Digital Commons Network^™

Positive Organizational Leadership And Pro-Environmental Behavior: The Phenomenon Of Institutional Fossil Fuel Divestment, Abigail Abrash Walton

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Climate change is one of the most significant dynamics of our time.The predominant contributor to climate change is combustion of fossil fuels by humans.This study deepened understanding of organizational leaders’ role in enacting one approach to addressing climate change:institutional fossil fuel divestment.The study used a qualitative research design to explore U.S.-based foundation leaders’ readiness to pursue fossil fuel divestment by their institutions.The study examined leaders’ motivations and actions in pursuing divestment, while simultaneously exercising their fiduciary duty to steward institutional assets.Research questions focused on the divestment behavior change process and the outcomes of divestment on leaders and their organizations.Data collection …

"One Narrow Thread Of Green": The Vision Of May Theilgaard Watts, The Creation Of The Illinois Prairie Path, And A Community's Crusade For Open Space In Chicago's Suburbs, Anne M. Keller

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Women's environmental activism prior to the early 1960s in America focused on women's roles as municipal housekeepers or emphasized wilderness conservation. I offer in this dissertation the story of the Illinois Prairie Path, the country's first rails-to-trails conversion to apply for National Recreation Trail status, and the innovative women who fought for nature preservation in a suburban setting rather than in a wilderness area. Led by renowned writer and naturalist, May Theilgaard Watts, these women built support for the public footpath project by fostering an ecological awareness throughout their region. I place them in the tradition of Chicago female reformers …

Does Informal Employment Exist In Developed Countries, Carlos Eduardo Siqueira

Gastón Institute Publications

No abstract provided.

The Influence Of Urban Development Dynamics On Community Resilience Practice In New York City After Superstorm Sandy: Experiences From The Lower East Side And The Rockaways, Leigh Graham, Wim Debucquoy, Isabelle Anguelovski

Publications and Research

While (urban) resilience has become an increasingly popular concept, especially in the areas of disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA), it is often still used as an abstract metaphor, with much debate centered on definitions, differences in approaches, and epistemological consider- ations. Empirical studies examining how community-based organizations (CBOs) “practice” resilience on the ground and what enables these CBOs to organize and mobilize around resilience are lacking. Moreover, in the growing context of competitive and entrepreneurial urbanism and conflicting priorities about urban (re)development, it is unclear how urban development dynamics influence community- based resilience actions. Through empirical …

Increasing Energy Efficiency In Existing Residential Buildings: A Case Study Of The Community Home Energy Retrofit Project (Cherp), Jenna Perelman

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis uses a case study of the Community Home Energy Retrofit Project (CHERP) and it analyzes the larger statewide effort in California to increase energy efficiency in existing residential buildings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. CHERP’s primary strategy is to embed itself into a community, educate residents on the multiple benefits of energy efficiency, and inspire them to take energy-saving actions in their own homes. It then builds its own community by connecting like-minded individuals together and provides an opportunity for them to exercise their political agency. This thesis analyzes CHERP’s effort in the context of the political, social, …

Disasters Are Not, They Become: An Understanding Of Social Vulnerability In The United States Gulf Coast With Respect To Hurricanes, Katherine Franklin

Scripps Senior Theses

Scientific literature is concerned with the impact that climate change will have on natural disasters in the near future. These events disrupt our daily lives and can cause damage that may never be repaired. Merging science and social science, the study of vulnerability looks at how human systems will be impacted by these natural disasters. In the United States, hurricanes in the Gulf Coast are projected to increase in intensity as well as have an increased capacity for damage with a rise in sea level. Therefore, it is important to understand who is systematically vulnerable to these impacts of natural …

Dismantling Structural Inequality In The Inland Empire: Rebuilding Community From The Ground Up At Huerta Del Valle Garden, Jennifer E. Reyff

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis provides an analytical case study of Huerta del Valle Community Garden as a successful model of redefining social capital through not only providing healthy, affordable, high quality produce to a community subjected to the disproportionate consequences of systemic inequality, but also in incorporating a food justice education framework to underlie all development at the garden. Located in the city of Ontario, Southern California – the heart of the Inland Empire, known for its prominence within the nation’s goods movement industry and its landscape of sprawling warehouses – local residents face high rates of poverty, obesity, and a lack …

