Digital Commons Network^™

Social Climatology: An Age Comparison Of Women's Sustained Commitment To Collective Action Against Climate Change, Sara A. Humphers-Ginther

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Climate activists urgently emphasize action to prevent catastrophic and apocalyptic-like damage from climate change. The foundation of the institutional change needed to combat climate change is collective action, which I study here through a collective action frame. These frames can gain traction for policy agendas: they are solution- and action-oriented. I interviewed women climate activists to understand how they frame the problems from, causes of, and solutions to climate change, as well as how they urge others to act against climate change. I compared my informants based on age because beliefs, values, and lived experiences are important in how activists …

An Exploration Of Zero Waste Policies And Recommendations For Missoula, Sarah Blyth Lundquist

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

“Zero Waste” is a concept and community goal that has arisen to challenge the current consumerist economic system and offer solutions for a number of environmental issues. In adopting this goal, individuals and communities pledge to reduce and divert at least 90% of their waste in a certain number of years. These goals can be reached by employing policies, programs, and other intervention tactics which establish Zero Waste infrastructure, ensure equitable and widespread access to Zero Waste services, and provide educational outreach and resources to the community. Missoula adopted a Zero Waste goal in 2016 and created a Zero Waste …

Addressing Long-Standing Water Contamination Issues In Diné Communities Using Indigenous And Western Scientific Approaches, Ranalda Lynette Tsosie

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The intent of this study was multifaceted and based on a research framework that incorporated the Diné worldview and Diné Science. Diné Science describes a holistic approach to conducting scientific research. It encompasses Diné foundational concepts and philosophies and applies them to the scientific method and western scientific approaches. The four major philosophies, Nitsáhákees (Thinking), Nahat’á (Planning), Iiná (Implementing/Living) and Siih Hasin (Reflection/Assurance), were applied to this research process.

The main motivation is first and foremost to improve the quality of life of the Diné people especially those living in close proximity to abandoned mines and who are continuing to …

Montana Kaimin, September 25, 2019, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

July 2019 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Enst 594.03: Grad Seminar - Environmental Law For Non-Lawyers, Leonard Broberg

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 230h.01: Nature And Society, Peter Mcdonough

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Soci 441.01: Capstone - Inequality And Social Justice, Celia Winkler

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of The Tribal Park Concept And Opportunities For The Blackfeet Nation, Iree Schmautz Wheeler

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Tribal Park model is an emerging tool being used by indigenous groups in the United States and Canada for the management of unique and sacred natural areas, in some cases setting aside existing indigenous owned land, and in others regaining control of land management decisions in traditional territory. Currently in North America there are several sites that have self-identified as Tribal Parks. There is a lack of research regarding Tribal Park development in North America, which creates challenges for indigenous groups interested in pursuing a conservation designation of this type. Using an analysis of five Tribal Park case studies …

Why Does My Town Smell Like Nail Polish?: Using The Toxics Release Inventory To Investigate Industrial Chemical Pollutants In Elkhart County, Indiana, Magdalena Lehman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis investigates 2017 industrial chemical air pollution in Elkhart County, Indiana starting with data from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and Risk-Screening Environmental Indicators model (RSEI). TRI requires facilities across the United States to report release amounts for certain chemicals known to cause adverse human health impacts. A related database, the RSEI model adds context to release amounts by modeling for toxicity and exposure. The resulting RSEI score approximates relative risk among releases. In combination, these tools are intended to allow communities to identify risks and provide oversight of point-source industrial chemical pollution in their neighborhoods. …

Group Development In Natural Resource Collaboration In The Crown Of The Continent: Forming, Storming, Norming & Performing, Meghan Rene Neville

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio brings together three experiences of natural resource collaborative groups each in a different stage of development. Researcher, Bruce Tuckman, theorized that collaborative groups go through different stages in order to grow, face new challenges, tackle problems, deliver results, and become an effective team (1965). These stages of development are called Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. The application of Bruce Tuckman’s model can help both collaborative organizers and outsiders appreciate the complex dynamics of collaborative groups. The overarching goal for my portfolio is to provide new ways to examine natural resource collaborative groups, so that there is a better …

Heritage Alchemy: A Model For Sustaining The Built Heritage Of Montana In The Changing Landscapes Of The 21st Century Via Perspectives From The Netherlands On Policy, Education, And Stewardship, Jeffrey Macdonald

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This Ph.D. dissertation presents sets of interrelated research problems, and challenges to sustaining the built heritage of Montana, in the context of the changing modern landscapes in the western United States. The research connects issues of heritage policy, education, and stewardship as common, and connected themes in historic preservation, historical archaeology, anthropology, and cultural landscape practices. The dissertation is comprised of three articles that are under review for publication, presenting perspectives and data assembled via empirical, and place-based field research, interviews, and interaction with heritage professionals, and site investigation conducted throughout the Netherlands between August 2013 and February 2017. These …

Enst 225.01: Sustainable Communities, Neva Hassanein

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 595.03: St: Environmental Justice: Issues & Solution, Robin Saha

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 570.01: Ethics And Restoration, Pedro Marques, Daniel T. Spencer

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 489s.01: Environmental Justice Issues And Solutions Serv, Robin Saha

