Week Nine - Environmental Ethics

 

(www.pawsofdoom.com)

Environmental ethics is a recently-initiated branch of environmental studies which suggests that human beings include and consider the natural world and its non-human inhabitants when studying ethics. This call for environmental inclusion and consideration began in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the historian Lynn Townsend White and the ecologist Garrett Hardins published two incredibly influential scientific papers, "The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis" and "The Tragedy of the Commons", respectively. Whereas White traced the current environmental issues back throughout history, Hardin explained that when multiple individuals act in their own self-interests, a shared, limited resource will ultimately be depleted. These two articles sparked the fire that began to, and continues to, heat many of the arguments revolving around various environmental issues; because the natural world and its non-human inhabitants are now being included and considered in these arguments, so many more factors must be incorporated into the issues' solutions. Oftentimes, what's ethically best for human beings and what's ethically best for the environment intertwine or are, in certain cases, even the same, though it may not always be so apparent.

Environmental ethics is an important factor in the success of our group project because it is (for the most part) what we are using to appeal to the students, faculty, and administrators of Rowan University. I believe that the main reason as to why people will be willing to help us clean up, improve upon, and protect the environment of the campus is because it is "the right thing to do", and at the core of ourselves, that is what we are as a species: right, or good, rather. If we can show our classmates, professors, and administrators what the campus currently looks and is like for wildlife, specifically birds, compared to what it could look and be like, I have a feeling that a majority of those people will be eager to help us create a "friendlier" environment in whatever way he or she can.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Environmental Ethics ü

• Harman, Jay R., and Alan F. Arbogast. "Environmental Ethics and Coastal Dunes in Western Lower Michigan: Developing a Rationale for Ecosystem Preservation." Annals of the Association of American Geographers 94.1 (2004): 23-36. Association of American Geographers. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

Article Summary: In their article, "Environmental Ethics and Coastal Dunes in Western Lower Michigan: Developing a Rationale for Ecosystem Preservation", Jay R. Harman and Alan F. Arbogast explain that the management of the shoreline sand dunes of the Great Lakes has long been argued over; some people believe that the shores could act as an important resource, while others state that the shores must be protected because of their "geomorphic uniqueness". This "geomorphic uniqueness" argument stems from older research, which suggested that the sand dunes were fossil land features. Unfortunately, the wind has gone out of the sails of the latter's argument because it was recently proven that the sand dunes' are not fossil land features. The debate, however, continues. What Harman and Arbogast propose as a solution is rather simple: those arguing against the dunes' preservation ought to "[respect] what others value in respect for them", meaning that they agree to preserve them out of respect to those who want to preserve them, even though they don't necessarily agree.

• Whitford, Andrew B., and Karen Wong. "Political and Social Foundations for Environmental Sustainability." Political Research Quarterly 62.1 (2009): 190-204. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.
• Rice, Gillian. "Pro-Environmental Behavior in Egypt: Is There a Role for Islamic Environmental Ethics?" Journal of Business Ethics 65.4 (2006): 373-390. Springer. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://iseethics.org/

The website of the International Society for Environmental Ethics (ISEE):

"...ISEE has striven to advance research and education in the field of environmental ethics and philosophy, and to promote appropriate human use, respect, conservation, preservation, and understanding of the natural world..."

http://daphne.palomar.edu/calenvironment/ethics.htm

Palomar College's Internet article on environment ethics.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/what-is-environmental-ethics.html

Buzzle.com's ("Intelligent Life on the web") Internet article on environmental ethics.

http://ecoethics.net/bib/

Harvard University's environmental ethics website, which lists countless bibliographies of articles about the subject.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_ethics

The Wikipedia article on environmental ethics.

Week Eight - Race and Ethnicity in Environmental Studies

(www.middlebury.edu)

There appear to be many differing opinions on the roles that race and ethnicity play in shaping one's opinion of the environment. According to most of the Internet articles I have been able to find, minorities (specifically African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans) are not as concerned with environmental problems as they are with what are considered to be more pressing problems, including finding and holding jobs, and providing homes, educations, healthcare, and other necessities for their families. However, there were a handful of more recent articles that exposed a gradual shift, that minorities are becoming more concerned about the environment, its issues, and its policies. The main reason for this shift appears to be the fact that minorities are the ones suffering from the consequences of most of the environmental problems that are currently plaguing the planet, including smog, contaminated drinking water, and global warming. Minorities also currently have the most to gain by being concerned about the state of the environment. Not only will such concern help to reverse the effects of the environmental problems that are hitting them especially hard, the whole "going green" process has created and will continue to create "green" jobs, opening up countless financial opportunities. So, although African American, Hispanic American, and Asian American minorities may have not previously shown as much concern for the environment as the more or less "white" majority, recent developments have caused a shift in those sediments.

