Place and Environment Commons^™

Tending The Flowers, Cultivating Community: Gardening On New York City Public Housing Sites, Lauren Sepanski Fcrh '12

The Fordham Undergraduate Research Journal

Founded in 1934, The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) is the nation’s oldest and largest public housing agency. Nearly half a million people live in NYCHA’s 334 housing developments located throughout the five boroughs. If a NYCHA resident wants to garden, he or she may submit a garden application to his or her development’s management office and begin to garden in a place approved by the development’s manager. Some developments have preordained places for their residents to garden, complete with fences. In other developments, residents simply choose a place on the development’s grounds, such as a part of a …

Earning A Living In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2014 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben

Nebraska Rural Poll

Most rural Nebraskan households have full-time employment and many employed households derive part of their household income from self-employment. Self-employment is more prevalent in smaller communities. Most rural Nebraskans living in or near the smallest communities have self-employment in their household.

Some rural Nebraska households also have multiple job holding by members of the household. Again, this is more likely to occur in the smallest communities.

Most self-employed rural Nebraskan households get less than one-half of their total household income from self-employment. However, over one-quarter (29%) of self-employed rural Nebraskans get almost all of their household income from self-employment. Many …

Nasis 2014: Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey Questionnaire, Bureau Of Sociological Research

Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey (NASIS)

We need your help to learn about how Nebraskans think, feel, and live. Researchers from the University of Nebraska and across the state are counting on your help to learn about a variety of issues. Your responses will help shape program and policy development in Nebraska now and into the future.

93 questions; 12 pages

A Thin Blue Line And The Great Black Divide: The Inter And Intra Departmental Conflict Among Black Police Officers, Their Agencies, And The Communities In Which They Work Regarding Police Use Of Force Perception By Black Americans In A Southwestern State, Vance Debral Keyes

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the relationship between Black police officers, Black citizens, and their external environment using a group of 30 police officers and citizens to establish the connection between police officer race and perceptions by same race citizens within the context of police use of force. I use the term Black to be inclusive of African Americans as well as others of African descent without regard to their ethnicity or national origin. Criminal justice means system application whereas criminology is the study of criminal behavior. In America, there exists a history of volatility between the police and Black communities. While …

Food Landscapes: A Case Study Of A Cooking And Art- Focused Program For Teens Living In A Food Desert, Jessica R. Norris

Theses and Dissertations

This study constructs themes and propositions about the experiences of youth participants in the fall 2013 Food Landscapes program at the Neighborhood Resource Center in Richmond, Virginia. During the program, youth participated in cooking-based volunteerism with adults with disabilities and created short videos about their experiences. In this study, I analyzed pre- and post-program participant interviews, twice-weekly program observations, and facilitator reflections to understand how Food Landscapes affected youths’ conception of community engagement and communication strategies. This case study offers insight into how youth experience after-school programming of this design. Based on my findings, youth develop and rely upon a …

Just Farming: An Environmental Justice Perspective On The Capacity Of Grassroots Organizations To Support The Rights Of Organic Farmers And Laborers, Rebecca Elaine Berkey

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This mixed methods study builds upon literature and research in environmental justice, public participation, and community development to examine how justice-related issues impact farmers and workers on organic farms in the Northeastern United States. It also examines how involvement in a grassroots organization helps farmers and workers address these issues. At the core of the study is an exploration of environmental justice and its applications at a broad, systemic level; an examination of the current context of laborers in organic agriculture in the Northeast; and finally an investigation of the effects of grassroots organizing within the Northeast Organic Farming Association …

Using An Iconic Story To Bring Communities Together To Develop A Tourism Experience, Denise O'Leary, Mary Rose Stafford

Conference papers

Tourism destination governance is concerned with the development and management of a destination; who is involved and how they are involved. Although the term governance was traditionally associated with politics and government structures it has become more broadly applied in recent years to also describe more grassroots approaches involving various community stakeholders such as individual business owners in tourism product and service provision, business owners in other sectors, community leaders and community residents Morrison (2013). Turbulence in the market has forced the tourism industry to move away from centralised, government-led, hierarchical type of governance towards more participatory approaches where stakeholders …

[Introduction To] More Than Shelter: Activism And Community In San Francisco Public Housing, Amy L. Howard

Bookshelf

In the popular imagination, public housing tenants are considered, at best, victims of intractable poverty and, at worst, criminals. More Than Shelter makes clear that such limited perspectives do not capture the rich reality of tenants’ active engagement in shaping public housing into communities. By looking closely at three public housing projects in San Francisco, Amy L. Howard brings to light the dramatic measures tenants have taken to create—and sustain and strengthen—communities that mattered to them.

