Index Catalog // ScholarsArchive@OSU

Western U.S. Water Utilities and Adaptive Capacity: A Case Study

Creator:: Schermer, Maren
Abstract:: Water in the U.S. West faces considerable challenges and uncertainties. Climate change has intensified weather extremes, threatening the water sources that support the region’s many stakeholders. Urban water providers are among the stakeholders contending with the challenge of providing reliable water supplies to their growing populations. Recognizing the critical role...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Effect of Oregon’s Coordinated Care Organizations on Healthcare Utilization and Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes Among Low-income Women with Chronic Mental-Physical Comorbidities

Creator:: Masoumirad, Mandana
Abstract:: Background: The number of people diagnosed with chronic physical conditions is increasing in the United States. Chronic mental illnesses are also common in the country. Low-income women and those on Medicaid bear a disproportionate burden of chronic conditions and these conditions significantly contribute to obstetric morbidity. Prioritizing preventive measures and...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Understanding Welfare As We Know It: A Comprehensive and Updated Mixed-Methods Analysis on the Relationship between Public Opinion and Welfare Policies

Creator:: Molina, Rafael Felipe S.
Abstract:: After the 1996 national welfare reform known as the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) was enacted with more stringent eligibility and work requirements for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program, a plethora of analyses have followed assessing the...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Experiences of medical students on a rural health track : a narrative inquiry

Creator:: Mitchell, Phillip
Abstract:: The shortage of physicians serving rural communities is well documented. To address the rural shortage, medical schools have developed extracurricular programs, called rural health tracks, with an intent to foster medical students’ interest in serving rural communities. While there has been some research about the effects of these tracks, almost...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

An Exploration of Used Fuel Sharing in Multi-Reactor Power Plants

Creator:: Lilley, Benjamin C.
Abstract:: Nuclear fuel management is an optimization problem on many levels. Finding “viable” solutions for the core reload design problem is difficult without expert knowledge and software automation. Small modular reactors with a shared used fuel pool demonstrate a novel opportunity for fuel cycle optimization. A Python package was developed and...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Preventing the Accumulation of Fine Sediments in Sand Dam Reservoirs: An Analytical Framework and Flume Experiments

Creator:: Ellingson, Joseph M.
Abstract:: Sand dams – low-head dams built in ephemeral streambeds that store water within saturated sediments – are a proven means to increase water supplies for rural communities in arid and semiarid regions. Water percolates into the reservoir-impounded sediments during wet season rains and can subsequently be extracted during the dry...
Resource Type:: Masters Thesis

Starting Out Equal? The Impacts of Child Care Access on Kindergarten Readiness in Oregon

Creator:: Hansen, Jeanette
Abstract:: Children enter kindergarten on unequal footing. Early childhood experiences shape initial disparities and predict academic achievement and life trajectories. One influence, child care, is not available to all children in Oregon as most counties qualify as child care deserts. This paper analyzes if child care access has an effect on...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Starting Out Equal? The Impacts of Child Care Access on Kindergarten Readiness in Oregon

Creator:: Hansen, Jeanette
Abstract:: Children enter kindergarten on unequal footing. Early childhood experiences shape initial disparities and predict academic achievement and life trajectories. One influence, child care, is not available to all children in Oregon as most counties qualify as child care deserts. This paper analyzes if child care access has an effect on...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Non-lethal Wolf Management Perceptions Impact on the Willingness to Ranch Alongside the Presence of Wolves in Washington State

Creator:: Symmes, Melissa
Abstract:: The management of the Northern Rocky Mountains (NRM) gray wolf population is a longstanding controversy that has fueled generations of political and cultural turmoil in the American West. At the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, wolves were eradicated from the West for the threat...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Assessing Mercury Levels, Health Metrics, and Immune Function in Non-stranded Male California and Steller Sea Lions in Oregon

Creator:: Rae, Samantha N.
Abstract:: California and Steller sea lions (Zalophus californianus, Eumetopias jubatus, respectively) are considered sentinel species because they have long life spans, are long-term coastal residents, feed at high trophic levels, and have large blubber stores that serve as depots for anthropogenic toxicants. There are few studies on sea lion health and...
Resource Type:: Masters Thesis

