A Rarer Earth: The Many States Of Peat In Central Kalimantan,
2026
University, Yale
A Rarer Earth: The Many States Of Peat In Central Kalimantan, Layna Chen Ms.
Masters of Environmental Design Theses
Peat currently occupies a central place within climate discourse, with Indonesia’s peatlands as a key site of concern since the late twentieth century. Yet this contemporary understanding is historically unstable. Over the last two centuries, what we commonly consider peat has been repeatedly redefined by scientific and bureaucratic institutions. Within popular media, peat has circulated as a low-grade fuel, an infertile swampland, an agricultural soil awaiting rehabilitation, and a hydrological body requiring remediation. Tropical peatland fires, once treated as a scientific improbability, have become a recurring environmental crisis. This history of shifting definitions suggests that ‘peat’ is not a stable …
Inherited By “Merit”: What Caste Carries Across The Indian American Diaspora,
2026
Southern Methodist University
Inherited By “Merit”: What Caste Carries Across The Indian American Diaspora, Aarushi V. Jaiswal
English Undergraduate Distinction Projects
This project traces the rhetorical formation termed “meritocratic nationalism,” a political vocabulary that makes national belonging conditional on moralized merit, converting structural advantage into the language of individual character. Meritocratic nationalism is traced across three political figures whose rhetoric represents successive moments in a single ideological trajectory. Reading Narendra Modi’s 2014 and 2018 Independence Day addresses and his 2014 Madison Square Garden speech to the Indian American diaspora as the formation’s originating texts, this project argues that Modi’s recurring moral tetrad of conduct, values, traditions, and ability translated the structurally concentrated advantages of India’s upper-caste professional class into a universalist …
Migrant Mobility Across Necropolitical Territories Of Violence: Los Zetas/Cartel Del Noreste,
2026
Fordham University
Migrant Mobility Across Necropolitical Territories Of Violence: Los Zetas/Cartel Del Noreste, Alondra Danixa Gonzalez
Senior Theses
This thesis examines migrant mobility across northeastern Mexico as a process shaped by organized crime and necropolitical violence, with a focus on the evolution of Los Zetas and their successor, Cartel del Noreste [CDN]. Based on Achille Mbembe's concept of necropolitics, along with Sayak Valencia's theory of gore capitalism and Melissa W. Wright's notion of disposable bodies, this paper identifies cartel-controlled border regions as necropolitical spaces where migrants are exposed to death and exploitation. Using a qualitative, testimony-based methodology, this paper incorporates three first-person family narratives of border crossing alongside documented cases of mass violence in Tamaulipas and Coahuila, including …
The Co-Existing Of Religious And Secular Systems: An Ethnographical Study Of The Kalvária V Topoľčanoch And Religious Community In Topoľčany, Slovakia,
2026
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The Co-Existing Of Religious And Secular Systems: An Ethnographical Study Of The Kalvária V Topoľčanoch And Religious Community In Topoľčany, Slovakia, Ruzena Zatko
UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones
During the communist era in Slovakia from 1948 to 1989, religion was forced into the private sphere and then re-entered into the public sphere when the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) collapsed in 1989. This research aims to answer how the communist state and religious community interacted during communism and how a democratic state and religious community interacted post-communism. This paper focuses on how people preserved their religion, how secularization was rejected, and how religion re-entered the public sphere after communism ended. To answer these questions, I conducted oral interviews, primarily with the townspeople of Topoľčany, Slovakia, and this includes …
Creating Space For The Public In Anthropology,
2026
Eastern Washington University
Creating Space For The Public In Anthropology, Madison Joseph, Grace Tucker
2026 Symposium
This ongoing collaborative research project between Grace Tucker and Madison Joseph aims to evaluate an overlooked gap of knowledge and linguistic understanding concerning how anthropological findings are presented to both disciplinary experts and the general public. We will examine ways to improve public anthropology through improving our understanding of how to utilize everyday speech and specialist jargon simultaneously in the field. This project will include an extensive literature review of educational barriers and language use in anthropological research to identify solutions to remedy accessibility to, and dissemination of, these findings. We argue that museums and libraries are designed with the …
Becoming Mandan: The Collaborative Life History Of Robert O’Brien,
2026
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Becoming Mandan: The Collaborative Life History Of Robert O’Brien, Douglas D. Meigs
Sociology and Anthropology Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity
This thesis examines how separation from—and later discovery of—an Indigenous family and culture shapes ethnic identity formation. Grounded in Charles Horton Cooley’s theory of the looking-glass self, it uses collaborative life history methodology to analyze the process of Indigenous identity formation experienced by Robert O’Brien, a Native American orphan who discovered his Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara (MHA) heritage as an adult. Drawing on two decades of reflexive research, unstructured interviews, participant observation, and archival documents, the case study shows how O’Brien’s sense of identity developed in response to shifting and often contradictory social mirrors.
