Digital Commons Network^™

Powering The Machine, Draining The Planet: Whether U.S. Environmental Law Is Equipped To Regulate The Energy And Water Demands Of Ai Data Centers, Michael Marcu

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Artificial intelligence (AI) data centers have become one of the United States' fastest-growing and least-regulated sources of environmental stress. In 2024 alone, U.S. data centers consumed 183 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity more than the entire nation of Pakistan and consumed an estimated 17 billion gallons of water (IEA, 2025; Berkeley Lab, 2024). By 2030, electricity demand from these facilities is projected to reach 426 TWh, a 133% increase in six years (Pew Research Center, 2025). This paper examines whether the existing U.S. environmental regulatory framework put by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the …

Color-Blind Resilience: How Uniform Climate Standards Reproduce Environmental Inequality In The Rockaways, Aaryan M. Nair

Publications and Research

This paper examines how ostensibly uniform climate resilience standards can reproduce environmental inequality in socially uneven landscapes, using the Rockaway Peninsula in New York City as a critical case study. While flood-resistant building codes, zoning regulations, and insurance frameworks are designed to provide equal protection across flood-prone areas, this analysis argues that their “color-blind” application obscures and intensifies underlying disparities in financial capacity, housing conditions, and tenure. Drawing on environmental justice (EJ) theory, the paper identifies two key mechanisms through which inequality is reproduced. First, “code without capacity” demonstrates how uniform technical standards—such as elevation requirements under NYC Building Code …

Sustainable Justice: A Critical Contemplative Approach To Sustainability In Higher Education, Jessica A. Reneau

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The field of sustainability studies increasingly asks students to confront ecological crises alongside considerations of power, privilege, and unequal environmental harm. This work can be emotionally challenging as well as intellectually complex. Contemplative practices, such as meditation and yoga, may offer meaningful pedagogical support, helping students cultivate the attention, reflection, and emotional capacity needed to stay engaged with justice-centered sustainability learning. Although the use of contemplative pedagogies is growing in higher education, little research has examined how these practices shape justice-orientated learning outcomes in sustainability education. This dissertation addresses that gap by exploring how both student and instructor experience contemplative …

Doikayt And The Ethics Of Belonging: Lessons In Place-Making From The Jewish Labor Bund, Zoë L. Jacobs

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis traces the evolution of doikayt—the Bundist principle of hereness—from its origins in the Jewish Labor Bund to contemporary applications in North America. Rooted in a refusal of both assimilation and nationalist escape, doikayt emphasizes cultivating safety, solidarity, and belonging through collective responsibility rather than territorial claims.

Building on this foundation, the exploration situates hereness within a settler-colonial context, where ethical dwelling is complicated by Indigenous dispossession. Drawing on Alexis Shotwell alongside Indigenous thinkers Vanessa Watts and Kyle Whyte, I examine how inhabiting place requires confronting historical injustices and ongoing relational responsibilities. Chapter 3 analyzes Linke Fligl (2016–2022) as …

A Critical Perspective On The Society Of Environmental Toxicology And Chemistry's Adherence To Founding Principles— Opportunities For The Future, Barnett A. Rattner, Annegaaike Leopold, Carys L. Mitchelmore, Glenn W. Suter, Mark S. Johnson, Adriana C. Bejarano, Lawrence A. Kapustka, Niranjana Krishnan, Derek C. G. Muir, Beatrice O. Opeolu, Martha Georgina Orozco-Medina, April Reed, Bruce W. Vigon, Adam R. Wronski

Epidemiology, Biostatistics, & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

The Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) is a global organization whose mission is the advancement of environmental science and management through collaboration, leadership, communication and education. On SETAC's 45th anniversary, the following question was raised: Are the 1979 founding principles of SETAC, multidisciplinary approaches to solving environmental problems, multisector engagement and scientific objectivity, still useful, adequate and effective in fulfilling its mission? In a special session held at the 45th Annual Meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, a critical evaluation of the founding principles was initiated by reviewing SETAC's history and ongoing activities, and recommendations were made …

Agrivoltaics Swot Analysis For Implementation In The United States, Vani Ramesh

Undergraduate Research Posters

Agrivoltaics is the implementation of solar installations alongside agricultural land in order to improve the efficiency of land usage in both industries. Research in European and Asian countries developing agriculture and solar developments in tandem has indicated that implementation in the United States, including Virginia, is feasible and beneficial. The US has the highest energy use per capita in the world, with the increase of various technologies has resulted in land developments using higher energy levels than previously. While Virginia’s energy demand has increased with the addition of data centers. Increased energy demand and food security requirements have unearthed policy/political …