After Images: Using Augusto Boal's Image Theatre To Balance Artistry, Analysis, And Activism In The Performance Composition Process, Bonny Leah Mcdonald

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this study, I describe several performance experiments in which I applied Brazilian theatre artist Augusto Boal’s Image Theatre method to mobilize a composition process that is artistically exciting, politically relevant, and pedagogically engaging. Over the span of about seven years I used Image Theatre as the bedrock of my artistic practice as a director of social justice themed works for the stage. I show how using Image Theatre as a tool for performance composition can balance artistry (theatrical practice), analysis (cultural studies), and activism (collaborative struggles toward justice). To do so, I review relevant literature on Boal and Image …

Consequences Of The Niger Delta Amnesty Program Implementation On Nigeria's Upstream Petroleum Industry, Chisomaga Ihediohanma Ezeocha

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Niger Delta militancy ravaged the Nigerian upstream petroleum sector between 2004-2009, bringing it to a standstill. In response, the Nigerian state adopted an amnesty policy―a globally recognized tool for conflict resolution and peacebuilding―to protect the sector and the economy from collapse. Little is known, however, about the unintended consequences of the amnesty implementation for the Nigerian upstream petroleum sector. Thus, the purpose of this study was to fill this gap in the research literature on the Niger Delta amnesty program. Polarity management was the conceptual framework applied; relative deprivation and polarities of democracy constituted the theoretical foundation for this …

The Roots Of Expensive Zoning, Michael Lewyn

Scholarly Works

Review of Zoning Rules, by William Fischel.

Predictors Of Likeliness To Engage In Radical Animal Rights And Environmental Activism, Patsy Mckenzie

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Radical animal rights and environmental activism is considered domestic terrorism under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. Traditional models of terrorism purport that there is a path to radicalization that is influenced by an individual's sense of identity and ideological beliefs. Using collective identity theory and cognitive experiential self-theory as the framework, the purpose of this quantitative study was to examine whether social identity, cognitive processing mode, and ideological beliefs were predictors for engagement in radical animal rights and environmental activism. The Three Factor Model of Social Identity Scale, the Rational Experiential Inventory, and the Activism Orientation Scale were used to …

Local Governmental Development Of Alternative Food Systems In Distressed Urban Areas, Jeremy Earle

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Alternative food systems (AFS) projects are designed to address issues of environmental justice, food security and insecurity, community health disparities between the affluent and the poor, and access to healthful foods in distressed urban areas. Past research has questioned the efficacy and long-term viability of such interventions, particularly in distressed primarily Black urban areas. The purpose of this intrinsic case study (ICS) was to understand the ways in which local governmental entities collaborated with each other and with nongovernmental partners to help develop an AFS in South Florida through the creation of a market garden called the PATCH. Critical race …

Toward A Better Understanding Of Community Benefits Assessment Practices., Peter B. Meyer, Lauren Heberle

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Wasted New York, Aliza D. Chasan

Capstones

Trash may not be treasure, but it can be groceries. The United States Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency announced plans this year to halve food waste by 2030, but dumpster divers - also known as freegans - have been eating away at food waste for decades. Cutting down on organic waste can help feed the hungry, save money and minimize the environmental impact of rotting food in landfills. Many individuals, private groups and the New York City government are all working to cut down on organic waste.

Brooklyn Trash Problems, Christina Diaz

Capstones

Walk through the streets of New York and at some point you’ll inevitably pass by a wafting smell of garbage, but residents of North Brooklyn are handling more than their share of the smelly load and they’re tired of getting dumped on.

A newly formed coalition of neighbors and environmental activists has begun a turf war against Brooklyn Transfer LLC, a waste transfer station located on Thames Street in East Williamsburg, which handles private commercial waste through ­­­­­­­­­­­­­Five Star Carting.

