Digital Commons Network^™

Making A Case For Social Innovation As A Structural Counterpart To Public Participation In Regional Planning, Manju A. Adikesavan

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Multi-locational living – working, shopping, playing, learning and commuting across administrative and, sometimes even political boundaries is an essential aspect of metropolitan living. Although it is anticipated that everyday experiences of the physical, social and economic inter-connectedness between urban communities and peri-urban hinterlands would automatically engender a regional outlook in planning and governance, it is currently not the case. In the New York City region, a lived regional experience does not translate into support for a regional governance structure.

While strong legislative support has ensured the public its rightful place within metropolitan regional planning, it has regrettably bred a procedural …

Staying In Place During Times Of Change In Arctic Alaska: The Implications Of Attachment,Alternatives, And Buffering, Henry P. Huntington, Philip A. Loring, Glenna Gannon, Shari Fox Gearheard, S. Craig Gerlach, Lawrence C. Hamilton

Sociology

The relationship between stability and change in social-ecological systems has received considerable attention in recent years, including the expectation that significant environmental changes will drive observable consequences for individuals, communities, and populations. Migration, as one example of response to adverse economic or environmental changes, has been observed in many places, including parts of the Far North. In Arctic Alaska, a relative lack of demographic or migratory response to rapid environmental and other changes has been observed. To understand why Arctic Alaska appears different, we draw on the literature on environmentally driven migration, focusing on three mechanisms that could account for …

Grand Valley Forum, Volume 042, Number 02, September 11, 2017, Grand Valley State University

2017-2018, Volume 42

Grand Valley Forum is Grand Valley State's faculty and staff newsletter, published from 1976 to the present.

Explaining Opposition To Refugee Resettlement: The Role Of Nimbyism And Perceived Threats, Jeremy Ferwerda, D. J. Flynn, Yusaku Horiuchi

Dartmouth Scholarship

One week after President Donald Trump signed a controversial executive order to reduce the influx of refugees to the United States, we conducted a survey experiment to understand American citizens ’ attitudes toward refugee resettlement. Specifically, we evaluated whether citizens consider the geographic context of the resettlement program (that is, local versus national) and the degree to which they are swayed by media frames that increasingly associate refugees with terrorist thre ats. Our findings highlight a collective action problem: Participants are consistently less supportive of resettlement within their own communities than resettlement elsewhere in the country. This pattern holds across …

Tackling The Health Gap: The Role Of Psychosocial Processes, Nancy E. Adler, Jacinth J. X. Tan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In The Health Gap, Michael Marmot describes how, starting even before birth, social conditions set individuals on trajectories that eventuate in inequities in health and longevity. In addition to race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status linked to income and education plays a major role in determining health trajectories. The effects emerge not only at the very bottom of the socioeconomic spectrum, but across the whole range.1 The fact that health effects persist at levels where resources are more than adequate to fulfill material needs suggests that the health gap is not due only to material privation associated with poverty, but also …

Affective Afterlives: An Ethnography Of Activism Between Movements, Manissa Maharawal

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This ethnographic project starts at the end of Occupy Wall Street in New York City and ends at the beginning of Black Lives Matter in Oakland, CA. In between these two movements it looks at a variety of political projects that focused on issues of housing and anti-gentrification in New York City and San Francisco. Throughout I favor a view of social movements that understands the messy trajectories of activism. This methodological privileging of what activists are doing, and the places and spaces in which they ground their work seeks to de-center bounded social movements in the study of politics …

Responding To A Racist Climate: An Editorial, Paul Huebener, Amanda M. Di Battista

The Goose

Editorial introduction to The Goose Volume 16, Issue 1 (2017).

Reading Speculative Futures In A Post-Truth World, Rachel Webb Jekanowski

The Goose

Faced with the threat of a “post-truth” world and a widening chasm of exchange between climate change deniers and environmentalists, I argue that future-orientated literary and media speculative fictions—which I term “speculative futures”—offer a means of building lines of communication across social and political divisions. This thought piece on “The Environmental Humanities in a Post-Truth World” mediates upon the potentiality of speculative futures as theory, social bridge-building, and pedagogical tool. Speculative fictions (especially those that address environmental justice, and anti-colonial and feminist politics) use storytelling and future imaginaries to challenge political falsehoods and imagine more ecological, de-colonized futures.

