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Towards Sustainable Communities And Human Security: Challenges Of The College Of Public Affairs And Development University Of The Philippines Los Baños, Agnes C. Rola, Josefina T. Dizon, Maria Ana T. Quimbo, Wilfredo B. Carada

Journal of Public Affairs and Development

The College of Public Affairs (CPAf) in the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) evolved as a unit of the University with the mandate to raise the bar of applied social science scholarship by developing transdisciplinary methods in the resolution of public issues such as food security, land reform and land use, governance, population, and education. The creation of CPAf in 1998 was prompted “by the need to attune academic programs in the pursuit of UP’s mission to promote nationalism and development in the face of profound changes occurring in the global environment.” In 2011, it was renamed as …

Community Archives And The Limitations Of Identity: Considering Discursive Impact On Material Needs, Cristine N. Paschild

Library Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations

This article examines how a postmodern-influenced discourse of identity shapes and influences critical analysis of community archives, both internally and externally, and asks if the accompanying terms of engagement shift focus, to negative effect, from the more pressing needs and challenges of these institutions and projects. Looking to archival professional literature and to a recent self-assessment of the Japanese American National Museum, the article argues that an overarching emphasis on questions of identity can distract community institutions from pragmatic evaluations of sustainable practice and can inadvertently mire archivists in a marginalizing rhetoric that blurs the issues at hand.

Grand Valley Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 3 Winter 2012, Grand Valley State University

Grand Valley Magazine

Grand Valley Magazine is a quarterly publication about Grand Valley State University produced by University Communications since 2001.

Revisiting The Ungovernability Debate: Regional Governance And Sprawl In The Usa And Uk, Carol Hager

Political Science Faculty Research and Scholarship

This article links contemporary critiques of regional governance to the crisis of the state in the 1970s and 1980s. Using the example of the politics of sprawl, I explain why collaborative regional planning institutions in New Jersey and the East of England have received such low marks from government participants and local populations, despite their success in completing land-use plans. I argue that these new governance institutions inadvertently revive issues of power, accountability and democratic legitimacy stemming from the crisis of the state. British and American governments interpreted it as a crisis of ungovernability, and their subsequent reforms were aimed …

Maya Cosmopolitans : Everyday Life At The Interface Of Archaeology, Heritage, And Tourism Development, Sarah Ruth Taylor

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The village of Ek'Balam is located approximately 300 meters from the ceremonial center of the archaeological zone by the same name. The ruins at Ek'Balam are some of the most impressive pre-Columbian stuccoes found in the Maya World. In 1994, the archaeological zone opened to the public, and since then this village of around 350 residents has experienced numerous changes. While residents have always had ties to the regional economy, the opening of the archaeological zone represented their first extended engagement with the tourism industry. A major agent of change in Ek'Balam is a community-based tourism project, funded primarily by …

Urban Food Access And The Potential Of Community Gardens, Kristen B. Crossney, Emily Shellenberger

Geography & Planning Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Sustainability Of Overconsumption? A Discursive Analysis Of Walmart's Sustainability Campaign, Kathleen Adams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study inquires as to whether Walmart’s sustainability campaign represents a sincere and holistic change throughout the company’s global supply chain or if it is simply a public relations campaign which caters to the growing target market of “next-generation” consumers and justifies further expansion into “emerging markets”. A critical analysis of Walmart’s sustainability discourse is presented, using transcribed texts of various corporate and publicitygeared publications. Frequently utilized terms and themes are identified throughout the big-box retailer’s sustainability campaign which convey a distinctly Neoliberal ethos—a political economy which lies at the heart of current practices of institutional unsustainability—and emphasize the role …

Importing Democracy: Promoting Participatory Decision Making In Russian Forest Communities, Maria Tysiachniouk, Errol E. Meidinger

Contributions to Books

Published in Environmental Democracy Facing Uncertainty, Cécilia Claeys & Marie Jacqué, eds.