Because both Rowan University and the town of Glassboro can be considered reasonably "mixed" racially and ethnically, there's a decent chance that these factors will impact the overall success of our group project. I believe, however, that the university campus exists in a microcosm of its own. Through a variety of payment plans, the students are provided with food, housing, various facilities and, obviously, an education; most do not have families to provide for; most, in fact, do not even have jobs - in those senses, the Rowan University students are not necessarily put under the same pressures that minority groups are. Although I do not know the current state of each individual life, I think I can safely assume that most of the professors and administrators are not, either. So, unlike the nation's minorities, the Rowan University population does not have anything to lose by actively supporting environmental causes. That being said, I think the biggest problem that our group is going to have is not going to be to get people to care about our goals instead of another goal, but to get people to care about our goals at all.

Sources: The articles and links listed below

ü Articles on Race and Ethnicity in Environmental Studies ü

• Whittaker, Matthew, Gary M. Segura, and Shaun Bowler. "Racial/Ethnic Group Attitudes toward Environmental Protection in California: Is 'Environmentalism' Still a White Phenomenon?" Political Research Quarterly 58.3 (2005): 435-447. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 8 Dev. 2011.

Article Summary: In their article, "Racial/Ethnic Group Attitudes toward Environment Protection in California: Is 'Environmentalism' Still a White Phenomenon?", Matthew Whittaker, Gary Segura, and Shaun Bowler echo the most recent development in the race-and-ethnicity-in-environmental-studies debate, that minorities are gradually beginning to care as much as, and even more than, their white counterparts. These three authors, however, focus specifically on Hispanic Americans, stating that, although Hispanic Americans are part of that trend, this minority tends to care more only about the environmental issues which are of "proximate concern", meaning the issues that affect them directly. "Abstract environmental principles", according to Whittaker's, Segura's, and Bowler's research, still remain low on the Hispanic minority's priority list.

• Greenberg, Michael R. "Concern about Environmental Pollution: How Much Difference Do Race and Ethnicity Make? A New Jersey Case Study." Environmental Health Perspectives 113.4 (2005): 369-374. Brogan & Partners. Web. 8 Dec. 2011.

• Pollock III, Philip H., and M. Elliot Vittas. "Who Bears The Burdens Of Environmental Pollution? Race, Ethnicity, And Environmental Equity In Florida." Social Science Quarterly (University Of Texas Press) 76.2 (1995): 294-310. Academic Search Premier. Web. 12 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://environment.yale.edu/climate/files/Race_Ethnicity_and_Climate_Change_2.pdf

The PDF version of the Yale Project on Climate Change's study of the roles of race and ethnicity in public support of climate change and energy policies.

http://lawlibrary.unm.edu/nrj/42/4/03_schelhas_race.pdf

The PDF version of Research Forester John Schelhas's research paper, Race, Ethnicity, and Natural Resources in the United States: A Review.

http://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1402&context=ulj

A Fordham University Urban Law Journal's issue on the problems of classification in environmental equity.

http://www.apen4ej.org/issues_what.htm

An Internet article by the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) about environmental justice for people of all races.

http://www.epa.gov/compliance/ej/resources/reports/annual-project-reports/reducing_risk_com_vol1.pdf

The PDF version of the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) report, Environmental Equity: Reducing Risks for All Communities.

