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- All Subjects: Sustainability
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Description
This dissertation explores the unique role schools play in contributing toward a sustainable future for their communities. This was undertaken by first conducting a thorough review and analysis of the literature on the current utilization of schools as agents of sustainable development, along with an evaluation of schools engaging in this model around the United States. Following this, a framework was developed to aid in the assessment of school-community engagements from the perspective of social change. Sustainability problem solving tools were synthesized for use by schools and community stakeholders, and were tested in the case study of this dissertation. This case study combined methods from the fields of sustainable development, transition management, and social change to guide two schools in their attempts to increase community sustainability through addressing a shared sustainability problem: childhood obesity. The case study facilitated the creation of a sustainable vision for the Phoenix Metropolitan Area without childhood obesity, as well as strategic actions plans for each school to utilize as they move forward on addressing this challenge.
ContributorsLawless, Tamara Hope (Author) / Golub, Aaron (Thesis advisor) / Redman, Charles (Committee member) / Schugurensky, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Sustainability challenges with severe local to global impacts require fundamental shifts in what industrial societies aspire to, generate, consume, and represent, as well as how they function. Transition governance is a promising framework to support these transformational efforts. A key component of transition governance is the construction of transition strategies, i.e., action schemes for how to transition from the current state to a sustainable one. Despite accomplishments in building theory and methodology for transition governance, the concepts of what transition strategies entail and how they relate to specific interventions are still underdeveloped. This dissertation further develops the concept of transition strategies, and explores how different stakeholder groups and allies can develop and test transition strategies across different scales, in the specific context of urban sustainability challenges. The overarching research question is: How can cities build and implement comprehensive transition strategies across different urban scales, from the city to the organizational level? The dissertation comprises four studies that explore the dynamic between transition strategies and experiments at the city, neighborhood, and organizational levels with empirical examples from Phoenix, Arizona. The first study reviews and compares paradigms of intentional change, namely transition governance, backcasting, intervention research, change management, integrated planning, and adaptive management in order to offer a rich set of converging ideas on what strategies for intentional change towards sustainability entail. The second study proposes a comprehensive concept of transition strategies and illustrates the concept with the example of sustainability strategies created through a research partnership with the City of Phoenix. The third study explores the role of experiments in transition processes through the lens of the neighborhood-level initiative of The Valley of the Sunflowers. The fourth study examines the role organizations can play in initiating urban sustainability transitions using exemplary strategies and experiments implemented at a local high school. The studies combined contribute to the further development of transition theory and sustainable urban development concepts. While this research field is at a nascent stage, the thesis provides a framework and empirical examples for how to build evidence-based transition strategies in support of urban sustainability.
ContributorsKay, Braden Ryan (Author) / Wiek, Arnim (Thesis advisor) / Loorbach, Derk (Committee member) / Schugurensky, Daniel (Committee member) / Tiger, Fern (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Public participation is considered an essential process for achieving sustainable urban development. Often, however, insufficient attention is paid to the design of public participation, and processes are formulaic. Then, participation may not match the local context of the communities within which a project is conducted. As a result, participation may become co-optative or coercive, stakeholders may lose trust, and outcomes may favor special interests or be unsustainable, among other shortcomings.
In this research, urban public participation is a collaborative decision-making process between residents, businesses, experts, public officials, and other stakeholders. When processes are not attuned with the local context (participant lifestyles, needs, interests, and capacities) misalignments between process and context arise around living conditions and personal circumstances, stakeholder trust, civic engagement, collaborative capacity, and sustainability literacy, among others.
This dissertation asks (1) what challenges arise when the public participation process does not match the local context, (2) what are key elements of public participation processes that are aligned with the local context, (3) what are ways to design public participation that align with specific local contexts, and (4) what societal qualities and conditions are necessary for meaningful participatory processes?
These questions are answered through four interrelated studies. Study 1 analyzes the current state of the problem by reviewing public participation processes and categorizing common misalignments with the local context. Study 2 envisions a future in which the problem is solved by identifying the features of well-aligned processes. Studies 3 and 4 test interventions for achieving the vision.
This dissertation presents a framework for analyzing the local context in urban development projects and designing public participation processes to meet this context. This work envisions public participation processes aligned with their local context, and it presents directives for designing deliberative decision-making processes for sustainable urban development. The dissertation applies a systems perspective to the social process of public participation, and it provides empirical support for theoretical debates on public participation while creating actionable knowledge for planners and practitioners.
In this research, urban public participation is a collaborative decision-making process between residents, businesses, experts, public officials, and other stakeholders. When processes are not attuned with the local context (participant lifestyles, needs, interests, and capacities) misalignments between process and context arise around living conditions and personal circumstances, stakeholder trust, civic engagement, collaborative capacity, and sustainability literacy, among others.