Swimming In Uncertainty: Filling Data Gaps And Providing An Educational Platform For Beach Water Quality At Tybee Island, Georgia, Lukas Roberson

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

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Swimming in beaches water contaminated with high levels of bacteria can make you sick. Current monitoring at the public beaches on Tybee Island consists of weekly monitoring and enumeration of fecal indicator bacteria that takes 24 hours for results. If the number of bacteria exceed regulatory limits, a public health advisory is issued, and affected waters are retested until …

Climate Resilience In Action: Process-Based Equity For Co-Governed, Socially Cohesive, Ecologically Integrated Democracies Through The Design And Implementation Of Nature-Based Solutions, Donna Choih

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) governance and behavior have the potential to become more equitable, beginning with a closer examination of what equity entails. Governance and behavior together are the actions manifest from internal dispositions and thoughts that facilitate the process of decision-making, in this case, for equitable NbS. This critical review seeks to (1) address the gap in literature on human development and behavioral dimensions of procedural justice for NbS by further defining process-based equity (PbE), and (2) present a framework of best practices for equitable NbS. This framework, along with a complementary conceptual model, was developed using the Preferred Reporting …

Green Space: Investigation Into The Role Pocket Parks Play In Biodiversity And Human Well-Being, Jacalyn Speicher

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Natural communities and the birds that inhabit them are essential to the physical and emotional well-being of human residents in urban settings. The action research undertaken in this study addresses the social and environmental justice issues of equity, accessibility, and diversity afforded avian and human communities in the design of pocket parks within the urban landscape. As urbanization consumes the natural landscape, people and birds must adapt to the novel challenges of a changing environment. I studied 10 pocket parks identified in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between January and June 2026. This time frame spanned the seasons from winter to …

The Conservation Value Of Silvicultural Systems For Breeding And Post-Fledging Bird Communities In Northeastern North America, Christopher Andrew Liazos

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Forest bird community decline in the eastern United States is partly due to the lack of early-and-late-successional forests stemming from historic land use. Silviculture can create underrepresented forest age classes and structures to support avian communities during the breeding and post-fledging periods. In southwestern New Hampshire, we conducted a case study evaluating avian conservation value indices across silvicultural systems. Our goal was to observe how avian conservation value indexes and abundance differed between recently managed and unmanaged stands. We surveyed 215 breeding and 118 post-fledging points across 22 sites using point counts and vegetation surveys. Conservation values in the breeding …

A Systems Analysis Of Long-Term Community Recovery Following The 2023 Lāhainā Wildfire: Understanding Recovery As A Complex Adaptive Social-Ecological System, Christy Shaver

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

No abstract provided.

Holistic Stormwater Management In The Bound Brook River Basin, New Jersey, Sana Mirza

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This dissertation presents a holistic framework for stormwater management in the Bound Brook River Basin, an urban watershed in central New Jersey that faces chronic nutrient enrichment and climate-driven hydrologic changes. The research integrates water-quality trend analysis, hydrologic modeling, and low-impact development (LID) optimization to assess current and projected watershed responses. By combining empirical monitoring data with downscaled climate simulations and spatial prioritization, the study utilizes a holistic approach for stormwater management planning. The first objective was to characterize nutrient dynamics and hydrologic transport pathways for nitrogen, phosphorus, and total suspended solids (TSS) from 2004 to 2019. Using bi-monthly monitoring …

An Integrated Approach To Groundwater Management In Northern New Jersey Watersheds, Toritseju Oyen

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Groundwater deterioration has emerged as a pressing global concern, with widespread observations of declining water quality in various regions. The predominant cause of this deterioration is attributed to anthropogenic activities, which are deeply intertwined with daily human practices that contaminate water resources. Over the decades, many forested and wetland areas have been converted mainly for increased urbanization and industrialization use in northern New Jersey. The region’s watershed, already characterized as a low-yield aquifer, is facing deterioration because of continuous change in land cover. Anthropogenic activities aimed at providing solutions to problems, such as food scarcity, icy roads during the winter …

A Deep Learning Approach For Mapping Shrubs, Wet Tundra And Surface Water In Arctic Tundra With Very High Resolution Satellite Imagery, Darko Radakovic

