This essay examines community narratives around Keep Virginia Beautiful's Green
Grants initiative. Green Grants is a signature annual program that awards grants to organizations
throughout Virginia in support of projects aligned with one of Keep Virginia Beautiful’s three
pillars: recycling, litter prevention, and community beautification. The primary research
questions are...
The enactment of the Patient Protection Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010 marked a critical moment in American healthcare history. The ACA introduced Medicaid expansion, a policy designed to extend healthcare coverage to a larger population of low-income Americans. This policy quickly became a topic of debate and led to...
To facilitate the design of Natural and Nature-Based Features (NNBF) for flood protection, this thesis expands an existing engineering design methodology to NNBF systems. The existing approach is a Level III reliability method for the performance-based design of traditional coastal engineering systems. The expanded methodology incorporates uncertainties inherent to both...
The electric power grids of countries across the globe rely on load and generation forecasting to know when, where, and how much resources need to be dispatched to sustain proper grid operation. Because of this, forecasting needs to be highly accurate to avoid unnecessary resource dispatch which can be costly....
In 2021, Oregon’s legislature passed House Bill 2021 with relative ease. House Bill 2021 is a mandate for the state’s two largest utilities to reduce carbon emissions from electricity generation on a decreasing scale, reaching 100% below baseline levels by 2040. This ambitious piece of legislation, meant to reduce the...
The energy transition in Oregon poses challenges and offers opportunities to rural areas that tend to be targeted for large-scale renewable energy development. The present case study analyzes how the energy transition has taken place in rural Lake County, to answer the question: to what degree has the energy transition...
Little scholarship exists on the contemporary trance dance movement known as Ecstatic Dance. This thesis investigates the myriad of pathways dancers in the Ecstatic Dance communities of Western Oregon experience movement-induced altered states of consciousness. A secondary aim was to provide a more visually and ethnographically accessible dance annotation system...
This thesis is one part of a study to compare and contrast 10 different proposals and finished projects for microgrids, and the associated community perceptions and response. It has been posited that microgrids have the potential to improve the resiliency and reliability of the electricity grid. In recent years, there...
Few river systems in the world are under equal or more stress than Southeast(SE) Asia’s Mekong River. Several factors threaten the Mekong as the riparian states of China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam jockey for position within its geopolitical sphere. Climate change, globalization,industrialization, urbanization, economic growth, and hydro-hegemony...
An often overlooked student population within higher education, former foster youth, is a population that needs support. Students who were formerly a part of the foster care system who have since aged out, are left to navigate higher education institutions on their own. College support services tailored for the needs...
Much of our knowledge about transgender (folks who identify as not cisgender) lives in universities centers around barriers experienced, feelings of exclusion, and being victims of harassment and violence. This thesis describes conversations regarding captured gender euphoric moments from five students at a large university. They came together through a...
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are complex mixtures that form when organic matter is burned. Humans are primarily exposed to PAHs via air pollution from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass, such a motor vehicle exhaust, cigarette smoke, wood smoke, or industrial emissions; or via ingestion of PAHs bound to...
Few river systems in the world are under equal or more stress than Southeast (SE) Asia’s Mekong River. Several factors threaten the Mekong as the riparian states of China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam jockey for position within its geopolitical sphere. Climate change, globalization, industrialization, urbanization, economic growth,...
As coastal communities face increasing chronic and acute hazards, nature-based coastal engineering solutions have experienced a rapid growth in popularity and interest. Recent works on this topic have shown that “Green Infrastructure” may be effective at mitigating coastal hazards and therefore provide sustainable adaptation alternatives to traditional engineering solutions such...
The WNBA is a league that has been characterized by struggle ever since its inception in 1996. The biggest reason for nearly all of its problems lies with one source: money. The WNBA simply does not have enough money to make it a functionable professional sports league. As a result...
The Rohingya community have faced continuous violence, discrimination and statelessness in the Rakhine State of Myanmar. In 2017, a violent crackdown by Myanmar’s army on Rohingya Muslims sent almost a million fleeing across the border of Bangladesh. They found their temporary home in the refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh...
