Environmental Education Commons^™

The Prairie Post Quarterly Newsletter Of The High Plains Regional Climate Center- January 2019, Natalie Umphlett, Rezaul Mamood, Warren Pettee, Gannon Rush, Crystal J. Stiles

Prairie Post: Quarterly Newsletter of the High Plains Regional Climate Center

Inside this issue:

Message from the director........................................1

Staff spotlight...........................1

Year in review............................2

Drought THIRA toolkit...........3

Product highlight....................4

Update on regional climate conditions..................................4

Other HPRCC news.................5

Recent and upcoming travel and activities.............................6

Birds In The Urban Landscape, Center For Urban Resilience

Module 10: Garden Ecology

No abstract provided.

Shizen Nōhō: Restoring The Relationship Between Food, Nature, And People In Japan, Katharine Graham

Scripps Senior Theses

In Japan’s postwar era, agriculture has become highly industrialized, involving heavy machinery, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides, all in the name of “progress.” Through employing such practices, humans have attempted to improve upon nature’s way of doing things, and in turn have degraded the soil’s fertility, natural ecosystems, and human health. In response to this, Shizen Nōhō has emerged in Japan as an alternative way of cultivating food. Shizen Nōhō practitioners challenge the notion that we need chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and machinery to farm successfully. Rather, they advocate for a way of growing food that functions seamlessly with natural ecosystems. This …

Post-Glacial Fire History Of Horsetail Fen And Human-Environment Interactions In The Teanaway Area Of The Eastern Cascades, Washington, Serafina Ferri

All Master's Theses

Landscapes of the Pacific Northwest have been shaped by dramatic shifts in climate since the last glacial maximum and more recently, by human activity. However, it is unclear how past relationships between people, fire, and climate interacted on the landscape. The purpose of this research was to reconstruct the post-glacial fire history of a wetland known as Horsetail Fen, located in the Teanaway area of the eastern Cascades of Washington State. The goal was to evaluate how fire activity has varied under different climatic scenarios during the last ~16,000 years and in relation to human land-use actions. This lake was …

Treatment Of Plastic Wastes Using Plasma Gasification Technology, Zachary A. Homolka

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Plasma gasification (PG) complements traditional recycling when applied to contaminated or

mixed plastics. Without PG these plastics cost recyclers more to process than they are worth on the market, and sometimes they are landfilled or incinerated instead of being recycled. Plasma gasification can take plastic not suitable for traditional recycling and break it down into high-quality syngas for use in electricity generation, chemical manufacturing, or hydrogen production. The technology can be implemented without changing the behavior of consumers, which is a major advantage over attempting to decrease contamination or reduce use of low-value plastic. Due to high capital requirements and …

Factors Perceived By Multifamily Property Owners And Managers As Beneficial In Improving Energy Efficiency, Alex David Arneson

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Maintaining the existence of affordable housing stock is an important goal for most cities and

communities, as well as at the state and national level. Compared to single-family housing, the multifamily housing sector poses a unique set of challenges and barriers related to investments in energy efficiency. With more than 50 million Americans, many of whom are low income, living in multifamily housing, this sector presents vast opportunities to reduce energy consumption. Reducing our carbon footprint has become an important issue in today’s society. More than ever, there is increased demand to incorporate ‘green’ sustainable design elements and technologies into …

The Effects Of Multilingualism Of Executive Function, Isabella Catalano

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

In today's world, monolingualism is in the minority (Alonso et al., 2017); however, there is still a lack of understanding about the potential effects of being bi- or multilingual, and whether there is an effect of bilingualism in executive function is debated, given multiple contradictory studies (Paap et al., 2015). This study aims to more closely examine whether the number of languages spoken is related to executive function. In this study, sixty-three participants (mean age = 19.9 years, males = 10) completed the Stroop and flanker tasks, measures of inhibitory control, as well as the Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire, …

A Trail Plan For The Prairie Corridor, Michaela Daugherty

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

South of Lincoln, Nebraska a conservation project is underway to create a passage between Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center and Pioneers Park Nature Center. The passage way between the two parks will be restored to its natural state of tallgrass prairie. Eventually, a walking and bike path will be constructed through the corridor to join the parks. The passage has the potential to educate the surrounding community about their natural history and to connect them to their environment and their cultural heritage. Through this thesis and a systematic literature review, we examine different modes of outdoor education, interpretations, guided and …