Link to Map: https://www.zeemaps.com/map?group=1769408

A Longitudinal Study Of Human Exposure To Potential Nuclear Power Plant Risk, Dean Kyne, Jason T. Harris

Sociology Faculty Publications

This study constructs a potential risk index (PRI) for the 65 U.S.-based commercial nuclear power plant (NPP) sites in relation to their surrounding populations. Four risk levels are defined: low risk, moderate risk, high risk, and very high risk. Discrepancies that exist in the sociodemographic characteristics of the host communities’ populations are examined as sorted by risk-level category. It is found that a greater percentage of minority groups are exposed to the highest levels of risk. In addition, percent “Hispanic” and percent “Other,” a grouping that includes multiracial, mixed, interracial, as well as Hispanic and Latino groups (for example, Mexican, …

Which Came First, People Or Pollution? A Review Of Theory And Evidence From Longitudinal Environmental Justice Studies, Paul Mohai, Robin Saha

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

A considerable number of quantitative analyses have been conducted in the past several decades that demonstrate the existence of racial and socioeconomic disparities in the distribution of a wide variety of environmental hazards. The vast majority of these have been cross-sectional, snapshot studies employing data on hazardous facilities and population characteristics at only one point in time. Although some limited hypotheses can be tested with cross-sectional data, fully understanding how present-day disparities come about requires longitudinal analyses that examine the demographic characteristics of sites at the time of facility siting and track demographic changes after siting. Relatively few such studies …

The Role Of The State, Multinational Oil Companies, International Law & The International Community: Intersection Of Human Rights & Environmental Degradation Climate Change In The 21st Century Caused By Traditional Extractive Practices, The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous People And Universal Jurisdiction To Resolve The Accountability Issue, Marcela Cabrera Luna

Master's Theses

Local, national and international conventions that protect indigenous sovereignty and their territories, where many of the resources are extracted from by multinational corporations (MNCs) particularly oil, the number one commodity of the world and cause of climate change, continue to be jeopardized because of the lack of a clear international legal framework that can protect them and potentially hold multinationals accountable for their actions. These practices are causing not only environmental issues to the indigenous and surrounding communities, but climate change is in fact, the real human rights issue of the 21^st century and it affects everyone. By using …

Impact Of Executive Order 13211 On Environmental Regulation: An Empirical Study, Elizabeth Ann Glass Geltman

Publications and Research

A great deal has been written about the Energy Policy Act of 2005 exempting oil and gas operations using hydraulic fracturing from the purview of certain federal environmental laws. Far less attention has been paid to George W. Bush’s Executive Order 13211 (EO 13211), entitled “Actions Concerning Regulations that Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution or Use.” The executive order requires federal agencies to evaluate the impact of federal regulations on “supply, distribution and use of energy.” This study examined the impact of EO 13211 on United States environmental and conservation regulations proposed and promulgated by federal agencies. The study found …

Thinking Pink? Consumer Reactions To Pink Ribbons And Vague Messages In Advertising, Kim Bartel Sheehan, Kati Tusinski Berg

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Many brands partner with causes in their advertising campaigns. Consumers appreciate that the brands they purchase participate in activities that contribute to a society’s well-being. This study uses copy-testing techniques to evaluate the number and types of thoughts and brand attitudes in the presence and absence of cause-related messages. Individuals saw an ad for one of two products. None of the ads stated the brand’s financial support to the cause, which is representative of many messages today. People viewing the Dansko ads with the pink ribbon generated significantly fewer thoughts than those viewing the ad without the pink ribbon. For …

Marketizing Social Change: Social Shareholder Activism And Responsible Investing, Leslie King, Elisabeth Gish

Sociology: Faculty Publications

This article examines social shareholder advocacy and socially responsible investing (SRI) to better understand the marketization of activism and the intersection of business and social justice. We use archival, interview, and participant observation data to explore how social shareholder activism has increasingly come to be practiced for profit. We show how the movement's history in social justice activism of the 1960s and 1970s continues to shape the practice today, even while it is increasingly commodified, marketized, and shaped by the ideals and practices of business and finance. Shareholder activists and other SRI advocates have created a new market and a …

Are Bay Area Cities Inclusive? Evaluating How San Francisco Bay Area Cities Can Address Environmental Justice Challenges By Strengthening Their Engagement Practices With Low-Income And Minority Communities Through The California Environmental Quality Act Process, Kenneth Antonio Rosales

Master's Projects

No abstract provided.

