Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Storybooks: A Teaching Tool For Sustainability, Amanda Medress

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

If today’s children learn to make decisions with the environment in mind, tomorrow’s future will be cleaner, greener, and energy leaner. Storybooks, which are a creative and imaginative learning tool, can influence children to pursue sustainable lifestyles. Early education through literature can help green decisions be the default mode for the next generation.

This project has two components. The first is to produce research on the following question: what kind of storybook instills environmental regard and motivates sustainable behavior? The second is to produce a children’s adaptation of Greeniology, a green living guide by Tanya Ha, which utilizes the findings …

Conceptions Of Wilderness In Tasmania, Sam Adels

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

With this project I set out collect and compare different conceptions of wilderness from individuals on all sides of the ongoing wilderness protection versus forestry debate in Tasmania. I purposed to share the results with all parties to bring them together to cooperate and work towards wilderness protection and sustainable forestry for the future of Tasmania. I spent 5 weeks in April and May of 2008 researching the history of the concept of wilderness as well as Tasmanian wilderness issues. I interviewed 11 subjects, involved in the wilderness versus forestry debate in many different arenas, including forest ecologists, wilderness academics, …

Atravesando La Amazonía: Carreteras, Desarrollo, & El Camino Del Desastre, Olivia De Lancie

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Road construction in the Amazon has greatly impacted its floral and faunal inhabitants. The opening of a new road in a previously isolated region exposes its populations to the economy for the first time, and to the possibility of enriching themselves through the extraction of their products. Unfortunately, this exchange of goods results in the aculturization of indigenous groups, and in the loss of their unique culture. The migration that the roads near indigenous communities encourages increases access to education and sources of work, but results in a nearly complete destruction of these communities’ social fiber. Economic and cultural exchanges …

The Current State Of Populations Of Diadema Antillarum On Isla Colón In Bocas Del Toro, Panamá, 25 Years After Mass Mortality, Leah T. Ritz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In January 1983, the worst recorded die-off of any marine animal hit the Caribbean beginning near the mouth of the Panama Canal and eventually wiping out nearly 99% of one of the most important herbivores in coral reef communities, Diadema antillarum—the long-spined sea urchin or Diadema. No populations of Diadema in the Western Atlantic are known to have escaped the drastic population declines. The loss of Diadema throughout the Western Atlantic has had long-lasting impacts on the structure and composition of many types of communities including coral reefs, mangrove roots, sea grass beds, and sand flats. Though the mortality was …

A Reassessment Of Avian Assemblages Along The Lakes Corridor In The Atherton Tablelands, North Queensland, Shaina N. Stewart

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Forest fragmentation is the process by which large areas of continuous forest are replaced by foreign ecosystems that restrict native growth to isolated patches. Biota remaining within these fragmented environments often suffer consequences that stem from reduced forest area. Wildlife corridors—linear patches of habitat that connect remnant fragments—have frequently been proposed to alleviate fragmentation effects by facilitating biotic movement between forest patches. Initiated in 1998, the Lakes Corridor on the Atherton Tablelands in North Queensland, Australia, connects the two formerly isolated sections of Crater Lakes National Park with the goal of promoting wildlife dispersal between them. This study monitored avian …

Why Logging? A Value Assessment Of Forestry Uses In The Huon Forest District, Ryan Bailey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Huon Forest District comprises 762,800 hectares of forests in southwest Tasmania, with 128,900 hectares of that total designated as state forest managed by Forestry Tasmania. These forests are used primarily for wood production, although tourism, carbon storage, leatherwood honey and the specialty timbers industry are competing for access to these forests. This study examines the socio-economic values of these uses and determines whether the Huon Forest District is being utilized efficiently.

