Sustainability Commons^™

Real-Time Evaluation Of City–University Partnerships For Sustainability And Resilience, Liliana Elizabeth Caughman, Lauren Withycombe Keeler, Fletcher Beaudoin

Institute for Sustainable Solutions Publications and Presentations

Cities face many challenges in their efforts to create more sustainable and resilient urban environments for their residents. Among these challenges is the structure of city administrations themselves. Partnerships between cities and universities are one way that cities can address some of the internal structural barriers to transformation. However, city–university partnerships do not necessarily generate transformative outcomes, and relationships between cities and universities are complicated by history, politics, and the structures the partnerships are attempting to overcome. In this paper, focus groups and trial evaluations from five city–university partnerships in three countries are used to develop a formative evaluation tool …

Smith New Neilson Library: Healthier Materials, Dano Weisbord, Matthew Gifford, Amanda Garvey

The New Neilson Library

With so much change happening in the manufacturing industry with the onset of new product transparency and disclosure standards, it can be difficult to know how to get involved in market transformation efforts. Our goal for this session is to share an example of how Smith College tackled this challenge. It will include an overview of the Material Health & Transparency Initiative implemented on the Neilson Library project, and the project's team efforts to use this iconic building as a way to advocate for positive change in the marketplace.

Additional materials include draft presentation in parts and whole.

Internet Of Things For Environmental Sustainability And Climate Change, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

Our world is vulnerable to climate change risks such as glacier retreat, rising temperatures, more variable and intense weather events (e.g., floods, droughts, and frosts), deteriorating mountain ecosystems, soil degradation, and increasing water scarcity. However, there are big gaps in our understanding of changes in regional climate and how these changes will impact human and natural systems, making it difficult to anticipate, plan, and adapt to the coming changes. The IoT paradigm in this area can enhance our understanding of regional climate by using technology solutions, while providing the dynamic climate elements based on integrated environmental sensing and communications that …

Water Use Governance In A Temperate Region: Implications For Agricultural Climate Change Adaptation In The Northeastern United States, Rachel E. Schattman, Meredith T. Niles, Hannah M. Aitken

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Climate change and access to water are interrelated concerns for agriculture and other sectors, even in temperate regions. Governance approaches and regulatory frameworks determine who has access to water, for what purpose, and when. In the northeastern United States, water governance has historically been conducted by states through a combination of statutory guidance and common law. However, it is unclear what effect if current governance approaches will be sufficient for achieving resource conservation and equitable allocation in a changing climate. To provide insight into these issues, we conducted the first review of freshwater governance in the 12 states that comprise …

Evaluating Water Quality Regulation As A Driver Of Farmer Behavior: A Social-Ecological Systems Approach, Courtney R.Hammond Wagner, Suzie Greenhalgh, Meredith T. Niles, Asim Zia, William B. Bowden

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Water quality policy for agricultural lands seeks to improve water quality by changing farmer behavior. We investigate farmer behavior in three water quality regimes that differ by rule structure to examine the fit and interplay of each policy within its social-ecological context, important aspects for improving water quality. Vermont, USA’s practice-based policy requires the adoption of specific practices, whereas New Zealand’s Lake Taupo and Lake Rotorua performance-based policies require farmers to meet a numeric limit for nutrient loss on their farm. Across the three regions we interviewed 38 farmers to elicit mental models of nutrient management changes. We utilized the …

Using Experimental Gaming Simulations To Elicit Risk Mitigation Behavioral Strategies For Agricultural Disease Management, Eric M. Clark, Scott C. Merrill, Luke Trinity, Gabriela Bucini, Nicholas Cheney, Ollin Langle-Chimal, Trisha Shrum, Christopher Koliba, Asim Zia, Julia M. Smith

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Failing to mitigate propagation of disease spread can result in dire economic consequences for agricultural networks. Pathogens like Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus, can quickly spread among producers. Biosecurity is designed to prevent infection transmission. When considering biosecurity investments, management must balance the cost of protection versus the consequences of contracting an infection. Thus, an examination of the decision making processes associated with investment in biosecurity is important for enhancing system wide biosecurity. Data gathered from experimental gaming simulations can provide insights into behavioral strategies and inform the development of decision support systems. We created an online digital experiment to simulate …

