Digital Commons Network^™

Sunrise At The Salton Sea: Environmental Justice, Land Use Change, And Hydrosocial Dynamics Of Solar Energy Transitions In The Imperial Valley, California, Dustin Mulvaney, James J. A. Blair, Alida Cantor

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

California's Imperial Valley, with lithium-rich geothermal brines, extensive flat agricultural fields with abundant desert sunshine, and access to transmission lines, is a leading case to explore interconnected themes around just energy transitions. Despite being the poorest county in California and one of the smallest, Imperial already provides 15% of the state’s solar electricity, and the region as a whole represents on the order of 25% of the state’s electric power capacity. This paper brings to light frictions over solar energy development that have emerged over the history of solar power development in the southern Salton Sea region. It describes the …

No. 42: Remittance Practices, Digital Technologies And The Ghana-Canada Migration Corridor, Naomi Sunu, Sujata Ramachandran

Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) Network

Migrant remittances have been recognized as vital resources for the well-being of recipient households and communities, as well as for sustainable development in the Global South. However, these flows can be impeded by limitations in the infrastructure, financial systems, and regulatory environments of both sending and receiving countries, as exemplified by the high costs associated with remitting to sub-Saharan Africa. Consequently, the use of less secure but more affordable informal remittance channels persists. Driven by the rapid growth of fintech technologies in recent years, including mobile money and web-based platforms, the digitalization of remittance-sending and receiving processes has the potential …

Convergence Research For Microplastic Pollution At The Watershed Scale, Heejun Chang, Elise F. Granek, Amanda Gannon, Jordyn M. Wolfand, Janice Brahney

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

Microplastics are found in Earth’s atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, pedosphere, and ecosphere. While there is a growing interest and need to solve this grand challenge in both the academic and policy realms, few have engaged with academics, policymakers, and community partners to co-identify the problem, co-design research, and co-produce knowledge in tackling this issue. Using a convergence research framework, we investigated the perception of microplastic pollution among different end users, delivered educational materials to K-12 teachers and practitioners, and identified key sampling points for assessing environmental microplastic concentrations in the Columbia River Basin, United States. Three community partner workshops identified regional …

Living Arrangements Of Grandparents In The Mountain West, 2021, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, Kristian Thymianos, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet examines data on living arrangements from the U.S. Census Bureau report “Grandparents and Their Coresident Grandchildren: 2021.” This fact sheet includes data on the number of grandparents living with their grandchildren, the percentage of grandparents living with grandchildren, and the percentage of grandparents that are responsible for grandchildren in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Arts-Based Sustainability: From New York To Malawi, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Recognizing that libraries serve multiple constituencies and subject areas, this chapter documents and advocates for development of transdisciplinary arts-based research (ABR) and culture-related projects linked to environmental challenges. Libraries contribute collections and spaces, as well as the research of library and information scientists. Libraries are currently among invisible contributors to sustainability planning and services. The chapter will link this invisibility to the value of what visual arts refer to as negative space elements in subjects ranging from traditional ecological knowledge to environmental science. Library collections, projects, and research contribute to education for sustainable development (ESD) as required to achieve the …

The Road To Montana: Exploring The Decision Paths To Visiting Montana, Kika Bradford, Glenna Hartman, Matthew Pettigrew, Melissa Weddell

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

Montana’s big skies, outdoor recreation, and cultural heritage attract millions of visitors each year. However, a segment of potential travelers remains unaware and/or disengaged from the state’s tourism market. This study identifies barriers and opportunities in engaging travelers who have never been to Montana.

Exploring Early Childhood Development Programming In Kenya’S Arid And Semi-Arid Lands, Phyllis Magoma, Amina Abubakar, Martha Kaniala, Barack Aoko, Moses Wesala, Joyce Marangu, Susan Nyamanya, Margaret Kabue, Anil Khamis, Esther Chongwo

Institute for Human Development, East Africa

Background: Promoting high-quality early childhood development (ECD) is vital for individuals’ physical and social well-being and yields significant societal returns. However, children in marginalised regions like Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) face significant barriers to accessing quality ECD services.