The primary goal of this study is to illuminate the voices of LGBTQ+ individuals in Oregon and Texas who were victims of workplace discrimination due to their LGBTQ+ status in order to highlight the necessity of LGBTQ+ inclusive employment discrimination legislation. This study used qualitative research methods to gather data...
The purpose of this thesis is to argue that LeBron James’ expressions of activism are, in many ways, perceived as insincere, hypocritical or disingenuous to his followers on the social media platform Twitter. Using the theoretical framework of Affect Theory and Plutchik’s wheel of emotions, a close reading was conducted...
People involved in a nuclear activity, whether they are developing it, benefiting from it, or opposing it, see inherent connections between various aspects of nuclear science and technology. This thesis investigates three nuclear sites: a university research reactor, a dual-purpose reactor that produced plutonium for the U.S. military and electricity...
This study explores an underground museum located in Pendleton, Oregon. Using the method of Critical Discourse Analysis, I identify the ways Whiteness and Chinese as “the Other” are visually and verbally depicted. This study uses a qualitative approach to identify the ways both groups are presented on the tour. The...
The salt marshes of the Salmon River Estuary, Oregon have been of interest for decades due to their disturbance and restoration history, as well as the presence of long-term vegetation transects that were established as early as the 1970s. Vegetation abundance data have been gathered in the four sites of...
Fracking and natural gas have been widely studied in public opinion research over the years, but few studies evaluate natural gas export and the perceptions of its associated economic benefits and environmental risks. Since the shale revolution in the early 2000s, the U.S. transitioned from a net natural gas importer...
Rarely does an industry touch each citizen’s everyday life while simultaneously garnering such little public attention as the energy industry does. From the fuel powering our vehicles to the energy flowing into our homes powering our laptops, TV’s and lights the energy industry enables our modern lifestyles, but this is...
On April 28, 1981, President Reagan delivered his address on the Program for Economic Recovery before a joint session of Congress and the nation. It was the first major public appearance and speech of Reagan following his survival of the assassination attempt on March 30, 1981. The administration sought to...
In his July 31, 1996 remarks on welfare reform, President Clinton signaled his intent to sign into law the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), bipartisan legislation aimed at reforming federal welfare policy. During the press conference, Clinton framed welfare as necessary but ultimately temporary relief, stating its...
In the last twenty years, human trafficking has gained attention in government agendas and media coverage, while anti-trafficking projects have burgeoned worldwide. Anti-trafficking efforts, however, have almost exclusively addressed the issue of sex trafficking with a focus on rescuing women, while overlooking other types of exploitation. This is noteworthy, given...
Renewable energy is on the rise in the U.S. Additional efforts will be required to integrate intermittent and decentralized sources of energy into the electrical grid. Given that storing large amounts of electricity is not yet available at a reasonable cost, electric grid operators must match supply and demand at...
The purpose of this thesis is the development of a comprehensive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education program for the junior secondary school in Maunatlala, Botswana. Community based participatory research methods were followed throughout this project to develop a relevant and culturally sensitive program. Data was collected through interviews with...
High Temperature Gas Reactors (HTGR) are a type of power plants that can provide industrial process heat and high efficiency, carbon-free electricity. The High Temperature Test Facility (HTTF) has been designed to provide data that can be used for the validation of system codes and verification of passive safety features...
Under the Paris Agreement, parties submitted documents outlining their commitments to climate change mitigation and adaptation, called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which are set to be updated to increase ambition by 2020. Costa Rica and México are known for their significant national actions on climate change, so comparing these two...
This thesis examines the multi-faceted threat Iran poses to the stability of the Middle Eastern region, to U.S. geopolitical interests and to the furthering of democratic principles from a realist perspective. Iran’s failure to negotiate a nuclear accord in good faith coupled with its continued militant role in regional affairs...
With the increasing international focus on transboundary cooperation as a part of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Framework, there is global recognition of transboundary water cooperation as a tool for improved governance and management of transboundary surface and groundwaters. Yet, there is not an agreed upon definition of transboundary water...
The primary goal of this study is to look at the influence of family communication patterns on behavior and beliefs, specifically in the context of electoral behavior. In order to effectively influence potential voters and increase the likelihood that they intend to vote in federal elections in the long-term, we...