Mapping The Alignment Of Programmatic Mission, Functions And Outcomes With The Attainment Of Health Equity: An Overview Of The Approach And Initial Outcomes Through The Lens Of The Usda’S Cyfar Scp Program, Onyemaechi Nweke, Kara Ryan, Mpp, Bonita Williams, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Eliminating health disparities is a priority across national agenda and initiatives such as the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities (NPA), the National Prevention Strategy, and Healthy People 2020. To advance this priority under the NPA, the Federal Interagency Health Equity Team (FIHET), which is an NPA federal cross-sector and collaborative platform, initiated a voluntary pilot “health equity mapping” exercise in 2014. This exercise served as a strategy to clarify the strategic alignment between participant federal partner program missions, goals, and activities, and the goal to end health disparities and promote health equity. The mapping process included an …

Local Perspectives Of Sustainable Development, Ryan J. Stefani

Capstone Collection

Abstract

The mainstream school of thought and literature surrounding sustainable development contains numerous terms, assumptions, and perspectives which creates a myriad of meanings. As the academic literature attempts to understand this wide field of study, the perspectives have only grown instead of solidifying into a consensus. This paper first presents a literature review which explores current views and perspectives of how the terms ‘sustainable’ and ‘development’ independent of each other are used and how, by combining these terms, create even more perspectives and concepts with sometimes conflicting meanings. This paper then discusses the difficulties of using the term sustainable development …

Native And Exotic Street Trees: A Spatio-Temporal Analysis In New York City, Mariana Schroter

Theses and Dissertations

This study looks at the differences in the temporal distribution of urban street native and exotic trees in New York City from 1995 to 2015, attempting to answer the research question: Is there inequity in the distribution of tree population diversity or health, affected by socioeconomic and physical factors, when nested within origin?

World Changers: Inspiring Cultural And Linguistic Excellence In Children, Parents And Teachers, Ana I. Berdecia Med, Caitlin Kosec Mpp, The John S. Watson Institute For Public Policy For Thomas Edison State College

Center for the Positive Development of Urban Children

The New Jersey Cultural Competency and English Language Learners Summer Institute and Mentoring Program hosted its 10th Anniversary, Three-Day Learning Institute, Aug. 23-25, 2016, with the theme, World Changers: Inspiring Cultural and Linguistic Excellence for Children, Parents and Teachers. After the Three- Day Learning Institute, classroom teachers were assigned a mentor who provided monthly supports to the classroom teachers in the adoption English language learners and cultural competency strategies with the goal of creating culturally and linguistic responsive classrooms. Twenty-three teachers from Trenton Public Schools were recruited and received 21 hours of training in best practices for engaging diverse …

Equity In Microscale Urban Design And Walkability: A Photographic Survey Of Six Pittsburgh Streetscapes, Bradley Bereitschaft

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

This paper explores inequity in neighborhood walkability at the micro-scale level by qualitatively examining six streetscapes in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A photographic survey is used to highlight differences in the quality and design of the built environment among pairs of streetscapes with high or low social vulnerability but approximately equal quantitative Walk Scores®. The survey revealed discernible differences in the quality and maintenance of the built environment among those in more and less disadvantaged neighborhoods. This was true of several characteristics expected to affect walkability, including enclosure, transparency, complexity, and tidiness. Streetscapes in neighborhoods with high social vulnerability exhibited less contiguous …

Reorienting An Information Literacy Program Toward Social Justice: Mapping The Core Values Of Librarianship To The Acrl Framework, Lua Gregory, Shana Higgins

Communications in Information Literacy

Since the publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries' (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education librarians have grappled with the purposes, impact, and meaning of this teaching document for their daily instructional practice, for curriculum development, and for institutional and programmatic assessment goals. A strength of the Framework is its emphasis on context, an emphasis aligned with the goals of critical pedagogy and one that acknowledges investment in specific community needs. This article reflects on an attempt to contextualize the Framework for an information literacy program concerned with social justice and student agency by connecting it …

A Landscape Of Thermal Inequity: Social Vulnerability To Urban Heat In U.S. Cities, Bruce Coffyn Mitchell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A combination of the urban heat island effect and a rising temperature baseline resulting from global climate change inequitably impacts socially vulnerable populations residing in urban areas. This dissertation examines distributional inequity of exposure to urban heat by socially disadvantaged groups and minorities in the context of climate justice. Using Cutter’s hazards-of-place model, variables indicative of social vulnerability and biophysical vulnerability are statistically tested for their associations. Biophysical vulnerability is conceptualized utilizing a urban heat risk index calculated from summer 2010 LANDSAT imagery to measure land surface temperature , structural density through the normalized difference built-up index, and vegetation abundance …

The Mobile Monitoring Of Particulate Matter Through Wearable Sensors And Their Influence On Students' Environmental Attitudes, Joseph M. Abbate

