Recent communitydevelopment_ucd items

California Federal and Open Meeting Legislation

Thu, 5 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +0000

California Federal and Open Meeting Legislation

Not Yet Glowing: Sacramento Delta Anglers and the Distant Hum of Risk

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The history of gold mining and industrial development around the waterways of

Northern California have made the prominence of mercury contamination an increasing

problem in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (the Delta). Scientists strive to understand

the relationship between mercury and aquatic environments, between mercury and fish,

and between mercury and human health. Meanwhile, fishermen frequent the Delta for

both sport and subsistence fishing and are often greeted with advisory signs urging them

to limit their locally-caught fish consumption. Advisory signs, however, leave out the

more complex historical and political processes that surround mercury’s presence in the

Delta waters, leaving fishermen with little information outside of the vague threat present

on advisory signs. Advisory signs and similar education efforts make assumptions that

the best way to mitigate the problem of mercury contamination is through...

Cooperatives and CSAs in Theory and Practice

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The weakening link between food consumption and agricultural production has stimulated

concern about deteriorating agricultural practices, about the decline in small farm numbers,

and about the ways in which the land is being used and its environmental consequences.

This paper discusses how Community Supported Agriculture Cooperatives (CSA co-ops),

as a strategy through which farmers and consumers become direct interactive agents,

contribute to the creation and maintenance of locally based, sustainable food economies.

Definitions and general considerations of single-farm CSAs and agricultural

cooperatives are examined setting the context for the theoretical and practical analyses of

the CSA co-op model. Benefits and challenges that a cooperative structure brings to the

traditional single-farm CSA model are examined from three different perspectives: that of

farmers‟, of consumers‟, and the community. It is argued that...

Digital Storytelling: A Comparative Case Study in Three Northern California Communities

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this research was to explore how participants in digital storytelling projects used and understood digital stories as part of community-based projects. More specifically, > probed the extent to which respondents identified project outcomes related to individual, organizational, and community empowerment. Respondents were asked a series of questions about their expectations for the production of the digital stories and the extent to which these expectations were met. Particular attention was paid to the role of the respondent in story development, production, and distribution.

Can Federal Funding Create Bicycle Friendly Cities? A Comparative Study of Bicycle Planning in Sacramento and Amsterdam

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Bicycling in the United States has traditionally been seen as a means for recreation whereas in countries like the Netherlands bicycling is viewed and utilized as an integral part of the transportation system. With increasing health and environmental concerns in the United States it is important to consider transportation alternatives. The passage of ISTEA in 1991 has allowed federal funds to be used for bicycle projects. While availability of these funds can be seen as a step in the right direction, the number of bicycle trips has not increased in response to increased investment. Looking to the Netherlands’ example it appears that a multi-faceted approach will be necessary to achieve high levels of bicycling. Without addressing other factors such as land use, culture, safety, and vehicle use, as the Dutch have done, federal investment will likely not have as powerful an effect.

Conserving Farmland… But For Whom? Using agricultural conservation easements to improve land ownership by next generation’s farmers

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

It is unclear who the farmers of the future will be, and how they will afford the

land they work. Due to unprecedented residential development pressure, land prices in

many of the state’s most productive agricultural areas have climbed well out of the reach

of new farmers. High land prices, coupled with an increasingly marginal, globalized

agricultural industry, have given rise to two interrelated problems: farmland conversion

to other uses, and the flight of young people from rural farming communities.

Agricultural conservation easements (ACEs) have emerged as a market-based tool

to slow farmland conversion by extinguishing development rights on threatened land.

Rather than being reduced to a market price consistent with it agricultural income

potential, easement-encumbered land sells to non-farmers at well beyond its farming

value. What can the farmland conservation community do about this?

This study frames...

Too Much Sun?: Emerging Challenges Presented By California & Federal Open Meeting Legislation to Public Policy Consensus Building Processes

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Public policy consensus building processes, which have been heralded as truly democratic processes promoting citizen involvement in government decision making, are increasingly subject to state and federal open meeting laws. While both open meeting laws and consensus building processes were developed with the laudable intent of enhancing the legitimacy of governmental processes, it has been alleged that application of the former to the latter poses significant challenges for consensus building bodies. Through a case study focusing on the impacts of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (the FACA) and California‟s Brown and Bagley-Keene Acts on consensus building processes managed by the Center for Collaborative Policy (the CCP), this thesis explores the interplay between open meeting laws and consensus building processes. It surfaces several different categories of challenges that open meeting laws present to consensus building processes, as well as discusses the potential geneses...

