Environmental Studies Commons^™

Safety, Security, And… Beavers? An Engineer's Low-Tech Climate Strategy, Matt Mullins

University College: Environmental Policy and Management Capstones

Colorado’s headwaters are the source of drinking water to millions and are a key pillar of the state’s tourism industry. Consequently, they are some of the most vulnerable areas to natural disasters including wildfires, droughts and flooding. Climate change will increase the severity and frequency of these natural disasters. This project focuses on some of the most vulnerable areas from an economic and climate change perspective of Colorado’s headwaters including the Big Thompson River, and the Colorado River. These headwaters located in and around Estes Park, Grand Lake and Rocky Mountain National Park are currently severely impaired. Low-tech process-based restoration …

Shifting Grounds Of Accountability: How Governmentality Reduces The Commoning Practices Of The Monpa Community In Arunachal Pradesh, Pijush Kumar Dutta

Journal of Law and Public Policy

Pastoralism is one of the traditional livelihoods of Monpa community that resides in western Arunachal Pradesh, India. They have been rearing yaks, an integral part of their culture and tradition, and managing summer and winter pasture lands as commons for grazing, However, the Monpa’s yak‑based livelihood is facing challenges as the number of villagers engaged in grazing related activities is reducing and the composition of livestock in the area is changing. To understand the reasons for these changes and its impact, an open‑ended questionnaire was used to interview herders, members of traditional village institutions and village panchayats, and elderly villagers …

Public Support For New Agricultural Best Management Practices To Protect Florida Water Quality, Sadie Hundemer, Madison A. Dyment, Matthew Gold

Journal of Extension

Recent research finds that changes to land management practices in geographically vulnerable areas of Florida could substantially reduce groundwater contamination; however, water quality improvement comes with tradeoffs. A change in land use or the adoption of new agricultural best management practices (BMPs) would have economic and cultural implications for farmers, rural communities, taxpayers, and the state as a whole. In two studies, we examined Florida residents’ support for alternative land management policy options, the considerations contributing to their policy preferences, and how preferences and considerations vary across demographic characteristics.

Navigating The Open-Loops: Actor Dynamics And Bottlenecks In The Transition Towards Circular Household Waste Supply Chains, Burcin Ozdamar, Aysu Göçer

Markets, Globalization & Development Review

Household waste supply chains (HWSCs) in developing countries often suffer from fragmented actor structures, weak coordination, and informal practices that limit their overall performance and circularity potential. Existing studies tend to focus on isolated aspects such as waste types, technologies, or individual actors, without systematically examining the broader network and interdependencies shaping HWSC outcomes. Addressing this gap, this study investigates the key components (e.g. actors and waste processes) and bottleneck points that hinder the structure and functioning of current HWSCs to transform into circular systems. Drawing on industrial network theory, the research analyzes how actor relationships and system configurations influence …

Optimizing Fleet Management: Evaluating The Feasibility Of Electric Vehicles And Leasing Strategies At The Utrgv Police Department, Van Edward Slusser

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this applied dissertation was to improve readiness and cost discipline in a campus public-safety fleet and to assess the feasibility of electrification and leasing. A qualitative case-study design triangulated semi-structured interviews with stakeholders, administrative records (maintenance, fuel, costs), and telematics from eight vehicles to characterize duty cycles and constraints. Key findings were: stakeholders endorsed a phased, evidence-gated approach that relies on vehicle- and role-level analytics and coaching-based idle management; cost analysis supported availability-weighted replacement paired with warranty-anchored leasing to stabilize maintenance exposure and smooth appropriations; and telematics revealed role-differentiated patterns—administrative vehicles converted engine-on time to distance efficiently …

Sustainable Practices For Aircraft Decommissioning And Recycling In A Circular Aviation Economy, Eva Maleviti, Dimitra Papadaki

Publications

The aviation industry requires a series of actions that will transform its current status, aiming for sustainable operations. Aviation’s end-of-life stream is a pivotal lever for circularity, yet current dismantling and recycling practices leave significant value unrealized. Circular Economy could be considered as a transformational approach to the aviation industry and address its environmental and economic challenges, meeting sustainability principles. This study conducts a PRISMA-guided qualitative systematic review across academic and industry sources to synthesize regulations, technologies, and economics of aircraft decommissioning. It aims to quantify material recovery potential and environmental gains at the aircraft level and assess technology readiness …

An Integrated Ca–Markov Modeling Framework For Forecasting Land Use And Land Cover Dynamics In Arkansas, Usa, Rasool Vahid, Mohamed H. Aly

Environmental Dynamics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Land use and land cover (LULC) changes significantly shape urban environments and directly impact ecological and socioeconomic systems. This study aims to explore these interconnections by employing the Cellular Automata–Markov (CA–Markov) model to assess and predict LULC dynamics in Arkansas. Historical LULC datasets from 2001 to 2021, obtained from the National Land Cover Database, were simplified from 11 into 5 classes to facilitate analysis and effectively map transitions. The model was validated by predicting LULC for 2016 and 2021 and comparing the predictions with the real maps, achieving an overall accuracy of approximately 91.9%, using model validation metrics, including precision, …

Culture Mediates Climate Opinion Change: A System Dynamics Model, Louis (Lou) Gross, Yoon Ah Shin, Sara M. Constantino, Ann Kinzig, Katherine Lacasse, Brian Beckage

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Power And Planning: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Tribal And Non-Tribal Oregon Wildfire Protection Plans, Christian J. Heisler, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Douglas Deur, Gabe Sheoships

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background:

Since the late 1800s, the US government has largely removed Indigenous fire stewardship practices from the landscape by implementing a top-down fire suppression system that criminalized traditional fire practices and denaturalized the role of fire in forested environments. A century of routine fire suppression produced dense, homogenous forests capable of sustaining high-intensity wildfire that exceeds the suppression capabilities of land management organizations in many regions, spurring federal leaders to modify management approaches. As part of this change, numerous federal policies and plans have advocated for further involvement of Native American tribes and incorporation of Indigenous knowledge within management decisions. …

Vulnerabilidad Socioambiental Por Deslizamientos Desde La Perspectiva De Género Interseccional En El Parque Nacional El Veladero De Acapulco, Guerrero, México, Celia Ramirez Aguirre, Marcelino García Benítez, Carlos A. Perez Ramirez, Eduardo Campos Medina

Journal of Maya Heritage

Los huracanes Otis (2023) y John (2024) ocasionaron una severa devastación de la cubierta vegetal en esta área, lo que a su vez provocó deslizamientos de tierra de gran magnitud en colonias asentadas de manera desincorporada en la zona del parque. Estos procesos no solo evidenciaron la fragilidad ambiental del territorio, sino que también pusieron de manifiesto las desigualdades estructurales que afectan a la población, particularmente a mujeres afrodescendientes que viven en condiciones de marginación Muy Alta por vulnerabilidad a deslizamientos.

El objetivo de esta investigación fue analizar los ejes de desigualdad o marcadores de diferencia (género, discapacidad, nivel educativo, …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

“How Can Ai Data Centers In The U.S. Meet Projected Electricity Demands By 2030?, Aiden M. Matano

Sustainable Supply Chain Management

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is driving a sharp increase in U.S. electricity demand, with AI-driven data centers emerging as a central contributor through 2030. This paper asks how U.S. AI data centers can meet projected electricity needs while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions. Using a supply-chain and systems perspective, it analyzes the full energy chain of AI data centers: upstream electricity supply and grid deliverability, midstream facility design and grid interaction, and downstream operational practices, waste management, and disclosure. Drawing on recent projections from the International Energy Agency, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and U.S. federal guidance, the paper shows …

Artificial Light At Night Can Worsen Competitive Outcomes Between Native And Invasive Grasses, Shannon M. Murphy, Kylee Grenis, Anna A. Sher

Biological Sciences: Faculty Scholarship

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is an important global disturbance that affects community dynamics, but how it affects species interactions, such as competition, is not well understood and needs investigation. In plant communities, some exotic-invasive plant species seem to be facilitated by ALAN, which may alter competitive outcomes with native plant communities and promote invasion. Despite these intriguing results, whether ALAN affects competitive outcomes between native and invasive species is understudied. Here we tested how ALAN affects competitive outcomes between two native prairie grasses and two grasses that are exotic-invasive in North America. We planted each native species with a …

Deforestation Affecting Developing Nations, Nicole Villa

Sustainability Conference

Deforestation continues to be a growing problem around the globe, while it is affecting wildlife what can be overlooked is the challenges it’s creating for the livelihood of nations. This goes beyond losing the biodiversity of our ecosystems but social consequences with the scarcity of water in Malawi, rise in health risks in Democratic Republic of Congo and negative effects of agricultural expansion in Belize. Overall social conflict in these areas that are suffering to grow. Furthermore, I aim to cover the major challenges previously mentioned followed by counteracts of deforestation including action plan in Brazil, efforts of other countries …

Impact Of Physiological And Environmental Variation On The Behavioral Response Of The Two Biological Control Agents Of The Emerald Ash Borer To Host-Associated Odors, Vanshika Jindal

LSU Master's Theses

Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire; EAB) is an invasive pest that threatens ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) throughout North America and Europe. Since its introduction to North America, EAB has killed hundreds of millions of trees, resulting in severe ecological and economic damage exceeding 10 billion US dollars. Classical biological control involves the introduction of natural enemies from the native range of pests to manage their populations. Specialist parasitoid wasps have been released to reduce the populations of EAB. Detection and response to long-range attractants associated with EAB is critical for the location and parasitism by classical biological …

Assessing The Economic Impacts Of The Illegal, Unreported And Unregulated Fishing On The Namibian Coastal Communities : Challenges And Mitigation Strategies, Susana Kashinashilonga Angula

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Port Of Mombasa As A Potential Green Hydrogen Hub : A Techno-Economic Feasibility Study, Rose Mbula Mutevu

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Green Shipping Corridors In West Africa : Overcoming Barriers And Unlocking Opportunities For Maritime Decarbonization, Bismark Owoahene Acheampong

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Just Transition For Female Seafarers : Ensuring Gender Equality In The Sustainable Maritime Industry, Danisa Ama Buakah

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Wine-Rs Or Losers: Assessing The Socio- Economic Impact Of Eu Regulations On Climate-Exacerbated Pests And Diseases In Northern Italian Viticulture, Kyley Fishman

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

As climate change creates extreme weather events, unprecedented disease and pest infestations, European farmers are challenged by these threats. Balancing sustainable and traditional practices while maintaining socio-economic stability under European Union agroregulations can be extremely difficult. An area of concern for the EU is viticulture, which is among the most climate-sensitive agricultural sectors. My study examines in what ways the EU’s regulations addressing climate-exacerbated pests and plant diseases influence the socioeconomics of different vineyard farms in Northern Italy. Three key socio-economic findings emerged from the analysis. First, top-down and research-driven management strategies can subvert local, place-based knowledge, which undermines traditional …