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This 15-week long course is designed to introduce students, specifically in Arizona, to basic sustainability and conservation principles in the context of local reptile wildlife. Throughout the course, the students work on identifying the problem, creating visions for the desired future, and finally developing a strategy to help with reptile

This 15-week long course is designed to introduce students, specifically in Arizona, to basic sustainability and conservation principles in the context of local reptile wildlife. Throughout the course, the students work on identifying the problem, creating visions for the desired future, and finally developing a strategy to help with reptile species survival in the valley. Research shows that animals in the classroom have led to improved academic success for students. Thus, through creating this course I was able to combine conservation and sustainability curriculum with real-life animals whose survival is directly being affected in the valley. My hope is that this course will help students identify a newfound passion and call to action to protect native wildlife. The more awareness and actionable knowledge which can be brought to students in Arizona about challenges to species survival the more likely we are to see a change in the future and a stronger sense of urgency for protecting wildlife. In order to accomplish these goals, the curriculum was developed to begin with basic concepts of species needs such as food and shelter and basic principles of sustainability. As the course progresses the students analyze current challenges reptile wildlife faces, like urban sprawl, and explore options to address these challenges. The course concludes with a pilot pitch where students present their solution projects to the school.

ContributorsGoethe, Emma Rae (Author) / Brundiers, Katja (Thesis director) / Bouges, Olivia (Committee member) / School of Sustainability (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
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As climate change continues to escalate natural hazards around the globe, certain communities feel the impacts of these disasters more so than others. After Hurricane Maria devastated communities in 2017, Puerto Rico struggled to respond to the needs of its citizens, particularly those in rural areas. Many of the regions

As climate change continues to escalate natural hazards around the globe, certain communities feel the impacts of these disasters more so than others. After Hurricane Maria devastated communities in 2017, Puerto Rico struggled to respond to the needs of its citizens, particularly those in rural areas. Many of the regions affected did not have resilient community structures in place to be able to withstand the systemic ripple effects of the hurricane. However, various community endeavors have developed post-Hurricane Maria to foster community collaboration and resiliency, including the development of agricultural tourism, otherwise known as agritourism. <br/>Although agritourism has begun to develop in rural regions of Puerto Rico, including the municipalities of Utuado, Ciales, Florida, and Jayuya, a systems-understanding is lacking of the current agritourism situation in the region and its related capacities, limitations, and opportunities of agritourism. To address this gap, a spatially explicit understanding and map of the underlying tourism infrastructure is needed to support the development of sustainable agritourism in Utuado, Jayuya, Ciales, and Florida municipalities in Puerto Rico. <br/>This report spatially represents the current state of tourism opportunities in the region as a result of asking “What are the spatial networks of gastronomy, accommodations, farms, and attractions that support the development of agritourism in Utuado, Jayuya, Ciales and Florida municipalities in Puerto Rico?” Three steps lead to the spatial representation starting with developing a comprehensive inventory. Second, we visualize the spatial map through Google Maps. Lastly, we explore the larger context of the report through an ArcGIS Storymap. The inventory will help with better understanding the number and variety of tourism resources available. The spatial visualization will help with understanding the distribution of resources and explore potential connections between resources and what relationships could be fostered in the future. Lastly, the ArcGIS Storymap will serve as a framework for outlining the future development of the SARE project. Overall, this report outlines the spatial maps of tourism resources and provides a tool to be used by community partners, tourists, and project partners.

ContributorsCretors, Kasey Ann (Author) / Brundiers, Katja (Thesis director) / Holladay, Patrick (Committee member) / Lazaro, Pablo Mendez (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
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My project is an examination of the process ASU Tempe campus took to institute an organics collection program. Working from a sustainability science perspective I demonstrate the structural and logistical barriers faced during program creation and expansion. My examination lead to the creation of a manual designed as a tool

My project is an examination of the process ASU Tempe campus took to institute an organics collection program. Working from a sustainability science perspective I demonstrate the structural and logistical barriers faced during program creation and expansion. My examination lead to the creation of a manual designed as a tool for other organizations in which I document ASU's process and provide information on key steps and procedures necessary to implement a unique organics collection program.
ContributorsSchumacher, Katherine Marie (Author) / Schoon, Michael (Thesis director) / Brundiers, Katja (Committee member) / Levine, Alana (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2013-05
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Given increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and disparities in socio-economic conditions, managing flood risks has become ever more challenging. Building a community flood resilience becomes an essential strategy to reduce flood risks and achieve sustainable development. However, enhancing community flood resilience presents numerous obstacles and potential downsides.

