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1. Lessons from a pandemic for systems-oriented sustainability research

   https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abd8988  

   Selin, Noelle E. ( May 2021 , Science Advances)

   This review examines research on environmental impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from a systems-oriented sustainability perspective, focusing on three areas: air quality and human health, climate change, and production and consumption. The review assesses whether and how this COVID-19–focused research (i) examines components of an integrated system; (ii) accounts for interactions including complex, adaptive dynamics; and (iii) is oriented to informing action. It finds that this research to date has not comprehensively accounted for complex, coupled interactions, especially involving societal factors, potentially leading to erroneous conclusions and hampering efforts to draw broader insights across sustainability-relevant domains. Lack of systems perspective in COVID-19 research reflects a broader challenge in environmental research, which often neglects societal feedbacks. Practical steps through which researchers can better incorporate systems perspectives include using analytical frameworks to identify important components and interactions, connecting frameworks to models and methods, and advancing sustainability science theory and methodology. 

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2. Introducing IPOACHED: A conservation criminology-based framework to understand wildlife species targeted by poachers in protected areas

   https://doi.org/10.3389/fcosc.2022.992621  

   Kahler, Jessica S. ; Rivera, Christian J. ; Gore, Meredith L. ( December 2022 , Frontiers in Conservation Science)

   The criminogenic dimensions of conservation are highly relevant to contemporary protected area management. Research on crime target suitability in the field of criminology has built new understanding regarding how the characteristics of the crime targets affect their suitability for being targeted by offenders. In the last decade, criminologists have sought to apply and adapt target suitability frameworks to explain wildlife related crimes. This study seeks to build upon the extant knowledge base and advance adaptation and application of target suitability research. First, we drew on research, fieldwork, and empirical evidence from conservation science to develop a poaching-stage model with a focus on live specimens or wild animals - rather than a market stage and wildlife product -focused target suitability model. Second, we collected data in the Intensive Protection Zone of Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (BBSNP), Sumatra, Indonesia through surveys with local community members (n=400), and a three-day focus group with conservation practitioners (n= 25). Our target suitability model, IPOACHED, predicts that species that are in-demand , passive , obtainable , all-purpose , conflict-prone , hideable , extractable , and disposable are more suitable species for poaching and therefore more vulnerable. When applying our IPOACHED model, we find that the most common response to species characteristics that drive poaching in BBSNP was that they are in-demand , with support for cultural or symbolic value (n=101 of respondents, 25%), ecological value (n=164, 35%), and economic value (n=234, 59%). There was moderate support for the conflict-prone dimension of the IPOACHED model (n=70, 18%). Other factors, such as a species lack of passiveness , obtainability and extractability , hamper poaching regardless of value. Our model serves as an explanatory or predictive tool for understanding poaching within a conservation-based management unit (e.g., a protected area) rather than for a specific use market (e.g., pets). Conservation researchers and practitioners can use and adapt our model and survey instruments to help explain and predict poaching of species through the integration of knowledge and opinions from local communities and conservation professionals, with the ultimate goal of preventing wildlife poaching. 

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3. Institutions, Voids, and Dependencies: Tracing the Designs and Robustness of Urban Water Systems

   https://doi.org/10.4000/irpp.3455  

   Deslatte, Aaron ; Koebele, Elizabeth A. ; Bartels, Lauren ; Wiechman, Adam ; Vicario, Sara Alonso ; Coughlin, Celeste ; Rybolt, Desi ( July 2023 , International Review of Public Policy)

   Urban water systems across the United States are facing a variety of challenges to existing supply and demand dynamics. Responding to these challenges and working toward sustainability in these complex socio-environmental systems (SES) requires integrating various types of information – ranging from hydrologic data to political considerations and beyond – into policy and management decisions. However, the design of institutions, i.e. the formal rules in which urban water utilities are embedded, impact the flow of various types of information, especially across diverse actor groups critical to developing and implementing policy. Drawing on a neuroscience-informed Bayesian application of the Robustness of Coupled Infrastructure Systems (CIS) Framework, this study examines the institutional designs of two urban U.S. water systems. It aims to advance our understanding of these systems by: A) theoretically linking cognitive science and its action-oriented predictive processing approach to the institutional configurations that shape collective-action; and B) identifying potential institutional dependencies and voids that may limit the use of formalized climate-related guidance in systems facing increased risks. We utilize process-tracing along with an institutional analysis approach called the Institutional Grammar Tool (IGT) to parse the institutions into their semantic and syntactic components, identifying institutional dependencies, voids, or conflicts which may influence long-range performance of the systems. Our findings have important implications for the (re)design of institutions that better facilitate the flow of information among key policy actors and support policy changes that promote sustainable long-term urban water supply. 