A Systems Perspective Of Changes Within Pastoralist Populations In And Around Sibiloi National Park, Kenya, Cody Willnerd

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

In recent years, pastoralist settlement around Sibiloi National Park in Kenya has increased illegal grazing within the park’s boundaries. This issue stems from a myriad of causes, such as; food aid, sedentism, better access to healthcare, lack of grazing land, increase in number of droughts and increase in number of livestock head. The region has a significant lack of research on the topic and a systems perspective will be constructed in this research paper. The systems perspective will be constructed with the use of past literature and interviews answered by those who live in the East Turkana region. Findings have …

Using The Theory Of Planned Behavior To Understand University Students Recycling Behavior, Vanessa Sonnenfeld

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Improving recycling behavior is an important means to reducing the ever-increasing amount of waste sent to landfills. When discussing sustainable behaviors, such as recycling, the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) can be used to explain why people make the decisions they do. The Theory of Planned Behavior utilizes attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioral control to be the predictors of behavioral intention. Once we can better explain why students decide to recycle or not to recycle we can utilize this data to increase recycling rates. The Theory of Planned Behavior was used as a basis for this study in order …

Recruiting And Retaining K9–16 Students Through Field- And Laboratory - Based Geoscience Experiences, Nazrul I. Khandaker, Stanley Schleifer, Arif M. Sikder, Krishna Mahabir, Ality Aghedo, Charren Cabaroy, Mildred M. Selby, Gugu Ginindza, Leonardo Sanchez

Publications and Research

Since 2004, we have been directly involved with the GSA to provide access and opportunities for K9-16 students, particularly those interested in the broader aspects of geoscience-related topics, to present their field-and- laboratory based research outcomes at professional conferences and to learn from each other. So far, well-over 400 students from the U. S. and abroad have taken advantage of this opportunity and participated our topical sessions. It is quite gratifying to report that many of these students, as a result of their attendance at the GSA conference, felt a continuing need for exposure to high-level professional venues with effective …

Understanding Electricity Bills: Guidance For Nebraska Businesses And Municipalities, Elizabeth M. Regier, Bruce I. Dvorak

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Faculty Publications

This publication is intended to help business owners and municipal managers understand the different types of charges in their electricity bills. By understanding these charges, they may be able to identify ways to reduce their electricity costs.

Book Review: Teaching Climate Change To Adolescents: Reading, Writing, And Making A Difference, Antonio Lopez

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Teaching Climate Change to Adolescents: Reading, Writing, and Making a Difference, is a book for English language arts and media literacy teachers that provides abundant resources for educators wanting to incorporate climate change instruction into their classrooms. This review explores the usefulness of the book and discusses more broadly the barriers and opportunities for incorporating environmental issues into media literacy education.

Assessment Of Total Suspended Solids And Total Phosphorus Removal By Wetlands And Best Management Practices In Lincoln, Nebraska, Deborah Marik

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The availability and quality of local surface and ground water, as well as water in the world’s oceans is essential to all. Urbanization brings with it changes in landscape that decreases soils capacity for infiltration of rain, and increase contaminants found in runoff conveyed to surface waters including oceans. Stormwater runoff occurs with small to large size rain events, flowing over a diverse range of impermeable surfaces removing and carrying with it total suspended solids (TSS) and total phosphorus (TP). For these reasons, best management practices (BMPs) were developed, and integrated into existing and future development. The objective is to …

The Prairie Post Quarterly Newsletter Of The High Plains Regional Climate Center- October 2018, Natalie Umphlett, Rezaul Mamood, Jamie Lahowetz, Warren Pettee, Dalton Van Stratten, Crystal J. Stiles

Prairie Post: Quarterly Newsletter of the High Plains Regional Climate Center

Inside this issue:

Message from the interim director........................................1

Staff spotlight...........................1

ACIS GIS portal release..........2

ACIS maps enhancement.....3

Product highlight....................4

Update on regional climate conditions..................................4

Update on tribal engagement............................................. 5

Recent and upcoming travel and activities.............................6

Sea Squad, Liam Geary Baulch

The Goose

The Sea Squad is a band of cheerleaders against climate change. Taking action as a team in formation, they gather momentum, inviting all people to cheer with them, mimicking the infinitely expandable nature of the seas' molecular structure. The work was developed and performed as a bilingual project at Est-Nord-Est in Saint-Jean-Port-Joli, Quebec, Canada, and has since been performed and exhibited internationally. The following poems are some of the chants that Sea Squad use to get a crowd cheering together against climate change.

