Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons^™

Cultivating Compassion, Amelia Baliey

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Fostering compassion in a divided community is essential to the well-being of its members, and creating a sense of community. Although we come from different culminations of experience, privilege, genetics, and influence and can be divided across race, gender, ethnicity, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, or class, our humanity is what connect us. After a literature review and compilation of recent scientific studies, we recognized there was much to be said and done about compassion. Ultimately, we can take a few steps in order to cultivate compassion: communicating with others, practicing empathy, finding commonalities, giving and advocating for others, to name …

The Media Portrayal Of Homelessness In Portland, Maine, Molly Hardman

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

On January 24, 2017, 1,188 people were identified as homeless in Maine. The Maine State Housing Authority estimates that 527 of those people were unsheltered or resided in emergency homeless shelters in the City of Portland. People who suffer from mental illness and substance abuse, survivors of domestic violence, as well as unaccompanied youths and veterans represent many of the homeless individuals in the City of Portland (MSHA, 2017). There is an abundance of research on homelessness as it relates to mental health disorders and substance abuse (Sarvis, 2017); however, less attention has been paid to the portrayal of homelessness …

Puerto Ricans In New York: 2010-2016, Nashia Roman

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

Recent Census Bureau data revealed that, in 2016, the state of New York had the largest concentration of Puerto Ricans in the United States (1,081,110). New York and Florida were the only states with more than one million Puerto Ricans during this year. Puerto Ricans accounted for 5.5 percent of the total population in New York, and 28.8 percent of the state’s Hispanic or Latino population in 2016. The state of New York has one of the most diverse Latino populations in the country. As of 2016, Puerto Ricans were largest group of Latinos in New York, followed by Dominicans …

Using Ego Network Data To Inform Agent-Based Models Of Diffusion, Jeffrey A. Smith, Jessica Burow

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Agent-based modeling holds great potential as an analytical tool. Agent-based models (ABMs) are, however, also vulnerable to critique, as they often employ stylized social worlds, with little connection to the actual environment in question. Given these concerns, there has been a recent call to more fully incorporate empirical data into ABMs. This article falls in this tradition, exploring the benefits of using sampled ego network data in ABMs of cultural diffusion. Thus, instead of relying on full network data, which can be difficult and costly to collect, or no empirical network data, which is convenient but not empirically grounded, we …

Healthcare Coverage In The United States And New York Metropolitan Area, 2009 - 2015, Andrew S. Alger

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

Introduction: This study examines trends regarding health insurance coverage in the United States along lines of sex, race/ethnicity, place of birth, and poverty status between 2009 and 2015.

Methods: This study uses the American Community Survey PUMS (Public User Microdata Series) for the years 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2015. These datasets were downloaded from the IPUMS USA website hosted by the University of Minnesota. The variables used in the study describe these populations in terms of sex, the four major race/ethnic groups (non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, Latino, and Asian), being born either within the United States or abroad, and being …

El Empoderamiento De La Mujer Migrante: Una Historia De Vida Que Ilustra Este Aprendizaje En La Asociación De Mujeres Unidas, Migrantes Y Refugiadas En Argentina (Amumra) / The Empowerment Of Migrant Women: A Life Story That Illustrates This Learning In The Association Of United Women, Migrants And Refugees In Argentina (Amumra), Jonathan Urrea-Espinoza

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La inmigración es un tema que se discute constantemente en todo el mundo, por ejemplo, sobre quién es considerado un ciudadano, si una persona puede ser ilegal, cómo reforzar las fronteras de una nación, etc. Argentina, como un país atractivo para muchos en Sudamérica no es ninguna excepción. Aunque tiene leyes migratorias que consideran que todas las personas tienen ciertos derechos, hoy en día está retrocediendo. En el mes de mayo, yo hice una pasantía en la Asociación de Mujeres Unidas, Migrantes y Refugiadas en Argentina (AMUMRA), en donde investigué las oportunidades y dificultades de ser migrante en la Argentina …