The increasing complexity and connectedness of energy networks has opened pathways for new forms of collaboration with energy consumers. Despite the emergence of the smart grid an array of policy options like demand-side management (DSM), many families continue to disregard daily household energy consumption, particularly during peak-use times of day....
In the wake of the ``third wave'' of democratization, scholars and practitioners were optimistic regarding the ease with which countries could adopt democratic norms and institutions. However, after four decades of democracy, many competitive regimes have not improved government probity or developed strong forms of accountability. Levels of economic and...
Ocean waves provide a promising source of renewable energy for the North American electric grid. However, ideal control of wave energy converters (WECs) requires perfect forecasting of future wave conditions, and waves can be unpredictable. This paper presents a comparison of three different prediction methods and analyzes their performance in...
As climate change forces energy policy to incorporate environmental impacts and fuel diversification into the traditional model of energy security, finding ways to site, develop, and deliver renewable energy has taken on increasing importance across the United States. With no consistent federal framework to implement these changes, much of the...
Traditional robots have a long history in nuclear-related work because their integration decreases risk to humans in dangerous environments. Soft robotics is one promising new branch of traditional robotics with proposed applications in industry, medicine, and society. Collaborators from the Robotics mLab at Oregon State University (OSU) are currently working...
On January 2, 2016 a militia occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon and captured national attention. The militia vowed to occupy until certain demands were met, and among these demands was a call for less federal control of land. While the occupation lasted 41 days, the militia remained...
Background. Total knee arthroplasty, or replacement, is a common, generally successful, and expensive procedure. Tools to predict outcomes following orthopedic procedures are abundant, yet no commonly used assessment accounts for an individual’s propensity to engage in adaptive health behavior. The 13-item Patient Activation Measure (PAM) questionnaire is a tool that...
African American male students are a small portion of the student body at NCAA Division 1-A schools, but they make up a large portion of population of college football players. African American male college students are also one of the most at-risk student populations on campus in regards to retention....
The Columbia River Treaty (CRT) is often used as an example of how treaties can work to normalize, regulate, and improve the cooperative management of shared water resources between basin countries. Few would argue that, in its limited mandate to regulate hydropower generation and flood risk management for downstream communities,...
Concerns over climate change and energy security have spurred governments worldwide to encourage the development of renewable energy. Although public attitudes and macro-politics, in general, show moderate to strong support for renewables- in particular, wind power- largely because of the economic and environmental benefits associated with it. However, local politics...
Increasing renewable energy development is often seen as an essential tool for combating global climate change, yet despite widespread support in theory, renewable energy often faces problems at the implementation stage. In the state of Washington, where voters have expressed a desire for greater renewable energy by mandating that 15%...
On February 9th, 2014 Michael Sam stated in an interview with ESPN's "Outside the Lines" that he is gay. Since he was drafted, Sam will become the first ever openly gay player in NFL history. The following study aims to explore ESPN's coverage of Michael Sam, with a goal of...
In many regions of the world, a significant portion of the surface water originates in mountain headwaters where the timing and magnitude of streamflow is largely dictated by the seasonal storage of precipitation as snowpack and long-term storage as glaciers. Accumulation, persistence, and melt of snow and ice are functions...
By means of a case study and historical analysis, this dissertation examines the past and present of avian influenza. By integrating disconnected histories of human and animal influenza, this dissertation links historical insights with the concerns of contemporary avian flu science. It is not only a natural history of avian...
U.S. foreign policy during the period between World War II and the Vietnam War has been described as part of a “nation-‐building” or “liberal” grand strategy. This thesis contends that understanding U.S. efforts to influence the internal affairs of sovereign states through the spread of liberal values and institutions during...
Many nations that invest in aquaculture and fisheries for improved nutrition and food security are located in areas prone to natural disasters, such as typhoons. While all residents are vulnerable to the effects of disasters, research suggests that women are disproportionately affected at all stages of disaster management: preparedness, response,...
American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) have more negative sexual and reproductive health outcomes than non-Hispanic whites. Little is known, however, about the factors that lead to sexual and reproductive health disparities for AIANs, including the role of sexual and reproductive health services (SRHS).
Logistic regression analyses were performed on...