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Arctic shrub expansion threatens to accelerate permafrost thaw through complex feedbacks, yet whether shrubs primarily indicate or drive degradation remains unresolved. This dissertation integrates deep learning analysis of two decades of satellite imagery with LiDAR canopy structure and radar soil moisture data to reveal that shrubs play a dual role: young, expanding shrubs signal active permafrost thaw, while mature, tall shrubs stabilize underlying permafrost through insulation. By demonstrating that vertical canopy structure predicts thaw depth better than cover extent alone, this work establishes a scalable framework for monitoring permafrost vulnerability across the rapidly changing Arctic. Arctic shrub expansion is accelerating …

How Does Vertical Hydroponic Farming Compare To Traditional Soil Farming In Terms Of Crop Yield, Energy Efficiency, And Cost?, Grace Morgan, Grace Henry, Rebecca Meenach, Jeana Odom

Student Scholar Symposium

Vertical hydroponics (hydro “water;” ponics “labor”) is a method of year-round farming that uses water in place of soil and supplies vegetables’ nutrients in a space-efficient setting. It dates back to 500 BC when it was used in the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, a wonder of the ancient world. Thousands of years later, vertical hydroponics has expanded across the globe to supply leafy greens, herbs, and grains. It is typically implemented in dense urban environments where green space is hard to come by as a form of sustainable farming. Our research seeks to answer the question “How does vertical hydroponic …

Linking Shoreline Change, Environmental Forcings, And Sedimentological Resilience In Nourished Beaches Of Cape May And Wildwood, New Jersey, Usa: A Multi-Decadal Synthesis, Divomi Balasuriya, Greg Pope

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Beach nourishment is a widely used strategy to mitigate coastal erosion, yet its long-term geological impacts remain poorly understood. This study provides a multi-decadal synthesis of shoreline change and sedimentological evolution on the nourished beaches of Cape May and Wildwood, New Jersey, USA. Using shoreline positions from 1991 to 2024, we identify contrasting trajectories: Wildwood exhibits ‘persistent transition’ with severe northern erosion (EPR: −10.0 m/yr) feeding southwards accretion, while Cape May demonstrates a ‘managed equilibrium’ with widespread accretion (mean EPR: +1.15 m/yr). Wave energy correlations account for less than 15% of shoreline variability, indicating natural drivers have been superseded by …

The Price Of Priorities: How Human Choices Fuel Climate And Ecological Decline, Keisha Hickman

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the ways in which human priorities and behaviors contribute to the escalating climate crisis and ecological systems. We will first analyze the role of social media in shaping public discourse on climate change and critically evaluate the priorities of institutions that have the means to assist in wildlife conservation. Both speak to the current behaviors of humankind prioritizing their own entertainment over meaningful efforts to mitigate climate change and preserve biodiversity. We will then shift to exploring the profound impact of human population growth and its associated activities on other species and ecosystems. Finally, the thesis will …

Onset Of Strong Iceland-Scotland Overflow Water 3.6 Million Years Ago, Matthias Sinnesael, Boris Theofanis Karatsolis, Paul N. Pearson, Anne Briais, Sidney R. Hemming, Leah J. Levay, Tom Dunkley Jones, Ying Cui, Anita Di Chiara, Justin P. Dodd, Deepa Dwyer, Deborah E. Eason, Sarah A. Friedman, Emma Hanson, Katharina Hochmuth, Halima E. Ibrahim, Claire E. Jasper, Saran Lee-Takeda, Danielle E. Leblanc, Melody R. Lindsay, David D. Mcnamara, Sevasti E. Modestou, Margaret A. Morris, Bramley J. Murton, Suzanne Oconnell, Gabriel Pasquet, Sheng Ping Qian, Yair Rosenthal, Sara Satolli, Takuma Suzuki, Thena Thulasi, Bridget S. Wade

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), the return flow component of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), is a major inter-hemispheric ocean water mass with strong climate effects but the evolution of its source components on million-year timescales is poorly known. Today, two major NADW components that flow southward over volcanic ridges to the east and west of Iceland are associated with distinct contourite drift systems that are forming off the coast of Greenland and on the eastern flank of the Reykjanes (mid-Atlantic) Ridge. Here we provide direct records of the early history of this drift sedimentation based on cores collected …