Tourism In Iceland: Individual Carbon Footprint And The Potential To Be Carbon Neutral, Ange-Elise Venet

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

World population has increased decade after decade and tourism is following the same trend. Tourism in Iceland is no exception, expanding each year. Most human actions have adverse effects on the planet, including travel. As traveling amongst humans increases so will tourism emissions. It is important to be aware of the impacts our actions have and the options available to make it better. Since carbon emissions for travelers are inevitable, this research has calculated the cost of offsetting those emissions through afforestation in Iceland. Most imagine a heavy financial burden to offset emissions but in reality, most visitors would only …

Stephen Hawking As Accidental Ambassador For Assistive Technologies, Martin E. Blair

Independent Living and Community Participation

An article about Stephen Hawking and his "role as a “spokesmodel” for the use of assistive technologies."

Note that the video embedded in the original article can be found on YouTube.

Embracing The Transitioning Workforce Into The Civilian Work Force, Eric Pethtel

Purdue Road School

The City of Fishers created a program (RISE: Reentry Initiative through Structured Employment) to recruit motivated employees into public works positions and aid rehabilitation of citizens who are faced with finding meaningful employment after paying their debt to society. After completing a training regimen developed by the city, they’re offered an opportunity to apply for full-time employment. Join us to learn about this innovative program.

Puerto Ricans In The United States: 2010–2016, Nashia Roman

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

The Puerto Rican population in the United States continues to grow in the 21st century. Between 2010 and 2016, the Puerto Rican population in the U.S. grew by nearly 18 percent, increasing from about 4.6 million to almost 5.5 million. According to U.S. Census Bureau data, in 2016, Puerto Ricans accounted for 1.7 percent of the total U.S population and 9.5 percent of the nation’s Latino population. The rate of growth of stateside Puerto Ricans (17.9%) was more than three times the rate of the U.S. population as a whole (4.7%). Stateside Puer-to Ricans also had a higher rate of …

New Estimates: 135,000+ Post-Maria Puerto Ricans Relocated To Stateside, Center For Puerto Rican Studies

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

Based on school enrollment data, we estimate that more than 135,000 Puerto Ricans relocated to the United States six months after Hurricane Maria landed in Puerto Rico. Prior estimates of the magnitude of this exodus are based on movement of passenger or projections based on recent migration trends from Puerto Rico to the United States.

Puerto Ricans In Florida: 2010-2016, Nashia Roman

CUNY Centro, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2016, Florida had the second largest concentration of Puerto Ricans in the United States (1,067,747) after New York (1,081,110). Florida and New York were the only states with more than one million Puerto Ricans during this year. Puerto Ricans accounted for 5.2 percent of the total population in Florida, and 20.8 percent of the state’s Hispanic or Latino population in 2016. In other words, one in every five Latinos in Florida was Puerto Rican. The state of Florida has one of the most diverse Latino populations in the country. As of 2016, the …

Book Review: Multinational Maids: Stepwise Migration In A Global Labor Market By Anju Mary Paul, Andy Scott Chang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

From Singapore and Tel Aviv to Rome and Vancouver, Filipina domestic workers have captured the hearts of international employers, thanks to their English proficiency, educational attainment, and cosmopolitan outlook. Though confined to indentured servitude in nearly every country, Filipinas trot the world scouring for higher salaries, job security, and even pathways to citizenship. Their Indonesian counterparts likewise undertake multinational journeys, beginning in neighboring Malaysia and concluding in high-wage economies like Taiwan. But while Filipinas view employment in newly industrial economies as a springboard for the West, Indonesians display limited interest in settlement outside origin communities, content as they are with …

Out-Group Threat Or Inter-Group Contact Theory? Out-Group Attitudes And Interaction In Times Of Diversity Growth, Annette Jacoby

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Much attention has been devoted to the presumed negative effect of diversity growth on various dimensions of attitudes and interaction between different racial and ethnic groups. However, whether the claims hold true is unclear- there is a considerable controversy over the impact of changing diversity on societal behavior. With ongoing migration, the United States are becoming more and more ethnically diverse but a sound debate on racial and ethnic composition and its consequences for inter-group interactions and attitudes towards others has not yet been possible due to a lack of causally-oriented panel studies.