This dissertation asks (1) what challenges arise when the public participation process does not match the local context, (2) what are key elements of public participation processes that are aligned with the local context, (3) what are ways to design public participation that align with specific local contexts, and (4) what societal qualities and conditions are necessary for meaningful participatory processes?
These questions are answered through four interrelated studies. Study 1 analyzes the current state of the problem by reviewing public participation processes and categorizing common misalignments with the local context. Study 2 envisions a future in which the problem is solved by identifying the features of well-aligned processes. Studies 3 and 4 test interventions for achieving the vision.
This dissertation presents a framework for analyzing the local context in urban development projects and designing public participation processes to meet this context. This work envisions public participation processes aligned with their local context, and it presents directives for designing deliberative decision-making processes for sustainable urban development. The dissertation applies a systems perspective to the social process of public participation, and it provides empirical support for theoretical debates on public participation while creating actionable knowledge for planners and practitioners.
ContributorsCohen, Matthew Charles (Author) / Wiek, Arnim (Thesis advisor) / Manuel-Navarrete, David (Thesis advisor) / Schugurensky, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
I present a new framework for qualitative assessment of the current green purchasing practices of U.S. state governments. Increasing demand from citizens for green public purchasing has prompted state governments to adopt new, and improve existing, practices. Yet there has been little assessment of public green purchasing in academic research; what has been done has not provided the conceptual support necessary to assess green purchasing practices as a single component of the procurement process. My research aims to fill that gap by developing a conceptual framework with which to assess the status of green purchasing practices and by applying this framework to determine and describe the status of green purchasing in the five most populous U.S. states. The framework looks at state purchasing practices through the lenses of policy, policy implementation, and transparency.
ContributorsSharma, Lucky (Author) / Melnick, Rob (Thesis advisor) / Dooley, Kevin (Thesis advisor) / Basile, George (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Does school participatory budgeting (SPB) increase students’ political efficacy? SPB, which is implemented in thousands of schools around the world, is a democratic process of deliberation and decision-making in which students determine how to spend a portion of the school’s budget. We examined the impact of SPB on political efficacy in one middle school in Arizona. Our participants’ (n = 28) responses on survey items designed to measure self-perceived growth in political efficacy indicated a large effect size (Cohen’s d = 1.46), suggesting that SPB is an effective approach to civic pedagogy, with promising prospects for developing students’ political efficacy.
ContributorsGibbs, Norman P. (Author) / Bartlett, Tara (Author) / Schugurensky, Daniel (Author)
Created2021-05-01
Description
Despite widespread acknowledgement of the need for transformation towards sustainability, the majority of cities appear stuck in incremental change instead of far-reaching, radical change. While there are numerous obstacles to transformational change, one critical aspect is the process of selecting impactful sustainability programs. The unique and complex nature of sustainability suggests a different approach is needed to program selection than is normal. But, to what extent are cities adapting selection processes in response to sustainability and what effect does this have on sustainable urban transformation? Could there be a more effective process to select programs with greater transformational potential? This dissertation investigates these questions using case studies and action research to add to the general knowledge of urban sustainability program selection and to develop practical knowledge (solutions) for more effective sustainable urban transformation.
The dissertation consists of three studies. Study 1 uses a case study approach to investigate existing sustainability program selection processes in three cities: Avondale, USA; Almere, the Netherlands; and Freiburg, Germany. These cities all express commitment to sustainability but have varying degrees of sustainable development experience, accomplishment, and recognition. Study 2 develops a program selection framework for urban sustainable transformation drawing extensively from the literature on sustainability assessment and related fields, and on participatory input from municipal practitioners in Avondale and Almere. Study 3 assesses the usefulness of the framework in a dual pilot study. Participatory workshops were conducted in which the framework was applied to real-world situations: (i) with the city’s sustainability working group in Avondale; and (ii) with a local energy cooperative in Almere.
Overall, findings suggest cities are not significantly adapting program selection processes in response to the challenges of sustainability. Processes are often haphazard, opportunistic, driven elite actors, and weakly aligned with sustainability principles and goals, which results in selected programs being more incremental than transformational. The proposed framework appears effective at opening up the range of program options considered, stimulating constructive deliberation among participants, and promoting higher order learning. The framework has potential for nudging program selection towards transformational outcomes and more deeply embedding sustainability within institutional culture.
The dissertation consists of three studies. Study 1 uses a case study approach to investigate existing sustainability program selection processes in three cities: Avondale, USA; Almere, the Netherlands; and Freiburg, Germany. These cities all express commitment to sustainability but have varying degrees of sustainable development experience, accomplishment, and recognition. Study 2 develops a program selection framework for urban sustainable transformation drawing extensively from the literature on sustainability assessment and related fields, and on participatory input from municipal practitioners in Avondale and Almere. Study 3 assesses the usefulness of the framework in a dual pilot study. Participatory workshops were conducted in which the framework was applied to real-world situations: (i) with the city’s sustainability working group in Avondale; and (ii) with a local energy cooperative in Almere.