DePaul Discoveries

While we have a comprehensive understanding of air pollutants, and their spatiotemporal characteristics across global, and even regional, scales, we are quite limited in our capacity to monitor neighborhood-scale emissions. The mobile monitoring of air pollution is a growing field, prospectively filling in these gaps while personalizing air quality-based tools and risk assessment. In the present study, we developed wearable sensors for particulate matter (PM); and through a citizen science approach, students of partnering Chicago schools monitored PM concentrations throughout their commutes over a five-day period. While their recorded findings would be used to explore the relationship between PM concentrations …

Enhancing Ontario’S Rural Infrastructure Preparedness: Inter-Community Service Sharing In A Changing Climate — Assessment Of Ten Rural Municipal Case Studies, Brenda Murphy, Annette Chrétien, Bryce Gunson

Social and Environmental Justice Faculty Publications

This assessment of ten municipal case studies is a sub-project of a larger three-year Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (2016-2019) study. The purpose of the assessment was to i) evaluate the role of inter-community service cooperation (ICSC) in relation to climate change preparedness and asset management planning (AMP) through the presentation of ten case studies, and ii) draw together cross-cutting themes and best practices that have the potential to maximize the climate change (CC) preparedness of rural municipal infrastructure. All project documents are available online from http://www.resilientresearch.ca/research-publications/.

Planning Ahead For Livable Communities Along The Powell-Division Brt: Neighborhood Conditions And Change, Lisa K. Bates, Aaron Golub, Devin Macarthur, Seyoung Sung

TREC Final Reports

New transit investments can be a double-edged sword for disadvantaged communities (e.g., those included in environmental justice and Title VI protected classes). Transit investments improve communities’ mobility and access, and may improve health with reduced driving. However, there is also the potential for transit-oriented development (TOD) to spur gentrification and displacement if affordable housing is lost. Understanding transit corridor conditions and change with new infrastructure is important for learning how to mitigate negative effects and support inclusive communities with access to transit for lower-income households. The planning of a new bus rapid transit line along the Powell-Division corridor in Portland-Gresham …

The Choose H2o Challenge #Ich2oose: Piloting A Health Communication Campaign To Encourage Teens In Rural New Mexico To Drink More Water, Emily A. Lilo

Communication ETDs

This dissertation explains the process of designing, implementing, and evaluating a two-tiered health campaign on social media and in a rural New Mexico high school. The Choose H2O Challenge was an 8-week contest to engage youth in examining their beverage consumption habits, to increase awareness about the health risks of sugary beverages, the benefits of water, and the influence of beverage marketing on their choices. The goals were to change the culture of beverage consumption at the school by making it fun to drink more water, and to encourage teens to become health messengers to their families and friends. This …

Who Participates And Why? What Do They Expect And What Do They Accomplish? An Evaluation Of The Superfund Technical Assistance Grant (Tag) Program, Lance R. Cooper

Dissertations - ALL

Abstract

This research was performed to investigate public participation in highly technical policy

scenarios and the outcomes of this participation. A detailed evaluation of community

involvement at Superfund sites (via the Technical Assistance Grant, or TAG, Program) was

performed by researching a specific type of complex, highly-technical policy problem, using a

mixed methods approach, incorporating a quantitative econometric evaluation and qualitative

multiple case study of selected Superfund sites.

The existing literature on public participation argues that citizen involvement is central to

democratic decision-making and is an important part of the policy process. This study was

rooted in a series of …

Conversations In The Rainforest: Culture, Values, And The Environment In Central Africa, Richard B. Peterson

Environmental Studies Faculty Books

This book examines the environmental perceptions, values, and practices of inhabitants of Central Africa’s rainforests in order to help build a more firm foundation for ecological and social sustainability at the local level, while also making contributions to global environmental ethics from underrepresented African cultural traditions. It focuses on two case studies in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), one an integrated health and sustainable development project in the Ubangi region, and the other a large wildlife reserve in the Ituri Forest. Through in-depth interviews, focus groups, and participant observation conducted with local farmers and foragers, project staff, and local …

2013-2014, August - Integrated Regional Water Management Plan For The Greater Monterey County Region

Miscellaneous Monterey and San Luis Obispo County Documents and Reports

An Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWM Plan) developed by 18 member entities that include government agencies, nonprofit organizations, educational organizations, water service districts, private water companies, and organizations representing agricultural, environmental, and community interests. The IRWM Plan is an expansion and modification of a previous plan – the May 2006 Salinas Valley Integrated Regional Water Management Functionally Equivalent Plan developed by Monterey County Water Resources Agency. While the traditional approach to water resource management has typically involved separate and distinct agencies managing different aspects of the water system, i.e., water supply, water quality, flood management, and natural resources, integrated …