More Than Shelter opens with the tumultuous institutional history of the San Francisco Housing Authority, from its inception during the New Deal era, through …

Dating Violence On Small Rural College Campuses: Are Administrator And Student Perceptions Similar?, Jean Allen Oldham

Theses and Dissertations--Kinesiology and Health Promotion

In recent years dating violence has become more and more prevalent on college campuses. Reports of the range of dating violence vary widely, with studies reporting from 20% to 85% of college women experiencing dating violence. However, almost all research has been conducted among urban and/or large colleges and universities, with virtually no attention to what is happening on small and/or rural college and university campuses.

When a possible 20% of college women have experienced dating violence on college campuses, there becomes a crucial need for administration at a college to have an accurate assessment of the college’s liability, and …

Theorizing More Inclusive Cities: A Relational Model Of Boundary Transformation And Urban Research Agenda, Leigh Graham

Publications and Research

To generate more inclusive environments for marginalized urban communities of color demands a strategy that privileges symbolic boundary change and uses it as the inroad towards spatial changes. This paper theorizes a three step relational process of a) communicative democratic activism, b) "multicultural" capital brokers providing access to the policy making process, and c) practices of community building that reflect the role of cities as key sites for sociospatial boundary transformation. An emphasis on discursive and ideational change, relying on communicative democratic processes steeped in historical, comparative analysis opens up our minds towards different classification schemes for stigmatized groups. Participating …

Hip-Hop, Medellín And Social Change, Veronica Henao Posada

Master's Theses

This study explores the ways in which the Hip-hop movement is producing social change in Medellín, Colombia. Looking specifically at a Hip-hop school called Cuatro Elementos Skuela, which exists autonomously and with very little state support in the Medellín neighborhood of Aranjuez, I argue that young people are contributing to the reconstruction of the city’s social, cultural and economic fabric. I start by explaining the historical context of Medellín, describing the different sets of conflicts that unleashed high levels of violence and caused the fragmentation of the social, cultural and economic fabric. Moreover, I review the role of the …

Challenging Homelessness, Elizabeth D. Marshall

SURGE

I had been homeless for about 28 hours. I sat on a sidewalk in Georgetown with a friend holding a cardboard sign that read, “Put a Smile on Our Faces” with a Dunkin Donuts cup at our feet. In the two and a half hours we sat there, hundreds of people passed, hundreds of people avoided eye contact, hundreds of people detoured around the lamppost on the street side of the sidewalk. A few people glanced at our sign. [excerpt]

Integration And “Welcome-Ability” Indexes: Measures Of Community Capacity To Integrate Immigrants, Zenaida R. Ravanera, Victoria Esses, Rajulton Fernando

Population Change and Lifecourse Strategic Knowledge Cluster Discussion Paper Series/ Un Réseau stratégique de connaissances Changements de population et parcours de vie Document de travail

This paper aims at clarifying the applicability of the theory of micro-macro links to the general concept of “integration” and illustrates two distinct methods of measuring the concept at individual and community levels. In particular, two indexes are developed, the first one called welcome-ability index, to measure the capacities of communities to welcome and integrate newcomers, and the second called integration index, to measure economic, social, and political integration of individuals. The first, a community-level measure, takes into account opportunities and facilities, including employment opportunities, facilities for health care and positive attitudes towards immigrants. The second, an individual-level measure, takes …

Reexamining Cultural Orientation Provided To Newly Arrived Refugees, Sara E. Matchulat

Capstone Collection

The provision of cultural orientation is one of many services required by the contract between resettlement agencies and the federal agencies overseeing refugee resettlement, the Cooperative Agreement. This paper explores World Relief in Moline, Illinois as a case study for how small resettlement agencies can provide meaningful and memorable cultural orientations. In order to accomplish this goal, this research utilizes the Empowerment Theory to explore how recently resettled refugees’ perceptions can be taken into consideration as orientation materials are examined. Research sought to compare Cooperative Agreement requirements to current orientation materials, interviewed service providers and recently resettled refugees, and utilized …

Ua41 University College Connection, Dennis K. George, Dean, Wendi Kelley, Editor, University College, Western Kentucky University

UC Publications

No abstract provided.

