Digital Commons Network^™

Milton Time Final Report, Jacqueline Rounsavill, Eleanor Geno, Alessandra Costantini, Brian Miller, Mia Bohi-Green

Final Reports in ENST 411: Environmental Community Projects

Our main focus with this project was to hold a well-attended event in Milton, PA on Earth Day (April 22nd) that raised awareness for TIME’s “The Landscape of Main Street” Museum. We wanted this event to be accessible to all ages and marketed towards, but not limited to, the Milton community. Additionally, we hoped this event would generate attendance to the museum, educate attendees (especially children) on Milton’s history and ecology, get local businesses involved, and ultimately generate excitement within the community; getting residents more involved and bringing people together. We planned that this event would also include a brochure- …

Biodiversity In Eastern Kentucky: Effects Of Habitat Change, Surface Top Mining, And Current Reclamation Practices, Sydney Pardieu

Undergraduate Theses

Biodiversity is a key component in maintaining the valuable ecosystem services that are vital to the way humans interact with and rely on the environment. The Appalachian Region in Eastern North America is one of the most biodiverse temperate broadleaf forests in the world and is home to hundreds of endangered or endemic species. Despite the high biodiversity, the region is also heavily mined, particularly by mountain top removal, causing habitat change and pollution. Current reclamation practices for mined lands are lacking in effective reclamation criterion, and state statutes provide little or no attention to the preservation of biodiversity. Therefore, …

The Effect Of Algal Wastewater Treatment Systems On Microbial Communities, Alexis Leach

University Honors Program Senior Projects

In collaboration with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago and Gross-Wen Technologies, I examined the microbial communities in experimental tertiary wastewater treatment systems employing algal phytoremediation. Three algal phytoremediation systems were examined: two vertical conveyor belt systems, known as the 10-foot belt system and the series 4 system, and a third system lacking a converter belt in which planktonic algae grew in a control pond. I used EcoPlates to measure carbon substrate utilization by microorganisms in each system. EcoPlates contain thirty-one different carbon substrates, with a dye that indicates microbial use of each substrate. I conducted a Principal …

The Functional Effects Of Tree And Shrub Mycorrhizal Associations On Soil Organic Matter Dynamics In Forests, Elisabeth B. Ward

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Plant-fungal associations can strongly influence the composition, persistence, and turnover of soil organic matter in forests. The prevailing framework for understanding these relationships is through the relative abundance of tree mycorrhizal functional types, the vast majority of which associate with arbuscular (AM) and/or ectomycorrhizal (EcM) fungi. Differences in functional traits and ecosystem characteristics between AM and EcM trees have generated immense interest in assessing the ecosystem biogeochemical effects of tree mycorrhizal dominance within and among forest biomes to improve understanding of patterns in soil carbon and nitrogen pools and how they might respond to factors of global change. Yet, forests …

Diversity And Distribution Of Herbaceous Plants Along A Tropical Rainfall Gradient In Western Ghats, India, Harikrishnan Venugopalan Nair Radhamoni

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Tropical forests hold most of the vascular plant life on earth. Much of our understanding on the diversity patterns and drivers of plants in tropical forests is based on studies on trees, which form only a quarter of the plant diversity in these forests. Over 40% of plant diversity in some tropical forests is comprised of understory herbaceous angiosperms (herbs). Despite such high species richness, and their critical role in the functioning of forest ecosystems, our knowledge on the diversity patterns and drivers of herbs is poor, compared to trees. This knowledge gap not only precludes any claim on a …

The Materiality Of Waka And Ikebana: Locating Ecological Relationships Between Delivery And Arrangement, Bianca Oliveira

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Rhetorical applications of delivery and arrangement have grown to reflect the global interconnectedness of cultures, bodies, and material objects. Informed by rhetorical and ecological approaches to delivery and arrangement (Edbauer Rice; Lambke;), this project performs a rhetorical and ecological analysis of ikebana (Japanese flower arrangements) and waka (Classical Japanese poetry) by Meishu-Sama and Saigyō Hōshi. Waka and ikebana, as compositional modes, reveal an interpolation of delivery and arrangement that invites both composer and audience to embody nature. As such, this project examines the visual-material and sonic rhetorics of waka and ikebana in order to discover how delivery and arrangement affect …

Review Of Catholic Peacebuilding And Mining: Integral Peace, Development, And Ecology, Selina Gallo-Cruz

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Banshees Of Late Capitalism: War, Ecology, & Alienation, Bryant W. Sculos

Political Science Faculty Publications

This review essay explores the concepts of war, ecology/human-nonhuman relations, and alienation through a critical analysis of McDonagh's The Banshees of Inisherin (2022).