Aim: This study aimed to document existing ECD services in Kenya’s ASAL areas, including their availability, types and key characteristics; identify gaps in their provision and propose solutions to enhance access and quality. Setting: This qualitative study was conducted in 10 ASAL counties in Kenya.

Methods: Using purposive and snowball sampling techniques, 103 key informants, including pre-primary …

Ecological Grief Among Farmers And Pastoralists In Ethiopia And Kenya, Syed Shabab Wahid, Christine Musyimi, Benjamin Oestericher, Linda Khakali, Lauren Carruth, Emily Mendenhall, Edna Bosire

Brain and Mind Institute

Climate change is a major cause of mental distress worldwide. In many ways, climate change has become a chronic disaster, while in other ways each acute event can accumulate and present challenges within and between communities. A growing body of evidence indicates that a changing climate can precipitate a cluster of negative affective states scholars call “ecological grief.” Ecological grief reflects psychological responses to climate changes and destruction of nature, species, culturally significant or sacred spaces. Until now, ecological grief has been conceptualized as a psychological response connected primarily to the destruction of the natural environment, and has not fully …

A Climatological Analysis Of Drought And Flood In California, Kristen Faith Coston

Masters Theses

This research is investigating the climate states that produce droughts and floods and seeks to explain how a sudden shift from persistent drought to drought-alleviating flood is possible. Objectives include investigating how drought and flood in California are influenced by temperature and climate patterns, whether there are any correlation between climate/ocean indices and the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), and whether Atmospheric Rivers (ARS) are influenced by certain atmospheric/oceanic states.

All data is collected for 41 years, between 1983 and 2024. The SPI dataset is obtained by coding to filter for the mean value of all pixels in Sacramento County. Monthly …

Geographic Inequalities, And Social-Demographic Determinants Of Reproductive, Maternal And Child Health At Sub-National Levels In Kenya, Janette Karimi, Anitah Cherono, Victor Alegana, Martin Mutua, Hellen Kiarie, Rose Muthee, Marleen Temmerman, Peter Gichangi

Centre of Excellence in Women and Child Health

Background; Global initiatives have emphasized tracking indicators to monitor progress, particularly in countries with the highest maternal and child mortality. Routine data can be used to monitor indicators for improved target setting at national and subnational levels. Our objective was to assess the geographic inequalities in estimates of reproductive, maternal and child health indicators from routine data at the subnational level in Kenya.

Methods; Monthly data from 47 counties clustered in 8 regions, from January 2018 to December 2021 were assembled from the District Health Information Software version 2 (DHIS2) in Kenya. This included women of reproductive age receiving family …

Iberian Origins Of New Mexico's Community Acequias, Jose A. Rivera Ph.D., Thomas F. Glick Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

When Spanish officials first entered the northern region of New Spain in the late sixteenth century, they realized that irrigation would be a necessary development in the establishment of permanent communities. To sustain the early settlements, they built irrigation systems following the Iberian model, itself an extension of Arabo-Berber traditions from north Africa and the Middle East.

The Missed Connection: Why Some Travelers Choose Not To Visit Montana, Kika Bradford, Glenna Hartman, Matthew Pettigrew, Melissa Weddell

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

Montana attracts millions of visitors drawn by its natural beauty, outdoor recreation, and cultural heritage. A significant portion of these travelers are repeat visitors; however, some travelers visit only once and choose not to return. This study explores what drives that disengagement.