Living Archaeology: A Comparative Perspective On How Archaeologists Can Study And Document The Present,
2026
Northern Illinois University
Living Archaeology: A Comparative Perspective On How Archaeologists Can Study And Document The Present, Alia S. Moran
Honors Capstones
Archaeology has long remained a social science that has tended to exclude sustained consideration of contemporary societies in the analysis of material culture. In recent decades, approaches such as ethnoarchaeology and the archaeology of the contemporary have expanded the field to include the study of present-day societies through material culture. Inspired by my involvement in the Thais in Illinois Project, which focused on documenting the Thai American immigrant experience in the greater Chicago area to produce an oral history collection, alongside other goals, this thesis intends to further explore how archaeological practice can be used to understand everyday issues in …
Objects In The Sunset,
2026
Yale University
Objects In The Sunset, Iskander Guetta
Masters of Environmental Design Theses
This research explores everyday design practices in the Maghreb shaped by economic, political, and ecological struggles amid transnational debates on decolonizing design. To do so, it looks at objects in, through and with the sunset. Taking المغرب — the place where the sun sets — as a conceptual lens, Objects in the Sunset illuminates the savoir-faire born from dispossession, scarcity, and epistemic violence. Working across different scales of the built environment — infrastructures, spaces, objects, and materials — it shifts design away from Eurocentric conceptions: from rationalization to resourcefulness, homogeneity to heterogeneity, optimization to adaptation, disposability to repair, and universal …
Examining Organizational Factors Contributing To Burnout In Community College Employees: An Anthropological Perspective,
2026
Winona State University
Examining Organizational Factors Contributing To Burnout In Community College Employees: An Anthropological Perspective, Jesse N. Blue
Leadership Education Capstones
Organizational culture and systemic inequities remain under-researched factors driving the mental and physical deterioration of community college employees. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe and interpret the lived experiences of job-related burnout among community college employees. This qualitative short-term ethnography was conducted at Big Rock College, a rural community college in central Arkansas. The sample consisted of six volunteer participants across administrative, faculty, and staff roles. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews conducted via Zoom®. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and triangulated with institutional document analysis. Findings indicated that 84% of participants experienced varying degrees of burnout, driven by …
Toward An Anthropology Of The Expressive Individual: Reformational Insights Into Emotions, The Heart, And Christian Formation,
2026
Liberty University
Toward An Anthropology Of The Expressive Individual: Reformational Insights Into Emotions, The Heart, And Christian Formation, Isaac Kantola
Senior Honors Theses
Contemporary Western culture is increasingly defined by what theologians and sociologists call “expressive individualism,” driven by an “ethic of authenticity” in which one’s emotions and desires are seen as the primary arbiter of identity and meaning. Responding to this cultural movement, the Church has appropriated the language of desire, happiness, and the affective in its preaching, ministry, and apologetic endeavors. Figures such as John Piper, James K.A. Smith, and Timothy Keller have each, in their own way, sought to contextualize the faith so it may be better understood by a culture obsessed with their longings and therapeutic self-concern. While these …
Cultural Authenticity And Commercialization: The Journey Of Southwest Indigenous Jewelry,
2026
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Cultural Authenticity And Commercialization: The Journey Of Southwest Indigenous Jewelry, Kaytlin M. Dwyer
Anthropology Undergraduate Honors Theses
Introduction Today, Southwest Indigenous jewelry exists at the intersection of cultural expression and commercial exchange. Drawing on interviews with Native artists, this study focuses on the lived experiences of those who design, produce, market, and curate Indigenous jewelry to argue that authenticity is not defined by visual appearance alone, but by the cultural knowledge, community relationships, and generational practices embedded in each piece. As Native silversmiths navigate increasing pressures from mass production, appropriation, and global markets, they actively work to maintain both artistic integrity and cultural authenticity. At the same time, this paper explores the tension between appreciation and appropriation. …
Fascism Usa: Class And Identity Politics In The Age Of Trump,
2026
CUNY Graduate Center
Fascism Usa: Class And Identity Politics In The Age Of Trump, Marc Edelman
Publications and Research
This essay argues that Trump’s triumph in the 2024 presidential contest represents the consolidation of an oligarchical authoritarian project, backed by a multi-class and (surprisingly, for some) multi-racial electorate. It brought intensified state and freelance attacks on immigrants, labor unions, women, LGBTQ+ people, journalists, civil servants, assorted “political enemies,” and other groups that the MAGA movement targets. It is institutionalizing authoritarian governance structures in ways that will be exceedingly difficult to undo. The paper first addresses the experience of growing up in the shadow of fascism. It analyzes various sectors that supported Trump and the impacts of inflation, incumbency, economic …
The Effectiveness Of Utilizing An Arts-Integrated Approach With Students With Ieps In Grades K–5 Self-Contained Classrooms And Why An Arts-Integrated Approach Is Not Widely Implemented In The United States,
2026
CUNY Hunter College
The Effectiveness Of Utilizing An Arts-Integrated Approach With Students With Ieps In Grades K–5 Self-Contained Classrooms And Why An Arts-Integrated Approach Is Not Widely Implemented In The United States, Alexandra Leff
Theses and Dissertations
This thesis examines arts integration as an approach for K–5 students with IEPs. Drawing on research from Western and non-Western and data from two programs, it shows gains in academic achievement and social-emotional learning. Despite cultural and systemic barriers, findings support expanding arts integration through teacher training and policy reform.