To accomplish this, an extensive literature review of past research was conducted. This information supplemented 7 semi-structured interviews that were conducted with experts from the forestry industry, tourism …

To Live With The Sea: Community-Based Management Of Marine Resources In Southwest Madagascar, Hannah Pitt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“God intended us to fish, and we will fish until the end,” the elderly Vezo fisherman explained, shrugging his shoulders as if in resignation to an unavoidable truth (Niry). For a people whose history, culture, and economy have revolved around the sea for generations, the idea of preservation is just not palatable, he seemed to be saying. The momentum of tradition, in other words, cannot be stopped. Yet in 23 Vezo fishing villages in the region of Andavadoaka, along the southwest coast of Madagascar, communities have collectively established seasonal and permanent restrictions on critical fishing grounds that together make up …

Implementing Uganda’S National Wetlands Policy: A Case Study Of Kabale District, Sophie Glass

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Uganda’s “National Policy for the Conservation and Management of Wetland Resources” was launched in 1995 to promote the protection of Uganda’s wetlands in order to sustain their ecological and socioeconomic functions. Despite the formal policy, wetlands continue to be drained and converted. This report examines factors that account for the divide between the National Wetlands Policy and reality. Six weeks were spent researching the challenges associated with implementing the National Wetlands Policy. Kabale District was used as a case-study to better understand the issues that institutions and stakeholders face when trying to abide by the precepts of the policy. Rapid …

Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management In South Australia And Victoria, Rebecca Devries

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The detrimental impact from fishing on various species as well as on the overall ecosystem has increased so much over the years that the Australian fishing industry is currently in jeapordy. Scientists, fishery managers, government agencies, industry, and environmental organizations have therefore been actively developing and researching management strategies focused on finding a balance between fisheries and the ecosystem. A new holistic and promising approach, ecosystem-based fishery management, invested in ecological sustainability and the recognition of the critical interdependence between human well-being and ecological health, is currently proposed as the best solution for fishery management.

This paper will consequently investigate …

How Do Women In Prek Toal Village (Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve, Cambodia) Participate In And Benefit From Ecotourism?, Amy Dowley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Abstract This study assesses how women in the floating village of Prek Toal in the Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve, participate and benefit from the ecotourism activities in their area. The study also investigates women’s perspective on ecotourism within their community, how it affects their lives, and if they have expectations of current and future benefits or changes resulting from ecotourism. This study is conducted in the context of current studies on livelihoods in the Tonle Sap region, including the recent technical report, “Influence of Built Structures on Local Livelihoods: Case Studies of Road Development, Irrigation, and Fishing Lots,”(ADB, 2007a) identifying …

The Role Of Industrial And Traditional Fishing In Sustainable Resource Management, Aime Schwartz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For decades, the notion of ‘sustainable development’ has been a source of international contention and debate. While the meanings and implications of sustainable development are widely disputed, it is interpreted by many as an ideal that encompasses social, environmental and economic spheres while promoting the value of human rights in development. Theoretically, this approach allows for the quality of life of current and future generations to be considered in environmental decision-making and formally recognized by national and international standards, dictated primarily by wealthy industrialized governments (Adebowale et al 138). Policy-makers in developing nations continuously face the struggle to balance the …

La Musique Malgache : Moyen De Protection De L’Environnement, Geneviève Pearthree

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Madagascar, dont la diversité naturelle et culturelle sont sans pareilles dans tout le monde, représente un microcosme de la lutte mondiale de satisfaire les besoins humains et en même temps protéger les ressources naturelles desquelles tout le monde dépend pour survivre. Madagascar est une des régions les plus biodiversifiées du monde : plus de 80% des espèces des flores et 90% des faunes qui se trouvent dans l’île sont endémiques à Madagascar. Partout à Madagascar, cependant, la balance fragile entre la capacité de l’environnement à fournir les humains à leurs besoins et durer pour la prochaine génération a commencé à …

Antipodean Inscapes: Reflection Of The Land As A Young Man, Michael Kantor

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The following paper contains a stand-alone piece of creative travel writing. ‘Cloud Juice’ is based on my interpretation of the experiences of the Fall 2006 Australia: Sustainability and the Environment semester. As it is my own personal interpretation it should not be placed in the category of non-fiction. Instead I have tried to write a story that presents the tone of my experience as honestly as possible, rather than simply telling the unbiased facts of the semester. My reason for writing this is to experiment with alternative methods of communicating the growth of an ecological ethic. By focusing on the …

Ley Y Desorden: La Participación, La Política, Y La Planificación En El Archipiélago De Bocas Del Toro, Sage E. Trombulak