Welcome To The Farm, Elani Ben-Gabriel Borhegyi

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

The purpose of this creative scholarship is to examine human relationships to Earth and the implications for a thriving future. This thesis studies the current environmental state of our planet, then looks at sustainability as a model for improving human and planetary health, and ends by visualizing a thriving future beyond sustainability in which we adopt a “caretaker” culture. The key to this trajectory is to untangle and dismantle colonial relationships with the planet and replace them with “caretaker” relationships - relationships rooted in love, honor, and reciprocity with environmental connection, while taking into account past, present, and future generations …

A Gis Look At Woody Plant Encroachment (Wpe): Mapping Grassland Degradation Through Habitat Succession, Brandon M. Wolf

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

The grasslands of North America remain at a fraction of their historic range. Estimates of acreage remaining vary between 4% and 13%. Affectionately known as the Great Plains, these grasslands have been converted for agriculture, rangeland, infrastructure, and civilization itself. Woody Plant Encroachment (WPE) on the grasslands is a silent, often overlooked, serious threat. The use of a simple GIS can estimate current acreage of a grassland, its adjacent woodland corridor, riparian buffers, and predict future acreage based on trends and hypothetical management scenarios, or lack thereof. The American prairie, though a remnant of its former self, is still home …

The Biogeochemical Legacy Of The Landscape Of Fear: Pumas, Vicuñas, And Nutrient Cycling In The High Andes, Julia Dina Monk

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Research on biogeochemical cycles has historically focused on plant and microbial activity; however, growing evidence suggests that animals play an important role in nutrient cycling. Predators may be especially important drivers of these ecosystem processes, as they influence the quantity, quality, and distribution of organic matter through their control of herbivore prey. The role of predators and their herbivore prey in cycling and transporting nutrients may be particularly important in arid ecosystems, where productivity is low and resources are scarce and spatially clustered. In these landscapes with high heterogeneity of resources and risk, large herbivores may transport and hasten the …

Environment, Power, And Justice : Southern African Histories, Graeme Wynn, Jane Carruthers, Nancy J. Jacobs

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Spanning the colonial, postcolonial, and postapartheid eras, these historical and locally specific case studies analyze and engage vernacular, activist, and scholarly efforts to mitigate social-environmental inequity.

This book highlights the ways poor and vulnerable people in South Africa, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe have mobilized against the structural and political forces that deny them a healthy and sustainable environment. Spanning the colonial, postcolonial, and postapartheid eras, these studies engage vernacular, activist, and scholarly efforts to mitigate social-environmental inequity. Some chapters track the genealogies of contemporary activism, while others introduce positions, actors, and thinkers not previously identified with environmental justice. Addressing health, economic …

Rethinking Human-Local Wildlife Relations, Yin Chan

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

The plight of suburban wildlife receives considerably less attention than that of exotic or endangered species despite facing similar threats due to the decline of their natural habitats as humans expand upon them. From the perspective of a reflective practitioner, this paper provides new avenues to rethink current views on human-local wildlife relations and answer some of the difficult questions surrounding the topic. The methodology of Action Research is employed to explore concepts relevant to human-local wildlife relations. A synthesized practical framework integrating Action Research with Permaculture Design is proposed to create models for mutually beneficial coexistence between local wildlife …

New Multimedia Resources For Ecological Resilience Education In Modern University Classrooms, Katharine F. E. Hogan, Julie A. Fowler, Conor D. Barnes, Alison K. Ludwig, Dominic J. Cristiano, Daniel Morales, Rubi Quiñones, Dirac L. Twidwell Jr, Jenny Dauer

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Solutions to global problems such as climate change and biodiversity loss require educational frameworks and accompanying teaching resources that are theory-based, interdisciplinary, and accessible to broad undergraduate and graduate student audiences. Ecological resilience theory (ERT) is a framework with established interdisciplinary application to complex global problems, but despite an emphasis on the utility of resilience in national higher education frameworks, we found that many current ecology textbooks incorporate multiple definitions and highly variable amounts of discussion on core resilience concepts. To facilitate the use of innovative teaching resources in ERT in universities, this paper describes four free multimedia tools and …

Making Forests, Making Communities: An Ethnography Of Reforestation In Monteverde, Costa Rica, Megan Brown

Anthropology Theses and Dissertations

Reforestation is not just planting trees in the ground. More than net increase in forest cover, reforestation is a complex political endeavor undertaken by both humans and non-humans and a popular climate change mitigation tactic. However, little research has examined the dynamics between selection of specific reforestation strategies, health, and community resilience, particularly with attention to entanglements between the lives of both human and non-human forest dwellers. This ethnographic work, based on six months of in-person fieldwork and six months of digital ethnography, examines reforestation and forest relations in Costa Rica’s Monte Verde zone, a region which experienced widespread deforestation, …

Conservation And Variation In Agricultural Landscapes: A Survey Of Insect Populations Across Naranjilla Cultivation Methods In The Eastern Andean Cloud Forest, Ian Zakelj