Week Seven - Environmental Economics

(www.uregina.ca)

Environmental economics focuses on the effects that various environmental issues and policies have on the local, national and international economies. Although the study of environmental economics encompasses all of the effects that can occur due to a variety of environmental issues and policies, the United States' National Bureau of Economic Research's Environmental Economics program is specifically concerned with the costs and benefits of policies geared towards air pollution, air quality, toxic substances, solid waste and global warming. Environmental economics in general, however, is focused more on the idea of market failure, which is what occurs when the market fails to apportion resources efficiently, or, as stated by Nick Hanley, Jason Shogren and Ben White, the authors of Environmental Economics: In Theory and Practice: "A market failure occurs when the market does not allocate scarce resources to generate the greatest social welfare." In my opinion, environmental economics is one of the most, if not the most, important factors of the environmental mess we've gotten ourselves into. Because big businesses are so close interwoven with all levels of the government, those who own and are a part of those big businesses are the ones who are going to have to be argued with and swayed if any large-scale environmental policies and procedures are going to be enacted. I think that the best way to go about approaching these big businesses and, through them, the government, about potential solutions to environmental problems, would be by gathering evidence through the application of environmental economics. Environmental economics is so perfect because not only is it concerned about environmental issues and policies, which is what we ought to care the most about, it is also concerned about the effects of environmental issues and policies, which is what a majority of us, unfortunately but nevertheless, care more about.

Environmental economics is, more likely than not, going to have a big impact on both the initial establishment and future success of our group project. I think that the Rowan University Wildlife Conservation Society will gain the most head-way with the university's administration if we describe the financial benefits that improving the campus's environment could have; unfortunately, "money talks" more than anything else. If we gain the approval of the administration, we will most likely receive financial aid if we request it to purchase whatever materials we may need. Although there are others, these are the two major impacts that environmental economics can, and most likely will, have on this project.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Environmental Economics ü

• Isaacs, Jack Coburn. "The Limited Potential of Ecotourism to Contribute to Wildlife Conservation." Wildlife Society Bulletin 28.1 (2000): 61-69. Allen Press. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Article Summary: Jack Coburn Isaacs, the author of "The Limited Potential of Ecotourism to Contribute to Wildlife Conservation", argues about a topic that I've always been in support of, but am now re-thinking about because of his article. As is obvious by the title, that topic is ecotourism. I personally have always liked this solution to protect the environment because, very simply, the environment is beautiful. Not only does it deserve to be preserved, but it deserves to be preserved in places that I or any other tourist would be able to enjoy it fully. Before reading this article, I both liked this solution and thought it was one of the best out there. Isaacs, however, argues that the benefits ecotourism can provide are limited because conservations and preserves are not considered long-term solutions. What came as a surprise to me was that ecotourism often, actually, leads to further environmental degradation because it gives off the impression that the environment is actually doing incredibly well and doesn't need to be protected, backfiring completely. Isaacs ties his argument in with economics by stating that because the main purpose of ecotourism (promoting the protection of the environment) fails, the entire ecotourism market is prone to market failure.

• Whitford, Andrew B. and Karen Wong. "Political and Social Foundations for Environmental Sustainability." Political Research Quarterly 62.1 (2009): 190-204. Sage Publications. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.
• Cortazar, Gonzalo, Eduardo S. Schwartz, and Marcelo Salinas. "Evaluating Environmental Investments: A Real Options Approach." Management Science 44.8 (1998): 1059-1070. INFORMS. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://www.env-econ.net/

An environmental economics blog:

"Economists on Environmental and Natural Resources."

http://yosemite.epa.gov/ee/epa/eed.nsf/webpages/homepage

The United States' Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Internet article on environmental economics.

http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-environmental-economics-and-management/

The website of the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management:

"[The Journal of Environmental Economics and Management] publishes theoretical and empirical papers devoted to specific natural resource and environmental issues."

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/enveco/index.htm

The European Commission's website's Internet article on environmental economics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_economics

The Wikipedia article on environmental economics.

Week Six - Political Ecology

(www.theorganicintellectual.blogspot.com)

Political ecology is almost like environmental economics, except broader - it incorporates not only the economic and social factors that play into environmental economics, but political factors as well. These, combined with environmental issues, are what constitute the essence of political ecology. Despite the fact that this topic is so broad, there are a handful of "fundamental assumptions" that are constant across the board. These assumptions were created by authors of the book, Third World Political Ecology: An Introduction, Raymond L. Bryant and Sinéad Bailey, and include the following: "The costs and benefits associated with environmental change are distributed unequally", "This unequal distribution inevitably reinforces or reduces existing social and economic inequalities", and "The unequal distribution of costs and benefits and the reinforcing or reducing of pre-existing inequalities holds political implications in terms of the altered power relationships that now result." Political ecology, however, is not merely made up of these somewhat negative assumptions. As Paul F. Robbins, the author of Political Ecology: A Critical Introduction, states, political ecology has a "normative understanding that there are very likely better, less coercive, less exploitative, and more sustainable ways of doing things."

