Digital Commons Network^™

2026 Report On The State Of Great Salt Lake Social Science, Creed Jones, Avyrlie Smith, Shae Barber, Stacia Ryder, Mufti Nadimul Quamar Ahmed, Georgie Corkery, Jennifer Givens, Anna Mcentire, Carla Trentelman, Jessica Ulrich-Schad, Kirsten Vinyeta, Bryn Watkins

Publications

Great Salt Lake (GSL) faces rapid decline that presents more than just a hydrological risk; it poses an existential social hazard. As water levels decline, ecosystems, economies, cultures, and societies face irreversible harm. Since the lake reached its lowest levels in 2022, this issue has specifically gained increased attention in Utah and beyond. Given both the degree to which human consumption contributes to the problem, and the potential risks that the drying of the lake poses for community health, social science research is a crucial for informing successful water management policies and mitigating impacts. The purpose of this report is …

Expression Levels Of Heat Shock Protein 72 And Their Correlation With Biomarkers Of Renal Function Among Hispanic Construction Workers Exposed To Ambient Heat In El Paso, Texas, Maria Fuentes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Heat shock proteins (HSP) are intracellular molecular proteins that are upregulated in response to cellular stress, including heat exposure. Through their protective functions, HSP help maintain protein structure, prevent protein denaturation, and preserve cellular homeostasis during states of physiological stress. Because of their cytoprotective properties, HSP have emerged as potential biomarkers for detecting early signs of tissue injury and predicting clinical outcomes associated with heat related illnesses (HRI), including acute kidney injuries (AKI). AKI is a leading cause of hospitalizations due to heat stress exposure and heat stroke. In the absence of early detection and effective therapeutic interventions, AKI may …

Ecorxchoice.Com— An Sidp-Funded Calculator Integrating Environmental Metrics With Antimicrobial Stewardship, Pamela S. Lee, Hugh Gordon, Theresa Ferguson, Tien Dinh, Misty Vu, Marina Nguyen, Chaynor Hsiao, Gary Fong

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Healthcare sustainability is a multidisciplinary field that seeks to mitigate healthcare’s environmental consequences. Antimicrobial stewardship and healthcare sustainability both aim to reduce wasteful resource use while maximizing patient safety. However, a strong partnership between antimicrobial stewardship and healthcare sustainability has yet to develop. To facilitate environmentally sustainable decision-making in antimicrobial prescribing, we developed a web-based calculator (EcoRxChoice (www.ecorxchoice.com)) where users can enter different antimicrobial regimens and compare how much plastic waste each regimen creates. This work was supported in part by the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP), reflecting SIDP’s commitment to strengthening sustainability as a practical extension of antimicrobial …

Third Butte Rmap Biomonitoring (Phase 3) Report, Ramboll, Atlantic Richfield Company

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Climate-Driven Stochastic Modelling Of Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Transmission In Uganda, P. G. Kpatchana, J. Aduda, K. M. Agboka

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a climate-sensitive tick-borne zoonosis that remains a significant public health concern in Uganda, where temperature and vapour pressure deficit influence tick ecology and consequently disease transmission. This study aimed to develop and analyse a climate-driven stochastic model for CCHF transmission among ticks, livestock, and humans under environmental variability in Uganda. A compartmental transmission model was formulated and extended into a stochastic differential equation framework by incorporating multiplicative environmental noise. Climate-dependent tick recruitment, development, and mortality were parameterized using district-level temperature and vapour pressure deficit data to capture spatial heterogeneity in transmission risk. Theoretical analyses based …

Environmental Mercury Alters Immune Pathways Linked To Autoimmune Risk In Mice Mirroring Humans, Maurgan Lee, Paul Stemmer, Randall Gill, Allen Rosenspire, Anil Aranha, Heather Gibson

Medical Student Research Symposium

Background and Purpose: Mercury is a pervasive environmental contaminant, and human epidemiologic studies have linked chronic low-level exposure to increased autoimmune disease-risk. Dysregulated lymphocyte activation and impaired signaling tolerance are central mechanisms in human autoimmunity. Protein phosphorylation governs lymphocyte differentiation and function, alterations in phosphoproteomic networks may represent a signature of immune disruption. This study evaluates how low dose mercury exposure modifies B and T cell abundance and intracellular signaling patterns in BALB/c and Diversity Outbred (DO) mice.