Overall, findings suggest cities are not significantly adapting program selection processes in response to the challenges of sustainability. Processes are often haphazard, opportunistic, driven elite actors, and weakly aligned with sustainability principles and goals, which results in selected programs being more incremental than transformational. The proposed framework appears effective at opening up the range of program options considered, stimulating constructive deliberation among participants, and promoting higher order learning. The framework has potential for nudging program selection towards transformational outcomes and more deeply embedding sustainability within institutional culture.
ContributorsForrest, Nigel (Author) / Wiek, Arnim (Thesis advisor) / Melnick, Rob (Committee member) / Schugurensky, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
Our dependence on fossil fuels is driving anthropogenic climate change. Solar energy is the most abundant and cleanest alternative to fossil fuels, but its practicability is influenced by a complex interplay of factors (policy, geospatial, and market) and scales (global, national, urban). This thesis provides a holistic evaluation of these factors and scales with the goal of improving our understanding of the mechanisms and challenges of transitioning to solar energy.
This analysis used geospatial, demographic, policy, legislative record, environmental, and industry data, plus a series of semi-structured, in-person interviews. Methods included geostatistical calculation, statistical linear regression and multivariate modeling, and qualitative inductive analysis. The results reveal valuable insights at each scale, but moreover a gestalt model across the factors and scales draws out a larger pattern at play of the transmutational weighting and increasing complexity of interplay as the level of analysis cascades down through the three geographic scales.
This analysis used geospatial, demographic, policy, legislative record, environmental, and industry data, plus a series of semi-structured, in-person interviews. Methods included geostatistical calculation, statistical linear regression and multivariate modeling, and qualitative inductive analysis. The results reveal valuable insights at each scale, but moreover a gestalt model across the factors and scales draws out a larger pattern at play of the transmutational weighting and increasing complexity of interplay as the level of analysis cascades down through the three geographic scales.
ContributorsHerche, Wesley (Author) / Melnick, Rob (Thesis advisor) / Boone, Christopher (Committee member) / Pasqualetti, Martin J (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
The food-energy-water (FEW) nexus refers to the interactions, trade-offs, and relationships between the three resources and their related governance sectors. Given the significant interdependencies, decisions made in one sector can affect the other two; thus, integrated governance can reduce unintended consequences and lead towards increased resource security and sustainability. Despite the known benefits, many governance decisions continue to be made in “silos,” where stakeholders do not coordinate across sectoral boundaries. Scholars have begun to identify barriers to the implementation of integrated FEW nexus governance, yet there is still minimal understanding of the reasons why these barriers exist and no theoretical framework for evaluating or assessing FEW nexus governance. Integrating the theory of collaborative governance with the concept of the FEW nexus provides an opportunity to better understand the barriers to and structures of FEW nexus governance and to propose solutions for increased collaborative FEW nexus governance in practice. To investigate this governance system, I examined the collaborative governance of the FEW nexus in the context of extreme urban water challenges in two urban case cities: Phoenix, Arizona, USA and Cape Town, South Africa. First, I performed a media analysis of the 2018 Cape Town water crisis to understand the impact of the water crisis on the FEW nexus resource system and the collaborative governance employed to respond to that crisis. Second, I conducted a systematic case study of FEW nexus governance in Phoenix, Arizona to understand barriers to collaborative governance implementation in the system and to identify opportunities to overcome these barriers. Finally, I presented a framework of indicators to assess the collaborative governance of the local FEW nexus. This dissertation will advance the sustainability literature by moving the concept of FEW nexus governance from theory and conceptualization towards operationalization and measurement.
ContributorsJones, Jaime Leah (Author) / White, Dave D (Thesis advisor) / Melnick, Rob (Committee member) / Aggarwal, Rimjhim (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Political polarization, or the inclination to align with the identity, ideologies, and candidates of a party that results in subsequent partisan animosity that creates divisions between these groups, can prevent important policies from getting passed. Policies related to sustainability, defined as that which “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs,” have been found to be particularly vulnerable to polarization (Brundtland, 1987). This research analyzes literature and expert interviews to provide recommendations and strategies that can be employed by sustainability advocates to get important policies passed despite the divisive political arena. The research concluded that public salience of sustainability issues, presentation of the co-benefits of sustainability policies, relationships amongst elected officials, and use of politically neutral language are especially important to garnering bipartisan support for sustainability policies. Based on these conclusions, strategies were recommended for sustainability advocates to use to overcome political polarization including bolstering communication skills to demonstrate how people are affected by sustainability issues and can benefit from sustainability policies and giving careful and continuous consideration to the words, phrases, and labels used to describe sustainability policies. A final recommendation is to examine political polarization and sustainability at the municipal level since this research indicated that this is a relatively under-examined context.
ContributorsBarlett, Riley (Author) / Melnick, Rob (Thesis director) / Kay, Braden (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2023-12