Translating Global Nature: Territoriality, Environmental Discourses, And Ecocultural Identities, José R. Castro-Sotomayor

Communication ETDs

In this study, I explore environmental discourses circulating among Indigenous transboundary organizations working on environmental initiatives at the border between Ecuador and Colombia. I focus on three global environmental discourses –sustainability, development, and climate change– as they are at the core of the global environmental governance vernacular. La Gran Familia Awá Binacional (GFAB), one of the few transboundary Indigenous organizations working along the binational border, utilizes these global concepts to frame their environmental initiatives and projects. I use a critical and interpretive qualitative approach to investigate, deconstruct, and rearticulate global environmental discourses circulating among and translated by two of the …

Growing A Sustainable City?: The Question Of Urban Agriculture By Christina D. Rosan And Hamil Pearsall, Matthew Zantingh

The Goose

Review of Christina D. Rosan and Hamil Pearsall's Growing a Sustainable City?: The Question of Urban Agriculture.

Looking Toward The Future: The Value Of Geothermal Energy In The United States Power Market, Reilly R. Moran

STAR Program Research Presentations

States are creating renewable portfolio standards (RPSs) that require utilities to run off a certain percentage of renewables. With the new RPSs and current emission standards the dynamic of the grids energy and reliability needs are changing. Because RPSs and emission standards, utilities are procuring the cheapest renewable resources, which tend to be solar and wind. As RPSs increase over time this causes higher procurements of solar and wind. Higher procurement and increasing penetration levels of solar and wind is causing their energy values to decrease as well as some reliability concerns. While geothermal energy value will continue to stay …

Perils Of The Fungal Kingdom: Mycotoxins In Food And Feed, Adrianna Isobel Pribil

LSU Master's Theses

Humans and fungi have a complex relationship, especially in regards to the many fungal secondary metabolites that can be produced. When secondary metabolites are toxic to animals and humans they are defined as mycotoxins. Fungi can grow on crops pre-harvest and post-harvest, and have the potential to produce mycotoxins which occur regularly in animal feed and food for human consumption. In high doses, mycotoxins cause variety of problems that result in economic losses and extreme health issues. However, multiple mycotoxins will co-occur in nature and commonly occur in low doses. Thus chronic low daily doses of multiple mycotoxins overtime may …

The Prairie Post Quarterly Newsletter Of The High Plains Regional Climate Center- July 2018, Natalie Umphlett, Emily Brown, Crystal J. Stiles

Prairie Post: Quarterly Newsletter of the High Plains Regional Climate Center

Inside this issue:

Message from the interim director........................................1

Staff spotlight...........................1

GRAINEX project......................2

Product highlights..................3

Update on regional climate conditions..................................4

GIS Portal....................................4

Regional news..........................5

Recent and upcoming travel and activities.............................6

A Quantitative Analysis Of The Effects Of Urbanization, Mesophication And Prescribed Burns On Oak Woodlands In The Chicago Metropolitan Area, Chad Populorum

Celebration of Learning

Urban expansion has had devastating impacts on forest ecosystems, especially within the past century. Human attempts to dominate nature have diminished natural disturbance regimes, which have maintained the biodiversity and historic composition of these ecosystems. Fires have been a prominent force in maintaining the structure of oak, hickory and other heliophytic (sun loving and fire-adapted) forest systems. Human induced fire suppression has led to mesophication across North America. Mesophication is the transition from drier conditions with open canopies to wetter conditions with closed canopies. These new conditions decrease the survival rates of these important species and begin to favor mesophytic …

Radical Social Ecology As Deep Pragmatism: A Call To The Abolition Of Systemic Dissonance And The Minimization Of Entropic Chaos, Arielle Brender