Impacts On The Contemporary Visual Arts Community In Samoa, Sarah Cancelarich

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study illuminates the world of contemporary visual art in Samoa. Research was primarily conducted using personal communications with members of the contemporary visual art community. A basic framework of the community was established by overviewing the present informal galleries, formal galleries, and art schools. This project explores the impacts felt on the contemporary visual art community; their subsequent challenges, and successes. These impacts include; a cash economy, conflict between traditional and contemporary styles, a need for higher education, Christianity, Samoan artists overseas, in-country and international support. Possible solutions and hopes for the future are also discussed.

The Impacts Of Education: A Case Study Of Muslim Women In Ngaoundéré, Cameroon, Margo Brookfield

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper is the product of a study on the ultimate impacts that education can have on the lives of Muslim women in the city of Ngaoundéré, Cameroon. Women in the North of Cameroon have been confined within traditional gender roles that have been in place for generations, due to deep ties with culture and religion in the region. This research explores Muslim women’s opinions on the impacts of the modern education system in place in the city. In addition it looks into the impacts that this education can have on different aspects of a woman’s life, including her relations …

Fearless: Jessie Pierce, Jessie M. Pierce

SURGE

A vocal advocate for socio-environmental justice issues and a believer in the potential for social change in the developing world, Jessie Pierce ’14 fearlessly travels, volunteers, and researches to promote awareness and change. Studying abroad last year for both semesters, spending one semester in Denmark and one in India, gave Jessie the interest, skills, and drive to continue pursuing a deeper understanding of these issues while at Gettysburg. [excerpt]

Fearless: Aleksandra Petkova, Aleksandra V. Petkova

SURGE

Consistently serving the campus community, conducting new research in psychology, and leading younger students to realizations about their own roles in fighting for social Justice, Aleksandra Petkova ’14 has fearlessly pursued opportunities to promote social change all four of her years here at Gettysburg.

Fearless: Christine Serwan And Sam Holmes, Christine M. Serwan, Samuel R. Holmes

SURGE

This week, we’re recognising the fearless work that Christine Serwan ’13 and Sam Holmes ’13 will be doing over the next two years during with the Peace Corps. [excerpt]

Upper Class Enclave Identity: A Case Study Of The Golden Hill Community, Bradley D. Vogelsmeier

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Urban enclaves play an important role in sociological theory and in overall community development. This project looks at the exclusivity of a particular enclave in the Indianapolis area, the Golden Hill Community, and through observation and interviews, examines the makeup of this isolated community. Considered by many to be an exclusive upper-class neighborhood, this research looks closely at the social interaction of residents with each other, as well as the outside community, in order to determine its strength and significance as an urban enclave. This paper suggests that Golden Hill, contrary to other upper class urban enclaves, exhibits a type …

Volunteer Programming Impact On Long-Term Care Facilities, Paul P. Falkowski

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this present study was to examine the direct and indirect effects between the organizational structure of a long-term care facility, the amount of volunteers at the facility, the activities in which volunteers engage while at the facility and daily average number of hours care staff spend with nursing home residents. The time care staff spends with residents has been directly linked to the quality of care provided by the facility. This time is measured by calculating nursing hours per patient and it includes only nursing staff hours.The data for this study come from the National Nursing Home …

Co-Management And The Fight For Rural Water Justice: Learning From Costa Rican Asadas, Kristin B. Dobbin

Pitzer Senior Theses

Rural communities have, for much of history, been left with inadequate or no water service. This is because the traditional state/private dichotomy of water provision is inadequate for addressing the unique needs of small, isolated communities. Drawing from the Common-Pool Resource literature, co-management arose in recent decades as a solution to address this pandemic of rural water exclusion. In Costa Rica, co-management takes the form of community water associations known as ASADAS. This thesis explores the successes and challenges of ASADAS through the use of three case study communities. Using interviews, surveys, water sampling and national legislation in addition to …

Fruitful Communities: Evaluating The History And Impacts Of Treepeople’S Fruit Tree Program, Kayla B. Imhoff

