Regional Sociology Commons^™

Community Mapping: Transforming Thinking And Actions Toward Sustainability, Melanie J. Kornis

Professional Projects

This phenomenological study explored the level of concern regarding issues of sustainability, for individuals residing within one mid-sized Midwestern urban community. Ultimately, this research sought to determine those factors that increase the sense of urgency for some individuals to do more to reduce our global footprint and to create a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren. The participants were chosen via purposeful sampling and the interview process was used for data collection. Several themes uncovered in the study findings were similar to those in the literature review, which include: caring for the environment, making connections within the community, recycling, …

Complementary And Adversarial Stances In State-Civil Society Relationships And Their Implications For Democratization And Development: The Case Of Ethiopia, Teshome Tadesse

International Conference on African Development Archives

State-society relations in Ethiopia have throughout history been one of cooperation rather than competition and destruction at least when it comes to the defense of the motherland. This short paper, attempts to examine the place of civil society vis-a-vis the all-powerful position of the state in Ethiopia and its behaviors in times of national danger or war where both complement each other and defeat the enemy. The states , during these times of national threats, go to a point where it literally begs national communities through traditional associations or civil societal groups and successfully repulses the aggressor. But once the …

“The Gilded Age Hair Trade In St. Louis”, David Straight

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Much can be learned about industries from the envelopes and letterheads of companies. Take the sale of human hair in the Gilded Age, for example.

“Anatomy, Grave-Robbing, And Spiritualism In Antebellum St. Louis”, Luke Ritter

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Dr. Joseph Nash Smith’s Missouri Medical College was a leading school for physicians and part of the professionalization of medicine before the Civil War. He also required human dissection that, along with being a St. Louis character, made him one of the period’s most controversial figures as well.

Spring/Summer 2012, Full Issue

The Confluence (2009-2020)

No abstract provided.

“American Bottom: The Floodplain Between The Bluffs And The Levee”, Quinta Scott

The Confluence (2009-2020)

The bottomland bluffs between the bluffs and levees along the Mississippi have been farmland for centuries. In this second of three photo essays, Quinta Scott documents the manmade environments on the floodplains.

“Luther Ely Smith: Father Of The Gateway Arch”, Mark Tranel

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Eero Saarinen’s Arch may be among the most recognized works of public art, but the vision that led to the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial was that of Luther Ely Smith. Mark Tranel looks at Smith’s tireless work to have the warehouse district razed and a national memorial built on the St. Louis riverfront.

“Missouri Through Soviet Eyes”, Ilya Ilf, Yevgeny Petrov

The Confluence (2009-2020)

In 1935, Russian satirists Ilya Ilf and Yevgeny Petrov bought a Ford and drove across the United States and back; their observations shaped the ideas of Russians about the United States for some three decades. One of the places they visited was Hannibal, Missouri. Here is their account, including their own photos.

From The Editor, Jeffrey Smith

The Confluence (2009-2020)

No abstract provided.

Ecotourism In Costa Rica: Empowering Local Communities, Rachel Lequire

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This paper explores a community-based ecotourism initiative called La Tortuga Feliz, in Pacuare Beach, Costa Rica. This organization founded and run by Western expatriates using a conservation approach provides benefits to the local community while meaningfully involving them in the process.

My research included an extensive literature review, informal and formal interviews as well as participant observation for one month on-site. The objective was to understand what it means to empower and involve local communities in a meaningful way in community-based ecotourism projects.

I will argue that La Tortuga Feliz, although facilitating some benefits to the community, also disempowers the …

The Californians Against Sexual Exploitation (Case) Act: A Case Study In Policy Advocacy, Bailey Mannisto-Ichés

Capstone Collection

In any given year in the United States of America at least 100,000 domestic youth are sexually exploited through the commercial sex industry. Current national and state laws do not adequately protect these children from being groomed, pimped, and exploited over and over again in their young lives. A majority of these children are trafficked from, into or within the nation’s most populated state of California. In 2003 the FBI identified three of the country’s 13 high-­‐intensity child sex trafficking cities as being in California. The cycle of violence these children endure is not being brought to justice through the …

Chapter 5, History, In Intimacy And Community In A Changing World: Sikaiana Life 1980-1993, William Donner

Sikaiana Ethnography

This chapter is a discussion of the legendary and the more recent recorded history of the Sikaiana people from the Solomon Islands.

A related website can be found at www.sikaianaarchives.com

They Call Me Crazy: Factors To Conspiratorial Participation, Rachel Sparkman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study investigates the public perceptions of conspiracy theories and the level and types of participation of those who believe such theories. It addresses the research questions of: (1) Under what conditions would a person speak openly about conspiracy, and under what conditions would they remain silent? (2) What are the social factors that draw a person into joining with others who believe a particular conspiracy has occurred? And (3) is there any relationship between a person's education and profession that would increase or hinder a conspiracist's visible participation of his or her beliefs? A total of thirty interviews were …

The Place To Be

Publications and Exhibits

Public life brings us together in common activity: cheering on the school sports team, enjoying Sunday dinner at a favorite restaurant, shopping at a local store. In these public spaces we conduct business, swap recipes, discuss issues of the day, relax with friends, and welcome newcomers to town. Public life knits together the diverse elements of a community and fosters a sense of civic responsibility. But longer job commutes, greater popularity of home entertainment, and online shopping mean more time spent privately and fewer opportunities to get together. To retain vitality, communities must continually nurture their traditional gathering places and …

Inside Cover

The Bridge

No abstract provided.

The Reasons For This Book And How It Came To Be Published, Max Henius

The Bridge

The appearance of this little book has come about primarily because of the Danish-born Americans’ Festival in the Rebild Hills this year. We have for some time wished to assemble representatives from all Danish American camps and communities in these United States and to meet at one spot within our country of origin. This year, for the first time, we will have managed to do that, as it has become more and more clear how little those of us from the old country know about each other, because we live so far apart, and we are thus unable to understand …

The Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church In America, P. Gøtke

The Bridge

I do not propose to write here a complete history of the Danish Church as it was established in America—the full story of the Danish Church in America has yet to arrive at its conclusion. Instead, I offer here a brief overview of the work of the church among the immigrants to the United States, drawing the attention of the readers of this book to particular points.

Young People’S Schools And Højskoler In The United States, J. Christian Bay

The Bridge

It can be said that an organized effort to preserve Danish language and culture has existed here in America since the beginning of the seventies. The immigrants considered it essential that they develop plans to strengthen and design general education for young adults. Among the immigrants who immediately joined the Church right from the beginning, there were few academics. However, because many knew about the højskole concept in Denmark, this concept became the foundation for their church-sheltered schools.

The Danish Folk Society, J. S. Faaborg

The Bridge

The “Danish Folk Society” was established in the spring of 1887. On April 18 of that year a public invitation was issued for the establishment of the society, and from April 18 till April 21 this year the society celebrated its 25th anniversary here in Clinton, Iowa. The celebration took place at the location where the idea got its start and where the plans were laid.

The Danish-Born American Newly Arrived In The Cities, Carl Antonsen

The Bridge

To begin this little essay, which can only amount to a few scattered remarks because of its place and its general nature, I want to repeat some of what I was able to say in a speech in Aarhus on Danish-American Day on July 4, 1909:

“Speaking as I undoubtedly am on this occasion to those whose longing to travel has been or soon will be focused on America; I cannot emphasize strongly enough that the United States is not a paradise, not the utopia about which C.H. Winther and H.C. Andersen sang. America is the Promised Land only for …