Methods: BALB/c and DO mice were exposed to low dose HgCl2 in their water for two weeks or provided standard water controls. …

Enhancing Food Security In Stann Creek. Belize Using Meat Rabbits, Lindsey Garretson

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

In recent years, food insecurity and the prevalence of hunger have rapidly grown throughout the world, but especially within Latin America and the Caribbean. Along with growing rates of food insecurity and hunger there are increases in medical conditions including negative impacts the functioning of every major organ system, increased rates of mental illness, both overweight and underweight children, wasting in both children and adults, and anemia. Availability and access to healthy, nutritional food options can help lower the risk of these conditions. With these considerations, the goal of this project was to create an all-encompassing manual and construction guide …

Barriers To Climate Change And Sustainability Action: Nursing Education And Practice, Dawn Marie Smith

Dissertations

Climate change is one of the most pressing public health emergencies of our time and nurses can have a great impact in their current practice and in the education of future nurses (The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, n.d.; American Nurses Association, 2023; Health Care without Harm, 2025). Deaths due to rising temperatures, vector-borne illness, and food insecurity related to drought and extreme weather are on the rise (WHO, 2024). It has been estimated that globally over 250,000 additional deaths will be attributed to climate related effects between 2030 and 2050 (Watts et al., 2020; WHO, 2023).

A primary …

The Environment, Health, And Vector Nexus: Evaluating The Spatiotemporal Variability And Societal Impact Of Ticks In Arkansas, Dalton Williams

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Tick-borne diseases (TBDs) are a surging public health and veterinary concern in the United States. In states like Arkansas, climate change and shifting land use have recalibrated the ecological niches of vector species. This research utilizes species distribution and ecological niche modeling to assess the spatiotemporal suitability of ixodid tick habitats, specifically where environmental and socioeconomic factors intersect. By integrating spatial science with public health frameworks, this study identifies priority intervention areas in underserved rural regions where healthcare resources are often constrained. This study provides a comprehensive methodological framework, leveraging remote sensing datasets and historic disease data to delineate exposure …

Environmental Awareness And Community Sentiments In A Superfund Site: A Study Of South Chattanooga, Mia Dial

Honors Theses

The concept of environmental injustice refers to the disproportionate exposure of marginalized communities to environmental hazards, often resulting from the placement of industrial sites, waste facilities, or other environmentally harmful infrastructure in areas with limited political and economic power. Alton Park, a historically underserved neighborhood in Chattanooga, Tennessee, faces elevated environmental risks due to its proximity to the South Chattanooga Lead Superfund Site and legacy industrial contamination. This study used semi-structured individual interviews to assess community awareness, perceptions, and behaviors related to environmental hazards in Alton Park. Residents generally reported some awareness of the Superfund site, though knowledge was often …

Multiscale Effects Of Landscape Structure, Biodiversity, And Chronic Physiological Stress In Atlantic Forest Small Mammals, Lizette Arroyo

Theses and Dissertations from DePaul University

Habitat loss and fragmentation are major drivers of biodiversity decline and can alter the physiological condition of wildlife through changes in habitat quality, resource availability, and community composition. The Atlantic Forest of South America is one of the world’s most threatened biodiversity hotspots. This study examined relationships among biodiversity, landscape structure, and chronic stress in nonvolant small mammals within the Reserva Natural Tapytá in eastern Paraguay using hair glucocorticoid concentrations as indicators of long-term physiological stress. Small mammals were sampled from forest fragments representing multiple patch sizes between 2023 and 2025. Hair cortisol and corticosterone concentrations were quantified using enzyme …

Heat And Socioeconomic Deprivation Compound To Drive Coronary Heart Disease In Los Angeles, Shutong Huo, Tessa R. Pulido, Reginald S. Archer, Joshua B. Fisher, Jason A. Douglas

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Background:

Socioeconomic deprivation and environmental heat exposure each increase cardiovascular risk, yet evidence is limited on how these stressors co-occur and jointly shape disease burden within cities. Mapping their overlap can inform equity-oriented planning and needs-based allocation of health and social protection resources.

