizen identity. In Study 1 of the present research, we examined the number of global (vs. domestic stories) in U.S. and Bulgarian print media to find a greater number of global stories in Bulgarian media. In Study 2, Bulgarians’ frequency of media consumption was associated with self-reported global citizenship identification, and …

Eco-Tourism And Sustainable Community Development In Cuba: Bringing Community Back Into Development, Jack Thornburg Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

This paper focuses on community development and its relationship to eco-tourism as a means of creating a sustainable future for local Cuban communities. If communities control local resources to create economic opportunities for local goals, there is a greater chance that community development will be more effective and sustainable. Local empowerment can play a key role in community development through ecological and cultural tourism. The focus of this paper is Cuba’s potential to develop into a major ecological and cultural tourism center within international tourism. Recent policy announcements regarding the intention to diversify Cuba’s economy and move people into private …

Edwards, D. Caravan Of Martyrs: Sacrifice And Suicide Bombing In Afghanistan. Berkeley: University Of California Press, 2017., Homayun Sidky Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Manzenreiter, W. And Holthus, B. (Eds.). Happiness And The Good Life In Japan. New York: Routledge, 2017., Ilana Maymind Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Linkages Among Population, Food Production, And The Environment At Multiple Scales, Daniel Ervin Ph.D., Daniel López-Carr Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Human population, its number and distribution on our planet, has a seemingly direct linkage to how much food we consume and how we practice agriculture. How this population-foodenvironment interface manifests across the globe is complex, non-linear, and both local- and scale-dependent. This essay is an overview of the population-food-environment nexus, providing recent history and statistics on these processes at several crude scales. We include a discussion of theory, review different drivers of the population-food-environment processes, provide a global overview of population and agricultural statistics from 1970 to 2010, and discuss trends and implications for Latin America, as well as some …

Crehan, K. Gramsci’S Common Sense: Inequality And Its Narratives. Durham, Nc: Duke University Press, 2016., Faisal Chaudhry Jd, Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Stiglitz, J.E. & B.C. Greenwald (Eds.) Creating A Learning Society: A New Approach To Growth, Development, And Social Progress. Kenneth J. Arrow Lecture Series. Columbia University Press, 2014., Suwithida Charungkaittikul Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Fitzgerald, R., & Rowley, C. (Eds.). The Evolution Of Multinationals From Japan And The Asia Pacific: Comparing International Business Japan, Korean, China, India. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2017., George M. Poluse

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Shakir, F. The Iraqi Federation: Origin, Operation And Significance. Abingdon: Routledge, 2017., Autumn Cockrell-Abdullah

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Vanden, H.E., Funke, P.N. & Prevost, G. (Eds.). The New Global Politics: Global Social Movements In The Twenty-First Century. London: Routledge, 2017., Shirin Saeidi Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Haomin Gong & Xin Yang, Reconfiguring Class, Gender, Ethnicity And Ethics In Chinese Internet Culture. New York: Routledge, 2017., Emily Chao Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Longo, S., Clausen, R. & Clark, B. The Tragedy Of The Commodity: Oceans, Fisheries And Aquaculture. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2015., Tarique Niazi Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Evaluating Social Network Dynamics Of Bigg’S Killer Whales (Orcinus Orca) And Vessel Traffic Within A Transboundary Region: Implications For Conservation Management, Courtney Smith

Dissertations

The social lives of animals are defined by group dynamics based on the nature and strength of associations and movements between individuals, often resulting in highly complex and interconnected social networks. However, understanding of how environmental variables may shape this structure is poorly understood. Within the inland waters of Washington State and southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, mammal-eating Bigg’s (transient) killer whales occur in relatively small, but stable social groups. Group size and occurrence in recent years has increased, coinciding with a growing whale watching industry. Given the central importance of the social network within killer whale population dynamics, such …

Environmental Impact Assessment: Georgia-Pacific Wharf Renovation, Bellingham, Wa, Skye French, Parker Giebelhaus, Joshua Grandbouche, Alex Liebman, Kevin Webber

College of the Environment Graduate and Undergraduate Publications

The Port’s proposal is to remove the existing wharf and replace it with a “seawalk” focused on community engagement, interaction with nature, visitor moorage, and local history. The seawalk will be an extension from the upcoming Waypoint Park and part of the larger Waterfront District subarea plan developed by the Port and City of Bellingham (2013). After replacing the insecure pilings and outdated wharf material, the new wharf would be available for recreational use, natural history interpretive education, shoreline habitat improvement, and community engagement such as art and First Nations’ collaboration. The estimated dimensions of the current wharf are 16 …