Digital Commons Network^™

Analysis Of The Benefits Of Green Streets, Christopher E. Ferrell, John M. Eells, Richard W. Lee, Reyhane Hosseinzade

Mineta Transportation Institute

Green streets offer many potential benefits that include improving water quality, absorbing carbon (sequestration), and reducing urban heat island effects. This report summarizes: (1) the research team’s analysis of 14 tools calculating green streets benefits; and (2) the results of applying the most promising calculators to a select group of green streets case studies. The researchers are affiliated with the Mineta Transportation Institute, which serves the California Department of Transportation (“Caltrans”). The report presents the results of the case study analyses, with an emphasis on carbon sequestration benefits and improvements to pedestrian levels of service (PLOS).

Trees absorb carbon dioxide …

Can You See Me Now?: Engaging Distance Learners Through Virtual Reference Consultations, Lauren Puzier, Camille Chesley, Amanda M. Lowe

University Libraries Faculty Scholarship

Research consultations continue to be a valuable service offered by academic libraries for students who are able to visit the library, however, most students enrolled in online degree programs or considering enrollment have limited access to campus services. To address this, the authors designed and tested a virtual reference consultation service in their library for distance learners and graduate students. This article outlines a practical approach for designing and initiating a virtual research consultation service pilot, providing equitable access to library services and a positive user experience for distance learners.

A Micro-Scale Analysis Of Cycling Demand, Safety, And Network Quality, Sherry Ryan, Ana Garate, Diane Foote

Mineta Transportation Institute

This research uses a unique database of cycling volumes from the San Diego region to estimate cycling demand and cycling collision models. Continuous cycling count data collected from 34 automated counters are used to extrapolate over 1,400 short duration counts to average annual daily bicycle volumes (AADB). Network characteristics, built environment, and socio-economic characteristics are primary independent variables employed in the modeling. A key contribution of this research is to incorporate both a whole-network measure (betweenness centrality) and a network quality measure (LTS) in estimating cycling volumes. This research also improves upon cycling risk assessment by using more rigorous exposure …

Predictors Of Social Distancing And Mask-Wearing Behavior: Panel Survey In Seven U.S. States, Plamen Nikolov, Andreas Pape, Ozlem Tonguc, Charlotte Williams

Economics Faculty Scholarship

This paper presents preliminary summary results from a longitudinal study of participants in seven U.S. states during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to standard socio-economic characteristics, we collect data on various economic preference parameters: time, risk, and social preferences, and risk perception biases. We pay special attention to predictors that are both important drivers of social distancing and are potentially malleable and susceptible to policy levers. We note three important findings: (1) demographic characteristics exert the largest influence on social distancing measures and mask-wearing, (2) we show that individual risk perception and cognitive biases exert a critical role in influencing …

Beyond Green Infrastructure - Integrating The Ecosystem Services Framework Into Urban Planning Law And Policy, J.B. Ruhl

Journal of Comparative Urban Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

The Roles Of Library And Information Services In Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (Sdgs) In Uganda, Walter Omona

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The world is currently faced with various challenges which have become a major drawback in achieving sustainable development across the developing world. One way to address these challenges is to ensure that countries work towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which require a number of stakeholders to intervene if these challenges must be reduced for the benefit of humanity, and one such stakeholder is the library and information sector. This paper uses insights from the Development and Access to Information (DA2I) framework to thematically examine and synthesize the contribution of library and information services in achieving SDGs …

Con Confianza: Using Community-Based Participatory Research Principles To Inform Community-Academic Partnership Practices And Build Trust In Hispanic Communities, Sharon Tafolla

Master's Projects and Capstones

Hispanic communities are at disproportionate risk for chronic diseases and researchers have cited the need for further community and culturally informed studies to improve research outcomes to either make treatments and interventions more generalizable or modify them to the needs of Hispanic communities. However, many of the same linguistic and cultural barriers to health care access and utilization also impact the ability for Hispanic groups to participate in research studies. Community Academic Partnerships (CAPs) are positioned to conduct culturally and linguistically competent research in Hispanic communities. For research in Hispanic communities to be effective, CAPs must prioritize practices that build …