Africa In Global Climate Change Governance: Analyzing Its Position And Challenges, Anwar Hassen Tsega

International Journal of African Development

Climate change has emerged as a major global issue that affects all nations and has become a phenomena requiring global governance in the modern globalized world. Though the African contribution to the increase Greenhouse Gas (GHG) is very small, climate change is a concern of African countries. This paper is aimed to analyze the African position and challenges in the governance of climate change. Nonetheless, there are opportunities created for adaptation and mitigation, the implementation of these measures is constrained by lack of financial, institutional and human capacities. Accordingly, the Africans position in the international system and lack of the …

International Journal Of African Development, Vol. 4, Issue 1

International Journal of African Development

Complete issue of International Journal of African Development, Volume 4, Issue 1 - Fall 2016.

Grassroots Resistance In The Sustainable City: Portland Harbor Superfund Site Contamination, Cleanup, And Collective Action, Erin Katherine Goodling

Dissertations and Theses

How does progressive change happen in so-called sustainable cities? In this dissertation, I present findings from a three year-long ethnographic investigation of grassroots organizing in Portland, Oregon, a city at the leading edge of the green urbanism movement. This research centered on an extended case study of the Portland Harbor Community Coalition (PHCC). PHCC is an alliance of grassroots groups working to ensure that cleanup of the Portland Harbor Superfund Site benefits those who have been most impacted by pollution. In this dissertation, I develop three main empirical findings. First, despite depoliticized (sustainability) discourse permeating the harbor cleanup planning process, …

China's Motorization Wave And The Place Of Emerging Technologies, Christopher Cherry

PSU Transportation Seminars

E-bikes, E-Cars, Carshare, Bikeshare, and Micro-EVs in China have shaken up the traditional motorization pathways that have occurred in developing countries in the past. The combination of emerging vehicle technologies, urban and environmental constraints, and heavy-handed policy make China's motorization processes unique in the world—but how China motorizes has far-reaching impacts based on sheer volume of vehicles and population.

This seminar discusses the results of a six-year NSF CAREER project to explore China's motorization processes, combining behavioral and environmental modeling approaches to assess the impacts of emerging vehicle technologies on motorization and ultimately environmental sustainability. The focus is mostly on …

The Social Pillar Of Sustainable Development A Literature Review And Framework For Policy Analysis, Kevin Murphy

The ITB Journal

There is a need to develop a clearer understanding of what the social pillar of sustainable development means and how it relates to the environmental pillar. This article contributes to this process by presenting a conceptual framework that identifies four overarching social concepts and links them to environmental imperatives. These concepts are: public awareness, equity, participation, and social cohesion. The framework builds on concepts and policy objectives outlined in research on international sustainable development indicators and the social sustainability literature. The social pillar can be expanded to include environmental, international, and intergenerational dimensions. This framework can then be used to …

A Geospatial Assessment Of Social Vulnerability To Sea-Level Rise In Coastal San Luis Obispo, Jesse A. Carpentier

Master's Theses

This project is an assessment of social vulnerability to sea-level rise in the unincorporated coastal area of the County of San Luis Obispo (County) using geospatial and statistical analysis. The intention of this assessment is to inform local climate adaptation efforts now required by state legislation. A social vulnerability index was generated at the Census block group level using 32 variables positively correlated with social vulnerability. The social vulnerability score for each block group is the sum of scores generated for the following principle components: (1) race/ethnicity and disability status, (2) social isolation and age, (3) income, and (4) housing …

Let's Get Real: Problematizing The Use Of The Real Food Calculator In Large-Scale Food Systems And Exploring Alternatives, Stacey Kathleen Olson

Social Sciences

Food is an essential part of the human existence, because of both nutritional necessity and cultural relevance. Recently, food systems have shifted from their historically local scale to an industrial, global market. In light of shifting consumer consciousness and subsequent demands, there has been an ongoing effort on the part of universities across the United States to make campus food systems more sustainable and just. In 2014, the California State University enacted a system-wide goal of spending 20 percent of campus food procurement budgets on sustainable food by 2020 as per the guiding principles of the Real Food Challenge. This …

From Food To Food Justice: Pathways And Narratives Of Young Food Activists In New York City, Amy Kwan

Dissertations and Theses

With a rise in obesity and other non-communicable, diet-related health problems and the persistence of food insecurity among many vulnerable populations, the involvement of young people in the current, burgeoning food-justice movement has the potential to bring forth transformative changes to our food system and thus improve population health. While much is known about the outcomes of providing opportunities for young people to be actively and civically engaged in their communities, there is a lack of research on the pathways, narratives, and experiences that bring young people into food justice activism.

Through semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 25 young food activists …