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Bocas del Toro Archipelago is quickly becoming one of Panama’s most popular destinations, both for tourists pursuing temporary fun-in-the-sun type activities and for wealthy Panamanians, Americans, and Europeans seeking a more permanent location for their vacation homes, luxury resorts, and retirement communities. These dual phenomena have become a subject of escalating concern for the political leadership in Bocas del Toro and for a plethora of local, regional, and international NGOs, as unprecedented levels of development are leading to the degradation of one of Panama’s most beautiful and biologically diverse landscapes, stresses on urban infrastructure, and rapid economic growth that …

Sea Urchin Predation In Misali Island Marine Park, Nicole Esclamado

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The populations of sea urchins and their main predators, triggerfish (Balistidae), wrasses (Labridae) and emperors (Lethrinidae), were studied in the extractive and non-extractive zones of the Misali Island Marine Conservation Area in order to (1) evaluate the applicability of a sea urchin-sea urchin predator model developed in Kenya’s fringing reefs, (2) gain baseline data on Misali’s coral reef, and (3) evaluate the recovery status of the protected zone. This study revealed the predictive power of the sea urchin-sea urchin predator model for the reef ecosystem of Misali Island. As expected, a decline in sea urchin predators as a gross trophic …

Interpreting Nature In Australia Through Poetry: A Personal Anthology Written Within The Erosion Caldera Of Northern New South, Kyla Allon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My Independent Study Project (ISP) involved traveling within the erosion caldera of northern New South Wales, mainly WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms) and writing environmental poetry about the places where I lived and worked. I began by researching past Australian environmental poets so that I could have a strong basic understanding before commencing my own writing. I lived in four different locations within the erosion caldera and strove to form a strong sense of place that is reflected in my poetry. Ultimately, I produced an anthology of poems that capture my responses to the natural environments that I experienced. …

Un Estudio De La Palma De Ramos, Ceroxylum Alpinum, En La Zona Intag, Ecuador, Lupe Moscoe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study addresses the endangered wax palm species, Ceroxylum alpinum, in the Ecuadorian cloud forest zone of Intag. Attention has recently arisen regarding this plant because the yellow-eared parrot, Ognorhynchus icterotis, which depends on it for food and nesting, is in critical danger of extinction. Much of this attention has targeted the use of wax palm fronds on Palm Sunday, but this investigation shows that this is only one of the many threats to the palm. Environmentalists in Intag are currently undertaking reforestation projects in community reserves to save the palm, but little is known about its development. This study …

The Development Of Environmental Consciousness And Identity In Surfing Subculture, Alex Mass

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since the 1960’s and 1970’s, surfing has exuded the stereotype of a laid-back, environmentally conscious and left-wing culture, a connotation often spread through media outlets such as movies, television, and music that encourage the idea. While the stereotype is often known and widely accepted, no studies could be found that actually tested this view. Using a series of interviews and surveys of the New Ecological Paradigm, this study investigated the formation of environmental consciousness and identity in surfing subculture in order to examine the accuracy of such stereotypes, and analyse the effect that such generalized views have on the formation …

Drowning Shangrila: Balancing Environmental Protection With Development In China, Tessa A. Vennell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Análisis Del Desarrollo Sustentable En La Industria Del Salmón En Chile, Theresa Mohin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The focus of this independent study project is sustainable development, in the context of the Chilean salmon industry. The project centers on the environmental impacts of the salmon business, from its introduction as a fledgling industry in the eighties, to its arrival as one of the most important exporting markets in the Chilean economy. The discussion focuses on the economic history of the salmon industry, its environmental consequences, and the role of the government in environmental regulation, to discover whether or not current environmental programs in place are in fact sustainable. I conclude that while the efforts of the Chilean …

Agroecology Of The Naso-Teribe: The Management And Conservation Of Traditional Agroecological Systems, Maisie Ganz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The term “agroecology” is used to describe the sustainable design and management of agricultural systems by the application of ecological concepts and principles. The resulting agroecosystems, often practiced by indigenous or poor farmers in marginal environments without access to external technologies, are systems of food production that integrate cultivated crops into surrounding ecosystems. The Naso-Teribe, an indigenous community of approximately 3,800 individuals living in the forests of western Panama, practice a complex agroecological system. The Naso farmers’ agricultural practices contribute to, and are dependent on, the biodiversity of resources available. The ways in which Naso farmers manage, maintain, and preserve …