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study compared insect biodiversity among five sites in agricultural landscapes and natural forest in the El Placer community in the valley of the Rio Pastaza in the eastern Andean cloud forest. The area is of vital importance to conservation, as it falls in the ecological corridor between the Sangay and Llanganates national parks. The primary crop produced by the residents of El Placer is naranjilla, and it is cultivated in a variety of manners, mostly with intensive chemical use. The goal of the study was to find out which types of practices were the least harmful to the insect …

The Rise Of An Eco-Spiritual Imaginary: Ecology And Spirituality As Decolonial Protest In Contemporary Multi-Ethnic American Literature, Andrew Michael Spencer

English Theses and Dissertations

The Rise of an Eco-Spiritual Imaginary reveals a shared ecological aesthetic among contemporary U.S. ethnic writers whose novels communicate a decolonial spiritual reverence for the earth. This shared narrative focus challenges white settler colonial mythologies of manifest destiny and American exceptionalism to instantiate new ways of imagining community across socially constructed boundaries of time, space, nation, race, and species. The eco-spiritual imaginary—by which I mean a shared reverence for the ecological interconnection between all living beings—articulates a common biological origin and sacredness of all life that transcends racial difference while remaining grounded in local ethnicities and bioregions. The novelists representing …

Ecopsychologists' Vital Importance In The Time Of Climate Crises, Nicole B. Auckerman Psyd

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Ecopsychology is a systems-based philosophy that expands the therapeutic lens to include client interactions with and perceptions of the natural environment as an integral element of well-being or pathology. Ecopsychology, known forward as EP, also looks at the pathology of our culture and what kind of diagnoses lead to practices that put our planet at risk. In recent decades, the field has amassed a substantial amount of empirical evidence supporting its effectiveness but remains largely underutilized. First generation EP suggested a cultural reordering shifting away from consumer culture and reordering our way of life. Second generation posits working within the …

Painting Colonialism Green: Understanding Colonial Ecology Through The Lens Of Palestinian Art, Lily Hibbard

Scripps Senior Theses

The objective of settler colonialism is, at its core, land domination and the continued subjugation of Indigenous people. I argue that this objective is achieved through four avenues of violence: consumption, extraction, manipulation of space, and severance from identity. By analyzing Palestinian resistance art, I examine the role of landscape manipulation, via destruction or creation of space, in perpetuating these four heralds of colonialism. I specifically focus on the cultural value of trees in occupied Palestine and the Israeli settler community, and the ways in which these trees have become weapons in an ongoing war of colonial design. By understanding …

Medieval Weathers: An Introduction, Michael J. Warren

Medieval Ecocriticisms

Introduction to the first volume of Medieval Ecocriticisms.

A Global Agenda For Advancing Freshwater Biodiversity Research, Alain Maasri, Sonja C. Jähnig, Hendrik Freitag, 93 Co-Authors

Biology Faculty Publications

Global freshwater biodiversity is declining dramatically, and meeting the challenges of this crisis requires bold goals and the mobilisation of substantial resources. While the reasons are varied, investments in both research and conservation of freshwater biodiversity lag far behind those in the terrestrial and marine realms. Inspired by a global consultation, we identify 15 pressing priority needs, grouped into five research areas, in an effort to support informed stewardship of freshwater biodiversity. The proposed agenda aims to advance freshwater biodiversity research globally as a critical step in improving coordinated actions towards its sustainable management and conservation.

Proceedings - Climate Change: Threats, Risks And Vulnerabilities, Centre For Business And Economic Research (Cber), Hanns Seidel Foundation, Pakistan

Conference Proceedings

Pakistan is one of the world’s most climate vulnerable countries ranking fifth in the list. It has experienced various disasters in recent decades, including floods, droughts and intense heat waves causing thousands of fatalities. Moreover, due to the deterioration of the Indus Delta approximately 1.2 million people dispersed and shifted to urban hubs like Karachi. Researchers have projected an increase in frequency and severity of these catastrophic environmental events, causing food and water scarcity, health and socio-economic issues in coming decades.

Climate change is no longer a threat but has become an existential crisis. There is a need for immediate …

Becoming A Place Of Unrest : Environmental Crisis And Ecophenomenological Praxis, Robert Booth

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

The key to mitigating the environmental crisis isn’t just based on science; it depends upon a profound philosophical revision of how we think about and behave in relation to the world.