If I am to go by Robbins's quote, I would have to say that political ecology is going to impact our group's project in the sense that the Rowan University Wildlife Conservation Society is attempting to find those "likely better, less coercive, less exploitable, and more sustainable ways of doing things" that he mentioned, and apply those ways to the way we treat the campus's various environments and wildlife. At the present, birds are what we lack on campus, and considering the fact that birds are indicators of the health of an environment, we can safely assume that the campus's environment needs to be managed with more care. By balancing the political, economic, social and environmental factors, we hope to begin to do just that.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Political Ecology ü

• Day Biehler, Dawn, and Gregory L. Simon. "The Great Indoors: Research Frontiers On Indoor Environments As Active Political-Ecological Spaces." Progress In Human Geography 35.2 (2011): 172-192. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Dec. 2011.
Article Summary: In their article, "The Great Indoors: Research frontiers on indoor environments as active political-ecological spaces", authors Dawn Day Biehler and Gregory Simon explain that nature-society geographers often focus more on outdoor spaces than indoor spaces during studies of political ecology. Day Biehler and Simon, however, argue that nature-society geographers need to focus just as much on indoor spaces as they do outdoor spaces, especially because recent research indicates that indoor spaces, such as homes, factories, and shopping malls, play an important role in developing both the nature and scale factors of political ecology as well as environmental citizens. Essentially, Day Biehler and Simon believe that indoor spaces are not as "fixed and unnatural" as they seem to be at first glance.
• Peluso, Nancy Lee, and Peter Vandergeest. "Political Ecologies Of War And Forests: Counterinsurgencies And The Making Of National Natures." Annals Of The Association Of American Geographers 101.3 (2011): 587-608. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Dec. 2011.
• HIRONS, MARK. "Managing Artisanal And Small-Scale Mining In Forest Areas: Perspectives From A Poststructural Political Ecology." Geographical Journal 177.4 (2011): 347-356. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://www.environment.gen.tr/political-ecology.html

An Internet article on political ecology.

http://www.hks.harvard.edu/sdn/articles/files/Forsyth-cpe1.pdf

A Harvard University PDF on political ecology.

http://www.ceep.udel.edu/politicalecology/index.html

The Center for Energy and Environmental Policy's (CEEP) Internet article on political ecology.

http://www.centerforpoliticalecology.org/

The website of the Center for Political Ecology (CPE):

"[The CPE] sponsors research and facilitates public access to political ecology by supporting the work of fellows, associates, and CPE members who document and explore the inter-relationships between economic activity, politics, culture, human rights, and the environment."



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_ecology

The Wikipedia article on political ecology.

Week Five - Environmental Psychology

(www.stthomas.edu)

Environmental psychology is the field dedicated to the analysis of the interplay between human beings and their surrounding environments, including natural, social, and learning environments. Factors that can influence the reactions associated with various environments include everything and anything from the color of the walls and pieces of furniture; to how hot or cold the area is; to how much sunlight is let in. Each aspect, no matter how miniscule, plays an important role in how comfortable a person is in his or her living, learning, and working spaces. Accordingly, environmental psychology is most often applied by professional designers, such as architects and urban planners, who are attempting to create an environment that is both effective and inviting for those who exist within it. For example, city officials around the world have recently begun to commission pieces of large-scale street art to be placed throughout the busiest areas so that all citizens can enjoy them, and couples wishing to sell or improve upon their homes hire an interior designer to aid in "maximizing the potential" of each room. The tiniest details can greatly influence one’s reaction to surrounding environments; environmental psychology studies and alters these details to provide the best, most effective and most comfortable outcomes.

