Digital Commons Network^™

Hawaii’S Future Is Kānaka Maoli: Reconciling The Colonization Of Hawai’I To Promote A Greener Future, William Johnston

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper will focus on the social and environmental degradation of the Kānaka Maoli people and the Hawaiian Islands and will show how Kānaka Maoli philosophy, culture, and knowledge will not only help combat climate change but how they are necessary for the continuation of life through and after this climate crisis. The destruction of our planet and the destruction of indigenous life have gone hand in hand in the United States, and throughout history, the decisions that have affected the environment affected Native Americans and vice versa. As the United States moves towards a greener and more sustainable way …

U.S. International Climate Finance: An Analysis Of Historical Shortfalls And A Proposal For More Equitable Distribution, Maria-Cristina Kealey

Master's Projects and Capstones

Least-developed countries experienced 69% of deaths from climate disasters over the past 50 years despite comprising only 13% of the world’s population. Low-income and climate vulnerable nations around the world are suffering disproportionately as wealthy, high-emitting countries, such as the U.S., profit from the climate crisis. This research provides a comprehensive overview of past U.S. contributions to international climate finance efforts, assesses the climate finance deficit globally and specifically for developing countries, and proposes a more equitable share of U.S. funding from a quantitative and restorative climate justice approach. The primary analyses included quantifying the U.S. share of global greenhouse …

“We Have To Fight For Change”: Intersecting And Ongoing Crises Amongst Farmworker Families Along The Monterey Bay Central Coast, Mikayla S. Feliciano

Master's Projects and Capstones

This study examines the crises farmworkers are experiencing along the Monterey Bay Central Coast. It analyzes and reviews housing insecurity, deficit to basic needs, and the environmental impact of storms and pesticides exposure. In January of 2023, the central coast experienced an immense amount of rain, atmospheric rivers, and a levee break that the Salinas and Pajaro Valley communities' infrastructure could not handle. These storms caused even more financial and economic peril for the already struggling farmworkers and their children. This research aims to highlight the importance of farmworking families in the community and what social barriers they face. Information …

Access To Environmental Justice In Canadian Environmental Impact Assessment, Thomas Gilmour, Jocelyn Stacey

All Faculty Publications

Contemporaneous reforms to Canada and British Columbia’s environmental impact assessment legislation have the potential to advance Access to Environmental Justice. Access to Environmental Justice is the ability of individuals and communities who are disproportionately and negatively impacted by environmental decisions to access legal and regulatory processes and to have their concerns heard and addressed through environmental decision-making and dispute resolution. Access to Environmental Justice connects concepts of environmental justice, public participation, the rule of law, and access to justice to provide a framework for evaluating the implementation of environmental impact assessment laws. We conducted a preliminary analysis of early implementation …

An Anthropogenic Mass Extinction: Speculation About The Future Of Humanity And Other Species, Grace M. Nelson

Student Theses 2015-Present

This thesis will address the possibility of a sixth mass extinction at the hands of humanity and the adaptations ecosystems may undertake in recovery. Today, the world is witnessing incredibly fast changes in climate conditions that are causing severe biodiversity loss. Haiti is a region that encompasses the impacts of both environmental degradation and humanity’s social influences on the environment. Haiti will be examined throughout this thesis to provide an understanding of how climate change impacts people and the natural world today. Non-anthropogenic rapid climate change is the root of most past mass extinctions. However, after these events, ecosystems have …

Revitalizing New York City Food Deserts: On Addressing, Examining, And Solving Food Insecurity In New York City, Eleanor Ann Rodde

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper aims to expose the food deserts of New York City and present ways that the government and non-governmental organizations can combat food insecurity in the urban environment. Food deserts are the product of insufficient access, availability, utilization, and stability of food in a particular area due to environmental racism. Food insecurity in New York City will rise with the increased impacts of climate change on our agricultural system. To that end, disadvantaged neighborhoods will bear the burden of environmental costs. The first chapter of this paper considers the failing agricultural system to prove that massive reform to protect …

Breaches In The Levee: Increasing Sea Level Rise And Hurricane Activity In New Orleans, Ian A. Gere

Student Theses 2015-Present

No abstract provided.