This paper describes how the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) jump-started democratic institutions in Russian rural communities to create a basis for social, environmental, and economic modernization within the Russian forestry sector. In Russia’s post-soviet markets and institutions, a host of multinational companies and large transnational environmental organizations sought to promote the restructuring of Russia’s legal and economic infrastructure and active subsidiaries in Russia. In order for modern forestry approaches to be imported, management practices that had developed in the West needed to be adapted to Russia’s …

Mexican-Americans In Los Angeles: Strengthening Their Ethnic Identity Through Chivas Usa, Stephanie Goldberger

CMC Senior Theses

A large Mexican-American population already exists in Los Angeles and, with each generation, it continues to rise. This Mexican-American community has maintained its connection to its heritage by playing and watching soccer, Mexico’s top watched sport. In this thesis, I analyze how Major League Soccer's Chivas USA serves as an outlet through which many Mexicans in Los Angeles have developed their ethnic identities. Since the early twentieth century, Mexicans in Los Angeles have created separate residential communities and sports organizations to strengthen their connections with one another.

To appeal to Mexican-Americans, Chivas USA has branded itself closely to its sister …

Repositioning Community-Based Family Planning In Ghana: A Case Study Of Community-Based Health Planning And Services (Chps), Stephen Ntsua, Placide Tapsoba, Gloria Quansah Asare, Frank K. Nyonator

Reproductive Health

The Population Council conducted a diagnostic appraisal of delivering family planning services using the community-based health planning and services (CHPS model) in Ghana. This study’s results indicate that the CHPS program is well appreciated by rural communities where it is operational. However, the study identified several developments with implications for service delivery: increased community health officer (CHO) workloads and concomitant reductions in outreach services and home visits by community health visitors (CHVs) have weakened the CHO-CHV working relationship, leaving both cadres working in isolation. CHPS has significantly improved health indices but its contribution to increasing family planning is limited and …

Community Midwifery Services In Kenya: Implementation Guidelines, Kenya Ministry Of Health

Reproductive Health

Community midwifery guidelines by the Kenya Minister for Health have been revised in order to standardize the implementation of community midwifery services as a strategy for improving skilled attendance in the provision of maternal and newborn health care at the community level. The revised guidelines address key policies that are outlined in the Kenya Health Policy regarding the provision of essential packages for health in line with the new constitution, Vision 2030, and the Community Health Strategy. The policy emphasizes a shift of focus to preventive and promotive health care; major strategies include improving access, realizing equity goals, and providing …

Rustbelt Theater: Children's Environmental Justice Narratives From South Elyria, Oh, Lissette Lorenz

Honors Papers

Children's knowledge of their eco-social environment is rarely privileged in environmental literature. Their voices help to broaden conceptions of environmental justice, to the benefit of both the environmental justice movement and the emerging discipline of environmental studies. In this community-based research project conducted in partnership with Save Our Children, an afterschool/summer enrichment center, in South Elyria, Ohio, third and fourth grade children utilized Theater of the Oppressed techniques to create an environmental justice narrative in the form of an original play. The goal of Theater of the Oppressed is for participants to dramatically analyze real-life oppressions/obstacles/challenges they face and act …

Gvsu Press Releases, 2012, Grand Valley State University

University Press Releases, 1961-Present

A compilation of press releases for the year 2012 submitted by University Communications (formerly News & Information Services) to news agencies concerning the people, places, and events related to Grand Valley State University.

A Needs Assessment Of Knowledge, Skills, And Values For Urban Planning Professionals Based On Competencies Set Forth By Professional Planning Organizations, Chade Saghir

Wayne State University Dissertations

Continuing education and training is pivotal in today's fast-paced technology driven society. A profession is defined by the theories and techniques that competent practitioners utilize in their everyday work. Therefore, determining the competencies that practitioners must possess for any given profession is a prerequisite for a respected profession. Most professions are bounded by competencies that are dictated by professional organizations and education programs, yet the real test is how practitioners view these competencies as they relate to their job. For a profession to reach the ultimate goal of improving society the first step is to align professional organization, education, and …

Social Capital In Metropolitan Playgroups : A Qualitative Analysis Of Early Parental Interactions [Presentation], Hebba Gibson

School of Psychology and Social Science Presentations

Parents’ ability to rely on their social contacts to access different types of support is said to reflect their levels of Social Capital (SC). Playgroups are considered a hub for fostering SC that will benefit parents (Powell, 2005). However, empirical evaluations of playgroups that measure their effectiveness using measures of SC are scarce. The present study investigated early parental interactions in playgroups and the ways in which such interactions reflect parents’ levels of SC. Additionally, the study evaluated SC inequalities between parents relative to the strength of their social ties. A qualitative design, using phenomenology was used to understand the …