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Resilience Through Connection To Place: How Native Peoples Rely On The Land And How The Land Relies On Us, Tabitha N. Espinoza

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Science, Advocacy, Policy, Planning: Tools For Advancing Transportation Equity, Garrett S. Mcallister

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

The theme of this portfolio is how different tools and approaches can be used for advancing transportation equity. Broadly defined, transportation equity is about fairness in transportation. There are a number of ways this fairness can be assessed. The most common way to assess transportation equity is by looking at the fairness of outcomes, distributed geographically, socially, or even by mode of transportation. Equity can also be defined by the fairness of processes. The first half of the portfolio illustrates some of the problems with the current transportation system and how it is unhealthy (Piece 1) and unjust (Piece 2). …

Development’S Victim Or Its Beneficiary?: The Impact Of Oil And Gas Development On The Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, Raymond Cross

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.

Enst 560.01: Environmental Impact Analysis, Leonard Broberg

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 530.01: The Greening Of Religion, Daniel T. Spencer

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Enst 230h.01: Nature And Society, Daniel T. Spencer

University of Montana Course Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Energy Colonialism Powers The Ongoing Unnatural Disaster In Puerto Rico, Catalina M. De Onis

University of Montana Staff Publications

On September 20, 2017, Hurricane María made landfall in Puerto Rico. Blasting the Caribbean archipelago with 155-mile/h winds, this, in many ways, unnatural disaster exposed the brutal consequences of energy colonialism and an extractivist economy, as well as ongoing and increasing advocacy for decentralized solar infrastructure by many local residents and other renewables supporters. This paper argues that acknowledging colonial power relations and their consequences is essential for studying the interplay of energy systems, environments, and actors. To support this claim, this essay outlines Puerto Rico’s history as a US colony by focusing on key policies and their implications; examines …

Watered Down: The Challenges Of Managing Water Resources In Montana, Beau E. Baker

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Like much of the American West, Montana sits in the cross hairs of climate change. State drought resiliency projects and cooperative watershed management are on the rise in the face of decreased snowpack, early runoff, precipitation variability and lower seasonal stream flows. Population growth, land use practices, recreation and tourism all contribute to pressures on state water supplies.

Montana is faced with the arrival of invasive species that threaten the ecological health of its lakes, rivers and streams. State budget constraints and depressed agency capacity are hurting our ability to fend off these threats. There’s a lack of public education …

Missed Opportunity: The Strategic And Rhetorical Miscalculations Of Deep Ecology, Taylor C. Hastings

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The first chapter of the project analyzes Deep Ecological philosophy, presented by Arne Naess, and its inability to coalesce as a social movement because of Naess’ strategic belief that an open philosophical template, as well as a rhetorical strategy of being instructive, instead of rhetorically moving Deep Ecologists towards engaging concrete plans towards change to mitigate destructive human environmental practices, as the most effective strategy. The second chapter analyzes the Dark Mountain Project and the ways it has grown out of Deep Ecology, and the ways the Dark Mountain Project is misguided in its interpretation of the works of Robinson …

Energy Colonialism Powers The Ongoing Unnatural Disaster In Puerto Rico, Catalina M. De Onis

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

On September 20, 2017, Hurricane María made landfall in Puerto Rico. Blasting the Caribbean archipelago with 155-mile/h winds, this, in many ways, unnatural disaster exposed the brutal consequences of energy colonialism and an extractivist economy, as well as ongoing and increasing advocacy for decentralized solar infrastructure by many local residents and other renewables supporters. This paper argues that acknowledging colonial power relations and their consequences is essential for studying the interplay of energy systems, environments, and actors. To support this claim, this essay outlines Puerto Rico’s history as a US colony by focusing on key policies and their implications; examines …

Lessons Learned In The Superfund Process: A Guide For Community Advisory Groups, Terri Nichols

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Superfund Community Advisory Groups (CAGs) and Technical Advisory Groups, also known as Technical Assistance Groups, (TAGs) can influence the clean-up of hazardous wastes in their communities by providing a forum for diverse community interests and concerns in the federal Superfund clean-up process. These volunteer groups may increase local input and engagement in remediation of hazardous wastes, as well as in the ultimate future of their community, through collaboration with community members, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency staff, and parties responsible for contamination. Yet most CAGs and TAGs struggle within the complex, multi-phase Superfund process. Forming a Superfund advisory group is a …

Tribal Consultation: A Critical Reminder Of Cultural Resource Management Laws And Obligations, Natasha F. Larose

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

By categorizing the National Historic Preservation Act and National Environmental Policy Act as red tape hindering infrastructure, the current Presidential administration is attempting to streamline processes to approve federal undertakings. In doing so, it threatens the government-to-government relationship between federal agencies and tribal governments. This relationship is a work-in-progress that needs to be nurtured rather than reverting to assertion of plenary powers over tribal affairs. The purpose of this research is to remind federal agencies that there are legal obligations to include tribal entities in the decision-making processes for federal undertakings. Furthermore, this research can serve as a reference for …

Montana Kaimin, October 5-11, 2017, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Do Sagebrush Rebels Have A Colorable Claim? The Space Between Parochialism And Exclusion In Federal Lands Management, Ann M. Eisenberg

Public Land & Resources Law Review

No abstract provided.