Our ongoing failure to interrupt the environmental crisis in a meaningful way stems, in part, from how we perceive the environment—what Robert Booth calls the "more-than-human world.” Anthropocentric presumptions of this world, inherited from natural science, have led us to better scientific knowledge about environmental problems and more science-based—yet inadequate—practical “solutions.” That’s not enough, Booth argues. Rather, he asserts that we must critically and self-reflexively revise how we perceive …

Hook-Billed Kite, Chondrohierax Uncinatus, Southbound Autumn Migration In Belize And Mexico, Ryan Anthony Phillips

Master's Theses

The Hook-billed Kite (Chondrohierax uncinatus) is a specialized Neotropical raptor with a wide distribution that has received little research attention. The species is considered non-migratory across most of its distribution, but there are scattered records of Hook-billed Kite migration. The present research describes, for the first time, the largest southbound autumn migration of Hook-billed Kite in Belize and Mexico and evaluates the effects of environmental conditions on this phenomenon. Eight years of count data were collected in Belize and 25 years in Mexico. During a total of 3093.1 count hr from 2013-2020 in Belize, 39928 Hook-billed Kites were counted on …

Effects Of Varying Heat Indexes On Habitat Utilization And Behavior On Captive Red-Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia Rubra), Jeffrey Gammon

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

The two captive red-ruffed lemurs (Varecia rubra) at the Central Florida Zoo experienced a more temperate climate and utilized a differing habitat than they would in their native range, Madagascar. Proper management of the species in captivity is crucial for its long-term survival as they are critically endangered. Over a four month period, heat index temperature, lemur behavior, and habitat utilization data were collected via an instantaneous scan sample. Variables were analyzed to characterize how variations in heat index alter habitat utilization and behavior of the captive lemurs. As the heat index increased, habitat use became more restricted …

Evidence For The Effects Of Decommissioning Man-Made Structures On Marine Ecosystems Globally: A Systematic Map Protocol, Anaëlle J. Lemasson, Antony M. Knights, Murray Thompson, Gennadi Lessin, Nicola Beaumont, Christine Pascoe, Ana M. Queirós, Louise Mcneill, Michaela Schratzberger, Paul J. Somerfield

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Background: Numerous man-made structures (MMS) have been installed in various parts of the ocean (e.g. oil and gas structures, offshore wind installations). Many are now at, or nearing, the end of their intended life. Currently, we only have a limited understanding of decommissioning effects. In many locations, such as the North Sea, regulations restrict decommissioning options to complete removal, with little consideration of alternative management options might offer. To generate a reliable evidence-base to inform the decision-making processes pertaining to marine MMS management, we propose a wide-encompassing systematic map of published research on the ecosystem effects (including ecosystem services) of …

Spawning Migration Characteristics And Ecology Of Eulachon (Thaleichthys Pacificus), Robert E. Spangler

Fisheries

Eulachon Thaleichthys pacificus has experienced dramatic reductions in their distribution and abundance along the west coast of North America. This prompted the listing of this species as "Threatened" under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973 for populations found in the southern portions of their range, but not in Alaska. Key gaps in knowledge of Eulachon spawning ecology exist that impede population monitoring efforts and habitat protection. Currently, many monitoring efforts ignore estuaries as possible spawning habitat leading to inaccurate estimates of population abundance and trends. Furthermore, estuaries are not designated as critical spawning habitat for Eulachon. This is …

Effects Of Urbanization And Habitat On The Diet And Reproduction Of Red-Shouldered Hawks In Central California, Catherine Y. Fisher

Master's Theses

Urbanization alters biological community interactions and trophic structures compared to natural habitats; these changes may be reflected in the diets of apex predators such as raptors. The red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) is a dietary generalist that is expanding from natural and rural habitats into urbanized areas. In this study, direct observation was used to quantify the diet and reproductive success of red-shouldered hawks in Santa Clara County, California during the 2019 breeding season. GIS methods were used to quantify the nesting habitat and level of urbanization at each nest. Hawk diet consisted of mammals (50.4% by frequency and 77.7% by …

Wangari Maathai, Tabitha M. Kanogo

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Wangari Muta Maathai is one of Africa’s most celebrated female activists. Originally trained as a scientist in Kenya and abroad, Professor Maathai returned to her home country of Kenya with a renewed political consciousness. There, she began her long career as an activist, campaigning for environmental and social justice while speaking out against government corruption. In 2004, Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her leadership of the Green Belt Movement, a conservation effort that resulted in the restoration of African forests decimated during the colonial era.

In this biography, Tabitha Kanogo follows Wangari Maathai from her modest, rural …

Visual Rhetoric Worksheet, Janelle Poe

Open Educational Resources

Designed for a Writing for the Sciences course at CCNY, this worksheet is to be completed after watching an environmental journalism video on noise pollution by David Owens for The New Yorker (2019). Students can complete individually, in pairs, or groups. Largely focused on analyzing visual rhetoric, creator, publisher, and audience bias, students should complete this worksheet after learning the elements of visual rhetoric to assist with the development of their rough drafts for the Rhetorical Analysis/Visual Rhetoric essay assignment.