Environmental psychology applies to our group project because we're not only improving Rowan University's environment for the wildlife, but for the students, faculty and administrators who make use of the campus as well; to improve the environment strictly for the wildlife would be near-impossible, as most of the changes we wish to enact will affect both human beings and other, "wild" animals. Since human beings and wildlife, specifically birds, need to be considered when the Rowan University Wildlife Conservation Society makes whatever changes to the campus it decides to make, we would most likely do some sort of survey on said changes beforehand - otherwise, if the changes are not as popular as we would have liked, we can alter them before any time or money is wasted. It is likely, in fact, that we will see environmental psychology as it happens as a process: how we, human beings, and how they, wildlife, react to the new changes in our shared environment.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Environmental Psychology ü

• Tonello, G. "Seasonal Affective Disorder: Lighting Research And Environmental Psychology." Lighting Research & Technology 40.2 (2008): 103-110. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Article Summary: In his article, "Seasonal Affective Disorder: Lighting Research And Environment Psychology", Mr. Tonello explains that those affected by Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a malady in which depression occurs throughout the autumn and the winter due to the lapses in natural light, are often taken into consideration by architects, who attempt to make the whatever buildings they're constructing "friendly" for those who suffer from the disorder. Tonello argues, however, that those afflicted with sub-syndromal Seasonal Affective Disorder (sub-SAD) suffer from symptoms that vary from SAD's and are therefore more "individual" than those found in the latter category. According to the author, many who have sub-SAD go undiagnosed because of those varying symptoms and, in effect, do not gain as much from the architect's considerations as those with SAD do. Tonello believes that architects must abandon this "isolated" approach, the one aimed specifically at those affected by SAD, and adopt a more "holistic" view of the building's environments.

• Stewart, Alan E. "Individual Psychology And Environmental Psychology." Journal Of Individual Psychology 63.1 (2007): 67-85. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.
• DAVID MELLOR, et al. "Environmental mastery and depression in older adults in residential care." Ageing & Society 31.5 (2011): 870-884. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 11 Oct. 2011.

 ü Additional Information ü

http://environmentpsychology.com/

A collection of Internet articles on the various topics related to environmental psychology.

http://www.psychology4all.com/EnvironmentalPsychology.htm

Psychology4all.com's Internet article on environmental psychology.

http://sensingarchitecture.com/1456/environmental-psychology-what-every-architect-should-ask-themselves/

Sensing Architecture's Internet article on how the topic of environmental psychology impacts an architect's decisions.

http://www.iaapsy.org/division4/index.php?page=About-Division4

The International Association of Applied Psychology's (IAAP) Internet article on environmental psychology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_psychology

The Wikipedia article on environmental psychology.

Week Four - Semiotics

(www.flickriver.com)

The shortest, simplest definition of semiotics is the study of signs. It does not, however, cover only the conventional meanings of the word, what one would normally think of upon hearing or reading "sign": road signs, neon signs that advertise businesses, restaurants, and places of entertainment, the signs of everyday life. Semiotics also studies the signs represented by and through drawings, paintings, photographs, words, sounds, and body language, even flavors, acts and objects, all of which vary in meaning between countries and cultures. Semiotics, closely related to and at times considered to be a subgroup of the field of linguistics, can be further broken down into three branches: semantics (the relationship between signs and the people, objects or ideas which the signs refer to), syntactics (the relationship between signs in formal structures, such as language or mathematics), and pragmatics (the relationship between signs and the effects that they have on the people who use them). Obviously, semiotics covers a lot of ground, including ground shared between it and linguistics, mathematics, cultural diversities, and countless other fields of study.

Throughout my Commercial Art and Advertising I class last year, much of what we discussed, were taught, and did exercises on revolved around semiotics. Overall, what we learned was basically this: commercial art and advertising, no matter the medium, is usually best when it's simple, straightforward, so that whatever message one is attempting to send is not misconstrued. This fact will most likely apply to our group project whenever we start to advertise what we're attempting to do here on campus, whether it's attract more members or build birdhouses. People should not be confused by our flyers, pamphlets, or banners; that will only detract from our main goal, which is to make the campus's environment "friendlier" for wildlife, specifically birds. Therefore, I believe that using the simplest, most straightforward, most obvious symbols and signs on our flyers, pamphlets, banners and the like would be our best option.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Semiotics ü

• Pollock, Donald. "Masks and the Semiotics of Identity." The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 1.3 (1995): 581-597. Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Article Summary: In his article, "Masks and the Semiotics of Identity", Donald Pollock states that many research papers and Internet articles choose to explain the meanings, symbolism, and social functions of masks. He, however, is curious about how masks are able to have those meanings and symbolism, and play those social functions. In response to this, Pollock explains that he believes that a mask is anything that covers, skewers, or otherwise alters one's identity to the point that the person's identity is no longer recognizable, "as identity is understood in any particular cultural context", meaning however identity is viewed by any specific culture (as the face does not always establish one's identity). That is how he believes masks achieve those functions: by altering one's identity, and that we recognize masks, no matter how they look or what they cover, by that single factor.