Macro - And Microstructure Evaluation And Field Applications Of Concrete With Recycled Glass Pozzolan, Marija Krstic

Dissertations and Theses

Concrete is the most used material in the world, second only to water. Conventional concrete is produced with Portland cement (PC). The production of cement is an energy intensive operation that has raised significant environmental concerns, since one ton of cement generates an equal ton of CO₂. In the USA about 90 million tons of cement are used annually, with 3 million tons used in New York. Most contemporary concrete applications for buildings and infrastructure use high-performance concrete (HPC) mixtures which are produced by replacing a percentage of cement with supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), consisting mainly of fly-ash …

Interfaces In Lead-Free Tin Perovskite Photovoltaics: An Investigation Of Energetics, Ion Mobility, Surface Modification, And Performance, Alex Boehm

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Halide perovskites have generated tremendous interest as low-cost semiconductors for optoelectronics, such as photovoltaics, lasers, and light emitting diodes due to their extraordinary optical and transport properties. Perovskite photovoltaics in particular have demonstrated a meteoric rise in power conversion efficiencies and drawn considerable interest as a next-generation solar energy technology. The rapid development has centered around lead-based derivatives, and concerns regarding the toxicity of lead has sparked interest in low toxicity and more environmentally friendly perovskite derivatives. In this regime tin (Sn) is regarded as a prominent alternative owing to the ideal bandgap and reduced toxicity exhibited by Sn-halide perovskites. …

Droughtscape- 2019 Winter, Cory Matteson

Droughtscape, Quarterly Newsletter of NDMC, 2007-

Contents

From the Director.......... 2

4th quarter climate summary......... 3

2019 year in review summary.......... 5

4th quarter drought impact summary.......... 7

2019 drought impact summary..........9

New form helps ‘see more’ drought............ 11

Landscape photographers invited to submit photos............ 12

Helping Central and South America planning........... 13 Database includes more drought planning.......... 14

Development Of An Environmental Disposition Scale: A Guide For Fostering Sustainable Behavior, Jady Chen

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Promoting sustainable behavior or environmentally responsible behavior poses challenges because there is no overarching solution for behavior changes. Both surveys and interventions are context specific, meaning behaviors do not necessarily influence other behaviors and the same values, norms, and beliefs do not necessarily translate to the same level of sustainable behavior. Because there are regional differences in ideologies in the United States, a country level approach to encourage sustainable behavior would not be as effective as having interventions that directly correlate with the motivations that encourage environmentally responsible behavior. A survey will be conducted with University of Central Florida undergraduate …

Social Connectedness And Financial Independence Strategies Supporting Nonprofit Sustainability, Christopher Edmund Maylor

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leaders of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) often lack strategies to ensure the sustainability of their organizations beyond initial funding, resulting in significant risk to program continuity. Grounded in social entrepreneurship theory, the purpose of this qualitative single-case study was to explore strategies used by 3 leaders of a small NPO in the southwest region of the United States. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and a review of organizational documents. Through thematic analysis, 6 social themes emerged: optimization of business strategies, income and donor growth, program cost management, funding diversification, program licensing, and public awareness of NPO programs. The contributions to …

Use Of Force Citizen Complaints, Use Of Force Violations, And Early Intervention, Drema Ann Hymon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

Mounting public protests, increasing expensive payouts, and shootings of unarmed victims by police is a call to reexamine options to problem solving, service recovery, and preventing police misconduct as it pertains to the use of force. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the correlation between early intervention system data

(a) use of force, citizens' complaints (race and gender), and use of force violations (race, gender, and years of service for officers). The disruptive theoretical framework provided an innovative lens to examine police misconduct of a large midwestern large law enforcement agency. This secondary data study did …

Intercropping For Water Conservation: Environmental And Economic Implications Of A Sustainable Farming Practice In California's Central Valley, Sophie Baker

Scripps Senior Theses

California’s agricultural sector is the biggest water consumer in the state and faces intense pressure to reduce its overall water usage. Industrialized monoculture systems dominate the industry and often disregard long-term environmental and economic externalities for short-term profit maximization. To maintain longstanding food security and economic stability as well as protect the state’s water supply, it is critical that these systems transition to more sustainable and resilient production mechanisms. As an alternative to monoculture, intercropping affords greater potential to conserve water, protect soil quality, and increase crop yields, among other metrics of sustainability. However, there has been much controversy over …