Social Power Of Jazz Festivals, Olga Bekenshtein

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Jazz festivals occur in all parts of the world, small cities and metropolises, urban and rural landscapes, stadiums, churches, streets, and abandoned factories. Being a part of the entertainment industry, they have the potential to impact social change. Jazz festivals help us reconsider notions of identity and community, and their communal experience has the potential to undermine dominant social norms. The industry of jazz festivals is based on Black music and has a history of positive and negative social outcomes. Evaluating festivals through the symbolic meaning of music provides an optic into how festivals marginalize and exploit African American cultural …

Assessing Undergraduate Sustainability Knowledge At California Polytechnic State University, Elysa Briens

Master of Science in Environmental Sciences and Management Projects

Sustainability education has become an important focus of many higher education institutions (HEIs), with the inclusion of many sustainability-related learning objectives for undergraduate students. As sustainability is a new, rising discipline, an increasing number of HEIs have made efforts to assess their teaching and learning effectiveness. However, most assessments fall short in determining the relationship between sustainability curriculum and the impacts on leaning outcomes. Therefore, this study aims to assess the impact of academic setting, specifically of a structured sustainability curriculum, on undergraduate sustainability knowledge, as well as analyze the implications of perceived barriers and opportunities to implementing sustainability into …

Publicly Supported Rental Housing And Affordability For Very Low-Income Suburbanites: A Study Of Metropolitan America, Eric Varela

Public Affairs Dissertations - Archive

This dissertation is about subsidized housing and its provision in the contemporary metropolis, with particular focus on suburbs. Subsidized housing has typically been conceived as fundamentally an urban issue given its historical roots largely centered on addressing destitute slums and inner-city poverty (Stoloff, 2004). Yet today’s American metropolis is fundamentally different from that which existed one hundred, fifty, or even twenty-five years ago. Suburbs are more prominent now than ever before, both as economic centers and diverse cultural mosaics in metropolitan America (Zhang & Logan, 2017). In fact, suburbs are now home to more impoverished Americans than principal cities (Kneebone, …

Outdoor Recreation, Greenspace, And Covid-19 In Maine, Jayne Marie Foley

Muskie School Capstones and Dissertations

In this report we are exploring the significance of outdoor recreation and usage in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We will discuss the importance of green space and outdoor recreation as a part of sustainability and what we can do for the future to provide sustainable and safe spaces for the public. I will be looking at the response of 119 individuals from a survey collected and three interviews from stakeholders in Maine on their experiences with the outdoors during COVID-19 and comparing these results to other similar findings. We can use this information from the COVID-19 experience to better …

Enhanced Model Of Collaboration And Social Capital: Hampton Roads All Hazards Advisory Committee: A Replication Study, Adale M. Martin

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

To address the call for improving the understanding of collaboration in public policy, this dissertation is designed to validate a study by Morris, Gibson, Leavitt, and Jones (2013), entitled, The Case for Grassroots Collaboration: Social Capital and Ecosystem Restoration at the Local Level. The Enhanced Model of Collaboration (EMC), which was developed to explore collaboration and social capital deriving from grassroots efforts, will be applied to examine agency-based regional collaboration in southeastern Virginia.

The population for this study is the members of the Hampton Roads All Hazards Advisory Committee (AHAC). Members include representatives of local, state, and federal government agencies, …

Collective Sensemaking Around Covid-19: Experiences, Concerns, And Agendas For Our Rapidly Changing Organizational Lives, Keri Stephens, Jody L.S. Jahn, Stephanie Fox, Piyawan Charoensap-Kelly, Rahul Mitra, Jeannette Sutton, Eric D. Waters, Bo Xie, Rebecca J. Meisenbach