• Grant, Morag Josephine. "Experimental Music Semiotics." International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music 34.2 (2003): 173-191. Croation Musicological Society. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

• Hirschman, Elizabeth C. "Men, Dogs, Guns, and Cars: The Semiotics of Rugged Individualism." Journal of Advertising 32.1 (2003): 9-22. M.E. Sharpe, Inc. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://users.aber.ac.uk/dgc/Documents/S4B/

The virtual version of Semiotics for Beginners, a book by Daniel Chandler.

http://www.uvm.edu/~tstreete/semiotics_and_ads/terminology.html

A list of semiotics-related terminology and the corresponding definitions.

http://semioticon.com/

An "open semiotics resource center".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEgxTKUP_WI

A YouTube video explaining semiotics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semiotics

The Wikipedia article on semiotics.

Week Three - Actor-Network Theory

(www.assemblare.org)

The actor-network theory (ANT) explains the relationships between actors (human and nonhuman) and other actors, between actors and ideas, and between ideas and other ideas, all of which create an ever-changing network of actors and ideas. The actions occurring within the network, however, must be continuously repeated, or else the network will fall apart. A helpful example of ANT can be found in its Wikipedia article: teachers and children (human actors) interact with one another as well as with various technologies, such as chairs, tables, and computers (nonhuman actors), all the while exchanging ideas, thereby creating a network; if the teachers do not come to school each morning, or the computers cease to work, the network will disintegrate. Actor-network theory is not, however, about the network itself, nor does it explain why a network forms between certain actors and ideas. Rather, it explains how a network begins, how it maintains itself, and how it falls apart. Norwegian Professor Ole Hanseth provides another helpful example of ANT: when driving a car, a person is influenced by a number of things, including the condition of the car, traffic regulations, and his or her previous experience driving said car, thus creating a network consisting of both human and nonhuman actors, various ideas, and the relationships that exist between each of these factors. This network was set into motion the moment the person stepped into the car, the actors, ideas and relationships falling into place immediately afterward. The network will temporarily disintegrate once the person turns off his or her car and walks away, only to begin once again the next time he or she decides to drive, perhaps adding more components to the network (driving lessons, a police ticket, or a passenger) upon doing so. To sum this concept up, I would like to quote Hanseth: "You do not go about doing your business in a total vacuum but rather under the influence of a wide range of surrounding factors." Actor-network theory, therefore, explains how the "wide range of surrounding factors" comes together as a network, how that network persists, and how that network falls apart.

The impact that the actor-network theory will have on our group project is enormous; an actor-network is essentially a group of people, things, and ideas working together, and that is, more or less, what our project is as well. The "people" will consist of not only the members of the Rowan University Wildlife Conservation Society, but also the students we will request lend a hand in helping us out, the professors we may need to ask advice from, the administrators we will appeal to for permission and financial aid, the grounds crew, the town officials, the students' families, even (and perhaps most importantly) the wildlife. The "things" will consist of birds houses that will be used by goldfinches, the bird feeders that will be visited by chickadees, the boxes nested in by owls, the gardens, the ponds, the newly-planted trees. The "ideas" will consist of improving the campus enough to bring back the wildlife which it is so obviously missing, giving our specified bird species somewhere to bathe, eat, sleep, and live, cleaning up the campus's environment so that other animals will feel comfortable enough to live here. The actor-network theory is so deeply embedded within our project that it is close to being our project; it is, at any rate, our project's backbone.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on the Actor-Network Theory ü

• Young, David, Ron Borland, and Ken Coghill. "An Actor-Network Theory Analysis Of Policy Innovation For Smoke-Free Places: Understanding Change In Complex Systems." American Journal Of Public Health 100.7 (2010): 1208-1217. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.