Given increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and disparities in socio-economic conditions, managing flood risks has become ever more challenging. Building a community flood resilience becomes an essential strategy to reduce flood risks and achieve sustainable development. However, enhancing community flood resilience presents numerous obstacles and potential downsides. To address such a challenge, this dissertation investigates the interactions among natural, built environment, and actor systems using a case study of flooding in Jakarta, Indonesia, focusing on the Ciliwung river watershed. The study first develops a conceptual framework for community flood resilience by integrating concepts from disaster, flood, and community resilience research to represent how water, structural elements, and actors are connected and can contribute to hazards and vulnerabilities. Building on the framework, the study utilizes a mixed-methods approach, combining stakeholder interviews with network and heatmap analysis to identify the roles and interconnections of relevant actors in Jakarta’s flooding. Next, the study employs a hybrid of agent-based and system dynamics modeling to explore the complex interactions among the watershed’s physical and actor systems. The model evaluates how the level of collaboration among government agencies affects flood management interventions and community resilience under various scenarios concerning weather patterns and land-use change. The research provides an exploratory tool and a strategic guide for enhancing community flood resilience. The stakeholder analysis reveals the complexity of stakeholder relationships and challenges such as imbalance in resource allocation, authority overlap, and low engagement. These insights highlight the need for trust-building, community involvement, and strategic alignment in flood management efforts. Systems modeling to derive policy recommendations bridges the gap between theoretical frameworks and governance challenges, offering empirical evidence of the critical role of governmental collaboration in reducing exposure to floods. The systems modeling results suggest that under conditions of uncertainties, enhancing community flood resilience requires a coordinated approach among stakeholders.
ContributorsSulistyo, Sinta Rahmawidya (Author) / Agusdinata, Datu Buyung (Thesis advisor) / Aggarwal, Rimjhim (Committee member) / Brundiers, Katja (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2024
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Description
With less than seven years left to reach the ambitious targets of the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is imperative to understand how the SDGs are operationalized in practice to support effective governance. One integrative approach, the water, energy, and food (WEF) nexus, has been proposed to

With less than seven years left to reach the ambitious targets of the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is imperative to understand how the SDGs are operationalized in practice to support effective governance. One integrative approach, the water, energy, and food (WEF) nexus, has been proposed to facilitate SDGs planning and implementation by incorporating synergies, co-benefits, and trade-offs. In this dissertation, I conduct three interrelated WEF nexus studies using a sustainability lens to develop new approaches and identify actionable measures to support the SDGs. The first paper is a systematic literature review (2015 – 2022) to investigate the extent to which WEF nexus research has generated actionable knowledge to achieve the SDGs. The findings show that the WEF nexus literature explicitly considering the SDGs mainly focuses on governance and environmental protection, with fewer studies focusing on target populations and affordability. In the second paper, I reframed the water quality concerns using a nexus and systems thinking approach in a FEW nexus hotspot, the Rio Negro Basin (RNB) in Uruguay. While Uruguay is committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, sustainability challenges endure in managing synergies and trade-offs, resulting in strategy setbacks for the sustainable development of food, land, water, and oceans. Reframing the water quality problem facilitated the identification of potential alternative intervention points to support local problem-solving capacity. In the third paper, I conducted semi-structured interviews and examined the meeting transcripts of the RNB Commission to understand local perspectives about how the activities and initiatives taking place in the basin enhance or diminish the overall sustainability. Sustainability criteria for river basin planning and management were operationalized through qualitative appraisal questions. The case of the RNB illustrates the challenges of coordinating the national development agenda to local livelihood. This dissertation advances the WEF nexus and sustainability science literature by shedding light on the implications of the research trend to support the SDGs, as well as reframing and appraising a persistent water quality problem to support sustainable development.
ContributorsOjeda Matos, Glorynel (Author) / White, Dave D (Thesis advisor) / Brundiers, Katja (Committee member) / Garcia, Margaret (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
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The learning journey toward sustainability requires the generation of action-oriented knowledge to understand the progress and potential adaptation of strategies to facilitate collective transformation. One integral area where advancing these strategies is essential is higher education. While efforts in the field have identified relevant learning objectives, pedagogies, and broader contributions