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Uncertainty is at the forefront of many crises, disasters, and emergencies, and the COVID-19 pandemic is no different in this regard. In this forum, we, as a group of organizational communication scholars currently living in North America, engage in sensemaking and sensegiving around this pandemic to help process and share some of the academic uncertainties and opportunities relevant to organizational scholars. We begin by reflexively making sense of our own experiences with adjusting to new ways of working during the onset of the pandemic, including uncomfortable realizations around privilege, positionality, race, and ethnicity. We then discuss key concerns about how …

Philanthropic Structuring: The Asian Context, Hang Wu Tang, Man Yip, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Asian philanthropy has tremendous potential for growth. Even as the population of ultra-rich individuals in Asia continues to expand, studies indicate that Asian philanthropists have the capacity to give a lot more. The key to tapping into the massive potential for Asian giving and catalysing sustainable and impactful philanthropy in Asia, is to understand the Asian way of giving and embrace strategic institutional and industry innovation.Our paper proposes three strategic directions to expand access to philanthropy: encouraging giving beyond one’s home and religious causes; encouraging everyone to give regardless of the size of the gift; and encouraging formal giving.Strong support …

Responding To Appalachian Voices: Steps In Developing Substance-Use Recovery Ecosystems, Bruce Behringer

Journal of Appalachian Health

A description is presented of the four-step process used by the Appalachian Regional Commission to develop a new Recovery to Work initiative. The Commission identified, defined, and described issues facing individuals who complete substance abuse disorder treatment and who seek reentry into the workforce. Key elements were identified for resources and supports to develop and maintain community-based substance abuse recovery ecosystems. The steps included conceptualization, data collection, analysis, and review to formulate recommendations for program and policy development. The full process of development was accomplished in twelve months.

Perspective On Substance-Abuse Recovery Ecosystem From The Appalachian Regional Commission Federal Co-Chair, Tim Thomas

Journal of Appalachian Health

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a local, state, and federal partnership focused on economic development in the communities of the Appalachian Region. ARC Federal Co-Chairman Tim Thomas provides his perspective on how an economic development entity, such as ARC, can support efforts to address the Region’s drug crisis in a way that both saves lives and strengthens economic opportunity in communities throughout Appalachia.

An Examination Of Seed Libraries Across Two Academic Institutions, Holly M. Dean, Jennifer Mezick

Urban Library Journal

Seed libraries provide new and engaging outreach possibilities while facilitating healthy sustainable communities. Regardless of the type of institution or organization, seed libraries can facilitate food access and social and environmental sustainability, foster community, and open doors for new partnerships. This article examines the path to develop seed libraries in higher education at two institutions, which in their early stages have proven successful in meeting their missions. The initial seed library was developed at a community college, which inspired and influenced the establishment of an experiential learning initiative at a tier one university. Together these two programs are collaborating across …

Evaluation Of Coach-Based Technical Assistance: An Evolving Focus On Coachability And Goal Setting, Kimberly J. Mccarthy, Daniel F. Perkins, Matthew Roberts, Shane Potter, Autumn H. Guin, Jan B. Carroll, Nancy C. Deringer, James E. Ballard, Lynne M. Borden

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

In 2013, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture supported the creation of a professional development and technical assistance center to promote strong implementation and evaluation of University-led, community-based projects serving low-resource populations. Within this center, a coaching cadre was established to provide proactive and responsive technical assistance. Formative evaluation involving coaches and their primary contacts was used for refinement of coaching practices. Initially, coaches were encouraged to build strong interpersonal rapport. This set the stage for trusting, reciprocal interactions, but coaches recognized a need for targeted support and more tools for quality programming, evaluation, and sustainability. Greater emphasis was …

Extension’S Response To The Change In Public Value: Considerations For Ensuring Financial Security For The Cooperative Extension System, Jeremy Elliott-Engel, Donna M. Westfall-Rudd, Megan Seibel, Eric Kaufman