Sonic Rupture And Embodied Politics:
Reconfiguring The Aesthetic Regime In The Syrian Uprising,
2026
CUNY Hunter College
Sonic Rupture And Embodied Politics: Reconfiguring The Aesthetic Regime In The Syrian Uprising, Lynn Shabani
Theses and Dissertations
This thesis argues that the Syrian uprising of 2011 emerged as a sonic and embodied rupture within an authoritarian aesthetic regime that had long governed public sensibility. Through chants, song, and coordinated movement, political agency took form as collective, affective practice, transforming vernacular repertoires into infrastructures of mobilization, audibility, and resistance.
Albany City As A Case Study In Language Mapping,
2026
University at Albany, State University of New York
Albany City As A Case Study In Language Mapping, Storm Pupina
Linguistics
This thesis uses Albany, NY, as a case study in urban language mapping, following the example of many other language mapping projects, most notably the NYC Language Mapping Project. Albany's languages and linguistic features were analyzed to better understand the area's linguistic ecology and ongoing heritage-language maintenance efforts. Various types of American Census data were compared to reach the conclusions. Despite not being a major city, Albany is bustling with both new and old language communities. Similar efforts with more varied data-gathering tactics would greatly benefit other American urban landscapes.
Intersectionality And Belonging: Higher Education Mathematics,
2026
University at Albany
Intersectionality And Belonging: Higher Education Mathematics, Ashley Natalie
Mathematics and Statistics
Students with intersecting marginalized identities (such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, disability, or first-generation background) often face unique challenges in advanced mathematics that affect confidence, participation, amounting to a sense of belonging. These experiences remain underrepresented in mathematics education research. This qualitative, narrative-based study examines how these students experience classroom dynamics and belonging in upper-level mathematics courses. Semi-structured interviews will be analyzed thematically to identify patterns related to identity, classroom culture, instructor behavior, and peer interactions. Findings aim to highlight barriers and supportive practices, informing more inclusive teaching strategies and equitable learning environments in advanced mathematics.
Intersectionality And Belonging: Higher Education Mathematics,
2026
University at Albany
Intersectionality And Belonging: Higher Education Mathematics, Ashley Williams
Mathematics and Statistics
Students with intersecting marginalized identities (such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, disability, or first-generation background) often face unique challenges in advanced mathematics that affect confidence, participation, amounting to a sense of belonging. These experiences remain underrepresented in mathematics education research. This qualitative, narrative-based study examines how these students experience classroom dynamics and belonging in upper-level mathematics courses. Semi-structured interviews will be analyzed thematically to identify patterns related to identity, classroom culture, instructor behavior, and peer interactions. Findings aim to highlight barriers and supportive practices, informing more inclusive teaching strategies and equitable learning environments in advanced mathematics.
Addressing Low Vaccination Rates In Lewis County, New York: A Community-Based Participatory Research Study,
2026
University at Albany, State University of New York
Addressing Low Vaccination Rates In Lewis County, New York: A Community-Based Participatory Research Study, Samantha Carter
Anthropology
Low rates of on-time human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination continue to remain a significant public health concern, particularly in rural communities, one being Lewis County NY, which reports the lowest rate of vaccination in the state. This study, through Upstate Medical University, uses a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model in efforts to examine barriers to HPV vaccination and identifying community-driven solutions formulated by committee members from within the community. A steering committee composed of researchers and community members, who were also co-researchers, worked collaboratively to develop and distribute surveys to healthcare providers, dentists, and parents. Responses revealed that while many parents …
Integrating Doulas Into The Medical Team,
2026
University at Albany, State University of New York
Integrating Doulas Into The Medical Team, Alyssa Shaw
Anthropology
This thesis explores the potential integration of doulas into the obstetric medical team, defining birth as a cultural and social experience as well as a physiological process. Drawing on anthropological literature and historical accounts, I examine the shift from social, woman-centered childbirth practices to the medicalized model that occurs in modern American obstetrics. While this transformation has improved maternal and infant mortality rates, it has also caused a loss of continuous emotional and social support for laboring mothers, as well as a shift in autonomy from the birthing person to medical professionals. To investigate how doulas may help bridge this …
Bound To Status: A Comparative Study Of Public And Private College Libraries,
2026
University at Albany, State University of New York
Bound To Status: A Comparative Study Of Public And Private College Libraries, Lilianna Fujita
Anthropology
This ethnographic study compares student culture and behavior at two upstate New York universities — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), a private STEM-focused institution, and the University at Albany (UAlbany), a public research university. Through two rounds of participant observation conducted in each school's library and three semi-structured student interviews, the author examines how institutional type, admissions selectivity, campus environment, and resource allocation shape student social dynamics, gender experiences, and overall well-being. The author argues that differences in student behavior reflect not only individual student dispositions but broader institutional decisions about who is admitted and what social infrastructure is supported.