Article Summary: In their article, "An Actor-Network Theory Analysis Of Policy Innovation For Smoke-Free Places: Understanding Change In Complex Systems", David Young, Ron Borland and Ken Coghill explain how the actor-network theory can be used to implement tobacco use management. As is stated in their article, the actor-network theory is a system, and systems are often created based on the foundation of the system which existed before it, whether or not said system was successful. In this way, tobacco use management might not always be lucrative in, say, keeping an area "smoke-free"; the system used before the current system and of which the latter is based off of may have failed, therefore causing the new system to fail as well. What Young, Borland, and Coghill suggest is to use actors and networks that exist beyond the old actors and old networks to create a system that will effectively manage tobacco usage: "Fundamental, innovative change requires action outside of existing system structures".

• Allen, Casey D., and Chris Lukinbeal. "Practicing Physical Geography: An Actor-Network View Of Physical Geography Exemplified By The Rock Art Stability Index." Progress In Physical Geography 35.2 (2011): 227-248. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.

• Fenwick, Tara J. "(Un)Doing Standards In Education With Actor-Network Theory." Journal Of Education Policy 25.2 (2010): 117-133. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://www.learning-theories.com/actor-network-theory-ant.html

Learning Theories's Internet article on the actor-network theory.

http://www.iscid.org/encyclopedia/Actor-Network_Theory

The International Society for Complexity, Information and Design's (ISCID) Internet article on the actor-network theory.

http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/5222_Ritzer__Entries_beginning_with_A__[1].pdf

An Internet article on the actor-network theory.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2YYxS6D-mI

A YouTube video on the actor-network theory.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actor%E2%80%93network_theory

The Wikipedia article on the actor-network theory.

Week Two - Motivational Theories

(www.thecitrusreport.com)

Dictionary.com defines the word motivation as "the act or an instance of motivating, or providing with a reason to act in a certain way." This definition applies to the theories as well as to the word itself. Motivational theories generally imply that, using the right incentives or under the correct conditions, a person/group of people can be compelled to do something or to act in a specific way; the key is to know what factors drive a person/group of people into action. Motivational theories are often studied closely by managers, teachers, and leaders due to the fact that those who are in charge of groups of people need to understand what will drive those groups, whether they're employees, students, or citizens, to work, think and act. These theories have also attracted the interest of psychologists, including the famous Abraham Maslow, who conceptualized the hierarchy of needs in his 1943 research paper, "A Theory of Human Motivation." Maslow's hierarchy implies that human beings are compelled to meet their most basic needs (such as sleep, food, and water) before they are able to tackle more complex needs (such as safety and security). In essence, according to Maslow, basic survival comes before niceties.

Motivational theories will have a definite impact on not only the beginning of our group project, but on its continuance as well. Those of us involved in the initial stages of the project will need to discover what motivates other people (which actually tends to be incredibly hard) to care about and help protect the environment, thus garnering general interest in what we're attempting to do. To spark these desires, we're going to have to decide on the right ways to connect to the interests of different sets of people, whether they're businessmen-and-women, fellow students, or faculty members, because each set of people, as well as each individual person, is going to have his/her own opinion about the environment that we may have to sway.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Motivational Theories ü

• Dawes, Nickki Pearce, and Reed Larson. "How Youth Get Engaged: Grounded-Theory Research On Motivational Development In Organized Youth Programs." Developmental Psychology 47.1 (2011): 259-269. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Dec. 2011.

Article Summary: In their article, "How Youth Get Engaged: Grounded-Theory Research On Motivational Development in Organized Youth Programs", Nickki Pearce and Reed Larson explain that, in order for children to truly benefit from developmental opportunities provided by organized programs, they must be physically, mentally and emotionally engaged in the activities those programs provide. Pearce and Larson, however, believe that initial interest in such programs is not the factor that causes the children to become engaged - rather, it is personal connection to the program which does that, and personal connection can be fostered even in an environment in which children show no interest being involved, thus causing the children to become nevertheless engaged. In essence, the motivational theory behind the children's engagement in a program is personal connection.