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Cooperative Extension is a partnership of county, state, and federal governments to fund the translation and community education of applied research from the land-grant university system. Cooperative Extension’s funding since the 1980s has experienced a few key trends such as federal budget stagnation as well as state and county cyclic funding cycles based on the states’ economic health. Accompanying the state-level budget cuts have been calls for Cooperative Extension to reinvent and improve communication about what it does. As budget stability has become a greater concern, ideas around value and return on investment have become more integrated into the messaging …

Gather, Educate, Prepare: Libraries As Champions To Build Informed And Climate-Resilient Communities, Adrian K. Ho, René Tanner, Monika Antonelli

Library Presentations

The past few years have witnessed increasing numbers of discussions and programs about the impacts of climate change, addressing topics from the devastating wildfires in California, relentless heat waves in Europe, to the accelerating thaw of the ice sheet in Greenland. The media has described the social atmosphere using such terms as climate angst, ecological grief, and existential crisis. Weighed down by a steady stream of climate news, some people have sought professional help for guidance on tackling emotional responses to natural disasters and climate trauma. Meanwhile, many of us are wondering what can be done. As a central player …

Resisting Marginalisation And Reconstituting Space Through Lgbtqi+ Events, Oscar Vorobjovas-Pinta, Anne Hardy

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

The field of event studies has attracted a breadth of research on the triple-bottom line of economic efficiency, environmental integrity and social equity. The focus of many studies related to event tourism, however, has fallen upon the economic and environmental dimensions of events with far less attention on “social equity.” The potential of events tourism to facilitate justice and equity for marginalised and minority groups has been especially overlooked. LGBTQI+ communities utilise gay events, such as pride parades, as mediums to communicate their identities and seek support from broader society. This paper examines a unique festival space where LGBTQI+ communities …

Opportunity In Ohio: Rethinking Northeast Ohio's Opportunity Zones With Local Legislation, Patrick J. Lipaj

Cleveland State Law Review

Welcome to Census Tract 1186.02! Here, in a small sliver of Cleveland’s Glenville neighborhood, tucked between Superior and Hough Avenues, you will uncover a lot. You will discover a rich history of the city’s ethnic and cultural roots. You will also find gang violence, underperforming schools, a median household income of $9,526, and a poverty rate of 66.5 percent. Something you will not find in 1186.02 is investment. Private or public, money is not flowing in to 1186.02 and it has not for a long time. The substantial toll of continuous underinvestment on the residents of this neighborhood, one of …

Index To E-Jasl: Electronic Journal Of Academic And Special Librarianship, Issn: 1704-8532, Sue Ann Gardner

E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (1999-2009, Volumes 1-10)

Following is an index of all of the articles published in E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship. The journal was published from 1999 through 2009. With Paul Haschak’s permission as overseer of the compilation, its articles have been archived at https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ejasljournal/. As of June 15, 2020, they were also still available at http://southernlibrarianship.icaap.org/index.html.

The masthead that appeared on the southernlibrarian site as of June 15, 2020 is reproduced here:

E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (ISSN: 1704-8532) is an independent, professional, refereed electronic journal dedicated first and foremost to advancing knowledge and research …

Matching The Speed Of Technology With The Speed Of Local Government: Developing Codes And Policies Related To The Possible Impacts Of New Mobility On Cities, Marc Schlossberg, Heather Brinton

TREC Final Reports

Advances in transportation technology such as the advent of scooter and bikeshare systems (micromobility), ridehailing, and autonomous vehicles (AV’s) are beginning to have profound effects not only on how we live, move, and spend our time in cities, but also on urban form and development itself. These new technologies are changing the systems of transport, the layout of cities, and the places we spend our time. In turn, these changes will likely have additional and profound effects on land use, street design, parking, housing, equity, municipal finance, and fundamental issues related to urban density, sprawl, vitality and the economic viability …

Steering New Mobility In The Right Direction: Matching The Speed Of Technology With The Speed Of Local Government, Marc Schlossberg, Heather Brinton