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4. Chapter 80 - Experimental and behavioral economics to inform agri-environmental programs and policies.

   https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.hesagr.2021.10.006  

   Palm-Forster, L. & ( October 2021 , Handbook of agricultural economics)

   Agricultural and applied economists have begun routinely using behavioral and experimental economics tools to answer important questions about agri-environmental policies and programs. These tools offer valuable insights into decision-making that can advance our economic understanding of human behavior and inform evidence-based policies. However, conducting robust economic experiments on agri-environmental topics presents unique challenges that can make implementation of these studies difficult and limit the applicability of results. This chapter provides a practical guide for researchers regarding best practices for applying experimental and behavioral economics to agri-environmental research focused on producer decision-making. We begin with a brief overview of how insights from behavioral economics have contributed to related literatures over past decades and highlight how economic experiments have been used to answer important research questions in those domains. We describe the types of economic experiments used to answer policy-relevant questions and carefully consider the advantages and limitations of each method in various contexts. We also highlight important trade-offs between control, context, and representativeness to consider when determining the most appropriate type of experiment to conduct. The chapter emphasizes five contemporary issues related to conducting robust experimental economics studies: replicability, statistical power, publication bias, farmer and rural landowner recruitment, and detection of heterogeneous treatment effects. To assist researchers in addressing each issue, we outline best practices and we offer recommendations for researchers, editors, reviewers, and funders. We also discuss research ethics and community engagement. Finally, we present a framework for prioritizing future economics research that can inform agri-environmental programs and policies. 

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5. Understanding the ‘us all’ in Engineering 4 Us All through the Experiences of High School Teachers

   Berhane, B. ; Dalal, M. ; Klein-Gardner, S. ; Carberry, A. ; Reid, K. ; Beauchamp, C. ; Kouo, J. ; Pines, D. ( January 2021 , 3rd annual CoNECD – The Collaborative Network for Engineering and Computing Diversity Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   As our nation’s need for engineering professionals grows, a sharp rise in P-12 engineering education programs and related research has taken place (Brophy, Klein, Portsmore, & Rogers, 2008; Purzer, Strobel, & Cardella, 2014). The associated research has focused primarily on students’ perceptions and motivations, teachers’ beliefs and knowledge, and curricula and program success. The existing research has expanded our understanding of new K-12 engineering curriculum development and teacher professional development efforts, but empirical data remain scarce on how racial and ethnic diversity of student population influences teaching methods, course content, and overall teachers’ experiences. In particular, Hynes et al. (2017) note in their systematic review of P-12 research that little attention has been paid to teachers’ experiences with respect to racially and ethnically diverse engineering classrooms. The growing attention and resources being committed to diversity and inclusion issues (Lichtenstein, Chen, Smith, & Maldonado, 2014; McKenna, Dalal, Anderson, & Ta, 2018; NRC, 2009) underscore the importance of understanding teachers’ experiences with complementary research-based recommendations for how to implement engineering curricula in racially diverse schools to engage all students. Our work examines the experiences of three high school teachers as they teach an introductory engineering course in geographically and distinctly different racially diverse schools across the nation. The study is situated in the context of a new high school level engineering education initiative called Engineering for Us All (E4USA). The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded initiative was launched in 2018 as a partnership among five universities across the nation to ‘demystify’ engineering for high school students and teachers. The program aims to create an all-inclusive high school level engineering course(s), a professional development platform, and a learning community to support student pathways to higher education institutions. An introductory engineering course was developed and professional development was provided to nine high school teachers to instruct and assess engineering learning during the first year of the project. This study investigates participating teachers’ implementation of the course in high schools across the nation to understand the extent to which their experiences vary as a function of student demographic (race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status) and resource level of the school itself. Analysis of these experiences was undertaken using a collective case-study approach (Creswell, 2013) involving in-depth analysis of a limited number of cases “to focus on fewer "subjects," but more "variables" within each subject” (Campbell & Ahrens, 1998, p. 541). This study will document distinct experiences of high school teachers as they teach the E4USA curriculum. Participants were purposively sampled for the cases in order to gather an information-rich data set (Creswell, 2013). The study focuses on three of the nine teachers participating in the first cohort to implement the E4USA curriculum. Teachers were purposefully selected because of the demographic makeup of their students. The participating teachers teach in Arizona, Maryland and Tennessee with predominantly Hispanic, African-American, and Caucasian student bodies, respectively. To better understand similarities and differences among teaching experiences of these teachers, a rich data set is collected consisting of: 1) semi-structured interviews with teachers at multiple stages during the academic year, 2) reflective journal entries shared by the teachers, and 3) multiple observations of classrooms. The interview data will be analyzed with an inductive approach outlined by Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña (2014). All teachers’ interview transcripts will be coded together to identify common themes across participants. Participants’ reflections will be analyzed similarly, seeking to characterize their experiences. Observation notes will be used to triangulate the findings. Descriptions for each case will be written emphasizing the aspects that relate to the identified themes. Finally, we will look for commonalities and differences across cases. The results section will describe the cases at the individual participant level followed by a cross-case analysis. This study takes into consideration how high school teachers’ experiences could be an important tool to gain insight into engineering education problems at the P-12 level. Each case will provide insights into how student body diversity impacts teachers’ pedagogy and experiences. The cases illustrate “multiple truths” (Arghode, 2012) with regard to high school level engineering teaching and embody diversity from the perspective of high school teachers. We will highlight themes across cases in the context of frameworks that represent teacher experience conceptualizing race, ethnicity, and diversity of students. We will also present salient features from each case that connect to potential recommendations for advancing P-12 engineering education efforts. These findings will impact how diversity support is practiced at the high school level and will demonstrate specific novel curricular and pedagogical approaches in engineering education to advance P-12 mentoring efforts. 

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