The Rohingya Refugee Crisis in Bangladesh: Environmental Impacts, Policies, and Practices

Creator:: Bashar, Shahinur
Abstract:: 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...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

International environmental treaty-making. The future of the UN BBNJ Treaty

Creator:: Banshchikova, Inga
Abstract:: Because the environmental threats are becoming global in scope, international cooperation and global governance issues are in the spotlight. The most controversial environmental law and policy problems arise in the areas where no individual state has sole responsibility for governing, "global commons." Scholars believe that the best way to deal...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Essays on Antenatal Care Utilization in Rural Bihar, India: Implications for Policy Design

Creator:: Anand, Gautam
Abstract:: Improving access to and uptake of antenatal care remains a persistent challenge for India. It is a far greater challenge for an underdeveloped, poorer and mostly rural state like Bihar. The 2015-16 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-IV) of India reported that only 3% pregnant women in rural Bihar utilized full...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

An Analysis of Oregon’s Preferential Forest Property Tax Programs in Relation to Non-industrial Private Forest Landowners’ Tax Program Enrollment Decisions and Forest Management Behavior

Creator:: Rushakoff, Benjamin J.
Abstract:: Little is known about non-industrial private forestland (NIPF) owners in relation to Oregon’s two primary preferential forest property tax programs: Forestland Program – the default tax program for many forestland owners, and Small Tract Forestland Option (STF) – a voluntary program wherein landowners pay reduced annual property taxes and an...
Resource Type:: Masters Thesis

An examination of how family structure and support affect a woman's candidacy for public office

Creator:: Steinhebel, Michelle A.
Abstract:: The year, 2020, marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment’s ratification, granting American (primarily white) women the right to vote, however, women remain underrepresented in elected offices across the United States. In comparison to men, women face several additional challenges related to gender when attempting to reach the upper...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Farm to All Tables: Understanding how Advocacy Coalitions Influence SNP-related Policies for Farmers' Markets

Creator:: Consedine, Meagan
Abstract:: This MPP essay examines how states expand access to nutritious food for low-income families, focusing specifically on policies related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and farmers’ markets. Coalitions made up of nonprofits focused on hunger, farmers, and health collaborate to impact relevant policies in their respective states. The...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Is Your Community College Technology Ready? An Assessment Instrument to Promote Technology Adoption

Creator:: Boehme, Laura A.
Abstract:: Background: Calls by presidents and legislators to raise the U.S. college graduation rate to 60% by 2025 have required educational institutions to find ways to increase accessibility and quality while simultaneously reducing costs (Bautsch, 2018; Smith, 2017). Private foundations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are getting involved...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Higher Education Diversity Work and its Discontents: Theorizing Student Social Media Activism as Counter-hegemonic Network of Practice

Creator:: Robertson, Rebecca
Abstract:: Diversity and inclusion represent central challenges and opportunities in the transnational field of higher education, as the number of students enrolled in higher education has expanded exponentially over the past century and universal access to tertiary education has emerged as a development imperative. Within this context, diversity has emerged as...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Making Electric Vehicles Accessible: A Program Evaluation of California's Clean Vehicle Assistance Program

Creator:: Diaz, Alexa R.
Abstract:: Transportation contributes approximately 41 percent of California’s greenhouse gas emissions and 27 percent of national greenhouse gas emissions (CARB, 2019, EPA, 2017). In response to climate change concerns, stakeholders have encouraged the use of electric and hybrid vehicles through tax credits, rebates, and education campaigns. Environmental and transportation justice groups...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Catch per Unit Effort Associated with Species Regulation Changes in Recreational Fisheries Management

Creator:: Frink, Ashley M.
Abstract:: Recreational fisheries regulations at the state level along the US Atlantic coast are constantly changing to ensure the sustainability of marine fish populations. It is hypothesized that effective management of recreational fishing effort should have a positive impact on fish stocks. Using recreational catch per unit effort (CPUE) as a...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Collaboration Challenges: Stakeholder Perceptions of Managing a National Forestry Program. A Case Study of the Multi Stakeholder Forestry Program in Nepal

Creator:: Maskey, Stuty
Abstract:: Increasing calls from stakeholders for a greater role in public decision making has led to the rapid world-wide adoption of multi stakeholder collaboration for policymaking. In line with this emerging trend the Government of Nepal with support from its long-time development partners and bi-lateral donors initiated a policy level experiment...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Laws, Regulations and Action Plans for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances found in Michigan drinking water supplies

Creator:: Whitley, Jamie M.
Abstract:: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) have emerged in the last half century as concerning global contaminants. PFASs have been found in drinking water systems causing negative health impacts for those who rely on this as their primary source of drinking water. PFASs are man-made industrial chemicals composed of carbon chains...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Demand flexibility and residential electricity time-of-use pricing in Fremont, CA

Creator:: Stelmach, Gregory
Abstract:: The biggest obstacle to a 100% renewable energy utility portfolio is the ability to produce enough electricity to meet peak demand windows, which typically occur in the late afternoon to evening period from 3 pm to 9 pm. A popular policy option to reduce peak demand is time-of-use (TOU) electricity...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Understanding Institutional Barriers and Opportunities to Food-Water-Energy Nexus policy implementation in Oregon

Creator:: Lavado Alvarado, Angela Patricia
Abstract:: The interdependences among water, energy and food, are diverse and multidimensional and are referred to as the food-water-energy (FWE) nexus. This nexus approach seeks to understand the complex interactions among these sectors, in order to identify synergies and trade-offs that could serve as the basis for developing effective planning and...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Public Opinion on Food, Water, and Energy: Using Shared Preferences as a Pathway to Policy

Creator:: Daniel, Allison
Abstract:: Food, water, and energy have strong interdependencies; actions in one sector inadvertently affect actions in another sector. Recent literature supports a “nexus” approach, whereby policies related to food, water, and energy are integrated and used in tandem rather than in isolation. Developing a better understanding of the trade-offs between food,...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Towards a sustainable future : a global empirical analysis on the diffusion & innovation of carbon pricing policies

Creator:: Raghoo, Pravesh
Abstract:: There are currently 43 countries which have adopted some kind of carbon pricing policy – either adopted a carbon tax or entered a cap–and–trade, while the remaining countries have not. This has created significant diversity in the world with regard to climate change mitigation. There is thus a need to...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Microgrids and the Transition Toward Decentralized Energy Systems in the United States: A Multi-Level Perspective

Creator:: Ajaz, Warda
Abstract:: The last decade has seen a drastic interest in microgrids throughout the world. Even though this trend might seem to be just another technological solution in the energy sector, it is a part of a greater transition from a centralized energy system to a more decentralized one. However, unlike most...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Resilience Planning for Elderly Residents in Oregon Coastal Communities

Creator:: Whelan, Patrick
Abstract:: When a catastrophic event happens, senior residents who are physically or mentally disabled, are placed at a much greater risk of injury or death. Researchers in the aftermath of hurricanes’ Katrina, Sandy, and Harvey, consistently record elderly residents presenting the most difficult challenges for emergency personnel during evacuation and post...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Early Math Enrollment in Washington State Community Colleges

Creator:: Harri, Ed J.
Abstract:: More than half of students in Washington state community colleges enroll in developmental mathematics, but a relatively small percentage of these students persist to the second year. Many students place into these courses and never enroll; others enroll at some point after the first academic term, even when faced with...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Macro Stories: Policy Process Dynamics of Presidential Environmental Ideas

Creator:: Peterson, Holly L.
Abstract:: Public policy narratives and stories are often referenced by the media, politicians, advocacy groups, and across many disciplines in academia. Studies of social and political narratives support the notion narrative matters, but often lack systematic design capable of producing generalizable findings. The Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) has responded to this...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Co-producing Software for Environmental and Ecological Visualization

Creator:: Zanocco, Chad
Abstract:: Environmental scientists, land managers, and policy actors are increasingly presented with high-stakes high-uncertainty problems stemming from human-ecosystem interactions. To help address these problems, scientists frequently use models that produce enormous geospatial and temporal datasets that are constantly modified and often seek input from communities outside their discipline. To assist scientists—as...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Essays on Public-Private Contracting

Creator:: Gultom, Yohanna M. L.
Abstract:: In this work, I address foundational concerns at the interface of institutions, governance structure, transaction costs, and efficiency in public-private contracting. Following transaction cost economic perspective, I build and justify the theoretical models explaining that institutions may affect the economic performance of public-private contracting through the effect of transaction costs....
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Risk Perceptions and Behavioral Intentions : Responses to the Threat of Cascadia Subduction Zone Earthquakes and Tsunamis.

Creator:: Buylova, Alexandra
Abstract:: This research examined public perceptions of risk, behavioral intentions in the event of the M9 Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ) earthquake and tsunami on the Oregon Coast, and factors that may influence both attitudes and intentions. A household survey was conducted to understand public opinion in Seaside, Oregon, which is located...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Predicting the Relationships between High School Characteristics and High School Community College Enrollment Rate Using the Oregon Promise.

Creator:: Murray-Jensen, Julie
Abstract:: Background: Legislators, policy-makers, and leaders in higher education and within communities, are increasingly turning to place-based scholarships, or “promise programs”, to encourage college enrollment and address growing public concerns regarding college affordability. One such program, the Oregon Promise, was implemented across the state of Oregon in the fall of 2016....
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Colonization, Statemaking, and Development: A Political Ecology of the Saru River Development Project, Hokkaido, Japan

Creator:: Ioannides, Michael J.
Abstract:: Although dam construction has been an integral tool in development initiatives for nearly a century, dams can have significant negative impacts on local residents, particularly those who are permanently displaced from their homes and must be resettled elsewhere. Dams have unique impacts on indigenous peoples. As a result, many dam...
Resource Type:: Masters Thesis

Community Resilience to Climate Change in Rural Java, Indonesia

Creator:: Utami, Arini Wahyu
Abstract:: Climate change increases weather unpredictability, threatens communities whose livelihoods depend on natural resources, such as rural communities. Utilizing a Community Capital Framework (Flora and Flora, 2013) and Governance of Complex Adaptive Systems (Duit and Galaz, 2008), this study concentrated on the role of cultural and political capital in supporting rural...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Investigating Factors that Influence an Ecological Attitude- Behavior Gap among Oregonians

Creator:: Schultz, Sayard
Abstract:: This study examines the determinants of food consumption behaviors, such as purchasing less meat products, paying attention to how and where food is produced, and reducing food waste within the household. Food consumption is particularly important given that it can often comprise between 10% to 30% of the total household...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Complicating the Rural in Oregon's Water Policymaking

Creator:: Freeman, Misty
Abstract:: The state of Oregon is divided in important ways along rural and urban lines, including the way people make a living, individual and group relationships with the natural world, political ideologies, and personal values. This rural-urban divide has assisted policymakers in making decisions that balance the needs of Oregonians on...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

The Missing Link: Use of Renewable Energy Codification in U.S. Cities

Creator:: Mathur, Shivani
Abstract:: Cities of the world today house more than half the world’s population, contribute to 80 percent of the global GDP, consume approximately 70 percent of the global energy and produce 70 percent of the greenhouse gases produced worldwide (Floater et al., 2014; Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2014). City governments...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Social Learning and Adaptive Capacity in Collaborative Watershed Partnerships

Creator:: Calvert, Daniel T.
Abstract:: This dissertation examines learning driven adaptations in salmon recovery efforts and water resources management in Oregon. The case study utilizes a framework highlighting the connections between human and natural systems. Semi-structured interviews are used to analyze interactions between rural riparian landowners and watershed council staffs living and working in Oregon’s...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Stakeholder Perceptions of Public Participation in LNG Siting in Coos Bay, Oregon

