Environmental Studies Commons^™

Marine Animalia Organism Diversity And Reef Condition On Two Reef Sites At Big Creek Beach And Boca Del Drago, Bocas Del Toro, Panamá, Bri Tiffany

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ocean acidification, climate change, overfishing, and coastal development are endangering coral reefs across the globe. In Bocas del Toro, Panamá, coral reefs are especially threatened by the rapid growth in tourism and the subsequent anthropogenic effects caused by an increased human presence. To evaluate reef condition in this area, a study comparing percent coverage of live and dead coral as well as the diversity of marine Animalia organisms was conducted at one reef site in Big Creek beach and one reef site in Boca del Drago, Isla Colón, Bocas del Toro. It was predicted that dead coral cover would be …

Fighting For The Right To Breathe: Exploring Perspectives Of Environmenal Threats In The South Durban Basin, Kayleigh Bhangdia

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The goal of this project is to understand the way in which community members in South Durban perceive the environmental threats that they face. I have contextualized the current environmental injustices present in the wake of the Apartheid legacy. I worked closely with the South Durban Environmental Conservation Alliance in preparing my questions and conducting my interviews. I conducted 24 interviews in three different communities in the South Durban Basin including Wentworth, Merebank, and Clairwood. Following the interviews in Merebank and Clairwood, I engaged the participants in a short participatory mapping exercise in which they highlighted where the pollution was …

Marodsilton Muborakshoeva. Islam And Higher Education: Concepts, Challenges And Opportunities. London And New York: Routledge, 2012., Laurens De Rooij

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Gordillo, Gastón. Rubble: The Afterlife Of Destruction. Durham: Duke University Press, 2014., Ismael Vaccaro Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Comparing Avian Diversity And Anthropogenic Disturbance At Sendero Los Quetzales Cerro Punta, Panamá, Sloane Merdinger

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This report summarizes the survey of land and avian diversity along a transect that runs from the exterior to the interior of the Los Quetzales Trail of Parque Nacional Volcán Barú in Cerro Punta, Chiriquí, Panamá. The region of Cerro Punta is Panamá’s primary producer of produce and also home to one of the most biodiverse land reserves in the world. Despite protection efforts the area is continuously threatened by human development. The study juxtaposes calculated Shannon-Wiener Biodiversity Indices across graduated levels of anthropogenic disturbance to determine if there is a significant difference in biodiversity between areas with low, intermediate, …

Hospital To Home: Interoperability In The Health Ecosystem, Francis Puno

Asian Management Insights

Mobile health solutions have created a revolution in the global healthcare ecosystem.

Waste Management And Environmental Initiatives In Accra, Ghana, Aoife Genevieve Duna

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Title: Waste Management and Environmental Initiatives in Accra, Ghana

Author: Aoife Genevieve Duna ([email protected]; Middlebury College, Anthropology and Dance major)

Objective: The objective of this project was fourfold: • To study the current waste management practices by government and private waste companies • To observe the perspectives of residents on waste disposal • To explore environmental initiatives by citizens, NGOs, and student groups • To investigate the potential projects that could reduce waste

Methodology: For my project, I conducted interviews, made observations, participated in daily personal waste management, visited a landfill, and visited a composting project.

Findings: Waste collection is …

The Industrial Impact On Wetlands In Jinja And The Nexus Of Industry, Wetlands, And Community (A Rights-Based Sustainable Development Approach), Ranger Ruffins

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Uganda is a beautiful country filled with an extensive amount of natural resources, one of the most profound being wetlands. It is said that these wetlands are a crucial source of food and water for almost 3 million people (NEMA, 2012 and Oguttu et.al, 2008). They also provide many more invaluable socioeconomic benefits for the country. As Uganda experiences increasing development as well as a rapidly increasing population, the wetlands become increasingly necessary, at the same time they become increasingly threatened. It is written in the 1995 Ugandan constitution that Ugandan policy is aimed at ensuring sustainable development for the …

Fish Use Of Largely Unexplored Sub-Tidal Habitats In The Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary, Queensland, Alexandra Parisien

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study examines the use of sub-tidal open-bottom, rocky, and seagreass habitats by the Siganus genus (herbivores), Gerres genus (benthivores), and planktivores in the Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary in Queensland, Australia. The Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary, a tropical estuary cutting between Hinchinbrook Island and the Australian mainland, is surrounded primarily by mangroves. Its sub-tidal habitats are largely unexplored due to factors such as low visibility and the presence of estuarine crocodiles. In this study, I reviewed 699 underwater videos collected by James Cook University PhD candidate Michael Bradley in order to analyze feeding and movement behavior of pre-identified fish.

The results of …

The Himalayan Gold Rush The Untold Consequences Of Yartsa Gunbu In The Tarap Valley, Noah Stone

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Despite the fact that it has been used in tradition medicine for centuries, the caterpillar fungus known as yartsa gunbu (Othiocordyceps sinensis), has only become a popular medical supplement in the last fifteen years. Demand in China has driven what has been dubbed ‘the Himalayan gold rush’, a scramble for the fungus that has utterly transformed the agro-pastoral economies of the remote Himalayan regions where cordyceps is found. In many cases, the locals have prospered economically from the commodification of yartsa gunbu. In one such region of Nepal, the Tarap valley of the Dolpa district, while the villagers have benefitted …

Existential Avalanche The Lived Experience Of Climate Change In Dolpo And Mustang, Nepal, Keegan Mcchesney

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Himalayan communities stand precariously in an era of phenomenological uncertainty. Climate change is merely a lens through which we may observe and begin to understand such localized modern complexities. The people of the Tarap Valley in Dolpo, Nepal have experienced an increase in avalanches, snow leopard attacks and unpredictable precipitation patterns in recent years. In upper Mustang, Nepal, people have endured the harshest winter in generations and suffered from reduced water access. Environmental, climatic and weather related changes in both Himalayan districts have severely impacted traditional livelihoods and led some to adopt modern means of adaptation. Despite the scientific evidence …

Rohner Creek Flood Control Project: Research, Susie Van Kirk

Susie Van Kirk Papers

Compilation of research materials that include deeds, tax assessments, newspaper references and directories.

Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring For Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, 2014 Annual Report, Michael Prowatzke, Stephen K. Wilson

United States National Park Service: Publications

Abstract

This report presents the results of vegetation monitoring efforts in 2014 at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (AGFO) by the Northern Great Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network (NGPN).

During the fourth full year of field work, crew members from NGPN visited six plant community monitoring plots to collect data on the vegetation at AGFO. This is part of a long-term monitoring effort that will sample six of 15 randomly located upland plots every year, so that each plot is visited for two consecutive years and then rested for three years, on a five-year rotating basis. NGPN staff captured data …

Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring For Scotts Bluff National Monument, 2014 Annual Report, Michael Prowatzke, Stephen K. Wilson

United States National Park Service: Publications

Abstract

This report presents the results of vegetation monitoring efforts in 2014 at Scotts Bluff National Monument (SCBL) by the Northern Great Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network (NGPN).

During the fourth full year of field work, crew members from NGPN visited eight plant community monitoring plots to collect data on the vegetation at SCBL. This is part of a long-term monitoring effort that will sample eight of 20 randomly located upland plots every year, so that each plot is visited for two consecutive years and then rested for three years, on a five-year rotating basis. Additionally, NGPN staff also visited …

Impact And Correlation Of Environmental Conditions On Pollen Counts In Karachi, Pakistan., Anjum Perveen, Muneeba Khan, Shaista Zeb, Asif Ali Imam

Department of Medicine

A quantitative and qualitative survey of airborne pollen was performed in the city of Karachi, and the pollen counts were correlated with different climatic conditions. The aim of the study was to determine the possible effect of meteorological factors on airborne pollen distribution in the atmosphere of Karachi city. Pollen sampling was carried out by using Burkard spore Trap for the period of August 2009 to July 2010, and a total of 2,922 pollen grains/m(3) were recorded. In this survey, 22 pollen types were recognized. The highest pollen count was contributed by Poaceae pollen type (1,242 pollen grains/m(3)) followed by …

Presentations And Posters From The 2015 Research That Matters Sustainable Food Conference: People, Policy, & Practice, Various Authors

Food and Gardening Working Group

The University of South Florida Sustainable Food Conference: People, Policy, & Practice brought together food researchers from USF and the larger Tampa Bay community to share ideas and findings that will pave the path toward more sustainable and resilient communities. It featured research papers and presentations from all disciplines and methodologies addressing issues concerning food production, distribution, retail, and/or consumption.

Texas General Land Office Parcels: El Paso, Hudspeth, And Reeves Counties, Texas, William F. Stanyard, Larissa A. Thomas, Laura Voisin- George

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In June 2015, Natural Resource Group, LLC conducted Phase I cultural resource investigations within eight parcels that are managed by the Texas General Land Office. The tracts are located in El Paso, Hudspeth, and Reeves counties, Texas and the studies are associated with Phase 1 of the Roadrunner Gas Transmission, LLC (Roadrunner) Roadrunner Project. Roadrunner has entered into an operating agreement with ONEOK WesTex Transmission Company, L.L.C. (WesTex), a subsidiary of ONEOK, to construct, operate and maintain an intrastate pipeline in the State of Texas under the jurisdiction of the Texas Railroad Commission. WesTex plans to construct approximately 205 miles …

Intensive Archeological Survey For Proposed East Pecan Street Widening, City Of Pflugerville, Travis County, Texas, Haley Rush

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In January 2015, an intensive archeological survey was completed in order to inventory and evaluate archeological resources within the footprint of proposed improvements to East Pecan Street in Pflugerville, Travis County, Texas. The proposed project would provide base repairs and include widening a portion of East Pecan Street. The portion of the project area that includes the widening extends from State Highway (SH) 130 to Weiss Lane; base repairs would include a concrete underlay that would extend east of Weiss Lane toward the intersection of Cameron Lane. The maintenance activities associated with the concrete underlay east of Weiss Lane would …

Paisano Drive 48 Inch Transmission Waterline, Archeological Monitoring El Paso County, Texas, Russell Collett, Adam Graves

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

El Paso Water Utilities Public Service Board (EPWU) contracted ARCADIS U.S., Inc. to perform preconstruction investigations for cultural resources as part of their proposed Paisano Drive 48 inch Transmission Waterline Project (PTW) in El Paso County, Texas. The PTW is located at the west base of the Franklin Mountains in northwest El Paso and can be found on the Smeltertown 31106G5 (1994) USGS 7.5’ topographic quadrangle (Figure 1). The project area encompasses 3.07 miles between -106.529548, 31.792403 (northwest) and -106.504871, 31.764421 (southeast). The northwestern and southeastern limits of the linear project area lie near the northern bank of the Rio …

Cultural Resources Survey Of The Cross Roads Special Utility District Us Hwy 259 Water Well And Pump Station Rusk County, Texas, Victor Galan

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In July 2015 Deep East Texas Archaeological Consultants (DETAC) conducted a cultural resource management survey of the proposed Cross Roads Special Utility District’s US Highway 259 water well in Rusk County, Texas under Texas Antiquities Permit #7433. Proposed construction includes clearing and leveling a 0.4 hectare (1.0 acre) property to drill a water well and associated pumping structures. The visual inspection of the area found a dilapidated building which was used as a plant shop in the 1970’s or later. The building appears to be made of modern materials and is surrounded with debris associated with potting plants. A total …