Integrating Freight Into Livable Communities, Kristine M. Williams, Alexandria Carroll

TREC Final Reports

Where livability is a goal of the planning process, freight runs the risk of not being considered except as an afterthought or as something to be excluded. Yet, freight is an integral part of local economic development. Because economic prosperity is a key characteristic of livable communities, freight must be incorporated into the planning process. This study explores the relationship between freight and livability through a comprehensive literature review and case study research. The final report includes a menu of strategies and case study perspectives that highlight the importance of transportation and land use integration, interagency coordination, and context-sensitivity in …

Dignitary And Speaker Biographies, Virginia Coastal Policy Center, William & Mary Law School

2015, Show Me the Money: The Economic Realities of Responding to Coastal Change and Adaptation in Virginia

No abstract provided.

Show Me The Money: The Economic Realities Of Responding To Coastal Change And Adaption In Virginia (Agenda), Virginia Coastal Policy Center, William & Mary Law School

2015, Show Me the Money: The Economic Realities of Responding to Coastal Change and Adaptation in Virginia

No abstract provided.

Model-Based Analytics And Processes For Transportation Investment Alternatives Analyses: From Least Cost Planning To Multi Criterion Evaluation, Jeff Frkonja

PSU Transportation Seminars

Many public and private organizations that make decisions regarding whether and how to invest in transportation assets or programs do so via a structured decision-support process. This talk will address the technical aspects of the family of such processes that use travel demand model outputs—and other sources of quantified performance data—as inputs to analytic tools including benefit cost analysis (BCA) and multi criterion evaluation. Example applications of this framework have included tolling and pricing studies, capital investment alternatives analyses, and programmatic evaluations. Example processes include "Least Cost Planning" frameworks borrowed originally from the power generation industry.

The talk will also …

Medical Tourism: How Far Are You Willing To Go To Save Money?, Thomas J. Prinsen, Louis K. Falk, Javier Martinez

Communication Faculty Publications

Medical needs of Americans are increasing as the population is aging and struggling with obesity. The addition of new medical technology and techniques, their widespread availability, and procedural improvements have created a more open market for medical providers. Costly procedures in cardiology and orthopedics serve as examples of increasingly needed medical treatments. Individuals, businesses and insurance companies have struggled to find ways to pay for these necessary procedures. Traditionally, in the U.S. the majority of medical procedures have been performed locally. Because of the rising costs associated with these procedures individuals and some healthcare providers are now looking to foreign …

Examining The Right To Bicycle: Synergies And Tensions Between Human Rights, Civil Rights, And Planning For Cycling, Aaron Golub

PSU Transportation Seminars

Securing and expanding the broad right to bicycle, including the right to adequate and safe street space and related infrastructure for cycling along with other policies and protections for cyclists, is the obvious goal of cycling advocacy efforts in their various forms. All rights are situated within frameworks for promulgating and insuring they are honored, and the right to cycling is no different. This project investigates how the right to bicycle falls within various rights frameworks, focusing on broad human rights and civil rights frameworks while reflecting as well on traffic safety codes and transportation planning frameworks. While certain aspects …

Factors Influencing The Choice Of A Safe Haven For Offloading Illegally Caught Fish: A Comparative Analysis Of Developed And Developing Economies, Nerea Marteache, Julie S. Viollaz, Gohar A. Petrossian

Publications and Research

Using data from 72 countries, this study focuses on factors that affect illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing vessels’ choice of country to offload their catch, with a specific emphasis on the differences between developed and developing economies. The concept of choice-structuring properties is applied to analyze whether the following factors influence the selection of a country: concealability of vessels and illegally caught fish; convenience of the ports; strength of fisheries monitoring, control, and surveillance measures; effectiveness of country governance; and commitment to wildlife protection regulations. Results indicate that, rather than a country’s level of development, situational factors play a …

Environmental Imperatives And International Relations Canada’S Challenge To Environmental Diplomacy, Mark Stoller

The Journal of International Relations, Peace Studies, and Development

Successful negotiation of multilateral environmental treaties poses a formidable challenge to the diplomatic community. The spread of environmental concerns through domestic and international politics has been steady since the late 1960s. Often, efforts to implement measures to protect the natural environment have pitted traditional sources of economic strength and political power against popular demands of active constituents and local communities. For the politically disenfranchised, the environment has provided access to discussions concerning industrial growth and the adverse impacts on communal living.[1] Many of the impacts felt from environmental politics stem from local affairs, but they have implications for global politics …