Creator:: Gaustad, Brittany V.
Abstract:: Selecting locations for large energy facilities represents a land use dilemma: The beneficiaries of such facilities often are not the ones to suffer from adverse local impacts. As a result, it is not uncommon for local opposition groups to form in response to such proposals, and although opportunities for public...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Household Determinants and the Resource Consumption: A Case Study of Baghmara Community Forestry in Nepal

Creator:: Timilsina, Dinesh
Abstract:: This study examines the association of household characteristics with forest product consumption and other benefits derived from community forest in Nepal. The analysis is based on random sample data of 80 households from a Community Forest User Groups of Baghmara Community Forestry (BCF) in Nepal. Using an OLS regression to...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Visualization in environmental science

Creator:: Winters, Kirsten M.
Abstract:: The VISualization of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems (VISTAS) software development project began with the proposition that visualization would increase the ability of scientists to explore and communicate their data, especially complex datasets that span multiple spatial and temporal scales. A case study of VISTAS articulates how and why scientists intend...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Utilizing relational and social network analysis to inform community-based climate change adaptation : a central Oregon case study

Creator:: Jacobs, Derric B.
Abstract:: Central Oregon's landscape is rich in dry forests prone to frequent wildfires. Climate change studies and improved modeling indicate this region could experience conditions that result in an increase in number and severity of wildfires. With the potential for increased environmental hazards, the nearby communities face potential risks and vulnerabilities...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

A Sticky Problem: Identifying the Barriers to the Adoption of Fats, Oils, and Grease as an Energy Feedstock in Oregon

Creator:: Davidson, Ian T.
Abstract:: This study investigates the barriers faced by fats, oil, and grease (FOG) as an energy feedstock in the state of Oregon. FOG, which typically originates in food service establishments (FSEs), historically has been treated as waste, yet it also has the chemical make up to be an energy feedstock in...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

An Analysis of Community Attributes Likely to Result in School Districts Repealing Native American Mascots

Creator:: Miller, Alethia T.
Abstract:: Michigan’s State Department of Education issued a resolution in 2003 calling for all public K-12 schools to repeal their American Indian mascots and in 2013 the Michigan Department of Civil Rights filed a complaint with the United States Department of Education in response to school districts failing to do so....
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Seed quality and plant establishment studies of seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum Sw.)

Creator:: Baker, Stanley D.
Abstract:: Seashore paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum Sw.) is an important warm-season perennial turfgrass, known for its tolerance to salinity. Turfgrass is used for homes, municipalities, sod farms, resorts, and sports fields. Seashore paspalum has historically been planted in sub-tropical and tropical climates because of its heat tolerance. Seashore paspalum could become an...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

Evaluating the EWEB Model: Institutional Structure as a Determinant in the Success of a Voluntary Landowner Incentive Program

Creator:: Fishler, Hillary
Abstract:: Eugene Water and Electric Board (EWEB) located in Eugene, Lane County, Oregon, is developing a voluntary landowner incentive program that will provide monetary incentives to non-industrial private forest (NIPF) owners in the McKenzie River Watershed, EWEB’s drinking water source for the metropolitan area of Eugene, to promote good stewardship of...
Resource Type:: Capstone Project

Resilience of large river basins : applying social-ecological systems theory, conflict management, and collaboration on the Mekong and Columbia Basins

Creator:: MacQuarrie, Patrick R.
Abstract:: River basins provide essential services for both humans and ecosystems. Understanding the connections between ecosystems and society and their function has been at the heart of resilience studies and has become an increasing important endeavor in research and practice. In this dissertation, I define basin resilience as a river basin...
Resource Type:: Dissertation

An investigation and analysis of the incentives and disincentives for conflict prevention and mitigation in the Bureau of Reclamation's water management

Creator:: Ogren, Kimberly
Abstract:: This study addresses the question: "What are the incentives and disincentives for conflict prevention and mitigation in the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), and how do they factor into Reclamation's management of water in the western United States?" Incentives and disincentives for conflict prevention (i.e., actions taken to avoid conflict) and...
Resource Type:: Masters Thesis

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