Millennial-Timescale Thermogenic Co2 Release Preceding The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, Shijun Jiang, Ying Cui, Yasu Wang, Maurizia De Palma, B. David A. Naafs, Jingxin Jiang, Xiumian Hu, Huaichun Wu, Runjian Chu, Yangguang Gu, Jiuyuan Wang, Yizhou Huang, Miquela Ingalls, Timothy J. Bralower, Shiling Yang, James C. Zachos, Andy Ridgwell

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Geologic records support a short-lived carbon release, known as the pre-onset excursion (POE), shortly before the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM; ~ 56 Ma). However, the source and pace of the POE carbon release and its relationship to the PETM remain unresolved. Here we show a high-temporal-resolution stratigraphic record spanning the POE and PETM from the eastern Tethys Ocean that documents the evolution of surface ocean carbon cycle, redox and eutrophication, confirming the global nature of the POE. Biomarkers extracted from the sedimentary record indicate a smaller environmental perturbation during the POE than that during the PETM in the eastern Tethys …

Evaluating The Preparedness Of Local Zoning Regulations For Flood Risk Reduction In The Most Affected Local Jurisdictions In Nebraska, Md Asaduzzaman Noor

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

Flooding has profound social, economic, and environmental impacts on local communities, and zoning plays a critical role in mitigating these risks. The 2019 Nebraska floods, among the most severe in the state’s history, highlighted the urgent need to strengthen local preparedness and mitigation strategies. This study assesses the extent to which local zoning regulations in Nebraska’s most affected jurisdiction, including rural areas, address flood risk reduction. A systematic review of 117 zoning ordinances from counties, cities, towns, and villages, we applied a structured analytical framework encompassing regulatory and permitting policies, voluntary and incentive-based measures, and nature-based solutions. The results show …

Groundwater Arsenic Contamination In The Oro Grande Wash, Dalila Boice

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This study investigates the distribution of naturally occurring arsenic in groundwater within the Oro Grande Wash in San Bernardino County, California. Depth-discrete groundwater quality data were collected over multiple years using nested and Westbay monitoring wells. Water quality results showed higher levels of arsenic in the deeper aquifers, ranging between 600 feet and 1,000 feet below ground surface. Arsenic levels in these regions reached as high as 66 µg/L. At roughly 800 feet and below, water quality data from the wells reveal that arsenic concentrations exceeded the 10 µg/L maximum contaminant level (MCL) in 87% of cases. These data provide …

Mountain Communities During A Time Of War: A Case Study Of The Hutsul Region In The Carpathian Mountains Of Ukraine, Pavlo Rybaruk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the ethno-ecological technologies employed by the Hutsul people within the highland agrarian economy of the Carpathian Mountains. Over centuries, the Hutsuls have developed ethno-ecological technologies that maintain ecological integrity while supporting community livelihoods.

The study addresses three primary research questions: What are the most important ethno-ecological technologies of the Hutsul highland economy? How might these traditional ethno-ecological practices be applied to economic, agricultural, and tourism development in the Hutsul region? How might these traditional ethno-ecological practices be combined with contemporary approaches to encourage sustainable development in the region?

The research explores the devastating impact of the Russian …

Modeling Flood Risks For Small-Scale Coastal Watershed Across Shared Socioeconomic Pathway Scenarios, Sebastian Loschner

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

Coastal flooding, driven by the mixture of natural processes and human activities such as precipitation, waves, sea level rise, and urbanization, remains a growing concern. While recent flood-risk studies use IPCC's Shared Socioeconomic Pathways with climate projections to assess future flood exposure, smaller coastal watersheds, < 120,000 acres, remain insufficiently studied. Projected sea level rise is expected to intensify these impacts in smaller systems, potentially causing more severe flooding than reported for larger watersheds. To address this gap, this study used the SRH-2D model integrated with Aquaveo's Surface-water Modeling System to simulate flooding in the lower Fish River basin, Alabama. A coastal watershed sensitive to both riverine and tidal influences. Simulations tested different sea levels based on SSP scenarios corresponding to low, moderate, and high emissions for the years 2050 and 2100. Results indicate that the midcentury scenarios remained even in inundation extent and volume, between 9.9-10.4% compared to the 2020 baseline, the latter scenarios had a wider range in results of between 25.9-50.3% compared to the same baseline. Across scenarios, the most vulnerable and inundated areas of the smaller coastal watershed were the narrow points where upstream flow convene with downstream backwater. These findings highlight the need for futuristic location-specific flood mitigation strategies.

