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Protest has been both a practice of citizenship rights as well as a means of social pressure for change in the context of Mexico City's water system. This paper explores the role that citizen protest plays in the city's response to its water challenges. We use media reports of water

Protest has been both a practice of citizenship rights as well as a means of social pressure for change in the context of Mexico City's water system. This paper explores the role that citizen protest plays in the city's response to its water challenges. We use media reports of water protests to examine where protests happen and the causes associated with them. We analyze this information to illuminate socio-political issues associated with the city's water problems, such as political corruption, gentrification, as well as general power dynamics and lack of transparency between citizens, governments, and the private businesses which interact with them. We use text analysis of newspaper reports to analyze protest events in terms of the primary stimuli of water conflict, the areas within the city more prone to conflict, and the ways in which conflict and protest are used to initiate improved water management and to influence decision making to address water inequities. We found that water scarcity is the primary source of conflict, and that water scarcity is tied to new housing and commercial construction. These new constructions often disrupt water supplies and displace of minority or marginalized groups, which we denote as gentrification. The project demonstrates the intimate ties between inequities in housing and water in urban development. Key words: Conflict, protest, Mexico City, scarcity, new construction
ContributorsFlores, Shalae Alena (Author) / Eakin, Hallie C. (Thesis director) / Baeza-Castro, Andres (Committee member) / Lara-Valencia, Francisco (Committee member) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
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Defines the concept of the arcology as conceived by architect Paolo Soleri. Arcology combines "architecture" and "ecology" and explores a visionary notion of a self-contained urban community that has agricultural, commercial, and residential facilities under one roof. Two real-world examples of these projects are explored: Arcosanti, AZ and Masdar City,

Defines the concept of the arcology as conceived by architect Paolo Soleri. Arcology combines "architecture" and "ecology" and explores a visionary notion of a self-contained urban community that has agricultural, commercial, and residential facilities under one roof. Two real-world examples of these projects are explored: Arcosanti, AZ and Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Key aspects of the arcology that could be applied to an existing urban fabric are identified, such as urban design fostering social interaction, reduction of automobile dependency, and a development pattern that combats sprawl. Through interviews with local representatives, a holistic approach to applying arcology concepts to the Phoenix Metro Area is devised.
ContributorsSpencer, Sarah Anne (Author) / Manuel-Navarrete, David (Thesis director) / Salon, Deborah (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2015-05
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Description
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are important limiting or co-limiting nutrients in many aquatic ecosystems. Consumers such as fishes can significantly impact the balance and redistribution of these nutrients through consumer-driven nutrient recycling. Intraspecific variation in nutrient excretion rates can therefore have significant ecosystem impacts. Among individuals of sexually dimorphic

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are important limiting or co-limiting nutrients in many aquatic ecosystems. Consumers such as fishes can significantly impact the balance and redistribution of these nutrients through consumer-driven nutrient recycling. Intraspecific variation in nutrient excretion rates can therefore have significant ecosystem impacts. Among individuals of sexually dimorphic consumers, variation in population size structure and sex ratio could potentially have impacts of similar magnitude. We tested for the effects of body size and sex on consumer-driven nutrient recycling by measuring N and P excretion rates from eight species of poeciliid fishes. We found a strong positive effect of size on N excretion rates, as has been previously described among species. However, we found no effect of size on P excretion rates, nor did we find any difference in N or P excretion rates between sexes. Our work provides a preliminary analysis of how sexual dimorphism can lead to disparate nutrient excretion rates within consumer populations. These results indicate that variation in population sex ratios of sexually dimorphic consumers could have impacts at the ecosystem scale.
ContributorsAmbus, Nicholas George (Author) / Jon, Harrison (Thesis director) / Eric, Moody (Committee member) / Jordan, Okie (Committee member) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
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Description

This study examined crayfish diet within varying hydrologic environment in lotic systems using stable isotope analysis of crayfish and basal resources to add depth to previous findings. Crayfish are numerous and are omnivorous, opportunistic feeders, feeding on invertebrates, vegetation and detritus. Arizona streams stand apart from the Eastern and Northwestern

This study examined crayfish diet within varying hydrologic environment in lotic systems using stable isotope analysis of crayfish and basal resources to add depth to previous findings. Crayfish are numerous and are omnivorous, opportunistic feeders, feeding on invertebrates, vegetation and detritus. Arizona streams stand apart from the Eastern and Northwestern aquatic ecosystems of the United States because Arizona has no native crayfish species. Two species have been introduced and become widely established in Arizona (Orconectes virilis and Procambarus clarkii), with concern for further introduction of crayfish species and more information on how these two species impact the native species in the streams is needed. Previous studies have focused on crayfish abundance with hydrologic variation and crayfish diets within a lentic system, but few have focused on how the diet of consumers varies with hydrologic variability. Crayfish are hardy and have a dramatically increasing population within Arizona and therefore inhabit systems with a wide range of hydrologic variability which may contribute to spatial variability. The results show that crayfish diets do show a significant level of seasonal variation in some study locations, in both C source and trophic level. Hydrologic variation was also shown to impact crayfish diet at several study sites, with increasing magnitude of event (both floods and droughts) correlating with a change toward more aquatic C sources and lower trophic position in several of the study sites. In some locations, the correlation was not as strong with variation and diet change and showed less change in C source and rather showed an increase in trophic position.

ContributorsThompson, Sara Nicole (Author) / Sabo, John L. (Thesis director) / Grimm, Nancy (Committee member) / Baruch, Ethan M. (Committee member) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
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Description
Human activity produces ambient noise that potentially alters species’ abilities to communicate with each other—among other impacts. Given that birds are known to be sensitive to structural changes in habitat and highly communicative through sound, it is beneficial to understand how changing acoustic ecologies and ambient noise impact birds’

Human activity produces ambient noise that potentially alters species’ abilities to communicate with each other—among other impacts. Given that birds are known to be sensitive to structural changes in habitat and highly communicative through sound, it is beneficial to understand how changing acoustic ecologies and ambient noise impact birds’ ability to communicate in their respective environments. In this study, mockingbird calls from an urban, desert, and intermediate study site were recorded and analyzed for differences in acoustic properties. Acoustic properties such as frequency and amplitude differed significantly across sites as it was determined that mockingbirds in urban areas increase both the peak frequency and amplitude of their calls in order to communicate. This study identifies what these changes in acoustic properties mean in relation to the survival and conservation of birds and concludes with recommendations for novel research.
ContributorsReynolds, Bailey Susana (Author) / Pearson, David (Thesis director) / Walters, Molina (Committee member) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05