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper aims to shed light on the dissonance caused by the superimposition of Dominant Human Systems on Natural Systems. I highlight the synthetic nature of Dominant Human Systems as egoic and linguistic phenomenon manufactured by a mere portion of the human population, which renders them inherently oppressive unto peoples and landscapes whose wisdom were barred from the design process. In pursuing a radical pragmatic approach to mending the simultaneous oppression and destruction of the human being and the earth, I highlight the necessity of minimizing entropic chaos caused by excess energy expenditure, an essential feature of systems that aim …

Impacts Of Educational Programming At Dolphins Plus On Visitor Knowledge, Attitude And Behavior, Carley Rice

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Zoos, aquariums, and similar institutions have been transitioning for many years from venues of entertainment to institutions of informal environmental education. This transition has led to these institutions claiming missions of conservation and education. The conservation education impacts of zoos and aquariums are not well understood. The literature is limited and at times inconclusive. Claims of conservation and education should be formally evaluated through survey research projects to determine validity. These types of studies will shed light on these institutions and aid in improving educational programs to best benefit conservation of wildlife, habitats and the environment. The purpose of this …

The Prairie Post Quarterly Newsletter Of The High Plains Regional Climate Center- April 2018, Natalie Umphlett, Crystal J. Stiles, Shellie Hanneman

Prairie Post: Quarterly Newsletter of the High Plains Regional Climate Center

Inside this issue:

Message from the interim director........................................1

Weather photo of the quarter.........................................1

Tribal climate summaries......2

Product highlights..................3

Update on regional climate conditions..................................4

State Climate Extremes Committee.................................4

Update on research................5

Recent and upcoming travel and activities.............................6

Interacting With The Trail: A Comprehensive Approach To Developing An Environmental Education Program For Agnolakely Private Nature Reserve, Claire Hamilton

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Madagascar is a diverse island, biologically and geographically. This has led to the development of endemic species and high biodiversity within the landscape. Unfortunately, due to poverty, extraction of natural resources, and a growing population, these species have become threatened. Agnolakely, is a private nature reserve, located in eastern Madagascar that is trying to combat these challenges through reforestation projects and land protection. Agnolakely is not only of ecological value, but is also integral in the community structure. As Agnolakely expands it has become essential to implement education and outreach for the reserve. This study was designed to collect biological …

Place-Based Pedagogy And The Creative Writing Classroom, Jennifer Case

Journal of Creative Writing Studies

Although compositionists have long appropriated and discussed place-based pedagogy’s ability to encourage environmental awareness and engage community issues, creative writing as a discipline has largely ignored place-based philosophies and environmental education. In fact, creative writing pedagogy often undermines place-based pedagogy by encouraging students to “write what they know” while simultaneously encouraging work with national rather than regional appeal. This article takes the first major step toward addressing this oversight by exploring the field’s assumptions about “place,” how these assumptions are influencing our classrooms, and how place-based composition and pedagogy could—and should—challenge and expand the ways we teach creative writing.

Agriculture In The Classroom Farm Day Lesson Plan, Tessa Nicole Thompson

Agricultural Education and Communication

Nontraditional educational programs have been proclaimed desirable by many teachers, and proven effective through data collection and feedback (Coombs and Ahmed, 1974). Of the more popular unconventional educational programs, outside learning activities are commonly implemented as they are not only advantageous to students, but to teachers as well (Cengelci, 2013; Knoblock, 2008). Though nontraditional, much thought must be put into creating lesson plans for these educational programs.

El Dorado County’s Agriculture in the Classroom program utilizes nontraditional outdoor learning activities to conduct “Farm Day.” This lesson plan, created for Farm Day, is to teach third graders the importance of composting …

Native Gardens In Southern California, Center For Urban Resilience

Module 10: Garden Ecology

No abstract provided.

The Prairie Post Quarterly Newsletter Of The High Plains Regional Climate Center- January 2018, Natalie Umphlett, Crystal J. Stiles

Prairie Post: Quarterly Newsletter of the High Plains Regional Climate Center

Inside this issue:

Message from the interim director........................................1

Weather photo of the quarter.................................................. 1

2017 - year in review..............2

2017 climate in the High Plains............................................3

Update on La Niña..................3

Update on regional climate conditions..................................4

Product Highlight....................4

HPRCC Turns 30........................5

Recent and upcoming travel and activities.............................6