Sediment Dynamics In The Magdalena River Basin, Colombia: Implications For Understanding Tropical River Processes And Hydropower Development, Luke H. Fisher

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Magdalena River Basin of Colombia has a globally relevant sediment flux, however, studies of the sediment regime in the basin are limited in scope. This knowledge gap limits application of understanding of sediment dynamics to hydropower decision making. To close this gap, we implemented a sediment budget framework to quantify the impacts of hydropower development in a 118,000 km² portion of the Magdalena River basin. We informed this framework with analysis of background erosion rates derived from ¹⁰Be cosmogenic nuclides and modern sediment fluxes derived from monitoring and optical remote sensing. We standardized these data to spatially …

Understanding And Measuring Net Positive Business Strategies, Luke Ruffner Robinson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Despite their attempts to mitigate ecological impacts through sustainability initiatives, businesses are a major cause of the world's ecological problems. Some progressive businesses are attempting to move beyond “net zero” in terms of achieving neutral environmental impacts and instead are now pursuing a goal of net positive. Net positive refers to the idea that business activities could contribute value-added benefits to earth’s ecological systems, for example, by using technologies that sequester and store carbon. However, except for a handful of high-profile corporate case studies, little is known about how companies are developing their strategies to become net positive and …

An Exploration Of Zero Waste Policies And Recommendations For Missoula, Sarah Blyth Lundquist

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

“Zero Waste” is a concept and community goal that has arisen to challenge the current consumerist economic system and offer solutions for a number of environmental issues. In adopting this goal, individuals and communities pledge to reduce and divert at least 90% of their waste in a certain number of years. These goals can be reached by employing policies, programs, and other intervention tactics which establish Zero Waste infrastructure, ensure equitable and widespread access to Zero Waste services, and provide educational outreach and resources to the community. Missoula adopted a Zero Waste goal in 2016 and created a Zero Waste …

Transformative Education In Agroecology: Student, Teacher, And Client Involvement In Co-Learning, Charles A. Francis, Anna Marie Nicolaysen, Geir Lieblein, Tor Arvid Breland

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Educational methods have evolved rapidly in agroecology, which is a complex and holistic field without a long history or the formal tradition of any single academic discipline. Definitions of agroecology have evolved from its initial conception as a marriage of agriculture with ecology, to an aggregation of different paths including science, practices, and movements, and recently as a broad appreciation of the ecology of food systems. In contrast with traditional courses that begin with a history of the discipline and review the contributions of early leaders, we have embraced phenomenology to firmly establish roots in students’ learning through their experiences …

Wku Greeks Go Green: Mobilizing Community For A Cause, Claire Kaelin

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sustainability, or meeting the needs of current generations without sacrificing the needs of future generations, has become an increasingly pressing issue as more and more people realize that humanity is living far beyond its means. Greeks Go Green was a new competition on campus seeking to address this issue, by harnessing the power of the Greek competitive spirit and pitting organizations against each other to have the most sustainable chapter. Its goal was to not only have a tangible impact as a community, but to also show members of the Greek community how easy it is to make a difference …

Urban Food Sovereignty: Urgent Need For Agroecology And Systems Thinking In A Post-Covid-19 Future, Ali Loker, Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The current COVID-19 pandemic has brought attention to challenges associated with our dominant industrial food system in the U.S. The general public now has more appreciation for farm workers and meatpacking employees, as well as those in grocery stores and in food transportation who are suddenly recognized as essential frontline workers. It apparently takes a crisis for us to focus clearly on the fragility of this system and the lives of people on whom we depend. In this commentary we discuss the definition of food sovereignty, how it manifests in urban areas, and how the COVID-19 pandemic can trigger viable …

Pandemic Leadership Failures And Public Health, Gidon Eshel

Animal Sentience

In a plainly worded target article whose sagacity and import can hardly be overstated, Wiebers & Feigin place the recent COVID-19 crisis in historic perspective. They warn us that unless we make sweeping changes the next pandemics are all but preordained. They offer a blueprint for dramatically lowering the likelihood of future pandemics.