Confessions Of A Contemporary Consumer: Environmental And Humanitarian Impacts Of Fast Fashion, Maria Jose Salume

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper addresses the impacts fast fashion has on the environment and people, drawing from the reality in South Asia and the Shein factory located there, while also addressing global consequences. Today’s consumer culture has incited a behavior of purchasing clothing at a rate that has never been seen before. Trends go in and out, and along with them, the clothing items that are created to fit the current styles. Fast fashion has become an environmental issue due to the amount of fabrics that are being incinerated and discarded daily that pollute the oceans and land. Additionally, it is a …

Urban Agriculture: Sowing Seeds Of Sustainability In New York City, Taylor K. Takahashi

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper critically examines urban agriculture as a vital strategy for addressing the interconnected challenges of food insecurity and climate resilience in New York City. Chapter 1 employs quantitative data to illuminate the complex interplay between climate change and food injustice in New York City, highlighting reciprocal impacts and underscoring the urgency of intervention. Chapter 2 traces the historical trajectory of urban agriculture in New York City, emphasizing its anticipated contributions to the city's food security and climate resilience. This section also explores the diverse forms urban agriculture takes and assesses their suitability for the contexts of New York City. …

An Environmental Justice Framework For Transportation Equity, Alex Kay Depinho

Student Theses 2015-Present

In 2021, transportation accounted for 29% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, making it the largest contributor by sector, and 58% of these emissions came from the use of passenger cars and light-duty trucks. Electrification of personal vehicles and promotion of sustainable transit options is often centered in environmental discourse and policymaking, but many discussions neglect pertinent issues of social inequity at play. The transit-reliant urban poor, isolated in city centers by suburban sprawl, live in communities with not only a reduced access to jobs, healthcare, education and public resources, but an increased exposure to pollution, especially …

Climate Change And Environmental Crises In Coastal Cities: Charleston Vs New York City, Nolan Rodriguez

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper addresses the increasing vulnerability that coastal communities face regarding climate crises and rising sea levels. Specifically, this paper investigates the environmental crises facing Charleston, South Carolina, and New York City. The geographical location of these cities places a more severe threat upon their environment, as opposed to urban collectives removed from the immediate effect of rising sea levels. A cross-examination of politics and economics is discussed in order to determine the causal relationship of each city’s engagement with its surrounding environment. This paper examines how each city is affected by climate change, what measures are in place to …

Beyond The Tap: The Flint, Michigan Water Crisis As An Issue Of Environmental Racism, Vincent J. Vitanza

Student Theses 2015-Present

The following paper provides insight into the Flint, Michigan water crisis of 2014 through the lens of environmental racism. The Flint, Michigan water crisis saw the contamination of the municipal water supply of the town of Flint as a result of the decision to switch the main water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River as a temporary measure as the town of Flint switched to the Karegnondi Water Authority contract to supply their municipal water. Flint is a majority minority community, and the facets of race and socioeconomic status played a significant role in how the crisis was …

Sustainable Urban Design In New York City: The Case Study Of Manhattan’S Chinatown, Tiffany Wu

Student Theses 2015-Present

How should urban cities like New York City adapt with climate change? Can sustainability and cities co-exist? This paper addresses the environmental challenges New York City faces due to its geographical location and design plans of sustainable urban cities with a case study of Manhattan’s Chinatown. While there is existing discourse on ways to develop sustainably amid a grim environmental outlook, analyzing similar issues through racial and social perspectives are extremely critical particularly in a multi-culturally diverse city like NYC. This city offers rich architectural histories that intertwine with burgeoning immigrant communities during the 20th century. Chinatown, located in the …

The Air We Breathe: Understanding Individual Exposure To Air Pollution, Claire Culliton

Student Theses 2015-Present

Every day, people are exposed to air pollution. But not all people experience the same levels of exposure. Human exposure to ambient air pollution is commonly represented by the concentration of pollutants in the air outside, but this is not accurate in revealing the complex and individual experience that is pollution exposure. This paper reevaluates how we represent exposure to ambient pollution and presents data from an ongoing study to broaden our understanding of the role of indoor air quality. Chapter one uses quantitative data to describe the relationship between humans and ambient air pollution and explain why the current …

From Pasture To Pavement: Urban Expansion And Its Environmental Consequences In Perth, Anastasia Charelishvili

Student Theses 2015-Present

This thesis addresses the pressing issue of ecological problems of urban sprawl and its intricate impacts on urban health, with a particular focus on vulnerable communities in Perth, Australia. Chapter 1 presents the city's historical background and emphasizes the depletion of ecosystem services, underscoring the need for environmental justice. It also introduces the causes and effects of the sprawl in Perth and draws upon a diverse range of environmental problems created by suburbia, such as air pollution, biodiversity loss, water pollution, and runoff. As these threats translate into urban health declines, such as respiratory problems and increased healthcare issues, Chapter …

Addressing Air Quality Mitigation As A Key Factor In Asthma Management And Prevention, Julia Buckles, Jewel Radford