In this study, two important features are …

Weathered Mountains: A Qualitative Study Of West Virginia Women And Their Perceptions Of Strength, Land, And Womanhood, Danielle Renee Mullins

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Appalachia and those living within the region have been discussed, examined, critiqued, and defined primarily by those living outside of the area, particularly following the 2016 Election. The main narratives of Appalachia form a dichotomous view of the land and its people: beautiful landscapes threatened by resource extraction and a people wrecked by the symptoms of longterm poverty and economic stagnation. Simultaneously, the Appalachian identity has been constructed around a rugged or blue-collar male identity that excludes and makes invisible the female experience. This study seeks to break through the landscape and poverty binary, as well as the male-archetype, to …

Engaging Male Partners Of Adolescent Girls And Young Women In Hiv Services In Malawi: Findings From Dreams Implementation Science Research, Project Soar

HIV and AIDS

Important contributors to adolescent girls' and young women's (AGYWs') vulnerability to HIV are the power differentials in their sexual relationships with male partners. Therefore, engaging male partners of AGYWs is important in reducing HIV incidence among these women. Project SOAR, in collaboration with the Center of Reproductive Health at the University of Malawi College of Medicine, conducted qualitative research in the districts of Zomba and Machinga in Malawi to: 1) identify and locate the types of men who have sexual relationships with AGYW; 2) understand the challenges to and facilitators of accessing HIV services among AGYWs’ male partners; and 3) …

Why The U.S Should Not Deport Immigrants, Pedro Serrano

Nebraska College Preparatory Academy: Senior Capstone Projects

Illegal immigrants are people who come the the U.S illegally or come in legal through visa and stay over their stay period. There are many reasons why one would cross the boarder such as wanting a better life for themselves and families but some people, such as the President, do not see that. An estimated 381.5 billion between 623.2 billion dollars would be lost within the country if they were all deported. Illegal immigrants make up 65% of the agricultural production. It will cost millions and millions of dollars to deport every single illegal immigrant and also take about 20 …

Nasis 2018: Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey Questionnaire, Bureau Of Sociological Research

Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey (NASIS)

100 questions; 12 pages

Addressing Stigma And Gender Inequities To Strengthen Hiv And Aids Programming: A Focus On Key Populations, Population Council

HIV and AIDS

Over the past 20 years, the Population Council has generated evidence around the types of stigma experienced by key populations at higher risk for HIV, and has designed and tested strategies aimed at reducing stigma and improving HIV programs and outcomes. Key populations (KPs), such as female sex workers, men who have sex with men, transgender individuals, and people who use drugs, often face multiple stigmas that reinforce one another. Evidence generated by the Population Council has shown that addressing and reducing stigma faced by KPs is a crucial step toward improving HIV prevention and treatment outcomes. This brief summarizes …

Are Services Meeting The Holistic Family Planning Needs Of Female Sex Workers Living With Hiv In Tanzania?, Project Soar

HIV and AIDS

Women of reproductive age living with HIV need access to comprehensive, voluntary family planning (FP) services to support their decisions about whether and when to have children. Contraceptive need is particularly acute among HIV-positive female sex workers who are often socially and economically disadvantaged. Furthermore, many HIV-positive female sex workers intend to have children some day, but may not be aware of strategies to minimize the risk of HIV transmission to infants and partners (i.e., “safer conception”). This activity brief describes a Project SOAR study in Tanzania that will contribute to the evidence base by conducting research that describes these …