Methods:

We conducted an ecological geospatial analysis of 2,513 census tracts in Los Angeles County. Adult coronary heart disease (CHD) prevalence was obtained from CDC Population Level Analysis and Community Estimates (2021). Socioeconomic deprivation was measured using the Social Deprivation Index (SDI), and heatwave surface heat hazard was measured using land surface temperature (LST) retrieved from the …

Spatial Temporal Modeling Of Infectious Disease Patterns In Texas, Robert E. Lashbrook

Earth & Environmental Sciences Theses

The Texas Department of State Health Services monitors numerous notifiable conditions statewide, including Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), Rabies, and West Nile virus (WNV). Given the substantial health, economic, and public health burden associated with these conditions, improving prediction is an important step toward reducing their overall impact. This study evaluated whether external demographic, social, climate, and environmental data could improve prediction of county-year disease activity across Texas. County level data was analyzed using supervised machine learning models, including linear regression, ridge regression, multilayer perceptron, random forest, XGBoost, as well as K-means clustering to identify broader …

A Transdisciplinary Approach To Advancing Water Security And Public Health: The “Nurse + Engineer” Model For Achieving Sustainability In Wash Systems Using Community-Based Participatory Research, Daniel B. Oerther, Sarah Oerther

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Human health is linked to the health of the environment, a concept referred to as planetary health. As environmental challenges become increasingly complex, single-disciplinary approaches are insufficient to achieve sustainable solutions. This article presents a transdisciplinary framework, termed the "Nurse + Engineer" model, as a novel methodology for addressing complex problems at the nexus of environmental engineering and public health. The model integrates the technical design and systems-level thinking of environmental engineering with the community-based, patient-centered care of nursing. This work details the key lessons learned from the retrospective application of this framework to a series of multi-year, community-based participatory …

The Sub-Lethal Effects Of Trematode Parasites On The Migratory Behavior Of Lesser Scaup (Aythya Affinis), Scott Alan Herman

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The introduction of the invasive freshwater faucet snail (Bithynia tentaculata) and its associated parasites in the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Region provides the opportunity to investigate how anthropogenic stressors impact the life history of lesser scaup (Aythya affinis) using the Mississippi Flyway. To understand the life histories and interactions between lesser scaup and faucet snails we examined historical records, research, and ecology textbooks. Our literature review identified critical knowledge gaps in lesser scaup literature surrounding population dynamics, reproduction, and migration. Specifically, the sub-lethal effects of invasive trematodes on the migratory behavior of lesser scaup in the Upper Mississippi …

Technological Interventions For Reducing Climate Change Impacts On Health: An Overview Of Future Possibilities, Sujatha Alla, Vijay Kumar Chattu, Bawa Singh

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Globally, over five million deaths annually are attributed to extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change, such as heatwaves, hurricanes, wildfires, droughts, and floods, which create health crises and economic losses. The 2015 Paris Declaration emphasized climate technology mechanisms, including research and development, to enhance resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Biotechnological advancements have mitigated about 20% of economic losses since the 1960s, highlighting technology’s potential to address climate-induced health risks.

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 …

Perspectives On Implementing Environmentally Sustainable Practices In Cataract Surgeries: Interviews Of Administrative And Frontline Healthcare Workers, Daniel Parra, Brooke Sherry, Emma Pak, Lauren Taylor, Erin S. Rogers, Sarah E. Hochman, Maria De Los Angeles Ramos Cadena, Joel S. Schuman, Christina R. Prescott, Cassandra L. Thiel

Wills Eye Hospital Papers

BACKGROUND: Healthcare is responsible for 8.5% of greenhouse gas emission in the United States. Physicians are becoming increasingly concerned about the climate crisis, particularly in the field of ophthalmology where there is a growing body of literature related to sustainability. Although emissions of cataracts surgery, one of the most performed surgical procedures in the world, have been quantified, modifications to practice have yet to be made. This study aims to uplift the perspectives of a diverse set of healthcare workers on implementing environmentally sustainable practices in the cataract surgery setting.

METHODS: 16 semi-structured interviews were conducted with professionals working in …

Mapping Climatic And Environmental Determinants Of Parasitic Helminth Prevalence In Southeast Asia, Angelica Avisado

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Climate change is reshaping environmental conditions across Southeast Asia (SEA) through rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and increased droughts. These changes alter transmission dynamics of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by shifting spatial distribution, increasing larval development rates, faster pathogen growth development, and increasing transmission rates. NTDs are a group of preventable and treatable infections that disproportionately affect more than 1 billion people globally, specifically in tropical and subtropical regions. A subgroup of NTDs, parasitic helminth infections (PHIs) - particularly schistosomiasis, soil-transmitted helminths, and lymphatic filariasis remains a public health concern in the Southeast Asian region. PHIs and their ecological responses …

Large-Scale Experimental Study On The Impact Of Air Cleaning & Ventilation On Indoor Air Quality And Student Illness-Related Absenteeism, Daud Nosham

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This large-scale randomized experimental field study investigated the effect of portable air purifiers (PAPs) on classroom’s air quality and student’s illness related absenteeism. PAPs were installed in 317 classrooms from various school districts located in Eastern Nebraska. The classrooms were randomly assigned into four conditions: three treatment conditions (T1, T2 & T3) and one control condition (device without any filter). T1 was equipped with HEPA filters, T2 added Activated Carbon (AC) layer to HEPA, and T3 further integrated Germicidal Ultraviolet (GUV) alongside HEPA and AC filters. The measured variables were carbon dioxide (CO2), fine particles (PN2.5) and coarse particles (PNcoarse), …

Hot Spring Associated Infectious Diseases In The Great Basin And Southwest, Matthew Bentz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Like all bodies of freshwater, natural hot springs can harbor pathogenic microorganisms that carry the threat of infectious disease. The unique chemistry, increased temperature, and popularity for bathing may alter the risk profile of hot springs compared to other natural bodies of water. Despite this risk, the role of hot springs as a reservoir for infectious diseases remains understudied, particularly within the context of regional public health. Nevada and the Great Basin/Southwest have increasingly promoted hot springs for the purposes of tourism, and they share a strong link to the cultural heritage of the region. The unknown risk profile and …

The Effect Of An Invasive Species (Lantana Camara) And A Fast-Growing Herb (Acanthus Pubescens) On The Plant And Animal Communities In Kibale National Park, Uganda, Kathleen Bufka

Theses and Dissertations

Fast-growing plant species, like Lantana camara and Acanthus pubescens, could threaten biodiversity in Kibale National Park, Uganda. I surveyed plants and wildlife in areas where these plants were frequently encountered compared to those areas where they are infrequent. I found mixed results based on plant traits and the animals considered. My findings support management efforts on these two species to prevent forest degradation.

Evaluation Of Performance Characteristics And Groundwater Contamination Risks Associated With On-Farm Swine Carcass Disposal Via Composting And Shallow Burial With Carbon, Gustavo Castro Garcia

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation evaluates the performance of three on-farm swine carcass disposal methods: whole carcass composting (WCC), ground carcass composting (GCC), and shallow burial with carbon (SBC), focusing on biosecurity factors and groundwater contamination risks. Foreign animal diseases (FADs), such as African swine fever and classical swine fever, pose severe economic and animal well-being risks if introduced to the United States. With confirmation of an FAD, swine movement will be halted, creating an urgent need for practical, biosecure, and environmentally responsible on-farm disposal strategies for swine carcasses. Nebraska, as a leading swine-producing state, exemplifies the vulnerability of high-density livestock regions to …

Flooding: Risk Assessment And Its Interaction With Population & Environmental Health, Shivendra Srivastava

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Flood events have significant implications for both population and environmental health. This dissertation aims to explore flood risk and its interaction with humans and the environment. The key questions addressed in this dissertation include improving the existing flood risk framework to better assess population vulnerability and associated risk. Additionally, it explores how interactions among risk components vary across spatial scales and regions, and how these variations influence overall flood risk. The dissertation also investigates how to design a vulnerability component specific to flooding within flood risk estimation. Finally, it answers whether flood-specific vulnerability differs for a population compared to vulnerability …

The People's Rivers: Early Environmental Regulation And The Oregon State Sanitary Authority, Avery Morgan Fischer

Dissertations and Theses

The environmental movement in Oregon can trace its origins to the turn of the twentieth century, where citizen activism and initiative led to the creation of an early environmental regulatory agency, the Oregon State Sanitary Authority. This creation established that the State of Oregon had a duty to preserve, not just the navigability or usability of rivers and waterways, but the quality and purity of its water. The Oregon State Sanitary Authority played an active role in maintaining and protecting the environment as a mandate of the people, and throughout its thirty-year existence battling industrial polluters, reluctant municipalities, and disinterested …

Indoor Airborne Pathogen Transmission And Control: A Role Of Environmental Factors And Material Properties, Eloise Eyo Parry-Nweye

Dissertations - ALL

The transmission of infectious airborne pathogens has severe implications on human health and economic stability. This is evidenced by the re-emergence of global pandemics with high mortality rates, various respiratory diseases, crop damage, incurred nationwide financial costs, etc. These causative pathogens, encompassing viruses, fungal spores, etc., attach to aerosol and droplet particles, enabling their aerial dispersal and leading to a cascade of detrimental events. Developing interventions to control pathogenic transmission requires an in-depth understanding of the various modes of disease transmission. However, existential gaps within the respective disease transmission modalities remained. For instance, while viruses are predominantly transmitted via aerosols, …

Evaluating San Francisco Urban Green Spaces And Policy To Inform Future Decision-Making: How Climate Change Adaptation Strategies Can Be Prioritized And Incorporated In Urban Park Design And Planning Through A Decision-Making Tool, Holley Anne Maassen

Master's Projects and Capstones

Amid the current climate crisis, enhancing urban green spaces (UGS), parks, and open spaces with climate change adaptation (CCA) as a strategic pillar in San Francisco’s urban planning is an essential strategic pillar to develop more resilient cities. However, in complex bureaucratic landscapes, integrating CCA strategies that meet project goals while ensuring inclusive stakeholder engagement presents a challenge. This project presents the identification, development, and application of a holistic decision-making tool (DMT) in the form of a Pugh matrix/decision matrix and with a focus on urban planning in San Francisco, California. Key decision-making criteria are identified and weighted through a …

Climate Change Impacts On Drinking Water Security: A Comparative Study In Australia’S Remote Central Australia And Torres Strait Islands, Nina Lansbury, Julia Bradford, Sandra J. Creamer, Geoffrey Evans

Journal of the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are well adapted to the many different environments in which they have lived for thousands of years. However, their environments and communities are highly vulnerable to impacts of anthropogenic climate change, including increasing threats to the security of drinking water supplies. Climate change is intensifying the significant social and economic disadvantage Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities face from poverty, poor housing, and poor health including high exposure to infectious and other diseases. Lack of sufficient safe, clean, drinking water could force Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to leave their homelands, adding …

Identification And Preclinical Assessment Of Novel Therapeutic Modalities In Environmental Exposure-Induced Lung Disease, Aaron D. Schwab

Theses & Dissertations

Environmental lung diseases are preventable respiratory conditions either caused or made worse by inhaled environmental exposures. Contemporarily, environmental lung diseases are most associated with workplace exposures given specific occupational processes aerosolize inflammatory agents that can be inhaled at high concentrations. Although a considerable amount is known regarding immunoglobulin (Ig)E-mediated responses to environmental exposures, little is known about non-IgE mediated respiratory conditions resulting from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-enriched organic dust exposure(s). Chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pulmonary fibrosis have all been identified as environmental lung diseases caused or exacerbated by such environmental dusts. Therapeutic …

Comparison Of Rt-Qpcr And Rt-Ddpcr On Assessing Model Virus In Wastewater, Wafa Youssfi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is an increasing demand for quantifying viral loads in diverse wastewater systems using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This study evaluates the performance of two commonly used workflows: reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and reverse transcription droplet digital PCR (RT-ddPCR) in wastewater. We compared the two methods by measuring the viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) of a model virus Phi6 in samples collected from various treatment stages at the Westside Wastewater Treatment Facility in Fayetteville, AR. RNA was extracted from real and synthetic wastewater samples and analyzed in parallel using both RT-qPCR and RT-ddPCR. Findings reveal that both methods demonstrated similar …