"How Do We Not Go Back To The Factory?" Negotiating Neoliberal Conditions In A Latina-Led Transnational Development Organization In El Paso (Texas), Anthony Michael Jimenez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background: As the structure of the global economy shifted the United States' manufacturing base South of the U.S-Mexico in the years up to and post-NAFTA, thousands of women of Mexican descent residing in El Paso (Texas) were displaced from their garment factory jobs and left without social, political and economic support. Subsequently, some of these women joined La Mujer Obrera, an organization committed to fostering community development for low-income women from both sides of the U.S-Mexico border. The organization faces difficulties in receiving economic aid from the local government, which is apparently due to their development model being incompatible with …

Transdisciplinary Approach In Development Studies, Agnes C. Rola

Journal of Public Affairs and Development

This paper traces the origin, evolution, and the propositions made by the framers of the transdisciplinary (TD) concept. It reviews the body of work of the various applications of the TD approach in the human sciences as in the twinning of medical sciences and the social sciences; biodiversity; agriculture sciences and development; and agriculture, food, and nutrition. Another application of the TD approach is discussed in the context of innovation systems for development studies with focus on sustainable community development and food security. The experiences of the College of Public Affairs and Development (CPAf), University of the Philippines Los Baños …

Evaluating The Kaiser Permanente Community Fund’S Social Determinants Of Health Portfolio, Sarah B. Paige, Emily Bourcier, Carol Cahill, Clarissa Hsu, Chris Kabel

The Foundation Review

· Research over the past two decades repeatedly demonstrates the relationship between poor health outcomes and socioeconomic factors such as poor housing, poverty, racism, and structural inequity.

· In 2005, the Northwest Health Foundation, supported by the Kaiser Permanente Community Fund, began an initiative to address these social determinants of health (SDOH).

· A variety of projects – short- and long-term, large and small – were supported over the five-year period for a total of $12.4 million. The mean project-implementation grant was $175,350 and 2½ years in length; capacity-building grants averaged $50,000 for 1½ years.

· In all, 323 social-determinant …

Lessons In Building A Better Community, One Voice At A Time, Erica Wood

The Foundation Review

· By 2035 there will be an estimated 1.2 million new jobs and 900,000 new households in the San Francisco Bay Area (Association of Bay Area Governments, n.d.); without planning and management, this population increase will result in rising air pollution levels, climate change, escalating cost of living, increasing traffic, and less green space.

· Silicon Valley Community Foundation partnered with area nonprofits and government agencies on a two-year initiative, Envision Bay Area, to engage residents and community leaders in conversations about growth.

· At a series of 10 public forums more than 800 participants came together, including those who …

Gvsu Undergraduate And Graduate Catalog, 2012-2013, Grand Valley State University

Course Catalogs, 1963 - Current

Grand Valley State University 2012-2013 undergraduate and/or graduate course catalog published annually to provide students with information and guidance for enrollment.

Understanding Sand Mining On The Maha Oya: The Conflict Between Economic And Environmental Survival, Meredith Corea Talbert

Dissertations and Theses

River sand mining from the Maha Oya is the main source of income and a force that drives economic activity for residents along the river. This study takes place in Sri Lanka, there are three villages included in this project: Jambugaswatte, Janituspuraya and Thoppuwa. In Sri Lanka, sand serves as the main building material. It is used to make bricks, tiles, asphalt and concrete, therefore demanding a high market value. However, the over-extraction of sand comes along with significant environmental problems. These communities depend on the river in many ways and the health of the river directly corresponds to the …

Social Aspects Of Developing And Sustaining Voluntarily Reduced Consumption Activity In New York City, Kirsten B. Firminger

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines the social aspects of voluntarily reduced consumption activity using the principles of cultural historical activity theory. Voluntarily buying less is viewed as ongoing interactive social process that is initiated and sustained as individuals engage with their surroundings. Data was collected from 320 online survey respondents living in the New York City Metro area, followed by a purposeful sampling of 24 participants for in-person, follow up interviews. Interviews revealed the social contextual influences on initiating voluntarily reduced consumption activity. For example, family experiences, personal life changes, and historical events played a role in individuals' choice to voluntarily buy …

Avoiding The Mistakes Of The Past, Tom Dunne

Articles

Tom Dunne explores the long term drivers of dysfunction in Ireland's housing markets and what a more sustainable housing system would look like.

