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In an effort to address the lack of literature in on-campus active travel, this study aims to investigate the following primary questions:<br/>• What are the modes that students use to travel on campus?<br/>• What are the motivations that underlie the mode choice of students on campus?<br/>My first stage of research involved a series of qualitative investigations. I held one-on-one virtual interviews with students in which I asked them questions about the mode they use and why they feel that their chosen mode works best for them. These interviews served two functions. First, they provided me with insight into the various motivations underlying student mode choice. Second, they provided me with an indication of what explanatory variables should be included in a model of mode choice on campus.<br/>The first half of the research project informed a quantitative survey that was released via the Honors Digest to attract student respondents. Data was gathered on travel behavior as well as relevant explanatory variables.<br/>My analysis involved developing a logit model to predict student mode choice on campus and presenting the model estimation in conjunction with a discussion of student travel motivations based on the qualitative interviews. I use this information to make a recommendation on how campus infrastructure could be modified to better support the needs of the student population.
ContributorsMirtich, Laura Christine (Author) / Salon, Deborah (Thesis director) / Fang, Kevin (Committee member) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
Since the Convention on Biological Diversity was established in 1992, more importance has been given to the conservation of genetic resources in the international community. In 2001, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PGRFA) focused on conserving plant genetic resources, including crop wild relatives (CWR). Some of these genetic resources hold desirable traits--such as transfer of plant disease resistance, improvement of nutritional content, or increased resistance to climate change--that can improve commercial crops. For many years, ex situex situ conservation was the prevalent form of protecting plant genetic resources. However, after PGRFA was published in 1998, in situ techniques have increasingly been applied to conserve wild relatives and enhance domesticated crops.In situ techniques are preferred when possible, since they allow for continued evolution of traits through natural selection, and viability of seed stock through continuous germination and regeneration. In my research, I identified regions in Bolivia and rated them according to their potential for successful programs of iin situ conservation of wild crop relatives. In particular, I analyzed areas according to the following criteria: a) The prevalence of CWRs. b) The impacts of climate change, land use change, population growth, and economic development on the continued viability of CWRs in an area. c) The socio-political and economic conditions that might impede or facilitate successful conservation programs and outcomes. This work focuses on three genera of particular importance in Bolivia: Peanut (Arachis spp.), Potato (Solanum spp.) and Quinoa (Chenopodium spp.). I analyzed the above factors for each municipality in Bolivia (the smallest scale for which appropriate data were available). The results indicate which municipalities are most likely to successfully engage in CWR conservation projects. Finally, I present guidelines for the creation of conservation projects that pinpoint some of the potential risks and difficulties with in situ conservation programs in Bolivia and more generally.
ContributorsGonzalez-Paredes, Cecilia (Author) / Kinzig, Ann (Thesis advisor) / Aggarwal, Rimjhim (Committee member) / Chhetri, Netra (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
More than 90 million Americans suffer from low health literacy levels that can lead to detrimental health practices. One of the greatest issues stemming from low health literacy is the misuse of medication, which results in 125,000 deaths per year and close to $200 billion dollars in health care funds (Ngoh 2009). With their implementation into neighborhood settings and consequently the everyday lives of individuals, pharmacies show potential in being great assets towards increasing health literacy on an individual and societal level. However, pharmacists must first be made aware of the opportunities and challenges that exist concerning this effort. Through a three step literature review and corresponding comparative analysis, the results of this study show that pharmacists should focus on four main areas: overall assessment of health literacy in a pharmacy setting, individualization and tailoring of health/ medication plans, development of verbal and written communication tools, and the pharmacist-patient relationship. Each area presents a set of opportunities and challenges that must be accounted for in order to design more effective initiatives and tools in the pharmacists' aim to increase health literacy.