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Asthma is the most prevalent disease in childhood and disproportionately affects African American (AA) populations in terms of prevalence and frequency of exacerbations. Air quality and environmental factors are strongly associated with the diagnosis and management of asthma and AA children are more likely to live in areas with poor air quality. An air quality flag program was implemented in a daycare located in a county with a predominantly AA population with a high prevalence of asthma diagnoses. The goal of the intervention was to increase staff awareness of air quality and the impact it can have on asthma diagnosis …

Diverse Voices, Sticky Maps And Wicked Patterns. Using Creative Methods To Explore Environmental Justice, Clare Saunders, Daksha Patel

Green Humanities: A Journal of Ecological Thought in Literature, Philosophy & the Arts

Environmental justice is multi-faceted. It is distributional, procedural and context inter-dependent. Achieving environmental justice therefore requires transdisciplinary thinking and collaborative practice with participants holding a variety of experiences and knowledges. This paper explores the different meanings of environmental justice in theory, and through artistic practices. It introduces and evaluates a series of creative workshops designed to enhance understanding of environmental justice. The workshops consisted of 1) image-informed co-created cross-national Zoom conversations; 2) using colours and shapes to tease out meanings of environmental justice; and 3) mapping local environmental injustices while centring more-than-humans. It proposes that these creative methods are useful …

Perceptions Of Environmental Justice And Water Quality In The United States, Paige M. Jewell

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

My thesis explores the comparisons of water quality and environmental justice. A survey was conducted that allowed for demographics, hometown information, and opinions on hometown water quality to be gathered from the Butler community. Based on the findings in the survey and current events found within an extensive literature review, three states were chosen to receive further analysis on their current water quality and environmental justice standards. For these three states, current water pollutants, current solution implementations, population impacted, and community involvement were all looked into and analyzed.

Water Justice And Equity: The Disproportionate Effects Of Pollution On Black, Indigenous, And Other Communities Of Color, Rae Cade

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Access to clean drinking water is a basic human right, regardless of an individual’s background. Yet, discriminatory practices in the United States have disproportionately burdened Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) with contaminated sources of water. Understanding how and why water is disproportionately contaminated in areas with increased diversity, and identifying and targeting areas of environmental injustice, are essential steps for ensuring future water equity. Here, I examine the drivers of inequitable access to clean drinking water within the northeastern United States. In chapter one, I look at the historical drivers of land inequity within the United States. …

Breathing Inequity: A Mixed Method Analysis Of Rubbertown's Air Quality Problem, Mikayla Pitmon

Undergraduate Theses

Louisville Metro Government has a multitude of quantitative data on demographics, health, and air quality in Rubbertown fenceline communities. This study explores how community-level research allows us to have a more robust understanding of the impact of environmental injustice. Spatial data was utilized to map various health variables, zoning, and community spaces relative to Rubbertown chemical facilities. A semi-structured interview was then conducted with a local environmental justice activist to gain a better understanding of their experience and the barriers to environmental justice for the residents of West Louisville. This study improves our understanding of community needs and adds a …

Bad Water: A Critical Analysis Of Three Municipal Water Crises Through The Lens Of Political Ecology, Noelle Evelyn Schacht

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

In this paper, I analyze the municipal water crises of Flint, Michigan; Toledo, Ohio; and Jackson, Mississippi through the lens of political ecology to determine how history, power, and society have shaped the troubled water system we see in the United States today. In cities around the US, citizens cannot access clean water, violating a basic human right. Policies have been implemented to protect citizens from consuming contaminated water but are poorly enforced. Additionally, despite knowledge of the ongoing problems including insufficient treatment, outdated infrastructure, and overly contaminated source water, little has been done to remedy the situation. The theoretical …

(De)Composition: Earthen Storytelling For Collective Liberation, Priya Subberwal

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This interdisciplinary portfolio is an investigation into ecological communication through pedagogical design, online collaborative learning spaces, digital and print media, and creative writing. Braiding lenses of queer ecology, decolonial studies, anarchism, and collaborative and creative practice, this work hopes to explore the field of environmental communication through avenues that are reciprocal, community-driven, and oriented towards environmental justice and collective, intersectional liberation. Through the three distinct components of 1) the creation and facilitation of an online learning community, the Spiritual Ecology Study Club at Advaya, 2) the editing and production of two issues of Camas Magazine, an environmental literary magazine based …

Protecting American Children: A Social-Ecological Analysis Of Pactp4, Julia Rossmiller