The learning journey toward sustainability requires the generation of action-oriented knowledge to understand the progress and potential adaptation of strategies to facilitate collective transformation. One integral area where advancing these strategies is essential is higher education. While efforts in the field have identified relevant learning objectives, pedagogies, and broader contributions for sustainability education to make, the sophistication of approaches to evaluating and enhancing collective learning has remained underdeveloped. This dissertation aimed to address this gap by exploring assessment in sustainability education, with the goal of supporting innovations in transdisciplinary practice by developing distinctive approaches for the field through deliberative processes that articulate design frameworks.The first study, Sustainability-Oriented Assessment, applied a formative intervention within an undergraduate course focused on professional skill development to demonstrate how a student-led rubric co-design process that drew from participative, normative, and integrative approaches contributed to student agency, expansive learning, and self-formation. The study demonstrated how students leveraged challenges and changing perspectives towards development as students and sustainability professionals. The second study, Boundary Crossings and Innovations, applied an exploratory action research approach within a community of practice of program leaders and instructors to identify barriers and possibilities for assessment practices, suggesting conceptual, practical, and logistical innovations. The strategies to enable these innovations focused on defining the field and articulating practice characteristics related to interdisciplinary approaches and transdisciplinary strategies, while meeting demands and facilitating innovations across course, program, and institutional levels. The third study, Assessment-Oriented Sustainability, applied a scoping literature review to develop a framework that integrates problem, solution, and learning orientations to sustainability by infusing educational purposes, processes, and principles to strengthen the efficacy of assessment approaches for transdisciplinary strategies. Insights from the three studies suggest that the practice of assessment plays multifaceted roles as it facilitates the design, implementation, and evaluation of sustainability endeavors. These roles include evaluative and formative functions as it appraises and advances learning, normative and deliberative functions in encouraging discussion and critical reflection, and adaptive and generative functions by indicating, motivating, and enabling dynamic learning and action for sustainability.
ContributorsKing, Jordan (Author) / Fischer, Daniel (Thesis advisor) / Larson, Kelli (Thesis advisor) / Brundiers, Katja (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2024
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Scholars have highlighted the role of disturbance and crisis, including disasters, in enabling systemic change towards sustainability. However, there are relatively few empirical studies on how individuals and organizations are able to utilize disasters as opportunities for change towards sustainability. This dissertation addresses three questions applied to two case studies:

Scholars have highlighted the role of disturbance and crisis, including disasters, in enabling systemic change towards sustainability. However, there are relatively few empirical studies on how individuals and organizations are able to utilize disasters as opportunities for change towards sustainability. This dissertation addresses three questions applied to two case studies: First, what changes were pursued in the aftermath of disasters, and to what extent did these changes contribute to sustainability? Second, how were people (and their organizations) able to pursue change towards sustainability? Third, what can be learned about seeing and seizing opportunities for change towards sustainability in disaster contexts and about sustaining those introduced changes over time?

The research entailed the creation of a theoretical framework, synthesizing literature from disaster studies and sustainability transition studies, to enable cross-case comparison and the appraisal of sustainability outcomes (Chapter 1). The framework was applied to two empirical case studies of post-disaster recovery: the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami in Aceh, Indonesia (Chapter 2), and the 2010-2012 series of earthquakes in the greater Christchurch area, New Zealand (Chapter 3).

The research revealed no systemic change towards sustainability in either case, although change towards sustainability was pursued in various areas, such as housing, educating, caring, and engaging in governance. Opportunities for sustainability emerged at different points following the disaster; change processes are ongoing. The sustainability changes were supported by “Sustainability Change Agents” (SCAs): people who were able to see and seize opportunities for change towards sustainability in the midst of disaster. SCAs were characterized as individuals with various attributes, starting with an ability to perceive opportunities, catalyze others to support this risk-taking endeavor, and stay in the endurance race. The study concludes with some recommendations for interventions to inform pre-disaster sustainability planning. These avenues include a toolbox and a curricular approach that would educate and enable students as future professionals to see and seize opportunities for change towards sustainability in disaster contexts (Chapter 4).
ContributorsBrundiers, Katja (Author) / Eakin, Hallie C (Thesis advisor) / Sarewitz, Daniel (Committee member) / Awotona, Adenrele (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016