Infrastructure From Below: Mediasi Dan Politik Pembangunan Infrastruktur Air Di Kota Balikpapan, Muhammad Althaf Nandiati Yusfid

Antropologi Indonesia

The city of Balikpapan is experiencing a water crisis. The discrepancy between the city's water supply and Balikpapan's demography put pressure towards the city's capability of supporting its own citizens. This issue is exacerbated by the development of Indonesia's New Capital (IKN) which is located just outside Balikpapan. Therefore, the development of water infrastructure is imperative for the city. Yet, there's no recent visible development of water infrastructure in the city. However, I argue that water infrastructure development actually exists, though in a subtle form. The informal water suppliers that are prevalent in the city is tied with how the …

Analyzing The Dihedral Scattering Component Of P-Band Sar Signals For Trunk Permittivity Estimation – A Concept Study, Anke Fluhrer, Hamed Alemohammad, Thomas Jagdhuber

Geography

A new retrieval method, based on a hybrid decomposition technique and the extended (x-) Fresnel model, is proposed for estimating trunk permittivity from polarimetric P-band SAR observations. P-band SAR observations of NASA's Airborne Microwave Observatory of Subcanopy and Subsurface (AirMOSS) mission campaign are employed to test the proposed retrieval method at individual measuring stations across the U.S. between 2013 and 2015. In order to test the feasibility of the x-Fresnel model for such analyses and its sensitivity to required input parameters, a detailed sensitivity study revealed that at P-band frequencies there is a need to account for scattering losses, phase …

Assessing Equity In Heat Mitigation Ecosystem Services Of Urban Green Space In Singapore, Ronghua Xu, Perrine Hamel, Youu Ming, Aikeen Lim, Tingting He

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

Urban green space provides ecosystem services such as heat mitigation, which are associated with improved resident health and welfare. While estimating the disparity in ecosystem services is essential to improve equity, little guidance is available as to which indices and indicators should be used. Here, we assess the distributional equity in heat mitigation benefits as measured by two indicators – land surface temperature reduction and wet-bulb temperature reduction – in the city-state of Singapore, and compare three inequality indices: Gini coefficient (GC), Atkinson index (AI), and Theil entropy index (TE). We include scenarios with and without migrant construction workers to …

Synthesis Of Publications On The Anomalous June 2021 Heat Wave In The Pacific Northwest Of The United States And Canada, Erica Fleishman, David E. Rupp, Paul C. Loikith, Karin A. Bumbaco, Larry W. O'Neill

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

We synthesized more than 70 articles, most peer reviewed, that addressed the heat wave that occurred across the Pacific Northwest of the United States and Canada in late June 2021, breaking hundreds of daily and all-time daily maximum temperature records across the region. A persistent, extraordinarily strong ridge of high pressure was a primary driver of the heat wave. Contributing mechanisms were moisture originating in the tropical western Pacific Ocean, high solar radiation, low pressure offshore, large-scale subsidence over land, and unusually dry soils. Climate change contributed to the heat wave’s magnitude by increasing mean temperature, although it is unclear …

Naming People, Making Bodies: Reflections On Tukano Onomastics, Geraldo Andrello

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

This article discusses the topic of names and naming among Amerindian peoples, in particular among Tukano speakers on the Uaupés River, northwestern Amazon. After reviewing the analytical contrast between endonyms and exonyms (i.e., internal transmission of names taken from ancestors versus the capture of names from extra-human sources), I explore endonymic systems through an examination of differences between the Jê and Tukano, considered to be exemplary cases of this naming regime. The Tukano case, explored in more depth towards the end of the article, provides elements that indicate an articulation between both regimes as well as a complex dynamic between …

Relatos Corporales Con Ajustes Epistémicos De Cuando Un Cuerpo Humano Se Transformaba En Bufeo En El Río Napo, Nehemías Pino

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

Es inusual ver a un ser humano transformándose en delfín y mucho menos lo es el tener una conversación con este en el proceso. Este texto explora el momento de una transformación corporal en la Amazonía peruana desde una experiencia etnográfica en la que divergentes aproximaciones ontológicas contribuyeron a definir un espacio en un bosque de naturalezas múltiples. Mi reflexión se construye alrededor de una tímida, silenciosa y no menos común pregunta de si algunas transformaciones corporales u otras experiencias sensoriales durante labores etnográficas son reales o no. Sin pretender un ejercicio analítico sobre el cuerpo en el bosque …