Student Works

The quantity of pesticides used annually in the United States exceeds one billion pounds every year, and the amount is only rising. The current law that governs the use of pesticides—The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), permits the use of 72 known pesticides that have been proven harmful and are banned in other countries. Research links the usage of pesticides to the health of individuals, families, and whole communities within the environment. Moreover, dangerous pesticides have been shown to disproportionately affect children, agricultural workers, people of color, and low-income communities. Despite the mounting evidence that confirms the adverse …

Environmental Justice: Assessing The Impact Of Socioeconomic Status On Drinking Water Quality In Kentucky, Morgann K. Rowe

Honors Theses

Poor water quality can lead to adverse health effects, and having access to clean water is essential to overall health. There are many possible sources of water contamination, and it is important to properly maintain water to ensure that it is up to standard. Socioeconomic status (SES) may influence drinking water quality, and marginalized populations may be the victims of disparities. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets drinking water standards through the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), and violations can be issued if water standards are not met. Previous research suggests low-income non-white populations may experience higher water violations. Rural …

Clearing The Air: Addressing Utah’S Pollution Crisis Through Legal Reform And Environmental Justice, Eduardo A. Rios, Catherine Patino-Celedon

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Within the context of structural racism and economic inequality, Black and Latino communities confront disproportionate exposure to environmental hazards, amplifying health inequities. This article emphasizes the imperative for advancing environmental justice in Utah, where pervasive pollution exacerbates disparities. Furthermore, the disregard for community input by Utah's authorities perpetuates disparities in resource allocation. This narrative aligns with a nationwide trend wherein marginalized populations confront grave environmental risks. Concurrently, escalating concerns regarding air quality in Utah highlights the far-reaching consequences of pollution on public health, necessitating comprehensive legislative action to safeguard vulnerable communities.

Foreword To Water Law In A Changing Climate, Emily Wells

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Climate change impacts all aspects of water from precipitation, river flow, groundwater, and sea levels, resulting in increased droughts and extreme weather events. Once predictable and stable resources have become uncertain in a changing climate. As a result, our laws face new challenges and must answer new questions, and they need to adapt. The William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review symposium “Water Law in a Changing Climate” highlighted the various issues and challenges facing our legal system when it comes to water. Our symposium consisted of experienced panelists and presenters with diverse expertise who each elaborated on the …

Environmental Justice, Resilience Justice, And Watershed Planning, Craig Anthony (Tony) Arnold, Resilience Justice Project Researchers

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Watershed planning is an increasingly used governance tool for addressing environmental problems at ecosystem scales of watersheds, which are areas of land that drain to a common body of water. In recent years, watershed planning in the United States has been undergoing an “equity evolution”: watershed planners have begun integrating environmental justice considerations into their plans, often in response to demands by low-income communities of color. This Article explores a comprehensive set of principles, processes, analytical tools, and strategies for equitable watershed planning. It integrates a resilience justice perspective with environmental justice. Resilience justice is concerned with the systemically unequal …

A War On Resistance: Police Repression And Criminalization Of Land Defense Movements, Lydia Macy

Tapestries: Interwoven voices of local and global identities

Statement of Purpose:

In this paper, I examine the roles and functions of policing in the United States in relation to environmental justice movements and protest. Building upon analyses of the history of policing and their role in enforcing and maintaining racial capitalism, I explore how the police enable and protect the destruction of land and environments. To demonstrate the intersections of policing, racial capitalism, and environmental crises I use three case studies: the protests at Standing Rock to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline, the movement to Stop Line 3, and the movement to Stop Cop City. I found my …

Urban Farm, Not Toxic Harm: East Phillips Urban Farm And The Indigenous Right To The City, Oli Palmera Tierney

Tapestries: Interwoven voices of local and global identities

The East Phillips neighborhood in South Minneapolis has been planning to transform an abandoned warehouse into an indoor urban farm for nearly a decade. When the city of Minneapolis announced it would demolish the warehouse–releasing arsenic from the soil into the community–and use the land for a public works facility, a fierce battle over environmental justice and the right to produce space (a theory popularized by Henri Lefebvre) ensued. East Phillips is a geographically significant place: It has the largest urban concentration of Indigenous people in the country, and it is the birthplace of the American Indian Movement. Indigenous land …

Natural Resources In The Arctic: The Equal Distribution Of Uneven Resrouces, Ganeswar Matcha, Sudarsanan Sivakumar

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

This paper analyses the governance machine in place at the Arctic and examines the application of the principles of “common heritage of mankind” at the Arctic. This paper also offers some tentative propositions aimed at protecting Out Bound investment rights and how the World Trade Organization or other countries, like the U.S., can intercede in the Arctic investment sphere and attempt to regulate along with the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea.