Matching Items (16)
149789-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
The greatest challenge facing humanity in the twenty-first century is our ability to reconcile the capacity of natural systems to support continued improvement in human welfare around the globe. Over the last decade, the scientific community has attempted to formulate research agendas in response to what they view as the

The greatest challenge facing humanity in the twenty-first century is our ability to reconcile the capacity of natural systems to support continued improvement in human welfare around the globe. Over the last decade, the scientific community has attempted to formulate research agendas in response to what they view as the problems of sustainability. Perhaps the most prominent and wide-ranging of these efforts has been sustainability science, an interdisciplinary, problem-driven field that seeks to address fundamental questions on human-environment interactions. This project examines how sustainability scientists grapple with and bound the deeply social, political and normative dimensions of both characterizing and pursuing sustainability. Based on in-depth interviews with leading researchers and a content analysis of the relevant literature, this project first addresses three core questions: (1) how sustainability scientists define and bound sustainability; (2) how and why various research agendas are being constructed to address these notions of sustainability; (3) and how scientists see their research contributing to societal efforts to move towards sustainability. Based on these results, the project explores the tensions between scientific efforts to study and inform sustainability and social action. It discusses the implications of transforming sustainability into the subject of scientific analysis with a focus on the power of science to constrain discourse and the institutional and epistemological contexts that link knowledge to societal outcomes. Following this analysis, sustainability science is repositioned, borrowing Herbert Simon's concept, as a "science of design." Sustainability science has thus far been too focused on understanding the "problem-space"--addressing fundamental questions about coupled human-natural systems. A new set objectives and design principles are proposed that would move the field toward a more solutions-oriented approach and the enrichment of public reasoning and deliberation. Four new research streams that would situate sustainability science as a science of design are then discussed: creating desirable futures, socio-technical change, sustainability values, and social learning. The results serve as a foundation for a sustainability science that is evaluated on its ability to frame sustainability problems and solutions in ways that make them amenable to democratic and pragmatic social action.
ContributorsMiller, Thaddeus R. (Author) / Minteer, Ben A (Thesis advisor) / Redman, Charles L. (Committee member) / Sarewitz, Daniel (Committee member) / Wiek, Arnim (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
151973-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Cities around the globe struggle with socio-economic disparities, resource inefficiency, environmental contamination, and quality-of-life challenges. Technological innovation, as one prominent approach to problem solving, promises to address these challenges; yet, introducing new technologies, such as nanotechnology, into society and cities has often resulted in negative consequences. Recent research has conceptually

Cities around the globe struggle with socio-economic disparities, resource inefficiency, environmental contamination, and quality-of-life challenges. Technological innovation, as one prominent approach to problem solving, promises to address these challenges; yet, introducing new technologies, such as nanotechnology, into society and cities has often resulted in negative consequences. Recent research has conceptually linked anticipatory governance and sustainability science: to understand the role of technology in complex problems our societies face; to anticipate negative consequences of technological innovation; and to promote long-term oriented and responsible governance of technologies. This dissertation advances this link conceptually and empirically, focusing on nanotechnology and urban sustainability challenges. The guiding question for this dissertation research is: How can nanotechnology be innovated and governed in responsible ways and with sustainable outcomes? The dissertation: analyzes the nanotechnology innovation process from an actor- and activities-oriented perspective (Chapter 2); assesses this innovation process from a comprehensive perspective on sustainable governance (Chapter 3); constructs a small set of future scenarios to consider future implications of different nanotechnology governance models (Chapter 4); and appraises the amenability of sustainability problems to nanotechnological interventions (Chapter 5). The four studies are based on data collected through literature review, document analysis, participant observation, interviews, workshops, and walking audits, as part of process analysis, scenario construction, and technology assessment. Research was conducted in collaboration with representatives from industry, government agencies, and civic organizations. The empirical parts of the four studies focus on Metropolitan Phoenix. Findings suggest that: predefined mandates and economic goals dominate the nanotechnology innovation process; normative responsibilities identified by risk governance, sustainability-oriented governance, and anticipatory governance are infrequently considered in the nanotechnology innovation process; different governance models will have major impacts on the role and effects of nanotechnology in cities in the future; and nanotechnologies, currently, do not effectively address the root causes of urban sustainability challenges and require complementary solution approaches. This dissertation contributes to the concepts of anticipatory governance and sustainability science on how to constructively guide nanotechnological innovation in order to harvest its positive potential and safeguard against negative consequences.
ContributorsFoley, Rider Williams (Author) / Wiek, Arnim (Thesis advisor) / Guston, David H. (Committee member) / Seager, Thomas P (Committee member) / Minteer, Ben A (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
150964-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Within ethics, a number of scholars advocate an interdisciplinary approach of combining the two traditionally different professions of science and philosophy with the confidence that this collaboration will be a mutually beneficial experience. Current ethicist-scientist interactions include embedded-ethicists and research ethics consultation services. Both methods are employed with the hope

Within ethics, a number of scholars advocate an interdisciplinary approach of combining the two traditionally different professions of science and philosophy with the confidence that this collaboration will be a mutually beneficial experience. Current ethicist-scientist interactions include embedded-ethicists and research ethics consultation services. Both methods are employed with the hope that they will reduce social and ethical problems that could arise from scientific research, and enhance the reflective capacity of investigative teams. While much effort has been put forth in the endeavor of creating ethicist-scientist interactions, there remains opportunity to refine these new interaction models to make them more robust. There is need for ethicists to understand the context of ethical decision-making in the laboratory. By extension, before interacting with scientists in a research lab, research ethicists ought to have the ability to understand the science and also be familiar with the different factors that influence scientific research, such as funding, productivity requirements, time constraints, politics of laboratories and institutional reward structures. Through literature review and the analysis of qualitative data obtained from the ethnographic study in a neuroscience laboratory, this thesis explores the strengths and weaknesses of ethicist-scientist interactions and aims to understand the culture, traditions and values of this community and their perspectives on their role as scientists and their relationship to ethics. This study shows that the quantity and quality of ethics discussions in the lab are limited and dictated by time constraints and minimal incentives. Other influencing factors are the researchers' perspectives on ethics and how they view their role as a scientist in relation to the public.
ContributorsMin, Gyongeun Catherine (Author) / Ellison, Karin (Thesis advisor) / Robert, Jason S (Thesis advisor) / Minteer, Ben A (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
131407-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
There are two main sections of this thesis: Codebook development and case coding. Over the course of my two years of involvement with the collaborative governance lab with Drs. Schoon and Carr Kelman, I worked on helping to complete the coding manual built by the lab to test variables from

There are two main sections of this thesis: Codebook development and case coding. Over the course of my two years of involvement with the collaborative governance lab with Drs. Schoon and Carr Kelman, I worked on helping to complete the coding manual built by the lab to test variables from the literature using case studies. My main deliverable was building a Qualtrics survey to collect case studies. Using this Qualtrics survey, the lab will be able to collect coded cases by distributing the survey link through research networks. My thesis project included building the interface for the survey, participating in testing the intercoder reliability of the codebook, and coding one case, the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI), to provide insight on the collaborative governance strategies of this collaboration. Coding 4FRI also acted as a preliminary test of the survey, helping to provide further information on how users of the codebook might interact with the survey, and allowing the lab to generate a test report of survey results.
ContributorsGoddard, Kevin W (Author) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Thesis director) / Childers, Daniel (Committee member) / School of Sustainability (Contributor, Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
171645-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) is a collection of more than 800 areas designated as wilderness under the Wilderness Act of 1964. The Act defines wilderness as an “area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does

The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) is a collection of more than 800 areas designated as wilderness under the Wilderness Act of 1964. The Act defines wilderness as an “area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” Wilderness lands are supposed to be pristine examples of nature where the overseeing agency has not allowed any post-designation development. The language of the act describes land designated as wilderness as “untrammeled” by people, discounting thousands of years of human influence. It also discounts the potential effect of surrounding lands and visitors on the wilderness. The management of these lands falls to all four federal land management agencies, and they each had – and still have – their own organizational perspectives on the Wilderness Act and their agency’s role in its implementation. Although the Act provided criteria for designating and managing wilderness, concrete guidance is lacking. This ambiguity has allowed a rift to emerge between those who believe that wilderness should be actively managed and those who believe that wilderness should be preserved and left alone as much as possible. The diversity of views and agency approaches have created administrative divides between wilderness lands and other land types. In parallel, the introduction of subsequent environmental laws have placed additional legal boundaries on the land, creating parcels next to and within wilderness that are subject to different uses and requirements. This study, which marshals dozens of expert interviews and explores a series of wilderness cases across the United States, focuses on several unanticipated challenges of stewarding the NWPS in the 21st Century. These include: the impacts of public land parceling due to legal obligations; how statuary ossification affects current interpretations of the various laws bearing on wilderness lands; and ultimately how land managers and agencies – who are looking toward a future of increased anthropogenic impacts on wildlife biodiversity and endangered/threatened species on wilderness lands – approach these challenges.
ContributorsFacemire, Challie Renee (Author) / Minteer, Ben A (Thesis advisor) / Ellison, Karin (Thesis advisor) / Bradshaw, Karen (Committee member) / Hahn, Beth (Committee member) / Budruk, Megha (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description

Based on existing research, state wildlife agencies should be diversifying their management activities to reflect both utilitarian and biocentric values. Yet agencies are still focused primarily on managing land and wildlife resources for hunting and fishing, partly because of revenues associated with permits and licenses (Jacobson et al., 2022; Manfredo,

Based on existing research, state wildlife agencies should be diversifying their management activities to reflect both utilitarian and biocentric values. Yet agencies are still focused primarily on managing land and wildlife resources for hunting and fishing, partly because of revenues associated with permits and licenses (Jacobson et al., 2022; Manfredo, 2008). My research examines the values which state agencies emphasize in managing wildlife and engaging the public. Public-facing agency webpages are one way to investigate the values that drive agencies’ management priorities and activities. By looking at how information is represented on their main webpages, one can infer who the intended audience is, and which values guide their actions. Thus, my research aims to analyze how state management activities and associated information—as featured on their websites—represent public wildlife values and the trend away from utilitarianism (especially hunting and fishing) toward protectionism through wildlife conservation. Specifically, I ask: How do state-level wildlife agencies present and communicate wildlife management issues and reflect their different wildlife values—ranging from utilitarianism with emphasis on recreational use and enjoyment by people toward mutualist benefits that also protect wildlife—through their websites?

ContributorsAvilez, Dayanara (Author) / Larson, Kelli (Thesis director) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Civic & Economic Thought and Leadership (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description

 This paper identified issues related to the production and use of knowledge in the conservation management of the Galapagos and provided frameworks for facilitating efficient engagement and actionable science to overcome knowledge gaps. The literature emphasizes the need for usable knowledge and knowledge exchange mechanisms to ensure that research findings

 This paper identified issues related to the production and use of knowledge in the conservation management of the Galapagos and provided frameworks for facilitating efficient engagement and actionable science to overcome knowledge gaps. The literature emphasizes the need for usable knowledge and knowledge exchange mechanisms to ensure that research findings are translated into practical solutions. The partnership between the Galapagos National Park and the Darwin Research Station has the potential to facilitate knowledge exchange through practices such as co production of knowledge, embedded researchers, or actionable science.

ContributorsDonehoo, Meaghan (Author) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Thesis director) / Barton, Christopher (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description

This thesis addresses fast fashion in the case of Vietnam, a newly emerging economy that is becoming increasingly relevant in garment production, and the recommended policy solutions to further the triple bottom line in the fashion industry.

ContributorsAyers, Jackson (Author) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Thesis director) / Testa, Danielle (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2023-05
165332-Thumbnail Image.png
Description
Political boundaries often divide ecosystems and create the challenge of conserving the ecosystem across borders. Through transboundary ecosystem management multiple groups can come together and manage the ecosystem that spans their borders collaboratively. In the United States there are several examples of ecosystems that span borders, such as the Sonoran

Political boundaries often divide ecosystems and create the challenge of conserving the ecosystem across borders. Through transboundary ecosystem management multiple groups can come together and manage the ecosystem that spans their borders collaboratively. In the United States there are several examples of ecosystems that span borders, such as the Sonoran Desert along the US-Mexico frontier and the Rocky Mountains running through the US and Canada. To gain insight into what leads to effective transboundary resource management I compared two case studies that manage resources over borders with multiple collaborators: Glacier National Park and Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. These two cases offer contrasting ecosystems and backgrounds in transboundary resource management in the United States. To compare the cases I coded them using a collaborative governance codebook (Schoon et al. 2020). The codebook uses a Context-Mechanisms-Outcomes framework to identify aspects of collaborative governance and contextual factors present in each park (Pawson & Tilley 1997; Salter & Kothari, 2014). Once coded, the cases were compared to identify what aspects were similar and different in the parks to help potentially explain what features did or did not lead to effective transboundary resource management.
ContributorsTaetle, Noah (Author) / Schoon, Michael (Thesis director) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor)
Created2022-05
Description
Coral reefs provide many ecosystem services for coastal people. Coral reef fisheries are an important asset to food systems but their role in supporting food sovereignty for Indigenous people has not been assessed. Using ethnographic methods, I conduct a small-N comparative case study of two different areas in Indonesia to

Coral reefs provide many ecosystem services for coastal people. Coral reef fisheries are an important asset to food systems but their role in supporting food sovereignty for Indigenous people has not been assessed. Using ethnographic methods, I conduct a small-N comparative case study of two different areas in Indonesia to discover the role of coral reef fisheries in Indigenous food sovereignty and how food brings value to Indigenous communities.
ContributorsWhaley, Zachary (Author) / Cramer, Katie (Thesis director) / Carr Kelman, Candice (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution & Social Change (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2024-05