Do Myths Ever Die? Social-Cultural Changes And Mythical Transformations In Indigenous Amazonia: A Dialogue With Peter Gow, Aparecida M. N. Vilaça

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

This is the first Peter Gow Memorial Lecture, given at the University of St Andrews in February 2024. Based on the analysis of different versions of Wari’ myths (Rondônia, Brazil) collected over forty years, the paper has two central objectives. The first is to engage with Peter Gow’s analysis of the mythical transformations resulting from the historical changes experienced by the Piro/Yine Indigenous people of Peru. The second is to discuss Lévi-Strauss’s suggestion that a myth can “die” after successive transformations, exhausting itself, taking the form of romantic tale or legendary tradition.

An X-Ray Of Mẽbêngôkre Houses In Terms Of Matrimonial Alliance, Vanessa R. Lea, Leandro Mahalem De Lima

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

This article examines the matrimonial implications of the Houses, or matrihouses, of the Mẽtyktire subgroup of the Mẽbêngôkre (Kayapó-Jê) with the assistance of Puck (Program for the Use and Computation of Kinship Data) and Pajek software. In accordance with the greater legibility of graphics, statistical results have been converted into graphics whenever possible. The analysis is based on a revised version of a dataset spanning the years 1978 to 1982 and published on the site Kinsources. What began as a village census later morphed into genealogies, which served as the basis for the digital dataset. The matrihouses …

Ser Nhande’I Va’E, Da Concepção Aos Primeiros Passos: Uma Abordagem Etnográfica Sobre A Permanência, O Movimento E A Palavra, Maria Inês Ladeira

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

O evento do nascimento, assim como os ritos de passagem, são temas recorrentes na literatura etnográfica, com destaque aos resguardos, condutas e preceitos. Neste artigo, ao versar sobre o ato de nascer, refiro-me a alguns princípios referenciados na cosmologia guarani, na qual esse acontecimento é também um marcador – marco espaço/temporal – dos lugares habitados – isto é, ação de territorialização. Determinadas condutas pré e pós-parto são fundamentais para os Guarani Mbya e os Ava Guarani se socializarem com os demais viventes nas matas/terras que conformam seu território (Yvyrupa). A partir desse prisma, ressalto algumas propriedades e combinações …

Outras Antropologias E Seus Desafios Cosmopolíticos: Reflexividades Indígenas, João Paulo Barreto

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

Este texto é resultado “Dueto”/keynote com Tânia Stolze Lima do Congresso da Salsa em Letícia, intitulado: “Outras antropologias e os seus desafios cosmopolíticos”, proferida no dia 29 de novembro de 2023, onde propõe uma reflexão sobre os desafios enfrentados pelos estudantes indígenas no campo da Antropologia, especialmente no contexto universitário de pós-graduação. Como também discute os limites e tensões entre o pensamento indígena e a lógica ocidental acadêmica, marcada pela pretensão de universalidade e pela classificação redutora dos conhecimentos dos povos indígenas. Coloca-se em pauta a desconstrução dos corpos e pensamentos que os indígenas são submetidos ao adentrar na universidade, …

Baniwa Speculative Kinship, João Vianna

Tipití: Journal of the Society for the Anthropology of Lowland South America

This article discusses the dynamics of Indigenous kinship in the Amazon, based on the autobiographical narrative of Mr. Júlio Cardoso, a ninety-year-old man of the Baniwa people. From his account, I develop an ethnographic discussion on the Baniwa, speakers of an Arawak language and inhabitants of the Upper Rio Negro, with a particular focus on the relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Júlio’s life is highlighted due to his extended period living with patrões from the regional aviamento system between the 1950s and 1970s. One of Júlio’s most recurrent formulations regarding these non-Indigenous bosses is that they were “as if” …

Covered In Snow, Katelynn M. Rogers

Masters Theses

Covered in Snow is a photographic exploration into the ripple effect of maternal loss and environmental decay in my hometown of Canton, Ohio. In the wake of a miscarriage, the woods I had grown up within began calling to me, urging me to return. Unbeknownst to me, a series of accidental deaths of women had been happening throughout these trees my entire life, their stories only coming to the surface as I looked to the trees for solace. This series of inexplicable deaths in the woods I so desperately loved began to alter my relationship to the trees, a distrust …

The Navel Of The Dream, Ella C. Baum

Masters Theses

The images in The Navel of the Dream evoke a state of groundlessness. In this body of work, photographs act as thresholds between what is seen and what is felt, between daydreams and nightmares, and memories and myths. The camera is used as a means to engage with feelings of loss, and reenact the mythos of childhood, as well as the deep waters of the subconscious.

