2018 – Page 5 – Undergraduate Research Symposium Abstracts

Climate Change’s Impacts on Indigenous Women, Responsibility, and Adaptability

Presenter(s): Simone Hally − Pre-PPPM, Spanish Literature And Culture

Faculty Mentor(s): Mark Carey

Poster 155

Research Area: Environmental And Social Studies

While climate change discourse increasingly recognizes the unique vulnerabilities of indigenous peoples, the experiences of indigenous women with respect to climate change continue to receive less attention, especially with respect to scientific and policy writing. In this paper, I aim to apply Kyle Whyte’s framework that binds “collective continuance” and systems of responsibility with regards to the relationship between climate change and indigenous women. I will apply his framework based on the relationship between the Anishinaabe women and water. I will then test it on the indigenous women in South Goulburn Island’s relationship and responsibility to marine resources, the Baka women’s relationships to the Nbwakha fish, and Indigenous Peruvian women’s responsibility to seed saving and harvesting. I will ultimately argue that Whyte’s lense effectively explains how ability to adapt to and carry out traditional responsibilities factors into climate change’s impact on indigenous women. In all these examples, the ecological effects caused by climate change disrupt the responsibilities of the indigenous women and enables them to adapt in order to fulfill their responsibilities, or create new ones altogether. This adaptation reveals the both oppressive and emancipatory nature of climate change’s effect on women’s responsibilities. Writing about indigenous women and climate change is important not only because of their wealth of experience and knowledge of the environments in which they live, but also because incorporating their voices perpetuates a balanced discourse surrounding indigenous women and climate change. Their perspectives are instrumental in global and regional climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in On-boarding for Event Policy for Volunteers

Presenter(s): Cally Gustafson − Environmental Studies

Faculty Mentor(s): Sarah Wald

Poster 154

Research Area: Environmental Studies

Diversity, equity and inclusion are necessary to think about when planning an event that involves groups of different backgrounds and cultures. I will work to help Bark (an organization whose mission is to help preserve and restore Mt. Hood National Forest back to a thriving forest with help from the community) plan events for their organization that uses diversity, equity and inclusion for the benefit of their guests. In developing a policy about how Bark welcomes volunteers to events, I hope to help Bark choose a friendly way to welcome their guests that will allow everyone to feel comfortable and appreciated enough to come to the following event. I want to allow all races and cultures to feel comfortable at the events through making the events friendly for everyone and to not offend any of them. I would enjoy finding out that through my research I have improved the overall acceptance rate of their guests and also their guest total for events (how many people show up). Through my research I hope that Bark will have an improved onboarding process for volunteers and that their guests will feel welcomed enough to want to come to as many events as they can. The significance of my research is to help Bark be able to have an on boarding process that is diverse enough for everyone to feel welcome and included.

The Changing Climate and its Effect on Winter Tourism Economies in the United States

Presenter(s): Hannah Gerton − Architecture

Faculty Mentor(s): Dave Sutherland

Poster 152

Research Area: Natural Science

Increasing global temperatures and decreasing precipitation levels in the United States have caused a rapid decline in the snowpack over the last few decades. Many regions across the country contain economies that depend largely on a reliable climate. With such drastic changes in the cryosphere and the global temperature, challenges arise surrounding winter tourism. Winter sports are known for being a fun pass-time, but the stability created by their profit and job opportunities are often overlooked. Mountainous locations and areas of high elevation depend on winter tourism; it is critical that such areas begin to prepare for climatic changes by adapting to the new environment. As temperature increases, the snowpack declines causing shorter ski seasons in addition to unsuitable conditions at many of the ski resorts. These poor conditions may cause a large drop in ticket sales and tourism earnings. This often forgotten correlation between climate and winter tourism will only worsen as time goes on. Very little research has been done in this field, so it is important to evaluate the areas of risk and determine what preventative steps can be taken in order to avoid further damage to the economies of winter tourism. It is difficult to stop temperature changes, or decreases in the snowpack, however, it is possible to detect trends and predict patterns that allow for proper planning and adaptations. Implementing such adaptations could save countless regions of the U.S. from the loss of winter tourism and its benefits.

Conservation Efforts in the Progressive Era: A Timeline

Presenter(s): Amanda Ganje − Environmental Science

Faculty Mentor(s): Sarah Wald, Paul Guernsey

Poster 151

Research Area: Humanities

Attempts to conserve and preserve the environment in the United States have been around for over hundred years with roots in the Progressive Era. This time period, from 1890-1920s, saw notable figures like John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt rise up to speak out on the importance of preserving the environment, and under Roosevelt’s presidency came the formation of national parks and monuments. I’ve made a timeline capturing the most significant events from this time period to show the foundation of the conservation movement. This timeline is being used as a part of BARK’s, the watchdog organization for Mt. Hood National Forest, efforts to teach the community on the history of conservation. BARK’s mission is making Mt. Hood National Forest a place where local communities have social, cultural, and economic investment in its restoration and preservation which this timeline hopes to help accomplish this by engaging the community more with the natural environment through learning about the background of its management. The events included in this timeline were found using relevant scholarly journals and books. This information is significant as it is an essential part of the United States conservation history, and educational for the general public.

Climate and Water Privatization in the Andes: Indigenous Livelihood and Political Agency vs. the World Bank’s Professed Faith in the Free Market

Presenter(s): Miles Evans − Music, Humanities

Faculty Mentor(s): Mark Carey

Poster 150

Research Area: Natural Science, Social Science, Political Science

Water and climate change are inextricably linked on numerous levels: ecological, experiential, and political, to name a few. In the Peruvian Andes, climate change has had a profound impact on hydrology, which has in turn threatened the water supply of indigenous agricultural peoples. In the early 1990s, growing water scarcity provoked persistent criticism of the ability of Andean governments to provide water to their people, effectively paving the way for water privatization in the Andes, an effort spearheaded by the World Bank (WB). Although privatization has since been dismantled in countries such as Bolivia and Ecuador, it has more often endured despite various public protests, such as those in Lima and Santiago. These protests decry both the failure of private corporations to provide quality, affordable water and the growing political sway of multinational corporations in the Andes. This paper will analyze WB documents on climate change, water scarcity, water privatization, and Peruvian hydrology alongside academic articles on these same subjects (as well as on indigenous perspectives and political agency) in order to assess and criticize the WB’s arguments for water privatization. The stated rationale and intent of the WB will be compared to its apparent impact on Andean water supplies and to various indigenous criticisms. In particular, this paper will explore the following criticisms of the WB’s efforts in water privatization: they undermines indigenous political agency, have not meaningfully improved water supply, and espouse a free-market fundamentalist approach that is conducive to climate change.

Mental Health in Indigenous Inuit Communities and Canadian Climate Change Legislation: Conceptualizing the Link Between Research and Policy

Presenter(s): Eleanor Estreich − Economics, English

Faculty Mentor(s): Mark Carey

Poster 149

Research Area: Humanities

An emergent literature emphasizing community-based research examines the relationship between climate change and mental health in Inuit communities in Canada, which is driven in part by the fact that Inuit communities are “particularly vulnerable to health-related climate change impacts” (Harper et al. 2015: 1)*. While this academic research has identified approaches toward conceptualizing the link between climate change and mental health, national legislation in Canada about climate and health does not sufficiently reflect the lessons of these community-based efforts. By using methodological, theoretical, and rhetorical criticism, this paper will attempt to provide an answer for how the relationship between climate change and mental health is conceptualized for indigenous Inuit communities in the academic literature, and by comparison, how Canadian national laws dealing with climate change currently address this relationship. This paper will compare academic and legal approaches with the overall aim of judging to what extent national legislation has addressed the important link between climate change and mental health in indigenous Inuit communities. This comparative task is needed, because national climate change legislation shapes priorities and may help determine the extent of the human impacts of climate change in the future. The preliminary research seems to suggest that Canadian legislation primarily focuses on adaptive policies that target the general health of indigenous Inuit peoples as a result of a globally framed climate change issue; as a result, national legislation is currently poorly set-up to incorporate the insights from community-based participatory research. *Harper, S. L., Edge, V. L., Ford, J., Willox, A. C., Wood, M., & McEwen, S. A. (2015). Climate-sensitive health priorities in Nunatsiavut, Canada. BMC Public Health, 1–18. http://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-1874-3

Passing Through Barriers Progressively

Presenter(s): John Creel − Environmental Science

Faculty Mentor(s): Sarah Wald

Poster 146

Research Area: Environmental Policy

This project will examine how various barriers can deflect social movements away from useful information, specifically Bark and it’s advocates for the protection of Mt. Hood National Forest. I will be showing that race, discrimination, language, settler colonialism, and religion can create various types of barriers. My questions are, what factors lead to these groups being put behind these barriers? Also, are there correlations that can be drawn to help mitigate these barriers from arising? As well as how is it beneficial for these groups to gain access to information and be able to participate? The major research strategies I will be using: the gathering of qualitative/quantitative research as well as any case studies that can be found, and an interview would be beneficial as well. The goal is to let anyone’s voice be heard and show that it is beneficial to Barks collective. Can this then be used as an outline for other organizations to help them facilitate information in a more productive manner to society. Thus, forming policies and coalitions that are devoid of barriers that all promote the same goal, which is environmental sustainability and protection.

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