TREC Project Briefs

Advances in transportation technology — e-scooters and bike share, Lyft & Uber, and autonomous vehicles — are beginning to have profound impacts on cities. New mobility is changing not only how we travel, but also urban form and development itself. In the near future, we can expect differences in what public transit looks like, the layout of cities, and the places we spend our time. In turn, these changes will likely have additional effects on land use, street design, parking, housing, equity, and municipal finance. Will cities be ready to meet these changes? Rather than be swept along in the …

Lessons From The Assessment For Learning Project: Strategies For Building An Authentic Learning Community, Heather Lewis-Charp, Daniela Berman, Sarah Lench, Tony Siddall

The Foundation Review

This article explores findings from an evaluation of the Assessment for Learning Project, a grantee engagement strategy led by the Center for Innovation in Education focused on creating a learning community founded in continuous reflection and safety for risk-taking. The article shares the project’s model and approach, grounded in the core design elements of a field-facing learning agenda, grantmaking that leads with learning, and collective leadership.

This article highlights the Assessment for Learning Project’s practices, such as a Request for Learning rather than traditional Request for Proposals; a requirement that grantees provide formative feedback to each other; and public demonstrations …

The Life And Death Of Mambo: Culture And Consumption In New York's Salsa Dance Scene, Carmela Muzio Dormani

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In recent decades salsa dancing has become a global phenomenon, spawning a variety of styles and levels. Although formerly passed from person to person through Latinx family and community networks, salsa dance has long been practiced in a more codified way. Today, salsa is largely reproduced in dance studio classes, congresses, and competitions collectively referred to as “the salsa scene”. In New York City, the salsa scene retains vestiges of Nuyorican and Afro-Caribbean identity, though it is practiced by people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds and marketed to a global base. Building on long term participation observation and nearly …

Improving The Economy Of Local Communities Through Innovation Of The Potential Of Shariah-Based Natural Tourism In East Java, Maula Fadhilata Rahmatika, Agus Suman

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

An area will experience rapid progress if local government alongside the community is able to develop local potential with various innovations. This study aims to describe the potential of nature and innovation by the government alongside the community based on Shariah when creating tourism destinations with economic value. The research was conducted in the coastal environment of Santen Island of Banyuwangi district, East Java with a qualitative approach to the research and case study design. Data were collected through participatory observation, in-depth interviews, and document analysis. With interactive data analysis, it was found that the Shariah-based innovation conducted by the …

Identifying The Weak Foundation Of Public Health Resilience Fornational Disaster Policy In Indonesia’S Mid-Term Developmentagenda 2015–2019: A Policy Content Analysis, Gita Miranda Warsito, Meiwita Budiharsana, Sharyn Burns

Kesmas

Indonesia is one of the most susceptible nations toward natural disasters in the world. Since 1992, approximately 37 tsunami incidents have occurred inIndonesia, with at least 1,244 cases of natural disasters during 2018. Despite the overwhelming impact of disasters on Indonesia, Public Health Resilience,as an approach to disaster countermeasures, has been poorly elaborated in Indonesia’s development agenda (National Mid-term Development Plan (NMDP),or Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Menengah Nasional (RPJMN), 2015 - 2019). By utilizing the method of policy content analysis, this study aimed to analyzethe policy background of Public Health Resilience against disasters in the NMDP 2015 - 2019 and National …

Collaboration And Evaluation In Urban Sustainability And Resilience Transformations: The Keys To A Just Transition?, Liliana Elizabeth Caughman

Dissertations and Theses

Climate has changed and will continue changing; city populations are swelling as urbanization continues to accelerate; extreme environmental events like heat waves and floods are becoming more severe and more common; and the climate justice movement is rapidly gaining momentum. It in this context that municipal governments find themselves urgently seeking solutions to transition cities from extractive, vulnerable, and unjust to sustainable, resilient, and equitable. The task is complex and will require systemic transformations across interconnected social, environmental, and economic infrastructures. Emerging theories regarding how to govern such massive changes suggest Transition Management strategies and the values of a just …