Created in Southern Sweden between 2022 and 2025, these photographs investigate the fallow winter landscape, the liminal space of deep, dark Scandinavian nights and the transformative qualities of ice, snow and …

Field Journal: The Excluded Middle, Carrie E. Kouts

Masters Theses

What does it look like to engage with organisms and landscapes at the periphery of anthropocentric value structures? How does one break the internalized myth that the “built” environment is excluded from the natural world? When does a hyper-mobile and hyper-commodified society confront the exponential crisis of animal death? Within this series of journal entries, field notes, collection observations, weird prose, and sensory musings, one will find questions on the nature of being human and the complex narratives of care we encounter in a world shared with more-than-humans. Each handwritten vignette and photograph from daily life weaves a non-linear and …

The Industrial Hemp Supply Chain Solution, Honovi C. Trudell Sir

Sustainable Supply Chain Management

Realistically solving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals utilizing an Industrial Hemp supply chain with economy to scale to replace petroleum based plastics and permanently offset carbon emissions produced from other continuously produced hazardous waste.

Six Paths Of Global China: A Genealogy Of A Contested Geographical Imaginary, Jessica Dicarlo, Meredith J. Deboom

Faculty Publications

‘Global China’ has emerged as a shorthand for China's relationship to the global, but its axiomatic uses disguise considerable complexity. This article troubles self-evident uses and tidy categorizations of Global China by approaching it as an emergent, pluralistic geographical imaginary warranting critical analysis. Employing a genealogical approach that privileges indeterminacy and inconsistency over linearity and singularity, we draw on wide-ranging sources to reveal the contested, contextual, and contradictory uses of Global China in the contemporary moment. Our analysis identifies six ‘paths’ of Global China: Other, Integration, Bridge, Status, Threat, and Alternative. Each path facilitates distinct yet interlinked claims about …

Geospatial Intelligence And Multi-Criteria Analysis For Mapping Groundwater Potential Zones And Sustainable Resource Management In Wadi Qena Basin, Eastern Desert, Egypt, El-Taher M. M. Shams, Rashad Sawires, Sahar N. E. Tawfiq, Hanaa R. Youssef, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Groundwater is a rare and valuable resource in arid and hyperarid areas. Over the past few decades, population growth, urbanization, and agricultural activities—particularly in developing countries like Egypt—have greatly increased the demand for water supplies. The purpose of this study is to apply a multi-criteria analytical hierarchy process (AHP) in conjunction with remote sensing and geographic information systems methodologies to identify potential zones for groundwater recharge in Wadi Qena, Eastern Desert of Egypt. This valley is considered as one of the most potential valleys for government-led land reclamation and development initiatives. Using several data sources (e.g., Landsat-8 Enhanced Thematic Mapper …

Archaeological, Pxrf, And Gis Analyses At The Trestle Bridge Site (8ja186), Northwest Florida, Victoria Marie Freitas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Trestle Bridge Site (8JA186), located on an eroding riverbank of the upper Apalachicola River in northwest Florida, represents a significant multi-component precontact site with occupations that date from the Early Woodland (~800 B.C.–A.D. 300) and the Fort Walton periods (A.D. 1000-1500). Previous research has broadly classified the site based on ceramic and lithic assemblages, but a detailed investigation into pottery production and environmental changes over time at the site remains unexplored in the understudied Apalachicola valley region. There also appears to be over a thousand-year gap in occupation at the site, as no Middle or Late Woodland ceramic or …