Periodismo Medioambiental, Peter Weisberg

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

INTAG is a community run, environmental newspaper that serves the county of Intag on the western slopes of the Andes in northern Ecuador. For the month of November 2005, I worked for the newspaper, writing articles and researching ways in which the paper can increase communication among different organizations that formed over the last eleven years of resistance to proposed mining. After interviewing eleven community leaders, I conclude that the paper can 1) do more to elicit the participation of groups that are currently inactive and 2) maintain its ecological position while gaining credibility by constructively criticizing the anti-mining community …

Natural Loggers: Leaf Cutter Ants As Pests In Northwestern Ecuador, Aaron Honig

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The biological world is under attack. All across the world in every continent and sub-continent biological diversity is rapidly decreasing (Wilson, 1999). As the human population continues to exponentially increase, especially in Third World countries where biological diversity reaches its peak, countless diverse biological habitats are threatened by accelerating human consumption and the growing needs of growing human populations. In Ecuador, only 1% of the original tropical forest remains, as a result of the accelerating need of viable agricultural tracts for Ecuador’s relatively poor farmers, as well as the unsustainable harvest of valuable hardwood tree species endemic to Ecuador’s primary …

Transmission Of Environmental And Conservation Knowledge In Andohahela National Park, Mika S. Nagasaki

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Andohahela National Park : Legends and Laws

The legendary forests of Andohahela National Park (N.P.) have long been respected as a source of inspiration and life for the Anosy region in the extreme southeast of Madagascar. Hundreds of years ago, according to various oral traditions, Prince Mana offered himself as a sacrifice in order to quench the drought that brought war and famine to his people, the Tahela (a clan of the Anosy tribe). Zanahary, the Malagasy creator, responded by unleashing the rains and springs in the mountains, which made the land fertile again, and stopped the wars. In gratitude, …

Environmental Sustainability And The Traditional Tibetan Home, Katherine Shrader

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In Tibetan Buddhism, the srivatsa, or glorious endless knot, reminds one of the truth of reality. Six right-angled, intertwined strands flow endlessly together, each one connected to the other, each one giving form to the next. So flows reality. Looking past the illusion of isolation, the endless knot illustrates the interdependence and mutual cooperation that runs the world.

No event, no living being has the ability to stand by itself, completely unaffected and unaffecting. All phenomena are intertwined. Every human action, however big or small, impacts the world in some way. The endless knot unveils the truth of reality so …

Art And Democracy In Environmental Decision Making, Audrey Stewart

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Global doctrines on sustainable development emphasize public participation as a tenet of environmentally responsible development. Given the Czech government’s tepid stance towards implementing sustainability measures, much impetus for realizing them will have to come from other facets of Czech society, including the public. In spite of the nearly populist feel of a mounting environmental movement in the late 1980s, after the Velvet Revolution the Czech public remained relatively disengaged from environmental involvement. Traditional decision-making venues within the Czech Republic now actively exclude the public from participating, while other pressures stemming from history and present also diminish the public impetus for …

Using The Trees To Understand The Forest: Evaluating The Risks Of The Panama Canal Amplification Project, Caroline Gross

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For over a decade, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) and its United States predecessor have contemplated a Canal Amplification Project to allow larger boats to pass through the Panama Canal. This project, as it is currently understood, would involve the construction of a new, “third” set of locks with greater capacity, the widening of channels within the Canal, and the flooding of approximately 45,000 hectares of land currently occupied by campesinos/as. Since the passage of a 1999 law that expanded the definition of the Panama Canal Watershed by 63 percent, some campesinos/as have united to oppose the flooding of their …

A Comparison Of Anuran Species Richness Between Primary And Secondary Forest In São Francisco Do Pará, Michael Reichert

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Deforestation in the Amazon has become a serious conservation issue. The process of destruction of primary forest results in the creation of secondary forest that differs from primary forest in a number of important ways. Anurans (frogs and toads) are one group that may be affected by the loss of primary forest and creation of secondary forest areas, and are an important focus for conservation efforts. Previous studies on anuran reactions to loss of primary forest have been few and inconclusive. This study examined anuran species richness in an area of primary and secondary forest in order to determine whether …