IT Services in the Global Economy: The Case of Mexico

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

In 2003, Business Week posed the alarming question of whether the jobs of white-collar workers in developed countries were on the verge of being offshored to developing countries. In this article Mexico was not even mentioned, but by 2006 the assessment had changed, as Business Week published an article on the offshoring of engineering jobs that focused entirely upon Mexico. What a difference three years makes. My thesis explores the offshoring to Mexico of knowledge-process based work, or what is currently described as “administrative and technical services.” Mexico is an interesting case study because it has a unique location, as it is the closest low labor cost neighbor to the U.S. Further, it has a history as a destination for offshored activities from the U.S., predominantly in manufacturing.

Community Participation in Climate Protection Actions A Case Study of Climate Change and Community Sustainability Planning in the City of Davis, California

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

When facing the challenge of finding ways to reduce GHG emission to mitigate climate change, besides the actions by government at all levels, planners also need to consider how local communities, which are important actors in the implementation of climate protection plans, react and participate in the process. Through a case study of climate change and community sustainability initiatives in the City of Davis, California, this thesis explores the community participation process and evaluates its effectiveness. I conducted this research by observing the Davis Climate Action Team (CAT) meetings and related public forums, interviewing related participants, participating in the Low Carbon Diet Pilot Program (LCDPP) and its meetings, and surveying the participants of LCDPP. From the analysis of two community programs, I have found that the City of Davis’ planned community participation plays an important role in helping the City staff develop the local action plan and motivate participants...

Assessing the Local Marketing Potential for Mandarin Growers and Hoshigaki Producers in Placer County

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this project is to identify the ways to promote and preserve two local food products, the mandarin and hand-dried persimmon, in Placer County, California. The first chapter details a general history of agriculture in the county. The next chapter is a detailed description of mandarin supply and demand, an assessment of current marketing channels for the mandarin within Placer County, followed by the overall barriers and opportunities for promoting the product and for expanding the market in mandarin growers in the county. The last chapter is a similar examination of another agricultural product in the county known as hoshigaki (Japanese hand-dried persimmon). This paper concludes with some broader themes reflected by the effort of Placer County’s food growers and food producers to support small-scale, localized food systems and some of the unique lessons this community has experienced.

ACCESS TO CAPITAL IN THE ABSENCE OF RELIGIOUSLY APPROPRIATE FINANCIAL PRODUCTS: A CASE STUDY ON MUSLIM BUSINESS OWNERS IN SACRAMENTO

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Religious law prohibiting the use of interest presents a particular challenge for Muslim business owners all across the United States. Recently, Islamic financing in America has gained much attention as it offers alternatives to the growing Muslim market in America. Little research exists, however, that assess the challenges (and their implications) that Muslim business owners face in accessing financial resources. This thesis addresses the question of how business owners have accessed capital in the absence of religiously appropriate financial products. The study investigates the role of religious commitment in shaping the decisions of a subset of Muslim business owners and offers a means to understand what factors best indicate one’s predisposition to use Islamic Financing Products.

To explore these questions, 19 small business owners within the Sacramento area, (identified via purposive, snowball sampling) were surveyed and interviewed. Overall, the sample demonstrated...

The Built Environment and Migration: A Case Study of Mexico

Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Through the prism of the built environment, my aim in this research is to broaden the understanding of remittance expenditures –be it collective or familial. My concern here is to analyze the transformation of the physical environment brought on by transnational practices, specifically in a migrants’ community of origin. The study investigates the following question: What is the material impact of migration in a migrants’ community of origin? Subquestions include: How is migration, namely, the uses of collective and individual remittances, changing the village’s townscape? Are architectural aesthetics and the use of materials being transformed? Is the built environment reordering and/or reinforcing social relations?

Natural Gas Discovery and Development Impacts on Rio Vista and Its Community

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Natural Gas Discovery and Development Impacts on Rio Vista and Its Community