• Brooks, David W., and Duane F. Shell. "Working Memory, Motivation, and Teacher-Initiated Learning." Journal of Science Education and Technology 15.1 (2006): 17-30. Springer. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

• Rettinger, David A., Augustus E. Jordan, and Francisco Peschiera. "Evaluating the Motivation of Other Students to Cheat: A Vignette Experiment." Research in Higher Education 45.8 (2004): 873-890. Springer. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://www.enterprise-pm.com/pmbasics/motivational-theories

Enterprise-PM's Internet article on motivational theories.

http://psychology.about.com/od/psychologytopics/tp/theories-of-motivation.htm

An Internet article found on About.com on motivational theories.

http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/hierarchyneeds.htm

An Internet article found on About.com on Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/a_motivation.htm

A Changing Mind's Internet article which lists many of the theories which can be categorized as motivational theories.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motivation

The Wikipedia article on motivation; within it, information on many different motivational theories can be found.

Week One - Personality Research

(http://www.creativeclass.com/)

Personality research is exactly what it sounds like: the study of an individual's personality. The "research" aspect can include anything from creating an intricate, detailed outline of someone's psychological make-up to discovering what generally makes each person the same as the rest of the population (or, in certain cases, different). The question that plays an enormous role in every branch of personality research, however, is why. Why does this specific personality factor appear in so many people? Or, Why does it statistically appear in those who descend from a certain lineage? Each personality-related question answered is another step towards giving more precise explanations, and therefore better help, to those who need or want the aid, such as advertisement companies that wish to create the most effective television commercials possible, or the woman who wonders whether her tendency to pace under stress is somehow ingrained in her personality.

Personality research is going to impact our group project in the sense that we are going to encounter many different personality types during our attempts to make Rowan University a more bird-friendly campus, and not all of those personality types will be compatible with or accepting of our desires and goals. There's not much we can do to change the minds of those who disagree with us other than attempt to politely convince them to see the situation through our eyes; this convincing can be done through flyers, pamphlets, banners and the like, or through face-to-face conversations. Considering the fact that the Rowan University Wildlife Conservation Society is going to be coming into contact with members of the university's administration, we need to be as respectful as possible, even when we're attempting to convince people, so as to not make any enemies. We may need the aid of these men and women in the future. That's most likely the biggest issue we are going to have in our attempt to improve the campus's environment: dealing with differing opinions.

Sources: Wikipedia.org

ü Articles on Personality Research ü

• Pike, Gary R. "Students' Personality Types, Intended Majors, and College Expectations: Further Evidence concerning Psychological and Sociological Interpretations of Holland's Theory." Research in Higher Education 47.7 (2006): 801-822. Springer. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

Article Summary: In his article, "Students' Personality Types, Intended Majors, and College Expectations: Further Evidence Concerning Psychological and Sociological Interpretations of Holland's Theory", Gary Pike argues that Holland's theory, which is comprised of six, general personality types of which person can be considered, the person's environments, and the interactions between the person and his or her environment, needs to be enlarged to include sociological factors as well as psychological factors. Pike states that the average college student's personality type (psychological factor) and the characteristics of his or her chosen major (sociological factor) are directly linked to the student's expectations about college. Furthermore, these expectations about what college is going to be like are what subconsciously propel the student to choose his or her major in the first place.

• Cervone, Daniel, and Yuichi Shoda. "Beyond Traits in the Study of Personality Coherence." Current Directions in Psychological Science 8.1 (1999): 27-32. Sage Publications, Inc. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

• Robie, Chet, Douglas J. Brown, and James C. Beaty. "Do People Fake on Personality Inventories? A Verbal Protocol Analysis." Journal of Business and Psychology 21.4 (2007): 489-509. Springer. Web. 10 Dec. 2011.

ü Additional Information ü

http://www.personalityresearch.org/

A website which lists personality tests, research papers, references, and researchers.

http://psychology.about.com/od/personalitydevelopment/a/bigfive.htm

An Internet article found on About.com on The Big Five Personality Dimensions.

http://www.personality-arp.org/index.htm

The website of the Association for Research in Personality (ARP):

"ARP is a scientific organization, founded in 2001, devoted to bringing together the diversity of scholars whose research contributes to the understanding of personality processes, structure, and development."

http://www.true-colors-test.com/

The website of the True Colors Personality Test Assessment:

"The True Colors Test is a personality survey designed to can help you understand your personality and behavioral type, as well as those of others."

http://www.yourpersonality.net/

A website which lists free, online personality tests and quizzes.