Undergraduate Work
During my undergraduate career at the University of Idaho, I took 136 credits in a variety of courses ranging from Ornithology to French and Francophone Cultures to American Environmental History. The University of Idaho Environmental Science and Water Resources program provided me with a solid, scientific base of knowledge but also many opportunities for interdisciplinary learning experiences that have made me into a well-rounded and informed student. Below are summaries of projects and papers that I have completed during my undergraduate career. Click on the titles or hyperlinks to view each piece in its entirety.
Stranger Danger: Interspecific Vocal Responses of Selected Diurnal Passerines to Indirect Predator Alarm Calls
Senior Thesis ENVS 497 This study examines how an avian community as a whole and specifically three common diurnal passerines, the veery (Catharus fuscescens), wood thrush (Hylocichla mustelina), and scarlet tanager (Piranga olivacea), respond to indirect predator alarm calls of the eastern tufted titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) around dusk.
|
Of Birds and Brush: A Case Study of the Juniper Titmouse Baeolophus ridgwayi in the Great Basin
WLF 316 Wildlife Ecology II The purpose of this paper is to (1) identify and examine the threats facing the juniper titmouse, (2) population ecology and dynamics of this species, and (3) provide critique of current management as well as suggestions of better management for this species and the broader avian community of the piñon-juniper woodlands ecosystem. |
“The Answer, My Friend, is Blowin’ in the Wind...” The Unintended Consequences of Wind Energy: A Case Study of the Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus in Spain
WLF 482 Ornithology In Spain, the Griffon Vulture has experienced the highest mortality rates of any bird species affected by wind farms. The aim of this paper is to explore this species' vulnerability to turbine-related death as well as future implications and suggestions for wind energy mitigation in Spain and other nations engaged in wind energy expansion. The predicament of this species highlights the unintended consequences and threats posed by quickly-expanding wind farms that can lead to population declines and local extirpations. |
Fatal Fashions and Caring Actions: Florence Merriam Bailey and the Rise of Bird Conservation
HIST 424 American Environmental History As a budding, young ornithologist, Florence Merriam Bailey (1863-1948) was appalled by the latest fashion trend common among her female friends and soon became involved in the rising bird conservation sentiment. However, bird conservation appealed to only a small, elite fraction of the American public- either the rich upper class or progressive conservationists. Through her writings, Bailey developed an important middle ground that incorporated both scientific arguments for conservation as well as moral and emotional ones, which not only made her oeuvre widely accessible, but in a practical way quietly spread the message of conservation to a much larger audience. |
Des Paysans et des Alimentations: Comment la Mondialisation Menace l’Identité Culturelle de la France
FREN 408 French and Francophone Culture En dépit du fait que la mondialisation ouvre les portes du commerce international et qu’elle permet la circulation plus libre d’idées, de cultures et de traditions globalement, elle rapporte des changements économiques, sociaux et politiques qui causent la perte de traditions et d’articles locaux, surtout l’intégrité de l’alimentation traditionnelle et française qui est sans doute la plus grande partie de l’identité culturelle et de la fierté de la France. Cet exposé examinera et analysera la variété de raisons pourquoi les Français opposent la mondialisation, vu les idées traditionnelles de « terroir » et il comparera l’histoire du paysan ainsi que le développement et l’expansion du commerce global d’agriculture. |
Vector Data Analysis Project: Women in US Congress over Time
GEOG 385 GIS Primer Over the course of nearly 100 years (since the first woman was elected to Congress) women have witnessed some major, progressive measures both at home and in the workplace (mainly due to the work of the Women’s Liberation Movement). As such we might expect to see an equal increase in women in government over time across the nation. This GIS vector data analysis project seeks to illustrate and determine the change in women in the United States Congress (in the House of Representatives and Senate) per state over time (from 1917- when the first woman served in congress- to the present day). The video of women per state in the House of Representatives over time can be viewed here; another video of women per state in the Senate over time can be viewed here. |
Study Site Soil Properties & Management Plan: A Proposal to the University of Idaho
SOIL 206 The Soil Ecosystem Lab This semester-long report details various soil-related aspects from data collection and analysis at a 17-acre study site located near U-Idaho's Arboretum as well as a management plan for best future use of the site. Topics covered in this report include a soil profile description of the study site, particle size analysis, soil physical properties (bulk density, porosity, etc.), saturated hydraulic conductivity, soil organism sampling, cation exchange capacity, pH and salt-affected status, and carbon, nitrogen, and nutrient status. |
Conservation Payments to Ecuador: Not a Sustainable Approach
WLF 440 Conservation Biology Part of a class debate on Yasuni-ITT Initiative, this paper outlines the flaws in the philosophy and structure of this particular initiative. Although the Yasuni-ITT Initiative is unique in that it sought to obtain conservation payments from the international community to preserve parts of the Yasuni National Park in Ecuador, it unfortunately failed due to insufficient international donations and fundamental issues in the framework of the initiative. |
International Studies Through a Coffee Bean
IS 299 Independent Study International Studies The coffee plant and its associated roasted seed, commonly called the coffee bean, seems relatively simple. However, coffee is actually quite a complicated crop and is a major part of global trade. In fact, coffee is one of the most traded commodities on the planet and ranks as the second most valuable primary commodity exported by developing countries. |
|
Position Paper for the Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio +20): The Green Economy in the Context of Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication
IS 310 The United Nations Representing the delegation from Canada, I summarized how this nation has long been on the forefront of combating climate change and identifies the global shift toward a green economy as a sustainable economic practice that improves the standard of living by protecting human health, conserving the environment, using resources efficiently and advancing long-term economic competitiveness. |
|
Mina and Sage: A Spiritual Journey Through Om Mani Padme Hum
CORE 116 The Sacred Journey This short story follows the friendship between two unlikely people while explaining the age-old the six-syllabled Sanskrit mantra, "Om Mani Padme Hum," that is particularly associated with the four-armed Shadakshari form of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion in the Buddhist philosophy. |