Pitzer Senior Theses

TreePeople is a Los Angeles based non-profit organization that uses environmental education, initiatives, and programs to engage with the greater community to work towards the goal of a sustainable future for Los Angeles. The Fruit Tree Program is one of TreePeople’s longest running programs of 29 years, which distributes free bare-root fruit trees to economically disadvantaged communities as a source of fresh fruit and the other environmental benefits that trees offer. This paper is a comprehensive report detailing the history of the program and the impacts it has had on communities across Los Angeles County. Looking at three communities in …

Gagner La Vie: Examining Return Preparedness And Resource Mobilization Among Moroccan Immigrants To France Who Return To Live Permanently In Agadir, Morocco, Karolina Michelle Dos Santos

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

If Moroccan immigrants are so in tune to their home culture and home happenings, under what conditions do they stay in France facing the problems of unemployment and homelessness? This study focuses on the return migration of Moroccans from the Sousse region; specifically Agadir and the surrounding Tiznit areas, who left Morocco during the decade of 1960 and who have permanently returned to live in Morocco. The study was conducted by using the snowball sampling technique to conduct semi-structured interviews of Moroccan return migrants in AitMelloul, a neighborhood of Agadir. My findings suggest that the return migrants from the Sousse …

Maximizing Community Action: An Internship With Be The Change, Rachel Rosenbaum

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

From 3 April 2013 to 28 April 2013, I interned with the Brisbane branch of Be The Change, an organization that promotes ecological, social and spiritual sustainability through their empowering symposiums, in Australia. I focused on creating a tool to help symposium participants take community action after the event. My goal was to create a resource for Be The Change to use across Australia to further its impact, attend a symposium and implement sustainable actions in my everyday life.

In the 140 total hours of work I completed, I helped plan a symposium, participated in workshops and events within the …

Adding Injustice To Injury - Health Perceptions, Plurality, And Power In The Ongoing Bhopal Disaster, Ruth Markwardt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Standards of health, human rights, and development are typically defined and dictated by policymakers instead of the populations directly affected by so-called development efforts. This paper seeks to contextualize global development efforts by highlighting specific local realities among the community of Bhopal Disaster survivors in Madhya Pradesh, India. As the site of the world’s largest industrial disaster, a disaster which is not over but ongoing, Bhopal represents an important population to highlight as the disaster continues. The Political Ecology of Health model was used to highlight political and environmental influences on community health. Within Political Ecology, this study takes a …

Viendo De Camino A Casa: La Construcción De La Identidad Transnacional En La Comunidad Libanesa De Buenos Aires = Looking Homeward: The Construction Of Transnational Identity In The Lebanese Community Of Buenos Aires, Lindsay Miller

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

At the end of the 19^th century through World War I, around three million immigrants entered Argentina. The vast majority left behind homes in Italy and Spain; however, a significant minority population arrived from Greater Syria, specifically from present-day Syria and Lebanon. Today, the descendents of these Syrian-Lebanese migrants make up the third largest community in Argentina. Despite the significant presence of the community, the Syrian-Lebanese community has been largely absent from scholarly work on Argentine ethnic groups.

The objective of this study is to explore the relationship that the descendents of Lebanese immigrants, living in Buenos Aires, have …

It's Not About The Coffee: Queer Temporalities At A Community Coffeehouse, Jodi Davis

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

Long Beach California’s “gay ghetto” 1 is a loosely defined neighborhood with bars, coffeehouses and businesses that cater to the LGBTQ community. The corner of Broadway and Junipero roughly marks the center of the gay ghetto and is home to Hot Java “The Community Coffeehouse”. The customers there are loyal and through ethnographic inquiry this paper highlights the importance of Hot Java as a queer site of resistance and community building. Through interviews, observation, and exploration of queer theoretical models of space and time, this paper illustrates Hot Java as a queer temporal space marked by trauma, resistance, and community …

Fearless: Mike Altman, Michael A. Altman

SURGE

After participating in the 2011 Heston Internship in Uganda working in a community on clean water projects, Mike gained a new interest in Global Health. His interest grew and a few months ago he started an internship with charity: water, an organization working to bring access to clean water throughout the world in a way that attempts to break the traditional donation model. At charity: water, Mike is part of a greater group that is working to more closely connect people to specific water projects through financial transparency and innovative fundraising campaigns. [excerpt]