ContributorsMergens, Rianna Lynn (Author) / Robert, Jason Scott (Thesis director) / Maienschein, Jane (Committee member) / Kinzig, Ann (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
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
Description
The contemporary architectural pedagogy is far removed from its ancestry: the classical Beaux-Arts and polytechnic schools of the 19th century and the Bauhaus and Vkhutemas models of the modern period. Today, the "digital" has invaded the academy and shapes pedagogical practices, epistemologies, and ontologies within it, and this invasion is reflected in teaching practices, principles, and tools. Much of this digital integration goes unremarked and may not even be explicitly taught. In this qualitative research project, interviews with 18 leading architecture lecturers, professors, and deans from programs across the United States were conducted. These interviews focused on advanced practices of digital architecture, such as the use of digital tools, and how these practices are viewed. These interviews yielded a wealth of information about the uses (and abuses) of advanced digital technologies within the architectural academy, and the results were analyzed using the methods of phenomenology and grounded theory. Most schools use digital technologies to some extent, although this extent varies greatly. While some schools have abandoned hand-drawing and other hand-based craft almost entirely, others have retained traditional techniques and use digital technologies sparingly. Reasons for using digital design processes include industry pressure as well as the increased ability to solve problems and the speed with which they could be solved. Despite the prevalence of digital design, most programs did not teach related design software explicitly, if at all, instead requiring students (especially graduate students) to learn to use them outside the design studio. Some of the problems with digital design identified in the interviews include social problems such as alienation as well as issues like understanding scale and embodiment of skill.
ContributorsAlqabandy, Hamad (Author) / Brandt, Beverly (Thesis advisor) / Mesch, Claudia (Committee member) / Newton, David (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Sustainable urbanism offers a set of best practice planning and design prescriptions intended to reverse the negative environmental consequences of urban sprawl, which dominates new urban development in the United States. Master planned developments implementing sustainable urbanism are proliferating globally, garnering accolades within the planning community and skepticism among social scientists. Despite attention from supporters and critics alike, little is known about the actual environmental performance of sustainable urbanism. This dissertation addresses the reasons for this paucity of evidence and the capacity of sustainable urbanism to deliver the espoused environmental outcomes through alternative urban design and the conventional master planning framework for development through three manuscripts. The first manuscript considers the reasons why geography, which would appear to be a natural empirical home for research on sustainable urbanism, has yet to accumulate evidence that links design alternatives to environmental outcomes or to explain the social processes that mediate those outcomes. It argues that geography has failed to develop a coherent subfield based on nature-city interactions and suggests interdisciplinary bridging concepts to invigorate greater interaction between the urban and nature-society geographic subfields. The subsequent chapters deploy these bridging concepts to empirically examine case-studies in sustainable urbanism. The second manuscript utilizes fine scale spatial data to quantify differences in ecosystem services delivery across three urban designs in two phases of Civano, a sustainable urbanism planned development in Tucson, Arizona, and an adjacent, typical suburban development comparison community. The third manuscript considers the extent to which conventional master planning processes are fundamentally at odds with urban environmental sustainability through interviews with stakeholders involved in three planned developments: Civano (Tucson, Arizona), Mueller (Austin, Texas), and Prairie Crossing (Grayslake, Illinois). Findings from the three manuscripts reveal deep challenges in conceptualizing an empirical area of inquiry on sustainable urbanism, measuring the outcomes of urban design alternatives, and innovating planning practice within the constraints of existing institutions that facilitate conventional development. Despite these challenges, synthesizing the insights of geography and cognate fields holds promise in building an empirical body of knowledge that complements pioneering efforts of planners to innovate urban planning practice through the sustainable urbanism alternative.
ContributorsTurner, Victoria (Author) / Gober, Patricia (Thesis advisor) / Eakin, Hallie (Committee member) / Kinzig, Ann (Committee member) / Talen, Emily (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
In the middle of the 20th century, juried annuals of Native American painting in art museums were unique opportunities because of their select focus on two-dimensional art as opposed to "craft" objects and their inclusion of artists from across the United States. Their first fifteen years were critical for patronage and widespread acceptance of modern easel painting. Held at the Philbrook Art Center in Tulsa (1946-1979), the Denver Art Museum (1951-1954), and the Museum of New Mexico Art Gallery in Santa Fe (1956-1965), they were significant not only for the accolades and prestige they garnered for award winners, but also for setting standards of quality and style at the time. During the early years of the annuals, the art was changing, some moving away from conventional forms derived from the early art training of the 1920s and 30s in the Southwest and Oklahoma, and incorporating modern themes and styles acquired through expanded opportunities for travel and education. The competitions reinforced and reflected a variety of attitudes about contemporary art which ranged from preserving the authenticity of the traditional style to encouraging experimentation. Ultimately becoming sites of conflict, the museums that hosted annuals contested the directions in which artists were working. Exhibition catalogs, archived documents, and newspaper and magazine articles about the annuals provide details on the exhibits and the changes that occurred over time. The museums' guidelines and motivations, and the statistics on the award winners reveal attitudes toward the art. The institutions' reactions in the face of controversy and their adjustments to the annuals' guidelines impart the compromises each made as they adapted to new trends that occurred in Native American painting over a fifteen year period. This thesis compares the approaches of three museums to their juried annuals and establishes the existence of a variety of attitudes on contemporary Native American painting from 1946-1960. Through this collection of institutional views, the competitions maintained a patronage base for traditional style painting while providing opportunities for experimentation, paving the way for the great variety and artistic progress of Native American painting today.