Innovation Curse: The Wastefulness Of Technologies Believed To Mitigate Climate Change, Minh Hoang Nguyen, Valoree Gagnon, Thanh Tu Tran, Thi Mai Anh Tran

Michigan Tech Publications

Technological innovations are increasingly promoted as solutions to climate change. However, many innovations, including Carbon Capture and Storage, bioplastics, and glacier geo-engineering, suffer significant limitations from high costs, speculative efficacy, and adverse ecological consequences. Using Granular Interaction Thinking Theory (GITT), a transdisciplinary framework grounded in information theory, quantum mechanics, and mindsponge theory, in this study, we explain how such technological innovations become systemically favored despite their flaws. We introduce the concept of the “innovation curse,” which arises when institutional and cognitive filtering systems, operating under high informational entropy, default to familiar but ineffective techno-solutions while marginalizing Indigenous and Local Knowledges …

Doughnut Economics And Strong Sustainability: Rethinking The Role Of Financial Investment, Isabelle Pierotti

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates how private investment could align doughnut economic framework. Doughnut economics is a strong sustainability economic framework where the economy operates within planetary boundaries while ensuring social equity. Theories of sustainable development, weak sustainability, and strong sustainability are discussed to provide theoretical context for doughnut economics and mainstream economics. The analysis concludes that conventional, profit maximizing private investment does not support a doughnut economics system by supporting the depletion of natural resources and exacerbating social issues. Sustainable mainstream investment also fails to support a doughnut framework. Lastly, while impact investment is theoretically committed to social and financial returns, …

Safety, Security, And… Beavers? An Engineer's Low-Tech Climate Strategy, Matt Mullins

University College: Environmental Policy and Management Capstones

Colorado’s headwaters are the source of drinking water to millions and are a key pillar of the state’s tourism industry. Consequently, they are some of the most vulnerable areas to natural disasters including wildfires, droughts and flooding. Climate change will increase the severity and frequency of these natural disasters. This project focuses on some of the most vulnerable areas from an economic and climate change perspective of Colorado’s headwaters including the Big Thompson River, and the Colorado River. These headwaters located in and around Estes Park, Grand Lake and Rocky Mountain National Park are currently severely impaired. Low-tech process-based restoration …

Future Vision And Action Recommendations, Sondoss Elsawah, Melissa Haeffner, Anthony Jakeman

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Let us imagine a future world where water management is more fully integrated and supported by the science of sociohydrology and related metadisciplines. This is a vision for the future where the social, cultural, environmental, and economic values of water are explicitly considered through the lens of the science–water policy interface. The ultimate value of research will be measured by how much it supports improvements in water resources and hazards management and, in particular, completes and enriches the science–water policy interface.

Indigenous And Tribal Nation Scientists And Universities, Elizabeth A. Sumida Huaman, Stephen J. Smith

Critical Internationalization Studies Review

No abstract provided.

Source Apportionment And Potential Health Risks Of Trace Metals In A Contaminated Urban River In New York/New Jersey Harbor System, Md Shahnul Islam, Sana Mirza, Huan Feng, Tapos Kumar Chakraborty, Yu Qian, Shinjae Yoo

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The Lower Passaic River (LPR), located within the New York/New Jersey Harbor Estuarine System, has experienced long-term industrial activities, resulting in elevated concentrations of trace metals in sediment and water. This study aims to assess the bioaccumulation behavior, potential human health risks, and sources of copper (Cu), lead (Pb), and mercury (Hg) in the LPR. Trace metal concentrations were measured in water, sediment, and seven edible aquatic species. Data were analyzed using statistical approaches, and evaluated by bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) and human health risk assessments based on U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) guidelines. Results showed that Hg exhibited the highest …

Correcting Class Imbalance Through Synthetic Training Data And 3d Modeling For Carabid Pitfall Trap Sampling, Blair Mirka

Geography ETDs

Crowdsourced biodiversity data provide an accessible foundation for large-scale ecological monitoring, but class imbalance limits automated species identification, particularly for rare taxa. This research explores the use of synthetic training data generated from 3D models of carabid beetle museum specimens to improve detection and classification performance for underrepresented species in crowdsourced datasets. High-resolution 3D models were created to simulate variation in lighting, orientation, and background. These synthetic images were incorporated into convolutional neural network training datasets at varying synthetic-to-real ratios to assess their impact on classification accuracy. Models were evaluated using controlled pitfall-trap imagery to examine the influence of scene …