Community Economic Development And The Paradox Of Power, Michael R. Diamond

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

This article starts from the premise that poverty is a growing problem in the United States. Intergenerational poverty, the entrenchment of a class of very poor people, is a major sub set of that problem and is tied very closely to the issue of race. The author claims that missing in the fight by the poor and their allies against stratified poverty is the creation and utilization of power. This paper examines the disparate ways in which commentators have defined power. It suggests that those seeking to obtain power must understand the concept’s varying meanings and direct their activities to …

Razing Lafitte: Defending Public Housing From A Hostile State, Leigh Graham

Publications and Research

The contentious politics of the demolition of Lafitte public housing in post- Katrina New Orleans and its replacement with mixed-income properties is a telling case of the strategic conflicts housing advocates face in public housing revitalization. It reveals how the qualified outcomes of HOPE VI interact with local institutional and historical circumstances to confound the equity and social justice goals of housing and community development advocates. It shows the limits to public housing revitalization as an urban recovery strategy when hostile government leadership characterizes a region, and the state is recast as an adversary rather than revitalization partner. This case …

Claysburg Neighborhood Revitalization Plan, M. Mccoy, J. Vick, S. Bourassa, M. Enyeart, C. Norton, S. Scroggins, A. Smith, Lauren Heberle

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

This Claysburg Neighborhood Revitalization Plan was developed as a joint effort of the City Solutions Center (CSC) and the Center for Environmental Policy and Management (CEPM) at the University of Louisville in cooperation with and supported by the Jeffersonville Urban Enterprise Association (JUEA). The intention of the project was to create a set of strategies for improving the quality of life in the neighborhood by identifying the existing strengths and weaknesses of Claysburg and generating recommendations to optimize opportunities for improvements to its social, environmental, economic and physical infrastructure. The project’s process aimed to develop a community-based vision, with input, …

Smart Growth In Dumb Places: Sustainability, Disaster, And The Future Of The American City, Lisa Grow Sun

BYU Law Review

One of the many lessons of the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan is that we cannot mitigate disaster risk through building codes and other structural solutions alone. Location is key to a community’s natural hazard vulnerability. Consequently, the most far-reaching and important question for disaster mitigation today is where we will channel the growth that will be needed to accommodate our expanding population. Yet, both environmental scholars and policymakers are promoting sustainability initiatives that will channel our country’s future growth into existing urban areas that are already extremely vulnerable to disaster. Indeed, many of these policies - and the …

Changes In New Hampshire’S Republican Party: Evolving Footprint In Presidential Politics, 1960-2008, Dante J. Scala

Carsey Publications

This brief describes a series of dramatic changes in New Hampshire's political landscape over the past four decades. Examining presidential elections from 1960 to 2008, author Dante Scala uncovers a series of significant shifts in New Hampshire's political geography at the county level. He reports that historically Republican counties Grafton and Merrimack have both tilted Democratic consistently in recent decades and that New Hampshire has become less Republican overall. All of these changes have impacted not just general elections in New Hampshire, but the Republican presidential primary as well.

The Garden Is Always Greener..., Billy Hall

Catalyst: A Social Justice Forum

This essay builds upon a case study of community gardening in Miami to explore the extent to which these gardens are contributing to, and possibly triggering, processes of gentrification within low to lower-middle income neighborhoods. Through a literature review of recent urban planning policy and development in Miami and relevant discourse on the neoliberalization of food, food politics, food justice activism, and gentrification, I situate Miami’s gardens within a complex, multi-scalar web of ideas and processes. I show how the interaction of these forces, varying dramatically with respect to place, is implicit in the motivations for each garden’s development and …

Rates Of Public Health Insurance Coverage For Children Rise As Rates Of Private Coverage Decline, Michael J. Staley, Jessica A. Bean, Jessica D. Ulrich

Carsey Publications

This brief uses data from the 2008, 2009, and 2010 American Community Survey to document changes in rates of children’s health insurance, between private and public. The authors report that, nationally, private health insurance for children decreased by just under 2 percentage points, while public health insurance increased by nearly 3 percentage points. Rural places and central cities witnessed significant declines in rates of private health insurance for children in nearly every region. Rates of public insurance coverage rose in every region and place type. Children’s health insurance coverage overall continued to rise in 2010, increasing by 0.6 of a …