ContributorsPeters, Stephanie (Author) / Duncan, Kate (Thesis advisor) / Fahlman, Betsy (Thesis advisor) / Mesch, Claudia (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Waste generation in the U.S. has reached new heights, but the exploitation of Native American lands for waste disposal is nothing new. Many of the negative effects of massive waste production and toxic pollution, such as poor health outcomes and decreased property values, disproportionately burden impoverished, minority communities inside and outside the United States (Brulle and Pellow, 2006). Native American communities have long been exploited for their natural resources and land-use, but in recent decades Indian country has also become a common place to store nuclear, hazardous and municipal wastes. This project is a case study of a local Indian reservation, the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, and examined the socio-historical context of the landfill operations in terms of five principles of environmental justice. Each principle was defined and key moments from the SRPMIC's landfill history were discussed to demonstrate ways that the situation has improved, stayed the same or worsened with regard to the rights outlined in each principle. It was concluded that there needs to be an acknowledgement by involved municipalities and industries of the historical context that make the SRPMIC and other nearby Native American communities "ideal" contractors for waste management. Additionally, while the SRPMIC could currently benefit from looking into the principles of environmental justice as a guide to manage past and operating landfills, the Community will have a specific opportunity to revisit these issues under closer scrutiny during the closure of the Salt River Landfill in 2032 in order to ensure more environmentally just outcomes. Finally, it was concluded that scholarship at the intersection of environmental justice and Native American communities should continue because looking closer at the ways that local Native American communities are facing and resisting environmental injustice can serve to develop future models for other communities facing similar challenges to achieving environmental justice.
ContributorsScott, Nicole Danielle (Author) / Kinzig, Ann (Thesis director) / Harlan, Sharon (Committee member) / Maienschein, Jane (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / School of Social Transformation (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
This project examines a complex issue in urban ecology: the impact of biodiversity on ecosystem services, and considers how this varies across cities. Data were gathered on multiple economic and ecological parameters for a selection of seven cities around the world and analyzed via multiple linear regression in order to assess any relationships that may be at play. Significance values were then calculated to further define the relationships between the data. Analysis found that both biophysical and socioeconomic factors affected ecosystem services, although not all hypotheses regarding these relationships were met. Conclusions indicate that this model was fairly effective in describing physical drivers of ecosystem services, but were not as clear regarding social drivers. Further study regarding social parameters' effect on ecosystem services is recommended.
ContributorsMcDannald, Lindsay JoAnne (Author) / Perrings, Charles (Thesis director) / Kinzig, Ann (Committee member) / Grimm, Nancy (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Smoke exposure in preterm infants can cause adverse health outcomes in these children. Preterm infants exposed to tobacco smoke have an increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and metabolic syndrome, asthma, respiratory infections, ear infections and decreased cognitive function compared to healthy infants (Wilson 2011, Blizzard 2003, Bock 2008, Hutchison 1998). A smoking cessation program for parents of pre-term infants at Aultman Hospital in Canton, Ohio was designed to help parents of pre-term infants cease smoking behavior. The outcomes of this program were intended to be the topic of my honors thesis; however, lack of participation in the program shifted my research focus to designing a program, based on a review of "best practices" in the literature, that might increase participation. Among those parents who were asked to participate (N=56), being of low socioeconomic status correlated highest with smoking behavior . Through a literature review, I determined that the best practices to enhance participation for this group would be to include motivational interviewing, the phone number to a toll free quit line, and alternate smoking resources (pamphlets, alternative DVD's) for these Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) parents at Aultman. By the parent's participation in the Aultman smoking cessation program, long-term health outcomes of their newborns may improve by reducing their exposure to tobacco smoke. These children may grow up in an environment with less smoke exposure, which may decrease their risk of disease (Bock 2008).
ContributorsLach, Laura Elizabeth (Author) / Kinzig, Ann (Thesis director) / Oswalt, Krista (Committee member) / Mossman, Kenneth (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor)
Created2013-05